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  • Pages
  • Editions
01 Cover
02 Welcome Letter / Sections
03 Article & Interview Directory
04 Section 1: Introduction
05 An Evolving Constitutional Landscape
06 Chile Ministry of Mining Interview
07 Consejo Minero Interview
08 APRIMIN Interview
09 Expert Opinion Article: Francisco Acuña, CRU
10 Expert Insights: Chile’s Evolving Sociopolitical Landscape
11 ESG & Renewable Energy
12 ICMM Interview
13 Aggreko Interview
14 Mining Investment Climate
15 Appian Capital Advisory Interview
16 Expert Insights: Attracting Sustainable Investment
17 Section 2: Production & Development
18 Copper Production & Development
19 BHP Interview
20 Antofagasta PLC Interview
21 Freeport McMoRan Interview
22 Teck Resources Limited Interview
23 Amerigo Resources Interview
24 Precious Metals
25 Kinross Interview
26 Rio2 Limited Interview
27 Lithium
28 SQM Interview
29 Albemarle Interview
30 Section 3: Junior Exploration
31 Study-stage Copper Projects
32 Expert Insights: Chile's Junior Exploration Community
33 World Copper Limited Interview
34 Early-stage Opportunities
35 ATEX Resources Interview
36 Torq Resources Interview
37 Pampa Metals Interview
38 VerAI Discoveries Interview
39 Lithium Exploration and Development
40 Lithium Chile Interview
41 Wealth Minerals Interview
42 Monumental Minerals Interview
43 Section 4: Engineering, Construction & Consultancies
44 Engineering & Consultancies
45 Water and the Environment
46 JRI Interview
47 Wood Interview
48 SRK Consulting Interview
49 Construction & Contractors
50 Sigdo Koppers Interview
51 Züblin Strabag Interview
52 Echeverría Izquierdo Interview
53 Thiess Interview
54 Going Underground
55 Master Drilling Interview
56 Robbins Interview
57 INCIMMET Interview
58 Section 5: Equipment & Technology
59 The Evolution of Mining Equipment
60 Scania Interview
61 Expert Insights: OEMs on Sustainability and Innovation
62 Comminution & Material Handling
63 Metso Outotec Interview
64 ME Elecmetal Interview
65 TAKRAF Interview
66 Haver & Boecker Interview
67 Innovation & Technology
68 Hexagon Interview
69 DSI Underground Interview
70 Dingo Interview
71 Pipes, Valves, Components & Wear Protection
72 Hofmann Engineering Interview
73 Expert Insights: The Benefits of AI and Automation
74 Section 6: Services
75 Drilling & Blasting
76 Geotec Boyles Bros Interview
77 Enaex Interview
78 Services
79 SGS Interview
80 Section 7: Sponsored Company Profiles
81 FreePort-McMoRan Profile
82 Rio2 Company Profile
83 Lithium Chile Profile
84 Metso Outotec Company Profile
85 SGS Company Profile
86 Credits

Pipes, Valves, Components & Wear Protection

Sustainability is driving piping and valve innovation

The reduction of diesel emissions was one of the key areas of focus at the 2022 World Copper Conference in Santiago, with Rag Udd, BHP’s president minerals Americas, giving an open invitation to companies that could assist in this area. While electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles are one option, the industry already has alternatives for certain processes, such as pumps.

Ricardo Garib, president of Weir Minerals, discussed some of the environmental benefits of using pumps: “With our GEHO ZPM Piston Diaphragm pumps, instead of having, as an example, 100 trucks a day, transporting concentrate over 300 km or so from the mine to a port, our solution uses several pumps in series which can transport slurry through a pipeline to the port, eliminating the need for truck transport.”

Pedro Urzua, general manager – Chile at Fastpack S.A., commented that as providers of piping and valves for fluid handling and control systems, Fastpack’s priority is to prevent spills or leakage events along customers' pipelines. “There is a percentage of water that is lost in the clients’ processes, sometimes up to 30%, due to improper use or equipment,” he explained, adding that to minimize water loss, Fastpack trains its customers’ operators to help them to get the best performance of the equipment and materials, resulting in greater ROI and more sustainable operations.

“In mining, due to the complexity and harsh environments in which rotating equipment is used in, generally we see very short life cycles. John Crane works with pump manufacturers on solutions including mechanical seals, which can last up to 18 months and do not use water.”

Carlos A. Ramírez, General Manager – Chile & Peru, John Crane

Innovation in the valve segment of the mining industry, through smart flow control solutions, is also enhancing the sustainability of mining operations. Gonzalo Silva, regional manager of Neles Chile SpA, which is now part of Valmet after the merger of Valmet and Neles was completed on April 1st, 2022, explained how the company’s software helps avoid unnecessary stoppages, reduces waste from the process, reduces the replacement of equipment, and avoiding contamination due to excessive consumption of any product.

Silva gave the following example: “To this end, we have solutions called Zero Leakage. These solutions guarantee that everything being controlled by our valves is going to stay within the process and not go out into the atmosphere.”

Equipment component suppliers

Brownfield expansions have been the greatest area of investment in the Chilean mining sector, with a number of greenfield projects on hold until uncertainty surrounding constitutional change and royalty regulations have cleared. This offers opportunities for the companies that supply components to material handling manufacturers and OEMs.

“We have seen great demand for bearings in the comminution stage, where conveyor belts are a critical part of mining operations and they require reliable solutions that can endure all types of contamination along the way, such as water and dust,” said Carlos Lahura, managing director – Andean region at SKF Group.

SKF has invested in new technologies such as the SKF Cooper solution for conveyor pulleys, which utilizes triple barrier technology to reduce the contamination, while at the same time reducing the time needed for maintenance by including a split bearing. Lahura added: “This innovation for this critical application results in significant reductions in downtime and immense savings in plant maintenance.”

Alvaro Palazuelos Gonzales, general manager – South America for Australian equipment supplier Austin, revealed that the company’s most popular solution in the Chilean market has been Austin’s dump truck bodies, having sold more than 600 units since 2019. He went on to discuss the benefits of Austin’s focus on customization, giving the example of the company’s work at Collahuasi: “The TBO (total benefit of ownership) of the dump truck bodies used to be 15,000 hours at Collahuasi, but with Austin’s customization it increased to between 22,500 and 30,000 hours.”

Austin’s La Negra base in Antofagasta became the company’s Latin American headquarters in November 2020 after the decision to close operations in Colombia and Peru and to supply these markets from Chile in the south, or from Wyoming in the north. Palazuelos said the decision behind this restructuring is to focus on the manufacturing of dump truck bodies and buckets – “something that we have a lot of expertise in globally, but have room to grow in South America.”

Another Australian company experiencing growth in South America is Hofmann Engineering, which has a range of mobile mining equipment such as draglines, electric rock shovels, excavators, blast hole drills and wheel loaders, gearbox solutions, and a range of fixed plant equipment such as HPGRs (High Pressure Grinding Rolls). Simão Antunes, Hofmann’s general manager – South America, said that the company has seen great demand for its HPGR components in the region, becoming the first non-OEM company to supply HPGR rollers and change outs to mining operations in Chile and Peru. He gave the example of Cerro Verde in Peru, where Hofmann has the best performing tires at the operation. “This is a result of ongoing work in improving the technical features of our HPGR rollers together with listening to customer feedback to make slight changes on our products to accommodate for better performance. We have been able to reduce manufacturing costs leading to decreased operational costs at Cerro Verde.”

“There is a ratio between costs and the price of a product that equates to a total effective cost. Some of our products might cost more than the competition but last twice as long, which means the total effective cost is less.”

José M. Castillo, Managing Director, Rema Tip Top Chile

Wear protection solutions

Inflation is forecast to be higher than 9% in Chile in 2022, mirroring a global trend of higher costs caused by supply chain delays and geopolitical tension. Demand for mining machinery has remained robust, but guaranteeing timely and affordable supply has been a challenge. In this respect, solutions that can increase the wear life of equipment have become more valuable.

“Rema Tip Top has been known for many years as the Mercedes-Benz of wear protection – our solutions make products last longer – and we have kept this reputation to this day,” stated José Castillo, managing director of Rema Tip Top Chile, who spoke of the ratio between the cost and the price of a product, which equates to a total effective cost. “Some of our products might cost more than the competition but last twice as long, which means the total effective cost is less,” he said, explaining that because of the quality of Rema Tip Top’s products and the fact they are embedded with wear protection solutions, the company does not compete in the cheap rubber market where clients do not necessarily request such high quality.

A Chilean company with a wide range of wear protection solutions is Fourthane, which created products for the quick repair of conveyor belts, in addition to having a range of products for lining mining equipment and components. Eduardo Fajre, Fourthane’s commercial manager, elaborated on the company’s evolution to cater for more varied mining processes, including abrasion and impact resistant products for flotation cells, chutes, agglomerating drums, bucked wheel excavators and pulley linings, among others.

Fajre revealed that Fourthane doubled its international client base in 2021, with customers in North and South America, Europe and Africa. He gave an example of where the company channels its innovation: “One of our focus areas is anti-wear coating for some components and parts used in flotation and grinding plants. For example, we can extend the life of SAG Mill trommels from 30 days to up to 90 days.”

High-Res Tecnología Antidesgaste (High-Res) is another Chilean company dedicated to the development and manufacturing of innovation in the area of anti-wear coatings for abrasion, impact or corrosion. Rodrigo Diaz, general manager of High-Res, spoke of the company’s work with Codelco at Chuquicamata on the first production line for crushing, before when Codelco has been having issues with the process, stopping every 15 days to change the coating in the middle conveyor belt. “Stopping a mining operation for eight or nine hours every 15 days is too much, so we proposed a solution – a High-Res design using rubber, plasma and tungsten carbide – which meant operations stopped only once every three months, rather than every 15 days,” said Diaz, adding that High-Res is now working on the entire line of wear products for Chuquicamata, and in certain areas can improve equipment wear from 20 days of durability to over six months.

Image courtesy of Neles

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Interview: Hofmann Engineering