KEW Foundries has supplied sheave wheels for a number of TWP Mining projects, including the Konkola No. 4 shaft project in Zambia, and the Impala Platinum No. 20 shaft project where the multi-disciplinary consulting engineering firm was the EPCM contractor.
In the most recent project, KEW Foundries won the contract to supply sheave wheels to Konkola Copper Mines PLC, to be used on the Konkola No. 4 shaft. The contract, awarded in August 2009, involves the design, manufacture and supply of five sheave wheels for the deepest new shaft sinking project being conducted in Zambia. The contract forms part of an intensive capital upgrade of the mine, known as the Konkola Deep Mining Project (KDMP).
“The sheave wheels will be installed in No. 4 shaft’s eighty one metre high headgear and will service the mines Blair Multi-rope winder,” says Jaime Goncalves, Technical Director, KEW Foundries. The sheave wheels, each with a diameter of 4877 millimetres, will be used to hoist materials from depths of 1430 metres. The supplied sheave wheels will facilitate hoisting speeds of eighteen metres per second, with a payload of twenty six tons.
KEW Foundries received operational parameters from the KDMP project managers for the required sheave wheels detailed in specifications drafted by the team at TWP. “Once we had received the parameters, our design team was able to design a solution which is not only cost-effective, but will also withstand the harsh operating conditions present on the mine. Our sheave wheel solutions feature a cast iron construction method and a bolted assembly technique. We have found that this process of manufacture increases mine uptime, as the sheave wheels require far less maintenance than sheave wheels constructed using a welded assembly technique,” explains Goncalves.
KEW Foundries has built up a professional relationship with TWP and Konkola Copper Mines PLC, based on quality workmanship, cost-effective solutions and proficient service delivery. Goncalves extrapolates, “We have been supplying sheave wheel solutions to Konkola Copper Mines even before Vedanta Resources acquired the company in 1998. KEW Foundries has supplied solutions to both the Nchanga shaft, and the Konkola No. 1 shaft. To date our solutions have performed outstandingly.”
KEW Foundries was established in 1891 and is Africa’s sole manufacturer of cast headgear sheave wheels. The company also offers an extensive range of hand moulded castings in Grey and SG Iron up to 7 tons in weight, pressings, and general machining. Supported by comprehensive design and drafting facilities, including a dedicated pattern shop, machine shop, and laboratory, KEW Foundries serves a host of South African and international mining and industrial markets.