OUR HEROES A


AND THEIR MACHINES


fter over 12 months in almost complete darkness, facing wind chill of nearly -90°C and navigating severe


crevasse fields, Spencer Smirl and Richmond Dykes, the two Finning engineers on The Coldest Journey, have finally returned to the UK with the rest of the team.


Years of detailed preparation, intense training and utter commitment from all involved has helped the team conquer 2,500 miles in 307 days across some of the most inhospitable terrain on the planet.


Treacherous ice patches, crevasse fields monumental in scale and 125 Km per hour winds did hinder the progress of the expedition. However, Finning was still able to achieve some of the most important ambitions it had for the traverse – the Cat D6Ns were fully operable in Antarctic conditions, and the team and their machinery got home safely.


With the ice crew and the equipment safely recovered, Andy Thomas, lead design engineer for Finning looks at the role played by the Cat D6Ns, Rover and Seeker, and how the experience could be critical in the development of future plant equipment for use in extreme cold weather conditions.


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