Metso clear winner in slurry pump showdown

This is exactly what mine manager Chris Burns has been doing since 2007 at the Higginsville Mine just west of Kalgoorlie.
At this contract gold processing site it is all about running efficiently and without unscheduled downtime to ensure the best result for the company’s valued customers. Maximum up-time is vital, as is the importance of keeping power consumption costs down. Lately, a Metso HH200 pump has been out-performing against its leading brand competition with ease.
The Metso and another leading brand pump are situated alongside each other as duty/standby in the ball mill circuit.
When discussing the comparison Chris Burns said the Metso pump has “approximately 60 per cent better service life” (than the other).
Burns goes on to say that the Metso pump, “commenced service in July 2007 and ran 11 months before the impeller was changed”.
He said the site is, “treating ore that is top 2 per cent in hardness in the world”. Given this fact, the durability of the Metso impeller is quite startling.
Furthermore Burns said, “the Metso pump has an approximate 8 to 11 per cent greater energy efficiency than the standby pump”.
The installation of the Metso pump was facilitated by the Perth-based Metso pumps product manager Chris Wyper. Metso were adamant that its product could perform well in these tough conditions and Wyper worked closely with the customer to ensure smooth commissioning and close follow-up.
Wyper said, “For us, this result is confirmation of our belief that the Metso pump is technically, a more capable and energy-efficient pump than its competition.
“Our specialised team prides itself on its ability to work closely with the customer through commissioning and beyond to ensure satisfactory results throughout the life of the equipment.
“We are currently in a stage of the cycle where productivity is paramount (second only to safety) in gold production. This makes ease and speed of maintenance more important than ever before. For this reason, the sliding base maintenance system, another added feature of the Metso pump, is particularly important.”
The sliding base consists of a static sub base which is bolted to the concrete and which holds the pump casing. The rotating element, electric motor and drive are mounted on a separate sled which is able to slide relative to the sub base. The sled is guided on milled slots underneath the base, rather than fabricated rails which could cause snaking of the sled.
One hydraulic cylinder on each side of the base connects the sled to the base. These are actuated via a hand pump and valve which is fixed to the based.
Stainless steel kick plates are fitted over the hydraulic cylinders to prevent damage from operators standing on them.
The valve for the hydraulic circuit is fixed underneath the motor stool. The piping terminates in quick release couplings which terminate in male/female connections to ensure that the polarity cannot be accidentally reversed.
The sliding base is much safer than alternative methods of maintenance as the large assemblies are never lifted off the ground, it is only individual components that need to be lifted for replacement.
Burns commented that the Metso unit is “much easier for the guys to maintain.” He said, “Because of the difficulty of the competitor’s system it is hard to keep it running as efficiently. And the competitor has a two to four times greater service requirement depending on ore hardness”.

For more information on the Metso slurry pump range, contact Chris Wyper on tel: +61 (0)8 9420 5579 or email: chris.wyper@metso.com