Mechanical Technology February 2016

Mechanical Technology — February 2016

⎪

Materials handling and minerals processing

⎪

“

he screen panel is the

most critical aspect of the

screening application as

it defines the product you

will receive from the process,” Nelson

argues, adding: “For this reason it is es-

sential for the appropriate panel to be in

place to ensure correct feed envelopes

to downstream processes. Much of the

time, screening media is misunderstood

and insufficient attention is given to this

critical component.”

He says that one of the current driv-

ing forces in screening is the ability to

determine the wear of screen panels and

to plan for its maintenance and replace-

ment. “By being able to establish wear

patterns before they cause a shutdown,

process plants can save substantial

amounts on labour and downtime costs.

As a result, we have seen an increasing

demand for our online monitoring sys-

tem, Hawkeye, as well as for enhance-

ments in recording processes.”

Visual wear indicators are another

technology that is seeing increased de-

mand as it provides a major advantage

in terms of monitoring screen panels.

Above:

The Multotec TeePee™ three dimensional screen panel has an optimised

open area to make it more suitable for dewatering applications.

Left:

Various

polyurethane grades, rubber grades and steel grades of Multotec’s

screen panels are available.

Customised solutions for

screening efficiency

As the demand for enhanced efficiencies and

throughput increases, the market is seeking

proven solutions that can be customised to suit

specific applications, according to Rhodes Nelson,

managing director of Multotec Manufacturing. “The

ability to stay abreast of technological changes and

implement smarter more cost

effective ways of screening is

a big differentiator,”

he says.

These systems provide visual indicators

that show the incremental wear rates

occurring on screening media. As the

aperture wears, the visual dots become

clearly visible “so that the change-out

criteria cannot be misinterpreted”. The

end result is far more accurate planning

for screen panel replacements.

Nelson cautions that the use of visual

wear indicators does, however, require

active field service participation, with at-

tention to visual observation and monitor-

ing of screen panels to provide feedback.

But if correctly implemented, visual wear

indicators can further optimise screen

performance.

Multotec is seeing a significant change

in end users’ expectations with respect

to product quality and adherence to

specifications. Nelson believes that this

is predominantly because of the oversup-

ply situation and applies specifically to

coal and iron ore plants. “This has led

to sampling of product now being far

more critical, leading to a need for more

accurate feed envelopes to the various

processes and for the end product.”

Multotec strategically invests into R&D

to respond to direct customer demands.

This has resulted in the development of

a number of products and solutions that

are geared towards increased return on

investment. “Another development we

have seen is three dimensional screen-

ing with screen panels that have been

optimised with respect to open areas.

An example is the Multotec TeePee™

panel for dewatering applications,” says

Nelson. In addition, Multotec’s O-slot™

aperture is being successfully used in iron

ore applications where panel life needs

to be optimised, while still retaining non-

blinding characteristics.

Added to this product development

is the availability of multiple screen

material options that include various

polyurethane grades, rubber grades and

steel grades, depending on the custom-

ers’ process application requirement.

Ongoing market analysis has resulted

in Multotec increasing the variety of op-

tions and the configuration of its Saddle

Top™ runner system to protect both

the sub-frame and improve meantime

between failures (MTBFs). Coupled

with this is accessibility to a wide range

of fit-for-purpose attachment systems,

which give customers additional flexibil-

ity without having to change the screen

sub-frame.

“The cornerstones of success for

Multotec are unequivocal and uncompro-

mising customer service, customised so-

lutions, product excellence in design and

engineering, and a team of highly skilled

and experienced employees who are able

to devise bespoke screen panel solutions

that ultimately result in superior through-

put of product,” Nelson assures.