MINING TYRES
that in some cases there have been logistical hold
ups like customs delays getting tyres to certain
locations.
The major tyre management companies have
not seen any serious disruption either but it does
vary by region. Darren Flint, Regional Vice
President UK, West Africa & Vice President Tyre
Lifetime Services at Kal Tire Mining Tire Group told
IM: “The effect on us depends on where you are
talking about. In our West African gold operations,
there has been no slowdown, just some working
restrictions. The UK lockdown was quite extensive
including heavy industry so that had a major effect
on our big mining and quarrying customers. South
Africa saw a temporary shutdown then restart at
mines with restrictions. Colombian mines saw
major cutbacks but are slowly returning to
normal.”
Dave Allan, Vice President, Canada at Kal Tire
Mining Tire Group added: “On the whole,
disruption to mining in Canada has been minimal,
so mining tyres have still been running so we have
still been changing and repairing tyres. But even
within Canada every site has been affected
differently. Some sites had minor COVID-19
outbreaks so a lot of testing has been introduced.
There have also been some moves to operate
extended roster patterns to minimise mixing of
site staff and those coming from outside.”
Both highlighted some on-site aspects of tyre
management work that have generally been
governed by following the minesite protocols as a
minimum. In tyre fitting and repair areas there has
been demarcation of 2 m distancing, plus after
every shift tools eg skivving equipment is being
cleaned and not shared during shifts. Overall, onsite
tyre management facilities are quite self
contained so there is not a lot of mixing with other
mining staff anyway. And in many cases other
market factors have had a greater effect on
operations and therefore tyre demand than the
virus – in the Alberta oil sands for example, the
low oil prices have hit the industry more than
COVID-19 has.
TPMS and productivity to the fore
While tyre pressure monitoring systems or TPMS
as they are known, have been around for some
years, their nature as contact free technologies
has seen an increase in interest during the COVID-
19 pandemic.
Michelin’s Young comments: “Emerging from
the COVID-19 crisis, our customers are
increasingly interested in tyre-related services,
such as tyre and performance monitoring –
especially services that are contact-free. We have
seen an increase in interest in, and sales of, our
MICHELIN ® MEMS ® 4 service offer. MEMS4 is a
complete monitoring and reporting platform for
tyres and usage conditions. It monitors tyre
pressure and temperatures through sensors
mounted inside the tyres that integrate with a
mine’s network and Fleet Management System.
These contact-free sensors allow mines to keep
tabs on important tyre indicators through realtime
reports and alarms received on a dashboard
and through text and email. Further, MEMS4 uses
GPS and geo-fencing technology to help mines
monitor position, speeds and routes, analysing
roads and curves to maximise tyre performance.”
He adds: “We also have seen an increased
interest in how tyres can help mines increase their
productivity; in other words, how can the mine run
fewer trucks while maintaining the same
productivity targets or increase payloads safely
without overburdening the tyres. The
MICHELIN ® XDR ® 3 Extra Load tyre continues to be
in high demand. The innovative tyre technologies
in this tyre from the tread pattern to compounds
to corrosion-proof cables help mines increase
truck payload without sacrificing tyre life. The tire
offers better resistance to aggression and Extra
Load conditions, and mines are able to carry more
load with fewer trucks, which has a significant
impact on the bottom line. With the increased
uncertainty in the global economy, these factors
are more important than ever.”
Bridgestone buys iTrack and forms
ATMS
Bridgestone Corporation recently announced it
has completed the purchase of the iTrack
Solutions Business from UK-based Transense
Technologies PLC (Transense), which was
managed by a division called Translogik. iTrack is
a globally-preferred provider of tyre management
solutions for the off-the-road (OTR) vehicle
market. The business offers a comprehensive
TPMS specially designed for mining tyres. In
addition to tyre temperature and pressure
monitoring, the iTrack tyre management platform
provides customisable geofencing, speed alerts
and more to help mining customers optimise their
operations for increased productivity and profitability.
“This acquisition helps move Bridgestone
closer to its goal of becoming a leader in
sustainable and advanced mobility solutions,”
said Tomohiro Kusano, Vice President and Senior
Officer, Responsible for G-MAA (Mining, Aircraft,
Agriculture) Solutions Business, Bridgestone
Corporation. “As a global solutions provider,
Bridgestone will create new value for our
customers by delivering tyre and mobility-related
data that enhances their operations.”
Bridgestone entered into a joint collaboration
agreement with Transense in August 2019 and
began referring OTR customers to the iTrack
solutions platform at that time. Customer
response to the tyre management platform has
been overwhelmingly positive. Bridgestone will
expand this offering to additional OTR customers
as it fully integrates the solution into its portfolio.
To ensure a seamless transition, all employees of
the iTrack Solutions Business have joined
Bridgestone as part of the acquisition.
The deal was done in the
form of Transense granting an
exclusive worldwide licence to
ATMS Technology Ltd, a newlyformed
wholly owned subsidiary
of Bridgestone, covering all
current and future iTrack
technology for a period of ten
Bridgestone Corporation
recently announced it had
completed the purchase of
the iTrack TPMS business
from UK-based Transense
Technologies and has set up
a new company ATMS to
manage it
66 International Mining | JULY/AUGUST 2020