Sandvik’s boundary-pushing solutions are inspiring a more efficient mineral processing industry.
The mining sector has been a cornerstone of the world’s development for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.
As the world’s population continues to grow and we move towards carbon neutrality, society’s need for minerals, especially those critical to decarbonisation, is growing rapidly.
The mining industry is highly energy intensive. According to Sandvik, the industry’s direct consumption represents between six and seven per cent of the world’s total energy usage. Almost half of this energy is consumed in the comminution process – crushing, screening, feeding and milling.
The combination of a growing demand for minerals and falling ore grades is driving the industry to process more and more rock to produce the minerals that the world needs. Considering the energy consumed in comminution and the increasing energy per tonne of final product produced, the need for process efficiency has never been more important.
Innovative technology
Sandvik leverages digitalisation as a cornerstone of its innovation and cutting-edge technologies, which can significantly enhance the efficiency and sustainability of mineral processing operations.
“Not only is our latest equipment easy to operate, manage, maintain and service, but it also contributes to our industry’s need to reduce its environmental impact,” Sandvik Rock Processing Solutions president Richard Harris said.
“Through our close partnerships with customers and our unwavering focus on innovation, we are shaping a future where rock processing is eco-efficient, safe, productive and sustainable.”
Advanced crushing solutions
According to Sandvik experts, about 40 per cent of the mining industry’s total energy consumption can be attributed to the grinding process.
Image: Sandvik
Crushing is up to 10 times more energy efficient than conventional grinding, which means that by crushing more and providing a finer feed to the milling circuit, significant efficiency gains can be made in the overall comminution process.
The Sandvik 800i cone crusher series reflects the company’s commitment to the continuous evolution of design, materials and technology.
The latest models, integrated with the new ACS-c 5 automation system, combine robust mechanical design with powerful, user-friendly automation, supporting diverse operational needs.
These machines can be tuned to produce a very fine product, significantly reducing the load on the downstream grinding process.
Leading gold producer Gold Fields was able to take advantage of this with its new crushing and screening plant at the Agnew gold mine in Western Australia.
According to Gold Fields senior management, the finer feed from their new crushing and screening circuit has improved downstream mill performance, increasing the maximum throughput rate from 155 to 170 tonnes per hour (tph).
A comminution crushing and grinding survey demonstrated that the new circuit is around 18 per cent more energy efficient than the previous installation.
Maximising screening efficiency
Screening also plays a critical role in mineral processing. Operating in extremely harsh environments, vibrating screens and feeders accelerate large loads of highly abrasive materials with forces of up to 5G.
Thanks to recent acquisitions, Sandvik now offers an expanded line-up of heavy-duty vibrating screens, feeders and screening media which are well-adapted to the world’s toughest mineral processing applications, with machines capable of throughputs up to 8000tph.
Optimal screening efficiency is subject to pairing the right machine with the right screening media.
Choosing the best time to replace screening media is also critical to process efficiency – replacing too early can be a waste of money but waiting too long can lead to process inefficiencies.
The worst-case scenario is panel failure which can catastrophically impact operational efficiency. Screening media maintenance and replacing screening media at just the right time has always come down to the experience and judgement of plant maintenance personnel – something of a ‘dark art’.
Leading digitisation
Sandvik has recently launched DeckMapp, a groundbreaking new digital platform for screen deck maintenance. The company believes that this highly innovative, cloud-based software solution is set to transform screen deck maintenance and drive substantial improvements in the efficiency and operational performance of mineral processing plants.
Accessible via laptop, tablet or mobile phone, DeckMapp captures, stores and shares real-time data to present a reliable, single source of truth for all activities within the screen media lifecycle.
According to Matt Cutbush, Sandvik Rock Processing Solutions’ digital solutions product manager, DeckMapp provides screening teams with comprehensive tools to view deck history, share deck plans, visualise panel wear patterns and capture feedback, as well as access maintenance plans and activity reports.
Image: Sandvik
“By guiding operators through maintenance updates and wear assessments, DeckMapp ensures consistent data entry across the board, resulting in robust, reliable historical wear data for every screen in your operation,” Cutbush said.
“DeckMapp enhances data quality and formalises maintenance processes, thereby eliminating information inconsistencies that can adversely affect production and profitability due to rework and extended task durations.
“DeckMapp delivers real-time updates to ensure all team members are aligned, further reducing the risk of miscommunication and operational inefficiencies.”
A key feature of DeckMapp is the optional add-on WearApp, an innovative wear assessment system powered by artificial intelligence.
Users simply capture images of worn screening media panels with a smartphone or a tablet. WearApp then applies artificial intelligence (AI) to automatically assess each aperture and calculates the amount of wear, panel efficiency and remaining wear life.
Cutbush said this revolutionary application not only saves substantial time but also delivers far greater accuracy over traditional manual wear assessment methods.
With DeckMapp and WearApp, plant operators can leverage data-driven insights to make smarter, more efficient maintenance decisions, and significantly reduce cost overruns associated with screen deck maintenance.
According to Cutbush, these enhanced capabilities allow processing plant operators to make more informed decisions regarding their screening media maintenance strategies, such as determining optimal replacement times based on actual open area rather than individual aperture wear.
The Sandvik range of screens and feeders has been enhanced by a new condition monitoring system called ACS-s, which allows operators to keep an eye on the condition of their machines 24–7.
Image: Sandvik
Errors in maintenance and operations can lead to component damage. Early detection and diagnosis is vital in the prevention of catastrophic machine failure and protracted plant downtime.
ACS-s is designed to alert plant personnel to small problems before they can become big ones, which is critical to maximising plant uptime and efficiency.
Connected solutions for operational excellence
ACS-c 5 and ACS-s can be seamlessly integrated with SAM by Sandvik, a cloud-based digital assistant designed to support operational excellence in crushing and screening plants.
SAM captures data from all connected Sandvik equipment, offering a comprehensive overview of the entire operation. Plant operators can monitor equipment status, communicate across teams, receive alerts and notifications, and proactively order spare parts, all from one, centralised platform.
Commitment to environmental responsibility
Sandvik’s solutions are engineered to reduce energy consumption, minimise waste and optimise operational efficiency, assisting companies to improve their environmental footprint while delivering outstanding performance.
This feature appeared in the April 2025 issue of Australian Mining.