Modern Mining May 2020

and modular equipment. “This is the case especially in times of economic turmoil, as time is of the essence to take advan- tage of opportunities and operators need reliable solutions.” He says concessions can be mined, income generated, and the operating conditions fully under- stood “in record time”. “It is then possible for more specialised or larger plants to be erected while revenue streams continue to flow in.” Industry responses Addressing Pilot Crushtec’s response to the need for bespoke comminution equipment, Abelho says the company is continuously refining its range, despite the fact that its modular range has remained consis- tent over the last 15 to 20 years. “Improvements to products often result directly from a particular operating condition we haven’t encountered before or an insight from a client. This means a constant and steady evolution of the prod- uct range based on an immense range of operating conditions.” Clients often require “new” solutions for specific objectives. Should this present an opportunity for products that will meet the needs of a larger mar- ket, the company will invest time and R&D spend to develop the product. “This enables us to offer ready-made solutions backed by large parts holdings as we have under- taken the research and evaluation phases prior to roll-out.” He describes the benefits to the client as “numer- ous” and cites the financial perspective as an example. “Funding is tied up for shorter periods, in terms of both Capex and Opex. Many specialised solutions entail long lead times, so critical spares lists must be more comprehensive to negate the impacts of breakdowns, which ties up cash flow even further.” Schoepflin says Kwatani’s response to the need for customisation is a “significant investment” in its

be reliable in harsh and remote locations. It must also be easy to maintain, with minimal technical com- plexity, so that the equipment design minimises the mean-time to repair and reduces downtime.” He says “very strict” health and safety proto- cols are required to operate mobile crushing plant specifically, so access to the equipment is highly restricted during operation. This, however, means that the equipment’s performance cannot be effec- tively monitored and improved upon where required. Product development should therefore overcome the impact of these restrictions. “Locally produced spare parts must be avail- able more readily and at lower cost than imported variants. Equipment must be designed to accommo- date larger production demand fluctuations without compromising quality. Customisation should also optimise the client’s unit cost of production to maxi- mise profitability.” To Sandvik’s Schoeman, one of the strongest driv- ers for customisation in mining is safety, “with zero harm now a well-applied principle in every mine”. This, he says, aligns closely with the company’s own commitment to safety and design philosophy. “Another important and closely related driver is automation,” says Schoeman. “As technology develops, especially in the digital arena, we are able to make our equipment both safer and more productive. “While automation systems have been integral to our equipment for over 20 years, the power of digitalisation and connectivity is leading to many advances, including telemetry tools that optimise equipment availability and uptime, while reducing overall running costs.” He cites, as an example, the fact that wear pat- terns can be tracked more closely, and the data represented on information dashboards. “These offerings can be customised to each user’s requirements, ensuring that they serve the imperative of continuous improvement.” Abelho says Pilot Crushtec Internationalis seeing an increase in demand for its off-the-shelf mobile

A track mounted coal crusher from B&E International.

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May 2020  MODERN MINING  27