Mine excursion
The chrome at the ACF site occurs very close to surface (the shiny bits in the photo). In
picture is Plant 3, one of the six washing plants operated by the mine.
All mining functions at ACF are
performed in-house, though a number
of suppliers and original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) are represented
on site. These include Multotec, who
supplies th e spirals, trommels, and
screens; Caterpillar and Bell trucks,
dozers, and excavators, which have a
small presence; while all the rigid dump
trucks (RDTs), most excavators, and
some other equipment are Chinese
manufactured. According to Schalk
Engelbrecht, general project manager
at ACF, the Chinese RDTs have
really impressed with their reliability,
robustness, and performance. PLC
refurbishes old equipment while the
mine has five Pilot Crushtec mobile
units with which pre-screening is
done on site where the splits are poor.
Battlemax and Multotec provide the
majority of the slurry pumps.
Mining in the valleys
At each mining site, exploration is done
in grid spacings of either 300m × 300m,
100m × 100m, or 50m × 50m, with
infill pitting of =25m × 25m. This data
indicates the grade, split, and depth,
which determines whether it will be
profitable to mine that specific area.
“It has to be noted that different areas
have different grades, which means
we often have to blend material from
different plants,” continues Richardson.
“Therefore, the information needs to be
accurate. After identifying an area and
agreeing that this is where we are going
to mine, we clear the site for the surveyor
to determine the topography and
demarcate the mining area,” he adds.
Each site has a ‘checker’ who records
the cycle time of the equipment, which
includes the time that trucks wait before
loading at the mining site; how long it
It has to be noted
that different areas
have different
grades, which
means we often
have to blend
material from
different plants.
JULY 2018 MINING MIRROR
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