Productivity in Chilean copper mines involves finding the right balance between weight and service life. A mixture of different Hardox grades has helped Minetec to find exactly what it was looking for.
The Challenge
Light mining machinery for extreme conditions
The copper mines in the Atacama Desert in Chile are in some of the world's most extreme environments. At ground surface, it is 50 times drier than in Death Valley in California and equipment used here is put to a tough test. The weight of the equipment is a key success factor in mining operations.
The Santiago-based company Minetec is one of the leading suppliers of mining equipment to South America. It manufactures truck bodies, excavator buckets, liner plates and scrapers for mining operations.
Minetec is constantly on the look out for the very latest technology in order to improve productivity. The company uses different materials to find the perfect balance between weight and service life of its mining machinery. And this is where SSAB comes into the picture.
The Solution
A mixture of Hardox grades
Minetec has been using Hardox wear plate since 2007 for improving the service life and efficiency of its mining machinery.
The company has been working closely with SSAB to test a mixture of Hardox grades, including Hardox 400, 450, 500 and 550, and now Hardox 600, which is one of the highest performing wear plates on the market.
Certain products, such as mining buckets, require different thicknesses of steel for different parts of the product. This is because certain parts of mining buckets wear out more quickly than others.
When it comes to the choice of material, the harder the material, the more liable it is to crack. And the thicker the material, the higher the weight of the machine. So it is extremely beneficial that SSAB has a comprehensive product range and a close working relationship with customers. This means each of the materials are used in the best possible way.
Customer Benefits
Longer service life, lighter products and less down time
Minetec can now manufacture more durable mining equipment with higher payload by using a mixture of Hardox grades. This reduces the time spent on welding and repairs, leaving more time for mining operations.
Minetec uses Hardox for its mining machinery because of the complete product range available and also because of its close dialogue with SSAB.
SSAB has helped Minetec to improve product performances for mining operations. As Alberto Opazo, Business and Project Leader at Minetec, explains “Hardox wear plate is of very high quality and offers us a durable solution, being more resistant to impact and wear and being more lightweight.”