ESCO fabricated hinge neck wins out over OEM cast parts on iron ore face shovels

Weir Group division ESCO® says it recently fitted a set of fabricated hinge necks as part of a hydraulic face shovel bucket repair for an iron ore mine in Africa. The ESCO hinge necks ran for 5,000 hours in hard abrasive conditions. Operating in the same conditions, the OEM cast hinge necks reached end of life after 2,000 hours. The 3,000-hour increase represents a 250% longer run time than OEM cast parts. ESCO’s fabricated hinge necks are still in service and continue to provide value and reduce the total cost of ownership to the customer.

ESCO says its replacement fronts and backboards for large hydraulic face shovel machines are designed to outperform OEM designs with better productivity, greater strength and long life. ESCO’s replacement fronts feature the Nemisys Lip system for more efficient production and superior reliability, the one-piece fabricated hinge neck for a smooth, low stress transition from the hinge body to dump cylinder lugs, and Kwik-Lok II wear runners and Toplok wing shrouds to provide maximum protection.