Thickeners are a ubiquitous feature at minerals processing facilities and have been for many decades. In an industry where the lifetime of major equipment is often measured in decades, they are also particularly long lived.
FLS – whose association with thickeners goes back more than a century via the Dorr-Oliver and EIMCO brands which it acquired in 2007 – has many systems still operating at Australian mines that were installed in the 1960s, while a couple date back as far as the 1930s and 1940s.
In addition to its role in the production of target minerals, thickeners play an important part in mine water management and recycling: areas of focus in today’s mining industry where sustainability is becoming an ever more pressing day-to-day concern.
This is particularly true of mines in regions of high-water stress, which is how the World Resources Institute categorises most of Australia.
Thickener technology is constantly evolving. Refurbishing and retrofitting therefore helps to ensure the ongoing integrity, reliability and productivity of existing machinery with the latest advances in thickener technology, said David Williams Head of mining, FLS Australia.
With thickeners infrequently replaced, improving the performance of existing installations is key to meeting the industry’s changing sustainability and performance goals, according to FLS Australia’s head of mining David Williams.
“At FLS, we combine years of engineering expertise to offer a complete service package – from equipment and process evaluation to tailored upgrades, including complete new mechanisms, feed systems and new drives.”
FLS’s experience and technology range is comprehensive, including the world’s largest and highest-capacity bridge and column-mounted thickeners.
Not keen to rest on its laurels, however, the company is always looking forward. Its research and development model integrates the evaluation of new technologies and concepts with continuous review and update of existing products.
"Our efforts focus on the development of solutions that combine high performance, reliability and availability with minimal environmental impact, in line with our MissionZero goal to reduce the water use and footprint of mining operations.", said David Williams.
