Conveyor Belt Condition and Thickness Monitoring

Companies are invited to submit a solution for the Conveyor Belt Condition and Thickness Monitoring challenge within the BHP Austmine Supplier Innovation Program.

Deadline: Wednesday 15 December 2021
Site: Port Hedland Iron Ore Operations

The Port Hedland operations have 158 conveyors, which undergo regular maintenance shutdowns to undertake condition inspection of belt health and thickness testing. The current inspection process involves operators manually using ultrasonic thickness and wear testing to determine the cover wear profile and rate of wear for steel-cord & fabric carcass belts.

This process is time-consuming given the number of conveyors on site and proves to be relatively inaccurate due to lagging data between the time of inspection and result analysis. Preventive maintenance is difficult to achieve due the lack of real-time data on belt degradation and life prediction, which hampers equipment operation and availability allowing proactive prevention of catastrophic belt failure.

The Opportunity

Solutions are sought for online continuous condition monitoring systems and protection technologies of conveyor belts that will improve damage detection, wear measurements and internal & cover damage mapping.

The following essential requirements are presented:

Continuous or on demand scanning of belt cover thickness measurement
Autonomous on-line diagnostics and real-time analysis reporting
Damage detection, Internal carcass, wear measurements and cover damage mapping
Belt condition monitoring and protection systems planning

Submission Process

Suppliers are invited to submit a short-form proposal for this challenge by Wednesday 15 December 2021.

To participate in the challenge and receive further technical information, complete this form.

The Process

Phase 1: Seeking expressions of Interest and high level proposals
We have provided you with a preliminary and high-level overview of the challenge we are seeking to solve. Our ask is for interested suppliers to provide an equally high-level expression of interest and proposal overview from which we will evaluate and shortlist a set of suppliers for the next Phase.

Phase 2: Shortlisted Suppliers: Full Scope, Interactive Workshops, Written Proposal
Shortlisted suppliers will be invited to a more detailed and interactive process, working toward a full proposal. You will receive a more detailed scope, you will participate in a series of interactive webinars involving information and Q&A sessions with the operational project team, “Pitch” Sessions where you will outline your proposal to the team and receive feedback to then inform your ultimate written proposal. It is intended your proposal will be for a joint project to prove the concept, prototype and trial your proposed solution.

Phase 3: Award and Pilot
BHP will evaluate proposals and intend to select and award a contract to one or more suppliers for a Pilot Project.

Program Information

Find more information about the Supplier Innovation Program challenge process by viewing our webinar.

Contact [email protected] for assistance.

COMPLETE CHALLENGE REGISTRATION FORM