Modern Mining April 2021

Modular concept For a modular plant to truly fulfil the idea behind the concept, says Marais, firstly, from a design per- spective, customers should be able to select the components they need to suit their specific applica- tion. These units are then interlinked with conveyors and a solution is tailored to their specific needs and site specifications. Once the design is defined, all the modules and individual components are sent to site, lifted into place and bolted together – as simple as that. Marais says modular systems are by their nature readily available modules that can quickly be on site and operational within a day or two. To give an idea, in one of its recent installations, Pilot Crushtec deliv- ered a solution in five months, from point of order to installation and commissioning. The five-month time- line included ordering, design and manufacturing, sourcing of all the crushing components, transporta- tion to site, installation and commissioning, which in

heights, cutting out sections, adding sections and bolts to clamp the components together. The real- ity of modular plants, he says, is that one is able to interchange components from one plant to the other and they should effectively fit. “The manufacturer must have a pre-designed range of equipment that has been tried and tested. The equipment should also be easy to integrate with each other, with minimal onsite modifications required during installation. When doing the design and layout of the plant, the equipment is already pre-designed and engineered; it’s just a matter of simply putting the ‘pieces of the puzzle’ together in a straightforward manner. We have been offering this concept for over two decades and all the compo- nents within the range easily fit with each other – the feed heights are correct, the discharge is right and we know exactly what the crushing and screening requirements are for different applications.” When it comes to costs, modular plants should

The Pilot Modular range consists of heavy duty crushers and screens mounted on skid frames designed for rapid installation.

The Pilot Modular Conveyors come standard with galvanised wrap around walkways and handrails.

this environment is unbelievable. Traditionally, he adds, bespoke plants have lead teams of at least 18 to 24 months. Just the design and engineering of traditional bespoke plants takes up to 12 months, while costing customers a fortune. With the modular solution, the lead times are short, and cus- tomers also save time and money on not having any civils work to do on site, apart from retaining walls for primary jaws. True modular solutions, says Marais, generally require a little amount of work for the plant to be set up correctly on site. He is shocked to see that with some competitor modular solutions, they spend weeks on site adjusting

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