bauma – 2016 Trends in the mining sector—Part II

Since 2004, mining and tunneling have been an established and increasingly important part of bauma. The mining sector will present numerous innovations and developments at this year’s world-leading trade fair for construction machinery, building material machines, mining machines, construction vehicles and construction equipment which will take place in Munich from April 11-17. The companies already unveiled a number of their trends at the bauma Media Dialog in Munich in January.
For mining and gravel extraction operations, MAN Truck & Bus AG is offering the tough and resilient MAN TGS chassis from its WorldWide product family in markets outside Europe. The vehicles are optimized to meet sector requirements: The tandem axle unit on the MAN TGS 33.480 6×6 BB now has a longer wheelbase of 1500 millimeters. This means that large-format 16 R 20 tires can be fitted. If the ground conditions require them, 24 R 20.5 format tires also fit on the tippers. The MAN TGS dumper truck, designed for a gross permitted weight of 33 tonnes, is therefore ideal as an alternative to the articulated dumper which is significantly more expensive to purchase. The MAN TGS WorldWide, designed by the Munich-based commercial vehicle manufacturer, is a truck to cope with challenging road situations as well as extreme climatic conditions such as icy temperatures, snow and extreme heat. The heat retention function, which remains active in neutral, has proven itself in Arctic climatic regions and in frosty winters. It ensures operational capability of the vehicle in temperatures of up to minus 40 °C.
With the new P450 tippers in the Heavy Duty segment, F. X. Meiller Fahrzeug- und Maschinenfabrik GmbH & Co KG has reanimated the “tipper versus dumper” discussion. The new rear tipper superstructure improves performance of the heavy-duty tipper trucks even further, and the new subframe and more roomy tipper body shape lowers the center of gravity of the vehicle, enhancing stability in a targeted manner. With a real volume of 28 cubic meters, these tippers offer the same circulating capacities as dumper concepts and, depending on the routes involved, the trucks really demonstrate their advantages, as their turnaround speed is higher. They can use roads when empty or partially loaded, and a change of location can be realized without any heavy or special transport measures. The i.s.a.r. remote control comes into play for securing tipper loads. It replaces the traditional valve control next to the driver’s seat and also integrates all auxiliary functions of the tipper operation in one control element. The electric shifting tarpaulin can be opened and closed safely, comfortably and without losing time. The (optional) servo controls, which reduce the number of steps required and practically eliminate the potential for operation errors, are a new feature.
MTG, of Premià de Mar, north of Barcelona, has expanded its range of teeth for rope shovels with the new RSS and RSXX tooth designs. These two new designs complete the MTG Systems Starmet range of teeth for rope shovels. The RSS tooth is ideal in tough, high-impact applications, and it is particularly suitable for cases in which the tooth may be subjected to leverage overexertion. The RSXX is specially reinforced with plenty of wear material, making it a highly resistant tooth, perfect for very tough applications with an extreme level of abrasion and very high impact. The two new designs join the existing ones (RS, RSX and EX) and, alongside the MTG Systems StarMet Rope Shovels range of adapters and shrouds, they offer a complete solution for protecting electric rope shovel buckets and they enable the most common lip configurations to be equipped.
SBM Mineral Processing GmbH supplies equipment for many stages along the processing chain: for crushing, classifying, conveying, stockpiling, washing and dewatering. The jaw crusher STE 100.60 was newly developed for crushing limestone, granite, building rubble and also slag. The new overload protection function (Gap Release Control) prevents “unbreakable parts” from damaging or blocking the crusher. And the automatic gap adjustment opens the crusher gap so that an unbreakable (metal) part can safely leave the crusher. Afterwards the movable crushing jaw resumes the predefined normal position and the crushing process continues without any further delay.
As well as trucks and engines Scania CV AB will also be showcasing its mining division at bauma. Transport accounts for more than a third of operational mining costs, and this manufacturer is aiming to bring about a positive change in its customers’ bottom line. The mining business faces new and tough challenges with an even stronger focus on cost-efficient solutions and operational excellence. Scania’s focus is on helping mining customers to improve productivity, lower costs, and better manage risks, leading to improved business results.
Schäffer Maschinenfabrik GmbH is expanding its construction machinery range by four high-performance wheel loaders with “Z-Kinematics”, with engine outputs varying between 37 kW and 75 kW. One of them is the new 5650 Z, which features a bucket capacity of 0.8 cubic meters and a working weight of 4.5 tonnes and was constructed to meet the high performance requirements. The new wheel loader is equipped with a powerful Kubota engine with 37 kW, a displacement of 2.6 l, and four-valve technology. This machine is the first to feature electric drive control which permits significant increases in efficiency. The electronic support helps to optimally use the engine output and transform it into thrust, which results in reduced fuel consumption. The electronic control furthermore enables several new safety functions, such as overheat protection, which make working with the 5650 Z even more safe and reliable. The maximum lifting height of the new wheel loader is 3.40 m. At up to 2.5 tonnes, the tipping load is likewise very high. The applications of the 5650 Z can be expanded significantly by an optional registration as a tractor unit with towing capacity of up to 6 tonnes and the optional overdrive up to 30 km/h.
Technology from Schauenburg Maschinen- und Anlagen-Bau GmbH is in use everywhere where new tunnels are being built, connections created, raw materials extracted and new energy sources opened up. The company´s product spectrum encompasses machinery and equipment for tunneling and special civil engineering applications, and mining. The focus is on systems for slurry treatment. Efficient separation plants are the cornerstone of the successful application of fluid-based soil removal systems for tunneling, microtunneling, HDD and diaphragm wall construction. For the field of mining Schauenburg develops hydromechanical wet-processing systems as a first stage in extracting ores. The ore-containing rock is washed, classified and sorted according to specific weight. This significantly reduces operating costs in the downstream processes.
Siemens is offering mining companies a gearless drive system for SAG mills with a tube diameter of 42 feet. This enables throughput to be almost doubled in comparison with the 38-foot mills commonly used today. With this innovation, Siemens is responding to the rising demand for larger and more powerful drives in mining. The principal component of the new drive system is a ring motor with a width of 25 meters and a height of 20 meters. The 42-foot ring motor is the centerpiece of the gearless drive and wrapped around the tube mill. An increase in tube diameter means that the mass of the ore being ground rises dramatically, and hence also the strain on structural elements and the motor. During the design of the motor, therefore, all components were subjected to comprehensive and detailed risk analysis.
Open-pit hard rock mines extracting iron ore and other materials use monster trucks. The investment costs, fuel consumption and associated CO2 emissions are immense. With its Integrated Skip Conveying And Crushing System, ThyssenKrupp Resource Technologies offers a sustainable and cost-effective alternative. Unlike in truck haulage, where not only the payload but also the deadweight of the truck has to be moved, the Integrated Skip Conveying And Crushing System only uses energy to transport the payload. The reason for this lies in the special design of the system, which ensures that the deadweights of the skips balance each other out. Two skips are connected by a common rope sheave drive system and can convey a complete truck load on rails from the loading station to the crusher at the top of the mine, using the shortest possible route over gradients of up to 75 degrees. Further transportation of the material from the crusher can then be carried out efficiently by belt conveyors.
The new 55-tonne capacity A60H from Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) meets growing customer demand for articulated haulers with larger capacities. More than half of the articulated haulers sold globally by all manufacturers today are within the Volvo A40 size class. The Volvo A60H’s higher payload—a 40% increase on Volvo’s A40 models—significantly lowers the cost-per-tonne ratio for hauler customers. The new size also offers a viable alternative to rigid dump trucks and construction trucks operating on soft, uneven or steep roads, allowing a similar amount of material to be hauled in a shorter cycle time. Using articulated haulers also reduces the level of maintenance required for haul roads on the jobsite, further improving profitability. Good stability, comfort and high hauling speeds are ensured by the matched drivetrain, automatic drive combinations (including 100% differential locks), all-terrain bogie, hydro-mechanical steering and active suspension.
In December 2013 the Zeppelin Group took over sales and servicing of the mining machinery of Caterpillar Global Mining. Coal is extracted underground in a process of longwall mining. The longwall mining equipment includes safety shields, the extraction machine and the chain scraper conveyor for transporting away the released coal. In cutting extraction the shearer loader with two cutting rollers is used. With low seam heights the coal is pared off using a drag hook plow or a Gleithobel plow. The armored face conveyor serves as the guide for the extraction machines. To keep the conveying space open and the workplace safe for the miners, safety shields are used. At bauma Zeppelin will be presenting the GH 800 plow system. This is being presented together with three safety shields from RAG Anthrazit Ibbenbüren. The Cat tunneling excavator 328DLCR from Zeppelin Baumaschinen GmbH has a specially designed boom and a tail swing radius of just 1.90 m. The boom is optimized for European tunnel profiles and for low working heights, enabling the excavator to achieve an advance of 2.30 m at a working height of 5.50 m. That means it is the only 43-tonne tunneling excavator which operates in the space taken up by a 27-tonne machine, but it can advance much faster, thanks to its higher power. Because it takes up less space, this means the tunnel profile can be reduced, thus reducing material volumes and making tunnel construction easier.
Further information: www.bauma.de