Fives designs and supplies a wide range of equipment and production workshops in primary aluminium plants.
Since the end of August, the two green anode production lines at the Xinfa plant in Chipping, China, have reached their contractual production rate of 60 tph.
To allow Xinfa to produce 800,000 tons of baked anodes per year, Fives supplied a technology package including several innovations, equipment and processes, used for the first time on this project: the new continuous fines dosing system, the new Rhodax®-S scheme equipped with the first Rhodax® 4D for high process stability, and the latest Xelios 2.0 vibrocompactor.
The quality of the produced anodes meets client expectations.
At the end of August, Fives teams installed and commissioned the SMARTCrane technology on the last crane delivered to the Trimet smelter in Saint-Jean de Maurienne, France.
This brand-new digital solution was developed to enhance the operability and maintainability of ECL equipment (cranes). SMARTCrane can be used to remotely access the crane status in real time, and thus anticipate maintenance needs, share data between operational and maintenance teams and receive remote support from Fives if needed.
As part of a partnership agreement with Trimet, SMARTCrane will be deployed on all the tending machines in the smelter.
Fives has successfully completed performance tests on the fires of Zhong Wang anode baking furnaces in China.
The project included design, manufacturing, installation and commissioning of the Firing and Control System. It confirmed Zhong Wang’s confidence in Fives technologies, as the first system was supplied to the same client in 2014.
Launched in 2014, Back2School combines theoretical classroom training and on-site training on primary aluminium production processes, in order to improve the knowledge of operational and maintenance teams in aluminium smelters.
The most recent edition of Back2School was held over four days in October in the Sultanate of Oman, hosted by Sohar Aluminium, with some 85 participants. In addition to technical sessions, this program allowed participants to share experiences, and included visits to Sohar Aluminium smelter and a presentation on Fives digital innovations.
Fives Services activity has been enhanced with the creation of a new entity to improve proximity with operational workers at aluminium smelters in Europe.
The objective: to support aluminium producers and help them to improve their performance (including environmental), their production capacity and the safety of their facilities, by offering them a single point of contact and the latest Solios and ECL technologies.
Fives - Services Europe supplements a local network already established in Canada, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Australia.
In Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and France, Fives has implemented revamping projects and supplied systems and software to allow improved tracking of anode quality, increased production control and energy optimization.
At Qatalum, the baking process can be continually monitored and optimized thanks to a module in the Amelios suite, a collection of digital solutions for comprehensive monitoring of anodes throughout their life cycle. At Ma’aden Aluminium, the installation of the Dynpac solution in the two Xelios vibrocompactors will allow the accurate monitoring of the anode forming and a consistent anode density.
After 20,000 hours of construction work with no accidents, Fives installed and commissioned four General Purpose Cranes over four months for Emirates Global Aluminium at its Dubal site in Dubai.
These overhead cranes will be used for metal casting in the electrolysis hall and to carry the anode beam raising frame and superstructures.
As part of the revamping of its Sunndal aluminium smelter in Norway, Hydro Aluminium has awarded a contract to Fives for a new anode paste preparation line and a new fine grinding line.
Both lines will be integrated into the existing Green Anode Plant which was commissioned by the Group in 1967. The proprietary equipment supplied by Fives will help to anticipate a future amperage increase and to produce better quality anodes for optimal performance on electrolysis pots.
Fives, a long-term industrial partner in Bahrain
Fives supports the development of Bahrain industry, and has ramped up its presence in the country in recent years.
A key partner of the Alba smelter since its inception in 1971, the Group has already provided it with various equipment and modernization solutions. In 2018, Fives received new orders to modernize the existing lines and for the site’s 6th production line; at the end of the year, the Fives teams produced the first anode and started to extract hot gases at the Gas Treatment Center.
To support its service activity in the region, the Group decided to establish a brand-new workshop, which will be equipped with machines to manufacture spare parts and will include an equipment refurbishment zone.
Finally, Fives signed a protocol with Bahrain Polytechnic to launch an international internship program to develop the skills of young Bahrainis in the industrial sector. This initiative is supported by Tamkeen, the Bahraini Labour Fund Organization, with whom Fives signed an agreement in early 2017.
