MATO’s high-performance belt cleaners Benjamin Sibanda, managing director of MATO, a Multotec Group and MATO International Group company with operations in South Africa since 1987, highlights the expanding range of high-performance belt cleaners, ideally suited to coal, diamond, copper and platinum conveying operations.
M ATO, South Africa’s only manufacturer of lacing clips for mechanical conveyor belt fastening systems, supplies an extensive, high-quality range of belt prod- ucts and services to large-scale mining and materials-handling operations in Africa. “We have recently introduced new designs of our belt cleaners, including primary, sec- ondary, and diagonal cleaners that are splice- friendly and offer improved performance,” begins the company’s MD, Benjamin Sibanda. “When I first joined the company in 2005, we were predominantly known for belt fasteners and lacing equipment, mainly for underground collieries. Mechanical fasteners are generally not preferred in process plants because belt joints are not fully sealed. Fast forwarding to 2015, 2016, with the world starting to worry more about coal's impact on the environment, we were asked to start look- ing at other applications and products that we could add to our basket,” Sibanda explains. In addition to its core lacing system of- fering, MATO manufactures and designs belt
cleaners, also known as belt scrapers. “We don't scrape a customer’s conveyor belts, though. We remove carryover material to improve belt performance and extend wear life. And we can now offer a complete range of conveyor belt cleaners that are designed to suit the conveyors for a broad range of miner- als processing plants,” he tells MCA , adding that the new range is suitable for all types of belts, rubber belts with vulcanised joints and textile belts, broadening the scope of MATO’s product offering to include diamond, copper, iron ore and platinum mining operations. “All conveyor belts carrying any mineral product need to be continuously cleaned, for underground and surface operations,” he says. For all belt types, Sibanda continues, in- dustry has been seeking a conveyor cleaning system that is splice-friendly. “Belt cleaner blades must always be kept just on or above the belt surface to prevent damage. So, in developing MATO blades for primary, sec- ondary or diagonal belt cleaners, we always had to keep our mechanical splice in mind to avoid damaging the blades or ripping the belt
joint. With that in mind, our Australian team began investigating designs suitable for any belt joint. “They came up with solutions for all three commonly used belt cleaners, primary clean- ers, secondary cleaners and diagonal clean- ers,” says Sibanda. MATO’s diagonal tail pulley cleaner To protect the tail pulley lagging, it is crucial to avoid entrapment of spilt material on the underside of the belt. “Here, we can deploy a V-plough or a diagonal belt cleaner, based on considerations, such as how much space is available; how the mine wants to capture the material that comes off, and how to minimise the amount of material that remains under the belt and the tail pulley. “The traditional plough arrangement tends to be better known and more popular, and
The primary cleaner on a conveyor belt sits on the drive pulley beneath the discharge stream and handles about 90% of carry-back material.
6 ¦ MechChem Africa • January-February 2025
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