Crusher Screen Sales & Hire’s PM1200-20TB pugmill is providing quarry and material suppliers with extreme precision, right down to the gram. Find out how and why the unit has emerged as an industry favourite.
It goes without saying that materials form the literal bedrock of construction and infrastructure projects. They’re often the primary concern for project managers, who determine the type, volume and contents of each material component.
But who supplies, designs and makes them, and how?
Crusher Screen Sales & Hire is just one company that’s providing the equipment needed to produce adequate quality and volume of materials for some of the country’s largest transport projects.
As the IMS (Irish Manufacturers) distributors for Australia, Crusher Screen Sales & Hire has caught the eye of many within the roads and transport sectors, with its portfolio of equipment and plant helping to make a difference in the very foundation of Australia’s’ transport network.
Crusher Screen Sales & Hire works closely with IMS to develop pugmills and blenders, along with other plant, for the Australian market.
According to Crusher Screen Sales & Hire Manager John Andersen, the company offers the largest selection of pug mills and blenders in Australia, each with unique capabilities.
Just one, is the PM1200-20TB pugmill, which includes two five-metre-long feed hoppers, each capable of holding 12 cubic metres of material. These hoppers are equipped with separate conveyors and belt scales, enabling precise material addition, particularly for road base applications.
The PM1200-20TB’s dual powder hopper system allows operators to either blend two different powders simultaneously or manage high-cement content materials like RCC (Roller Compacted Concrete).
During high-cement content operations, one hopper can extract material while the other refills, improving mixing accuracy and product consistency.
“It’s the only pugmill around that has two belt feeders on each hopper, that’s also able to produce accurately,” Andersen says.
Greater versatility is also provided by an enlarged pug box, which is specifically designed to accommodate higher cement percentages, addressing industry needs for more complex material blending.
While traditional road base mixes might use 0.5-2 per cent cement, this model can handle mixes with 7-10 per cent cement, ensuring thorough and uniform blending of materials.
“Some people will take the pugmills out to the roading project and cut the raw material and blend it on-site, to get a more accurate and constant mix,” Andersen says.
All these features and more have been developed directly off the back of industry feedback and requirements, as Andersen explains.
“It’s the beneficiary of years of experience and knowledge, as well as our interactions with our clients,” he says. “Those same clients have units that have lasted 10 to 15 years.”
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Integrated control
Through its development and adoption of different technologies, Crusher Screen Sales & Hire aims to deliver a solution that’s highly adaptable and customisable, defending on project and material requirements.
Just one example is its PLC (Programmable Logic Controller),
a control system that manages and monitors the entire material mixing and loading process. It acts as the brain of the machine, controlling everything from raw material input to final product output.
The PLC tracks and records precise details of each mixing operation, including the exact percentages of raw materials used, water content, and powder additions.
It can generate real-time graphs comparing programmed material amounts against actual quantities used, providing detailed documentation for each batch.
For loading operations, the PLC can automatically manage truck loading, tracking specific weight limits, registering truck and client details, and ensuring precise material distribution. It can handle multiple trailers and program specific loading sequences.
One of its most significant features is remote monitoring capability, allowing Crusher Screen’s technicians to access the machine’s system remotely.
“If a client has a problem and they’re 2000 kilometres away, we can actually go into the PLC on the pugmill and see what’s happening. And if there’s a problem, rectify it or fix it,” Andersen says.
The system is highly customisable, enabling engineers to program specific mix designs remotely and adapt the controller to unique client requirements.
Designed to be user-friendly, the PLC offers preset programs to further minimise potential human error in material mixing, as well as during the loading process.
Passing benefits on
For Crusher Screen Sales & Hire, the next steps are all focused on further educating the sector on the benefits of the equipment. Also, helping customers to tackle their ongoing challenges, such as the persistent skills shortage.
Andersen says it’s technologies like PLC that will help to dilute the potential impacts of changing operators.
“The biggest issue we’ve got within the industry is a shortage of operators and staff,” he says.
“It’s challenges such as this where customers can benefit, because we’re a small and nimble company that has the ability to react to people’s needs.
“There’s few around that can cater for the constantly evolving needs of our customers, but we’re one of them.”
This article was originally published in the September edition of our magazine. To read the magazine, click here.
