Thejo’s intelligent belt monitoring program has been designed to extend conveyor belt life and improve safety and sustainability of material handling plants.
Conveyor belts are widely used across various industries for the transportation of materials and products, and the mining industry is no exception.
These belts play a crucial role in facilitating efficient production and logistics processes. And like any other machinery, they are subject to wear and tear, and operational damages and breakdowns can lead to enormous production losses and safety risks.
With a goal of making material handling more sustainable, Thejo’s intelligent belt monitoring (IBM) program is designed to increase the belt life, improve safety, and enhance efficiency.
IBM uses advanced sensors and analytics to provide real-time insights into the condition of conveyor belts, detect faults, and monitor performance.
But proper conveyor belt monitoring can go beyond the life of the plant, contributing to environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives in several ways.
“Conveyor belt scrap is amongst the highest contributors toward non-biodegradable waste produced by material handling plants,” Thejo told Australian Mining.
“IBM helps minimise belt wastage and promote sustainability efforts, reducing the need to replace conveyor belts frequently by reducing the risk of belt failure. IBM helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote energy conservation by running conveyor belts more efficiently.”
Like any faulty machinery, a conveyor belt that hasn’t been looked after can fail or break. But IBM can continuously monitor the health of the belts, identifying potential issues before they can lead to a catastrophic failure.
“IBM ensures proper functioning of the conveyor belt, reducing the risk of workplace injuries, thus promoting a safe work environment,” Thejo said.
“It ensures efficient operation of the conveyor belt, minimising downtime and allowing workers’ time to be used more productively. Implementation of IBM ensures high-quality production output which benefits all stakeholders.”
Applying IBM also means mines can ensure their processes meet regulatory standards.
“IBM also helps asset tracking by monitoring the location and operation of the conveyor, aiding in the optimisation of production processes in terms of efficiency and cost reduction,” Thejo said.
“Conveyor belt health monitoring systems are essential for ensuring the safety of workers and preventing accidents.”
IBM utilises belt scanners installed on the conveyor to detect anomalies or deviations from normal operation. It typically consists of sensors, data-acquisition devices and software algorithms that analyse data to provide insights into the condition of the belt.
“The scanner works on the logic that any damage on the conveyor belt can be represented as a three-dimensional image,” Thejo said.
“The scanners use laser beams to create a profile of the belt surface and capture the profile image with the help of an optical camera at a very high frequency.
“The system software then combines these profiles to create an image of the belt surface.”
By continuously monitoring the belt, the scanner can detect anomalies like longitudinal belt rips, belt wear, edge damages, side rips, tears, through holes, grooves, splice fatigue or belt misalignment.
On detecting critical damages, IBM immediately raises and alarm and stops the conveyor for repairs. For non-critical damages, an alarm is raised and details are stored in the database so they can be attended to during planned maintenance stoppages.
IBM also features an integrated online wear monitoring module.
“The system generates a wear map of the belt, highlighting the wear profile at various sections of the belt,” Thejo said.
“The wear monitor automatically adapts to new and old belts and provides valuable data that can be used to analyse belt wear patterns, predict belt service life, and make informed decisions about maintenance, replacement or upgradation of conveyor belts.
“It helps in reducing the conveyor belt inventory, allowing purchasers to plan and order belts in a timely manner, and eliminating hasty purchase decisions.”
IBM is suitable for any type of conveyor belt regardless of the reinforcement or the belt grade.
It is a non-contact system without any loops, coils or any other modification to the belt. It is also a fully automatic, online system which does not need any user intervention.
“In a nutshell, IBM helps improve the reliability and lifespan of conveyor belts by enabling early detection of potential issues and facilitating timely maintenance interventions,” Thejo said.
“This can result in cost savings, increased productivity, and enhanced safety in conveyor belt operations.”
This feature appeared in the October 2023 issue of Australian Mining.
