Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
Issue link: https://emj.epubxp.com/i/325596
25% of the polyurethane or rubber media, around the world." Naday: More and more focus on the bal- ance between screens and the surrounding equipment is being seen. Attention is need- ed to producing screen media with large open areas, to material blends, and espe- cially to consistently reproduce modular screen media for maintenance planning and consistent availability. Sibley: The industry is constantly on the lookout for methods to improve existing processes and to develop new processes for products. It follows that as these innova- tions are implemented, new screening technologies may be needed, so existing screen media will need to be examined and modified to complement any innovations. Weir Minerals' global product manager for screen and screen media products, O'Bryan, sees a potential trend developing with some customers, where wire screen media could be an option. "Customers are starting to question what kind of media they are using. Some are considering switching from urethane back to wire, increasing efficiency in spite of higher maintenance requirements," he said. "Adding value to plant design and oper- ation will become recognized as a new area of development in the near future. Special knowledge and experience with regard to screen media and its application should be considered in the initial stages of plant design, and acted on positively to ensure that when installed, all the criteria affecting the screen media are taken into account so as to maximize the process efficiency." JUNE 2014 • E&MJ; 77 www.e-mj.com S C R E E N S Derrick Corp. uses its proprietary blends of urethane materials to achieve a panel that is robust, while maintain- ing the highest open area available. In 2013, Derrick produced its finest urethane panel yet at 45 µm (325 mesh). EMJ_pg72-77_EMJ_pg72-77 6/3/14 3:06 PM Page 77