First port of call for dust control

Ports worldwide are working to reduce dust and spillage to comply with increasingly strict environmental regulations. Page Macrae Engineering, a New Zealand-based company, provides solutions for both.

One of Australia’s busiest ports, based in Victoria, is currently working with the company on a dust control solution for their operation.

Product including fertiliser, wood chip and break-bulk cargo flows through the port at the rate of 11 million tonnes annually, boosting the port’s trade to over AUD$7 billion.

Environmental protection guidelines worldwide commonly require the ports and their operators to do everything in their power to reduce dust emissions and spillage from contaminating the local environment.

The port approached Page Macrae Engineering to provide a solution to replace their existing equipment to ensure they could continue to meet their obligations.

Peter Swan, General Manager of Sales and Marketing at Page Macrae Engineering, says the company needed a versatile solution, as the port services many different customers and materials. They required equipment to load out to trucks or switch to conveyors filling the port’s warehouses.

“We have worked with the port for many years and began drawing up several concept designs, informed by site visits,” he says.

“After evaluating different options with the client, we settled on a proposal for two, rail-mounted dust controlled port hoppers with a bespoke rotating discharge conveyor arrangement.”

With a focus on dust containment, the hoppers include robust dust control and filtration systems to minimise airborne dust emissions and spillage onto the wharf. Our strong focus is ensuring our hopper design enables the port to be highly productive while meeting its environmental requirements.

Designed to be easy to clean, and rugged enough to handle dusty and abrasive materials, the hoppers will integrate into their versatile operation. They will be able to be purposed to food-grade products, mineral concentrates, animal feed and fertiliser.

A key feature of the hopper is a built-in radio link, enabling the hoppers to communicate with the existing port receiving conveyors managing the feeding process. Swan points out that a lot of effort will go into training the operators on how to properly control the equipment.’

“We make sure our team are on hand to train the operators the ins and outs of the system, and what to do while a vessel is being unloaded,” he says, “We’ve found that most operators prefer this one-on-one hands-on learning.”

Based in New Zealand, Page Macrae Engineering has equipment in many major ports throughout Australia, Canada, South America and with some further afield. 

With such a large international client base, it is kept busy helping them with solutions best suited to their operation.

Bruce Ennis, Business Development Manager – Product Solutions at Page Macrae Engineering, says listening first-hand to our client is the first step for our engineers, as it helps them get a good grasp of the issues at hand from those on the front line.

“Most of the time, the site staff and operators know what the issues are and what is needed to fix them,” Ennis says, “On other occasions, our clients’ rely on our experience to find the way forward.”

Since 1955 Page Macrae Engineering has been providing engineering solutions to ports and related industries, having initially started as ship repairers to the marine industry.

Working with ports around the world has enabled the company to develop a robust knowledge base supported by a range of product solutions. The most popular products being dust controlled hoppers and bulk grabs – each product has been designed in consultation with the people who operate and manage the discharge and handling of bulk cargoes.

For operators who are looking to maximise productivity while keeping operating costs low, the company provides a selection of mechanical wire and chain and diesel-hydraulic grabs.

Designed with a low centre of gravity, the grabs minimise the risk of rollover on steep cargo profiles, allowing for a safer and more productive discharge. 

Overlapping blade seals and serrated bucket teeth on the grabs ensure product loss and dust emissions are minimised, making them ideal for cargoes such as fertiliser and soda ash which are typically difficult to handle.

Ennis says customers mostly value simplicity when it comes to the company’s product development.

“We value listening to our clients to find insights to inform our product development,” he says.

“We’ve learned they’re looking for machines that are simple to operate, clean and maintain. They want dust control and want to minimise operating costs. This is why we are focusing on providing efficient dust control outcomes without interruption to business.”