Hytec Supplies Solution to De Beers Marine

Hytec has completed a project for De Beers Marine (Pty) Ltd involving the design, supply and commissioning of various hydraulic systems and four pneumatic systems for use on a diamond mining vessel.

The contract was awarded through a project house, Marine and Mineral Projects (Pty) Ltd, and formed part of a larger contract to convert a ship into an offshore mining vessel in order to establish a viable marine mine off the west coast of South Africa.

Simplicity, accessibility and maintainability
According to Herman van Rensburg, Regional Technical Manager, Hytec, the end-user, De Beers Marine, required a selection of equipment and system designs that met the company’s technical requirements, budget and completion deadlines. “De Beers Marine also needed equipment that is reliable and ensures minimum downtime, and is relatively easy to maintain. For these reasons, Bosch Rexroth equipment was specified by the client and is standardised across its fleet. Our design engineers developed the systems with simplicity, accessibility and maintainability in mind.”

A complete solution
Hytec supplied a complete hydraulic system for the sub-sea diamond mining vehicle (crawler), including the pump set, valve packs, cylinders, thrusters and depth compensation system. The company also supplied the 1000kW hydraulic ring main power unit for various deck handling systems, an oil management system, the hydraulic and pneumatic equipment required for four mooring winches, hydraulic maintenance tools and operational spares.

The crawler is used to recover diamond bearing gravel from the seabed and pump it onto the vessel. The diamond bearing gravel is processed on the vessel and diamonds are recovered. The deck equipment and handling systems are utilised to launch and recover the 260 ton crawler, and assist the mining ship in maintaining position.

Project Success
The project took 16 months to complete and van Rensburg notes that its successful conclusion was a result of the team work within the Hytec Group and the distribution of work throughout its branches countrywide.

Hytec has an established relationship with De Beers Marine (Pty) Ltd, going back 25 years. The company has a maintenance contract with De Beers Marine (Pty) Ltd for maintenance on the vessels whilst in port, and supplied the hydraulics for another crawler unit in 2007.