Building on its extensive footprint of equipment, Weir works with customers to transition from reactive to prescriptive maintenance approaches to improve plant availability. Grant Potgieter, Strategic Services manager at Weir, explains that a focus on maintenance is not just to retain performance levels but to enhance them wherever possible.
“We have an extensive footprint of equipment around Africa, and focus on adding further value to these assets through the correct maintenance strategy,” says Potgieter. “This means a constant monitoring process, where we can track performance while looking for opportunities to raise our customers’ plant availability for greater productivity.”
Plant monitoring will invariably include a regular wear analysis of components, to monitor whether such wear is in line with expectations, explains Potgieter, as well as to predict future wear and component life. Analysing this wear, however, involves a considerable amount of data from the plant operation itself, such as ore characteristics and throughput.
“Here is it important to remember that each site will have its own variables, so it is not possible to apply a standard template without understanding the specific plant,” he says. “Operating conditions may also change over time, so the assessment requires close collaboration between our team and the plant personnel on the mine.”
This allows a foundation of data to be established, on which to base the relevant corrective action, whether this is through technology, training or other interventions. Such action may be initially prompted by data that Weir picks up in its procurement process.
“Our years of experience in this market, and our careful documentation of component wear life, including historical and process information, allows us to estimate how long a certain component will last under predefined conditions,” he says. “By generating strategic reports from our procurement system, we can see if a customer is ordering components more frequently than they should be – suggesting that there is wear taking place.”
Technicians from Weir can then visit the site and examine the conditions more closely as part of a root cause analysis. This is most effectively done with a multidisciplinary team including process engineers and mechanical experts, to identify first-hand what the challenge is, and how best to address it.
Potgieter highlights the role of accurate measurement of equipment performance and condition, pointing to the fact that this is not always constant when conducted manually. To provide a platform that would overcome human error, Weir offers its own digital platform to harvest data continuously, accurately and objectively.
“It is significant that we developed our own system to do this, as we understand our equipment solutions better than anyone,” he explains. “Our digital platform allows us not only to gather and process the data from our equipment, but also generates recommendations which identify the actual cause of anomalies.”
As an example, if a sensor transmits a certain vibration signature from an item of equipment, a trained Weir Minerals condition monitoring expert will be able to verify system notifications.
While technology could be one part of the solution, he says, good communication is also crucial. To avoid any lack of communication through people working in silos, Weir arranges monthly quality meetings with customers – to ensure that all stakeholders are on board.
“This has proved to be a valuable way of getting all players involved and committed to the solutions that are agreed,” he says. “In this round table environment, everybody can be allocated a clear role, with tasks and responsibilities agreed in a transparent and accountable manner.”
This format also brings in all the necessary disciplines – from electrical and instrumentation through to mechanical and process – to reflect on the proposed solutions and ensure that the one selected is optimal.
“The key performance indicator that is shared by everyone in these meetings is cost optimisation, so this is really our focus with our discussion and solution,” he says. “We look holistically at safety, value and technology to ensure that whatever is spent on an intervention helps to lower the total cost of ownership.”
This often involves considerable change management, says Potgieter, as long term maintenance strategies may require mine personnel to adjust their procedures. Recognised for its expertise in its aftermarket services, Weir is frequently engaged by its customers to work on strategic shifts in their operating practices to optimise aspects such as equipment turnaround time and costs of refurbishment.
“We collaborate with customers as they adjust their own maintenance strategies,” he says. “To optimise the maintenance of rotables, for instance, we are able to provide service exchange units at regular intervals, as the customer removes a unit from service after a predetermined time.”
This avoids the higher cost of running a unit to failure before repairing, and reduces the risk of any unscheduled maintenance for breakdowns. As the OEM, Weir is then also able to refurbish equipment to their original standard, and offer the appropriate warranty.
