Engineering

Technical Evaluation of Vendor Bids

Includes testwork to finalize recommended mill sizes and compares this with vendor bids. Potential throughput in mills bid by vendors and any possible issues can also be evaluated.

Grinding Mill / Circuit Design

Using patented SAGDesign technology ensures availability of design calculations for review. Activities include:

• Set up and supervise the required sampling and testing programs.
• Participate in the selection of the location for new drill holes to generate drill core for samples. (If required).
• Field sampling of drill core, headings, feed belts and stockpiles give samples for grinding tests. Each sample needs to be 15 kg or more, and not finer than 80% passing 19 mm.
• Analyse results to determine the hardness variability function for the ore body.
• Choose the total power level required to achieve design throughput.
• Select flow sheet, grinding mills, aspect ratios, diameters, lengths and motor kW, report calculations, mill specifications and recommendations for expansion (if applicable).
• When requested, provide equipment specifications for all equipment items in a commercial grinding circuit including the SAG mill(s), ball mill(s), trommels, screen(s), cyclones, slurry pumps, sump pumps and any other required ancillary equipment.

Concentrator Design

Includes all process design matters required to build a concentrator for base metals, gold, silver, iron ore, and industrial minerals.

• Test work supervision: grinding, flotation, gravity, POX, heap leaching and dewatering.
• Supervise feasibility studies and final design engineering as a client representative.
• Flow sheet design, mass and flow balances, and process equipment selection.

Plant Start-ups

Services include all areas pertaining to the processing of precious metals, base metals and industrial minerals, in a new plant. These include:

• Introduce fast track procedure to achieve full tonnage, design product quality and expected recovery for grinding and metallurgical processes.
• Remove bottlenecks with mechanical and piping modifications if necessary.
• Operator training.
• Creation of mill operating reports.
• Commissioning support.

Throughput Forecasting

Using SVT and BVT (Variability Testing) results along with typical plant operating parameters, future throughput of the operating plant can be predicted by time or by ore zone.