Engineering & Mining Journal

NOV 2012

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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MINEXPO HIGHLIGHTS offers an improved control system with a user-friendly interface, a larger intuitive 15- in. touch screen, two multi-functional joy- sticks instead of four, and the latest rig support planning software. Boomer face drilling rigs can be equipped with up to four booms providing a coverage area of 16 to 208 m2 (172 to 2,239 ft2) and the most extensive range of high performance rock drills on the market (16-30 kW) designed to tackle all rock types and drilling conditions. "The new Boomer combines all of the benefits of Boomer technology with a wide range of new features and functionality to meet any challenge that miners may face. With these improvements, we are confi- dent the new Boomer series offers one of the most powerful and productive under- ground mining rigs and tunneling rigs on the market," said Johan Jonsson, product manager, Atlas Copco's Underground Rock Excavation Division. Jonsson added that the upgrades to the Boomer range will satisfy the increasing demand for automation and documenta- tion of all drilling operations. Operator comfort and safety were also priorities for the new series of Boomer upgrades. For example, the FOPS/ROPS certified cabins are air-conditioned and ergonomically designed, featuring the lat- est operator seat and controls. Depending on the rig type, an operator can choose to run the rig from a standing or sitting posi- tion. All of this contributes to increased productivity in the field. Cat: The 800-lb Gorilla Caterpillar's current slogan—introduced at MINExpo 2012—is "The Broadest Product Line in the Mining Industry," and a stroll through the company's 1.2-acre exhibit at the trade show lent considerable credence to that claim. Although even that amount of surface area wasn't quite enough to fit-in every type of equipment that the company offers, Cat did find enough open space to bring in a 420,000-lb Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD) SD70ACe locomotive— decked out in Caterpillar yellow—from its Progress Rail Services subsidiary, in addi- tion to displaying units of its mining-class haul trucks, excavators, dozers, wheel load- ers and a wide range of other surface and underground mining equipment. Prior to the start of the three-day show, Cat hosted a press event during which the company presented a product segment-by- segment rundown of new or recent product, www.e-mj.com technology and strategic developments in its global mining business. With a portfolio that now includes surface equipment rang- ing from conveyors to draglines—and every type in between—and underground long- wall and hard-rock cutting and haulage lines, there's room in this MINExpo wrap- up only for thumbnail sketches of develop- ments in each equipment segment. Haulage Systems—This segment in- cludes articulated trucks, smaller off-high- way trucks, E-Ject truck body systems, scrapers and conveyors. Segment manager Larry C. Tate said his group would not introduce any new products at MINExpo— but that didn't mean his segment hasn't been active. During 2011–2012, accord- ing to Tate, the company introduced three new articulated truck models (735B. 740B, 740B EJ), five new off-highway models (770G, 772G, 773G, 775G, 777G), and three new scraper models (621H, 623H, 627H). Caterpillar's objective, said Tate, was to provide customers with 'total solutions' that cover the most important hauling-sys- tems selection criteria: • What type of material is being moved? • What are the underfoot conditions? • How much material has to be moved? • What is the total job cycle distance? • What are the job site time/production requirements? Conveyor systems are the newest option in Cat's hauling system portfolio, according to Tate. Installations will be custom-made to match the profile, distance, material characteristics, tonnage and desired belt speed for each application. Surface Material Handling Products— The big news in this area, according to Segment Manager Sri Srinath, is that Cat now can offer a competitive current lineup of rotary drills, encompassing six models from the former Bucyrus stable that offer bit-loading capacities of 53,000–165,000 lb, hole diameters of 6–17.5 in. and single- pass hole-depth ranges of 29 ft to 65+ ft. The company's track drill line includes five models offering 2- to 6-in. hole diam- eter—but no DTH models yet. In both the rotary and track drill segments, Cat's inten- tion is to expand its product lines to fill in missing gaps. New for 2012 are the MD5150, MD6240, MD6420B and MD6540 rigs, with the latter two models representing a new 'global platform' design that allows Cat to produce multiple config- urations from a common base, tailored to regional or other application requirements. Srinath noted that Cat has a "sharp focus" on further development of drill tech- nology, and is working with key mining com- panies on development of autonomous rigs. Cat drills will be sold and supported through the Cat dealer network. Globally, the company currently has more than two- dozen dealers "onboard" for drills, and is intent upon bringing in more of its mining- industry dealers for the rotary drill business. Underground Products—In the under- ground coal sector, Cat now can offer a complete longwall shearer range com- prising four models (Electra EL1000, EL2000, EL3000, EL4000) with height capacities from 3.2 m to 7.2 m, ex- plained Segment Manager Uli Paschedag. One EL3000 shearer is currently operating in Australia and another is slated to go into service in India soon. The primary selling points of Cat's shearer line, he said, are: • Productivity: Installed horsepower across the range matches market demand, and the shearers feature a new, powerful PMC-S Evo control system. • Reliability: Offering a unique, robust mainframe; insert trapping shoe; and Ethernet-based communications and control system. • Modularity: Line consists of four machines with two sets of components. The EL4000, for example, has a bigger mainframe than the EL3000, but other- wise uses most of the same components featured on the smaller machine. Cat has developed a Personal Proximity Detection (PPD) system, described as an assisting, risk-mitigating feature that identi- fies the presence or absence of personnel on a longwall installation accurately, repetitively and reliably, and transmits this information to the machine's control system. PPD also works with a continuous miner operations, detecting the presence of personnel within a certain distance of a machine, providing warning signals to workers in the vicinity, and inhibiting machine movement when workers are detected in the surrounding areas. Cat also will begin to offer Chinese- made Siwei mid-tier roof supports as a complement to its own line of supports. The mid-range units will retain Siwei branding and will be sold within Cat's Global Mining business. Just recently released is the CM235 continuous miner, a 67.5-ton machine rated at 940 total horsepower and 550 cutter head horsepower, capable of load rates from 15-32 tons per minute. NOVEMBER 2012 • E&MJ; 29

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