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UltraTuff in Bauxite Mining: Increasing Belt Life by 140%

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  • Location
    Pilbra, Australia
  • Industry
    Iron Ore Mining
  • Solution
    Full Suite of Equipment for Belt install
  • Year
    2024

The Challenge

In 2018, the client began operations at the mine as part of a major expansion, significantly increasing production capacity to approximately 35 million tonnes of bauxite per year.

Located beneath the crusher conveyor feed onto the process plant, a conveyor belt system encountered challenges from the outset, primarily due to the abrasive nature of the environment and the newly developed mining infrastructure. The crude ore conveyor, operating at a run rate of 5,400tph, experienced splice wear issues on the return cover due to spillage.

These issues were further aggravated by the high volume of bauxite processed through the plant, necessitating a more robust belt solution. During the investigation process the client changed to an alternate belt supplier. However, the new belting exhibited premature wear, with lifespans of only 5 to 8 months. Each belt replacement resulted in at least three shifts of downtime (approximately 36 hours), impacting overall operations.

The Solution

  • To address the premature belt failures, the client requested Fenner Conveyors quote the original belt specification, but with increased bottom thickness to compensate for the splice issues on the return cover. However, doing this would require an increase in energy required to run the conveyor system due to the additional weight in the bottom cover.
  • After reviewing prior belt performance and application specifications, Fenner Conveyors instead proposed a trial of its latest abrasion-resistance compound, UltraTuff.
  • The client approved the trial and the UltraTuff belt was installed in January 2024.
  • Throughout the trial, belt thickness testing was performed by an independent third-party.
  • After 12 months in-service, the UltraTuff belt unfortunately had to be taken off due to a mechanical rip. At this time, the belt had less than 1mm wear.

The Results

  • Significantly improved abrasion resistance with less than 1mm wear on the covers after 12 months of operation. As a result, time between belt change outs was extended, equating to an increase in belt life of up to 140%. With only 1mm of wear at the time of change-out, belt life was expected to be significantly more if not for the mechanical tear.
  • During the trial, belt failure was reduced increasing overall up-time and throughput for the mine. By reducing annual down-time required to complete belt change-outs from as much as 86.4 hours to 36 hours, down-time was reduced by up to 58% (50.4 hours).
  • Zero quality or splice issues were reported during the UltraTuff belt’s time in-service, including on the return cover where splice issues were originally occurring.
  • By implementing the UltraTuff solution, Fenner Conveyors helped the client avoid increasing the bottom cover thickness and therefore avoid unnecessary costs associated with additional power draw.
  • Overall, UltraTuff supported the client to reduce the total cost-of-ownership associated with its conveyor belt assets, when compared to the original system specification, as well as that from the alternative supplier.
  • The client was extremely satisfied with the performance of the UltraTuff belt, and had planned to roll-out across crude ore systems on-site. Unfortunately the subsequent belt supply contract was awarded to the alternate supplier due to pricing, despite Fenner Conveyors’ performance-driven recommendation.