Nick Partridge - Process Engineer [RPEQ] & Project Manager [PMP®]
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Bateman Engineering Pty Ltd,
Brisbane, QLD,  Australia

Picture
Commissioning in China
Principal Process Engineer - 2008 - 2012

Bateman was a South African based consulting process engineering design house; I was engaged in a technology process team created to transfer proprietary technologies into the Asia Pacific region.

Principal Engineer in the Pyrometallurgy group:

Duties:
  • I led studies from concept to feasibility for a wide range of products and locations – where our technology was a key element of the process.
  • I called equipment tenders for thickeners and primary crushers in support of the mechanical engineering team.
  • I was the final approver and RPEQ on designs including PFD’s for a range of plants including concentrators, hydrometallurgical leach plants and sand separation plants.
  • On-site start-up and commissioning for a major furnace installation in Yunnan province (China) including significant periods as sole company representative in-country. Other periods where it was necessary to take a night shift role to lead by example.
  • I made technical sales visits with progress presentations and scope negotiations to clients in Ukraine and Lithuania.
 
Achievements included:
  • Headed a Front End Engineering Design (FEED) Study to Pre-Feasibility level for a $300m project in Ukraine including PFDs, Layouts, ±30% Capex & Opex, Study Report and Client Presentation.
  • Identified an developed innovation that enabled Bateman to deliver an estimated 180 person days of water flow measurements for a smelter flash furnace within 20 person days. Much appreciated by the client and the technique still used today.


Typical Projects:

Front End Engineering Design Study to Pre-Feasibility level for a Titanium Dioxide Slag Smelter

Role: Process Lead & Project Engineer

Project Location: Ukraine

Design Parameters: 2 @ 30MW DC Electric Arc Furnaces

Capacity: 300,000 tpa Ilmenite feed

Products: Titanium dioxide slag (titania) & pig iron

Design scope: PFDs, Layouts, +/-30% Capital and Operating Costs, Reports and Client Presentation

Next: Submitted proposal for engineering to TEO-P 

On-site Commissioning for a chinese TiO2 Slag Smelter

Role: Commissioning Engineer

Project Location: Yunnan Province, China

Parameters: Start-up of a DC Electric Arc Furnace from cold to first metal and slag taps; followed by process support.

I supported commissioning at the client site for a number of 6 to 8 weeks cycles (including lengthy periods as sole process engineering specialist on site).

Capacity: 30MW furnace operating at 15MW due to power constraints

Scoping study for a Minerals Sand to Titanium Sponge complex

Role: Process Design Leader

Project Location: Southeast Asia

Design Parameters: from Sand Mining to Titanium Metal production (Kroll process) including Mineral Separation Plant, Ilmenite Smelting by DC EAF and an industrial minerals plant producing Pigment.

Capacity: Feed 49MTPA

Design Scope: Flow Sheets, Block Plan, +/- 30% Capex and Opex, Financial Modelling (over 90 cases based on grade, flow sheet, mining rate etc.)

Next: Submitted to client – client is motivated by anticipated legislation changes they wish to seize a first mover advantage but will be unlikely to make this investment unless the laws are changed

Trade Off study (Pyro alternative) for a high Silica Mixed Oxide/Sulphide Copper ore

Role: Process Lead for 2 of 3 options

Project Location: Eastern Siberia, Russian Federation

Parameters: The resource contains high levels of silica leading to the Pre-Feasibility study having concluded that a Pyrometallurgical route would not be possible. The Client requested a study to prove this assertion.

Outcome: I prepared two alternatives, a fully pyrometallurgical and a mixed Pyro (for the sulphide fraction) Hydro (for oxide) plant. The latter gave compared favourably with the hydro option.

On-site process measurement work at an Australasian Smelter

Role: Lead a measurement team

Project Location: Olympic Dam, SA

Parameters: Bateman Australia was requested by the South African office to assist in updating a water use profile for the flash furnace cooling elements after the installation of new cooling panels.

Issue: Previous measurements had employed a large team to measure hundreds of small flows using buckets and stopwatches over a period of some weeks.

Outcome: Using external ultrasonic measuring equipment I was able with a team of 2 to produce the required outputs within a few days (including sufficient external physical measurements to support the technique).

Other duties: Defibrillator trained First Aider

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