Austin Engineering Limited has announced the first international export of its high performance Armadillo dipper bucket, with the unit in question having been shipped to a large US-based copper miner where it is expected to be delivered this month.
The bucket will be trialled on site, with potential for further orders, if successful, Austin says.
It is Austin’s fourth dipper bucket order following the company’s acquisition of Australian bucket specialist Mainetec in 2022. Two dipper buckets have already been delivered to Australian-based customers, and a third dipper bucket is currently being manufactured at Austin’s Chile facility for a South American-based customer.
Austin’s Armadillo dipper bucket is between 80 and 90 t in weight but is lighter than previous models due to the design requiring less steel in fabrication. It is designed to achieve consistently higher payload and improved fill compared to an equivalent OEM unit thereby offering significant performance and return on investment to the customer. The Armadillo is also fitted with Austin’s iTrip door latching and control system. iTrip has been proven over several years of testing to reduce maintenance intervals and increase the mean time between maintenance and overhaul, consequently increasing throughput and reducing maintenance costs, according to Austin.
Dipper buckets are high value products, selling for approximately $1.5-$2.5 million per bucket, depending on configuration specifics.
The successful shipment to the major US market is a milestone for Austin. A key opportunity of the Mainetec acquisition was to offer the dipper buckets into Austin’s global markets, particularly North and South America, where there is high demand and a large dipper bucket market.
Austin sees a large market opportunity in North and Central/South America with the company’s internal data estimating there to be circa-430 rope shovels operating across those regions.
Austin’s Chile business is currently manufacturing an 86-t full Cat 7495 dipper bucket for a local customer and has rebuilt 18 dipper buckets in the workshop this calendar year, marking much higher bucket segment activity in this region than previous years. Austin Chile is currently rebuilding a further three dipper buckets, with a fourth bucket on its way to the workshop for repair.
Austin CEO and Managing Director, David Singleton, said: “The Armadillo bucket was designed in Australia, manufactured at our Batam facility in Indonesia, and is en route to large US copper mine, supported by our Casper operations, which demonstrates the full integration and global capabilities of the Austin business model.
“We are very pleased to have marked the first international shipment of an Austin dipper bucket and see North and South America providing a large opportunity for further dipper bucket sales, and also for rebuilds at our US and Chile facilities. We are well set up to build market share in these markets.”