Spotlight Feature Articles SURFACE DRILLING | Page 4

SURFACE DRILLING The DM30 II SP is designed to handle 4- to 6½- inch drill pipe with a hydraulic pulldown of up to 30,000 lbf (133.4 kN) and a hole diameter of 5½ to 7 7/8 inches (140-200 mm). A 36-foot single-pass tower option increases productivity for 29-to-36- foot drilling conditions by eliminating the need to add a second drill steel. Customers can choose a low- or high-pressure compressor to create the right configuration for their drilling operation. “Built off a proven platform and with the new single-pass capability, the DM30 II SP reduces the overall cost of production per tonne and improves transportability,” said Heino Hamman, Product Line Manager, Blasthole at Epiroc Drilling Solutions. “It offers high quality at an excellent value — and flexibility for the future.” Outfitted with a number of enhancements to help keep operators safe on the job, the DM30 II SP features a FOPS (Falling Object Protective Structure) cab, ground-level isolation and an airend safety shutdown system for high- temperature situations. A 300-gallon fuel tank allows the rig to continuously operate for more than 14 hours before refill. For increased operator comfort, the DM30 II SP features an insulated, pressurised, heated and cooled cab with tinted glass, a suspension seat, 80 dBA noise level and excellent visibility. All operational functions are controlled from the driller’s console, and the ergonomic layout allows operators to instantly switch from drilling to tramming for increased productivity. In addition, the electric-over-hydraulic controls are common across the DM series, making operation easy for drillers with DM series experience. The DM 30 II SP is a simple machine scalable to automated features. The DM Series drill rig can be equipped with on-board technology capabilities with the optional Epiroc Rig Control System (RCS) Lite for added safety and productivity. “Built on the RCS 5 platform that comes standard on the Pit Viper series, RCS Lite offers a number of safety and interlock features. It also provides a convenient foundation to add more functionality and technology options in the future without a major rebuild of the machine. RCS Lite allows all Epiroc rotary drills to have the same onboard display and system for consistent operator training and service. Epiroc has sold over 100 RCS Lite systems in 17 different countries around the world.” Komatsu’s new drill family Looking next at Komatsu, the most recent news for its surface drill line is its re-branding to Komatsu Drills. This was started with the introduction of the ZT44 (rebranded 44XT) at CONEXPO-CON/AGG in Las Vegas. (the “T” in ZT44 standing for track.) Komatsu told IM that this rebranding will provide a more unified and International Mining | APRIL 2020 consistent customer experience with the Komatsu brand, “which has a strong reputation in the industry for quality, reliability, insights and partnerships, recognised by our customers globally. We’re focused on matching the strategy and innovation tied with our growing drill product offering.” This was also Komatsu Drills’ first Tier 4 solution utilising a Cummins QSK19 with 800 hp. “The business has been very excited around the transformation. As track drills are engineered to be flexible in a variety of drilling applications, we recognised the need to match that machine versatility with an equally flexible business approach. Stocking these drills, ready for quick deployment, and delivered fully assembled to site now offers our customers an immediate turnaround for holes drilled.” The 44XT was recently put to work in a US copper mine where the machine reportedly excelled. “Initially serving as the choice for presplit drilling doing 5-1/2” holes, the penetration rates and availability offered additional productivity that enabled flexibility to shift into production patterns doing 7-7/8” holes. The maximum hole range goes to 8-1/2” using 20 ft rods to hit a max depth of 140 ft. The drill uses an 800 hp drivetrain and a true mining-duty 85,000-pound footprint for durability for drilling in various application duties.” Feedback from operators shows they have appreciated the machine’s ability to flex between high pressure 1,160 cfm at 500 psi or low pressure 1,360 cfm at 350 psi drilling. “This gives the operator an ability to adjust with more breaking pressure for really hard rock, or alternatively for deeper drilling where more bailing air is necessary to lift out of the hole. Ultimately, this results in better performance and drilling outcomes. We have also heard great feedback from service technicians around easy accessibility with service walkways that provide unobstructed access into the house canopy where routine maintenance can be performed.” The company also said that its surface drill line has experienced an increase in business as a result from integrating into the larger Komatsu family. “This has offered us further reach into an expanded customer base, providing drilling solutions. For example, we have achieved a nice milestone with manufacturing our 50th 320XPC drill for a customer on the Iron Range. The 320XPC fleet remains the choice drill for the most difficult drilling in the hardest rock. The 320XPC success has also carried us into new markets like Brazil through Komatsu Brazil Inc’s trusted relationship. Application of the 320XPC’s proven robust structural design of mitigating vibration combined with incoming power protection compensation for potential phase loss and phase rotation, offers improved performance.” In addition to continued success with its existing products, Komatsu is also developing a new drill that will be showcased at MINExpo 2020 that continues the success demonstrated on the 77XR. Supplementing the new products, the Komatsu surface product line is being supported through investment in training and certifying drill technicians with the new technology, which includes an emphasis on hands-on or on-the-job training. Another key piece is offering competitive Komatsu Finance packages for flexible options when mines are adding new Komatsu drills to their fleets. Homing in on the 77XR, Komatsu says since the launch, it has continued to focus on technology and innovation. “One way is through designing core subsystems that improves drilling accuracy. We have heard positive operator feedback on the higher torque increase offered, enabling more efficient drilling. Additional feedback has been on vibration mitigation, where things like the mast increased torsional stiffness puts more energy into ground and not the structure, and the lower works, lower center of gravity with increased positioning, tractive effort, and turnability enable a smoother ride. We have also found that our levelling system has resulted in quicker cycles by keeping the deck close to the ground, enabling effective straight holes.” Another way the 77XR development team has continued to improve technology is through seamless integration and usage. “We have created a user interface that offers intuitive prompts for operator awareness – what went right/wrong and telling them why. The machine is set up to be an on-going lesson, continuously teaching the operator, while reducing the need to flip through many screens. Additionally, converting a sequence of procedures into one-touch button control for semi-autonomous operation aides in performance optimisation. We have also found that our supervisory control system (known as LINCS), significantly reduces complex troubleshooting. More importantly, the system logs all the data needed to optimise drilling performance. Pointing you to the fundamental source of data, pre-sorting the key indicators. Operationally, we know sites will have multiple operators running the drill, with different operational preferences. Data analytics on board and off board the drill enables ‘operator scorecards’ to identify best practices to offer tools to increase performance of the other less- experienced drillers. Examples include increasing rotational speed, or more pulldown, or setup time, or carriage speed, or too much water injection caving the hole – whatever is necessary to achieve best practices.” The 77XR has already gone to work in several different applications, the most recent of which is coal mining in Australia. This is a dynamic