Scania-PPC construction deal ensures efficient work

Investments continue to be made in construction-related equipment in spite of the fact that the industry is predicted to continue to experience moderate growth over the next few years.

Recently PPC took delivery of a number of new Scania vehicles at its facility in Slurry, North West. The delivery is part of an ongoing relationship between the two companies and an indicator of the migration from the use of conventional yellow metal haulers.

The PPC cement facility in Slurry now has a total of seven Scania G410CB8x4EHZ heavy mining tippers in its fleet.

Unique specifications

Andre Niemand, technical advisor for mining at the facility, says that Scania’s willingness to tailor-make the trucks to the company’s unique specifications, and lower total operating costs, were the main reasons behind the decision to team up with Scania.

With regards to the total operating cost, Niemand says that a cost saving of about 20% for maintenance is currently being achieved; this is in comparison with the conventional range of rigid haulers the PPC facility previously ran.

The truck has a lighter body which translates into increased payload and lower fuel consumption, according to Scania, with the company claiming fuel savings of as much as 50% when compared with the previous range of conventional yellow metal haulers.

Consultation

Scania SA and PPC Slurry entered into a consultation process on improvements, which have been made to the new range of tippers that were recently delivered. Notable improvements have been made to the bin, which was previously a major concern on the early Scania units that the PPC facility had acquired.

The bin has since been designed in line with the customer’s expectations. A double hydraulic cylinder was one of the key motivators of the sale as it addressed both safety and dumping speed concerns.

Says Niemand: “The dual hydraulic cylinders have since improved the speed of tipping and the stability of the bin. Early trials have indicated an improvement of about a minute in tipping time compared with the previous bins.”

Heavy-duty mining

The material used to make the bins is also suited for real heavy-duty mining, says Scania. The lifetime of the product has since improved through tackling all the stress points in the body. Inside of the bin, in an aim to reduce carry back, the bin corners have been engineered to a bath tub effect to allow for smooth flow of material.

Anders Friberg, GM — vehicle sales and export at Scania SA, says that PPC’s expansion of its Scania mining tipper fleet creates a footprint for the Swedish firm in its quest to grow this