The current economic climate has required business to identify key areas where costs can be cut or budgets used more effectively and Pilot Crushtec's client ArcelorMittal is no exception. 

Nicolan Govender, Pilot Crushtec's National Sales Manager says,"Pilot Crushtec has identified key areas where our clients can maximize the use of our machines to streamline systems."

In late 2009 ArcelorMittal, Africa's largest steel producer, bought a TwisterTrac AC210 mobile vertical shaft impact [VSI] crusher as well as a Terex Finlay 683 Supertrak (seen below), and an excellent working relationship followed. "To assist the steel giant with their goal of lowering production costs and increasing steel production, we presented ArcelorMittal with an innovative recycling solution," says Nicolan.

Faced with increasing stockpiles of 30mm iron ore and coke, unusable in the sinter-making process in their uncrushed form, ArcelorMittal needed a solution that would ensure the cost-effective utilisation of these valuable raw materials. Pilot Crushtec's sales team demonstrated, through specially designed crushing tests, that the Pilot Crushtec range could deliver a usable product at a more economical cost when compared to buying raw materials at Export Parity Prices.

"Our range of equipment has been designed to be flexible and to easily operate across many different applications," explains Nicolan and he adds that the TwisterTrac and Terex Finlay 683 combination works in unison as a recycling unit for all their materials. "ArcelorMittal needed a solution that would work just as effectively for iron ore as for coke coal and any other raw material."

Currently, the TwisterTrac AC210 and Terex Finlay 683 Supertrak are being used to crush and screen metallurgical coke from 30mm to minus 6mm, the same specifications originally required for the iron ore stockpiles, but just as effective in the refinement of a different product.

Rolf Woltge, Commodity Manager at ArcelorMittal agrees, "Last year we were sitting with vast stockpiles of lump iron ore while facing a shortage of fine iron ore, hence the purchase of the crushing and screening plant, to help us create finer ore. Lately, the situation has changed countrywide and our stockpiles of lump iron ore have been depleted, so while we haven't used the plant to refine iron ore, it has worked just as effectively in the crushing and screening of metallurgical coke."

"The demand for recycling of waste and stockpiled material is generally growing," states Noicolan and Pilot Crushtec are well poised to offer flexible and cost-effective solutions that are already lowering production costs in some of the toughest industries in Africa.