Skip to content
In an industry where everything is oversized and larger than life, you wonder whether tiny elements like a fastener will really make a difference. The off highway dump trucks used in mining are the largest in the world and the mine mills see a massive amount of flow every day. Interestingly, both can be completely […]

In an industry where everything is oversized and larger than life, you wonder whether tiny elements like a fastener will really make a difference. The off highway dump trucks used in mining are the largest in the world and the mine mills see a massive amount of flow every day. Interestingly, both can be completely put out of service by a bolt breakage. Even the smallest element can cause millions of dollars in losses when a problem with mill line fasteners is not looked after. These Line Fasteners as well as Marine Fasteners and other Building Fasteners are available at many Fastener Distributors.

Typical Issues
The ball mill can be a serious source of problems related to fasteners. When the flanges in the ball mill do not fit breakage can become a frequent occurrence. This results in the line being shut down for a period of time while the bolt is replaced. Industry experts have stated that shutting down a mill line in a mining operation can result in thousands of dollars in down time every hour.
In order to reduce the occurrence of bolt breakage higher quality and specifically manufactured mill line fasteners must be used. Often load indicating fasteners will allow the maintenance staff to tighten the bolts to an exact number, resulting is less strain during production.
There have been various testimonies recording that the installation of load indicating fasteners in a ball mine have reduced or even eliminated the breakage that was so common beforehand. In some cases this has resulted in millions of dollars in savings for the mine in question.
Regrind mills are another area of the mine that typically experiences fastener issues. Again, bolts are the main culprit and a switch over to load indicating fasteners is a recommended solution. Often a shut down is needed to get all of the mill line fasteners replaced, but high quality bolts can effectively reduce down time in this mill as well as in other areas of a mining operation.
Mill line fasteners may be small in the scheme of things but these little pieces play a very big role in mining operations. An experienced fastener distributor will be able to help mining firms to solve typical issues in the ball mill, the regrind mill and any other location in the mine that involves fasteners and fastener failure.

About the Author

Larry Melone
By Larry Melone
President

Started my career in the fastener world in 1969 at, Parker Kalon Corp. a NJ based screw manufacturer located in Clifton, NJ working in inventory control, scheduling secondary production and concluding there in purchasing. In 1971 I accepted a sales position at Star Stainless Screw Co., Totowa, NJ working in inside sales and later as an outside salesman, having a successful career at Star I had the desire with a friend to start our own fastener distribution company in 1980 named: Divspec, Kenilworth, NJ. This was a successful adventure but ended in 1985 with me starting Melfast in August 1985 and have stayed competitive and successful to date. Melfast serves the OEM market with approximately 400 accounts nationally.

Related Posts

See All