Atlas Copco has gone from strength to strength since starting in 1873, and the company is looking to the future as it celebrates its 150th birthday.
“For a company to survive for 150 years while still growing and being profitable, it has to have a credible way of going forward. And that’s what Atlas Copco has.”
That is Roshan Kumbla, business development manager at Atlas Copco.
Kumbla and Atlas Copco product manager Sonik Barot agree that the 150th anniversary is a proud moment for the company, which now boasts over 40,000 colleagues and customers in more than 180 countries
Atlas Copco dates back to 1873, and the company began operations in Australia in 1950. In that time, it has been on hand for some of the country’s major historical events.
Take, for example, the rescue mission of the Granville train disaster in NSW in 1977, which was aided by Atlas Copco RH-series rock drills, a Darda rock-splitter and PRHS700 portable.
Or when palaeontologist Thomas H. Rich used assistance and equipment from Atlas Copco to help unearth a new dinosaur species in Victoria in 1984. The new species was subsequently named after the company: Atlascopcosaurus loadsi.
Having such a wide and varied history has allowed Atlas Copco to get to know its customer base and anticipate the next trends in compressors.
“Our continuous development and improvement processes are the keys to our growth,” Barot said.
Much of this development has been focused on sustainable solutions.
“It comes down to using less rare earth materials and using energy-efficient motors,” Kumbla said. “Every product that we evolve creates real value for our customers, especially since those evolutions create less of an impact on the environment.
“We can confidently say that we’re going to be able to create more energy-efficient compressors and solutions for our customers.”
For Atlas Copco, sustainability means delivering greater value to all stakeholders in a way that is economically, environmentally and socially responsible.
“Considering that the world is moving toward carbon-neutral, Atlas Copco can support this with green hydrogen production,” Barot said.
“Mines are transitioning to the minimisation of environmental harm and Atlas Copco is in a good position to be a part of this process.”
The company is already putting these future-facing plans into action by visiting mine sites and recommending environmentally friendly solutions.
“One of the gold mines we visited had multiple machines running at one time and I suggested they try our solutions which minimises their power and personal costs,” Kumbla said.
“They had about eight machines running, and my suggestion was to change to one centrifugal technology which gives them the bulk load demand while turning down the power atomically based on the usage.
“This not only minimised the energy consumption, but also decreased their operational costs.”
Atlas Copco’s focus is not just on selling equipment but providing a complete solution for the customer, from selecting the correct size of compressor to the remote monitoring and diagnosis of the system.
“What makes Atlas Copco so powerful as a solutions-provider is that it is involved with every aspect of the compressed air business, supported with a broad product portfolio,” Kumbla said.
“Our 150 years of experience makes us stronger and more equipped to handle challenges, ensuring that every new product is 15–20 per cent better than its predecessor.
“So when we say a new product is being developed, it’s not just a new model. This continuous evolution makes us a leading provider.”
While Atlas Copco has a proud history, it’s these new solutions that have the company excitedly looking forward as it approaches its 150th birthday.
“One of our missions is to sell all machines with variable-speed technology by 2030, meaning that the technology will save energy from day one,” Kumbla said.
“We have a lot of confidence in our ability to do this, and in our ability to have a lesser impact on the environment.”
And Barot concurred.
“It’s not just state-of-the-art solutions that we provide, but reliable ones as well,” he said.
“Customers are looking for energy-efficient, innovative and reliable solutions that work to give them peace of mind, and we are always pushing toward this.”
This feature appeared in the March 2023 issue of Australian Mining.