LOAD & HAUL HSE Mining’s Maintenance
Superintendent Aaron Poli recognises the impact of the upgrades. “By upgrading, we’ve significantly reduced our carbon footprint and diesel particulate emissions as well as achieving major cost efficiency gains by burning less fuel and gaining longer engine life,” he notes.
The HSE Mining team has a close working relationship with the Cummins engine experts
emissions benefits with carbon dioxide (CO2
The longer life effectively eliminated ) lowered by more than
500,000kg for six trucks over their operation cycles of 6,000hours/year. The operator’s Tier 1 engines were
previously being changed out at 22,000 hours, extended to 26,000 hours based on fuel burn. With the upgrades in place, 32,000-hour engine change-outs became typical. One unit ran to 36,000 hours without issue.
one engine change-out in the 80,000- hour life of the truck chassis. Engine component life was also robust, with minimal mid-life component change-outs. Engines since returned to Cummins Master Rebuild Centre have had no core damage or additional core charges, underlining the top-level maintenance practices at the mine.
SUPPORT BEHIND THE TECHNOLOGY “If we do have a drama, it’s all hands- on deck from the Cummins team in Mackay, from the fitter on the floor, up through to Wade Ford (product support representative) to Glen Jones (branch manager),” Poli explains. “It’s not often I’ve seen a branch manager get involved as much as I’ve seen Glen Jones involved, which is a positive,” he comments. Fuel system upgrades are presently
available from Cummins Master Rebuild Centres globally.
Murray Clifford is with Cummins.
www.cummins.com
ELECTRICAL ASSISTANCE SCHEME E
scondida BHP has begun environmental processing to have a transportation system based on an electric
trolley. The project will allow the mining company to advance BHP’s global target of net zero operating greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It considers an investment of
approximately US$250 million for the installation of infrastructure that will electrically assist the movement of extraction trucks in areas where the highest fuel consumption currently takes place.
Escondida BHP submitted an
Environmental Impact Statement (DIA) to the Environmental Impact Assessment System (SEIA), to advance in the “Implementation of the Mining Truck Electrification System in Escondida Norte” project, which seeks to assist the movement of these pieces of equipment inside the mine by means of a trolley system. The project includes the
construction of a new electrical substation and transmission lines both inside and around the Escondida Norte pit. These facilities will electrically assist the movement of
trucks inside the mine in the areas where they go up loaded with ore and, consequently, consume more fuel. With this new technology, instead of using diesel, they will be propelled by electrical power, thus reducing the operational greenhouse gas emissions and improving productivity associated with truck performance given the higher travel speed. Company president, Alejandro Tapia,
said that “the electric trolley system is one of the initiatives with which we seek to move towards a safer and more sustainable way of operating hand in hand with technology. This project will allow us to reduce the fuel consumption of our extraction trucks and thus advance our goal of net zero operational greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.”
For more information visit
www.bhp.com
www.engineerlive.com 13
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