DMC Mining Services Chile says it is expanding its fleet by adding a fifth piece of equipment in the Vertical Development sector. This latest version of the Herrenknecht BBM-1500 equipment incorporates the latest elements of innovation and technology available in the market, to deliver a service it says “with the highest standards of safety, quality, and efficiency to our customers.” It added: “The BBM-1500 MI-052, with its new design, offers multiple improvements based on the recent experiences obtained in the operation of our four Boxhole machines already available in Chile since 2019.”

The BBM-1500 MI-052 performs raising excavations with a diameter of 1,500 mm and a capacity of up to 70 m in length. Additionally, it has navigation cylinders that always monitor the direction of the excavation, which minimises deviations and allows excavation at angles of up to 60° inclination. This machine can reach a performance of over 1.5 m/h in good quality rock and does not require a concrete slab for installation.

Boxhole technology uses feed tubes of a similar diameter to the excavation, which allows to confine the rock of the raise walls both during the feed and during the removal of the tubes and reaming head. In addition, this excavation method can incorporate downward mechanised lining, without exposing personnel, which in turn protects and provides a longer life span to the excavation. DMC Mining Services Chile added: “Our boxhole equipment, which is unique in Chile, has developed 16 chimneys and one shaft with full mechanised shielding, while demonstrating the highest standards in safety, quality, and performance. This, together with the permanent search for solutions with the use of boxhole equipment and technology, has secured a leading position in the field of excavation of chimneys and shafts.”