• OPERATIONS
LOGISTICS ALIGNMENT: SERVICE, MAINTENANCE AND FACTORY- DIRECT PARTNERSHIPS
Sue Griffith, field support supervisor, Martin Engineering, brings organisational expertise to demonstrate how partnerships can enhance operational efficiency and reduce operational costs in bulk handling operations.
Unscheduled downtime of belt conveyors in bulk handling operations can be calculated in cost per minute. For sanity’ s sake, don’ t calculate this! It might reveal the severe logistical and scheduling inefficiency of service contractors and equipment manufacturers – and seriously raise your blood pressure.
Generally, when operators install retrofitted conveyor solutions, they focus on the upfront price with little consideration for the cost of ongoing service, maintenance costs and supply chain. But down the road, when critical service or parts are needed, the cost per minute difference between days and weeks of downtime or keeping the system limping along at 25-50 % production can amount to an entirely new equipment retrofit.
This is why having a close relationship with equipment manufacturers and / or their certified contractors that offer responsive“ factory direct” products and services is important to the cost of operation. The main factors to consider are service availability, technical expertise / safety and supply chain logistics.
Service availability The mystery of the“ disappearing manufacturer’ s rep after installation” is a tale as old as the Industrial Revolution, and back then, even Sherlock Holmes couldn’ t solve it. Reliable and timely site visits are a hallmark of a solid partnership between the operator and the factory-direct manufacturer. Service technicians and certified representatives who are available during problemfree uptime are likely to be responsive during panic-inducing unscheduled downtime.
All images © 2025 Martin Engineering
Trucks specially equipped with the necessary tools and parts arrive to offer service and solutions.
Research published by the Australian Coal Association indicates the cost of downtime is on the order of five times( 5x) the cost of replacing the component. When the root cause of downtime is related to the basic conveyor design, the downtime cost is approximately two times( 2x) the cost of the redesign. 1
At first, these ratios may seem to be erroneous or even backward but consider that a component failure often involves maintenance with a relatively short downtime window for replacement, whereas a basic design mistake often involves a significant capital expense and a prolonged outage for correction.
“ Walk the Belt” checklists are accompanied by tests, results and solutions for conveyor performance.
Site visits are also not arbitrary. A reputable equipment manufacturer representative will examine not just their components but the entire conveyor system, offering preventative maintenance support. The goal is to find indicators of the causes of downtime and offer practical and timely solutions. For example, Martin’ s Walk the Belt™ programme is specifically designed for predictive maintenance. A Martin Service Technician( MST) or certified contractor will physically examine the entire system with an extensive checklist and then write a report, often with photos, of observations, recommendations and solutions to improve safety and efficiency.
22 • African Mining • August 2025 www. africanmining. co. za