IN CONVERSATION
Jorge Abelho, does the final specifications,
designs and detailed drawings.
Our design philosophy is to ensure
that whatever module is designed, it
is easily transportable, can be installed
on site quickly and safely and once
installed, is ready to run. The skid frames
are designed to ensure that concrete
foundations are not required and that
the only civils required on site is the
building of a retaining wall for feeding
the primary crusher and to prepare a flat,
level compacted floor. We have basically
standardised each component of the
crushing, screening and feeding process
for easy layout and a more accurate and
predictable performance output. For
example, there is a standard primary
Jaw crushing module in four different
sizes (C80, C96, C106 and C120) to
accommodate all the customer’s primary
crushing requirements up to 500t/hr.
The modular plant range includes cone
crusher, impact crushers VSI crushers,
screens, feeders, scalping screens and
a range of standard conveyors 600mm,
750mm and 1 050mm wide. This provides
the versatility for almost all requirements.
(FM) The maintenance on a plant is a lot
easier when it consists of standardised
equipment as well. One of the design
features is that the plant is always skid
mounted and the skid frame can be
placed onto a level, compacted surface.
It is not necessary for any civil works as
long as there is a flat, fairly compact base.
How easy is it to deliver these plants to
remote areas in Africa?
(FM) The biggest challenge in Africa is the
logistics. We’ve recently transported three
plants to the Democratic Republic of the
The tracked mobile
option is a higher
(SS) The complete 200t/hr plant we
recently commissioned at a quarry in King
Williams Town was delivered to site within
10 weeks from order and fully operational
within four months of the order. That is a
complete 200tph aggregates plant built
from scratch, including a cone crusher,
jaw crusher, VSI, conveyors, screens, civils
and SCADA electrics installation.
Has the focus at Pilot Crushtec changed
as a result of the modular concept?
(SS) The focus remains the same and
that is to offer our customers the best
solution for their needs. If they need high
mobility for operational requirements or
for the fastest setup, then we offer our
tracked mobile range. If they require a
longer-term, low operational cost and
or permanent plant, we offer the Pilot
Modular range.
There is a very specific reason for
acquiring mobile machines. One needs to
be on site quickly and then move off again
quickly. Some mining companies don’t
want to haul big rocks over long distances
and therefore need to get the machines
to the face to start crushing there as soon
as possible. For this, tracked mobility is
the answer.
The tracked mobile option is a higher
capital outlay but allows crushing to
start generating a return quicker. The
modular approach allowed us to offer
the operational cost benefits of a fixed
plant with a short delivery and installation
process at a pre-determined price.
capital outlay but But you still supply mobile solutions?
allows crushing to (FM) Yes, of course mobile machines
are still a big part of our business. What
we don’t do is build bespoke one-off
plants. The timelines are way too long
and this is not our strength. We offer a
range of solutions for 95% of minerals
and materials processing operations and
start generating a
return quicker.”
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Congo (DRC). Most of the components
were ex-stock and ready to go within a
few days, but the transport is always a
challenge. The plants got held up at the
Zambia border for a long time. In southern
Africa the transport is a lot easier than in
other parts of Africa, where it can take
anything from two to three months to get
to site.
NOVEMBER 2019
projects, and we turn them around fast,
with accurate outcomes of performance
and sustainable maintenance within a
reasonable budget.
What information do you need to assist
a customer with the design of his plant?
(SS) We generally need to know the
customers’ requirements. What is the end
product? Is it aggregate for construction
or roads, what sizes are required,
washed or unwashed sand, fill materials
for roadbuilding, fines scalping or ore
crushing? The volume of production is
important and the size and nature of the
feed material. Once we have a good idea
of what the customer wants to process,
at what volumes and what his desired
final output is, we can then begin the
process of a plant design.
A 200t/hr aggregate plant will require a
very different process to a 500t/hr alluvial
diamond processing plant, however using
the various standardised modules, both
have quick, ready-to-run solutions.
Many small mining operations will have
difficulty deciding whether to invest in
a static, mobile or modular plant. How
would you advise these companies?
(FM) It depends on what their
requirement are. Our sales engineers
sit with them to determine exactly what
they want to achieve. For example, if
they intend doing contract work for only
six months to a year, mobile equipment
might be the best option. A quarry
operator, on the other hand, will probably
have to consider a modular solution. But
it ultimately depends on what the client’s
requirements are.
For example, the modular solution
supplied at the King Williams Town quarry
is a semi-mobile plant that meets all the
user’s requirements for minimal operational
costs of a fixed plant, but should the need
arise, it can be moved or easily upgraded
and reconfigured. The ability to re-configure
these modules over time is a huge selling
point. The components are standard and
there are no hidden costs. They might need
to hire a crane, or an electrical contractor
may need to run a few more cables, but as
the modules are all stand-alone, the plant
can easily be reconfigured at the lowest
cost. One of the biggest benefits of the
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