UG LOAD AND HAUL_proof 25/05/2016 09:24 Page 4
UG LOAD AND HAUL
the Scooptram ST7 Battery answers this
challenge with automated functions.” For
example, the ability to control multiple loaders
from a safe, remote location, planning and
repeating the perfect production cycle.
“Loaders and trucks consume about 80% of
the diesel fuel underground. The loaders are
most often used in dead ends of the mine, which
are the most difficult to ventilate. To make the
greatest impact on work environment and
ventilation costs, it was an obvious choice for
Atlas Copco to launch a battery driven loader as
our first product of this type”, says Lars Senf,
Vice President Marketing at Atlas Copco
Underground Rock Excavation division.
The initiative to create battery operated
equipment has been driven by new
developments in battery technology. This has
made it possible to create powerful and
productive equipment with zero emissions. “The
Scooptram ST7 Battery is the first step in
powering heavy, mobile equipment underground
and in the future we might see a
broader range of battery powered
equipment including scoops, trucks and
drills. All the obvious benefits of battery
power add up to something that might
not be obvious, like a reduced
environmental footprint, higher worker
satisfaction, and a better standing in the
community”, says Erik Svedlund, Product
Underground Mining
Equipment Worldwide
Manager - Electric Vehicles - Underground
Material Handling.
“With zero emissions and up to an 80%
reduction in heat generation compared to diesel
power, the cost of installing ventilation is
minimised and the expensive refrigeration of
mines can potentially be eliminated in the long
run.” The Scooptram ST7 Battery is also
equipped with the Atlas Copco unique traction
control to increase tyre life up to 30%. Together
with the fact that battery vehicles enable longer
service intervals, it increases overall up time and
thus productivity, says the company.
The Scooptram ST7 Battery
“has excellent visibility and
intuitive, ergonomic
controls in an ROPS/FOPS
approved canopy for safe
ergonomic
operations.
The new Scooptram ST7 Battery from Atlas
Copco, part of a move away from just tethered
cable options in underground electric load and
haul
The telematics system provides production data
and online trouble shooting. The Scooptram ST7
battery is automation ready meaning it can be
equipped with smart functions like the option
tele remote control that allows control of multiple
loaders from a safe remote location.” The
machine also shares most parts with the
successful diesel Scooptram of which hundreds
have been sold-to-date around the globe. The
Scooptram ST7 Battery is first being introduced
in Canada and the US and will be gradually rolled
out across the globe.
On electric machines, Eklind says: “The
increased complexity and requirement for clean
low sulphur fuel for high Tier engines has
definitely made our customers look at
alternatives such as electrically powered
vehicles. However electrical vehicles have
limitations, particularly for larger equipment
where a tethered solution is the only viable
option, but which does not fit straight into a
diesel operation.”
The electric EST
range of Atlas Copco
machines with
cables such as the
Scooptram
EST1030 are still
selling around the globe. China is by far the
strongest market but also Russia, the US, Canada
are other examples of markets where the EST
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JUNE 2016 | International Mining 27