A holistic solution for drives and mate-rials handling systems in the mining industry will provide customised systems and maintenance services specifically suited to the requirements of each mine and plant, says industrial drives and gear major SEW-Eurodrive South Africa MD Ute Schoeman.

“Maxolution is a new business unit which offers customers customised solutions based on their particular application requirements. Customers can approach SEW-Eurodrive with their requirements and the mechatronic engineering Maxolution team will develop a bespoke solution.”

The solution is based on international trends, and includes technical experts and local original-equipment manufacturers to design, implement and test systems at each site. Local partners also provide maintenance support.

The solution aims to support investment decisions by providing proven references of successful implementations.

To reduce the potential for pilfering in the minerals and mining industries, handling by employees should be limited with higher-value commodities, which is where Maxolution can add considerable value.

“The trend in the industrial environment is a move away from conveyor belts and instead to have an item or station that moves itself. This technology comprises wireless communi-cation and inductive power transfer systems instead of having cable trays or busbars. SEW-Eurodrive uses its Movitrans contactless energy transfer system for this puspose.

“Here, electrical energy is transferred from a fixed conductor to one or more mobile points, without contact. Instead, the electromagnetic connection is made via an air gap and is maintenance free,” Schoeman explains.

Further, an automatic guided vehicle (AGV) uses inductive power supply in the form of transfer cables embedded into the floor. One of these is a leakage cable, which provides the communications. The AGV features a built-in safety feature that slows it down when employees are near its path.

Additional functionality can be added to the system in the form of an integrated hoist. Owing to the positioning benefits, the user can change station layouts for different production runs. Each solution is custom-designed, which enables the end-user to determine specific long-term needs, such as gradual migration to new systems or modular designs that can be scaled to match the user’s strategic plans.

“Partnering with the end-user to enable higher levels of customisation aims to ensure that the significant research and development conducted by SEW-Eurodrive and proven industrial uses of technologies can be used to augment the efficiency of the mining industry and increase its confidence to invest in new technologies.”

The international team will also provide advice, based on the proven use of the solu-tions, to reduce the variety and amount of stock and spare parts end-users and their sup-pliers require to ensure efficient supply chains.

Mining companies can approach SEW-Eurodrive at the Electra Mining conference, to be held from September 15 to 19 in the Nasrec convention centre, in Johannesburg. Guests can obtain more information on Maxolution and speak to its experts about their specific challenges or requirements.

“While new technologies are promising, end-users require customisation and extensive experience regarding implementation to improve their confidence adopting and implementing new technologies,” concludes Schoeman.