30% more production with crusher automation

Gayatri Projects started operations in 1970, winning its first irrigation project order for the Nagarjuna Sagar Irrigation project in Andhra Pradesh. The company was then managed and run by Mr. T Subbarami Reddy, who was succeeded in 1988 by Mr. Sandeep Reddy, currently the managing director of the company. The company slowly flourished in this business, and in the mid-90s it forayed into road projects, which were funded by ABB, the World Bank, the IFC, etc.

The quality and timely completion of projects enabled the company to become a part of India’s most reputable project, the Golden Quadrilateral Project aimed at connecting the four metropolises of India. Gayatri Projects received praise for its work and timely completion of projects, and was ranked among the top road developers in India.

In 2008, Gayatri Projects not only became a preferred vendor for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), but also started running toll booths at various locations. It was then that Gayatri Projects joined with Metso for its time-limited and mammoth projects spread across India with different crushing requirements. Currently, Gayatri Projects has eight road and irrigation projects where Metso is providing them with the most technically advanced equipment and solutions. The total Gayatri Projects fleet includes eight Nordwheeler plants, which produce 200 to 250 tonnes of 0–40 mm aggregate every hour at different locations.

Continuous crushing required to feed the highway project

“Since the rock density was 2.7, crushability only 30% and abrasiveness 1,800 grams per tonne, Gayatri Projects had to invest in the best equipment to ensure non-stop crushing at this site,” explains Mr. Ravichandra. “About 60,000 tonnes of aggregates in a month was required to feed the batching plant situated nearby, and we only had 18 hours a day and 25 working days in a month to achieve this target,” he says.Gayatri Projects was allotted a 22-kilometer stretch on the Kundali–Ghaziabad–Palwal Expressway, for which it set up a crushing and screening plant at Nuh in Haryana. In order to feed the project, Gayatri Projects was crushing granite rock fed by their own mine in Ferozpur Jhirka (a town in Nuh district). The plant was required to produce 0–6 mm sand, and 6–12 mm, 12–20 mm and 20–26 mm aggregate products to feed the batching plant, which converted it into high-quality concrete for the road project.

Trust in Metso led to the selection of NW106™ & NW220 GPD™ for the demanding site

After carefully analyzing the demand and understanding mobility as an important aspect, Metso decided to go with the best-in-class plant, i.e. Metso NW106™ jaw crusher, NW220GPD™ cone crusher and Metso’s DS1855™ three-deck screen for this expressway project.

Mr. Ravichandra shares, “A mobile plant from Metso was the obvious choice, as Gayatri’s trust in Metso was cemented by the reliability and impressive performance of Metso plants in the past. The combination of the NW106 jaw crusher and NW220GPD cone crusher from Metso is by far the most advanced combination we have come across. The cubicity required for the expressway had to be matched at any cost, and we were able to achieve consistent output from this plant.” Saving on operating costs was also an important factor, as the rock to be crushed was one of the hardest, making liners wear out quickly, and more power was required for the continuous crushing,” Mr. Ravichandra says.

Automation led to more production and reduction in costs

Delivering 60,000 tonnes of high-quality aggregate in a month was accomplished as the plant could produce 30% more with a considerable reduction in the cost of operations. To date, the company has not only been able to save up to EUR 120,000 (INR 9 million) on fuel, but also endlessly supply aggregates to the batching plant without any rejection of any kind.

The use of Metso IC™ automation facilitated centralized control of the crushers and the plant, allowing the operator to safely control and alter crushing operating parameters according to production needs from a single location. It even warded off any hydraulic pressure damage to the crusher through overloading.

Reducing the cost of operations and producing more output was only possible because of the use of Metso IC™ automation, as the labor required on the ground to manage the crusher was reduced and the life of the crusher enhanced by taking into account the load, power, etc.

Mr. Ravichandra explains, “Metso IC™ automation helps in enhancing the life of the crusher, as it automatically adjusts the height of the mantel according to the load, and ensures that the oil temperature, power draw and oil pressure remain good. It also monitors the crusher condition and gives an early indication if there’s a problem in the crusher. This helps in solving problems long before they become serious and costly.”

He adds, “The crushers are easy to use – as simple as pushing a button – and hence fewer skilled operators are required at the site, which invariably reduces the labor costs. The requirement is only for one skilled worker with Metso automation, in comparison to three elsewhere.”

While the project is running ahead of schedule, Mr. Reddy, a happy owner of Gayatri Projects, says, “Metso machines are reliable, highly automated and by far the most advanced machines we have in our fleet. Also, we have been in touch with their sales and services people in order to understand how we can increase the efficiency of our existing plant. Through automation, we have been able to achieve what we desired from our sites.”

“Metso clearly outperforms all other players in the market and its production standards are the best in this domain. Completing a project on time is the most crucial aspect for us, and Metso has indeed helped us in doing so by generating more production and saving costs. We are now venturing into mining as well, and we will rely on Metso’s vast experience and expert services in the field of mining too,” Mr. Reddy concludes.