Equipment & Technology - Copperbelt Katanga Mining

Drone aimed at better blast monitoring

February 4, 2021February 4, 2021 admin

Blast Movement Technologies has launched FED 2.0, a specially fitted unmanned aerial vehicle designed to accurately detect its Blast Movement Monitors at depths of up to 12m. Those BMMs are put in blast holes. When the blast is initiated those BMMs follow the blasted material. Detecting the BMMs allows miners to work out where ore and waste material are more accurately. Read More Here

Equipment & Technology Mining technology

Cat Mining signs global simulator-based training deal with ThoroughTec

February 2, 2021February 2, 2021 admin

Caterpillar Mining and South Africa-headquartered ThoroughTec Simulation have concluded a global cooperation agreement that they say will bring the latest generation, simulator-based equipment training solutions to Caterpillar customers. “This will help them improve safety, boost productivity, increase machine availability and create more sustainable mining operations.” A major move by Caterpillar Mining in simulator-based training has been widely expected, with mining simulator training major Immersive Technologies having been acquired by Cat’s main rival Komatsu in 2019. Under the agreement, Caterpillar Mining will recommend ThoroughTec Simulation as their approved supplier of mining… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology Mining technology

Sandvik introduces the Toro LH410 loader

February 2, 2021February 2, 2021 admin

Sandvik Mining and Rock Technology have introduced the transformed Toro LH410 underground loader, with a payload capacity of 10 tonnes. The new Toro LH410 builds on the best parts of its predecessor, the Sandvik LH410. The latest Toro LH410 is full of new features, and offers best in class performance in productivity. The machine features high ramp speeds and fast bucket filling, with a superior lift height when compared with other loaders of the same size class. The renewed unit also features the Sandvik Intelligent Control System, with a 7-inch touch… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Epiroc reports a ‘resilient’ Q4

January 26, 2021January 26, 2021 admin

Swedish mining equipment company Epiroc has said demand for automation, digitalisation and electrification solutions remained high in 2020 amid “significant” impacts on other sectors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Operating profit in the fourth quarter of 2020 rose to SK2.21 billion (US$265.89 million) from 2.02 billion in the same period a year earlier, stated the company in an interim report. The value of orders received increased 1% to SK9.3 billion, an increase of 13%. “The COVID-19 pandemic affected us significantly in 2020, yet we managed to adapt our way of… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Epiroc supports new world standard in sustainable underground mining with yet another battery-electric order

January 22, 2021January 22, 2021 admin

The newly ordered equipment, Scooptram ST14 Battery and Minetruck MT42 Battery machines, will be used both in LKAB’s main mine for production and in the Konsuln test mine, a testbed that is created in LKAB´s underground mines. The order comes as a result of the SUM (Sustainable Underground Mining) collaborative project where participating companies have formed an alliance to achieve the goal of setting a new world standard for sustainable mining at great depths. The partners* are working together to find new methods and smarter solutions for mining operations of… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

First autonomous mining truck without optical perception Operational

January 22, 2021January 22, 2021 admin

indurad has successfully implemented its iTruck autonomous haulage system (AHS) on Bell Equipment articulated dump trucks (ADTs) at a voestalpine-owned mining operation in Austria. The system was developed as part of a close collaboration with indurad’s long-standing partner voestalpine in Austria, to which indurad delivered its first 3D radar for installation in a blast furnace in 2013 after several years of joint R&D. Bell Equipment’s headquarters in South Africa significantly reduced the project implementation time through collaboration with indurad on establishing the drive-by-wire interface and their joint vision on interoperability.… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Africa’s drone industry is taking off

January 13, 2021January 13, 2021 admin

For a long time, drones were almost exclusively used by countries in matters of public safety. However, they are now being bought by and used for a diverse range of reasons across the African continent. In French-speaking Africa, the governments of Morocco, Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Madagascar have decided to prohibit the use of these flying machines by the general public and reserve them for their own security services and administrations. Used in agriculture, essential for infrastructure maintenance and capable of saving lives, civilian drones are still far from being accessible… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Sandvik launches DD212 narrow-vein rig

January 11, 2021January 11, 2021 admin

Swedish mining engineering company Sandvik has released a compact, single-boom electro-hydraulic underground drill rig designed for narrow-vein drifts. The DD212’s compact size and narrow-vein capabilities enable multipurpose operations in tunnels as small as 2.5mx2.5m, said Sandvik. This drill is an upgrade of the Sandvik DD210 development drill rig. The rig, which uses a telescopic feed that can retract from 6-12 ft, also features a new drilling control system called the THC562 with torque control and reaming hole selection. Together the features help the new rig achieve a 20% reduction in boom positioning time and… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Steelmakers, Caterpillar jump on bigger stimulus hopes

January 7, 2021January 7, 2021 admin

American steelmakers and machinery producers surged on speculation that Democrats securing control of Congress paves the way for President-Elect Joe Biden to pass a wide-ranging infrastructure stimulus bill. Investors in the metal used in everything from skyscrapers to highways to bridges and tunnels are wagering that control of the House and Senate will give Biden the support he needs to make good on infrastructure and clean energy campaign promises. Democrats won control of the U.S. Senate after two runoff victories in Georgia. The S&P Supercomposite Steel Index, which includes U.S. Steel Corp., Nucor… Read More Here

Equipment & Technology

Oxbotica raises $47m for autonomous mining software

January 6, 2021January 6, 2021 admin

Oxbotica has announced that it has raised $47m in investment for new autonomous software to be deployed at mines across the world, with energy major BP and investment firm BGF among the backers. The company, which began as a spin-out from Oxford University, is developing what it calls an “open autonomy software platform for the mining industry”, which will enable vehicles of all sizes and functions to communicate with one another and operate without human input. The company also offers a companion cloud-based vehicle and data management platform, which can… Read More Here