Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions is introducing the Sandvik DD212i, its first intelligent i-series narrow vein drill and, it says, the industry’s most advanced underground drill of its type.

The Sandvik DD212i is a compact single-boom jumbo with a new carrier and updated design, offering improved productivity, drilling accuracy, intelligence, versatility and easy integration into operations, the company claims. Optimal in narrow vein and medium-sized drifts, Sandvik DD212i ensures more tonnes and maximum profitability, as well as operational efficiency with precise electronic positioning and instrumentation for hole measurements.

Jean-Christophe Goiffon, Low Profile and Narrow Vein Product Manager for Underground Drilling at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, said: “[The] Sandvik DD212i was developed for mines looking for compact equipment with better connectivity and data collection capabilities. Despite its small size, [the] Sandvik DD212i offers increased productivity and drilling accuracy in challenging operations with deeper and narrower orebodies.”

New features available with the Sandvik DD212i include intelligent drilling control, a new narrow vein carrier, SB20i instrumented boom, Sandvik RDX5 rock drills, safer ROPS/FOPS cabin and canopy and versatility in drilling applications. Scalable automation packages will offer a wide range of features for automatic drilling and will help maximise the data collected, according to Sandvik.

These combined features enable increased penetration rates, better advance and better pull-out results compared with predecessors in Sandvik’s narrow vein offering. The total cost of ownership can also be reduced thanks to lower parts and consumables costs.

Sandvik is simultaneously introducing a new module of its Digital Driller™ training simulator for the Sandvik DD212i to train and upskill operators in advance.

“Many regions are experiencing reduced availability of skilled labour, and our customers are interested in easy and fast training solutions with automated functions that enable higher performance for new and low-skilled operators,” Goiffon said.

Operator feedback during field testing in Austria emphasized the short start-up period required thanks to the user-friendly control panels and display, and even compared he Sandvik DD212i drilling performance to that of the twin-boom Sandvik DD422i jumbo.

Sandvik will introduce more optional extras for Sandvik DD212i in the coming months, including Gold level automation and a longhole package specially designed for longhole drilling in narrow vein applications with minimum tunnel profile of 2 x 3 m, it says.