Tag Archives: iTrip

Austin’s first international Armadillo dipper bucket heading to US copper mine

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.”

Austin Engineering makes milestone Mainetec dipper bucket sale in USA

Austin Engineering Limited says it has sold its first Mainetec-designed dipper bucket into the US market, with the Armadillo electric rope shovel dipper bucket set to be delivered to a large copper mine in the US by mid-2024.

These dipper buckets typically sell for between $1.5-$2 million each depending on configuration specifics, according to Austin.

Austin acquired dipper bucket specialist, Mainetec, in 2022. The Armadillo bucket will be designed in Australia, manufactured in Austin’s facility in Batam, Indonesia, and will be supported by Austin’s US business in Casper, Wyoming.

The Armadillo dipper bucket is a light, strong bucket designed to achieve consistently higher payload and improved fill factor, while using less energy to dig compared with the standard unit, Austin said. This reduces operating cycle times and thereby reduces overall fuel cost and carbon emissions.

The dipper bucket will be fitted with the latest version of Mainetec’s proprietary door latching and control system, iTrip. Already widely used in Australia, iTrip dramatically reduces maintenance intervals and increases the service life of the components, Austin says. The system has proven to increase the standard dipper service life between overhauls by up to 18 months. Under the contract, Austin will also supply spare components for the iTrip system.

A unique aspect of Austin and Mainetec’s global bucket offering is that all of the buckets are customised to individual sites and orebodies.

Earlier this year, Austin announced plans to grow its US business by focusing on increasing market share for haul truck trays and, in particular, mining buckets.

Austin CEO and Managing Director, David Singleton, said: “We are pleased to have secured the first sale of a Mainetec bucket to into the major US market. This sale also showcases Austin’s ability to leverage its global capabilities around design, manufacture, and delivery, under our Austin 2.0 strategy.

“The Armadillo is a new generation, high performance product designed in Australia by Mainetec, built in our manufacturing hub in Batam, Indonesia, and assembled and delivered by our business in the US. This integrated ‘hub and spoke’ approach to product delivery is becoming a standard feature of our international business.

“This sale is a synergy benefit related to the acquisition of Mainetec in 2022, where we can offer Mainetec’s buckets globally using Austin’s routes to market. We believe that the market for replacement dipper buckets in the Americas alone could be worth over A$100 million ($68 million) per annum in addition to bucket rebuilds and spares from the iTrip system.”