Banks Mining invest in Komatsu dumptrucks
Surface coal mine operator acquires six new Komatsu HD785-7 rigid dumptrucks in deal worth more than £4 million
BANKS Mining and Marubeni-Komatsu Ltd (MKL) have concluded a deal for six new Komatsu HD785-7 rigid dumptrucks representing a total package value of more than £4 million.
The initial three HD785-7 trucks, the first to be supplied to Banks Mining, have been sent to work at the Brenkley surface coal mine, near Dinnington, in the north-east of England. Operations at Brenkley started earlier this year and will involve the removal of around 2.4 million tonnes of coal and 200,000 tonnes of fireclay from the mine over the next 11.5 years.
Commenting on the deal with MKL, Harry Banks, chairman and chief executive of the Banks Group, said: ‘We were very impressed with the enthusiasm and belief MKL have in both their truck and product support. They had the confidence to demonstrate their HD785-7 for us and it performed excellently. It has proved to be quick, productive and fuel efficient, and importantly for us, it’s a very quiet machine too.’
The HD785-7 is powered by a Komatsu SAA12V140E-3 engine that delivers 1,200hp at 1,900 rev/min. To optimize performance and fuel consumption, the engine is fitted with a variable horsepower control (VHPC). This system sets the maximum engine power to one of four levels to match the job being carried out to the working conditions.
Komatsu’s electronically controlled clutch modulation system K-ATOMiCS, provides control of both the engine and transmission to optimize clutch engagement. Combined with a ‘skipshift’ function that automatically matches the travel speed to the incline, this system ensures smooth gear shifting and responsive acceleration.
Derek White, director/general manager product support with MKL, commented: ‘This is a really significant deal for MKL, with a leading company in an important industry sector, and we have worked very hard to secure it.
‘In order to exceed Banks’ expectations of excellent product support, we have further invested and strengthened our local support infrastructure. A local team of field service engineers will service and maintain the trucks. We have already installed an office and parts storage facility on site and, additionally, we will keep further parts support stock at our depot in Chester-le-Street.
‘Another key feature that will ensure we keep the new Komatsu trucks in optimum shape is Komtrax Plus fitted with an Orbcomm controller. This satellite-based diagnostic system negates the need for an engineer to visit the machine to manually download data. The Orbcomm controller transfers the data, via satellite, to a website accessible by both MKL and Banks Mining. The data updates after every 20h of operation and provides detailed operational, statistical and trend data.’
