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May 2016
MODERN MINING
55
feature
CRUSHING, SCREENING
AND MILLING
A
s an internationally leading
transfer system OEM, Weba
Chute Systems & Solutions can
leverage its extensive experi-
ence to produce fit-for-purpose
chute systems that will assist mines and plants
to optimise plant throughput and reduce un-
necessary downtime.
“Through bespoke chute design we have
been able to assist numerous operations by sig-
nificantly reducing maintenance costs while
increasing operational productivity,” Baller says.
“More companies are seeing the real benefit
in having a chute system custom manufactured
to cater for the specific parameters of each area
where material is transferred within a plant.
Those that may have had reservations about
the cost have come to realise that the signifi-
cant savings in reduced maintenance costs, as
well as a dramatic reduction in unscheduled
downtime, mean that the chute system can pay
for itself in as little as six months,” he says.
Baller says the company has noticed a move
by mines to look at replacing chutes that have
been identified as exceptionally high mainte-
nance areas. “And this is a good example of
where – if the capital is allocated to a more
appropriate material transfer solution – the sav-
ing from the maintenance budget will pay for
the replacement chutes,” he adds.
Weba Chute Systems & Solutions is currently
working with customers to replace chutes using
operational and maintenance budgets with
structured payments facilitating this process
which then makes it more affordable. Baller
anticipates that there will be an increase in this
need during the year as the spotlight remains
on increasing productivity and reducing costs
in all commodity sectors.
This OEM, with a legacy going back more
than 25 years, has more than 4 000 transfer
Fit-for-purpose
bespoke chute
systems in demand
globally
The Weba Chute System is a
custom engineered transfer
point solution designed to
address the numerous issues
plants face with material
movement.
Given the current turmoil in the mining industry and extreme
pressure on operating and maintenance budgets, mines need to
look at ways of enhancing operational efficiency and trimming
expenditure wherever possible. One of the highest cost areas is
the crushing, milling and screening circuit. And this, says Mark
Baller, MD of Weba Chute Systems & Solutions, is where one of
the company’s strengths lies.
chute installations in place
in South Africa, in many
African countries and in sev-
eral other parts of the world.
By adopting a streamlined and scientific
approach to the dynamics of bulk materials
handling at transfer points, a multitude of ben-
efits are provided to mines and plants where
Weba Chute Systems have been installed. In
addition to reduced maintenance requirements,
other advantages include improved transfer
conditions, longer conveyor belt life, less spill-
age, reduced product degradation and higher
throughput.
“The first step is always a site visit by our
experienced team, and from the information
collected we are then able to identify transfer
issues. It is a collaborative effort with the cus-
tomer that ensures we develop a tailor-made
solution that will increase the return on invest-
ment in a short space of time,” Baller says.
The Weba Chute System uses a ‘supertube’
effect with a cascade lining system which is
achieved by using sound engineering princi-
ples and a sophisticated 3D Computer Aided
Design (CAD) program. This design results in
95 % of the material running on material at
all times. The bottom layer of particles in the
product stream moves in a tumbling motion as
opposed to sliding down the chute. Wear is sig-
nificantly reduced and in, many cases, the lips
remain completely covered by material provid-
ing a longer life span.
“The intellectual property of our engineers
remains the crux of our design ideas and con-
cepts but we do believe in complementing our
practical knowledge with Discrete Element
Method (DEM) simulation as a verification tool.
Our primary objective remains engineering
a tailor-made best practice chute solution for
each and every customer,” Baller concludes.
“Our primary
objective remains
engineering a
tailor-made best
practice chute
solution for
each and every
customer.”