Anaconda conveyor gear at Southern Screenworks
FTR150 feeding a 600hp Barmac crusher plant
Anaconda FTR150
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FTR150 feeding a 600hp Barmac crusher plant
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Anaconda FTR150
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Aggregates processors Southern Screenworks now has a fleet of Anaconda conveyor gear across its three operational sites. What makes these machines so great? Deals on Wheels caught up with Brett Swain to find out.
Southern Screenwork's Brett Swain has a fair bit on these days.
Not only does he have an operation at the busy Yaldhurst quarry in Christchurch (where Deals On Wheels catches up with him today), but the company also works out of Amberley, as well as a recently opened operation at Otaki in the North Island, which will supply crushed aggregate for the M2PP RoNS project.
When it came to materials handling equipment for each operation, Swain went straight to Mobile Screening & Crushing (MSC), purchasing a handful of robust Anaconda tracked feeder bins and conveyors.
"We actually initially looked at fabricating our own bin and conveyor on tracks, but we just couldn't make the build costs work," says Swain.
"Then I saw the Anaconda brand in action at the Hillhead machinery expo in the UK about three years ago and I knew straight away that's what we needed."
Swain says the FTR150 feeder conveyor was the first one he looked at and was sold immediately. Southern Screenworks then purchased a second FTR150 with a vibrating screen on it (more on that soon), along with two stacking conveyors for the concrete sand operations at Amberley and Otaki.
"The feeder bins are fantastic, because they give you so much height and reach, meaning you can plug into any portable plant," continues Swain.
"They're easy to manoeuvre too and they give you a nice high stack."
The FTR150 consists of a track base, feeder, main conveyor and choice of either 74hp (58kW) Deutz TD2011F or JCB 444 Dieselmax power unit, the latter supplying 84hp (63kW). Hopper capacity can be extended as an option to 9m³, or arrives standard with 6m³.
Naturally the conveyor frame can be raised or lowered hydraulically. The conveyor is 1050mm (42") wide, which is the same width as the feeder belt. The entire unit can also be operated via pendant remote control.
"Anaconda really has thought about every aspect of these units and as a result they're very well designed" says MSC's Andy Meikle.
"When Anaconda set out to make the mobile conveyors they really put an emphasis on ease of transport and use. As a result they've been purpose designed to be containerised and shipped in 40-foot containers.
"There's also minimal assembly required, although MSC has technical support staff that can assist with set-up. We also carry a lot of stock, so there's no sitting around waiting if a part is needed in a hurry.
"Companies like Southern Screenworks are operating flat out on multiple fronts and we understand the reliance they have on our gear."
MSC supplies a range of mobile stockpilers, screens and scalpers. They've also just placed a huge 36 ton, 30' x 6' trommel drum with a client in the North Island and offer a range of both static and mobile trommels.
Meikle says that the FTR conveyors Swain and his team are utilising can be specified with differing maximum discharge heights; with the top 6.9m discharge height that Southern Screenworks is running proving the most popular.
Southern Screenwork's second unit at Yaldhurst is another FTR150 with a vibrating screen attached and tasked with feeding into a 600hp Barmac crusher plant, transforming chip and reject material into crusher dust.
"It's crucial that we don't have anything bigger than 40mm going into the Barmac plant as material over that size would chip the tips and wear them down far too quickly," says Swain.
"Sometimes the chip we're processing isn't the right spec, so there are grizzly bars under the vibrating screen as well as 40mm mesh; that way we're guaranteed no matter what we dump into the conveyor, anything too big won't end up in the Barmac."
Swain says screen sizes can vary to suit and switching between screens on the Anaconda is very straight forward. Crusher dust is blended in with concrete sand because there isn't enough natural sand in the Christchurch area; in fact the product is used around the South Island.
Southern Screenworks have been exceptionally pleased with MSC's back-up service; the company uses various support technicians throughout the country, ensuring any customer in any location is covered for both routine servicing and anything more urgent.
"Andy is great to deal with. I have to say he's probably one of the few guys in the equipment industry that always, always, always answers his phone," laughs Swain.
"Overall we're really impressed with our Anaconda gear. You walk it into where you need it, turn the key and you're away," he concludes.
"If you need it somewhere else you pack it down in no time at all, move it and you're off again. When you're flat tack, you can't ask for more than that."
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