MINING TYRES
30.00R51 and 36.00R51 due to customer
request. Extensive evaluations continue on 57 in
tyres with 37.00R57, 40.00R57 and 46/90R57
sizes placed at mines all around the world.
MAXAM have also produced 63 in tyres and is
currently testing these in China. Then there is
BKT in India with its radial range up to 49 in
tyres (see BKT section). There is also the
ongoing investment and interest in the EM tyre
market from global majors – notably
Continental, though its tyre sizes currently are
still limited to radials up to 35 in; and Pirelli
which is looking more into the OTR space
through the Prometeon brand. Belshina in
Belarus still offers radials up to 49 in. There are
more options when it comes to larger bias ply
tyres but it is still not a large field.
Interestingly, China itself is seeing large size
tyre shortages in its own mines. IM asked Johni
Francis, Titan International, Inc Global OTR
Product Manager, about its radial mining tyres;
as aside from the big three, Titan is one of only
a handful of premium alternative suppliers of
large radial tyre sizes. In particular, Titan says it
has seen demand from China for its 57 in and 63
in tyres. “The big Chinese coal mines that use
the big trucks are now working flat out as many
smaller coal mines have fallen foul of new
environmental and safety regulations. But the
Chinese large radial tyres are often
unpredictable in quality, and in addition their
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large coal operations often have very long hauls
– as much as 16 or 17 km each way, so large
radial quality is crucial. As such demand at
these operations for tyres is very high, and
many do not have large allocations in place with
the big three, so it is currently a major market
for Titan. And the company is very happy to fill
these gaps in the premium large radial market.”
In terms of tyre sizes, the major haul truck
fleets for the world’s very large mines still
operate predominantly on 57 in and 63 in rim
diameter tyres. Cutler states: “The main 57 in
tyre sizes are 40.00x57 and 46/90x57, with
50/80x57 demand growing strongly as more
powerful variations of popular model trucks
such as Caterpillar’s 793 and Komatsu’s 830E
are released. The 53/80x63 tyre is in greatest
demand in the 63 in size – mainly due to the
enormous popularity of Komatsu’s 930E among
ultra-class trucks. While unit demand for 49 in
tyres globally greatly exceeds that of any of the
larger sizes – due to the huge population of 90 t
trucks such as Caterpillar’s 777 and Komatsu’s
HD785 in thousands of quarries and smaller
mines around the world, 27.00x49 tyres, along
with the 33.00x51 size used on 135 t trucks, are
typically restricted to water truck fitment on the
largest mines. Notwithstanding this, both the
27.00x49 and 33.00x51 sizes are widely used in
haul truck applications on medium sized coal
mines and smaller gold mines.”
The view from the tyre makers
On the general trends in the market,
Yokohama’s Besancon states: “The business
climate in the US appears more ‘favourable’ for
mining than it has been in last several years –
coal is back to a growth mode in the Appalachia
area. And original equipment for trucks and
other machines looks to be in growth mode –
this typically means that mining and
construction companies are able to commit
capital funds for new equipment as they believe
in a positive near-term future. Customers are
becoming more and more sophisticated in their
demands for tyres – much more interested in
clear management of tyres for cost per hour and
lowered total cost of ownership. Mining
companies are also open to new ideas and new
players in the market of tyres – it is no longer
‘only’ the domain of two major tyre players.” He
says mining customers are asking for the best
cost per hour for total cost of operation from
their tyres, increased speed capabilities as
hauls become longer and loads heavier; and for
tyre manufacturers to be great consultants to
help them manage their tyres for best fleet
‘uptime’ and operational efficiencies (ie what
tyres to change and when to change them
versus waiting for a failure). Mines want tyre
suppliers give best in class service for delivery
of tyres as well as tyre information.
Eric Matson, Manager, Global Field