Crushing and screening Tip #45 - Feeder Conveyors

Feeder Conveyors can be a very efficient means to move material, to load into trucks / shipping containers or into other crushing and screening equipment.

They can be used to regulate the flow of material in a crushing circuit and help to smooth out surges between different sections of the plant.

They can be used to create higher stockpiles than can be achieved with a wheel loader while burning much less fuel and reducing the risk of loader rollover when traversing the stockpile.

When building stockpiles they eliminate the need for the loader having to climb a stockpile - reduces compaction of stockpiles, increases safety for operators and reduces the carbon footprint.

8-10 litres of diesel per hour compared to a wheel loader with upwards of 20-35 litres per hour depending on the tonnes required.

Increased efficiencies can be achieved by reducing the distance a wheel loader has to travel to get material to a stockpile and reduces the cycle times required.

Due to their ability to adjust the feeder speed they are also useful in blending operations to ensure the correct ratio of fines is mixed in with the road-base for example.

Feeder Conveyors are also used to fill Shipping Containers with ore concentrate in mining applications.

Other applications include being used to feed / blend coal and iron ore onto overland conveyors for ship loading and they can be setup with vibrating grids to act as a screening unit or with a tipping grid to remove oversize material.

Another use is as a feeder for delivering primary crushed rock to a secondary circuit and ensure continuous measured feed where the secondary and tertiary crushers aren't hit with surges and lulls due to the primary crusher.

If you are looking for a way to increase efficiency and reduce costs then a feeder conveyor should be considered.