44
MODERN MINING
May 2014
CRUSHING, SCREENING
AND MILLING
feature
M
MD were the original design-
ers and developers of the
twin shaft Mineral Sizer in
the UK in the late 1970s – the
inventor was Alan Potts –
and the first machines manufactured went into
Britain’s underground coal mining industry.
Since those early days, MMD, with its policy of
constant improvement, has greatly expanded
the range and today its sizers work in both soft
and hard rock environments treating almost
every type of ore in both underground and
open-pit mines. Coal mining remains a major
part of the market but the machines are being
successfully used in a wide array of mining
operations, including gold, diamond, copper,
uranium, nickel, mineral sands and iron ore.
In all, MMD Mineral Sizers are being used to
size over 80 different minerals in applications
around the world.
The MMD Group of Companies headquarters
is in the Isle of Man with offices in number of
countries and regions, namely the UK, North
and South America, Canada, Australia, China,
India, Thailand and, of course, South Africa.
The South African company, run by MD Martin
Vorster, is a wholly owned subsidiary of the
MMD Group, and operates from a modern head-
quarters and workshop in the Longmeadow
Business Estate near Johannesburg. The
machines supplied in Africa are largely man-
ufactured locally, although the gearboxes are
imported. The designs are generated by the UK
office based on the specific requirements of the
customer while manufacture, installation and
commissioning is handled by MMD Mineral
Sizing Africa, which offers a full turnkey ser-
vice to customers.
The MMD presence in South Africa dates
back to 1981 when MMD entered the local
market under the name MMD Mineral Sizing
South Africa to cover the South African mar-
ket but the company was ‘mothballed’ as the
country entered the era of sanctions. It was re-
established in 2000 under the name of MMD
Mineral Sizing Africa to cover the African
continent and since then the growth has been
vigorous with the original handful of staffers
having now grown to a workforce of approxi-
mately 100 people.
As described in MMD’s literature, the basic
concept of the MMD Mineral Sizer is the use of
two rotors with large teeth, on small diameter
shafts, driven at a low speed by a direct high
torque drive system. This design produces three
major effects which all interact when breaking
materials using sizer technology. The unique
effects are: a three-stage breaking action, a rotat-
ing screen effect, and a deep scroll tooth pattern.
MMD
offers complete
mineral
MMD believes its Mineral Sizer technology represents one
of the biggest advances in comminution in 100 years. The
technology has made massive inroads into the mining
industry and today MMD’s Mineral Sizers are processing ore
in both soft and hard rock applications. The Mineral Sizer
has proved particularly popular in Africa and MMDMineral
Sizing Africa, which supplies and supports the MMD range
throughout Africa, estimates that there are around 150
active MMDMineral Sizer installations around the continent.
MMD Mineral Sizing Africa
operates from a modern
headquarters and workshop
in the Longmeadow
Business Estate near
Johannesburg.
