BMD Constructions Use Metso Crusher to Crush at ex-BHP Steelworks

BMD Constructions, one of the largest private contractors in Australia, won the contract to demolish and clear a major part of the old BHP Steelworks site in Newcastle, NSW. The contract was awarded late 2006 and BMD began the demolition process of all buildings within the allocated area and all the foundations.

Being an ex-steelworks, one can only imagine how much steel existed on this site. The concrete was all heavily reinforced, and as the buildings were being pulled down even more steel was exposed.  Heavy duty nuts and bolts, some 250mm in diameter, were not uncommon.

BMD set about preparing over 20,000 cubic metres of this material for crushing, and in January of 2007, Screenmasters Australia placed an LT1213S Track Mounted Impact Crusher on site to process this material to 100% passing 20mm. Some would ask “why not place a Jaw and Cone on site, and then a screen?” The answer being, the material was simply too heavily contaminated. A Jaw crusher would have been breaking toggle plates on a regular basis and, if applicable, burning out clutches and V belts “it just wasn’t an option” says Mick Lagan, Director of Screenmasters Australia.

Terry Waterson, General Manager, NSW for BMD Constructions had this to say about the project:

“I would like to acknowledge the outstanding contribution by Screenmasters to the above project. Conversion of the 20,000 cubic metres of concrete from demolition of the steelworks site foundations to a 20mm road base, fully conforming to RTA specifications, was always going to be challenging. The high concentrations of cast iron, steel slag and heavy reinforcement throughout the demolition material, combined with the 600mm plus sizing of the concrete would generally dictate a multi-stage processing operation combined with possible blending to attain the tight grading specification required.

The use of the Nordberg LT1213S integrated Impact Crusher and Screening Plant achieved this feat with a single pass, with a single mobile machine, and at a consistently high production rate.

I do not know of any other crushing/screening plant that could have achieved this as well as surviving the amount of large steel and cast iron throughput. It is a credit to the resourcefulness of the team and the robustness and capability of the LT1213S that the project was completed on time, on budget, and with a fully conforming product despite the conditions that should have dictated otherwise.”

It is worth noting that throughout this project not one set of blow bars were broken, despite the fact that the impactor was given 600mm feed material and produced 100% passing 20mm. “It is a testimony to the Metso crushers, that an Impactor could do such a job. I know of no other mobile crusher in Australia that could have completed the task” says Mick Lagan, “people ask me all the time ‘how can this machine perform under these sort of stresses?’ and the answer is simple, the IC500PLC. This PLC allows the machine to communicate with itself exchanging parameters such as, crusher pressure, feeder speed, rotor speed, screen box pressures etc. on a second by second basis. The operator can see this on a screen and, if necessary, adjust any of the settings at the push of a button. This guarantees that the machine performs 100% at all times, all the operator has to do is supply constant feed to the feeder and the PLC will do the rest, there aren’t too many crushers thinking for you at all times.”

For more information contact Screenmasters Australia on 02 6332 4722 or info@screenmasters.com.au.