Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
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SUPPLIERS REPORT new facility will help us meet sustained demand while also attaining our growth objectives for 2015." The new earthmover tire plant will be adjacent to Michelin's existing rubber processing plant in Starr, South Carolina, and will be the third Michelin plant in Anderson County. The company also operates a rubber processing plant, the largest in the world, in Sandy Springs. In addition to the Lexington plant, Michelin currently produces earthmover tires around the world in Waterville, Canada; Campo Grande, Brazil; Le Puy and Montceau-les-Mines, France; Vitoria, Spain and Zalau, Romania. During the past year, South Carolina has seen more than $2.8 billion in announced tire-related plant investments for both new plants (Bridgestone Americas, Continental Tire–Americas and Michelin) and plant expansions (Michelin and Bridgestone) within its borders. Northland Orders Railcars from Kiruna Wagon Sweden's Kiruna Wagon, a manufacturer of railroad rolling stock, has signed an order for 150 iron-ore railcars with mining company Northland Resources. The rail- cars are scheduled for delivery between January 1, 2013, and May 5, 2014. As reported last month in E&MJ; (See "Northland Finalizes Logistics and Mill Operational Agreements for Kaunisvaara," May 2012, p. 151), Northland also has an option to buy up to 92 additional rail- cars from Kiruna Wagon. The railcars, rated at about 98 met- ric tons capacity, will transport iron ore concentrate from Northland's transship- ment terminal in Pitkäjärvi, Sweden, to the ice-free port of Narvik, Norway, a distance of 226 km. Kiruna Wagon said the railcars will be built primarily with high-strength steels and will have a low tare weight to maximize payload. The Pitkäjärvi-to- Narvik Malmbanan rail route has a max- imum permitted axle load of 30 mt. Based on technology that has been previously proven on the railway, the wagon features a load "cube" that differs from the design manufactured by Kiruna Wagon for LKAB. Kiruna Wagon notes that, due to the fine particle size of Northland Resources' magnetite concentrate—with 80% of the product passing 40 micron—bottom discharge is not practical and consequently a "bas- ket-turning" solution was chosen instead. When emptying, the cube is rotated 148° while the frame remains on the rails. The rotation, along with the rounded contour of the walls, creates optimal conditions for effective dis- charge, according to the manufacturer. The Northland order, comprising 150 wagons, will operate as 75 short- coupled units in 500-m-long train sets. Kiruna Wagon has designed specialized railcars, shown here, for transporting iron ore concentrates from Northland Resources' Kaunisvaara mill in northern Sweden. 150 E&MJ; • JUNE 2012 www.e-mj.com