Case Study: Chromium carbide wear plates reduce costs by up 525%

Using chromium carbide wear plates in a crusher chute saw a 525 per cent increase in wear life and an annual saving of $16,459 per square metre in a high wear area at a West Australian gold mine.

The savings, which were calculated during a product trial analysis, do not include additional savings from reduced downtime and maintenance costs and refer to reduced replacement costs.

The analysis was run by the mine’s maintenance superintendent after a particularly high wear area in a crusher chute required wear plates to be replaced around every eight weeks.

The team were constantly getting caught out, with unplanned maintenance causing safety and productivity challenges.

The mine’s superintendent was initially not convinced that using chromium wear plates would be successful, as in his experience as a boilermaker, they did not stack up.

So he was pleasantly surprised when he saw the results of the trial.

Trial results*:

In the specific high wear area of the crusher chute, they saw a 525 per cent increase in wear plate life – from eight weeks to 42 weeks – and a cost saving of $32,919 per year across the 12 wear plates. Each plate was 300mm by 300mm giving a total of two square metres for the trial.

The extended wear life was a result of Cutting Edges’ chromium carbide and tungsten carbide wear plates that use an exclusive weld pattern which delivers better wear characteristics.

Upon seeing the results, the superintendent immediately rolled out a larger trial in multiple other high wear areas. These also delivered lifespan extensions, from six months to 12 months.

Old replacement scheduleNew Cutting Edges replacement schedule
Crusher Chute (Initial Trial)8 weeks42 weeks
Feeder 1 vibrating chute6 Months12 to 18 months
Feeder 2 screen house6 Months12 to 18 months
Feeders 3,4,56 Months12 to 18 months
Plate feeder (52 plates)6 Months12 to 18 months

*While individual results will vary depending on the material type, flow and chute design, on average Cutting Edges’ crusher chute plates will last at least twice as long as a hardened steel wear plate.

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Return on investment (ROI):

Although the initial cost of Cutting Edges chromium carbide wear plates are greater than a hardened steel wear plate, their significantly longer lifespan more than covers these initial costs.

And with extended wear life comes a variety of other benefits such as improved productivity and safety.

Unplanned breakdowns are expensive, disruptive and carry greater safety risks due to shutdown procedures not being planned.

More predictable change-out intervals enable better maintenance and shutdown planning strategies along with reduced labour and machine hire costs.

These are some of the many benefits that add up to overcome the initial extra expense and customers soon realise it presents a great return on investment.

For the specific costing model and further details of this particular trial, to conduct your own trial, or learn more about Cutting Edges’ exclusive chromium carbide welding model, contact us to find out more.

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