Hydraulic engineering firm BMG Hydraulics reports that in October it completed the overhaul of an entire mill relining machine, including the mechanical elements, the hydraulic system and components of the electrical system. BMG Hydraulics completed and commissioned the maintenance project, in Johannesburg, in less than seven weeks.

“The mill relining machine, which is used at a local gold mine, would normally be sent to Australia to be overhauled, which takes over six months,” says BMG Hydraulics projects and engineering manager Dustin Pereira.

“All components that needed to be replaced were supplied by BMG Hydraulics, which means our customer has easy access to specialist services and quality spares locally,” states Pereira.

He explains that the mill relining machines are designed to replace mill liners faster, safer and more reliably than the outdated, dangerous and largely inefficient methods for removing and inserting liners, including using truck-mounted and overhead cranes, as well as chains, pulleys and sheer physical worker strength,” says Pereira.

Further, he highlights that the efficiency of modern mill relining machines has resulted in a global trend for larger grinding mills and thus larger mill shell liners, which are easy to manoeuvre, with no limitation on the weight and sizes of the liners.

Mill shell liners protect grinding mill shells and enhance the movement of the charge for optimum throughput and grinding performance of materials.

In modern environments, liners up to 7 250 kg can be manoeuvred precisely into place, with the seven- or eight- axis movement of a mill relining machine.

“The grinding process is also significantly more efficient. In the past, liner profiles were designed for liner life, rather than productivity, owing to the extended time period it took to complete each liner overhaul,” explains Pereira.

BMG’s service to the hydraulics sector includes a mobile workshop fitted with tools, equipment and high-quality branded spares to be able to efficiently perform functions like troubleshooting, on-site repairs, installations, com- missioning and system flushing. This service also encompasses on-site fluid analysis and hose and pipe assembly.

BMG Hydraulics, part of BMG – Bearing Man Group –offers the mining sector a comprehensive service for hydraulic systems that combines quality branded components, hydraulic engineering and contamination control, as well as a test and repair service, to ensure optimum performance and extended service life.

“The company’s solutions-driven approach to engineering in mining encompasses a project management and consulting facility that integrates different technologies, from hydraulics and pneumatics, to electronics and information technology,” concludes Pereira.