Dust management, compliance risk and reliability

For Australia’s heavy industry balancing output and compliance, locally made is resonating across the sector.

As regulators sharpen their focus on silica and respirable dust, and as communities grow more sensitive to air-quality impacts, Victorian quarries, concrete recyclers and material processors are entering a new era of operational responsibility.

Effective dust control is no longer just a practical necessity — it is a critical compliance requirement directly tied to safety, productivity and licence-to-operate.

For many operators, this landscape has amplified the value of locally built, locally supported and genuinely Australian-made suppression equipment.

At the front of this shift is OZmist, a Victorian manufacturer whose high-pressure fog cannons are rapidly becoming a core part of dust-control strategies across the state’s quarrying and material processing sectors.

‘Victorian material processors know better than most that dust can shut down production just as quickly as it can jeopardise compliance.’

Built locally, for Australia’s Toughest Sites and Conditions.
Based in Wangaratta Victoria, OZmist has more than two decades of industrial misting experience and a deep understanding of the harsh realities of crushing, screening and stockpile environments.

They are the only Australian-made fog cannon range on the market and have struck a chord with Aussie companies and operators who need easy to maintain equipment that suits their operations.

The 45AU Series — Proven Aussie Built Workhorses
OZmist’s range of 45m fog cannons tend to meet the requirements for the majority of sites and projects.

They’ve created at least 4 variants of chassis configurations for the 45m range, and the series retains the same key components & cannon set up, 1000psi high pressure pumps, set 18ltr/water usage, and 60 (yes, sixty) nozzles to create a mist designed to handle high level dust suppression duties.

The M45AU is OZmist’s most popular cannon in the range (both in Victoria, nationally and abroad) and relied heavily upon for dust control as part of crushing, stockpiles, waste and recycling, plus many of the civil infrastructure projects happening across the state.

OZmist use 1000psi high-pressure pumps that produce 10 micron water mist — small enough to stay airborne long enough to capture finer particles generated during material processing, with less water usage. OZmist cannons have a 100m range remote control or can be operated from the
control panel on the unit itself.

Looking at technical comparisons, low pressure methods will be thirstier, create a larger droplet size, wetter on materials and struggle with fine airborne dust.

Screening imported fog cannons
Manufacturers from overseas tend to be fond of technology and often choose variable flow or multi-stage pumps. This makes sense given Europe’s climate, water supplies and accessibility to international supply chains.

When comparing options, look closely at spec sheets or confirm what pump pressure and water consumption is. This information is often not clear or available.

OZmist use 1000psi high-pressure pumps that produce 10 micron water mist — small enough to stay airborne long enough to capture finer particles generated during material processing, with less water usage. OZmist cannons have a 100m range remote control or can be operated from the
control panel on the unit itself.

Looking at technical comparisons, low pressure methods will be thirstier, create a larger droplet size, wetter on materials and struggle with fine airborne dust.

Screening imported fog cannons
Manufacturers from overseas tend to be fond of technology and often choose variable flow or multi-stage pumps. This makes sense given Europe’s climate, water supplies and accessibility to international supply chains.

When comparing options, look closely at spec sheets or confirm what pump pressure and water consumption is. This information is often not clear or available.

Local Manufacturing Means Local Accountability
In an industry where equipment uptime is directly tied to production output, having a combination of reliability and local support is fast becoming a decisive factor.

• Easy to operate and maintain, even in remote outback areas and harsh environments.
• Direct communication with the local team that builds them, not overseas distributors.
• OZmist fog cannons are designed to be repaired rather than replaced.

About OZmist
OZmist is a grass roots company that’s been engineering misting solutions and helping a wide range of industries throughout Australia since 2000. They are based out of Wangaratta.

Utilising their network of skilled trades, what isn’t made in house, is fabricated locally then returned ready for final assembly into one of their systems, tested and signed off throughout all stages of production.

Fog cannon manufacture takes about 8 weeks from start to finish, and OZmist run a rolling production and tight ship as far as supplying demand Australia wide, plus exports to New Zealand, Asia and Middle East.

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