McLanahan and Diefenbach have revealed their latest patents-pending innovation in filter cloth maintenance.
McLanahan and Diefenbach have debuted new technology that has been designed to streamline filter cloth replacement and filter plate inspection.
“Efficiency and safety drive everything we do,” McLanahan executive vice president of sales and business development Cory Jenson said.
“Teaming up with Diefenbach, a pioneer in liquid-solid separation since 1907, we’ve created a game-changer.”
The technology, called QUICKCHANGE™, features a design that allows cloths to glide effortlessly in and out during replacement.
“QUICKCHANGE™ gets plants back online faster and safer, slashing downtime from filter cloth changeouts,” Jenson said.
Conventional methods require the manual labour of employees or specialised lifting equipment.
The new system from McLanahan and Diefenbach allows operators to conduct ground-level maintenance in one to two minutes per cloth instead of the conventional 10–20 minutes. It also enables operators to perform quick cloth or filter plate inspections at eye level without the need to lift plates from the filter press.
By allowing maintenance to be conducted on the ground level, employees are not required to climb on or inside filter presses to carry out cloth change out.
The conventional method exposes employees to potential risks while working at heights or in confined spaces to be reduced. The QUICKCHANGE™ system has a lower dependence on lifting equipment, improving the process’s efficiency.
Conventional filter cloth systems often require replacing filter cloths on both sides of the plate when only one side fails. The QUICKCHANGE™ system is designed to replace only the damaged side of the filter cloth, reducing maintenance time and costs associated with material waste.
The specially designed feed shoe protects high-wear areas around the feed hole, extending cloth lifespan and ensuring achieve high-performance filtration.
The filtration system is designed for operators working in the aggregates, mining, chemicals and wastewater management industries.
The QUICKCHANGE™ system debuted at bauma 2025 in Munich, Germany, and at Expomin in Santiago, Chile.
Attendees at both events were able to witness and participate in live demonstrations of the QUICKCHANGE™ system to see how it would work in their applications.
“Filter cloth replacement has long been the leading cause of downtime for filter presses in the mining, aggregates, and water treatment industries. With QUICKCHANGE™, we’ve reduced that downtime for cloth changeout by a factor of ten or more,” Diefenbach managing director Alessandro Felicani said.
Long-term partners
McLanahan and Diefenbach have been long-term partners since they began working together on projects in 2013.
That partnership was formalised when McLanahan announced the acquisition of the Italian manufacturer of filter presses and thickeners from its headquarters in Medolago, Italy.
Diefenbach has been operational since 1907, when it originally began developing presses for the Italian olive oil industry. Over time, the company expanded its scope to heavy industries. By the 1950s, Diefenbach was heavily involved in the industrial wastewater sector and has gone on to sell thousands of machines in several industries, including mining and aggregates. The acquisition was underpinned by McLanahan’s desire to expand in the circular economy, including recycling water from industrial processes.
“As we look toward the future, we see a growing need for wastewater and tailings management in a variety of industries as part of the circular economy,” Jenson said.
“Every industry is being challenged to use less and less water and to recycle the water they are using. This acquisition offers significant synergies to McLanahan’s existing tailings solutions in mining and aggregates, which continue to remain a critical part of McLanahan’s product offerings.”
Under the agreement, Diefenbach operates as an independent brand in the marketplace but is, in effect, a sister company of McLanahan. It also works with Eagle Iron Works, another brand in the McLanahan group of companies, to offer a line of filter presses and thickeners to customers looking to purchase a complete tailings and water management solution from one vendor.
Customers will be able to purchase the new system through all three companies.
“This new partnership allows us to offer a more competitive solution to our tailings partners around the world,” Jenson said. •
For more information, visit mclanahan.com
