McIver Engineering machines and fabricates wear parts, replacement components and spares for mining, resources and energy operators, including parts reverse engineered from a worn sample when the original drawing no longer exists.
A large share of mining and energy work is not new design. It is a component that has worn out, an imported spare with a lead time nobody can absorb, or a machine old enough that the original manufacturer no longer supports it. We make those parts locally, in the quantity you actually need, so a shutdown is planned around our lead time rather than a container ship.
Because we machine and fabricate under one roof, an assembly does not have to be split between suppliers. Plate is laser cut, folded and welded here, and the bores, faces and threads that have to be accurate are machined afterwards, so the finished item is dimensionally right rather than right on paper before welding pulled it out.
Where a part has failed repeatedly, we will tell you what the wear pattern suggests. Sometimes the answer is a different material or a hardened surface, sometimes it is a slightly heavier section or a radius where the original had a stress raising corner. That conversation is worth having before we cut metal, not after the second failure.
Most of the parts we are asked to replace arrive without a drawing, and often without a part number. We work from the component itself. It is measured feature by feature, the worn surfaces are identified and read back to their original size, and the fits with mating parts are worked out from the assembly rather than guessed at from the sample alone.
That produces a drawing you own, which matters more than the first replacement part. Once the geometry is recorded, the next spare is a repeat order rather than another investigation, and the part is no longer tied to a single overseas supplier or an obsolete catalogue number.
We use both 3D scanning and manual measurement. Scanning earns its place on worn, cast or freeform surfaces where there is no straight datum to work from, while critical diameters, bores and threads are measured by hand so the figures on the drawing are the ones the part has to hit.
Send in the worn part, plus the mating component if you can spare it and any photographs of it in place. The more of the assembly we can see, the fewer assumptions end up in the drawing.
When production has stopped, the cost of the part is irrelevant next to the cost of the hour. Tell us at enquiry stage that a plant is down and the job is prioritised over scheduled work where our machine loading allows, with a realistic time given up front rather than an optimistic one.
Standard lead time on planned work is 2 to 3 weeks. Simpler turned or laser cut items can be much faster, and complex machined or welded assemblies take longer. Being in Smithfield helps here, because a part can be dropped off, collected or couriered across Sydney the same day instead of sitting in freight.
The cheapest version of this is preparation. If a component has failed once, machine two or three while the setup exists and keep the spares on site. The unit cost falls sharply and the next failure becomes a scheduled repair.
Plate work up to 3000 by 1500 mm is cut on our Bystronic DNE fibre laser, in mild steel up to 25 mm as well as stainless, aluminium, brass and copper, so liners, wear plates, gussets and bracketry come off one nest rather than being flame cut and dressed.
Fabricated items are welded in mild steel and stainless and then machined where flatness, a bore centre or a mounting face has to be held after welding. For larger assemblies we work with you on how the item breaks into sections for transport and site assembly, since a part that cannot be lifted into place is not finished.
We handle components up to around one tonne, with 3 tonne lifting capacity in the workshop for handling and setting up, and machined part size is governed by our machining envelopes rather than by weight alone. If your component is at the heavy end, send its overall size and weight with the enquiry and we will confirm directly whether it suits our workshop before you commit any engineering time.
Wear resistant plate such as Bisalloy is bought in for the job, and hardening, hard facing, nitriding, chrome plating and heat treatment are carried out by specialist treaters we manage on your behalf. Breakdown and after hours turnaround is available on request rather than as a standing service, so tell us when a plant is down and we will tell you what we can start.
Yes. We regularly reverse engineer parts from a worn or broken sample, measuring the component, working out the original intended dimensions and producing a drawing before we machine. Send the old part in with any assembly detail you have and we will confirm what can be recovered from it.
Urgent breakdown work is prioritised over scheduled jobs where we can, so tell us at enquiry stage that a plant is down. Standard lead time on planned work is 2 to 3 weeks; simple turned or laser cut items can be considerably faster, and complex machined or welded assemblies take longer.
Yes, on request. Breakdown and after hours work is arranged case by case rather than sold as a standing service, so call us when a plant is down and we will tell you honestly what we can start and when.
We handle components up to around one tonne, with 3 tonne lifting capacity in the workshop for handling and setting up. Machined part size itself is set by our machining envelopes, so send the overall dimensions with your enquiry and we will confirm the part against our machines before you commit.
Yes, and we use it alongside manual measurement rather than instead of it. Scanning suits worn, cast or freeform surfaces where there is no straight datum to work from, while critical diameters, bores and threads are still measured by hand so the figures on the drawing are the ones the part has to hit.
Yes. We machine and fabricate wear components in mild steel, tool steel, stainless and bronze, and Bisalloy wear resistant plate is bought in for the job when a part calls for it. Hardening, hard facing, nitriding, chrome plating and heat treatment are all outsourced to specialist treaters and managed as part of the job, so raise them with your enquiry and the process route and finishing allowance are priced in from the start.
Yes, and it is usually the cheapest way to buy them. Machining a small batch while the setup is already proven costs far less per part than a single urgent one off later, and it means the next failure is a shutdown of hours rather than weeks.
That is the point of the exercise. We manufacture to the original dimensions and fits rather than approximating them, and where the imported part failed early we will tell you what we can see in the wear pattern and what material or design change might last longer.
Send us your drawings or call our Sydney workshop direct.
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