FILTRATION & THICKENING
efficiency.”
“ Winning this strategic order is another proud moment for FLS. Together with the customer, we continue to push the technological boundaries of size and performance across the entire flowsheet. Once all the FLS technologies are installed and operating, this plant will become one of the largest, most efficient and highest-grade iron ore beneficiation plants globally, supporting optimal profitability and providing tangible sustainability benefits in terms of energy and water reductions to the customers,” comments Julian Soles, Products Business Line President at FLS. The order value, which was booked in Q3 2025, has not been disclosed.
McLanahan’ s QUICKCHANGE
McLanahan, in collaboration with its sister company Diefenbach, earlier in 2025 introduced the QUICKCHANGE™ system- a patent-pending innovation it says is set to transform filter press maintenance. Engineered for speed, simplicity and safety, this groundbreaking technology streamlines filter cloth replacement and filter plate inspection, slashing downtime and boosting operational efficiency. The QUICKCHANGE system is available through McLanahan, Diefenbach, and Eagle Iron Works.
The QUICKCHANGE’ s design reimagines filter cloth maintenance with an innovative design that allows cloths to glide effortlessly in and out during replacement. Unlike traditional methods requiring extensive manual labour or specialised lifting equipment, QUICKCHANGE enables operators to perform maintenance at ground level in minutes- reducing the industrystandard replacement time of 10-20 minutes per cloth to just 1-2 minutes. McLanahen says this dramatic reduction in changeout time minimises downtime and maximises productivity.
Safety is a cornerstone of the QUICKCHANGE system. By eliminating the need for personnel to climb onto or inside filter presses for cloth changeout, the risks associated with working at heights or in confined spaces can be drastically mitigated. The streamlined process also reduces dependence on slow-moving overhead lifting equipment, further enhancing safety and efficiency. Filter cloths can be removed for quick cloth or filter plate inspection at eye level without the need to lift plates out of the filter press.
Beyond speed and safety, QUICKCHANGE delivers cost-saving innovation. Traditional systems require replacing filter cloths on both sides of a plate when one fails, but QUICKCHANGE allows operators to replace only the damaged side, cutting material waste and long-term maintenance costs. A specially designed
42 feed shoe protects high-wear areas around the feed hole, extending cloth lifespan and ensuring consistent, high-performance filtration.
“ Efficiency and safety drive everything we do,” said Cory Jenson, Executive Vice President of Sales and Business Development at McLanahan.“ Teaming up with Diefenbach- a pioneer in liquid-solid separation since 1907- we’ ve created a game-changer. QUICKCHANGE gets plants back online faster and safer, slashing downtime from filter cloth changeouts.”
Alessandro Felicani, Managing Director of Diefenbach, added:“ Filter cloth replacement has long been the leading cause of downtime for filter presses in the mining, aggregates, and water treatment industries. With QUICKCHANGE, we’ ve reduced that downtime for cloth changeout by a factor of ten or more.”
Diemme’ s bold vision for customer proximity
Diemme retains a leading position in the design and supply of large mining filter presses and IM caught up with Andrea Pezzi, Director of Marketing and Communication. A major focus for Diemme has been ensuring its network of manufacturing, service and support facilities and locations can meet demand from the mining sector both today and in the future. Pezzi:“ What we call internally our customer proximity project is advancing rapidly- and after the Brazilian facility opening in Nova Lima, Minas Gerais, which has been very successful, our plans continue to evolve. We are also improving our footprint in North America though hiring new people and looking for locations to establish a new business unit. Elsewhere we are making progress in India and have reinforced our team in Australia, plus we are also starting our project for closer customer proximity in Chile and have hired a new manager there to oversee that growth. And we have a new person in the UK as well. So overall Diemme is seeing gradual but sustained growth globally.”
Over at the HQ facility in Lugo, Italy, the new factory is now fully operational and work continues to further increase efficiency in the production flows there. Pezzi adds:“ Working out final locations for us takes time as we now evaluate for example whether to also add also a potential laboratory for customer sample testing, along with being a service centre and warehouse of spare parts. Instead of shipping samples all over the world, if we can test something locally and then share that information with our experts in Italy, that speeds up project development for the client. We are looking at this in South America and Australia, for example.”
Moving on to its record GHT5000F Domino tailings filter at Toquepala copper mine in Peru, advanced discussions continue with the client Southern Copper Corporation about scaling up to a full plant scale with as many as ten of these units. The existing single filter press has 141 plates with a plate size of 5 m by 5 m and a filtering volume of 71 m 3 with a filtering surface area of 2,850 m 2. The filter is 7.5 m high, 9.5 m wide and 40 m long including safety barriers. Productivity is over 8,000 t of dry solids per
In Brazil, Diemme recently completed the installation of 4 Diemme ® GHT25000F26 filter presses dedicated to the filtration of iron ore tailings with a feed rate of over 16,500 t / d
International Mining | OCTOBER 2025