Construction World October 2016

CONSTRUCTION WORLD

OCTOBER

2016

ROADS AND BRIDGES

World demand for construction

aggregates is forecast to rise 5,2%

annually until 2019 when it will

reach 51,7 billion metric tons,

while demand for crushed stone, recycled

rubble, fly ash and slag will grow at twice the

pace of sand and gravel. This is according

to a report released earlier in the year by

Freedonia Group.

Africa and Middle East

Regions of Africa and the Middle East are

sound examples of the rapid rate at which

construction materials are being consumed

yearly in large commercial, in-dustrial, retail

and hospitality property developments on

the back of ambitious gov-ernment infra-

structure programmes geared at delivering

essential services to burgeoning towns

and cities.

Africa and the Middle East are two signif-

icant markets for Weir Minerals Africa, which

is now in the process of strengthening its

existing infrastructure to support the many

Trio® machines producing building materials

in growth nodes in the Middle East, Southern,

Central, East and West Africa.

Weir Minerals’ acquisition of the Trio®

group of businesses in 2014 was a proactive

response not only to the insatiable global

demand for aggregates, sand, fly ash and

slag, but also the need for crushing and

screening solutions that are suited to the

very unique operating environments of these

growth areas.

“What is very typical of these markets

is that they need a solution that can be

im-plemented quickly to enable operations

to start producing building materials as soon

as possible. Trio® equipment is modular and

can be skid-mounted allowing us to supply

and commission a medium sized crushing

and screening operation within as little as 12

weeks,” says JD Singleton, general manager

of Trio® products for Weir Minerals Africa.

By eliminating the time and costs

associated with developing large civil related

in-frastructure to support crushing and

screening equipment, Trio® products have

be-come highly sought-after solutions for

rubble recycling operations.

“The ease with which they can be

commissioned on building and landfill sites,

and even mine waste rock dumps to produce

a quality building aggregate is what makes

them ideal for contractors who are looking

to move the crushing and screening plant

from site to site,” says Rasheel Sukdhoe,

product manager for Trio® crushers at Weir

Minerals Africa.

Sukdhoe says that he has seen a growing

demand for recycled concrete, especially in

South Africa which is setting the pace on the

continent in terms of green building, and he

expects this trend to continue.

“It has taken time, but recycled building

rubble has now become a critical compo-

nent of the Green Building Council of South

Africa’s Green Star Rating Tool, while govern-

ment is driving sustainable infrastructure

development which also recognis-es the

importance of reducing the large amounts

of rubble that are burdening the country’s

already limited available space for landfill

sites,” he says.

These are extremely arduous operating

environments requiring robust crushing and

screening solutions that are easy to maintain

on site. These are both important traits of the

Trio® product offering and a distinct advan-

tage given limited skills availability and often

remote operating environments in Africa and

the Middle East.

Large concrete brick and block

manufacturers

At the same time, large concrete brick and

block manufacturers are using Trio® products

to recycle their wastage, thus reducing

operating costs by blending recy-cled

concrete with virgin aggregates on their

production lines.

The ability to rapidly deploy these

machines to sites to increase production

capabili-ties also makes them suited to the

smaller single operator quarries and oper-

ators of borrow pits supporting large infra-

structure construction programmes, both of

which Singleton says offer large and growing

market opportunities for Weir Minerals Africa.

“Trio® equipment is kept in stock in Johan-

nesburg and Dubai, which allows us to supply

in very short timeframes", says Singleton.

“These producers of aggregate and

sand usually need to boost their production

volumes quickly to respond timeously to

infrastructure development programmes

within their immediate vicinity. This is a

trend that we have seen throughout Africa

and the Middle East,” he says.

Trio® products are competitively priced

and readily available enabling crushing and

screening operators to capitalise on growth

opportunities while enjoying a value offering

backed up by specialised, flexible product

support teams. This is further underpinned

by the stability and experience of a company

that has been serving the African mining

sector in excess of 100 years.

In Zambia, for example, Weir Minerals

Africa’s branch in Kitwe is in the process of

commissioning a 300 tph plant for a single

operator. The Kitwe branch is already geared

to provide a comprehensive aftermarket

support service to the country’s many copper

mines. Product support specialists for Trio®

machines are based at Weir Minerals' Kitwe

branch to service the local market efficiently.

However, the company is also supplying

large crushing and screening plants to match

the tonnage requirements of those quarries

that are owned by listed compa-nies. Trio®

crushing and screening solutions provide

solutions for production re-quirements of up

to 1 200 tph with ease, supplementing the

production outputs of large static equipment.

In both instances, Weir Minerals Africa

provides a bespoke solution based on the

extensive Trio® product portfolio.

For example, the company’s jaw crushers

and horizontal and vertical-shaft impact

crushers have proved to be the ideal solution

CRUSHING

INEFFICIENCIES

in construction materials production

Growing global urbanisation patterns are a major driver of

both public and private sector construction projects.

A modular Trio cone crusher with prescreen which are re-locatable assets that can easily be added

onto an existing facility.