SCREENING
that operators receive targeted on-the-job training, which helps ensure performance is maintained.”
Sandvik Rock Processing’ s assessments include a visual inspection followed by dynamic testing to measure mechanical performance. Any defects or concerns are then detailed in a report to the customer for action.
“ Our training empowers a customer’ s team to recognise conditions that need early attention, as part of overall lifecycle management to keep equipment well maintained and productive,” she says.“ The OEM can’ t always be on site to conduct daily checks but operators can be trained to do this and a close working relationship with the OEM ensures there are open lines of communication to report issues.”
Regular inspections allow the remaining wear life of parts and components to be estimated and logged, enabling maintenance and part sourcing to be planned well in advance. This prevents unscheduled downtime and allows maintenance work to be done during planned plant shutdowns.
The performance of the screens is also affected by the changing nature of the orebodies being mined, which requires constant monitoring – as changing geology could result in more abrasive material being crushed and screened.
“ This may call for a different choice of wear materials in the screen panels to achieve the required output and wear life,” she says.“ Screens are specified for certain conditions at the start of a project but adjustments invariably need to be made during the equipment’ s lifecycle.”
Crushers and screens in the same circuit also impact one another, so mines need to work with OEM specialists who understand this relationship when conducting assessments and making adjustments over time.
“ Effective lifecycle management is aimed at achieving the lowest cost per tonne over the life of the screen,” says Sukati.“ By focusing on where most screen costs are incurred, mines can quickly identify areas to reduce costs as part of broader efficiency and productivity efforts.”
She emphasises that this is the most direct route to achieving low costs per tonne, especially when done in close collaboration with the OEM. She also highlights the value of formal agreements between mines and OEMs regarding responsibilities for keeping screens functioning optimally.
“ These agreements provide clear roles for each party avoiding grey areas that could lead to oversights in monitoring, service delivery or parts availability,” she says.“ For mining customers, these agreements are powerful tools to derisk their business by
22
enhancing both equipment performance and reliability.”
This gives mines the confidence that they will meet production targets while gaining better control over operational costs through detailed planning and monitoring. Through its service level agreements, for instance, Sandvik Rock Processing places a team of experts on site who is responsible and accountable for the screens and must report regularly on their condition and performance.
“ We can also manage inventory to ensure that necessary wear parts and components are available when required to ensure optimal uptime,” she concludes.
Weir’ s new ENDURON ® Elite screen
The new ENDURON ® Elite screen from Weir is a large, high capacity, mining-specific machine. It’ s a double-deck banana screen, available in a range of sizes with the largest weighing in at close to 50 tonnes and a deck measuring 4.3 m x 8.5 m.
The ENDURON ® Elite screens are driven play in this circuit.
In short, the transformational flowsheet is a closed circuit with the ENDURON ® HPGR discharge feeding the ENDURON ® Elite screen. The oversize material from both top and bottom decks is recycled back to the HPGR, while the bottom deck undersize product is fed to the vertical stirred mill.
These big banana screens are able to separate material efficiently at small cut sizes, ensuring that Weir can offer a single mill flowsheet, allowing miners to significantly reduce their energy consumption and operating costs, compared to traditional tumbling mills.
Weir was recently awarded a £ 53 million contract to provide a transformational flowsheet for Barrick Gold’ s Reko Diq copper-gold project in Balochistan Province, Pakistan, which includes twelve 4.27 m x 8.54 m double deck ENDURON ® Elite banana screens. It cites this as further proof that top miners trust Weir to deliver critical products for their big greenfield projects.
ENDURON ® Elite screens can also be
The new ENDURON ® Elite screen from Weir is a large, high capacity, mining-specific machine
by Weir’ s new patented ETX exciters, which drive these massive screens with just two exciters. Other machines of comparable size require three exciters. Notably, this delivers significant advantages in terms of efficiency, lowering energy consumption, as well as simplifying the maintenance requirements.
While ENDURON ® Elite screens can be utilised in any screening duties in the mill circuit with the exception of primary screening, one specific application they’ ve been developed for is to screen Weir’ s ENDURON ® HPGR discharge. Weir has been developing a transformational flowsheet in which traditional tumbling mills are replaced by HPGRs and vertical stirred mills, reducing energy consumption by 40 %. The ENDURON ® Elite screen has a vital role to digitally enabled, providing the operator with greater visibility of equipment health and performance, as well as providing the opportunity for process optimisation.
Weir adds that its patented ETX exciter technology enables the ENDURON ® Elite screens to excel in fine screening applications. Fine screening requires faster operating speeds at lower strokes; this is often a screening challenge when paired with the high tonnages on some of the world’ s biggest hard rock mines. Weir has designed the biggest exciters available on the market, capable of running at 16 Hz while still maintaining safe operating temperatures, where others suffer from overheating issues, leading to premature bearing failures.
International Mining | OCTOBER 2025