Tag Archives: QSK60

Cummins and China’s NHL commission diesel-hybrid haul truck at Baiyun iron mine

Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Power supply for mines, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Cummins Inc says it has commissioned its diesel-hybrid solution in partnership with one of China’s leading rigid mining truck manufacturers, North Hauler Joint Stock Co., Ltd. (NHL), demonstrating progress in decarbonisation for industrial customers.

The hybrid NHL NTH260, a 220-t payload mining truck, rolled off the production line in January and is headed to Baiyun iron mine of Baogang Group, China, to begin field testing in March. As a power solutions provider, Cummins’ optimised hybrid system allows the truck engine to be downsized from the previous 2,500 horsepower QSK60 to the current 2,000 HP two-stage QSK50.

“We’re excited to share this significant milestone in our journey to advance bridge technologies and provide our mining customers with innovative, practical decarbonisation solutions,” Jenny Bush, Cummins Power Systems President, who joined key leaders from Cummins Power Systems China for the commissioning ceremony in the NHL industrial park in Bautou, China, said.

The truck is expected to provide a leading total cost of ownership based on initial cost advantages, fuel efficiency and extended service life of the engine, Cummins says. Improved fuel efficiency directly correlates to emissions and greenhouse gas reductions. Advanced hybrids have the potential to improve fuel efficiency up to 30% dependent on the mine profile and advanced battery technology and controls integration, according to the company.

Haiquan Guo, General Manager, NHL, said: “Our partnership with Cummins spans 40 years and advancing the hybridisation of our equipment is another demonstration of what we can accomplish together for the benefit of miners globally.”

NHL produces trucks with payload range from 35 t to 360 t, with Cummins as the standard engine configuration.

Molly Puga, Cummins Power Systems Executive Director of Strategy, Digital and Product Planning, added: “We are intent on enabling multiple pathways to carbon neutrality for industrial markets, including both first-fit and retrofit solutions. It’s partnerships with our customers like NHL and Baiyun iron mine that will accelerate product availability in the market and make both near- and long-term carbon reduction goals attainable.”

In 2023, Cummins announced approval of unblended renewable diesel use in all industrial high-horsepower engines.

Cummins’ PrevenTech Mining keeps Komatsu trucks, wheel loaders going at Boliden mines

Base metals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Cummins says its solutions are helping maximise machine uptime on trucks and wheel loaders running its engines at Boliden’s mines in Sweden and Finland.

In the vast open-pit copper mines here, the temperatures can drop as low as -40°C, testing the sturdiest of machinery working day and night extracting and hauling ore.

“It wouldn’t be so tough on the equipment if the thermometer stayed in roughly the same place for any decent length of time, but up there on the edge of the Arctic Circle it’s not unusual for a bitingly cold day to be followed by a more temperate one that feels positively tropical by comparison,” Cummins says.

The unpredictable swing in temperatures makes it difficult to keep equipment in full working order, with parts freezing and thawing, but it’s a challenge taken on by Cummins, which has signed service and maintenance agreements with the Swedish and Finnish distributors of Komatsu specialist mining equipment.

Cost-per-hour agreements – the first of their kind for Cummins in Europe – cover a total of 17 QSK60 Tier 4 Final engine-powered vehicles in Finland, while, in Sweden, a support contract covers a further nine examples of Komatsu’s 2,700 hp 930-E dump truck and a pair of the world’s largest wheel loaders, the L2350.

European DBU leader, Alok Joshi, and Sander Thorstensen, Cummins Leader for the Nordic region, arranged the contracts with the Komatsu distributors Hesselberg (Sweden) and SRO (Finland).

“We are relatively new to the mining sector in Europe,” Thorstensen says, “but all the feedback we have received so far has been incredibly positive, helped by our outstanding new PrevenTech® Mining telematics technology.”

PrevenTech Mining is a real-time digital monitoring and reporting system that provides an early warning of potential equipment operating issues. It helps plan maintenance and service, ensuring machinery is offline as little as possible, boosting productivity for, in this case, Boliden.

Janne Valmari is managing the Komatsu operations for Cummins Sweden. He has appointed two dedicated service technicians for Boliden’s Aitik copper mine just south of Gällivare in northern Sweden, and four technicians to cover Boliden’s Kevitsa mining operations across the border in Finland.

Valmari said the stream of data from PrevenTech allows the Cummins technicians to identify and diagnose performance issues faster and with greater accuracy, so they can see, for example, if an engine has been idling too long or revved too high, and can plan in the right fixes.

“It puts the mine owner in complete control, with no expensive surprises and benefitting from a higher return on their investment in product,” Valmari says.

Thorstensen added: “With their goal of keeping production running non-stop round-the-clock, I am certain Boliden sees the Komatsu-Cummins relationship as a core element of its strategy, and we will continue to strengthen our ties with Boliden and the Nordic mining industry in general.”

This is an edited version of an article that appeared in The Cummins Magazine

Thiess bolsters Chile mining fleet with five Liebherr T 264 haul trucks

Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , ,

Thiess is expanding its 240-t fleet in Chile with five new electric drive Liebherr T 264 mining trucks, cementing its commitment to growth in the region.

Thiess’ Executive General Manager Americas, Darrell White, said the fleet addition would further bolster Thiess’ capability and deliver productivity and efficiency gains for clients.

“South America is essential to Thiess’ long-term growth and building our diversification into commodities such as copper and gold,” White said. “The T 264s boost our fleet numbers and provide our clients with the opportunity to increase production capacity.

“This commitment to new fleet follows our recent investment in infrastructure, which includes a dedicated maintenance workshop, and building workforce capability through in-house and industry scholarship and pathway programs.”

Liebherr Chile’s Mining Division Director, Dale Clayton, said the Liebherr partnership with Thiess spanned three decades and enabled new products to enter the market, including the recently upgraded T 264s to Chile.

“The T 264 truck has a 240-t nominal payload capacity and an impressive payload-to-empty-vehicle weight ratio, leading to faster acceleration speeds, better speed on grade and higher hauling capacity, resulting in shorter cycle times and a lower cost per tonne,” he said said. “The combination of a high-power Cummins QSK60 2,700 hp (2,013 kW) diesel engine with the extremely efficient Liebherr AC electric propulsion system allows for maximum productivity and reduced downtime.”

He added: “Our La Negra Facility and Reman Centre is well placed to provide spare parts and components as well as training and technical support, and our teams are experienced in servicing mining fleet in the unique conditions Chile offers.”

The T 264s will be manufactured at Liebherr Mining Equipment Newport News Co in Virginia, USA, and will then be shipped to Chile. Assembly of the trucks will take place at Liebherr’s La Negra Facility before being transported to site, ready for commissioning.