UNDERGROUND DRILLING
1.7 was equipped only with an operator’s
compartment while the Face Master 1.7L had a
closed cabin. Previously operators often
complained about the visibility during tramming
with closed cabins. The new cabin design is not
only comfortable because of the installed air-
conditioning and H2S filter, but is also more
spacious and gives the operator excellent
visibility even with the lowered cabin.
“Mine Master is continuously striving for
better and more efficient drilling. Therefore, as
an option the Face Master 1.7K can be equipped
with an easy and straightforward drilling
monitoring system DMS (Drilling Monitoring
System) or more advanced Feeder Guiding
System (FGS). Both systems are specially
designed for drilling in a room and pillar system.
The moment the operator places the working unit
on the reference point and at right angles in the
face, the onboard computer helps him to execute
the desired drilling pattern. The FGS system is
equipped with an onboard registration box to
transfer drilling reports via WiFi. As a result, 24
hr reports can be generated, showing the
quantity of the drilled holes, time of drilling as
well as the comparison of the actual drilled
pattern with the desired one.”
Mine Master says the mine technical service
staff also like the new patented solution of a
telescopic boom, which allows for replacing of all
wear slides in 15 minutes without the need to
disassemble the boom. Also, easy to reach
electrics and hydraulics significantly reduce time
of maintenance.
This year Mine Master has so far received an
order from KGHM for no less than seven
machines of the Face Master 1.7K type.
Contracted production drilling
specialists
Australia’s Perseverance Drilling Underground
Pty Ltd is a good example of a contractor with
specialism in underground production drilling
having both OEM solutions and its own custom
solutions in house. It has a range of top hammer
rigs including the Epiroc Simba H157, a compact,
electric hydraulic boom-mounted top hammer,
long hole drill rig capable of drilling holes with a
diameter of 51 mm to 76 mm up to 30 m in length
and reaming holes to a diameter of 127mm; the
Epiroc Simba H1357, a versatile boom mounted
top hammer long hole drill rig. This rig is
designed to drill holes from 51 mm in diameter to
89 mm. The rig is capable of drilling up to 51m in
length, however, has the capacity to
mechanically load rods up to 33m. The boom
mounted rail allows it to drill 360° ring drilling
with a dump angle from 10° backwards to 90°
forward. The Epiroc Simba M4 C is a compact,
very mobile electric hydraulic, top hammer
production drill rig, capable of drilling in drive
sizes larger than 4.5 m to 4.5 m. The Epiroc
Simba H253 is an electric hydraulic top hammer
long hole drill rig, designed to drill holes 51-89
mm up to 30 m in length. It is equipped with a
console, which can be inclined 20° forward and
85° backwards in the longitudinal direction of the
drill rig. Finally it has an Epiroc Simba M6 C, a
production long-hole drilling rig with top hammer
drill. The Rig Control System (RCS) provides
efficient and high precision long hole drilling,
and also ensures an ergonomic working
environment and longer consumable life. The
machine is used for ring drilling with parallel
holes upwards/downwards up to 3 m apart and
hole diameters 51 m to 115 mm.
It has also developed its own Multipurpose
Percussion and Diamond Drill (MPDD) which was
Boart Longyear tackles underground
challenges
ith underground drilling comes the challenge of confined
spaces which often requires the drilling crew take extra time to
move and position the rig in the right location. Boart
Longyear’s MDR700 underground coring mobile drill rig it says tackles
tight areas with ease as it has been engineered with manoeuverability
and productivity in mind.
The rigs multi-mode, four-wheel operation has three steering modes
that quickly switches from travelling down roads to handling short
turning radius situations, to crab-like movement for lateral approaches
and delicate exits. This increased mobility becomes a time-saver when
moving from hole-to-hole, which is shown to be 80% faster than
movements required when positioning regular underground exploration
rigs.
In addition, the MDR700’s integrated positioner and turntable offers
extremely wide drilling angles and impressive reach to make positioning
and drilling a series of holes easier. With eight movable joints, the rig
features sophisticated articulations enabling it to drill 270 degrees
horizontally, as well as vertically up to vertically down. While other rigs
may have to reposition to target the next hole, the MDR has the ability to
drill in a spherical manner giving it more flexibility and speeding up the
drilling process.
The MDR’s on-board rod handling and Drill Control Interface (DCi)
provides semi-automation and a fully electronic interface to safely and
efficiently operate both the rod handler and the drill. “This combination
sets new standards for ease-of use, versatility, and most importantly,
safety in underground drill rigs. The rod handler isolates the driller from
the hazards of manual rod handling by significantly reducing the risk of
hand and back injuries associated with handling rods.”
For tunneling, bolting, and drifting applications, Boart Longyear
engineers have also designed a unique thread profile within its new
series of DriftMaster™ top hammer rods and bits. “Test results from the
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60 International Mining | JUNE 2019
The MDR700 underground diamond coring rig boasts a wide range of
drilling angles and exceptional manoeuvrability
field are already showing the design and manufacture of the DriftMaster
line to have improved strength and durability compared to standard
thread designs.”
DriftMaster offers increased strength through stress reduction in two
key ways: 1) The tapered profile provides an increased material cross-
section at the base of the threads and 2) the asymmetric thread
geometry minimises stress concentrations. The lower stress combined
with deep case hardening allows for a significant increase in cyclic load
handling capability. More load cycles means more drilling time and more
productivity.
Optimising the load distribution and contact area, the DriftMaster
thread geometry with carburising heat treatment is designed to
maximise resistance to wear under the harshest drilling conditions. A
tapered thread profile provides superior rod-bit make-up and breakout
characteristics.