Underground mining equipment major GHH has moved its innovation and safety focus to flame-retardant and biodegradable hydraulic fluids which it sees as a highly underaddressed issue in the industry. “For example, the hydraulics of GHHs flagship MK-42 have a capacity of around 325 litres: a leak in this load dump truck with a payload of 42 t would not only cause serious damage to the environment, but would also entail extensive cleaning measures on the site.”

“We are therefore offering vehicles with biodegradable hydraulic fluids with immediate effect,” says CEO Dr Jan Olaf Petzold. The fluids, supplied by the German specialist Fluid-Competence GmbH based in Kamen, are 98% biodegradable. Petzold points out a further advantage: “Because they are flame-retardant, we also reduce the risk of accidents for the operators, machines and the production site by not allowing the flame to propagate.”

Fluid-Competence fluids are either water-based (CORSAVE) or HFC-E (water and glycol-based: LUBESAVE) and contain no unsafe additives and therefore meet the highest possible health and safety standards. Fire risk is also much reduced thanks to a high fire-resistance rating, while the excellent ecotoxicological properties are of significant benefit in the event of a fluid spill or leakage.

In view of the enormous advantages, Petzold considers the low additional costs to be justifiable. The new fluids are to be introduced successively for all product groups. The option is a safe choice for the customer: “Hazemag machines have been running with these for years.” Like GHH, this manufacturer belongs to the Schmidt Kranz Group, one of the major suppliers of machines and services, especially in mining and tunnelling as well as in raw material processing. The new hydraulic fluids would offer excellent lubricating properties, very high thermal stability and extremely high corrosion protection.