Phoenix Conveyor Belt Systems replaced a Phoenocord St 6800 at Freeport-McMoran?s and Codelco?s El Abra Mine in northern Chile after almost 20 years of continuous service. The steel cord conveyor belt measuring 20,000 m in length and 1,600 mm in width first went into operation in June 1996 and since then transported about 900 million tonne of aggressive copper ore in challenging climatic conditions.

A sophisticated process now allowed the entire belt to be replaced in one go with only a few days of interruption to production. The new Phoenocord St 6800 belt will be constantly monitored to detect any external or internal changes using the Phoenoguard PX monitoring system. This allows virtually every cu m of the entire conveyor belt to be monitored constantly, delivering real-time information about its overall condition and the state of all of its components. ?The advantage is invaluable, as damage can be detected immediately and eliminated efficiently,? said Bernd K?sel from Phoenix Conveyor Belt Systems.