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Efficient side drive gear unit – ideal for ball mills in small spaces

Our MAAG® LGDX gear unit is a three-stage spur gear with torque split, which ensures balanced power distribution through automatic torque equalisations. We supply the complete drive system, side drive and girth gear, all from one source – allowing optimised adjustments to the gear unit and gear girth and efficiently customising your grinding process.

Symmetrical casing for high flexibility

The latest redesign of our lateral side drive improves an already high-quality product. Our MAAG® LGDX gear unit now has the longest possible lifetime, which we achieved by maintaining our proven gearing philosophy, updating the casing design and developing a clever lubrication concept.

Our unique symmetrical gear casing gives you the flexibility to install the side drive at the centre line or 40° below your ball mill. The latter reduces construction costs by cutting down on foundation height. In addition, the low, compact foundation is less sensitive to vibration, which contributes to the continued smooth operation of your ball mill.

If the unit’s gear teeth are worn on one side, the symmetrical casing of the MAAG® LGDX side drive allows you to flip it over and resume operations from the reverse side of the gearing.

MAAG® LGDX gear unit positioned at centre line and 40° below the ball mill.

Smart lubrication leads to longer lifetimes

We have extended the lifetime of our MAAG® LGDX lateral side drive by approximately 40% through a clever lubrication concept and the ability to flip over the gear box and operate it in reverse.

Abrasive material like dust and dirt reduces the lifetime of bearings and gearing – and can lead to total breakdowns. Our lateral gear unit avoids bringing dust and dirt into contact with the bearings and medium- and high-speed gearing by separating them from the tooth contact between the output pinon and girth gear. The MAAG® LGDX includes two independent lubrication systems, one which services the girth gear guard and intakes more dust, and a second which supplies oil for the fast-rotating gearing and bearings and stays clean.

Proven gearing philosophy

Our three-stage lateral gear unit drives your ball mill directly with two output pinions and reduces the motor speed to precisely the required speed. The torque split design of the MAAG® LGDX gear unit guarantees an equal load distribution between the two output pinions, which automatically self-align.

How does equalised torque distribution work?

  • The key is the helical gearing on the torque transmission line between the intermediate and output shafts.
  • Any torque imbalances provoke deviation in the axial forces of the helical gearing, automatically pushing the intermediate shaft towards the less-loaded side.
  • When the intermediate shaft shifts sides, the helical gearing allows it to increase the torque – resulting in equalised axial forces.

How does self-alignment happen?

  • Spherical bearings between the output shaft and the pinons enable the output pinions to self-align.
  • The self-alignment of the output pinions compensates for small run-out deviations and guarantees full tooth contact.
Gear wheel arrangement of MAAG® LGDX gear unit with girth gear.

Making your life easier

To simplify your procurement process and facilitate easy installation, we can supply the complete MAAG® LGDX side drive, gear unit and girth gear. The girth gear is a fabricated design, meaning the ring that holds the toothing is made of high-quality alloy steel that has been rolled and bended. Compared to nodular cast or cast-iron base material, our girth gear is significantly more resistant to fatigue and wear.KEY BENEFITS

Long-lived, compact lateral gear unit gives ball mills big wins

Compact mill arrangement reduces foundation vibration riskWhen you install the MAAG® LGDX side drive at 40° below the ball mill, you not only save money and time due to the low foundation height, you also minimise the risk of vibration issues – increasing the reliability your ball mill.Enhanced lifespan thanks to smart lubrication and symmetric casingTwo independent lubrication systems keep dust and dirt out of your lateral gear unit. With the continuous clean oil supply and the possibility to flip the MAAG® LGDX over and operate it in reverse, we increase the lifetime of your ball mill side drive by approximately 40%Fit for replacement and overhaulsThe unique symmetrical design of our MAAG® LGDX gear unit allow it to adapt to nearly all existing ball mill interfaces and foundations. This makes our lateral gear unit the perfect solution to replace any worn-out side drives in your ball mill – even if we did not supply the original equipment.Usable in single and dual arrangementOne side drive provides a power range up to approximately 8,000 kW when engaged with the girth gear of your ball mill. In dual arrangement, with one gear unit on either side of the mill, our MAAG® LGDX gear unit covers grinding applications up to 14,000 kW.PRODUCT FEATURES

Reliable gear unit components for a complete, adaptable side drive

Manufactured for durability and safety

The symmetrical casing of our MAAG® LGDX gear unit is made of ductile cast iron and divided into four sections, with every part of the gear unit manufactured to a high standard. Self-alignment of the output pinions ensures full tooth contact to the girth gear and adapts to movements and run-outs. Finally, the torque split guarantees equalised load distribution between both output pinions, delivering optimum power flow from the main motor to your ball mill

MAAG® LGDX gear unit installed in test bench of our factory.

Our girth gear is a fabricated design with either two or four segments. The ring where the toothing is located is made of high-quality alloy steel, which is rolled and bent for extra durability. The rib, which is made of ordinary carbon steel, is welded to the ring and heat treated to eliminate internal stresses. These processes produce a homogenous crystal structure in the base material of the toothing, resulting in significantly higher fatigue- and wear-resistance as compared to cast girth gears.

The connection between the MAAG® LGDX gear unit and the mill is customisable based on your needs and unique circumstances. The T-section of the girth gear provides additional flexibility within the system to counter and absorb any misalignment between the mill and the LGDX gear unit.

Keep things simple with the auxiliary drive

The auxiliary drive allows you to slowly turn the ball mill to evenly cool it or for maintenance tasks. It is equipped with a small planetary gearbox and a fluid coupling to minimise torque peak during start up and smoothly accelerate the mill. The overrunning clutch between the auxiliary drive and the main motor automatically disengages the auxiliary drive when the main motor is started.

Cleaner lubrication with separate oil systems

We achieved a significant increase in the longevity of our MAAG® LGDX gear unit by separating the lubrication circuits. One circuit lubricates the output pinions and girth gear, preventing dirt and dust from circulating to the other chamber. All other gear parts and bearings are lubricated within the second closed, clean oil circuit. The clever use of two independent lubrication circuits reduces the quantity of contaminated oil that needs to be exchanged regularly and extends part lifetimes – meaning less maintenance for you.

Sketch of MAAG® LGDX gear unit with closed and open lubrication circuit.

Beyond a basic condition monitoring system

All of our gear units are equipped with unparalleled condition monitoring sensors. Normally, these types of sensors keep an eye on critical operating parameters like bearing temperatures, casing vibrations, etc. and trigger a mill shutdown in the case of exceedances.

Our condition monitoring system does much more. It lets you set up condition-based preventive maintenance that uses continuous monitoring and data analysis to detect wear and tear at an early stage. With this enhanced information, we help you plan maintenance and servicing in advance, reducing downtime and keeping your plant running smoothly.

Experts list reasons for Pakistan’s cement slowdown in 7MFY19

The Pakistan cement industry recorded a negative growth on domestic dispatches during the month of January 2019. As per APCMA data, local cement sales for the month came in at 3.1Mt, down a sharp 18 per cent YoY. 

According to Intermarket Securities, the slowdown in local cement dispatches has been in place since elections and appears to be gathering pace. This could be attributable to lower PSDP disbursements, a more challenging macroeconomic environment and legal challenges on major private sector construction projects.

Furthermore, in 7MFY19 local cement sales were down four per cent YoY to 22.6Mt. Northern-based sales fell eight per cent YoY to 17.8Mt while southern-based sales increased 17 per cent YoY to 4.8Mt. The regional divergence is possibly due to some plants in the south understood to be selling in the south Punjab market (which falls under the northern region).

Capacities, especially in the south, also continue to be diverted towards exports, which have clocked in at 4.1Mt in 7MFY19, up 50 per cent YoY.

Overall industry utilisation based on 7MFY19 sales is 81 per cent (vs. 99 percent in the same period last year).

Views from the market

Q. What is the one area in your sector where you feel excessive government intervention is hampering growth? How would you like it to address the issue?


Richard Morin
CEO – Pakistan Stock Exchange

From Pakistan Stock Exchange’s point of view, I cannot say government intervention is hampering growth. In fact, we have a very constructive relationship with Ministry of Finance and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and are working together to develop Pakistan’s capital market.

That said, tax policy is hampering capital market development. That is why we are lobbying for a level tax playing field between different investments.

Currently, real estate effectively receives better tax treatment than stocks which leads to excessive investment in real estate and misallocation of capital in the economy.

We also believe NSS distorts the markets and is in need of reform.

Privatisation of SOEs would also help develop the stock market and attract retail investors.

Finally, I believe the GOP needs to commit to the development of the bond market; we are willing to work with finance ministry on that front as well.



Aizaz Sheikh
CEO – Kohat Cement

The government needs to support the cement sector as it can earn precious foreign exchange through export, but policy changes at different levels are hurting the export potential of the industry.

Exports to Afghanistan through the Torkhum border have decreased sharply and besides other reasons, security checks and delays in customs at the border are also hurting exports. Security checks are necessary but the government should take steps for the quick processing of export consignments.

Government inaction is also hampering the growth of the cement sector owing to smuggling of Iranian cement into the country which continues unabated, hurting not only the local industry but government revenues as well. The government is losing almost Rs180 per bag in terms of duties and taxes which the local industry pays.

Even legal import of Iranian cement should not be allowed until Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority certifies the quality of cement being imported.

We also urge the government to eliminate federal excise duty on cement as it is not a luxury item.



Salim Raza
Former governor SBP

It’s a tale of two cities.

On the one hand, the government distorts the allocation of national credit by using banks as the dominant (80 per cent) funding source for its T-Bills and PIB debt. This takes up about 50pc of a bank’s loanable funds. Another 10-15pc is lent by banks to government entities or against sovereign guarantees. The share of the private sector is then restricted to one-third of bank lending.

On the other hand, the government has allowed its development lending institutions — SME bank, ZTBL, and the Housing bank — to wither on the vine. Together, their lending amounts to less than 5pc of total private credit. This is in sharp contrast to what happens in most emerging markets today.

In some, this happens through a banking system that is, in the majority, government owned (e.g. China, India, Vietnam); in others, through public-sector development banks, with more than a 40pc share in national credit (eg Brazil, Turkey); and in many, through directed lending. Pakistan has none of these three types of support.

The government must widen it sources for raising debt. Or investment will, at best continue to stagnate.



Gohar Ejaz
Group Leader — Aptma

Pakistan’s current account deficit has surged to $19 billion, primarily due to a trade deficit of $41bn last fiscal year. There’s only one way of controlling the current account deficit and that is by increasing exports and curtailing imports through tariff and non-tariff barriers.

The textile and clothing industry offers a great opportunity to double our exports to $46bn in five years.

For this the government needs to intervene to a) invest in cotton crop to double the output to 22-23 million bales by increasing per hectare yield; b) set-up a committee for reviving sick textile units that can immediately enhance exports by $3bn; c) release sales tax and other outstanding refunds of Rs102bn to exporters to ease pressure on their liquidity; d) create an investment friendly environment and provide low-cost credit for fresh investment in value-added textiles to boost exports and generate jobs.

We have cost-push inflation this year because of around 25 per cent currency devaluation. This cannot be controlled by raising interest rates. Rates must be kept down at 5pc to encourage investment as well as create savings of Rs1,000bn for the government on interest payments.

Those savings could be spent on public health and education services.



Hassan Bakshi
Chairman – ABAD
  1. Improvement in building by laws and regulations.
  2. Introduction of technology for fast track, one window, online approvals of building plans thereby minimising human contact. All approvals must be given within thirty days.
  3. Reducing the number of NOCs for issuing construction permit.
  4. Introduction of fixed income tax for the industry.
  5. Disposal of government land through transparent auction and apointment of individuals at market based salaries for a fixed tenure.
  6. Development of infrastructure in order to encourage both horizontal and vertical construction.
  7. Improvement in tenancy foreclosure laws to encourage banks finance the industry.
  8. Availability of bank financing for builders and developers and availability of long-term financing for buyers of housing units.
  9. Import of duty free construction machinery and technology and removal of regulatory duty on import of M/s Steel Bars and tiles.
  10. Utilisation of the fees and taxes collected from builders and developers for improvement of infrastructure and removal of the sector from service industry.
  11. Decreasing the cost of transferring property and making the transfer compulsory at actual transaction value.


Khalid Mahmood
CEO – Getz Pharma

We have had no price increase in the last 11 years. As a result, there hasn’t been a lot of investment to grow pharma exports.

The global pharma market is worth $1.4 trillion. Even small countries like Jordan export about $800 billion worth of pharma products. Pakistan’s total pharma exports are less than $200 million. There are 700 pharma companies in Pakistan.

We’ve had 25pc devaluation, 30pc rise in the electricity cost and 35pc increase in the gas cost. So the mindset of the government is that the only good industry is a sick industry. Its officials seem to think that it is not good for the people if a company is generating a profit. The opposite is true as Pakistan does not have even the essential drugs listed by the WHO. This means low-cost molecules are not available to the poor. As a result, Pakistan’s infant and maternal mortality rates are twice those of Bangladesh. The number of stunted children up to the age of five is the highest in the world.

The high-end medicines for cancer or products that cure Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s are also unavailable in the regulated market. But they are all available in the grey market. The government should follow the Indian or Bangladeshi pricing model. Its government regulates essential 200 drugs. It leaves the pricing of the rest of medicines to market forces.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, December 31st, 2018

APCMA releases dispatch data for January and 7MFY19

KARACHI: Local cement sales fell around 18 percent year-on-year to 3.066 million tons in January as the government tightened development spending to contain fiscal deficit, industry officials said on Wednesday.

The officials said it seems that the domestic sector almost collapsed in the last month as the domestic uptake of cement nosedived from 3.737 million tons in January 2018.

All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association’s (APCMA) spokesman expressed dismay over the constant decline in cement consumption in the country.

“This is because of reduction in government spending on infrastructure developments,” the spokesman added.

The government slashed public sector development program to keep fiscal deficit at 5.1 percent of GDP for the current fiscal year of 2018/19 compared to 6.6 percent in the last fiscal year.

APCMA’s data revealed that cement sector posted double digit decline of 10.70 percent in growth in January compared with the corresponding month last year, raising alarm bells among producers sitting on huge production capacity.

Cement companies dispatched 3.646 million tons in January as against 4.083 million tons dispatched in the corresponding month a year earlier.

The buoyancy in exports, however, stayed on course as exports increased a healthy 67.27 percent.

The industry exported 0.579 million tons of cement in January as opposed to mere 0.347 million tons exported in January last year.

For the first time during the current fiscal year, the domestic consumption posted nominal decline from the south-based mills, while the downslide in the northern region of the country continued unabated.

Uptake in north was only 2.355 million tons last month as against 3.018 million tons cement consumed in January 2018. The consumption in the south slipped to 0.711 million tons in January from 0.719 million tons in the same month last year.

Cement sales in the first seven months of the current fiscal year stood at 26.765 million tons, up 1.67 percent over the corresponding period a year earlier. Of this, exports were up 50.47 percent to 4.141 million tons in the July-January period of FY2019.

Cement mills located in the north suffered more than the factories situated in the south.

Domestic consumption of north-based mills declined 8.43 percent to 17.831 million tons in the first seven months of the current fiscal year. Cement exports from north fell 16.71 percent to 1.692 million tons during the period under review.

In July-January, local sales in south increased 16.89 percent to 4.793 million tons and exports climbed a whopping 239.89 percent to 2.448 million tons during the period.

President Donald Trump signs executive order to prioritise local cement for infrastructure projects

President Donald Trump signs executive order to prioritise local cement for infrastructure projects – Cement industry news from Global Cement

US: President Donald Trump has signed an executive order making it the policy of the federal government to buy goods locally, including cement, for infrastructure projects. The directive aims to strengthen the ‘Buy American and Hire American’ executive order issues in 2017 by giving a preference for raw materials manufactured in the US for use in government-backed projects.

Mexico’s Cemex reports 4th-qtr loss, misses expectations

Mexican cement producer Cemex on Thursday reported a loss for the fourth-quarter, missing analyst expectations’ for a profit and sending shares lower.

Monterrey-based Cemex, one of the world’s largest cement producers, reported a net loss of $37 million for the quarter, when analysts had expected a profit of $136 million, according to a Reuters poll.