Pilot Crushtec International has commissioned a greenfields aggregate plant for a longstanding customer in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The 350 tonnes per hour (tph) plant – with a peak design capacity of 440 tph to account for peaks and troughs in day-to-day production – represents the largest ever Pilot Modular aggregate production plant installation to date.
Having operated a Pilot Modular plant for a long time, a major aggregates producer in the DRC looked no further than Pilot Crushtec when it was time to invest in another greenfields plant to meet the rising demand for aggregates in the DRC. This comes on the back of ongoing private mine expansion projects, coupled with government infrastructure development projects aimed at closing the infrastructure gap in the country.
From the onset, says Wayne Warren, sales manager Africa at Pilot Crushtec, the customer was well aware of the benefits of the Pilot Modular solution, ranging from lower capital and operational costs compared with bespoke plants to quick lead times and flexibility to operational changes. Pilot Modular systems are readily available modules that can be deployed to site rapidly and operational within a short space of time.
“To provide context, this particular plant was delivered within about four-and-a-half months of its order, while the erection, assembly and commissioning took a further three months, highlighting the short lead times for which the Pilot Modular concept is renowned,” says Warren.
For this plant, says Warren, Pilot Crushtec did not ‘reinvent the wheel’; the company largely used standard proven off-the-shelf products from its Pilot Modular range. The primary crusher is a Metso C120 jaw crusher, which takes a maximum feed size of 700 mm. From the jaw, material goes into the TKG 16 modular scalping screen. Incorporating the TKG 16 modular scalping screen allows for maximising the efficiency of the secondary crusher’s capacity by taking out fines just after the jaw crusher, especially considering that the environment is notorious for having a lot of fine material in the feed.
Oversize material (plus 90 mm) from the TKG 16 modular scalping screen is sent directly to the secondary cone crusher, a Metso HP300, a high capacity machine known for not only its ability to take large feed sizes but also its large throw which provides for a decent material shape at the secondary stage of crushing.
“Making use of Metso HP cone crushers and correct reduction ratios ensures that the end product has the best possible shape without having to deploy a vertical shaft impact (VSI) crusher,” says Warren.
From the HP300, material is sent to a twin surge hopper comprising two Pilot Modular MFH25 feed hoppers. From here, material is fed onto two separate screens, the Pilot Modular Metso CVB2060-3M units, where fines are further removed. Any oversize material is recirculated to two Metso HP200 cone crushers via two MFH25 surge hoppers located on either side of the two screens. From the HP200 crushers, material is conveyed back to the two screens for final screening, where four product sizes – 0-6 mm, 6-10 mm, 10-15 mm and 15-25 mm – are stockpiled.
While both delivery and commissioning were on time, the logistical process of transporting such a large plant to the DRC was not without its challenges. “The biggest hurdle was that the plant constituted a lot of equipment – it is the biggest we have ever done. We therefore had to split the delivery into three shipments comprising between 10 to 12 trucks per shipment to free up space in our workshop,” explains Warren.
In addition, transporting the plant to site came with its fair share of challenges, especially the border-related delays. Making use of two transporters with knowledge of this challenging logistical environment was helpful. “Cross-border shipments to the DRC are also not new to Pilot Crushtec. We have experienced personnel to manage this, while the customer helped with pre-clearance and all the other necessary paperwork in the DRC. Close collaboration between Pilot Crushtec, the customer and the transporters was key to smooth delivery in the face of several challenges,” he says.
In such an environment where logistics can be a nightmare, the customer keeps a sizeable inventory of most critical wear and spare parts on site to avoid possible production disruptions. With most of the equipment on the new plant very similar to what is on the customer’s existing plant, parts commonality increases operational flexibility and reduces procurement and logistical costs for the customer.
“This project is testimony that the Pilot Modular concept works well for the African environment where large infrastructure projects are on the go and suppliers need their crushing and screening solutions as a matter of urgency. The Pilot Modular solution is quick to deploy and set up, while it does not need a whole lot of civil works and extensive infrastructure to set up,” concludes Francois Marais, Sales and Marketing Director at Pilot Crushtec.
