With brownfield expansions becoming increasingly common due to their lower risk and cost compared to new greenfield projects, Weir has seen rising demand for high capacity vibrating screens to enable high throughput operations, as well as machines with a wider operating window to address changing feed conditions. These market trends were crucial in informing some of the most important design elements of the new ENDURON® Elite vibrating screens from Weir.
Several key trends are currently shaping the vibrating screen market in Africa. According to Corné Kleyn, Global Product Manager: Vibrating Screens at Weir, these include the need for high capacity machines for brownfield expansions, demand for screens with a wide operating window to meet changing feed conditions and the growing focus on screen designs that minimise energy consumption and reduce wear and tear to ensure sustainable operations.
These trends, says Kleyn, were central to Weir’s design approach to its new ENDURON® Orbital and ENDURON® Elite vibrating screen ranges, with customer feedback playing a crucial role in informing some of the most important design elements of these innovative machines.
A case in point is the high capacity nature of the ENDURON® Elite range, which successfully addresses the growing need for high capacity vibrating screens for brownfield expansions, especially as opencast mines seek to ramp up production.
“With the launch of the ENDURON® Elite vibrating screen range, Weir now offers some of the largest double-deck banana screens in the world, weighing up to 50 tonnes. Some of the first units operating in an iron ore application in West Africa measure 4,3 m wide x 9,7 m long, highlighting the large nature of these screens to meet high throughput needs,” says Kleyn.
One of the major design features of these screens are the ETX exciters. Capable of driving a vibrating screen with a deck that spans 4,27 m, these exciters have the largest capacity of any exciter currently available on the market. Their large size allows the large Elite vibratory screens to be driven with two exciters, reducing exciter drive complexity and maintenance costs. This provides high performance and long service life. In addition, fewer exciters to maintain on site translates into reduced downtime, routine inspections and inventory management.
As mines expand and get deeper changing feed conditions, such as variations in ore grade, particle size and mineral composition, are becoming the order of the day. This, says Kleyn, can significantly impact the efficiency and cost effectiveness of mineral processing operations.
When feed conditions change, he adds, screens are subject to harmonic resonance which can lead to structural failure. To mitigate against this, Weir has designed both its ENDURON® Elite vibrating screen ranges with a wider operating window, giving operators greater flexibility to adapt operating parameters as feed conditions change.