The SWECO Ordering Checklist: 7 Checks Before You Buy Screens, Separators, or Spare Parts

Everything I know about ordering SWECO screens and spare parts came from mistakes. Not my supplier's mistakes—mine.

In my first year handling equipment orders at a mineral processing plant, I ordered a replacement part for a 48-inch SWECO Vibro-Energy^® Separator because the photo in the manual looked identical to the part we had. It wasn't identical. The machine had been field-modified years earlier, and nobody had updated the tag or the drawing set. That single order cost us $890 in rework plus a one-week delay.

Since then, I've personally made and documented nine significant purchasing mistakes, totaling roughly $18,600 in wasted budget. Since Q1 2024, I've kept a checklist that every person on our team runs before we place an order. It has caught 47 potential errors so far.

This article is that checklist.

Before you start: Is this the right article for you?

Searching for “Sweco” can take you in a few different directions. There is Sweco the engineering consultancy, internal portals called Sweco SharePoint, and even projects connected to the skiing in Milano Cortina 2026. This article is about the other SWECO—the one that makes vibratory screens, round separators, finishing machines, and related equipment for mining, minerals, and energy industries.

If you're ordering screens, gaskets, motors, covers, or complete vibratory separators, the seven checks below will save you money.

Check 1: Pull the actual nameplate data—not the data from memory

The most expensive sentence in industrial purchasing is: “It's the same unit we bought last time.” It's usually not.

Before asking for a price, get the manufacturer's nameplate data from the actual machine. Model, serial number, build date, motor data, and any certification markings. If the nameplate is painted over, clean it. If it's missing, ask the SWECO service team how to identify the unit from its dimensions, drive arrangement, and weld details. Yes, they can do that.

One of our 2022 mistakes happened because we ordered a replacement cover from an old invoice instead of checking the machine tag. The separator had been converted from a standard discharge to a center-discharge design after a process change. The cover didn't fit. A $1,600 part became scrap because the plant floor was busy and I trusted a five-year-old PO.

Checkpoint: You are not ready to order until you can write down the machine's serial number and the part's revision from a physical tag or stamped drawing.

Check 2: Clarify the machine's current configuration

Round separators look deceptively simple until you try to buy the wrong piece. You need to know:

• How many decks the machine actually has today—not how many it had when installed.
• Whether it uses a clamp ring, center tie-down, or both.
• Whether the motor has been changed to a different frame size or speed at some point.
• Whether the screen frames are standard or part of a custom conversion.

The conventional wisdom says the part number tells you everything. My experience says the part number tells you what the machine was, not what it is now. In September 2022, I ordered a new screen frame for a separator that had been rebuilt with a thicker tension ring. The frame was correct for the serial number but not for the current assembly. Nobody had written down the field modification.

Since then, our checklist includes a photo review before any spare part order. We take photos of the machine, the deck, and the area around the part we're replacing. It takes five minutes and prevents most of the “but the drawing says this” arguments later.

Check 3: Specify the screen the way the lab would—not the way sales does

Screen mesh numbers are the biggest source of confusion I see in mineral processing. “140 mesh” is not a complete specification.

The cut point depends on the wire diameter, the weave style, and the percentage of open area. Two different 140-mesh screens can behave very differently in real duty. For drilling-fluid and solids-control applications, use the screen nomenclature described in API RP 13C where possible. At minimum, write down:

• Target aperture in microns or millimetres, not just a mesh number
• Wire diameter
• Wire material (typically stainless steel for mineral duty)
• Whether the screen is a flat frame, pre-tensioned, or a replacement for an existing tensioning system

I once ordered a 325-mesh screen for a fine separation and forgot to specify the wire diameter. The supplier's screen still said “325 mesh” on the label, but the open area was so different that our throughput dropped noticeably. It looked fine on paper. In practice, it was a 40% change in open area.

Check 4: Motor voltage, phase, frequency, and certifications

Vibratory machines are driven by motors that are easy to get wrong. 50 Hz versus 60 Hz is not a small detail. Neither is voltage, phase, or whether the motor needs to be explosion-proof.

If the equipment will run in an area requiring ATEX, IECEx, or other hazardous-area certification, ask for the certification documents before you commit. Getting a non-certified motor can mean weeks of waiting and a machine that legally cannot run.

One question I now ask on every order: “Is the motor included, and is it matched to the existing machine's speed and mounting?” Some replacement screens and parts get quoted without the motor because the supplier assumes you're reusing the old one. That assumption can kill your timeline.

Check 5: Ask what the quote does NOT include

I have learned to ask a strange question early: “What's not included in this price?”

On a quote for a large separator order, the visible price might include the machine but not the export crate, the lifting lugs, the documentation folder, the insurance, or the delivery to your site. None of those are necessarily unreasonable charges—but they should be on the quote before you sign, not discovered later.

We buy through the local entity where we have a service relationship. In Norway, that means working with Sweco Norge AS for regional support and documentation. That local arrangement simplifies customs and warranty questions, but only because we asked which entity was on the invoice before ordering. If you don't ask, you may get a quote from one country and the shipping invoice from another, which can create VAT paperwork headaches at the border.

The vendor who lists all the fees upfront—even if the total looks higher at first—usually costs less in the end. We've learned that the hard way more than once.

Check 6: Demand the paperwork before you pay the final invoice

Nobody enjoys talking about Declarations of Conformity, material certificates, and inspection reports. But those documents are often more important than the parts themselves.

For equipment going into the EU/EEA, confirm that the machine or component can be accompanied by documentation consistent with the EU Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) and any applicable electrical or EMC standards. For screen frames used in certain regulated processes, ask for material traceability certificates. If the screen touches a product that has downstream quality requirements, the paper trail determines whether you can use it at all.

On our larger SWECO orders, the supplier has given us access to a Microsoft SharePoint document folder with drawings, certificates, and test records. We call it the “Sweco SharePoint” because it holds everything related to our SWECO equipment. It is remarkably easy to lose access to a folder like that when someone changes jobs, so we download and file the critical documents locally as soon as they appear.

Checkpoint: Do not authorize the final payment until the complete document package exists and has been reviewed by someone who understands it.

Check 7: Plan for receiving and storage before the truck arrives

A correct part can still become waste in a bad unloading process. Screen frames bend. Rubber gaskets get pinched. Motor shafts get damaged by slings. The last 50 metres of a delivery cause more damage than the entire ocean freight journey.

One of our warehouse leads compares a fine-mesh screen to a monarch butterfly: it looks delicate, but if you handle it properly, it survives. If you grab it in the middle or stack heavy things on top of it, you'll never see it fly.

When the delivery arrives, sign the delivery note carefully. Write “damage to be assessed” if anything looks suspect. Perform a detailed inspection within 24 hours, not two weeks later. Store screen frames vertically or in their original protective crates and keep them away from forklift traffic.

Mistakes I still see other teams make

Even with a checklist, I see the same patterns repeat in other plants:

• Ordering single-deck parts for a machine that was converted to double-deck years ago.
• Assuming “newer model” means the same mounting dimensions.
• Not verifying motor rotation direction after a motor rebuild.
• Skipping the inspection report because the components come from a trusted supplier.
• Waiting for an emergency to buy the one spare part they know has a long lead time.

None of these are glamorous problems. They are exactly the kind of problems that cause a three-day production delay and a conversation you do not want to have with your plant manager.

One honest caveat

This checklist works for our plant because we run a predictable mix of mineral-processing and oilfield-support equipment. If you are ordering food-grade SWECO equipment or sanitary finishing machinery, your list is longer. If you're purchasing a full system for a new site, add structural, piping, and control-system checks.

This is also accurate as of January 2026. Machine models, part numbers, and local entities change. Sweco Norge AS might not be the right support office for your region, and your local regulatory requirements may be different. Verify before you order.

The best purchasing process isn't the one with the fanciest software. It's the one that refuses to skip the boring checks. That little discipline has saved us more money than any supplier discount ever did.