Expansion at Weir’s Alrode manufacturing facility south of Johannesburg, South Africa, will build production capacity for its vibrating screen ranges launched last year.
According to JD Singleton, Weir’s Comminution Director for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), the positive market response to the company’s ENDURON® Elite and ENDURON Orbital screen ranges has required the investment in expansion.
“This strategic investment at Alrode will make this plant a major player in global screen production,” Singleton says. “It is also an important step in our journey over the past six years to develop large format ENDURON Elite range of screens for the mining market.”
Bridget Ledwaba, Weir’s Managing Director for Africa, says the expansion of the Alrode plant also shows Weir’s confidence in South Africa and its potential, and the company’s commitment to the country’s industrialisation. She emphasises that the investment will be good for job creation in the local economy and will benefit the fiscus through the value it will add to the general economy.
These ENDURON Elite double-deck banana screens – weighing up to 50 ts – are remarkable for both their production performance and their energy efficiency, according to Singleton. The design includes the world’s largest exciters, demonstrating the unmatched technology underpinning the range.
“The exciter design allows these large machines to be driven by just two exciters, compared to the three exciters required by other screening OEMs,” he explains. “The energy saving benefits are most pronounced when the screens are applied in a closed circuit our market-leading ENDURON high pressure grinding rolls (HPGRs).”
He says the exciters can be run at 16 Hz while maintaining safe operating temperatures, due to the inclusion of a casing design which includes fluid flow analysis and passive heat rejection. An advanced sealing system with O-ring and gasket ensures a superior seal over a wide range of operating conditions.
Customers in West Africa are already running two of the ENDURON Elite screens, which measure 4,3 m by 9,7 m and operate in a circuit with ENDURON HPGRs. A large order for 12 of the ENDURON Elite screens is also being prepared at Alrode for Barrick Gold Corporation’s Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan – part of a £53 million ($72 million) contract to Weir for fine grinding, separation and tailings solutions.
The other successful screen launch by Weir last year was its ENDURON Orbital range – a circular motion screen for smaller tonnage mining. With typical production rates of up to about 400-500 t/h, this range is also suitable for application in the aggregate and sand segments. These exciter-driven screens feature a bolted design, says Singleton, making them efficient and easy to maintain.
“They complement the ENDURON Elite range, and have found a strong market among junior miners operating across Africa,” Singleton says. “The all-bolted construction improves reliability by eliminating welding in high stress areas, allowing these screens to deliver exceptional performance and service life.”
Weir has also introduced its own in-house ENDURON screen panels and is seeing rapid take-up by customers who operate its vibrating screens. Singleton highlights that the panel technology leverages Weir’s extensive institutional knowledge in wear materials, and its wide footprint allows customers a convenient sourcing option from Weir service centres.
