Epiroc has held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new heat treatment plant for rock drills at one of its global manufacturing hubs in Örebro, Sweden.

With heat treatment an essential part of rock drill manufacturing, the top-modern plant – to be built through an expansion of the current workshop building – will further boost rock drill quality and performance, according to Epiroc. It will also lower customers’ total cost of ownership and enable higher production volumes, the company added.

Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s Senior Executive Vice President Mining and Infrastructure, said: “The investment is a key step toward ensuring that this first-class manufacturing site remains as productive and competitive as possible for the long term.”

Production at the 1,400 m² heat treatment plant will be able to run 24 hours a day thanks to automation. It is expected to be up and running by late-2020.

Energy efficiency is a key focus for the design of the plant, with, for example, residual heat recycled internally to heat buildings.