The Challenge

Queensland Alumina LTD (QAL) Gladstone is one of the largest alumina refineries in Australia, located in Gladstone, Queensland.

The site’s digestor mill delivers bauxite from an incline weigh feeder conveyor. Bauxite is fed to the weigh feeder by releasing product from storage bins known as day bins. Weigh feeders have conveyor centre distances as little as 4115mm in length which means conveyor belt passes wear points far more frequently than conveyors of a longer distance.

The standard belting in-use sustained accelerated wear resulting in an end-of-life of 6 to 8 months on average. Fenner Conveyors was engaged with the challenge of reviewing performance and recommending a suitable conveyor belt compound that could extend belt life and withstand high abrasion resistance.

Key Benefits

• Tripled Belt Life
• 24+ Hours Saved of Downtime and Lost Production
• Reduced Conveyor Change-out Costs by 2/3
• Improved Reliability

The Solution

• With consideration to the moderate hardness and abrasion properties of the bauxite and the short conveyor centers. Fenner Conveyors recommended a belt with high abrasion resistance through its UltraTuff compound.
• The Australian-made custom conveyor belt provided QAL with a decreased lead time and better visibility of the belt’s production progress.
• The UltraTuff conveyor belt was installed in December 2022 and monitored by the Fenner Conveyors’ Gladstone service centre.

The Results

• Since upgrading to the UltraTuff covers, the site has avoided approximately $10,000 in belt change-out costs incurred during an 18-month period with the previous belt.
• On top of this, the 7W weigh feeder had a production availability rate of 100% during these 18 months.
• Due to the abrasion resistant covers, the belt sustained damage from tramp metal that was released from the day bins, jamming in the transfer chute causing substantial groove damage. Although the belt was significantly damaged it continued to convey bauxite for another 8 months. A sample of the belt that was not damaged was returned to Fenner Conveyors for cover thickness test analysis. There was still 2.2mm of cover available indicating that over the 18-month period only 2.8mm was worn. It’s clear that without the damage sustained from the release of tramp metal, a further 6 months belt could have been achieved further reducing total belt life costs and increased production availability. The UltraTuff conveyor belt had the potential to reach 4 times the belt life of the original spec.
• Overall, belt life has been extended from an average of 6 to 8 months to 18 months. This equates to 3x longer belt life and 2/3 reduction in change-out costs.
• As a result of the value delivered, Fenner Conveyors was invited to receive the Bravo Award for environmental innovation.