NORDIC SUPPLIER FOCUS_proof 27/04/2016 10:22 Page 8
NORDIC SUPPLIER FOCUS
Forecast to produce approximately 400,000 t of
copper once fully operational in 2017, Las Bambas
will be the third largest copper mine in the world,
with SKF oiling the wheels of production
condition monitoring that offer improved contamination
protection needed in severe weather conditions.
Automation/control
There are examples in the industry where
highway trucks are loaded with ore, from both
underground and surface mines, and drive on
public roads from the mine to a processing plant
elsewhere – Kylylahti in Finland, for example. The
first self-driving truck in day-to-day operation on
public roads could be a mining truck from Scania.
The company is at the forefront of research in
this area with tests under real-life conditions not
far off.
Scania’s self-driving test vehicle, Astator, is the
first of its kind, with developers at Scania and
researchers from technical colleges examining
the role driverless trucks could play in
tomorrow’s transport system.
Development of the concept has come so far
that the test vehicle now has no problem in
carrying out tasks such as picking up and
unloading a load. It’s also capable of safely
dealing with obstacles on the road.
“Mines are environments that are especially
well suited to self-driving vehicles,” says Lars
Hjorth, responsible for pre-development within
Autonomous Transport Solutions at Scania. “The
area is contained and the operator can control
what other equipment and staff that is working in
the area.”
Hjorth is also Project Manager for iQMatic, a
research project that Scania is conducting in
cooperation with other Swedish companies, such
as Saab and Autoliv. The project is being run with
support from the Swedish Government and also
involves researchers from KTH Royal Institute of
Technology and Linköping University.
Up until now, the mining industry has relied
upon large and expensive vehicles for its heavy
transport requirements. But, Scania reports,
“interest is increasing around the world in
smaller scale and more flexible solutions
involving specialised mining trucks.
“A truck solution is more cost effective, with
the total cost per transported tonne being
significantly lower,” says Hjorth. “The
infrastructure costs are also reduced as trucks
don’t require specially reinforced roads.”
Scania has started a new company, LOTS
Group that builds on its experience in lean
production, logistics and vehicles. LOTS focuses
on recurring industrial logistics flows. In short
the offering is to make mining more like
manufacturing. CEO of LOTS Group, Martin
Lewerth, notes “logistics is in many cases often a
great part of the total cost in mining operations
with a lot of hidden waste, where increased longterm focus on operational excellence offers great
savings potential. Increased, sustainable
productivity, optimisation and asset management
is becoming increasingly important in this
commodity price environment”.
Scania has a long and successful history of
providing purpose built transportation and
haulage equipment for many sectors and
applications, not least the mining industry with
clients around the world such as Rio Tinto in
Lars Hjorth’s 20-member team within Scania’s
Research and Development department is
intensively researching self-driving vehicles and
the peripheral systems needed to make them a
part of tomorrow’s transport system in various
areas
Let miners find your products & services
- Place your company in front of decision makers
- Generate quality leads
- Increase your brand awareness
- Be part of a recognized community of mining suppliers
www.SupplyMine.com
MAY 2016 | International Mining 57