South African mining, smelting and processing service company Dickinson Group has created an array of partnerships with several South African and international companies to provide skills and support for mines, cement and lime producers throughout Africa, says Dickinson Group CEO Trevor Dickinson.

“Our aim was to bring specialist service pro- viders together from across the world to provide specialist products and services for the rotary kiln industry in Africa,” he says.

The alliance includes, besides others, US refractory brick equipment company Brokk Bricking Solutions, Polish hot-kiln alignment company Geoservex and South African process consultancy Pro-op Industries. The alliance aims to reduce turnaround times for the shutdowns of kilns and improve service to boost the production of, maintenance at and support for rotary kilns and plants in Africa according to international best practice and service, he adds.

“As a specialist services company to the mining, smelting and mineral processing indus- tries, our ability to provide custom-made solutions and internationally sourced technologies is critical for us to increase production and reduce costs for clients,” says Dickinson Group industrial services director Clinton Pretorius.

Reducing costs is important for the survival of many of the companies in the cement, mining and processing industries, as operational expenditure costs are rising and production managers are expected to reduce costs and downtime through the application of technology.

Dickinson Group has created three main divisions for the industries they serve – the furnace division, the industrial services division and the mining division, he says.

However, a detailed history of a particular kiln can help Dickinson to detect and prevent problems at kilns, which reduce the need for downtime and unscheduled stops, Pretorius notes.

“Knowing how the plant has changed and grown throughout its history helps to identify potential problems and equipment risks,” he says.

Dickinson and its alliance partners aim to prevent, correct and monitor all components, with an emphasis on critical items, to reduce costs and potential breakdowns in kilns and at plants through strategic partnerships with the clients, he adds.

“We are able to respond quickly during shutdowns or breakdowns to get kilns back on line. The partnership enables clients to deal with a single support service, which includes many different industrial experts and companies. These partnerships enable us to deliver the right service to customers, matched to the specific needs of the plant or company,” says Pretorius.

“Knowledge of many different kilns and plants enables us to solve a great number of problems for clients using proved solutions. For example, diversified mineral company Xstrata’s Lion plant, in Mpumalanga, reported problems with inlet spilling. However, we had helped cement producer Pretoria Portland Cement solve a similar problem, enabling us to provide a quick and robust solution for Xstrata,” says Pro-op Industries CEO Jan Schutte.

The partnerships also enable the alliance to provide several new solutions, such as the increasing use of precast parts to enable much quicker installations, which also enable companies to remove only the damaged precast sections from the furnace or kilns, significantly reducing shutdowns for repairs, he adds.

“The precast parts last longer and are much quicker to install, taking less than a day to install. We are applying technology and expertise from other industries to provide simple solutions that will reduce costs and improve productivity and the value clients get from their plants,” concludes Dickinson.