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The global aggregates market is expected to be worth US$608.9bn by 2026, according to Big Market Research. Pictured are crushed and screened granite aggregates
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RRising value of the global aggregates market
eaders of Aggregates Business International Asia, Africa & Middle East will be delighted to know that their regional aggregates markets will play a leading role in a huge rise in the value of the global aggregates market over the next seven years to US$608.9bn in 2026, compared to $429.1bn this year. The eye-catching forecast in a new study by U.S.-based Big Market Research (BMR), a business market intelligence consultancy, equates to a healthy CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 4.6%.
In its study, BMR notes that the world’s aggregates market is largely driven by use of aggregates in the construction of bridges, ports, highways, and roads. It continues: “The market is expected to grow rapidly over the estimated timeframe due to the expansion of the construction industry in various developing economies, such as China, India, and Brazil. The government of China is focused to boost its infrastructure and construction spending in a bid to fuel its economic growth. This factor is anticipated to positively impact the growth of the market.
“Furthermore, the ongoing trend of constructing smart cities in emerging nations is also anticipated to fuel the growth of the aggregates market during the forecast period.”
The BMR report analyses four geographical regions: North America (U.S., Canada, and Mexico); Europe (Germany, France, the UK, Russia, and rest of Europe); Asia-Pacific (Japan, China, Australia, India, and rest of Asia-Pacific); and LAMEA (Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa).
Asia-Pacific is expected to hold the largest market share throughout the study period, owing to the expansion of the construction industry and strong economic growth in China and India. The Chinese government has announced a three-year action plan (2018–2020) to build mega infrastructure facilities for the development of modern China. Similarly, India’s government has started a number of projects for the development of railways and highway and roadway
infrastructure. The projects are due be completed by 2020.
The LAMEA region is expected to see the fastest aggregates-demand growth rate due to large investments in construction of roadways. For instance, African and Middle Eastern countries have witnessed significant growth in the consumption of aggregates due to the boom in the oil economy and a rise in the number of infrastructure development projects. Europe is also said by BMR to be witnessing growth in aggregates consumption due to the rapid recovery of Eastern European countries from financial and fiscal crises, heralding a growth in commercial construction. The North American aggregates market is said to be growing, owing to the presence of competitors such as Martin Marietta Materials, Vulcan Materials Company, and LafargeHolcim.
In an executive summary of the BMR report, Vivek Banik, BMR senior research analyst, Construction and Manufacturing, says: “A wide range of domestic [aggregates] players are expanding their business in China and India to increase customer base, enhance effective operations, and product portfolios. This is anticipated to fuel the demand for aggregates in the Asia-Pacific region. Also, by application, the concrete segment is expected to experience a rapid surge due to the rise in the construction sector, especially in North America and AsiaPacific.”
The key global aggregates market players profiled in the BMR study include Adelaide Brighton, CEMEX, CRH, Eurocement, Hanlon Concrete, Heidelberg Cement, LafargeHolcim Group, LSR Group PJSC., Martin Marietta Materials, and Vulcan Materials Company. Other companies operating in the market are Wharehine, Aggregate Industries, Okanagan Aggregates, Rock Road Companies, and Kuari Pati Sdn Bhd.
As I emphasised at the start of this Comment piece, the BMR study is a very welcome boost to all our aggregates-producing readership in what remains, for multiple reasons, a highly challenging global economic environment.GW gwoodford@ropl.com
19
AGGREGATES PRODUCTION
Raisby Quarry in the north-east of England has provided a backdrop for one of Terex Finlay’s biggest machine displays
22
LOADING
A Hitachi wheeled loader is helping to drive production in Portugal, where limestone can be more profitable than marble
Using state-of-the-art technology to create optimum quarry haul roads improves the efficiency of aggregates processing operations
27
PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE
Fully utilising the latest machine maintenance technology can help aggregates production business owners make big annual savings
Safety
Smarter
Premium
STORY: LiuGong F180 loaders have been a big asset at a quarry in Kratie Province, Cambodia p12
Specials
09 INTERVIEW
CAA president Hu Youyi on the role his association is playing in Chinese efforts to move to the forefront of the global aggregates sector
16 ARM CEMENT
Kenyan company looks to recover from tough trading period and achieve greater stability in volatile East Africa cement market
40 METSO OUTOTEC
Due to launch in Q2 next year, Metso Outotec is set to become a leading global player in process technology, equipment and services for the aggregates, mining and metals industries
43 QUARRY PROFILE
A South African silicon sand producer has taken the guesswork out of production planning and loadout processes with the installation of a load-weighing system on its wheeled loader
46 DIESEL REBATES
Record-keeping at South African quarries needs to improve to ensure they qualify for diesel rebates
The global Portland cement market is tipped to reach a volume of 5.9 billion tonnes by 2024, registering a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 4.3% during 2019-2024. The global market volume stood at 4.6 billion tonnes in 2018.
The forecasted growth of the Portland cement market, which stood at 4.6 billion tonnes in 2018, is predicted by ResearchandMarkets.com’s new study titled The Portland Cement Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2019-2024.
ResearchandMarkets.com (R&M.com), a leading global business market research consultancy, says that growth in global
Portland cement market at 5.9bn tonnes by 2024
Portland cement volumes is primarily being driven by thriving infrastructure and construction industries, especially in the developing nations.
Furthermore, increasing demand for materials such as concrete, mortar, stucco and grout which utilise Portland cement as a key ingredient, is also catalysing the growth of the industry. These products are used to manufacture plasters, screeds, building foundations and roadbeds.
Additionally, R&M.com says rapid urbanisation across the globe and increasing infrastructural investments by the governments of various nations are further providing a thrust to the market. Some of
these initiatives include public housing projects and the construction of roads for better connectivity to remote areas.
Moreover, the infrastructure sector in several countries is receiving significant thrust due to the organisation of international entertainment and sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup 2022. Hosting such events requires the construction of housing facilities, stadiums and other amenities that increase the utilisation of the product.
Other factors, including low procurement costs and easy availability of raw material, are also projected to catalyse market growth in the coming years.
PPC reports increased earnings
PPC, the South African cement giant, says its EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation & amortisation) rose by 5%-10% in the four months to July 2019. The rise was posted despite the company’s cement sales falling 10-15% in Southern Africa.
PPC notes that average cement prices in the Southern Africa region, including Botswana, rose 7%-8% during the analysed period.
A company operational update statement said that domestic cement demand remains constrained due to a “subdued demand environment”. Importer and blender activity have “also contributed to a competitive
operating environment”.
PPC reports that trading conditions remain difficult in the DR Congo, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, although strong construction activity in Rwanda has doubled EBITDA and raised sale volumes 35% to 40%.
Looking ahead, the company’s operational update statement said: “PPC will continue to focus on stabilising the performance of its core operations and positioning the group for future growth. The restructuring of the head office will enable the alignment of the business to its operational requirements and enable PPC to focus on maximising EBITDA in all markets it operates in and reducing financial leverage.”
PPC posted a rise in earnings in the four months to July 2019. Pictured is Roland van Wijnen, PPC’s recently appointed CEO
Global conference to put cement and concrete innovation in focus
Innovation in Focus’ is the theme of this year’s Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) Annual Conference, which will take place in Singapore on 10 October. Delegates from around the world including renowned global experts, industry CEOs, executives and other key industry stakeholders will share ideas on innovation, the future of cities and sustainable construction amongst other major global trends influencing the future of the cement and concrete industry.
Delegates will also discuss and hear from experts on a wide range of other topics including: technology developments, carbon capture, use and storage; construction techniques; process improvements; new binders; design and
architecture.
A high-level session led by world-renowned smart cities expert Ayesha Khanna and including speakers from Nigeria, India and Singapore will also explore the future of cities, sustainable construction and the role of concrete.
Commenting on the announcement of this year’s conference, Benjamin Sporton,
GCCA CEO, said: “This conference is an important opportunity for the global industry to come together and discuss some of the opportunities and challenges we face. With its key focus on innovation, the conference boasts an exciting programme and demonstrates the cement and concrete industry’s commitment to driving progress in sustainable construction and innovation across our value chain.”
Low Chinese growth impact on global cement & concrete additives demand
BIRLA PLEDGES INVESTMENT AFTER STRONG TRADING PERIOD
Birla Corporation (Birla), a leading Indian cement producer, posted a 14% year-on-year revenue rise in the first quarter of the 2019/20 financial year to INR 18.44 billion (US$249.1mn). In the three months to 30 June 2019, Birla’s fiscal earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 49% to INR 4.02bn ($56.07mn), while its net profit rose 68% to INR 1.41bn ($19.75mn).
The Chinese market for cement and concrete additives was the single largest overall in 2016 but will experience slower than average demand growth until 2023.
Those are among the findings in a new study from The Freedonia Group, which predicts a 4.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the global market between 2018 and 2023.
China accounted for more than 25% of overall cement and concrete additive demand in 2018 in value terms, making it the leading worldwide market for these products. This is expected to hold through 2023, even as sales grow at a comparatively slow annual rate for the forecast period.
The study attributes this sluggishness to several factors. Firstly, China has a large, low-cost labour pool, which makes construction less expensive and reduces the necessity for faster setting, additive-fortified concrete.
In addition, growth in the Chinese economy – and, as
a result, construction activity – held back potential gains between 2015 and 2018.
Finally, China is home to a significant number of unoccupied housing stock and non-residential facilities, limiting the need for new buildings that might spur additional additive demand.
While sales in China are not expected to grow as quickly as regional neighbours like India, the study found that there are still ample opportunities for advancement. Projects like the New Silk Road trade corridor – intended to connect China with regions such as Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe – will spur construction of new roads and bridges, which should boost the need for additives as well.
The Freedonia Group adds that ongoing modernisation in the Chinese construction industry ought to pave the way for growth in additives that provide improved performance and environmental benefits.
In a company statement released with its latest trading results, Birla says it is now looking to invest more in Perfect Plus, the firm’s new flagship brand, as it plans to increase its profits by focusing more on premium cement brands. In the 1 March to 30 June quarter, several premium brands had been launched by the company. It introduced Ultimate Ultra in the central India zone, while MP Birla Ultimate and Perfect Plus were rolled out in northern India. The company’s premium cement brand portfolio accounted for 37% of its cement sales in the analysed quarter.
The Cement Division of Birla Corporation Limited has 10 plants at seven locations, Satna & Maihar (Madhya Pradesh), Raebareli & Kundanganj (Uttar Pradesh), Chanderia (Rajasthan), Butibori (Maharashtra) and Durgapur (West Bengal).
Commenting on Birla’s latest trading results, chairman Shri Harsh V Lodha said: “The results are a reflection of our long-term strategy of enhancing profitability and competitiveness with the aim of becoming one of the best-in-class players in the industry. We have also increased our leadership bench strength and built all-round competencies in preparation for our next phase of growth.”
Benjamin Sporton, GCCA CEO
China accounted for more than 25% of overall cement and concrete additive demand in 2018.
Pictured is Beijing Cement Company’s Fengshan Quarry pic: CAN (China Aggregates Net)
BKT 2021 CAPACITY TARGET Indian off-highway machine tyre giant BKT says the new carbon black plant within its Bhuj, western India, production site will run at 100% of its capacity by 2021.
At the end of the first quarter of the 2019 financial year, the plant had a carbon black production output of 60,000 tonnes. This was due to an increase to 80,000 tonnes in the second quarter and it will reach its full production capacity of 130,000 tonnes by 2021.
Around 50% of the carbon black produced at the new plant is being used in BKT’s tyre manufacturing process, while the other remaining 50% is sold on the market. Besides, 80,000 tonnes of the present production are in hard grade, whereas further capacity for 50,000 tonnes in soft grade is under commission.
The growing use of rock crushers in various sectors such as mining, quarrying, highways, railways and commercial and residential building infrastructure is anticipated to increase the value of the global mobile cone crushers market from US$900mn in 2019 to US$1bn in 2026.
The rise in mobile cone crusher demand is predicted in Global Mobile Cone Crushers Market
Professional Survey Report 2019, a new study by Straits Research, a leading business market intelligence consultancy. It equates to a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of over 4.5% over the analysed period.
Emerging economies in Asia Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa are likely to act as tailwinds for the mobile cone crushers market, according to Straits Research.
The new study outlines how mobile cone crushers have fixed and movable cones as components.
One of the primary differences between a jaw crusher and cone crusher is that the former utilises both the cones to grind rocks and ore into smaller pieces and, as thus, plays a crucial role in the construction industry.
“Equipment used in mining and extraction industries have now been using data analytics in a bid to reduce operational costs and streamline extraction and crushing processes,” the Straits Research study continues. “The integration of big data analytics has aided in improving worker safety, smarter equipment procurement, and smart collaborations. Technological advancements such as these will accelerate the adoption of mobile cone crushers, leading to the growth of the market. However, stringent government regulations with regards to mining policies, increasing protectionist views, global trade wars, and the looming economic recession are likely to restrict the growth of this market to
US$1bn mobile cone crushers market by 2026
a certain extent.”
Straits Research highlights how the mobile cone crusher industry is fragmented in nature due to the presence of numerous major industrial machinery and construction manufacturers across the globe. The consultancy notes that leading companies in this area of the aggregates production market include Sandvik, Metso, McCloskey International, Anaconda, Metso and Astec Industries.
The new study adds: “To expand business reach, industry participants are adopting new product development, partnerships and mergers and acquisitions, along with expanding their distribution network, to cater to a large global customer base. The industry is witnessing a rental models’ trend owing to the high cost of this equipment. This offers benefits such as avoiding the initial purchase cost along with ensuring low maintenance and depreciation costs.”
South African equipment sales down
South African construction and mining equipment sales have declined for a third quarter in a row.
According to figures released by the Construction and Mining Equipment Suppliers’ Association (CONMESA), just 1,292 machines were sold during the period - 1,541 units down from the same period last year. The downward movement marks an acceleration of decline beginning in the last quarter of 2018 when the downward trend began with a drop of 4.65%. This was followed by a steep drop of 14.49% in the first quarter and a further drop this quarter.
While the market has remained mostly flat for the past four years, the latest drop in sales is the largest since 2016. CONMESA chairman Calvin Fennell says the depressed state of the economy has a knock-on effect on the equipment industry.
“Although there are sectors and areas of demand, the construction industry is largely depressed and stagnant. While the mining industry is fairing slightly better, it is still far off its previous levels. As a result, equipment suppliers are feeling the pinch of the prolonged downturn.
“There is no silver bullet for the economy to turn around and as a result we foresee much of the same for the foreseeable future with only moderate swings towards either end of the scale,” says Fennell.
He maintains that until such time as large infrastructure works are awarded, the reducing market with increasing numbers of competitors is going to be tough for them and the other established brands. The same is true of the mining industry where lack of global demand continues to maintain resource prices at moderate levels.
Superior Industries’ Patriot P400 mobile cone crusher
CONMESA chairman Calvin Fennell
Chinese aggregates sector eyes chance to go global
As president of the China Aggregates Association Hu Youyi has a wide-ranging remit. He spoke to Liam McLoughlin about his work on the new quarrying environmental standards being introduced in the country, and helping Chinese companies expand into potentially huge international markets.
China consumes around 50% - nearly 20 billion tonnes - of the world’s annual aggregates output. This startling statistic means that being president of the China Aggregates Association (CAA) is a very influential office to hold.
Established in 1981, the CAA was approved by the Ministry of Civil Affairs to act as the Chinese aggregates industry’s national non-profit “social” group in 1992.
The current CAA president, Hu Youyi, is a professor of engineering with an impressive background in the aggregates sector. He has been engaged for many years in research on aggregates and solid waste utilisation, and in scientific technology management work for the building materials industry. He is currently working on standards, regulation, technology innovation and green development in the aggregates industry.
The CAA is at the centre of Chinese efforts to move further to the forefront of the global aggregates sector. China’s massive Belt and Road Initiative to carry out infrastructure projects along a new Silk Road trade route provides a huge market for the country’s aggregates players.
“This is a good opportunity for us to go global,” says Hu. “One hundred and twenty-four countries have already joined the initiative and they are mostly poor and developing nations. They need lots of roads and building construction, so we think it brings a lot of opportunity for aggregates companies and machinery manufacturers to develop their global strategy. Aggregates companies can work together with local government and companies to provide the aggregates.”
There are 3,000 aggregates equipment manufacturing companies in China.
“A lot of European and American companies come over to China, including Kleemann and Metso, and in terms of technology they have their own advantages,”
Hu says. “We are still developing now. In terms of going to the EU and US, the CAA held an international conference [the China International Aggregates Conference in Shanghai in December 2018] that enabled Chinese and foreign companies to connect with each other. We will use this platform to understand each other more.”
One example of a Chinese company cooperating with a foreign firm is Shanghaibased crushing and screening equipment manufacturer Shanghai Shibang Machinery Co, which has formed a joint development partnership with McCloskey.
In terms of quality and price combined Hu believes that Chinese machines are superior to EU products, but he adds that Chinese manufacturers are still at the development stage in trying to achieve higher standards.
“There are a lot of good Chinese machinery manufacturing companies and they have already started their journey to go abroad,” he adds. “At the bauma expo in Munich earlier this year they had their own booth. They are willing to go abroad and try to enter the higher standard markets.”
“Stone quarries are the second-largest resource for humans to extract and use: the largest resource is water”
The world’s annual aggregates production is about 40 billion tonnes, and it is estimated that this amount will reach 60 billion tonnes by 2050. The fact that China currently consumes half of global production makes the country pivotal to efforts to have a more environmentally-friendly extraction process.
“Stone quarries are the second-largest resource for humans to extract and use: the largest resource is water,” Hu says. “This will cause environmental problems across the globe. The current situation is not satisfactory and we need to have an integrated approach to the problem.”
Authorities are paying increased attention to the extractive methods in the Chinese aggregates sector, and industry development is being addressed at the highest level by the State Council - the chief administrative authority in China.
The central government has started to introduce new environmental standards, which are impacting the industry.
In April the State Council ordered the closure of 1,000 non-coal mines and quarries. The State Council discussed aggregates development at its conference meeting in June 2019. The coastal province of Hebei in northern China will shut down half of its non-coal mines and quarries by 2025.
In October 2015 the Chinese Senate passed the new Quarries Act relating to the organisation of the aggregates industry.
“In 2018 President Xi said we need to protect our water,” Hu said. “The same year we also had the construction specifications [from the Ministry of Natural Resources] for green mines in the aggregates industry, which is the first guidance for the sector.”
In September 2018 the CAA issued a letter with suggestions of safeguards for aggregates provision, and for a standardised process, and many local governments have adopted its recommendations.
Those involved in quarry production now have to simultaneously complete re-habitation of the site, according to Hu.
BELOW: CAA sent a delegation to bauma 2019, here visiting the booth of Zenith, a German-based company which is owned by Quangong Machinery
“Aggregate businesses are carrying out monitoring and they upload to the cloud so the government and environmental agencies can check that they are maintaining environmental standards,” he says.
To protect the environment Hu states that many aggregates companies are adhering to a higher standard than the government requires.
Greater controls have also been placed on the direct extraction of natural sandstone from the country’s rivers and mountains.
“2018 was a difficult year for companies doing mineral extractions on rivers,” Hu says. “There is a higher requirement on emissions.”
The demand for building materials generated by China’s rapid urbanisation has led to a shortage of aggregates such as river sand in key cities such as Shanghai.
Over the past 40 years of reform and opening-up in China, the urbanisation rate has increased from 17.92% in 1978 to 59.58% in 2018. During this period, a huge amount of infrastructure (including buildings, roads and bridges) has been built, and a large quantity of natural sandstone resources has been consumed. Hu says that the existing river sand reserves can no longer meet the demand for construction raw materials, and that the use of manufactured aggregates is widespread.
While the shortage of river sand has impacted China’s infrastructure construction in the short term, Hu says it has also promoted the rapid development of the country’s manufactured aggregates industry.
“The use of manufactured aggregates has become the development direction of the aggregates sector,” he adds. “China’s aggregate industry standard will guide and standardise the development of the industry, improve the performance of manufactured aggregates products, and promote the green and high-quality development of manufactured aggregates.”
He says that using tailings and waste rock to make manufactured aggregates will
be an important part of the relevant standards for the aggregates sector.
The recent explosive growth in urban rail transport construction (35 railway projects were started in 2018) has also increased the demand for aggregates. The CAA is now collecting data for which sector uses the most aggregates and it has calculated that, for each 1km of standard railway, 16,000 tonnes of aggregates is used. For high-speed railways the figure is 60,000 to 80,000 tonnes of aggregates per 1km.
“For a long time we only cared about economic development and not the environment,” Hu says. “When we mine in an area we also need to benefit that area. We need to earn our profit with clean water and beautiful mountains.”
The CAA is increasing its focus on the use of new technologies such as 5G (fifth generation) cellular networks to drive development of the aggregates sector. Hu says that if 5G gains traction in the industry it
speed and lower latency (faster transmission times for packets of data). He says that the use of 5G would improve the balance of equipment such as robots and trucks in smart quarries and mines.
The CAA has several R&D departments exploring the use of new technologies. One is developing a cloud platform for designing stone mines and has devised a visual simulation of how aggregates would be transported in this situation. The Chinese telecom company Huawei is already using 5G technology to remotely control equipment in the mining sector. The company claims 5G boosts safety and efficiency in addition to saving the industry US$150,000 a year per driver.
Hu says that the emphasis in the now is moving away from changes in industrial structure and is now based on new technology and integrated development. “Everything should be connected in the quarrying industry,” he says. “We need to
Hu Youyi talking to the leaders and the workshop manager of the Northern Heavy Industry (NHI) factory in Shenyang
Hu Youyi and the CAA delegation at the booth of Chinese company XCMG at bauma 2019
China aggregates demand stays on a high
Government investment in infrastructure projects is driving aggregates consumption, but a rush to strict new environmental quarrying standards has led to shortfalls in supply.
Liam McLoughlin reports
Demand for aggregates in China remains very high and the trend is towards a further increase this year.
General aggregates consumption in the country was approximately 20 billion tonnes in 2018, according to the Chinese Aggregates Association (CAA). The association adds that, with three months of 2019 still to go, the gure for this year is expected to increase to more than 20 billion tonnes.
Aggregates produced in China include natural sand, natural gravel, manufactured stone, manufactured sand and recycled aggregates. As the main material in concrete, crushed stone is the most produced aggregate in China. Natural sand production is declining sharply due to greater government controls on extraction, says David Zhao, editor of China Aggregates Net, which specialises in Chinese aggregates market analysis.
Driven by China’s huge population and relatively low urbanisation level, Zhao says that aggregates annual demand is likely to remain high.
The high demand for aggregates is being driven mainly by heavy government investment in highway, subway and train infrastructure projects. These need highquality aggregates from quarries that have been certi ed.
Major nationwide government initiatives that are providing demand include high-speed railways, expressways, and basic roads for
the most remote villages. One of the largest current construction megaprojects is the 24km, eight-lane Shenzhen-Zhongshan bridge near Hong Kong that will connect the city of Shenzhen on the eastern side of the Pearl River Delta with the city of Zhongshan on the western side. Construction started in December 2016 and is due for completion in 2024.
Zhao says that infrastructure investment is playing an important role in stabilising the Chinese economy during the ongoing Sino-US trade dispute. In 2019 infrastructure investment in the country is increasing to RMB3.21 trillion.
In 1949 just 10.6% of the population lived in cities, according to Hu Youyi, president of the China Aggregates Association (CAA), but this had increased to 59.58% by 2018. “Now every year we build another Shanghai,” Hu says.
This ongoing high demand has come at the same time as major structural changes in the Chinese quarrying sector (intended to improve the environmental impact of quarries) have impacted supply levels. The rush to green standards has taken place over a two- to three-year period that could have taken decades in other countries, says Zhao. These factors have combined to cause dramatic uctuations in aggregates prices.
Traditionally China has had a lot of smaller quarries and until quite recently there were more than 300,000 quarries in the country, according to Li Shunshan, president of NMS
Industries, a mineral processing and quarrying company based in Jiangxi province.
He adds that these quarries are often very small, producing just 100 tonnes per hour.
The government is now pursuing a policy of having larger quarries and Li estimates that the number has been reduced to 60% of the previous gure at around 180,000 quarries. He adds that the government of President Xi Jinping wants to get cleaner air and the smaller quarries have been shut due to their environmental impact.
Environmental protection is now the key factor driving the Chinese aggregates industry upgrade, according to Zhao. “Every quarry has to take it very seriously otherwise the government will close it,” he adds.
Fang Libo, executive deputy general manager and director of SMB Industry and Technology Group, says that there are now much stricter standards for quarry and mine operators on dust and emissions.
“You also need to ‘re-green’ the site when you have nished extraction,” adds Fang, who is also executive director of the China Aggregates Association.
While the number of quarries has reduced, the output of the existing ones is getting much bigger. However, Li says the structural changes mean that there is a shortage of aggregates supply to meet the increasing demand.
“When you are constructing bigger quarries it takes time,” he adds. “You need to get a licence from the government and this
Wulei Shengxin Quarry in Hebei province
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takes a long time to be approved for their safety and environmental standards. It can take more than one year to get a licence to construct a quarry.”
He estimates that the overall price of aggregates has increased by up to three or four times over the last two years, with 2019 seeing the biggest increase so far at around 200%. He predicts that prices will continue to grow and should stabilise by 2021.
The CAA’s Hu says that the “irregular” regional price of aggregates around the country has caused problems. The difference in prices can be 10 to 20 times in different areas, and this has affected some infrastructure projects, Hu says.
Because of the demand for aggregates, production at Chinese quarries can be between 1,000 and 3,000 tonnes per hour, according to Li Shunshan, and is generally much higher than the US and Europe where rates can be around 500 tonnes per hour.
Li says that a lot of new players are trying to become involved in quarrying. “Even pavement companies want to open a quarry for the financial opportunities in the sector,” he adds. “I think most of the new players that enter will be large-scale companies from industries such as cement and engineering.”
The strict environmental policies will increase the importance of manufactured aggregates, according to Fang Libo.
“Five years ago a lot of sand extraction took place from the lakes and rivers around Shanghai, and the city had the lowest price for natural sand in China,” Fang says. “Because of environmental protection all of this is being shut down.”
He predicts that the majority of aggregates for road construction will come from manufactured aggregates.
The environmental restriction on natural sand extraction has pushed its price “insanely high”, according to China Aggregates Association secretary general Sun Weixing. He says this means it is imperative for the Chinese market to adopt machine-crushed sands for the supply of infrastructure projects.
“Many enterprises have already seen the prospects for crushed sand and have started the tooling of their crushed sands factories,” says Sun. “The development of crushed sands has become the inevitable trend for the future.”
Limestone is very much in demand for house construction and accounts for around 80% of aggregates production in China. “Road building needs harder rock and basalt aggregates and accounts for around 15%,” says Li.
In terms of equipment that is currently in demand among Chinese quarrying customers, Fang says that there are differences across the regions. Jaw crushers are popular in some areas due to their relatively low base costs, while elsewhere cone crushers find favour because of the long life of wear parts.
Gyrating/jaw crushers, cone crushers and VSI (vertical shaft impactor) crushers are a popular choice for newly built large quarries which have hard rocks in China, David Zhao says, while some large quarries with soft rocks select hammer crushers as the primary equipment.
“Cost is the most considered factor for private companies, while most state-owned quarries prefer well-known equipment with excellent performance and services,” Zhao adds. “And there is a rising demand for mobile crushing and screening equipment
A LiuGong loader operates in Kratie Province, Cambodia. Chinese manufacturers are increasingly targeting foreign markets
Metso is launching its first mobile crushing and screening range in China through its Shaorui business
in demolish waste treatment and quarry operation.”
Fang Libo says that for crushing and screening plants, mobile is very popular in road-building projects while stationary plant is the most used in quarries.
Finnish company Metso is introducing its first range of mobile crushing and screening equipment in China through its Shaorui business. The range is especially designed for the price- and quality-conscious mid-market segment. Utilizing Metso’s technologies and experience in track-mounted equipment, the new range offers various solutions ideal for quarry contracting and demolition applications.
“The Chinese market for mobile crushing and screening equipment is one of the fastestgrowing markets in aggregates today,” said Markku Simula, president of the aggregates equipment business at Metso.
The new range will be produced by Shaorui Heavy Industries located in Shaoguan, China. Shaorui Heavy Industries specialises in crushing and screening products used both in aggregates and mining applications in China and other countries. Metso acquired 75% of the company in 2013.
Competition is very intensive among Chinese quarrying equipment suppliers, according to Li Shunshan of NMS Industries. “Companies like ours are going to Australia, the US and Africa to try to find opportunities,” he says. “Africa has the biggest potential for our crushing and screening machines, not only in aggregates production but also in metal mining.
“There is a lot of demand for our products in Africa – this year we’ve sold US$10m worth of equipment there, mostly crushers. We sell a lot in the Congo.”
Li believes his company can increase its sales in Africa and that it has a big advantage in price over competitors. “There is also opportunity for us in Europe and the Americas,” he adds. “We have recently sold a crusher in the US and also one in Finland.”
Chinese manufacturers are also developing their presence in other Asian markets. LiuGong has sold eight fork-type loaders including the F180 to a quarry in Kratie Province, north-eastern Cambodia. The quarry mainly produces granites, but the site also features a rock mine hidden in remote and harsh forest with an area of more than 200 hectares and reserves of more than 100 million m3 of rocks.
The raw rocks extracted from the mountain are huge and heavy. After being cut and polished by skilled craftsmen, they are used for building decorations, tombstones and sculptures. Production reaches 100,000m3 per month, and the LiuGong loaders are responsible for all loading and transferring work of rocks at the quarry site.
China’s domestic cement output increased by 6.8% in the first six months of 2019 to 1,045 million tonnes.
Releasing the figures in a financial statement, Chinese cement and clinker producer DongWu said the national cement industry in H1 saw increases in both sales volume and prices. However, it added that the H1 2019 growth rate is lower than that for the first half of 2018.
DongWu says that growth in demand and compression in supply mean that the country’s cement and clinker stocks are at a mediumlow level overall, ensuring that cement market prices are still at an “historically good” level.
It added: “Although the market pattern of strong demand in [the] south and weak in [the] north has not changed, the prices and supply and demand in the northern region represented by Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei and the surrounding areas have improved significantly compared with last year.”
Real estate investment in China saw an increase of 10.9% compared with H1 2018, driven by the growth of new construction areas and areas already under construction.
The central and local governments introduced measures that enabled the gradual recovery of infrastructure investment in H1 (particularly in the transportation segment) as compared with the end of last year.
These measures meant that national demand for cement was better than expected with a year-on-year increase of more than 5%. Growth was higher in the northern regions than in the south, according to Chinese industry news site dcement.com.
In H1 the average price for Portland (PO42.5) cement in China was RMB435 (€55.42) per tonne, a 4% year-on-year increase of RMB17 (€2.17) per tonne.
DongWu said that the general increase in both sales volume and price in China’s domestic cement industry in H1 meant that its group sales volume and operating income in the period both increased from H1 2018. In the first half of 2019, the group recorded profits from the cement segment of around RMB38.4m (€4.9m).
In terms of where the Chinese aggregates industry will be in ten years’ time, Zhao predicts there will be fast development and consolidation ahead. “Strict regulations wiped out many ‘traditional’ aggregate plants and strong companies are coming in,” he says. “Fierce competition is waiting for those advanced modern quarries and it may all end by some consolidation. Then we can call it a mature industry.” AB
Cement mixer trucks in Sichua, China
Athi River Mining (ARM) Cement plant in Athi River, Nairobi. The company has transferred its business for US$50 million to National Cement Company, a subsidiary of Devki Group, which manufactures and distributes cement in Kenya
ARM Cement plots brighter future
ARM Cement Plc (Athi River Mining) is seeking greater stability in the volatile East Africa cement market, as the company looks to recover from a particularly tough period in its trading history. Shem Oirere reports
ARM Cement Plc (ARM Cement), once Kenya’s second biggest-cement maker after Lafarge’s Bamburi Cement, has sold off some of its Kenyan assets for US$50 million, as the company seeks to improve its liquidity and reduce a crippling debt that saw it being placed under administration in the third quarter of 2018.
The cement manufacturer, which operates a clinker and cement-grinding plant in Kaloleni and Athi River in Kenya, announced through the joint administrators in May the approval of “a robust, competitive and transparent transaction process aimed at identifying strategic or financial investors.”
According to joint administrator George Weru, the search for strategic or financial investors was to enable the company to achieve “recapitalisation through an injection of equity and/or a sale of all or some of the assets of the company and/ or a comprehensive restructure of its debt obligations.”
When it was placed under administration in August 2018, the cement company, which operates limestone, clinker and cement plant in Tanzania under the trading names ARM Tanzania and Maweni Limestone,
was grappling with a debt of more than $190 million. The firm had reported slower trading across its East Africa cement market operations on the back of a violent election cycle in Kenya, policy changes in Tanzania, and an oversupply of cement in the region.
Although Dangote Cement, part of the Nigerian conglomerate Dangote Group, had expressed interest in acquiring 100% of the ARM Cement assets, and Oman’s Raysut had indicated it was keen on snapping up 70% of the company’s assets, it was National Cement Company Ltd, a subsidiary of Devki Group, that pulled off a surprise deal that saw it acquire some of the assets on sale, according to Weru’s statement last May.
National Cement, known for its market brand Simba, currently holds nearly 20% of the East African market. With its acquisition of ARM Cement assets in Kenya, it has become the second-biggest cement maker in the country, after Bamburi Cement.
Weru said the joint administrators entered into an agreement for the acquisition of all cement and non-cement assets and all the business of ARM Cement Plc in Kenya as a going concern with National Cement Company Limited for $50 million, subject to approvals by requisite regulatory bodies.
“Once the transaction is completed and the sale proceeds paid to the administrators, the proceeds from the sale shall then be used to settle registered claims against the company and distributed to the creditors, in accordance with the provisions of the Insolvency Act 2015 of Kenya,” he said.
ARM Cement, which has an estimated production capacity of 100,000 tonnes per year in Rwanda, where it trades as Kigali Cement, is known in the regional market as the manufacturer of the Rhino cement brand.
The sale of the company’s assets is a culmination of a series of market dynamics and trends that hit not only ARM Cement but also its competitors within the East Africa region, as economic out-turns and political upheavals jolted medium- and long-term infrastructure development and eroded appetite for consumption growth. Other players in East Africa’s cement market include East Africa Portland Cement, Dangote Cement Plc and Mombasa Cement Ltd.
In its assessment of its 2017 performance, ARM Cement noted there was suppressed demand for cement in Kenya “notably due to the impact of the prolonged electioneering period as well as increased challenges in Tanzania.”
According to Kenya Association of Manufacturers, 2017 was a difficult year for the industry in Kenya on the back of “a severe drought, and unusually high inflation rates mid-year”.
“We also had to try and stay afloat, for the most part, as it was an election year, and business had substantially slowed down. All of these things combined adversely affected our economy,” said Phyllis Wakiaga, the association’s chief executive.
For ARM Cement, the situation was compounded by the long-term effects of the mid-2016 policy change in Tanzania banning importation of coal for powering cement manufacture operations. The company has an installed capacity of 1,600,000 tonnes a year in Tanzania.
“Since the ban came in when there was only one large coal mine - Ngaka mine, managed by Tancoal Energy - there was insufficient supply of coal in the country, which impacted clinker and cement production in the second half of 2016, as well as the first half of 2017,” said brokerage firm Apex Africa Capital Ltd in its ARM Cement earnings update for the first half of 2017.
“The dip in coal supply coupled with depressed cement prices in the country ate into the already low profit margins for ARM, leading to a negative earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in Tanzania,” said Apex Africa Capital.
According to the brokerage house, “the insufficient supply of coal in Tanzania affected Kenyan operations as the Kenyan unit imports some clinker from Tanzania to meet its demand for cement production and as such, the volumes sold in Kenya declined.”
Moreover, ARM Cement said the coal importation ban in Tanzania “not only increased manufacturing costs but also impacted on optimal capacity of utilisation of the clinker plant at Tanga, due to chronic undersupply of coal.” The inability to generate adequate revenues by the 2014-built clinker plant saw ARM Cement’s market value slide 10%.
Part of the ARM Cement asset portfolio in Athi River, Nairobi. The company was placed under administration in August 2018
Furthermore, ARM Cement and its competitors in the East African cement market have been grappling with the increased production capacity, which has eroded prices of the construction material across the region.
By 2017, ARM Cement noted the “excess capacity in the market resulted in price pressures, with every manufacturer embarking on price strategy to maintain volumes.”
Bamburi Cement, the biggest cement maker in the region, said later in 2018 there was a market decline of 5% in Kenya, East Africa’s largest cement consumer, while Uganda experienced “flat” growth.
“Increased competitive pressure fuelled by a growing gap between installed cement, grinding capacity and a shrinking market, has played a key role in (cement) market dynamics,” said a statement by Bamburi Cement Board of Directors, chaired by Dr John Simba.
Additionally, says global market researcher, Research and Markets, “imports from Asian countries resulted in an oversupply of cement within the region (East Africa) which further restrained the market growth.”
A further constraint, according to Bamburi Cement, has been high operating costs, driven by expensive energy, imported clinker and raw material input prices, which continue to impact the cement market, particularly in Kenya and Uganda.
Moreover, Research and Markets adds cement market growth in East Africa has been on the decline since 2015 “due to increased power tariffs, currency devaluations and high interest rates which led to a slowdown in the region’s construction activities.”
With the restructuring of ARM Cement debt now on course, the company is expected to rejuvenate its cement production capacities and pile much more competitive pressure on the region’s market.
The firm says it “intends to reduce further current debt levels and has initiated a process to restructure the balance sheet with a view to reducing the short-term nature of the debts.”
The anticipated improvement of ARM Cement’s liquidity is likely to coincide with a rebound of the East Africa cement market, with Research and Markets saying the region’s production volumes could rise to 22.2 million tonnes by 2023, up from the 14.4 million tonnes of 2017.
According to Research & Markets’ December 2018 overview of the region’s cement market, demand growth will be boosted by investments made by the regional governments in public infrastructure, such as development of Entebbe International Airport, the redesigning of Malaba-Kampala railway route into a standard gauge line, the upcoming construction of Bukasa port in Uganda, and the development of roads, rail and water transport facilities in Rwanda. AB
ARM Cement, which manufactured the Rhino cement brand had operations in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda
Terex Finlay’s big machines showcase
A major quarry in North-East England provided the backdrop for one of Terex Finlay’s biggest-ever machine displays.
Raisby Quarry in North-East England is the biggest quarry operated by Breedon Northern, producing 1.2 million tonnes of materials/year.
Aggregates of various sizes for use in construction and asphalt along with agricultural lime are the limestone quarry’s main products, and the amount produced is growing.
Alan Mackenzie is managing director at Breedon Northern, part of the Breedon Group, and included in his responsibilities are 40 quarries; 70 concrete plants; 20 asphalt plants; block-making facilities, and a mobile concrete business. His region covers an area from the Outer Hebrides in Scotland to a line between Scarborough in the east of England to Kendal in the west.
“A lot of our quarries are small units in rural areas and Raisby Quarry is my biggest quarry. It has three benches, including one where we get agricultural lime. We export this to Europe,” he said.
“The quarry was part of Breedon Group’s 2016 acquisition of Hope Construction.
“We sell all the material we produce here, and we have put a lot of equipment into the quarry.
“To help us produce materials throughout our region we use a variety of equipment, including six Terex Finlay mobile crushing trains.
“A lot of our equipment is from Terex Finlay. We have been working with Finlay Scotland for some years, and we get a good service from them.”
And it was in Raisby Quarry at Coxhoe, County Durham, that Molson Finlay and Finlay Scotland in conjunction with Terex Finlay hosted two open days.
Visitors saw live demonstrations of 19 Terex Finlay machines working in aggregates and recycling applications and, among these, the company showcased new machines, including the I-120RS impact crusher (with grinding path option); TC-100 conveyor; TR-75 radial conveyor; the TF-75L low-level feeder and the 883+ triple shaft screener.
Fifth-generation models of the Terex Finlay 693+ and 694+ inclined screens were also previewed in advance of their global launch in Q4, 2019.
Other machines included the J-960, J-1170, J-1480 and J1170DD jaw crushers; C1540 and C1545 cone crushers; I-120RS and I-140RS impact crushers; 873, 883+ and 883+ Spaleck heavy-duty screeners, and the TC 80 conveyor.
Attendees saw working demonstrations of the new OMNI by Terex system, a realtime tablet-based system that is said to improve jobsite safety and efficiency in crushing and screening operations. It provides centralised access and enables the operator to watch, monitor and adjust working equipment from the safety of the cab.
Also on show was Terex Finlay T-Link, a remote monitoring and fleet management system that allows operators to stay connected and keep track of equipment; monitor work progress; manage logistics; access critical machine information; analyse and optimise machine performance, and perform remote operator support. The system is now available on all Terex Finlay machines.
Nigel Irvine, Terex Finlay’s sales and marketing director, said: “Many thanks to Breedon for allowing us access to this site.
and screeners at
“We were here for two weeks getting ready for this successful event, which has seen representatives from 54 companies looking at our latest offerings.
“We now have a complete line of crushing and screening equipment.”
He said that Terex Finlay products go to market through dealers, including Molson Finlay and Finlay Scotland.
In March the Molson Group acquired Finlay Scotland, a long-established equipment dealer of Terex Finlay products in Scotland and the Scottish Islands. Through the acquisition, Molson Group secured the distribution rights for the complete range of Terex Finlay mobile crushing, screening and conveying equipment across Great Britain. At its open days the new machines were introduced.
The Terex Finlay I-120RS direct-drive horizontal shaft impact crusher is a secondgeneration machine, which incorporates the new Terex CR098 impact chamber.
Terex Finlay says that a key component of the crusher is the onboard, innovative quick-detach 3.66m x 1.53m two-deck screen. For applications not requiring recirculation of materials for further processing or stockpiling, the complete screening and recirculating system can be quickly detached from the machine.
Fitted to the machine in the aggregates zone was an optional third apron (grinding path), which is used to give additional reduction for production of a qualityspecified product.
“The impactor can be used in quarrying, demolition and recycling applications and incorporates the ‘proven’ material flow which is our design ethos that is now found
Crushers
Terex Finlay’s big open days’ showcase at Raisby Quarry
handling uses in quarry, recycling, mining, port and dock, and rail applications that supply a constant feed.
The stockpiler follows the successful introduction of the TC-65 and TC-80 tracked conveyors and is said to be able to cope with a range of applications, from screening light and fines materials to primary crushing applications.
The 30m-long conveyor is hydraulically driven and has hydraulic pin-less height adjustment for both inlet and discharge end of the conveyor.
Equipped with a belt just over 1m wide and a maximum discharge height of 14.3m, the conveyor is rated up to a maximum throughput of just over 360tonnes/hour. It can be hydraulically folded to offer a compact transport envelope.
The new TR-75 radial-tracked conveyor, a stockpiling solution for mobile crushing and screening plants, is said to reduce or remove the use of wheeled loaders on site and can be utilised in a wide range of applications.
Fitted with a 1,050mm-wide belt, the conveyor has a maximum discharge height of 10.9m and with a 135° radial stockpile it gives over 10,000m³ of material with the option of an automated stockpiling mode. The conveyor moves radially and raises discharge height thus preventing material segregation on discharge,
Terex Finlay says its new TF-75L low-level feeder has been designed to maximise productivity, enhance efficiency and reduce on-site operational costs in a wide variety of applications. It estimates that the savings of running such a feeder can be up to 80%, and its new 3.5m-wide tracked TF-75L feeder with a 7m³ hopper and feed height of 1.9m offers low-level feeding from excavator, crane grabs and wheeled loaders.
speed main conveyor can handle up to 500tonnes/hour of materials, depending on the feed material and working angle of the machine. The 9.8m maximum discharge height provides a maximum conical-shaped material stockpile capacity of 1,735m³.
Also new is the Terex Finlay TF-75H high-level feeder that permits operators to directly discharge to hopper/feeder from
used for a metered or controlled feed of material when working as part of a crushing and screening train or in stand-alone
Developed for sticky, difficult and dry applications, including quarry, mining, sand and gravel, construction and demolition debris, and recycling, the 883+ tripleshaft screener features two 4.8m x 1.5m screening decks.
The triple-shaft design employs an oval-motion stroke combining linear and circular amplitude to generate an aggressive screening action, reducing plugging and binding over the screen decks.
Multiple media configurations, including bofors bars, finger screens, woven mesh and punch plates, are available for a wide range of applications from fine screening to heavy
Terex Finlay is expanding its 6 Series product range with the introduction of the 694+ WS inclined screen, which incorporates improvements made to the
The company says the key difference between the models is the new screen box, which provides three 6.1m x 1.7m inclined screens, giving a larger screening area, resulting in higher capacities.
As standard, the machine is fitted with a 650mm-wide transfer with the extended options available, and the fourth product (oversize plus) conveyor maintains the slew and tilt functions for onsite flexibility and closed-circuit applications.
Terex Finlay’s new I-120RS impact crusher with grinding path option
The TC-100 conveyor has a wide range of material-handling uses
The new TF-75L low-level feeder has a 7m³ hopper and feed height of 1.9m
TAKE CONTROL
Omni gives a previously inaccessible level of control to multiple mobile crushing and screening machines from a central location.
SAFETY
2 x remote camera views per machine greatly reduce the time the operator has to be out of the safety of the cab.
CENTRAL CONTROL
One-touch pause & ability to make multiple machine setting adjustments.
CONNECTED
Understand operational metrics and warnings as they happen to ensure maximum uptime.
MULTI-USER Omni offers exceptional visibility by connecting to another tablet (sold separately)
Loader proves a hit at Portuguese limestone quarry
A Hitachi wheeled loader is helping to drive production in a market where limestone can be more profitable than marble. Liam McLoughlin reports
APortuguese limestone supplier has added a Hitachi ZW310-6 wheeled loader to its fleet to help it maintain high productivity levels at its quarry near the town of Fátima.
The Filstone Natural quarry was established in 2002 by CEO Ricardo Jorge and produces 900,000 tonnes of material per year at the 30-hectare site.
The Hitachi loader is working on the second level of the quarry to load trucks, move limestone between different stockpiles, and feed the crushing and screening equipment. The material being handled by the ZW310-6 is a secondary commodity created by activities on the quarry floor, in which 13-14 tonne limestone blocks are cut. Reserves are currently anticipated to last for the next 100 years.
Jorge said that the Hitachi vehicle is essential to Filstone’s output, especially in a market in which limestone can sometimes be more lucrative than marble.
“We had high expectations for the wheeled loader, but were surprised by its low fuel consumption,” Jorge said. “In addition, the machine is stable and compact, and still performs as effectively as a larger machine.”
At the family-owned company, Jorge’s cousin Humberto Miguel de Jesus Santos operates the ZW310-6. He praised the loader’s “rapid, agile and smooth” performance. “Inside the cab there is near 100% visibility and it is very quiet,” he added. “In terms of maintenance, it has well-positioned access points and is easy to clean.”
At April’s bauma show in Munich, Case Construction Equipment unveiled its ProjectTETRA biomethane-powered wheeled loader concept which can run entirely on alternative and renewable fuel.
The project is intended to enable a shift away from the traditional reliance on diesel engines. The concept includes a methanepowered engine, specially designed and developed for construction applications by Fiat Power Train (FPT) which, like Case, is part of the CNH Industrial group.
Case says the technology already exists, with FPT having already produced 40,000 engines using natural gas, but this is the first time it has been used in earthmoving.
“We plan to bring it to market in a few years,” said Massimiliano Ventura, product manager for wheeled loaders, Case Europe. “It’s still in the early development stage, but there was a lot of interest from the reveal at bauma.”
Carl Gustaf Goränsson, president of construction at CNH Industrial, added: “This technology is already tried and tested in other CNH Industrial brands as there are some 28,000 methane-powered IVECO trucks and IVECO bus vehicles on the roads today.”
Case is seeking to challenge the established European players in the loading sector and build its market share. Asked about the company’s targets in the wheeled loader/excavator market in Europe, Alain de Nanteuil, product director, general construction at Case CE Europe, responded: “Becoming among the first choices for heavy equipment and being at the front of customers’ minds when they are making these decisions.”
He added that aggregates customers are looking to make their production more efficient and want to cut down their fleet costs without compromising their output. “Moreover, climate change is becoming a major concern globally and heavy-line customers need solutions/products that are not yet available on the market,” de
Nanteuil said. He added that Case will address all those needs, leveraging strongly on alternative energies, automation and digitalisation.
In July Case showcased a range of its loaders, dozers and excavators at the 500-acre Maltby Colliery site in South Yorkshire, England.
Equipment on display at the CASE Eagle Days press and customer events held on 15-1 6 July included the 721GXR, 821G and 1121G wheeled loaders; the 1650, 1850 and 2050 dozers (both fitted with Leica Geosystems); the CX300 and CX145 excavators (both with Steelwrist tiltrotators); and the SV300 skid-steer loader.
CASE Construction Equipment is upgrading the engines on its vehicles to meet the Stage V exhaust emission legislation for off-road engines. The first stage of the European Union legislation came into effect in January 2019 for engines below 56 kW as well as engines of 130 kW and above. From January 2020 it will apply for engines from 56 kW but below 130 kW.
“We will upgrade our engines to be Stage V-compliant by 2020 on all our machines in Europe, including loaders and excavators,” said Ventura.
Doosan has also been outlining its Stage V plans and says it will extend new Stage V-compliant models across the company’s entire excavator range by mid-2020.
The newly launched Doosan DX300LC-7 30 tonne model – used in the construction and demolition sectors – is the company’s first mid-sized Stage V crawler excavator. It is now being joined by the 36 tonne DX350LC-7 model – suitable for construction, demolition and small quarries – which is available to European customers from October.
The Hitachi ZW310-6 wheeled loader in operation at Filstone Natural quarry, Portugal
Stage V ‘-7’ models of the rest of the crawler excavator range are due to be available by June 2020, according to Stephane Dieu, excavator product specialist and sales trainer for Doosan Infracore Construction Equipment EMEA.
The range covers the 40 tonne DX380LC-7 (due to be available to European customers in Q1 2020), in addition to the larger DX420LC-7, DX490LC-7 and DX530LC-7 machines which are suitable for quarrying. These models will have the same improvements as the DX300LC-7, including 360° cameras fitted as standard that provide full visibility around the excavator and allow the operator to see a top-down view of the area outside the machine. The camera array comprises a front camera, two side cameras and a rear camera - the same set-up will be used when the larger models are rolled out.
Also standard is a new 8-inch touchenabled colour LCD gauge panel to provide more information via a 30% larger screen, and a stereo system integrated in the gauge panel.
Available as options on the ‘-7’ range are LED lights to improve visibility of the excavator, side protection, an air compressor, ultrasonic detection of obstacles, and a smart keyless start system.
Speaking at the Doosan Quarry Days event held in mid-September in the Czech Republic, Stephane Dieu told Aggregates Business that the new smart power control (SPC) on the ‘-7’ range will give greater fuel economy. “Instead of having fixed RPM the excavator will adjust it to save fuel, depending on what activity you are doing,” said Dieu. “Digging needs power while less is required for lifting or emptying the bucket. SPC will improve fuel consumption by 5-7% compared with the previous models.”
The first Caterpillar 988K XE wheeled loader to operate in Europe has been proving its worth in load-and-carry
operations at the Natursteinwerke Nordschwarzwald (NSN) limestone quarry in Germany.
Fifteen years ago, NSN installed what was then the most modern fully automated gravel plant, in South Germany. “One of the areas we decided to focus on, was how fuel consumption could be further reduced without sacrificing production output,” said Stefan Pendinger, operations manager of NSN in Magstadt in the northern Black Forest region where limestone is extracted. The company purchased a Cat 988K XE with a high-efficiency electric drive system for its Magstadt plant for its load-and-carry operation.
Since then another unit has been introduced to the NSN quarry in Enzberg, north of Stuttgart. The loader features switched reluctance (SR) technology and leverages more than 15 years of Cat electric drive experience. The C18 ACERT engine, mechanical dropbox, driveline and axles from the 988K remain in the electric drive machine for consistent, trouble-
free operation. On average, around 1.5 million tonnes of limestone are extracted and processed into crushed rock, grit and sand and it is used in construction, civil engineering, and landscaping.
Construction aggregates supplier Hanson has acquired a Cat 986K wheeled loader in a deal with Caterpillar dealer Finning UK & Ireland.
The loader is the penultimate addition in a series of new Caterpillar vehicles added to Hanson’s fleet as part of a 31-machine deal struck in 2018 and will be in operation at Hingston Down Quarry in Cornwall. Hanson has worked extensively with Finning over many years, building a strong relationship that has led to a number of ongoing projects with the business.
The Cat 986K features powershift transmission, torque converter with lock-up clutch and axle shaft disc brakes. Hanson says the machine was chosen for its compact sizing and advanced technology features.
The vehicle’s VisionLink feature offers insight into the health, location and productivity of the machine, and is designed to help increase productivity, control costs, improve operator performance and ensure safety on-site.
Volvo CE says that its EcoOperator training is helping its customers around the world to slash fuel consumption, machinewear costs and environmental impact. One such company to embrace the training is Algerian limestone quarrying company SAPAM, which has a programme that focuses on improving operator behaviour to benefit fuel consumption, machine wear and uptime – ultimately boosting profitability.
The one-day course teaches operators to drive sparingly on site without affecting productivity. Although machines in drive mode are restricted to using ‘half gas’, they are able to take on the same workload and complete it at the same rate. This means fuel costs can be cut by up to 25%, improving company profits and reducing environmental impact. AB
The 30-tonne DX300LC-7 is Doosan’s first mid-sized Stage V crawler excavator
Plant manager Stefan Pendinger (second from right) with the Cat 988K XE loader and colleagues at the NSN limestone quarry in Germany
Jordan Handel, engineering and technology manager at Proof Engineers
High-tech hauling
Using state-of-the-art technology to create optimum quarry haul roads is an attractive option for aggregates processing operations looking at ways of improving their production efficiency. Guy Woodford reports
Haul road specialist Proof Engineers has developed an advanced road-building program using the latest technology to design and construct haul roads that can handle high volumes of heavy quarry, mine, large civil construction and earthmoving site vehicle traffic and withstand weather erosion. Proof Engineers’ Haul Road Development Program (HRDP) focuses on innovative practices to produce durable, high-quality roads that reduce maintenance costs, while improving operating speeds and wet weather recovery.
The cutting-edge program encompasses all aspects of building haul roads, from site analysis and resource evaluation through to material selection, training and maintenance monitoring. Proof Engineers is an Australian-based company that utilises state-of-the-art technology to deliver road engineering of a superior standard on a global scale.
Specialising in haul road performance and optimisation, Proof Engineers improves sites’ operational efficiencies specifically through haul road design, construction management, maintenance programmes and monitoring solutions.
Sydney, Australia-headquartered Boral, a major international construction materials group, is among those that have been trialling HRDP to assess its impact on haul road driveability and dust levels at several of its work sites.
Proof Engineers’ engineering and technologies manager, Jordan Handel, said the HRDP’s construction methodologies were achieving high-quality roads within their clients’ budget and equipment limitations.
“Our latest design technology is used to construct roads with improved strength, functionality and drainage,” he said.
“Roads developed with HRDP have optimal rolling resistance and require significantly less maintenance, which adds up to considerable savings for our clients.
“Haul roads constructed with our HRDP require up to five times less maintenance compared to a poorly-constructed haul road.”
HRDP consists of four essential steps in order to achieve quality roads within a quarry, mine, large civil construction or earthmoving site’s operation budget and equipment limitations.
The first step is a full site evaluation, focusing on meteorological and environmental conditions that will impact design and construction, as well as the available resources to determine if the site has adequate equipment, raw materials and local skills, or if outside resources are required. Step two of HRDP evaluates and analyses all design parameters and utilises innovative technology to generate a mechanistic design that considers the selected materials and site-specific traffic conditions.
In this step, Proof Engineers considers the use of stabilisation products such as polymer additives, hydrated lime and bitumen emulsions to improve the quality of local materials in order to reduce costs.
The third step of HRDP is the construction phase: a site-tailored process involving drainage and compaction as well as the training of site personnel.
Step four involves ongoing maintenance to ensure haul roads are operating at a high level, with continuous training of site personnel to ensure roads are correctly maintained and not further damaged in the long term.
“The HRDP was developed by Proof Engineers on the premise that proper construction of quality haul roads will significantly reduce a mine site’s maintenance costs as well as decrease production cycle times,” Handel added.
“The program involves all aspects of haul road construction with a focus on material selection and construction methodologies that meet the highest standards based on optimum engineering properties such as functionality and strength.”
Proof Engineers has developed stateof-the-art road condition monitor (RCM) and dust monitor (Dustective) systems for quarry and mining operators to observe road conditions, prioritise maintenance works, improve operational efficiencies and reduce production cycle times.
The Proof Engineers’ team has a broad range of skill sets from practical, hands-on site personnel to research and design engineers, with experience in the civil and mining industries as owners, contractors and consultants.
Gallagher Aggregates has invested in two Volvo A60H articulated haulers as its prime movers for hauling Kentish Ragstone at its Hermitage Quarry near Maidstone in Kent, Southeast England.
Following an initial enquiry made at last year’s Hillhead exhibition near Buxton in Derbyshire, central England, the 55-tonne capacity A60H was trialled by Gallagher Aggregates to assess the suitability of introducing an articulated hauler of this
size to the Hermitage site. “We were impressed with the tonnage moved for a very economical fuel burn, together with fast cycle times,” said Gallagher Aggregates’ operations manager, Pat Gooney. “It certainly proved to be a success in all areas of the quarry’s production and was an immediate hit with our operators. The two new trucks are carrying out the same production as the three 50-tonne trucks they replace, and we are already seeing the immediate benefits when it comes to fuel consumption and the savings on running costs, whilst maintaining the production we require.”
Tailored to Gallagher Aggregates’ needs, the two A60Hs have had additional features fitted to them including 200mm side extensions coupled to a cantilever tailgate, increasing the hauler’s body capacity to 39m³ and maximising payload. To give extra protection to the hitch area and cab, optional front spill guards have been added to the front of the skips. This configuration allows the trucks to handle all on-site duties, which include hauling blasted material from the face to the primary crusher, along with some secondary duties around the plant. Working ten-hour shifts Monday to Friday, with half a day on Saturday, the two new A60Hs will contribute to the annual output of the quarry.
“Again, we are really impressed with the power of the trucks, especially on the gradients with the typical payloads they are carrying” said Gooney. “The new arrivals are proving very popular with their operators too. The cab is extremely comfortable and has been well thought out in its design. The two-speed reverse and fast tip and lower functions add to the overall faster cycle times, and Volvo’s unique suspension system provides excellent load retention and operator comfort.”
Terex Trucks’ northern Germany dealer, Maschinenbau Rehnen, recently exhibited an updated TA300 articulated hauler at the NordBau construction exhibition in Neumünster, a city in northern Germany. Speaking ahead of the showpiece event staged 11-15 September, Marcel Wimker, machine sales leader at Maschinenbau Rehnen, said: “Terex Trucks’ TA300 is an eye-catcher and last year we had a lot of interest in this robust and reliable articulated hauler. Visitors typically want to see the TA300 up close and sit in the cab to get a better feel for the machine. This usually plays a decisive part in the buying decision.”
Maschinenbau Rehnen became an official Terex Trucks dealer in Q4 2018. Wimker continued: “From the feedback we’ve received so far, our customers are incredibly happy with the machines because they are so reliable – that’s why customers who’ve owned or operated a Terex Trucks articulated hauler before are loyal to the brand and make repeat
Maschinenbau Rehnen recently exhibited an updated Terex Trucks TA300 articulated hauler at the NordBau construction exhibition in Neumünster, Germany
purchases. They know that the brand stands for great performance, quality and low total cost of ownership. We currently have six TA300 articulated haulers, four are rented out with customers and two are reserved and will be with customers shortly.”
Since August 2018, the TA300 has incorporated the new transmission which comes with two additional forward gears –eight in total – as well as four reverse gears. This helps to ensure smoother gear shifting and thereby superior operator comfort. In addition to this, the TA300 now delivers a
5% improvement against its predecessor in fuel efficiency, as well as enhanced performance and productivity. It also now comes with long-life transmission fluid which has helped to increase the length of time between oil maintenance intervals from 1,000 to 4,000 hours.
The hauler’s maximum speed has also increased to 55 km/h, up from 50 km/h. Ultimately, this means that customers can achieve faster cycle times, reduce the cost of operation per tonne and minimise their fuel consumption. AB
Gallagher Aggregates has invested in two Volvo A60H articulated haulers to help transport its Kentish Ragstone at Hermitage Quarry
A screen shot of Proof Engineers’ Haul Road Development Program (HRDP)
Metso’s Metso Metrics solution for aggregates customers helps monitor, maintain and manage clients’ assets
Tomorrow’s preventive maintenance today
Fully utilising the latest preventive machine maintenance technology can help save aggregates production business owners big money annually. Guy Woodford reports
Crushing and screening equipment are key assets that keep aggregate producers’ businesses running smoothly and efficiently. But with mobile crushers moving frequently between sites, often in remote areas, it can be difficult to track, monitor and maintain these types of equipment to ensure their performance. Without having the right information at the right time to make important operational or maintenance decisions, extended downtime can quickly set in and production rates can suffer, challenging producers bottom lines.
Metso’s Metso Metrics technology for aggregates customers helps monitor, maintain and manage clients’ assets.
Connected equipment is ensured by many advanced sensors installed on each plant, tracking various elements around the performance of the machine.
An intuitive interface, accessible through any internet-connected device, allows the customer to know exactly what is happening with their equipment 24/7.
Metso teams, combining global and local expertise, can also use Metso Metrics to monitor customer assets, allowing them to better meet customer plant maintenance and servicing needs and helping to troubleshoot issues remotely.
Fitted as standard on Metso Lokotrack LT mobile jaw and cone crushers and Lokotrack ST mobile screens since its launch in 2016, Metso Metrics for Aggregates can also be retrofitted on older plant models.
From Metso Metrics for Aggregates, users can see key data for their whole fleet connected to Metrics. When logged in, the user can see right away combined data from their fleet in KPI (key performance indicator)
windows. This includes fleet operating hours, fuel/power consumption, next maintenance events and machine location for each machine. There are many other KPI windows and users can customise their main page view to show what they want to see when they log in.
Users can also open and see machinespecific data sheets by clicking the machine from the fleet. From here, users can see how the machine has been running each day during the time it has been connected into Metso Metrics. Data shown for the machines are operating hours, fuel/power consumption, upcoming maintenance events, maintenance log, alarm log, parameter changes and machine location. If belt scales are installed, then it’s possible to show tonnage data in Metso Metrics from the machine.
Users can run different reports from their fleet or specific machines in Metso Metrics. Also, users can order email notifications for upcoming maintenance events and active alarms about which users want to be notified.
The benefits of Metso Metrics can be summarised under three headings:
Get the most out of assets - Critical maintenance and operational data at the touch of a button, helping a company identify underperforming assets and training opportunities for continuous improvement. With access to the right data, a firm can take appropriate actions for improved utilisation rates and operational efficiency, so it gets the most out of its assets.
Improved operational efficiency - Helping to reduce routine site checks and manual reporting by providing remote visibility and reporting on the condition and performance
of a company’s productive crushing and screening assets.
Lower operational costs - Helping to lower a business’s inventory costs by mapping out which parts are required for upcoming service events. With the maintenance plans of its equipment integrated into Metso’s solution, a firm can stay on top of its equipment needs and make sure it has the right parts available at the right time, helping to control maintenance and upfront inventory costs.
The state-of-the-art Metso Metrics technology is popular among quarry customers and plant hire companies.
Anthony Ryan, sales manager for McHale Plant Sales, based in Tipperary, Ireland, says Metso Metrics is “very useful” for preventative plant maintenance and servicing.
“We can predict when a plant service is needed, allowing us to better prepare our engineers. Also, if you get a call from a customer saying that a plant alarm is on, you can see where on the plant the alarm has been activated and offer appropriate advice.
“Metso Metrics also enables our engineers to see exactly where a machine is, helping them to locate it as quickly as possible, rather than potentially having to phone and ask for further directions to a customer site. You can make useful notes on the system, such as when a servicing was last completed and when the next one will be due, or when parts will next need changing. You can also create records highlighting specific servicing and maintenance milestones.”
Speaking to Aggregates Business, Jari Hytti, manager, field service applications,
Metso, says Metso plant hire companies and distributors also use Metso Metrics to print off monthly reports of plant usage in order to accurately invoice rental customers.
“There are just over 800 machines connected to Metso Metrics for Aggregates globally and sending data to the portal. On average there are around 30 new machines connected to Metrics every month.
“It has recently been made standard on all new Metso C-Series jaw crushers and GP-Series cone crushers with Metso IC plant automation control. In the coming months, we also plan to make the technology available on MX and HP-Series cone crushers, and Nordwheeler portable plants,” he explains.
“We are also developing a benchmarking tool, which will be ready by the end of this year, so we can compare how they are running their Metso plant compared to other local Metso plant operators locally and globally. Following customer feedback, we are also working on making Metso Metrics portal more mobile device screencompatible.”
Metso is starting to develop a new feature that allows Metso Metrics to categorise Metso IC plant automation control-generated fault alarms, depending on their production criticality.
“We will develop Metso Metrics so when the most critical plant fault alarm is activated, let’s say three times in one day, the solution will automatically email Person X saying, ‘This is urgent. Please take action.’ A category two alarm might mean that an alarm will need to be activated five times in one day to prompt the same automatic email. Category three alarm automatic emails might be sent only after ten alarm activations are recorded in one day. Faults may include operating pressure being too high, which could lead to a major plant breakdown if ignored.”
Hytti adds: “We are using a dual-type modem which includes satellite and SIM card compatibility. For remote work sites where there is no terrestrial GSM [global system for mobile communications] network, the satellite should allow Metso Metrics to work everywhere except when the machine is in a tunnel, for example, as the satellite needs to ‘see’ the machine. With the SIM card, it allows you to use Metso Metrics when there is a GSM network on-site. In some countries where the government bans the use of satellites for communications, we offer SIM-only modems for accessing Metso Metrics.”
In Germany, Metso Metrics is currently being used by 52 Metso crushing and screening plant customers nationally, working in the quarrying, gravel processing and recycling sectors.
Hugo van Benthem, distribution business manager, Metso, Germany, and Ralph Phlippen, co-owner and sales manager of Metso Germany’s distributor, Fischer Jung, have been pleased with the rental and owner-plant customer response to Metso
Metrics, since its introduction nationally a year ago.
“In Germany, we have 52 Metso quarrying, recycling and gravel customer machines using Metso Metrics,” says van Bentham. “The interest from the customer is in answering questions like, ‘Is the unit running?’, ‘Are there any issues?’. The interest from the Metso service engineers is ‘Is there any scheduled servicing coming up soon?’ and in being able to troubleshoot the plant from distance. It’s a huge benefit in being able to see any alarms from, say, 400 kilometres away.
“Generally, plant units with the highest number of operating hours will gain the biggest benefits from Metso Metrics.”
Phlippen adds: “In the past, in 50% of cases where a problem with the plant has been reported we could advise the customer over the phone to ‘press this’ or ‘check that’, but with Metso Metrics we can look at the plant ourselves and properly advise the customer 80% of the time. We can support the customer in optimising the performance of the plant for each specific application.
“Through Metso Metrics, Metso can also advise on what filter kits are needed so a service technician can fill up the car with the appropriate filters before he drives there.”
Karl-Werner Bierbrauer uses Metso Metrics with his Metso plant fleet at Bierbrauer und Sohn’s quarry in Kretz, Rhineland-Palatinate, South-West Germany.
“With Metso Metrics, I can follow my units and their production. But most important, however, is the fast troubleshooting it offers,” says Bierbrauer.
Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo
vital for maintaining maximum uptime and minimum total cost of ownership,” a company spokesperson said.
Volvo CE says oil analysis is an unbeatable tool in increasing machine performance, which means increased profits. Based on data collected by analysis results, the manufacturer says customers can spot machine errors and plan maintenance, which reduces the risk of unplanned downtime, prevents expensive repairs and increases productivity.
Volvo laboratories, featuring modern diagnostic equipment, provide customers with a comprehensive report on machine condition. After thorough analysis takes place, machine diagnoses immediately become available to customers online, highlighting warnings and providing action recommendations. Thanks to these reports, every part of the machine can operate at maximum capacity with little risk of fault, keeping uptime levels high.
Oil sample analysis collects information on water/coolant content, impurities and quality of metal particles in the fuel. Performing regular oil analysis checks records a history of results and allows for laboratory technicians and customers to see trends in machine performance.
Fuel supports vital machine components including the engine, transmission, axles, brakes and hydraulics system. Volvo laboratories, equipped with full knowledge of Volvo machines, can interpret how functional these components are based on oil analysis. This provides technicians with early warnings signals for machine parts, giving customers time to replace any components that are susceptible to damage or failure.
Volvo CE is highlighting why oil analysis should play a critical part in a company’s machine maintenance programme
When explosives are not an option
Safety and environmental requirements mean that quarry operators are turning to drill rigs and breakers as an alternative to explosives. Liam McLoughlin and Partha Pratim Basistha report
In a quarry in the southern Italian region of Apulia, an Indeco HP 18000 FS (fuel saving) hydraulic breaker is proving to be an effective alternative to drilling and blasting. The Pozzelle quarry is located a few kilometres from Canosa di Puglia in the province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. Active since the late 1980s, it is managed by the CO.MA company and is characterised by the presence of Ambrato and Serpeggiante marble typical of the area.
The quarry was recently found to have good potential for producing the crushed stone that is used for railway track ballast. However, the quarry’s proximity to a provincial road, and the need to reduce the quantity of dust produced due to intense agricultural activity taking place around the quarry, precluded drilling and blasting and the use of explosives.
This prompted CO.MA to contract out the work to D’Oria Giuseppe e C, a company which has experience in the roadworks and concrete sector.
To handle the difficult task of quarrying stone material of hardness and unconfined compressive strength, D’Oria purchased an Indeco HP 18000 FS and a Hitachi 870 90-tonne excavator. These were paired up with another Hitachi Zaxis 350 33-tonne
excavator mounted with an HP 9000 that the company already owned.
D’Oria CEO Giuseppe Massari said quarrying the railway ballast had been a challenge. “We had to equip ourselves very specifically for this activity - first with a breaker such as the HP 18000 FS, the only one currently on the market with such size and power. The equipment assures the targeted rate of production, approximately 700-800 m3 of material quarried in an eighthour shift, without failing to deliver excellent performance and reliability.”
He added that the choice of the HP 18000 was extremely important as it helped his team to solve the most important problem - production of material which is very hard and not fractured.
The Indeco HP 18000 FS is designed for special quarrying requirements where largescale production is demanded. Indeco says it is having success in markets where drilling and blasting has seen a gradual decrease.
Four HP18000 breakers are also being used in India at the Chittorgarh limestone quarry in the state of Rajasthan. Indeco says the hardness of the material at the quarry and the high production output required are again spotlighting the advantages of the HP18000.
The quarry is managed by the cement production division of Birla Corporation, and its limestone supplies the Chanderiya cement factory, also owned by Birla Corporation, which is located 7km from the quarry. Birla Corporation is part of MP Birla Group, a multinational conglomerate with over 120,000 employees. With its seven plants, of which Chanderiya is one of the most important, Birla Corporation has a production potential of over 6.5 million tonnes of cement per year.
The Chittorgarh quarry contains enormous quantities of Nimbahera limestone, part of the Vindhyan Supergroup, one of the thickest sedimentary marine deposits of the Precambrian era to be found in India.
Until eight years ago the quarry, which has reserves lasting over 20 years, was mined by drilling and blasting. However, in 2011 the Rajasthan High Court ruled that the technique could no longer be employed as it risked damage to the nearby Chittorgarh Fort, a national monument dating back to the 14th century.
The mandatory switch from explosives to mechanical systems posed a challenge from a number of perspectives, according to V K Hamirwasia, the president of the cement
The Indeco HP 18000 FS breaker at work in the Pozzelle quarry in southern Italy
factory: “The decision of the Rajasthan High Court created the conditions for a change in the way we mine the quarry, as well as production methods and logistics to a certain extent. Our investments have enabled us to guarantee the maximum output achievable using mechanical systems, but because we’ve had to increase the quantity of material, soon we’ll also have to increase the number of machines and equipment in our fleet too.”
Currently, 16 excavators (Hitachi 1200, Komatsu 1250, Liebherr 984) attached with seven breakers (including the four Indeco HP 18000s) are operating on a rotating basis over three shifts. This does not count other excavation equipment, such as hydraulic rippers and impact hammers.
Quarry manager M K Ahmed says: “The Indeco breakers have proved very productive and reliable, especially when we consider
that they’re used on a rotation basis over three shifts in a very heavy application. By now they have racked up a high number of hours in weather conditions that sometimes see temperatures of over 45 degrees.”
Global drill rigs and automation solution supplier Epiroc says that it has put the first fully autonomous SmartROC D65 surface drill rig into production. The rig has been deployed by Epiroc partner Newmont Goldcorp at its Hollinger open-pit mine in Canada.
Traditional surface drilling requires a person to physically be in the cabin while operating the drill rig. Alternatively, the operator can be in the vicinity of the rig with a radio remote control.
Epiroc says that the SmartROC D65 drill rig is unique in being able to drill an entire pattern autonomously. The operator can be in an office away from the work site. Given that there is an internet connection, this office could potentially be located on the other side of the globe.
When the perimeter of autonomous operations, also known as the geofence, has been set up the SmartROC D65 is ready to operate. Within this area it can carry out the required operations needed to drill not just one hole autonomously, but a complete drill pattern. Epiroc says this means that the drill rig can tram to and position the feed foot correctly at the collaring point. It then drills the hole to the desired depth and will
also handle rod change during the drill cycle. When the hole is drilled and the rods are retrieved, the rig moves on to the next hole until the entire drill pattern is completed.
This removes the operator from potentially hazardous benches in a mine or a quarry and will also let them carry out other tasks while the rig is drilling. Other benefits are increased productivity and better hole quality. When the SmartROC D65 is used for autonomous drilling, Epiroc says it will put more holes in the ground per shift - in part because automating the drilling process results in continuous operations without breaks and with less wear on drilling tools.
Most autonomous operations still need human monitoring, and this paves the way for a new generation of drill rig operators.
Annie Levasseur is one of the first operators at the Hollinger mine to work with the autonomous SmartROC D65. She has been operating surface drill rigs the traditional way for many years and is now embracing the new technology.
“After our morning brief, instead of spending 30 minutes going by truck to the drill rig down in the pit, I just go to the office upstairs and start it up,” she said. “I’ll check the drill rig status, load the drill pattern and I’ll be up and drilling in a matter of minutes.”
South Africa-based construction, quarrying and mining equipment distributor ELB Equipment recently became the launch client for what is claimed to be one of the
The Epiroc SmartROC D65 for quarrying and open-pit mining customers
One of the four Indeco HP 18000 breakers at Chittorgarh quarry in India
blasting and mining world’s most eagerly anticipated drills in recent times.
The new Furukawa DCR22 is a collaboration between a South African copper mine, distributor ELB Equipment and Furukawa, the manufacturer, which led to the development of a claimed world-beating, rugged and fast, new down-the-hole drill rig that is specially designed for tough, hard rock conditions.
According to Jimmy Linton, ELB Equipment product manager for Furukawa, due to the massive strides made and success of the developments of this drill, Furukawa has actually adopted the new machine and launched it globally for countries where hard rock and tough operating conditions occur.
“The copper mine provided its requirements to us and we worked with Furukawa to begin developments,” he said. “It actually took input from all quarters in terms of production requirements from engineers, operations personnel and operators to develop a machine that meets real-world requirements for production, safety, reliability and long-term durability.”
Germany’s current boom in mainstream construction is leading to high demand for natural stone grains. To meet this demand, Sandvik says that some operators who
normally drill and blast on their own are buying additional drill meters through service providers. In the light of this development, the latter are also increasing their capacities. That is just what German drilling and blasting company Klaus Berge did when it invested in a new Sandvik Ranger DX900i drill rig, thus also becoming the first in the country to operate the completely new type of rig.
A pre-production model of the Ranger DX900i was presented at the Sandvik stand at Steinexpo 2017 prior to the official market launch. Sandvik says that potential operators were impressed by the 290° working radius of the machine, covering a drilling area of 55m². With fewer transfer operations, fixed drill grids can be drilled faster, more precisely and more safely.
New and powerful RD920 series rock drills with outputs from 21 to 27 kW are available for the drill rig. The drill rig is equipped with Sandvik GT60 drill steel for straight holes in diameters from 92mm to 127mm. The rig is powered by a fuel-efficient 210 kW engine.
“What is special about this powerful type of drill rig is that even difficult, narrow and very uneven drilling fields can be drilled, which is not possible to the same extent with any other rig,” says company owner Klaus Berge.
Berge’s personnel were trained on a newly delivered Ranger DX900i in September 2018 at Hartsteinwerke Schicker OHG’s Diabas quarry in Kupferberg. The company currently operates four quarries in northern Bavaria – in Bad Berneck, Kupferberg, Stadtsteinach and Rugendorf.
Berge says construction of the new Ranger DX900i is different from its predecessor and is noticeably more stable. “It has also been confirmed that the new rock drill is stronger and, accordingly, strikes perfectly,” he adds. “For that reason, and also
because more flushing air is available, it is more economical to drill.”
A Sandvik Ranger DX 800 top hammer surface drill is helping the Holcim Ambuja Cement plant in India to attain higher levels of efficiency for primary rock breaking.
Indian cement producers are heavily focused on increasing production output to meet growing demand amidst very high levels of competition in the industry. However, in conjunction with ramping up production capacities, producers are seeking to increase profitability by both cutting costs at the back-end plant level in the operation of grinding, processing and conveying equipment and by increasing the automation of process control.
A major area where measures to cut operational cost are visible is in primary breaking of limestone rocks through the deployment of advanced technologies.
To achieve this objective, Holcim Ambuja Cements acquired a Sandvik Ranger DX 800 top hammer hydraulic surface drill two years ago for drilling 115m diameter holes at its site in Bhatapara at Chhattisgarh, Central India. According to Holcim Ambuja officials, one of the main reasons for buying
the drill is its features that deliver higher levels of productivity such as the 180-degree swivelling cabin of the machine. This allows it to drill 3-4 holes at a time, and the holes can be done between 34-36 metres/hr. The single operator machine comes with a selfcontained dust collector.
The other main consideration for Holcim Ambuja when buying the Sandvik drill was its high levels of fuel efficiency. Earlier the plant was using a surface drill with directto-hole technology. The Ranger DX 800 undertakes drilling on the surface outside the hole at very high pressure based on a hydraulic mechanism. This is because oil is a more efficient medium than compressed air and can support an efficient hydraulic system, enabling it to drill holes at high pressure. This in turn contributes towards reduced fuel consumption.
Holcim Ambuja says that the Ranger DX 800 drills 36 metres per hour at 24 litres/ hr, resulting in increased savings. This is compared with the previously used direct-tohole drill which used to drill 30 metres/ hr at 45 litres/hr of fuel consumption without any breakdown. The company is considering the acquisition of a further Ranger DX 800. AB
The Ranger DX 800 is boosting efficiency at the Holcim Ambuja cement plant
The Sandvik Ranger DX 800 top hammer surface drill at the Diabas quarry in Germany
Jimmy Linton of ELB Equipment with the new Furukawa DCR22 drill rig
Smarter water management
Water management and recycling solutions are increasingly in demand in the modern aggregates production world. Guy Woodford looks at some leading examples
Terex Washing Systems has hosted the global premiere of the AggWash 300 modular wash plant in conjunction with its UK distributor Duo and their customer NRS Group at NRS Woodcote Wood Quarry near Shifnal in Shropshire, England.
Event attendees enjoyed tours around and demonstrations of the AggWash 300 along with Terex AquaClear, Terex’s first water management treatment system, said to meet the growing need for water management due to new environmental legislation being introduced globally. Duo also highlighted all its business divisions, including equipment sales, contract processing, operations, manufacturing, international sales, parts, servicing and pre-used equipment for a variety of industries including quarrying, aggregates, recycling, materials handling, logistics, and construction.
TOP: TWS’s global premiere of its AggWash 300 modular wash plant was staged at NRS Woodcote Wood Quarry in Shropshire, England
ABOVE: Capable of producing up to 300 tonnes per hour of material, the AggWash 300 has a space-saving modular design allowing for a high output on a reduced footprint
AggWash 300 global premiere event on 2-3 July 2019, Mark Ketcher, NRS Group founder and managing director, said: “I saw the AggWash 300 at Hillhead and thought ‘that’s exactly what I want’, and the model at the show got delivered straight to us. We’ve had it running [at NRS Woodcote Wood Quarry] for around 20 weeks. It’s had a few teething problems, but we’ve had great support from Duo and Terex Washing Systems. We are also having the [AquaClear] filter press installed in the next six to eight weeks. We may put our 200 [tonnes per hour] sand plant in and modify the 120 [tonnes/hour] one we’ve got.
Capable of producing up to 300 tonnes per hour of material and a big brother model to TWS’s popular AggWash 60 and AggreScrub 150 modular wash plant, the AggWash 300 has a space-saving modular design allowing for a high output on a reduced footprint. This makes it a rapid install solution for a diverse range of applications with the aggregates, recycling, remediation and mining sector. Designed with an uncompromising approach towards reliability and durability, the AggWash 300 can produce four grades of aggregates and two grades of sand.
Terex AquaClear includes clarifying tanks,
flocculent dosing systems, filter presses and all associated equipment. Importantly, the system enables Terex Washing Systems to offer an end-to-end solution for washing and water management.
The AggWash 300 was launched in June 2018 at the Hillhead exhibition at the Tarmac Hillhead Quarry near Buxton, Derbyshire, England. The model showcased at the event was purchased by NRS Group, a leading UK supplier of construction materials, haulage and waste recycling solutions. The group currently operates four quarries in and around the West Midlands of England.
Speaking to Aggregates Business during the
“We are producing around 250 tonnes an hour from the AggWash 300, but the plant can produce up to 350 tonnes per hour. We’ve got three other plant from Terex – a triple-deck 200 tonnes an hour, a 16 x 5 double-deck processing C&D [construction and demolition] waste, and we’ve just installed a triple-deck 200 Log Washer plant with two crushers on it at a former Tarmac site in Meriden. It’s got fully galvanised steel and is a nice setup. All our sites make ultra-fines, three grades of sand and three grades of gravel – -10mm, 10-20mm and 20-40mm. All the sites have Terex cone and impact crushers.
“Terex and Duo offer good service. I like the guys and they all know me. We’ve spent in excess of £10 million alone on Terex Washing Systems’ wash plants in recent years.”
A business employing over 100 people, Ketcher says NRS Group may have a fifth potential quarry in which to deploy its
300, with a planning application in for a site in Kidderminster.
Commenting on current UK C&D waste and virgin aggregates demand, Ketcher said: “We’re busy. Everything we make, we sell. We are going into new avenues all the time. For instance, we are looking at more waste treatment facilities and incinerator bottom ash production. Really, we’re interested in any waste streams that we can turn into aggregates. When you can make a concrete product, especially, out of recycled aggregates, it’s fantastic. It’s a win-win. You get a gate fee and you are making a product you can sell or use in your own civils work.”
At its site near the village of Blackwater, in Wexford, southeast Ireland, D’Arcy Sands was facing a combination of site-specific challenges, namely water supply and reliance on a traditional bucket wheel classifying system. It partnered with industry-leading wet processing equipment manufacturer CDE to commission a new wet processing plant which was showcased at an open day event in June.
With operations in counties Wexford and Wicklow, D’Arcy Sands, owned by father and son business duo Anthony and Tony D’Arcy, has been producing high-quality building materials and sports sands for over 25 years.
The firm specialises in the production of quality graded sands for a range of sports, including outdoor, synthetic and all-weather sports pitches; sands for golf courses, including bunkers and top dressing for greens and fairways; and its silica sands are also used widely in equestrian sports for training surfaces and racetracks.
Over the years, D’Arcy Sands has worked with clients throughout the UK and Ireland, supplying sands for major projects and events including the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, Croke Park, Thomond Park, Curragh Racecourse, and Adare Manor Hotel Resort.
Recently, the company secured a contract to supply its sands to the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
D’Arcy Sands produces high-spec sports sands for some of the most prestigious venues and events in the UK and Ireland. It’s therefore important that the quality and prestige of
these projects is reflected in the standard of its product.
Until its new CDE plant was commissioned, D’Arcy Sands had been using a tracked rinser and traditional bucket wheel system for sand classification and dewatering.
An upgrade of the existing bucket wheel system was required to tackle the loss of valuable materials to ponds and excess moisture in the final products.
Water availability proved to be another significant challenge at the company’s Wexford site. So much so that it was transporting its sports sand more than nine miles to a separate site with sufficient water supply.
As well as water management, Tony D’Arcy, manager at D’Arcy Sands, said energy efficiency was another important consideration.
“The plant we had been operating was powered by a diesel hydraulic system, so there existed the potential for spillages that could contaminate our much sought-after sports sands. We work with world-class venues and
LEFT: The need for careful water management and energy efficiency were among key factors behind D’Arcy Sands’ decision to opt for a comprehensive CDE washing plant solution BELOW: Rammer has introduced its largest hydraulic hammer, the 9033
arenas, so we wanted to take preventative measures and put in place a system that would remove the risk of product being rejected or returned.”
Garry Stewart, area business development manager at CDE, explained how the new plant was developed using CDE’s co-creation approach.
“Our engineers worked closely with Tony and the team at D’Arcy Sands throughout the design and commissioning process to better understand what the company wanted to achieve by upgrading its plant and to outline any key site challenges they were facing.
“Completed over several site visits and through a series of collaborative design workshops, we designed a bespoke plant specific to D’Arcy Sands to support the company to scale its operations and extract maximum value from the material being processed.”
D’Arcy said: “We wanted to partner with a company that could help us realise our growth ambitions by designing a solution that supported our objectives in the most sustainable and economic way possible. Plant build quality coupled the technical know-how and the expertise of its engineers proved CDE was the ideal fit to deliver on our aims.”
After careful consideration of the site and customer’s requirements, CDE presented a custom-built plant featuring the electricpowered M2500 E4 washing plant with integrated hopper, feed conveyor and twindeck Infinity P2-75 screen. The plant also includes an integrated water management system comprising the A200 AquaCycle thickener, FlocStation poly dosing plant and AquaStore water tank.
AggWash
CDE’s M2500 fully integrated modular washing plant combines feeding, screening, sand washing and stockpiling into one compact and mobile chassis. The E4 model would allow D’Arcy Sands to produce up to four commercial-grade washed sand and aggregate products simultaneously.
Importantly for D’Arcy Sands, the M2500 is a maintenance-free and energy-efficient all-electric drive operation. Unlike its former diesel hydraulic system, this eliminates the possibility of product becoming contaminated by spillages.
To improve the efficiency of the company’s day-to-day operations, the new plant incorporates CDE’s cutting-edge water management system, the AquaCycle thickener.
Waste water from the plant is processed by the AquaCycle thickener which recovers up to 90% of the process water to be recirculated back into the washing plant. This ensures moisture content of D’Arcy Sands’ product is reduced from over 20% per cent to an average of 10-15%, resulting in a much faster return on investment (ROI). It also means that, for the first time, the company can process material at its draw site.
The entire system requires under 20m³ of water per hour to operate, an 80% reduction from the 200m³ of water required for its former plant.
Stewart said: “By introducing the CDE AquaCycle, D’Arcy Sands is now able to wash material at its Blackwater site. It’s the custombuilt solution designed by CDE that has made this possible for Tony and his team. This was unachievable with the old plant.”
“We’ve doubled production, as a result of the new CDE wet processing plant”, D’Arcy emphasised.
Raw feed material, primarily Wexford sports sand with a small portion of gravel, is being fed into the new plant at a rate of up to 80 tonnes per hour.
“Output is up by over 100%,” he said. “We’re now processing up to 80 tonnes per hour of feed and extracting over 40 tonnes of our quality graded sports sands. Greater control of fines separation using cyclone technology, which is a new development for our operation, has added more value to our products and is driving significant demand.
“The feedback we have been getting from our customers and in particular the greens keepers who use our sand daily has been excellent with numerous positive comments on the quality, percolation and workability of the sand.
“Importantly for us, the new system allows us to wash material at our Blackwater site when previously we had to transport it off-site, almost ten miles, to a location with a better water supply.”
AquaCycle technology is supporting D’Arcy Sands to recycle 90% of their process water requiring a small 20m³ per hour top-up supply which is drawn from a bore well on site.
Inefficiencies in its traditional bucket wheel systems resulted in D’Arcy Sands losing highvalue resources to pond, as D’Arcy explains.
“Our new system is recovering this resource and helping us to maintain high product output for our premium sands.”
More effective screening made possible by the M2500, which screens and washes up to four in-spec sand and aggregate products in one process, is opening up new markets and opportunities for D’Arcy Sands.
D’Arcy continued: “Producing commercial grade sports sands has always been the primary focus for D’Arcy Sands, but the new plant is producing new revenue streams for us through the production of higher quality aggregates and opening up new markets.”
Confident in the quality of its commercial grade sports sands and aggregates, and coupled with its growing demand as a result, the company has also purchased adjoining land at its Blackwater site to increase the
ABOVE: A state-of-the-art Baioni wet processing plant designed for one of an American quarrying firm’s sand and gravel quarries in Central America
lifespan of the operation. Stewart added: “D’Arcy Sands is a company ready for the future. It has put in place a solid foundation following the purchase of additional land to extend the life of their Blackwater site. This ensures the company has a good source of material to process with the best possible equipment and access to the right knowledge to achieve their growth ambitions.”
An American quarrying company has partnered with Italian company Baioni to design a pair of state-of-the-art wet processing plant along with crushers and screeners capable of producing high-quality 0-5mm, 5-10mm, 10-20mm aggregate products.
The 100 tonnes per hour capacity Baioni washing, crushing and screening plant duo is currently being tested in two different sand and gravel quarries in Central America. Baioni took care of the plant’s assembly and is supervising their testing programme.
The installation of the Baioni plant fulfils the American quarrying firm’s urgent need to produce quality aggregates for use in concrete production, with the final concrete material destined for an array of Central Americabased infrastructure and construction works.
Baioni had met representatives of the American quarrying company during a workshop at a Central American trade fair. The client knew of Baioni and had visited a neighbouring company’s working Baioni washing, crushing and screening plant some time ago in order to understand their functionality and structural quality. After several months of close collaboration on plant design, Baoni and the American quarrying company signed a contract to install identical plant on each of the Central American firm’s two sand and gravel quarries.
At the two sites, 650mm feed material is put through two crushing stages, then washed and finally screened out into four fractions: 0-5nn, 5-10mm, 10-20 mm.
In the primary crushing phase, a unit consisting of a BP 110/70 jaw crusher, an apron feeder and a GD 90/8 wobbler feeder capable of effectively pre-selecting and cleaning the coarse material, has been preferred. In the secondary crushing phase, a MIL 1000SP reversible hammer mill with fixed hammers is used, due to its high reliability when matched with the material to be processed. The material passes through an accurate washing process to remove all impurities. To facilitate this, a washing and recovery station has been created to separate the silt and recover sands with characteristics of various granulometry. The washing and sand recovery station comprises a GRF hydrocyclone, a tank and a dewatering screen.
Cyclone technology involves the use of centrifugal force to classify materials rather than gravity. The aim of the sand recovery group with hydrocyclone is to treat sand mixed with water (slurry) and to return dry sand. Slimes release the overflow in the upper part of the cyclone with waste water, to be then sent to a water management system. The fraction of sand leaves the lower part of the cyclone, is drained and made ready for storage.
This way, product yield is maximised and operating costs reduced. Water treatment plant are becoming increasingly vital equipment in quarries as their benefits outweigh the initial investment. The return on investment on a Baioni BaiWash system is, says Baioni, usually six to nine months. The innovative washing system improves productivity by bringing together one-of-akind washing technology with on-site training and service after the installation, ensuring an operation’s entire crew can quickly and capably achieve the best results from the washing solution.
BELOW: Advanced washing systems can do a lot to reduce an operation’s environment footprint, says H&B’s Duncan High
Duncan High, division manager –processing equipment technology, of Haver & Boecker Niagara’s Canadian facility, has spoken of how best to maximise natural resources, such as water, in quarries and mines.
“Water use restrictions and permitting challenges continue to increase, making it harder for operations to find ways to stay profitable while using fewer resources. As a result, aggregates and mining operations are moving toward new technology to conserve natural resources while increasing long-term savings and ROI.
“One way the industry has adapted to conserve water is through the use of settling
ponds. Advanced washing systems, when paired with a settling pond, can reduce water consumption by as much as 75% over traditional washing systems. That allows operations to cut their water use and limit their water treatment requirements and necessary equipment. It also makes an advanced washing system more favourable as governments push aggregate producers to use new technology to meet new restrictions.”
High notes how some new washing systems can pump water at very high pressures — as high as 2,000 psi — through spray nozzles at 211gpm in a matter of seconds. He adds: “That’s a huge benefit to operations running under strict restrictions.
The equipment’s high-pressure jets effectively remove fines and dirt from deep crevices, such as marine limestone or porous rock. The advanced washing systems can be used to wash prescreened materials which have small fines sticking to the larger particles. This is accomplished by washing the material initially and conducting a final rinse over a vibrating screen.”
High explains that producers can save as much as 15% in energy costs by switching to new washing systems. Part of this is due to the speed at which the new washers complete a cycle. On average, alternative washing methods, such as log washers, retain materials for three minutes or more while materials stay in a high-pressure washing drum for just seconds.
“Best of all, advanced washing systems can restore value from what might have previously been deemed waste — reducing waste streams and breathing new life into vital resources, while putting more money in the producer’s pocket.
“Advanced washing systems can do a lot to reduce an operation’s environmental footprint, as well as help improve profits. Work with a manufacturer to determine the best fit for each site and its unique characteristics,” concludes High. AB
A quarrying tyre premium
Premium quarrying machine tyres should not just be nice to have, but an essential part of running an ultra-efficient loading and hauling model fleet. Guy Woodford reports
Indian off-highway machine tyre manufacturer BKT says its EARTHMAX SR 49 - in the 35/65 R 33 size and now in a new three-star version - has been officially tested and developed at the Carrara marble quarries in Tuscany, Italy From a technical viewpoint, the worldrenowned marble quarries are among the most difficult and complex places in which to work.
Guglielmo Vennai, a specialist marble extraction company, was the first Carrara marble quarries-based business to use BKT EARTHMAX SR 49 tyres, fitted on a CAT 988K wheeled loader. The innovative company was keen to put the EARTHMAX SR 49 tyres to the test given its management’s desire to try out new products that could help optimise production efficiency.
A key role has been played by the local BKT distributor, Codega Pneumatici, who understood Guglielmo Vennai’s needs.
Tyres suited to quarry operations have specific characteristics. In addition, quarry loading and hauling models are larger and more powerful than standard off-highway construction, earthmoving and porthandling models. However, the size of the wheeled loaders and articulated and rigid haulers’ tyres has stayed the same, so the radial tyres used in these environments have been strengthened over time, going from one to two or three stars. This enables the tyres to resist enormous stress, while maintaining invaluable qualities of stability, traction, and resistance to wear and tear.
The need for robust, high-quality tyres for quarrying customers is how BKT’s EARTHMAX SR 49 came into being, firstly in 35/65 R 33 size and two-star standard. After being put to the test by Guglielmo Vennai and other quarry operators, and after listening to their feedback, BKT developed a three-star product.
The EARTHMAX SR 49 three-star tyre’s housing was strengthened by inserting more steel wires, making it more resistant and thicker, in order to withstand higher air pressure. All this translated into a higher load capacity which was more suited to quarrying needs.
The three-star tyre tread is classified L4, at around 60mm thickness. In the future it could also be manufactured as L5 with consequent advantages in terms of resistance to wear and tear. Even with the housing of an L4 tread, it is slightly larger and has greater air capacity, thus offering better grip and more stability, essential qualities for demanding work synonymous with quarrying.
The result of these ongoing design adjustments is immediately visible. The 988K CAT wheeled loader, despite the huge size and weight of the marble blocks, is said by BKT to move incredibly easily.
This is confirmed by Guglielmo Vennai’s CAT 988K operator, Luigi Boncelli, who has been testing the new EARTHMAX SR 49 version. He said: “The use of BKT tyres is proving very positive and a quality choice. With the block of marble loaded, in this three-star version I found more traction on dry ground and only a little roll on the vehicle which, however, performs very well. Compared to the previous test, which was done with a two-star tyre, I can feel the tyres are much more stable and perform better. When loaded, there is both traction and stability, even when going downhill.”
The EARTHMAX SR 49 three-star tyres test at the Carrara quarries aims to take the tyres through to their life end, which
BKT’s EARTHMAX SR 49 - 35/65 R 33 size and now in a new three-star version - has been officially tested and honed at the Carrara marble quarries in Tuscany
Feedback from Guglielmo Vennai and other Carrara quarry operators has been crucial to BKT’s quarry machine tyre research and development
Extra-long tread life
Outstanding cut and puncture resistance
Extra mileage
Designed for hard and rocky surfaces
for an L4 tread means between 4,500 and 7,000 hours. This time range is very wide, but the profile of the tread has a decisive impact on the result. The tyre developed by BKT has a design which enables greater traction and lasts much longer. The profile of the EARTHMAX SR 49 tread is completely original, emphasising the manufacturer’s in-depth research.
The EARTHMAX SR 49 three-star tyre will, says BKT, be judged at the end of its life cycle, with its duration, its behaviour over the whole period of use and its performance in relation to fuel consumption, some of the parameters assessed. For now, the judgment of those who use the tyre every day and have 20 years’ experience in this specific environment is extremely positive.
BKT stresses that if the EARTHMAX SR 49 three-star tyre works in Carrara’s marble quarries, it can perform in any other environment and application in the world.
Marangoni Retreading Systems has unveiled the latest addition to its RINGTREAD ‘MIX’ range, catering for off- and on-road application customers. Blackline MIX202 is an innovative pattern designed for use on the drive axle of vehicles operating in mixed road/quarry applications requiring high mileage on very demanding surfaces. This new pattern significantly improves the features of the designs of previous generation RINGTREADS, like the MIX101 and the MIX100, having a tread depth of 22mm and a Blackline compound ensuring a very high mileage. Furthermore, MIX202 has a non-directional profile, offering less risk of incorrect fitting and greater flexibility.
Blackline MIX202 is a drive design featuring a pattern with open shoulders and large transverse blocks, and a new and novel ornamental sipe with a central hole on the shoulder’s block, ensuring
to a longer casing and tread life. The tread pattern ensures a proper transfer of forces due to the presence of the transverse tread blocks and the reinforcing bridges. This permits high resistance to impacts and to chafing against rocks/ stones, allowing greater stability on soft ground (mud). Blackline MIX202 features good self-cleaning properties due to the pattern geometry and to the wide-opening shoulders, lowering the risk of tearing. Finally, this new tread pattern is a 3PMSF marked product, suitable for winter usage. Blackline MIX202 is available for the retreading of 315/70R22.5 and 315/80R22.5 tyres.
Istanbul, Turkey, accepted a proposal from local Marangoni dealer Atli Otomotiv to undergo a test to examine the performance differentials between Marangoni’s RINGTREAD MIX101 tyre and competitor tyres, aimed at highlighting Marangoni’s support not only to company vehicle fleets but the retreaders themselves.
A comparative test was carried out on several of Ayyildiz Hazir Beton’s general haulage trucks using the Marangoni RINGTREAD MIX101 tyre on the drive axle in size 315/80R22.5, while the rest of the fleet continued to use their existing competitor tyres for ongoing applications. The results were said to be “immediately eye-opening” as the RINGTREAD MIX101 clocked up 56,512kms against a competitor brand which reached 51,216kms, equating to an approximate 10% improvement.
Marangoni says the Ayyildiz Hazir Beton test results support the fact that the RINGTREAD MIX101 is a more than suitable design for mixed applications since its pattern delivers excellent traction on any type of surface, with its wide opening of the shoulders assuring that the tread is kept free of stones and any debris, therefore lowering the risk of tearing. On top of this, its high resistance to impact and rubbing in the harshest conditions, and lowered risk of penetration by sharp articles due to the reinforced cushion gum, makes it well suited to Ayyildiz Hazir Beton’s needs.
Gökhan Ayyıldız, owner of Ayyildiz Hazir Beton, said: “The tests that were carried out in our Ayyıldız Beton (Concrete) premises were very satisfying. Based on the performance of the RINGTREAD MIX101, we have decided to work again with Atli Otomotiv. The 10% mileage performance differential was obviously a key factor in our decision to use Atli as our retreading supplier. Also, the product’s stress resistance to turbulent working conditions and its versatility in performing well on a variety of surfaces gave us the confidence to
German premium off-highway tyre giant Continental is taking another step on its growth path with a €100mn expansion of its production facilities in Lousado, Portugal. The enlarged capacity will be used to produce radial earthmoving and port tyres with a diameter larger than 24 inches. In the course of the manufacturing ramp-up, more than 100 new jobs will be created.
“Thanks to the investment and additional capacity created, we are continuing to pursue the growth strategy of the tyre division. Both the port and earthmoving segments are among the key growth areas in the commercial specialty tyre market. The new production lines clearly reflect our commitment to these segments and the overall OTR business”, said Christian Kötz, member of the executive board at Continental and head of the tyre division.
The new production hall will be created adjacent to the radial agricultural tyre production facility opened in 2017.
Marangoni has launched its new Blackline MIX202 tyre
Ayyildiz Hazir Beton owner Gökhan Ayyıldız (pictured) opted for Marangoni RINGTREAD MIX101 tyres for his general haulage trucks after successful comparative tests
Equipped with state-of-the-art tyre-building machinery and automated devices, it is designed to deliver cutting-edge radial tyres while following the highest ergonomic standards. Once at full speed, the production lines will deliver three earthmoving tyre lines and another three port tyre lines.
Besides the new production facilities, the research and development centre in Lousado is being expanded and will be used for continuous performance and quality tests of all agricultural, port and earthmoving tyres. “This investment strengthens our footprint in Lousado and transforms the top-efficiency plant into a competence centre for big radial tyres for off-road use”, concludes Kötz.
To date, the Portuguese plant employs more than 2,000 people. In addition to earthmoving, agricultural and port tyres, Lousado also manufactures passenger car tyres with annual production of around 18 million tyres.
Serial Lousado production of Continental’s EM tyre lines (EM-Master, RDT-Master and DumperMaster, all suited to quarrying and aggregates applications) will begin in 2020.
In recent years, Continental has invested around €150mn in increasing the production of passenger car tyres, expanding high-performance tyre production and ramping-up the production of agricultural tyres in Lousado. Investments like these are in response to Continental’s longterm ‘Vision 2025’ strategy. In addition to investments in Lousado, Continental has invested in various facility expansions and technology offerings including the Commercial Vehicle Tyre Plant in Clinton, Mississippi, USA; capacity extensions in other existing tyre plants, such as Sumter, South Carolina, USA, and projects like the Automated Indoor Braking Analyser at the company’s Contidrom Proving Grounds near Hanover, Germany; the new testing centre in Uvalde, Texas, USA; and the High Performance Technology Centre in Korbach, Germany.
Michelin has introduced a new generation of tyre, suitable for the aggregates and quarrying sector, which has been designed to extend tyre life, improve traction and deliver better comfort and stability versus the generation of products they replace. Optimised for fitment to loaders, articulated dump trucks and graders, the new Michelin Xtra FlexLife range was launched in July this year in 29.5 R25 and 875/65 R29 sizes for the original equipment and replacement markets, with an additional five sizes set to join the line-up in 2020.
The new tyres get their name thanks to Michelin’s flexible design, which allows dealers to stock a single range for use across three vehicle types – with each new tyre replacing two older products. Their launch sees operators benefit from a tread pattern which evolves with wear, to ensure optimum traction is maintained over
a long service life. Uniquely, the look of the new tread pattern was selected following close consultation with 60 major customers from markets around the world.
Annika Girod, Michelin’s segment manager Off-Highway Transportation North Europe, explains: “We’re bringing something really special to market with the Xtra FlexLife launch; a direct impact of the more than €600m we invest in research and development every year.
“The new Xtra FlexLife range will give machinery manufacturers and customers a genuine competitive edge and an impressive new look – with as much as 25% more rubber in the tread to wear down. In testing, we’ve seen tyre life increased by up to 20% on loaders and 10% on articulated dump trucks, versus our previous generation tyres – and that’s just one of the many performance advantages.”
Another benefit introduced with the new tyres is greater comfort and stability, thanks to the ability to run the Michelin Xtra FlexLife tyres at reduced pressures versus the products they replace – typically around 14.5psi lower on loaders, and 11psi lower on articulated dump trucks. As well as ensuring a smoother ride for the driver, reduced machine vibration cuts wear and tear on the vehicle and supports a longer life in service – delivering notable efficiency improvements for the operator.
Volvo, one of several manufacturers
involved in the design and testing of the Xtra FlexLife, is already offering the new tyres as original equipment.
The five additional sizes due to launch next year include the 23.5 R25, 26.5 R25, 750/65 R29, 775/65 R29 and 20.5 R25.
Since establishing its Middle East office in 2016, Magna Tyres Group has reported a 300% increase in turnover in the region as a result of new distributor and dealer appointments and annual contracts with end users, namely sea ports and fleet operators. The regional headquarters based in the UAE provides product, sales and after-sales support for the Middle East and Africa region. In 2018, Magna Tyres started the production of the new ‘Made in Holland’ tyres at the Hardenberg factory in The Netherlands. New capacity was added to keep up with the fast-growing demand for the popular 17.5R25, 20.5R25, 23.5R25, 26.5R25 and 29.5R25 OTR sizes.
Vijay Nambiar, general manager, Magna Tyres Middle East & Africa, said: ‘’Last year, Magna Tyres introduced more than 40 distinct sizes in seven patterns, adding them to the extensive product list to match the requirements of the construction market in the Middle East. We signed a global framework purchase agreement with one of the world’s leading port-operating facilities which has operations in 74 ports. We also renewed our annual supply contract with Al Faris Group.’’ AB
Continental has invested €100mn in the expansion of its key Lousado, Portugal, production site
The Xtra FlexLife tyre is optimised for loaders, graders and articulated dump trucks
Metso Outotec: A new growth dawn
Due to launch in Q2 2020, Metso Outotec is set to become a a leading global company in process technology, equipment and services for the aggregates, mining and metals industries. Metso chief executive officer Pekka Vauramo will head up the new business. He spoke to Aggregates Business editor Guy Woodford about the eye-catching venture’s significance and key goals
Metso’s growth trajectory has been impressive in recent years. The Finnish-headquartered global aggregates and mining equipment giant is used to posting rising annual sales and revenues while, simultaneously, launching innovative new plant and plant telematics solutions onto the market.
Given the company’s success and confident future trading outlook, it was initially a surprise when Metso announced in July this year that it was to combine with fellow Finnish firm Outotec, a major provider of process technologies and services for metals and mining, industrial water treatment, alternative energy, and chemical industries to create a new business, Metso Outotec.
However, an appraisal of Metso Outotec’s joint commercial strength, coupled with the synergies and pooling of expertise the new firm offers, generates a convincing business case. Combined Metso and Outotec sales stood at €3.9 billion in 2018 (rising to around €4.2 billion when adding the impact of Metso’s likely Q4 2019-completed acquisition of crushing and screening equipment
manufacturer McCloskey International).
Notably, Metso’s Flow Control business will not be part of the new Metso Outotec venture. Looking to build on impressive 2018 sales of €593 million, it will become an independent entity trading under a familiar sector name, Neles. A well-recognised and respected brand in the flow control markets around the world, Neles was originally established in 1956 in Helsinki, Finland, to operate in the metal industry. The company became part of Metso in 1999 and has since lived and grown as a strategic product family name.
Speaking to Aggregates Business, Pekka Vauramo explains that the creation of Metso Outotec, which is currently subject to respective company board, shareholder, creditor and competition authorities’ approval, has been several years in the making.
“Our chairman [Mikael Lilius] recently did an interview with a Finnish business publication saying this deal had been his dream since he joined the company in 2013. This just happened to be the time when we could push it over the line and make it happen.
“The new business will consist of four major parts: aggregates, metals, recycling, and mining. The mining or minerals processing side of the business is where we both contribute. Metso is traditionally strong in the front end of the process, and Outotec is strong at the back end. This is what makes this combination unique: it covers the entire minerals processing chain. Outotec is also known for its technologies and unique research capabilities that starts from working very closely with the customer on ore types and ore bodies to define the best possible process flowsheet for the particular ore. Many of these studies have been made 10 to 20 years before they are applied on projects.
“Metso has strength in the mining services side and very strong product brands. This makes the combination compelling and brings a lot of advantages for customers.
“When we get into the merger phase, we will be able to merge our service network and its combined footprint. There will be no comparison within the industries we serve, in terms of our technical support availability, back-up expertise and availability of spare parts. We will truly be global.”
The signing ceremony for the Metso Outotec combination agreement. Pictured left to right are: Markku Teräsvirta, president and CEO of Outotec; Matti Alahuhta, chairman of the board of Outotec; Mikael Lilius, chairman of the board of Metso; and Pekka Vauramo, Metso president and CEO
Vauramo is also excited about Metso Outotec’s capacity for innovation. “With our joint expertise, we will be uniquely positioned to produce new innovative products, software and process analytics.”
Metso Outotec will be headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, and Vauramo notes how the new business expects to achieve cost synergies of at least €100 million and revenue synergies of at least €150 million via the cross-selling opportunities created by highly complementary product and service portfolios and global footprints. The synergies are expected to be achieved in full within three years of the transaction’s completion.
“There are many synergies to be gained. For example, Outotec does not have any pumps in its range, unlike Metso. Metso can
also offer traditional Outotec customers a lot on crushers, screeners and other plant. Achieving synergies will also allow Metso Outotec to be even more competitive in terms of the products and services it can offer to customers.”
Of the decision to exclude Metso Flow Control, soon to be known as Neles, from the new Metso Outotec business, Vauramo says: “Metso Minerals and Metso Flow Control are two separate businesses, with different products and customers groups. The Metso Flow Control (future-Neles) business, including valves, has grown twice as quick as the market, at about 6% annually. At the same time, it has increased its profit margin while growing. The business has earned its independence and it needs and deserves its
own development strategy.”
In June 2019, Metso signed an agreement to acquire McCloskey International, a Canadian mobile crushing and screening equipment maker, for CAD 420 million (€279 million). Vauramo says the deal will leave the new Metso Outotec company better positioned to meet forecasted road construction-fuelled growth of 4-6% in the global mobile aggregates plant market during the 2019-2023 period.
“We wanted to grow in the mining side while maintaining a certain balance with the aggregates side of our business, and the McCloskey [International] acquisition supports this. The mining and aggregates businesses are different: mining is global, and aggregates is local; yet there are synergies in
OUTOTEC WELCOMES NEW BUSINESS DAWN
Outotec CEO Markku Teräsvasara believes the combination of Outotec and Metso marks an important milestone in each company’s history and Outotec’s strategic development.
Speaking during the July 2019 announcement of the major new global business venture, he said: “I am excited about the many benefi ts that the combination will deliver for customers,
employees and ultimately shareholders, with the larger scale and combined strengths of both companies. Outotec has a highly compelling portfolio of technologies and capabilities that will be a key catalyst for unlocking many of these benefi ts. I look forward to building a great new company together with the Outotec and Metso Minerals employees, as part of Metso Outotec.”
the crushing, screening and plant feeding side of both businesses.”
Vauramo says the McCloskey International name will be retained and McCloskey-branded plant will continue to be supplied through the North American company’s existing distribution network. “It will mostly be business as usual, but, over time, we will also take some of the McCloskey products and brand them as Metso products and offer them to customers through Metso distribution channels. Also, over time, there will be more and more Metso crushers going into McCloskey equipment.
“McCloskey has developed a very loyal customer base which is very different from Metso’s customer base. Therefore, we feel that McCloskey has a great future within Metso.”
Vauramo is also keen to highlight the great commercial success of Swedish mobile crushing and screening solution provider P.J. Jonsson & Söner, acquired by Metso in July 2018. “The company’s growth has been phenomenal. I think it is benefiting from the backing of a bigger organisation. There are more and more Metso crushers being offered by P.J. Jonsson & Söner to its customers. The company is also expanding into new sales markets.”
The new Metso Outotec business will, says Vauramo, have a strong focus on product research and development (R&D). “Our combined R&D expenditure will be somewhere in the region of 2.5% [of annual revenue]. We still need to continue to put more emphasis on this from the Metso side. Metso’s spending for this year is around 1.8%. Outotec is very much a technology company and, together, we will have a true platform to innovate.”
Vauramo notes that aggregates and mining customers are already seeing new innovative products from Metso. These include the MX3 cone crusher, with patented Multi-Action technology enabling higher uptime and crusher operating cost savings, and the Metso Truck Body, a ground-breaking innovation that combines the benefits of rubber and high-strength structural steel, enabling mines and quarries to haul more with less. Both were launched at the bauma 2019 exhibition in Munich, Germany, in April
this year.
The announcement on the creation of the new Metso Outotec business was followed by publication of Metso’s encouraging first half of 2019 trading figures.
From April to June 2019, the value of orders received by Metso increased by 2% to €869 million from €855 million in April-June 2018. Sales grew by 16% to €903 million from
€776 million in the corresponding period in 2018.
Operating profit in April-June improved to €114 million or 12.6% of sales (€86 million or 11.1% of sales the same period last year).
For the full first six months of 2019 orders received increased 10% to €1.883 billion (€1.714 billion in H1 2018). Sales grew 17%, totalling €1.739 billion (H1 2018: €1.490 billion). Operating profit was €214 million or 12.3% of sales (€167 million or 11.2%).
The new Metso Outotec company will be looking to build on the multi-year sales and operating revenue growth of both Metso and Outotec. Crucial to that, Vauramo believes, will be the new business’s ability to help customers meet their biggest operational challenges.
“The mining and aggregates industries have, for example, to deal with environmental challenges, such as climate change, how to use energy efficiently, and how best to recirculate water in the production process. There are also tailings management issues in mining. Having end-to-end expertise of the production process across our industries will enable us to be innovative in finding more efficient solutions.” AB
The bauma 2019-launched Metso Truck Body is, says Metso CEO Pekka Vauramo, an example of how the Finnish company is investing in product innovation
Metso’s new MX3 cone crusher, with patented Multi-Action technology enabling higher uptime and crusher operating cost savings, was launched at the bauma 2019 exhibition in Munich, Germany
ENDING PRODUCTION GUESSWORK
Following the installation of a load-weighing system on its wheeled loader deployed to stockpile and load customer trucks, a South African-based silica sand producer has taken guesswork out of its production planning and loadout processes, writes Munesu Shoko
Located in Bronkhorstspruit, at the Gauteng and Mpumalanga border in South Africa, a threeyear old producer of high-quality silica sand has resorted to technology to take the load off weight problems on site. A key operational headache in recent times was the loading of incorrect tonnages in customer trucks, which resulted in huge losses of high-value material and unwanted downtime. To sort out this operational setback, the sand quarry approached JBI Industrial Solutions, the sole supplier of the Pfreundt range of load-weighing systems in sub-Saharan Africa.
JBI Industrial Solutions is a young company that opened its doors in 2018, but it is led by a team of experienced partners who, collectively, have over 20 years’ experience in the industrial
weighing market, with particular focus on mobile weighing solutions and machine performance analysis.
JBI offers solutions to a range of applications, including weighing solutions and systems for mobile equipment such as wheeled loaders, conveyor belts, dump trucks and excavators. The systems are integrated with up-to-date software solutions that assist with production and productivity analysis.
“We had a problem with our loadout processes on site. We were either underor overloading trucks, and this would only be discovered at the weighbridge. Consequently, the truck would need to come back to load the correct tonnage. This resulted in unnecessary downtime and high costs associated with re-handling of material and wastage,” explains the mine manager.
Christiaan Luttig, marketing director at JBI Industrial Solutions, says his company started working with the sand producer in February this year. He explains that because the sand producer deals with high-quality material, when every truck is loaded, it has to go through quality control where a physical sample has to be taken. If the sample passes, the truck can then proceed to the weighbridge.
The process is time consuming. “A big problem here was that in case of an overload, the truck could not just dump the excess material on the stockpile because, given the high-quality nature of the material, there are high chances of cross contamination. The material would be dumped on the waste pile, where it had to be refed into the processing plant for rewashing. In essence, the sand mine was losing about 34tonnes of material on every truck overload,” explains Luttig.
JBI has supplied a Pfreundt scale to a South African-based silica sand producer
The sand producer then approached JBI for a weighing system for its Kawasaki 85Z5 wheeled loader responsible for stockpiling and loading customer trucks on site. “We wanted a solution that could enable us to load trucks correctly for the first time,” explains the mine manager.
JBI suggested its German-made Pfreundt WK60-S, a compact and maintenance-free weighing system. It allows for dynamic weighing while loading. The system is also precise, fast and accurate within +/- 1%.
Jaco Beukes, managing director of JBI Industrial Solutions, says, as standard, the WK60-S can store five users and five additional attachments. The system comes with interfaces for printers, network (LAN), CAN-Bus, power supply, as well as radio data transmission via WLAN, GPRS and GPS positioning. “With this system, quarry managers always know how much material is being moved – this saves time, lowers costs and improves operations,” says Beukes.
The system’s pressure transmitters are connected to the loader’s pressure lines. From there, a cable runs to the front of the cab, where it is connected to the trigger, which measures the weight. A proximity switch is installed on the bucket. “This is to make sure that the bucket is completely rolled backwards when loading and is fully opened forwards when dumping to make sure that all the material is out of the bucket to avoid carrybacks,” explains Beukes. The system also prevents the operator from continuing to load if they are not tilting the bucket enough, either backwards or forwards.
Every time the operator starts the loader, the scale asks them to do three warm-up lifts. This happens every time when the machine has been switched off completely. After the warm-up stroke, the system compels the operator to reset to a zero reading. Beukes says with traditional systems the operator had to do it manually
“With this system, quarry managers always know how much material is being moved – this saves time, lowers costs and improves operations”
Jaco Beukes, managing director of JBI Industrial Solutions
The Kawasaki 85Z5 wheeled loader is deployed to stockpile and load customer trucks on site
The operation produces high-quality silica sand
The loader stockpiles material from the four belts of the processing plant
The system allows quarry managers to know how much material is being moved at all times
and most of the time they forget, resulting in false loads. “Every time the operator starts a new load, the system asks them to reset to zero to keep the accuracy within the 1% allowance,” adds Beukes.
Apart from removing guesswork out of the loadout process, the load-weighing system has significantly helped with production planning on this particular site. As part of the project, JBI has also helped the sand producer to identify and log the different types of product onto the system. Each product is linked to a specific bunker where it is stockpiled. When loading, the operator captures onto the system the product being loaded, the location they got it from, the truck number, the customer and order number. By the time the truck gets to the weighbridge, all the information is already loaded onto the system.
At the end of the day, the manager has a good grasp of the total number of
ABOVE Apart from removing guesswork out of the loadout process, the load-weighing system has significantly helped with production planning on this particular site
trucks loaded, the product they loaded and the recipient customers. The system, which is connected to cloud-based software, also informs the manager on the amount of material left on each product stockpile, allowing him to keep track of the stock count every time, thus informing production planning.
The loader stockpiles material from the four belts of the processing plant. Each belt produces a different size of sand, namely -1mm, -500 micron, 2mm and 4,75mm. On the scale, the operator selects the product they are stockpiling at a given
time, allowing the quarry manager to see the amount of material available on each stockpile.
“The system keeps me updated on all fronts. I can see which truck is being loaded, how many tonnes they are loading and how much material is left on the stockpile. We can also do the bucket test to see the tonnes per hour being produced from the four different belts,” explains the quarry manager.
“Apart from making sure that trucks are loaded correctly the first time, which has a significant impact on our uptime, the loadweighing system also informs our production planning. We can see our tonnages in real time, which is very important for us. We have removed guesswork out of our planning and loadout processes,” he adds.
Having realised these operational gains, the sand producer is planning to install a second Pfreundt system on its Bell wheeled loader used to feed material into the processing plant. This will inform the amount of feed material going into the plant, against the amount of material coming out at the four belts.
In conclusion, the quarry manager believes every wheeled loader working on a quarry site should have a load-weighing system. “After realising the massive benefits of this system, my advice is that every loader on a quarry should have a scale installed on it. It makes a huge difference,” he concludes. AB
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Getting SA quarries’ diesel rebate houses in order
In recent years, several South African quarries have been audited for their diesel rebate systems and their refund claims have been disallowed mainly because their record-keeping has been found wanting. To maximise claim eligibility, quarry managers need to improve their level of compliance logging and adherence to the relevant legislation. Munesu Shoko reports
South African Revenue Services’ (SARS) audits of company diesel rebate claims have exposed a costly trend. According to Andrew Hancock, consultant at CustomEx, a firm that specialises in helping industry address diesel rebate claims, most businesses are losing out on potential refunds because of non-compliant records, and for mines and quarries in particular, this can rocket into millions of rands.
The diesel rebate was designed to protect South African industries against international competition and to provide relief to consumers who do not necessarily use roads. However, Hancock says several operations are missing out on potential gains because many of them are put off by the perceived administrative burden of the logging requirements. In his dealings with several quarries, he has noted that most information relevant to the diesel rebate
system is recorded, but not compiled in the required format.
“Most have a form of record-keeping, but it does not conform to the specific requirements. Claims are often made on the purchase totals rather than the usage record. When SARS make contact to set up an audit people usually become concerned and that’s when they only reach out for assistance,” says Hancock.
“For those that do not get the necessary help, the audit usually results in massive reversals. As a rule, a two-year period is covered in the audit. When deficiencies are revealed the entire period is reversed and the full amount becomes payable. For smaller operators this can equate to around ZAR200,000 (US$13,330). For some bigger operations, it can run into several millions of rands,” adds Hancock.
He adds that typically the response to this scenario by operations is to
stop claiming. The assessment goes unchallenged and future claim benefits are voluntarily lost. “I have found that challenging the audit findings can result in the recovery of some or all of the intended reversal,” he says.
So, what does the related legislation say? Legislation allows certain industry sectors to recover Fuel Levy and Road Accident Levy from diesel purchases in accordance with certain specified parameters. These activities are identified largely based on the fact that vehicles utilised are not essentially road users. The industries selected are also major economic contributors.
“The legislation defines activities that are eligible for rebate claim and those activities that are non-eligible. The law then allows 80% of that eligible usage to be rebated at the respective rate per litre. The rate per litre is updated every year in
South African legislation allows certain industry sectors to recover Fuel Levy and Road Accident Levy from diesel purchases in accordance with certain specified parameters
early April. From April 3 2019 the applicable rate of rebate is ZAR3.327 (about £0.16) per eligible litre,” explains Hancock.
The legislation also specifies the industries and the activities that apply in order to make a compliant claim. The emphasis is on the activity description and usage for that. Eligible “users” are specified as follows: Onland (Mining/Quarrying); Forestry; Farming; Commercial Fishing; Coastwise shipping; Offshore Mining; National Sea Rescue Institute; Rail freight; and Electricity Generation (Plants Specified).
To qualify for the diesel rebate, an operation must be registered for value added tax (VAT) and for the diesel rebate in terms of the Customs and Excise Act. The operation must be able to prove and calculate the amount of lawful consumption in terms of Schedule 6 to the Customs and Excise Act. The schedule lists the activities that qualify for the rebate, as well as how diesel usage must be recorded. The rebate is regarded as a ‘provisional concession’ until the quarry can prove reasonably that the diesel was used lawfully.
“Frequency of your claim ties in with the submission of your VAT return for your business. As a defined user, you would need to be registered for VAT purposes with sub-registration for diesel rebate purposes,” explains Hancock.
The significance of compliance to maximise the potential for successful diesel rebate claims is enormous. Hancock is of the view that, with the right guidance, compliance is easier than many expect.
“Addressing these issues prior to a diesel
CustomEx assists operations with ensuring compliance when claiming a diesel refund
audit allows operations enough time to align their record-keeping and streamline it into their normal workflow. This allows them to enjoy the benefit without financial hurt,” he says.
Speaking on the significance of successful diesel rebate claims, Hancock says the volumes of diesel used within the quarrying and mining context are usually large. The cashback factor (on every VAT return) is significant.
“For example, if a quarry uses 100,000 litres in defined eligible activities per month, and 80% being 80,000 litres, with the current rate of ZAR3.327 applied, the rebate for one month would equate to ZAR266,160 (about £14,620). For a two-month VAT period you would expect a ZAR532,320 (about £29,240) refund. Compliant claiming also enhances the enterprise’s reputation and integrity with the taxman, especially when tax clearances are required,” concludes Hancock. AB
Andrew Hancock, consultant at CustomEx
New MAJOR Flex-Mat sensor
MAJOR, a global leading manufacturer of high-performance screening media, has introduced the Flex-Mat Sensor, a valuable and easy to operate vibration data measurement tool users can utilise to review results and fine-tune their screen machine without shutting down equipment. The app-controlled vibration analysis sensor enables readings of screen-box vibrations within seconds and generates a report that can be sent or reviewed.
“Our focus is on making our customers more profitable and productive. This technology does that by putting a wealth of screen performance data into the palm of their hand,” said Peter Bauer, MAJOR R&D and innovation manager. “The simplicity of our system makes it extremely accessible and allows dealers and their customers to make educated decisions to improve performance and profits.”
The operator connects the single sensor to the Flex-Mat Sensor app on their phone before placing the sensor on one corner of the machine. The user will continue to move the
LiuGong unveiled its new F-Series excavators, including the pictured 990F, at BICES 2019
MAJOR has launched the Flex-Mat Sensor for optimal screen media use
LiuGong launched its sixth-generation F-series excavators at the BICES 2019 exhibition in Beijing, China. Like its predecessors, the latest generation models integrate cutting-edge technology, intelligence and environmental protection features. The new F-series excavators are mainly designed for North America, Western Europe, and China but are also relevant to emerging market customers, as LiuGong offers various product portfolios to meet the needs of different markets.
sensor to each corner of the machine until finished. Once the measurement process is completed, the information will be delivered to the phone in the time it takes to climb down from the machine. Alternative systems may not provide the data until the following day. Machine information is stored locally for ease of use and viewing in areas with cellular limitations. Once a signal is available, the information uploads to MAJOR’s cloud service where it is viewable from a web browser. Historical equipment performance data is also viewable through the cloud.
The sensor measures g-force, stroke, rpm and orbit, including lateral movement — a measurement not offered by many vibration analysis systems. Producers can use the data to monitor and fine-tune screen-box performance as well as make parameter decisions with minimal guesswork. www.majorflexmat.com
F-Series excavators are greater in number and class sizes than previous generation models. They include standard units for the Chinese market and short-tail and zero-tail swing models for the Western European and North American markets. The machines comply with the latest regulations of China and Europe on emissions. The F-Series has 15 product sub-platforms with over 40 size classes ranging from 1.5 to 90 tonnes, which covers more than 90% of the global market demand. Mini excavators of less than six tonnes are divided into further size classes.
LiuGong F-series excavators are equipped with the latest electronically controlled hydraulic system consisting of a main pump with large
displacement, a low-speed and high-torque engine and a main electro-hydraulic proportional control valve for better management of flow distribution. An intelligent cooling system is also equipped, which controls the fan speed in real time according to the temperature of water, oil and intercooler. With these systems, the F-series excavators are industry-leading in terms of their high operating efficiency and low oil consumption (about 15-20% lower than that of the previous generation of products).
In addition to the features of energy conservation and high efficiency many other LiuGong excavators have, the F-series excavators have been greatly improved in terms of product intelligence. This combines the integrated operation of a single excavator, intelligent control, network-based integration of excavators, intelligent monitoring, detection, prediction and remote control. The technology enables the monitoring of bucket trajectory, construction guidance, assisted excavation, automatic weighing, etc., significantly improving the working efficiency and quality and avoiding repeated operation.
www.liugong.com
Elkon’s Palestinian installation
A Palestinian customer has recently purchased an ELKON concrete-batching plant for its ready-mix business.
A representative from the unnamed company visited ELKON’s 65,000m² production site in Turkey prior to making the order.
ELKON has 15 different manufacturing lines with fully automated welding, cutting, grinding and painting robots in its factories.
After being impressed with the technology at ELKON’s manufacturing site, the Palestinian company decided to order an
ELKOMIX-100 Quick Master dry type compact concrete batching plant which can produce 100m³ of dry concrete per hour.
The ELKOMIX-100 batching plant can be installed on a flat concrete surface without any special foundation. The configuration has a T-type aggregates weighing system which is designed to provide a faster weighing time with two separate aggregates weigh hoppers. The plant is equipped with two 125-tonne bolted type cement silos for cement storage. www.concretebatchingplants. com
The ELKOMIX-100 Quick Master dry type compact concretebatching plant
An Ammann ABC 140 SolidBatch asphalt-mixing plant played a big role in a major new Thai highway project
operation manager for Tamaka Asphaltic Company, which handles many roadbuilding projects for various divisions of the Thai government.
Those governmental divisions certainly took the project seriously. An inspector remained at the plant throughout the project, constantly testing mix to ensure it met quality standards.
The plant fared well, meeting all requirements for both quality and production. “The Ammann plant has very advanced technology that was needed to produce the mix on this project,” Lertprasert said. In particular, he praised Ammann’s proprietary as1 Control System.
Ammann helps Thai communities connect
An Ammann ABC 140 SolidBatch asphalt-mixing plant has helped connect local communities in Thailand to a major new highway in Southeast Asia.
The new motorway links Kanchanaburi Province in western Thailand to the Southern
Economic Corridor, which runs from Myanmar through Thailand and Cambodia – and eventually to two ports in Vietnam.
“This project is big in terms of value and an important longterm boost to the Thai economy,” said Niyom Lertprasert, plant
“The as1 software recorded production data and showed the precise total weight of hot mix to be paved,” he said. “It’s a very good, advanced system. The software can give us good reports about fuel consumption and operations.”
Tamaka benefitted from a 50-tonne hot-mix silo, a key option the company is glad it purchased. “This hot-mix silo saved us in terms of truck management and optimising the total number of trucks used,” Lertprasert said.
Concrete certainty with supplyCONNECT Replenish
Command Alkon, a leading global supplier collaboration platform for the quarrying and heavy construction industries, has launched supplyCONNECT Replenish, a module that improves, automates and digitises the materials-receiving process for vertically integrated ready-mixed concrete producers.
With supplyCONNECT Replenish, material receipts are electronically transmitted to the COMMANDbatch, providing visibility into future deliveries of raw materials and eliminating the errors that come with manual ticket reconciliation. Replenish
The road connecting local Thai communities to the corridor is now complete and provides improved access to businesses along this trade route. www.ammann.com
Haver & Boecker Niagara offers Make & Hold advantage
Haver & Boecker Niagara is offering Make & Hold and Stocking Agreement programmes for screen media and wear parts. The programmes are said to provide aggregates and mining customers options for short lead times, pricing stability and simplified inventory management.
“We put customer service first, which is why we’re one of the only manufacturers in this industry to offer a Make and Hold programme,” said Karen Thompson, president of Haver & Boecker Niagara’s North American and Australian operations. “Programmes like this give producers the assurance of timely deliveries at a price
they can budget for at the beginning of the year. In addition, they can virtually eliminate the challenges of inventory management.”
Under the Make & Hold programme, Haver & Boecker Niagara stocks products in quantities and prices agreed upon at the beginning of the year. Product is produced and packaged in the predetermined quantity so that it can be shipped the same day the order is placed. Once an order is shipped, the product is automatically replenished in preparation for the next time the customer requires it.
Command Alkon has introduced supply CONNECT Replenish for ready-mixed concrete producers
keeps batch operators focused on running the plant instead of spending hours manually entering raw materials receipts.
“Getting these raw materials receipts electronically from your Apex locations is a game changer,” says Dave Donaldson, VP at Command Alkon. “There is a lot of power in being able to have instant visibility into the status of your raw materials supply chain.”
A Stocking Agreement, or blanket order programme, is also available as an alternative for customers interested in a one-time annual agreement. Prices are locked in at the beginning of the year for a predetermined quantity of product. Customers draw on their stock throughout the year as required and pay per shipment.
Both programmes are an opportunity for operations to ensure product availability and price stability and are particularly beneficial for products that may otherwise have long lead times.
www.haverniagara.com
supplyCONNECT is comprised of three modules, with Replenish being the latest addition to the family. supplyCONNECT Demand is also available to forecast needs and plan raw materials deliveries. supplyCONNECT Inventory provides the real-time visibility to the current stock levels at each plant location. Each module can be used individually or combined as a bundle to give you control of your raw materials supply chain. www.commandalkon.com
Throughout the year Aggregates Business travels the globe attending conferences, events and equipment shows, keeping you informed of the latest offerings. Why not come and join us for a chat at any of the events below?
MARCH 2020
10-14 CONEXPO-CON/ AGG 2020
MARCH 2020
21-25 SaMoTer 2020 Verona, Italy
JUNE 2020
23-25 Hillhead 2020
Hillhead Quarry, Buxton, Derbyshire, England
NEW WEBSITE LAUNCHING SOON
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