Manufacturers of screening and recycling attachments built for skid steers, excavators, wheel loaders, backhoes and tele- handlers, Flip Screen reports that it is in talks with various companies to expand into the South African quarrying industry.

The screens, which are imported from Australia, were launched in South Africa three years ago, with 22 units sold to date. Flip Screen sales manager Maurice Fouks explains that the market is still slightly slow on the uptake of the company’s products, as companies are not spending. “However, when the market realises the cost savings associated with the Flip Screen, we will register significant growth,” he adds.

The screens are unique because, unlike other products that process materials, screening takes place on site, as processes, such as sorting and digging are able to take place simultaneously, owing to the nature of Flip Screen’s design.

Fouks notes that, as a result, users will notice significant reductions in waste disposal and landfill contributions, as well as reductions in logistics. Users will also see an increase in recycling or the reselling of the screened material. Customers will also notice a reduction in diesel, maintenance and labour costs.

Further, he adds that there are three local companies capable of replacing the screens when they are no longer usable, owing to wear and tear.

Flip Screen consists of high-tensile mesh screens in different sizes, enabling the screening of different materials and different particle sizes, ranging from 3 mm to 150 mm. They can also be changed in less than five minutes without the need for tools or more than one person, explains Fouks.

He adds that the Flip Screen technology is based on a 360º anticlockwise rotation around a horizontal axis, which enables it to move at 22 rpm to 25 rpm. When the screen rotates, the smaller-sized materials filter out through the mesh screen. By rotating the screen clockwise, the larger discard materials are tipped out into a dump truck.

The screens are plugged into the vehicles to which they are attached and the vehicles power the hydraulic motor of the Flip Screen, explains Fouks.

Flip Screen is available in the EX80 and EX130, which attach to excavators and are ideal for the screening of harsh materials associated with mining, construction and stone quarries. The EX80 has a capacity of 0.8 m3 and weighs 2 040 kg; the EX130 has a capacity of 1.3 m3 and weighs 2 460 kg.

The WL180 Flip Screen, which attaches to wheel loaders, are built for maximum productivity in the toughest conditions and can screen a variety of materials associated with construction, demolition, civil works, scrap metal, quarrying, mining and waste. It has a capacity 1.8 m3 and weighs 2 450 kg.

The smaller WL130 Flip Screen is suited to wheel loaders weighing 11 t to 15 t. It can be used to screen soil, gravel, sand, concrete, scrap steel and com- post. It has a capacity of 1.3 m3 and weighs 2 000 kg.

Also included in the product range are a variety of other excavator and wheel loader Flip Screens that can excavate anywhere from 5 t to 50 t, adds Fouks. The Flip Screen range is priced from R105 000 to R1.3-million, the most expensive otion being for a 50 t excavator, which has to be custom built.