According to the company, today’s top drivers in minerals processing and aggregate production are safety, productivity and cost efficiency. Automation and intelligent solutions enable plants to improve both their financial and environmental performance. Metso provides these industries with a combination of inhouse expertise on processes, plant-wide automation and energy-efficient equipment and processes.

Metso’s flagship system for minerals processing and aggregate production is Metso DNA. It is a scalable system that can be expanded step by step from one subprocess to another to build a complete plant-wide system including advanced process controls, analyzers and information management. It can also be easily integrated with other suppliers’ systems. The system is complemented by a wide technology and service offering.

“In hard economic times when plants have no extra money for new machine investments, they can get more out of their existing equipment and processes through automation and intelligent solutions. Productivity and cost efficiency can be improved by optimizing process performance and minimizing lost time,” said Kari Heikkilä, director–minerals processing systems automation for Metso.

According to Heikkilä, Metso is currently developing solutions that will embed automation even further within the machines, enabling them to intelligently communicate with each other. Active R&D within Metso and collaboration with recognized research institutes keeps the company at the forefront of technology.

By enabling better process control and visibility, an advanced automation system keeps processes running smoothly. Accurate online measurement information and diagnostics show how the machines and the plant are working; a single piece of data can make or break the process. For example, condition monitoring solutions installed on large machines enable preventive maintenance and help avoid costly unplanned downtime, resulting in better machine reliability and availability, Metso said.

“You have to measure a process in order to control it. Plant stability is the key to good overall capacity, high-quality end products and safe operation,” Heikkilä said.

Declining ore grades and complex ores with more impurities mean getting more out of less and cause headaches in minerals processing. Minerals recovery can be optimized and production boosted through seamless integration between Metso’s systems, online data, equipment, services and innovations. It also enables the reduction of energy and water consumption, resulting not only in cost efficiency but also in a lower environmental impact.

Safety is a high priority, and having zero accidents is every plant’s goal. Automation removes operators from the vicinity of the machines to the safe control room environment. The level of safety is increased through better information distribution.

“Automation also helps with the shortage of skilled mining employees. As plants are often far from urban areas, recruiting staff can be difficult,” Heikkilä said. “Automation reduces the need for experts, thus lowering costs. Remotely operated machinery can be run from a faraway location. And Metso’s remote support can be reached 24/7.”

Recently, Metso DNA systems have been ordered from SSGPO in Kazakhstan, Codelco El Teniente in Chile and Norilsk Nickel Kolskaya GMK in Russia. “Over the years, we have delivered systems to mining customers, for example, in Scandinavia, Europe, Russia, Brazil and Chile,” Heikkilä said.

One of Metso’s longest-standing mining customers is Yara Siilinjärvi, located near Kuopio, Finland. It is the only phosphate mine in Western Europe and has boosted its productivity with the Metso DNA automation system since 1979. According to Metso, cooperation between the two companies for more than 30 years has ensured reliable, high-quality production at the plant. With accurate measurements and analyses, the plant has been able to optimize both the process and use of raw materials, thus preventing any overuse of expensive materials. Being able to control the entire production chain has increased control accuracy and improved both the quantity and quality of the plant.

Metso said the role of plant-related service and performance agreements is constantly growing. It recently announced that its long-time customer, Swedish mining company Boliden, had set a new production record at its Aitik copper mine. On July 14, 144,912 tons of ore passed through the plant, and thanks to a steadily increasing average production, July ended up being Aitik’s most productive month to date with 3.5 million tons of ore. The mine is now operating at an annual rate of 45 million tons. Boliden's official target for 2013 is to produce 38 million tons of ore in Aitik.

The new record, according to Metso, marks a significant milestone in the collaboration with and Boliden. Metso is responsible for all maintenance in the grinding mill circuit in the Aitik concentrator, and has supplied most of the equipment, including two 11.6 by 13.7-m AG grinding mills. In September 2012, the two companies signed a threeyear extension of a comprehensive Life Cycle Services contract. The contract is cost-per-ton based, meaning that Metso gets paid based on Aitik’s production. The higher the output, the more both parties benefit.

The two companies have been working together since the 1930s under various services agreements. This one-of-akind history, said Metso, has provided expertise in maximizing mill uptime, a key factor in breaking production records at Aitik.

“Thanks to our experience, we know when to run the mills a little bit longer and just how to get a bit more out of the mill linings. At the moment, we are at 97% mill availability, meaning that only 3% of hours are spent on maintenance annually. Everything else is production,” said Christer Brännström, general manager, SBL Operations, Sweden, Metso