MechChem Africa March-April 2025

MechChem MAR-APR 2025 AFRICA

Renowned for WARMAN® AH® pumps

This month: Chromite fines,WHIMS and BOOM/BOOT

Modular wastewater treatment solutions

Waste management for complex problems

Rotation for a better tomorrow

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Memograph M RSG45: The advanced data manager takes compliant, safe and secure operations control to a higher level.

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Maintenance solutions and asset management 6 Sustainability through modernisation, field services and proactive maintenance

Nontu Mkhize, Etienne du Plessis and Meryl Eckersley from Schneider Electric outline the crucial role of field services, proactive maintenance and Schneider’s EcoStruxure asset management solution in modernising industrial plant. 8 Arresting infrastructure decline in SA Minerals processing and materials handling 10 Chromite fines,WHIMS and BOOM/BOOT financial models MCA talks to Rudo Engelbrecht of Minprotech about magnetic separation of chromite fines and the advantages of adopting build, own, operate and maintain/transfer financial models for processing plants.

Published bimonthly by Crown Publications (Pty) Ltd Cnr Theunis and Sovereign Streets Bedford Gardens 2007 PO Box 140, Bedfordview, 2008 Tel: +27 11 622 4770 e-mail: mechchemafrica@crown.co.za www.mechchemafricamagazine.co.za Editor: Peter Middleton e-mail: peterm@crown.co.za Advertising: Elmarie Stonell e-mail: mechchemafrica@crown.co.za Design: Katlego Montsho Publisher: Wilhelm du Plessis Circulation: Brenda Grossmann The views expressed in this journal are not necessarily those of the publisher or the editors.

12 Micropilot: for simple and efficient compliance 13 Containerised decanter centrifuge unveiled 14 Tru-Trac’s EXHD dynamic impact idler bed PowerGen, PetroChem and sustainable energy management 16 AES: Powerful support for carbon footprint reduction

Dennis Williams, commercial director at steam and boiler service provider, Associated Energy Services (AES), talks about alternatives in the green fuel space. 18 Enabling Africa’s solar potential

19 SEW-EURODRIVE champions energy efficiency 21 Sappi and Enpower close on SunCentral PPA Water, wastewater and pumping solutions 22 Modular wastewater treatment solutions

In response to SouthAfrica's urgent wastewater treatment needs,WayneTaljaard highlights the benefits of adopting modular wastewater solutions from WEC Water.

24 POWER-PACKED:The Godwin BD150 dewatering pump 25 Maintenance of water infrastructure: a strategic necessity 26 Toyo heavy duty slurry pumps: the benchmark for dredging 27 SLYsight heralds a new era for pump wear technology Hydraulics, pneumatics and automation systems 28 Empowering the future of African mining 29 Integrated Air Solutions delivers first ELGi compressors 30 Modern water technologies need smart monitoring 31 Skid-mounted nitrogen generator enhances laser cutting Power transmission, bearings bushes and seals 32 Robust industrial chain solutions from Bi

Transparency You Can See Average circulation Oct to Dec 2024: 10 593 Printed by: Tandym Print, Cape Town

With Mining Indaba 2025 exploring the theme of ‘Future-Proofing African Mining,’ ABB is emerging as a pivotal player in enabling the sector to navigate challenges and seize opportunities.

Front cover: Weir Tel: +27 11 929 2600 Email: africa.minerals@mail.weir Website: www.global.weir

Bearings International (Bi) has been consistently setting innovation and excellence benchmarks through the delivery of robust industrial chain solutions to Southern African industry. 33 Motion technology for automation

35 B.E.D. and SKF collaborate to meet power transmission needs Environmental management and cleaning technologies 36 Custom waste management solutions for complex problems

Ryan van Heerden of EnviroServ discusses the complexities of modern-day waste management and the multifaceted, customised solutions being implemented to help industries meet legislative and sustainability targets, and reduced waste to landfill volumes.

Innovative engineering

42 Rotation for a better tomorrow MCA talks to Micaela Willers of SKF South Africa, about some of the forward-looking initiatives being implementing to improve the circularity, carbon footprint, life and cost effectiveness of its bearings and power transmission product ranges. Regulars 2 Peter’s comment: From waste management to resource efficiency 4 On the cover:WRT ® puts sustainability upfront: Marnus Koots highlights how Weir’s continued investment in wear technology is supporting sustainability. 38 Products and industry news 44 Back page: Stellenbosch students for young researchers awards

March-April 2025 • MechChem Africa ¦ 1

From waste management to resource efficiency

Peter Middleton

In the feature article for Environmental Management in this issue, EnviroServ’s Ryan van Heerden highlight ed some of the more complex aspects of modern-day waste management. “Along with the whole world, we are now looking at the circular economy, with the goal of trying to keep resources in circulation for as long as possible,” he says. Some waste streams can be taken directly into another industry as a resource, he notes, citing as an example the use of tailings from mines as feedstock for brickmaking. It is not simple, though. Numerous prob lems need to be resolved, and a value chain must be put in place for every separate opportunity, he notes. An online article by The Compliance People – a UK-based consultancy that helps organisations manage environmental, health & safety and quality related compliance – describes resource efficiency in relatively simple terms: ‘Using the Earth’s limited resources in a sustainable manner, whilst minimising impacts on the environment’. Van Heerden points out, however, that people often fail to see the complexities involved in managing waste resources, because most of us see it through the lens of domestic recycling and the three Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. On the industrial scale, he argues for segregating waste at-source, so it can then be categorised and properly measured to “give producers a far better understanding of where, why, and how much is being produced”. This, he says: “immediately encourages companies to optimise their processes towards gen erating less waste in the first place.” The segregation of waste by material or type is also essential for maximising the value of the waste resources being produced, says Ryan van Heerden, to identify the low hanging fruit in terms of recycling and “for maximising the value of the remaining waste resources”. As well as being good for the environment, The Compliance People’s article points out that resource efficiency is good for business. Wasted resources not only cost money by reducing profits, but also repre sent lost time, effort, work and missed opportunities. Defra, the UK’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, has predicted that UK businesses could save £6.40-billion per year by improving the way they use resources, while also helping to create and protect jobs. Disposing of waste, they say, rather than any other management option, has the greatest impact on the environment. It is also the least cost-effective management solution. To make savings, a system atic review of an organisation’s waste production is needed to help cut costs and allow the business to

become more competitive. For one of EnviroServ’s key customers in South Africa, Van Heerden is very proud to have “delivered a zero-waste-to-landfill solution” and this industrial client has maintained 100% diversion from landfill for over five years. Now part of the multinational SUEZ Group, Enviroserv’s local service offering has expanded to include water, wastewater, waste-to-energy and chemical recycling, along with a host of cutting-edge environmental processing technologies. Recycling and/or reusing wastewater has already become the norm. More and more additional value is being extracted from mine wastewater streams, such as the chromite fines from Minprotech managed plants, for example. Tailings dumps can be used for sea barriers, drilling mud and concrete. The sludge from domestic wastewater can be processed through biogas plants, used to make composts and fertilisers, and for brick production. In addition, the treated water from these processes can be purified to any level of quality required, with more and more mining and processing plants treating their wastewater for reuse rather than discharging it and facing fines. Waste-to-energy is also emerging in South Africa, as outlined by AES’ Dennis Williams: not a silver bullet but an option worth investigating as part of a phased approach. As well as the direct waste management drive, IIoT and AI technologies embedded in asset manage ment software packages such as Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure can help to modernise industrial infrastructure to “support sustainability efforts by enhancing energy efficiency, reducing waste and op timising resource usage,” suggests Etienne du Plessis in our Maintenance and Asset Management feature. “By embracing modernisation, businesses can lower their carbon footprints, comply with environmental regulations and contribute to global sustainability goals,” he says. Good resource efficiency practices, concludes The Compliance People’s article, are based around continual improvement, with the aim of saving money and reducing environmental impact. For those who are ready to identify and develop opportunities within their business to become more resource efficient, the environment will thank you! Through efficiency savings and value-stream optimisation from everything produced, product and waste, companies adopting waste management and resource efficiency principles are likely to end up more profitable, competitive and sustainable, with the potential for plant equipment life also benefitting.

MechChem Africa is endorsed by:

2 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025

WARMAN ®

The proven, trusted industry leader for unrivalled performance and innovation – always. When it comes to specifying your next pump or pump upgrade, it’s not a question of whether you can afford Warman ® , it’s whether you can afford not to. alwayswarman.weir

Copyright© 2022, Weir Minerals Australia. All rights reserved.

Wear Reduction Technology puts sustainability upfront With its extensive global footprint of pumping equipment – especially the renowned range of WARMAN ® AH ® pumps – Weir’s years of continued investment in Wear Reduction Technology (WRT ® ) components is furthering mining sustainability. M arnus Koorts, General Man ager Original Equipment at Weir, highlights that pump ing operations have histori that would be easy for the market to adopt, so our strategic goal with this endeavour was to develop a solution that would en hance our current products,” he says. “It’s worth noting that Weir was focused on im proving efficiencies long before sustainabil ity became such a widely accepted concept in mining and other industries.”

components is their improved hydraulic efficiency. Traditional pumps experience en ergy losses due to turbulence and inefficient fluid flow which the WRT ® throatbush and impellers address through optimised design, as well as enhanced tolerances and manu facturing precision. As modern technology has facilitated the evolution of complex pat terns and moulds, Koorts explains, there are more opportunities to design more complex and intricate surfaces. “The WRT impeller features four vanes that guide fluid more efficiently, reducing turbulence and minimising energy loss,” he explains. “Unlike older impellers with steep vane angles, the WRT impeller’s profile is designed to improve flow characteristics.” Other innovations were designed to guide fluid more efficiently and to mitigate against the creation of eddies. These are swirling circular currents of fluid that form within the volute, usually due to turbulent flow, making fluid move in a direction op posite to the main flow. Marnus Koorts, General Manager Original Equipment at Weir.

cally been energy-intensive, leading Weir to make efficiency a central focus of its research and development commitments. Core to the company’s purpose is to make its customers more sustainable and efficient, and to create a better future for the world. “In combination with designing new pump models, we sought to enhance our current models as well as to deliver superior wear life and energy efficiency,” explains Koorts. “This was the most effective strat egy given the established popularity and wide installed base of our WARMAN AH pumps, for instance, which are used by almost every mine in the world.” The advantage of using WRT ® compo nents – which began as an upgrade devel oped specifically for the WARMAN ® AH ® pump range – is that it seamlessly integrates into existing infrastructure. Customers therefore gain the energy saving benefits without extra capital investment. “We wanted to engineer an innovation

He emphasises Weir’s two-phase ap proach to R&D; beginning with scientific work on the design, such as finite element analysis and hydraulic simulations. The process then moves to the physical testing of the product in the field. This ensures that all innovations are well proven before being released. “The result is that the WRT component upgrade allows our pumps to last, on average, about 30% longer – with some instances of the pump lifespan being more than doubled,” he says. “Importantly for us ers’ operational costs, the WRT components leads to a 3 to 5% saving in energy consump tion. Multiply this by the large number of our pumps in operation and there is truly a global impact.” Central to the success of the WRT ®

Weir has a large installed base of Warman AH pumps supplied standard with WRT components.

4 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025

⎪ Cover story ⎪

Left: Engineers at Weir work on designing components before moving to physical testing in the field. Right With three manufacturing centres in South Africa, Weir has the capability to assemble pumps locally.

this is costly and operationally disruptive. Instead, these operations can retrofit WRT impellers and throatbushes – to allow the same motor to deliver more.” He points out that the innovative WRT ® components are interchangeable with the classic WARMAN ® pumps. The customer therefore does not need to replace their older pumps and can simply replace the components as they wear. This has already allowed a large proportion of the customer base to adopt the latest energy efficient options. “In Africa, for instance, all new WARMAN AH pumps sold contain WRT technology, and a majority of our existing WARMAN AH pumps have already been converted,” he says. “This indicates clearly that the WRT component upgrade has seen a very positive uptake in the market, indicating that most of our customers are benefiting substantially.” Koorts notes that Africa is also home to a large installed base of ENVIROTECH ® pumps, leading the company to create WRT ® solutions for this popular range too. “We want to continue investing in Africa and in the technologies currently in use, so it made sense to apply WRT technology to the ENVIROTECH range,” he says. “The result is that – for the past two years – all these pumps have been supplied standard with WRT, and more than half of all our ENVIROTECH pump spares sales are now WRT designs.” While the sustainability drive is often most visible at corporate level, he highlights that Weir is proud to make a direct contribu tion to meeting customers’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals at opera tions level – in many cases without the plant even realising the scale of the benefit being achieved. “In addition to the savings and per formance improvements on the level of customer sites, Weir is proud of the impact that these efficiencies are having on global sustainability goals,” concludes Koorts. www.global.weir

WRT technology has also been developed for Weir’s Envirotech range of pumps.

“When fluid and material spin off the edges of the impeller it means lost energy – as it counteracts the intended flow direction,” he explains. “Our design innovations not only improve efficiency, but also reduce the internal wear on components.” The WRT ® design has also minimised the surface area of the impeller by reduc ing the number of vanes from five to four – creating more space for the material to flow while still delivering the same duty. The throatbush also plays a crucial role in fluid transfer, working in tandem with the impeller. In WARMAN ® pumps with WRT ® components, there is a smaller gap between the throatbush and impeller to reduce re circulation losses and enhance efficiency. Underpinning these technical advance ments is Weir’s local investment in produc tion capacity, which allows the company to cast and machine its pumps and components locally. This includes casting facilities in Isando and Gqeberha, as well as the ca pability to press rubber components and assemble the final products. The improved efficiency from the WRT ® component upgrade has another important benefit, he points out, by decreasing the net positive suction head (NPSH) required

– which translates into a smaller sump re quirement. As these sumps are important aspects of civil engineering infrastructure in many plants, and can be sizeable, they represent a significant cost for new projects. “By operating with less energy, pumps equipped with the WRT design allow users to build smaller less costly sumps to achieve the same effect,” says Koorts. “This also helps to overcome the risk of sumps being under-specified which, in turn, can lead to cavitation inside the pump. In fact, many users who faced challenges with regard to cavitation were able to address this issue by specifying a WRT upgrade for their pumps.” Production flexibility is highly valued across industries, enabling increased throughput to meet demand surges. The WRT ® component system plays a key role in enhancing efficiency, supporting this adaptability. Production levels in a process plant, for instance, are often constrained by the power output of the pump motors. “The 3 to 5% energy savings from the WRT system gives a boost to those plants which are running their pump motors at full capacity, but are still looking to push the production envelope,” he says. “They don’t want to replace entire pumps to do this as

March-April 2025 • MechChem Africa ¦ 5

Sustainability through modernisation, field services and proactive maintenance

Nontu Mkhize, Etienne du Plessis and Meryl Eckersley from Schneider Electric outline the crucial role of field services, proactive maintenance and Schneider’s EcoStruxure asset management solution in modernising industrial plant to help them to remain competitive and sustainable.

Schneider Electric South Africa Field Service Channel Manager, Etienne du Plessis, explains that field services help businesses adapt by ensuring their technol ogy and infrastructure are agile and capable of responding to dynamic market shifts. Through modernisation, companies can implement more flexible, scalable solutions that can quickly meet evolving consumer expectations. “Field services also support ongoing maintenance, upgrades and optimisations, which ensures that businesses can remain responsive and competitive in a rapidly changing landscape. This adaptability enables organisations to seize new oppor tunities and stay ahead of market trends,” he says. Du Plessis points out that the integra tion of IoT and data analytics enhances op erational efficiency by providing real-time insights into the performance of machinery, systems and operations. IoT devices capture data that, when analysed, allow businesses to identify inefficiencies, predict mainte nance needs and optimise workflows. “Field services enable seamless deploy ment of IoT solutions, ensuring that the collected data is effectively leveraged to improve decision-making and operational processes. The insights gained from IoT and analytics help businesses reduce operation al costs, enhance productivity, and improve overall system performance,” he says. Over and above, modernising infrastruc ture directly supports sustainability efforts by enhancing energy efficiency, reducing waste and optimising resource usage. Du Plessis explains that advanced technologies such as smart grids, energy-efficient sys tems and predictive maintenance contrib

Left: Nontu Mkhize, Offer Marketing Manager for Power Services and Industry at Schneider Electric. Right: Schneider Electric South Africa Field Service Channel Manager, Etienne du Plessis.

I ndustry modernisation is crucial for maintaining competitiveness and addressing rapidly evolving market demands, specifically now as indus tries face increasing pressure to enhance efficiency and sustainability. With techno logical advancements such as automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT), modernisation offers busi nesses the opportunity to improve effi ciency, reduce costs and enhance product quality. “Modern systems help companies stay ahead of competitors by allowing them to innovate, scale operations and quickly adapt to market changes. Modernisation also ad dresses increasing customer expectations for sustainability and smart technologies, offering businesses a clear competitive edge,” says Nontu Mkhize, Offer Marketing Manager: Power Services and Industry for Anglophone Africa at Schneider Electric. The role of field services She notes that field services play a crucial role in driving modernisation by providing on-the-ground expertise and hands-on support for upgrading infrastructure, imple menting new technologies and maintaining critical systems. “Field service professionals ensure that industrial businesses can effectively integrate modern solutions into their opera tions, offering real-time troubleshooting, system optimisation, and training. This support ensures smooth transitions during modernisation and helps businesses achieve

operational excellence by leveraging the latest technologies and practices,” says Mkhize. She adds that engaging with field service providers offers several benefits, including access to specialised knowledge and hands on expertise that ensures the successful implementation and optimisation of new technologies. “Field services also helps businesses minimise downtime during upgrades by offering proactive maintenance, real-time troubleshooting and rapid system recovery. Additionally, field services can help busi nesses reduce the risks of costly errors and ensure that systems are properly installed and maintained,” says Mkhize, adding that further benefits brought by field services include faster implementation, training and knowledge transfer.

EcoStruxure Asset Advisor is one of Schneider Electric’s core solutions under its digital portfolio, connecting a host of services to assets.

6 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025

⎪ Maintenance and asset management ⎪

ute to reducing the environmental impact of industrial operations. “By embracing modernisation, busi nesses can lower their carbon footprint, comply with environmental regulations and contribute to global sustainability goals. Moreover, smarter systems allow for bet ter energy management, which not only reduces operational costs but also helps organisations meet their sustainability targets,” he says. In the long term, adds du Plessis, com panies can expect various strategic advan tages to stem from successfully implement ing modernisation, including increased competitiveness with businesses being able to differentiate themselves by adopting cut ting-edge technologies and best practices. “Modernisation supports sustained growth as efficient operations enable businesses to scale their activities, expand into new markets and improve customer satisfaction. It also drives long-term savings from improved energy efficiency, reduced maintenance costs and fewer operational disruptions,” he says. “Also, successful modernisation posi tions businesses as leaders in innovation, at tracting new customers and partners, while modernised systems and processes make businesses more agile, resilient to disrup tions and adaptable to future challenges.” Embracing proactive maintenance Technological advancements such as the IoT and AI have also revolutionised proactive maintenance. “Predictive maintenance tools offer real-time monitoring and diagnostics for timely interventions, reducing costs and ensuring efficient equipment operation. A significant driver in adopting the shift to proactive maintenance within an organisa tion is the benefit of optimising technol ogy trends and staying ahead of the curve through advanced practices and operational efficiency,” says Meryl Eckersley, Secure Power Channel Manager at Schneider Electric. The main differentiator between pro active and traditional maintenance is the reduction of unscheduled downtime, which can lead to operational risks. By leveraging digital tools and solutions, organisations can leverage data analytics, real-time monitor ing and predictive algorithms that identify and address risks through analytical trends, with the advanced monitoring being done onsite at asset level. EcoStruxure Asset Advisor Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Asset Advisor, its vendor-agnostic IoT architec ture, enables software experts to analyse valuable data insights to mitigate potential

Schneider Electric’s field services, proactive maintenance and asset management offerings offer opportunities for industrial plant to use automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT) to upgrade and modernise their operations, helping them to remaining competitive and sustainable.

risks, enhance operational efficiency and reduce wear and tear, all of which leads to high operational costs within the asset lifecycle if not managed efficiently. “AI-driven analytics adds value through the optimisation of maintenance practices, generating recommendations on how to improve alarm and incident tracking sta tistics. For example, EcoStruxure Asset Advisor evaluates live data from customers' environments and applies AI and advanced analytics to identify potential threats. It also facilitates automatic incident creation and sets priorities for the dispatch of on site resources when required. This is one of the biggest advantages that proactive maintenance capabilities can bring to an organisation,” Eckersley explains. EcoStruxure Asset Advisor ranks among the leading predictive maintenance tools currently available in the market. It is used in data centre environments to enable secure power from Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) and cooling via predictive cloud based analytics that provide 24/7 remote monitoring of IT critical infrastructure. EcoStruxure Asset Advisor is one of Schneider Electric’s core solutions under its digital portfolio, connecting a host of services to assets. This solution gives the customer peace of mind in knowing that their critical infrastructure is being over seen and monitored throughout Schneider Electric’s various hubs. This solution also leverages predictive analytics to enhance security and mitigate risk and failure through real-time data. Real-time monitoring can also sig nificantly improve equipment efficiency. Organisations can reduce the failure curve by addressing the state of specific com ponents throughout the asset lifecycle, thus reducing downtime and unforeseen operational costs. Another clear benefit of predictive main tenance is that it enables organisations to

foster collaboration between maintenance teams, operators and management. Through technologies, such as mobility and cloud computing, teams can collaborate across various platforms and access information, which ultimately facilitates holistic efficient and timely intervention. After-sales support also plays an integral role in the customer satisfaction journey throughout the asset life cycle through the various after-sales services. A customer’s experience can be enhanced through vari ous portfolios designed to address issues such as reducing downtime and minimis ing costs, as well as managing the cost of ownership. When transitioning from reactive to proactive maintenance, however, organ isations could face challenges specifically in the areas of security and protecting the applications from cyberattacks. Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure IoT platform has been developed with rigorous penetration testing and includes two-factor authentica tion encryption that also allows data to be transported through an outbound connec tion only via the IT gateway. “While technology plays a vital role in the adaptation of proactive maintenance practices, the most important element remains the human touch. A well-trained workforce, exposed to continuous learning, is key to the successful implementation of new technologies that require effective strategies to help organisations navigate the digital landscape,” Eckersley points out. In concluding, Etienne du Plessis says that successfully modernising – with the assistance of field services, proactive main tenance and advanced AI-enabled IoT plat forms such Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Asset Advisor – provides lasting benefits, including increased competitiveness, cost savings, sustainability and ultimately long term growth. www.se.com/za/en

March-April 2025 • MechChem Africa ¦ 7

Arresting infrastructure decline in SA Bani Kgosana, Chief Revenue Officer at Pragma, outlines how a focus on asset management and the use of Pragma’s locally developed enterprise asset management solution, On-Key, can deliver a turnaround in South Africa’s deteriorating infrastructure, along with significant cost savings.

Positive outcomes Several municipalities, as well as public private partnerships in the healthcare sector, have seen positive results from using Pragma’s services. “We are the technology partner for Tsebo on facilities management at Albert Luthuli Hospital in KZN, for instance, one of the best-run public hospitals in the country and this showcases the potential for broader application.” With Pragma’s active engagement, the electrical support services department of a large metro reported a 2.5% increase in operational output, with accurate asset data driving improved decision-making and report ing. Centralised communication streamlined scheduling, job tracking, and bottleneck iden tification, while standardised work planning enhanced control. Managing the tyres of a fleet at a metro’s refuse management department resulted in improvements that saved the metro R10 million per year, with the metro’s solid waste department reported a 90% reduction in overdue vehicle services. Pragma’s On Key offering includes: • Intelligent Asset Register: creates detailed asset registers with scalable maintenance plans. • Work Management: streamlines op erational processes to ensure timely maintenance and repairs. • Supplier Material Management: manag es spares and spending from suppliers to enhance service delivery and efficiency. “If the same commitment to planned main tenance that we eventually saw at Eskom can be implemented by water utilities, healthcare, the building and other utility management sectors, the impact on our country will be immense. “I invite industry stakeholders, govern ment officials and potential partners to join us in revitalising our nation’s infrastructure. Together, we can forge a path toward sustain able growth and restore confidence in South Africa’s capabilities,” concludes Kgosana. An engineering services company that delivers enterprise asset management solutions geared for Industry 4.0, Pragma provides smart asset management solutions, specialised management practices, and sup porting software applications to a diverse asset-intensive client base in the mining, manufacturing, public infrastructure, retail and corporate facilities, renewables, and oil and gas sectors. This enables them to perform at their peak while balancing asset perfor mance, cost, and risk. www.pragmaworld.net

A power distribution unit installation for the City of Cape Town's electrical support services.

T he condition of South Africa’s government-owned assets and de teriorating infrastructure is a serious challenge that frustrates citizens and businesses daily. But key issues such as water management, hospitals and logistics in the country can be turned around using lo cally developed solutions, according to South African-based enterprise asset management company Pragma. The South African government manages over 93 000 buildings and 74 hospitals. Many of these assets, which belong to municipali ties and state-owned enterprises, have tre mendous potential for improvement and revitalisation. Bani Kgosana, Chief Revenue Officer at Pragma, explains, “Scheduled maintenance enables best outcomes. Eskom has shown the impact of maintaining its electricity gen eration and transmission fleet over the last year, which has led to more than ten months without loadshedding. “Pragma has developed advanced solu tions for maintenance and asset manage ment issues, which are being implemented locally and exported beyond our borders. These homegrown solutions have the po tential to not only improve maintenance for government-owned assets but optimise them for the greater good of South Africans and our economy,” he says. Pragma is a specialist enterprise asset management business headquartered in South Africa with enterprise clients in 46 countries. With roots in engineering con sulting, it helps industrial businesses and municipalities maximise their return on asset investments to support highly functional and

reliable operations. “Pragma’s On Key enterprise asset man agement software enables end-to-end management of maintenance processes and resource allocation. Resources, including third-party contractors, are tightly managed to remove the risk of work falling behind, jobs completed poorly, or work dragging out due to unprepared or poorly skilled teams not being able to complete the work. An added benefit for contractors is that work is allocated to the most suitable contrac tor closest to the job. This ensures contractors can respond quickly, complete the job, and conclude administrative processes in On Key to get sign-off and submit their invoices. This saves time and costs,” adds Kgosana. Pragma’s network of contractors is located across the country. A stringent accreditation process ensures that contractors with the right set of skills are identified and trained to legislated standards. Aspects such as hourly rates, the time required to perform a job, and best practices are agreed upon with the client and contractors and set up in On Key. Spare parts are also specified to ensure that the correct spares are used to prevent re-work due to poor quality. Doing the job properly eliminates the need to revisit sites, saving time, fuel and costs. “With this approach, Pragma administers the efficient and quick distribution of work to smaller contractors. Instead of a big behe moth making money from government, most maintenance work is outsourced to smaller businesses, ensuring much-needed business for smaller contractors. Our approach has cre ated significant job opportunities for regional SMEs,” says Bani Kgosana.

8 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025

⎪ Maintenance and asset management ⎪

Holding the key to a sustainable tomorrow

With over 45 years of experience in the waste management industry, collaborating with customers is how we drive the With over 45 years of experience in the waste management industry, collaborating with customers is how we drive the

circular economy. We implement agile and innovative waste solutions, proudly ensuring environmental peace of mind through our commitment to best practice. www.enviroserv.co.za | 0800 192 783 circular economy. We implement agile and innovative waste solutions, proudly ensuring environmental peace of mind through our commitment to best practice. www.enviroserv.co.za | 0800 192 783

FIND OUT MORE

March-April 2025 • MechChem Africa ¦ 9

Chromite fines, WHIMS and BOOM/BOOT financial models MechChem Africa talks to Rudo Engelbrecht of Minprotech about high-intensity magnetic separation of chromite fines in the 38 to 150 μm range, and the advantages for mining companies of adopting Minprotech’s BOOM/BOOT expertise to build, own, operate and maintain/transfer processing plants on their behalf. M inprotech, founded 12 years ago, was the first South African company to use WHIMS (wet, high-intensity

magnetic separation) technology on chro mite fines on a commercial scale. “We use Australian-manufactured equipment and apply our WHIMS expertise to build and operate successful chromite fines recovery plants. There are now seven op erational WHIMS plants in South Africa in our care,” begins Minprotech director, Rudo Engelbrecht. “We are not an Original Equipment Manufacturer. We are an operations com pany with particular expertise in using WHIMS for fines recovery, most notably, chromite, using a process that we com mercialised here in South Africa. Magnetic separation technology has been around for many years, mostly processing mineral sands, but we were the first to specifically test the technology on chromite fines, and as mentioned, we have built our business around building and operating successful chromite fines recovery plants,” he says. By maximising recovery of metallurgical grade chromite from tailings, Minprotech transforms waste streams into valuable resources and significantly reduces the environmental impact of mining, offering a sustainable and cost-efficient approach that is essential for African mining to remain competitive on the global stage. Chromite, Engelbrecht explains, is paramagnetic, which means it is weakly magnetic. If a wet slurry of chromite fines is exposed to a strong magnetic field, typically in the order 10 000-11 000 Gaus, then the paramagnetic chromite particles can be ef ficiently separated from the non-magnetic ore. Compared to using spiral or other gravity separation processes, this enables higher percentages of the chromite fines to be recovered. “The finer the particles the harder it is to recover, regardless of the technol ogy, but from our testing, we found that in the size range from 150 µm down to 38 µm – and even lower with some ore fines – WHIMS magnetic separation outperforms even those spirals specially designed for

Minprotech directors, Werner Otto and Rudo Engelbrecht

ultra-fines that we tested. There is cer tainly a place for both technologies, though,” Engelbrecht explains. Minprotech’s initial market was to re cover tailings from waste dumps and tailings dams with unrecovered chromite. In South Africa, there are numerous different chro mite containing ore types, including LG, MG to UG platinum group metal (PGM) ores. As well as the target platinum, these different ore bodies have different chrome to iron ratios, so chromite fines recovery depends on the specific ore being mined. “Increasingly, the fines recovery plant is being added in-line with mainstream ore processing. If a mine has a processing plant treating UG2 PGM ore for example, the finer material can be split off for treatment using a magnetic separation plant, while the course material can be diverted to a conven tional gravity separation circuit,” he says. “Recovering all the possible fines on the first pass through the plant is clearly the best approach, since it reduces recla mation and dam costs,” he notes, adding that Minprotech’s OEM partner, Mineral Technologies also manufactures spirals and a range of different processing equipment to support this in-line recovery approach. The key to success Minprotech believes that for minerals pro cessing projects such as these to succeed,

someone with both expertise and a pas sion for the specific process needs to take ownership of plant processing and recovery efficiencies. “It has to be someone's baby,” Engelbrecht suggest, “This is where we add value. We are not in the business of selling equipment or processing plants. The success of these project is dependent on taking out tons of valuable material each and every month for the life of the project, and we want to be a part of that, making sure that plants continue to produce the promised recovery rates as efficiently as possible for as long as possible. To achieve this, we are willing to take on the risk for a share of the reward,” he says. “We offer both full responsibility build own-operate-maintain (BOOM); and build own-operate-transfer (BOOT) financial models. We fully or partly finance these recovery projects, so a client with a tail ings resource or efficiency improvement opportunity does not need to find capital. If the tests prove the viability of using the technology, we are prepared design and build a plant based on sharing the added value produced,” he explains. Since the company’s foundation in 2012, Minprotech has invested in seven chromite recovery operations based on this approach; on the Eastern limb of the of the Bushveld complex in the Burgerspoort/Steelpoort

10 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025

⎪ Minerals processing and materials handling ⎪

area; and on the Western limb in the Rustenburg area. “Our model is adaptable, though. Some clients have capital available, in which case we can offer process or recov ery efficiency guarantees; while others will prefer to finance the plant over a period of time, or from the product produced. “If the test work and cost analysis is posi tive, which we can determine at our local in-house pilot plant facility, we are willing to help meet the client’s needs in any way they prefer,” Engelbrecht assures. In partnership with Tabono Rudo Engelbrecht is very excited by the company’s latest collaboration with Tabono – a growth partner focused on driving economic development across Africa – which has acquired a 33% equity stake in Minprotech. “Tabono is also very active within the chromite and PGM mining en vironment. This new partnership allows us to expand our capabilities because of their skill set in big capital projects. We have already collaborated with Tabono on a full run-of-mine and integrated processing project, which includes much more than fines recovery circuits,” he says. According to Tabono CEO, Reon Barnard: Tabono’s acquisition demonstrates a com

mitment to driving Minprotech innovation, sustainability and operational efficiency beyond the borders of South Africa and into Africa. “This deal bucks the broader trend in the African mining sector, where many companies have been slow to adopt new technologies and sustainable practices due to the high upfront costs and uncertain returns,” he adds. Engelbrecht continues: “On the process ing side, we are keen to keep accelerating innovation, a sentiment that Tabono shares with us. New technology excites us. We spend a lot of time testing new and more efficient processing solutions, and we are quite keen to implement some of the these on a commercial or production scale,” he says, adding that the focus will remain on the chromite and PGM space for the im mediate future. “Magnetic separation does not define us, though. We are a contract or owner operator of minerals processing plants, and we do not see a lot of competition in the operator space in South Africa. With sustainability, operating costs and recovery optimisation under scrutiny, we see this as a growth trend, so it is where we want to be,” he tells MCA . “Within the industry and together with

Tabono, CEO Reon Barnard

Tabono, we have significantly more capabil ity, which enables us to offer a much wider variety of different services within the mining industry, all with a view to advanc ing innovation and sustainability, improving recovery performance and reducing costs,” he says. Minprotech is a 51% black-owned, which underscores its commitment to promoting economic transformation and empower ment in the South African mining industry. “But we also see opportunities across Africa,” concludes Rudo Engelbrecht. https://minprotech.co.za

Minprotech specialises in the use of Australian-manufactured WHIMS magnetic separation technology to build and operate successful chromite fines recovery plants.

March-April 2025 • MechChem Africa ¦ 11

Micropilot: for simple and efficient compliance Endress+Hauser’s new 80 GHz compact radar level and flow measurement devices – including the Micropilot FMR10B, FMR20B and FMR30B – are designed to help customers reach their compliance targets through simple yet efficient measurement solutions.

mental influences through their integrated flow calculation. The Micropilot units also come with an optional flood protection tube and a weather protection cover, thus protect ing the device from damage due to flooding. Pump and lift stations Pump stations and lift stations are essential for moving water and wastewater through treatment processes. Pump stations often move water over long distances and with challenging conditions. Lift stations move water between different elevations. Due to this movement, turbulent surfaces and the formation of foam can pose problems. These stations present narrow points of installation for mounting devices: typically Ex zoned. The Micropilot FMR20B and FMR30B are equipped with 80 GHz technology, which enables the device to measure accurately irrespective of installation and application conditions. Hazardous area applications are supported with a variety of certification to meet and comply to onsite requirements. Intermediate bulk containers (IBC) and storage tanks are essential for the storage and handling of various treatment substances of different media types and with varying chemical resistance. These tanks can also be present in Ex zones. The Micropilot FMR10 (ATEX version) can be installed directly on the inner side of these tanks, while external non intrusive measurement can be performed on plastic tanks, eliminating potential influences from different media types. Key advantages of these Endress+Hauser instruments include: • Quick and easy commissioning with the use of Endress+Hauser’s SmartBlue

app. Integrated commissioning wizards guide the installer through the setup, while a copy and paste facility enables key parameters to be copied from one device to another. • Easy operation: Bluetooth operation of the device can be done using the SmartBlue app or the colour display (available on the FMR30B). The ‘It’s me’ function enables users to easily identify which device they are connected to via the SmartBlue application, with a flash ing status LED on the FMR10B and 20B and the display on the FMR30B. • Straightforward device selection: The device can be utilised for both liquid and solid applications. • Reliability and reduced downtime: Heartbeat verification and heartbeat di agnostics are available. Continuous self checking of the device is performed via heartbeat diagnostics. Endress+Hauser patented Heartbeat technology radar accuracy index (RAI) technology is used to assesses the reference accuracy of these Micropilot devices, without hav ing to interruption to the process. This technology is certified, traceable, and compliant with ISO 9001 standards. • Reduced installation effort: one-to-one replacement of existing devices. While ideal for use in the water and waste water sectors, Endress+Hauser’s new 80 GHz Micropilot radar sensors meet the needs and requirements of users in a wide range of sec tors and industries – including the mining, minerals and metals sectors, making plants easier to manage and run in every respect. www.endress.com

C ommissioning, particularly for water and wastewater treatment, can often be complex and time-con suming. However, the Micropilot FMR10B, FMR20B and FMR30B can stream line these activities with guided wizards, thus allowing quick and easy commissioning, even for advanced applications. The Micropilot FMR10B, 20B and 30B are compact level and flow sensors for continuous measurement, with a wide range of applications. Sewer management Effective sewer management involves moni toring flow and level values to ensure that a system operates efficiently and prevents overflows. Sewer management in South Africa faces many challenges. The Green Drop report, which assesses the performance of wastewater plants, highlights that at least 39% of wastewater plants in South Africa are deemed to be in poor or critical condition. Some of the challenges faced by water treat ment plants include having narrow spaces for the mounting of devices and the risk of flooding. An Ex-zone is also applicable in this application. The Micropilot FMR20B is ideal where space limited, with the compact sensor be ing easy to mount and commission using Endress+Hauser’s SmartBlue app. A variety of accessories complement these devices and include various mounting brackets, flood pro tection tubes and weather protection covers, ensuring consistent reliable measurement. Open channel flow Open channel flow in water and wastewa ter plants involves the movement of water through various channels that are exposed to the atmosphere. This type of flow is gener ally present in wastewater treatment plants for the movement of influent and effluent; however, these types of applications face the challenge of volatile weather conditions and the risk of flooding. The Micropilot FMR10B, 20B and 30B are independent of environ Micropilot FMR10B, FMR20B and FMR30B devices offer quick and easy commissioning with the use of Endress+Hauser’s SmartBlue app, which includes an integrated commissioning wizard.

The range includes, from left to right, the FMR10B, a basic free space radar level sensing device; the ultra-compact Micropilot FMR20; and the FMR30B for continuous level measurement and point level detection in liquids and bulk solids.

12 ¦ MechChem Africa • March-April 2025