Shutting down bulk handling machinery like conveyor belt systems to clean up spilled processed ore and other debris is a costly and complex business.
Work schedules, logistics of maintenance planning and timing, and lost revenue in both spilled content and the loss of production means progressive mine sites are looking for innovative solutions.
This white paper discusses the benefits, reclaimed revenue, safety and good old-fashioned hard-core labour robotics can offer through ingenious designs: a case study of the Dugless 903 remote controlled mini loader.
Machinery is at the heart of the mining industry supported by a strong and healthy workforce. Maintenance is imperative for both and how this is carried out is evolving as technology enables industries to harness the power of robotics, thereby resting their workforce without resting their machinery.
In other words, innovative remote-controlled machines, like the Dugless, do the work of a strong and efficient team without a halt in a production and only one operator.
The benefits of this approach – maintenance without stoppage – are far reaching. Every hour that a plant is idle costs thousands of dollars in potential revenue.
What is the Dugless 903?
Simply put, it’s a remote-controlled automated digging and cleaning unit, also known as a mini loader.
What’s the ingenuity of the machine?
Mini loaders and digging units are a well-occupied competitive space, but in this instance, it really is a matter of size counting – the smaller, the better.
With a minuscule 50mm ground clearance and standing just 560mm tall, a length of 2255mm and width of 1050mm this machine can get under and into small spaces that other machines just cannot access.
It’s not just size, but agility, movability and overall ability that enables the Dugless 903 to clear vast amounts of debris and spillage in spaces usually inaccessible without shutting down the plant, for example underneath conveyor belts.
Operated by one person standing as much as 50m away ensures operator safety. This little beast has a tight front and rear turning radius. One bucket equals approximately 20 shovels full of debris, in spaces a human can’t access, never mind
bigger machinery.
Case Study 1: Eight years of product spillage cleared up in three days
The material build-up in the area was a result of eight years product spillage; the small boulders densely consumed the underside of the conveyor system, in places totally suffocating the return rollers rendering them incapacitated.
Over three full shifts the Dugless 900 (previous model to the Dugless 903 that has an upgraded airbox, making it even more efficient) removed the problematic build up and stacked it alongside the system ready for collection by site auxiliary equipment.
Material running against the underside of the conveyor belt like this removes the cover and can reduce the life of the belt by years in just a few days. Overland belts can have a replacement value of more than $10 million.
On the same site, in another problematic area within the loop, a second Dugless reclaimed a calculated iron ore total of 50 tonnes and re-instated the haulage into the site operation process, adding to overall yield.
Three days, two operators and one machine recovered material worth thousands of dollars. The savings are multiplied significantly with zero loss due to a halt in production and further damage to the conveyor system avoided. The same outcome can be achieved repeatedly.
Case Study 2: 100 tonnes of iron ore recovered and reinstated with no shutdown required
A major stock feed conveyor in the Pilbara region of Western Australia required cleaning and servicing.
Product below the system had been building over an extended period, becoming dense, more problematic and posing a serious risk to the conveyor return rollers. Premature roller failure was inevitable due to product ingress.
This system needed to be cleared of the dormant iron ore below, fast and efficiently.
The spillage topped an average height of 400mm and 200m of the conveyor needed to be serviced.
Two Dugless machines, manoeuvred by skilled operators, worked side by side for 15 hours and reclaimed an estimated 100 tonnes of iron ore that was re-instated into the site operation process. No roller failure. No shutdown in production. The conveyor system continued to operate.
Benefits and features
- no conveyor shutdown required during maintenance
- easily accesses low ground clearance conveyor frames
- no manual labour needed
- improved safety, lower accident risk
- improved productivity
- greater cost efficiency
- designed to prevent drive machinery breakdowns
- remote-controlled
- simple two joystick hand remote harness
- only 560mm tall
- self-levelling four-in-one bucket heaped capacity of 0.13 metre cubed
- upgraded eight chamber cyclone design airbox
