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Comments Off on Bar Tread Track for Cat® 239D, 249D and 259D Compact Track Loaders
News

Bar Tread Track for Cat® 239D, 249D and 259D Compact Track Loaders

Caterpillar is pleased to announce the availability of a bar-style rubber track factory option for the 239D, 249D and 259D Compact Track Loader models. Similar to the conventional ‘block’ tread rubber track, the internal construction of the bar- tread rubber track incorporates steel imbeds and longitudinal steel cords. However, the bar-tread rubber track option differentiates itself in its ability to minimize ground disturbance and provide low ground pressure, making it ideal for landscapers who perform finish grade work. The new bar-style option features a 400 mm (15.7 in) tread with narrowly spaced bars. This leaves behind a series of narrow, parallel ridges that

are easily knocked down with a rake prior to installing sod or other finished product. The bar-style rubber track tread also offers extra traction when operating in snow, especially compared to the traditional ‘block’ tread pattern. The bar- style track will allow these CTL models to be even more versatile by making jobs, such as grading or snow clearing, less time-consuming and less intensive.

The bar-style tread tracks are also being released as service replacement parts. They can be used as a direct service replacement for the block-style tread CTL track offering and can be retrofitted directly to the models listed below. No additional undercarriage modifications are required when retrofitting these tracks.

image1

Distribution

Bar-style tread tracks are available as indicated in the tables below.

Bar Tread Track Part Number

Price List Option

Description

Model

420-9886

Track – Bar Tread (400 mm/15.7 in width)

239D, 249D

454-6049*

Track – Bar Tread (400 mm/15.7 in width)

259D

*Available with November 2015 build. Sanford will accommodate configuration changes to orders within the normal order change guidelines where possible.

Service Part Number

Description

Model

Availability

420-9892

Track – Bar Tread (400 mm/15.7 in width)

239D, 249D

Now

454-6048

Track – Bar Tread (400 mm/15.7 in width)

259D, 259B3

November 2015

For additional information contact:

SSL/MTL/CTL Product Marketing

Kevin Coleman

Sr. Project Engineer – Americas North and South, Australia (919) 465-2774
Coleman_Kevin@cat.com

Jeff Brown

Sr. Project Engineer – Americas North and South, Australia (919) 465-2818
Brown_Jeff_S@cat.com

S. Henry Long

Sr. Project Engineer – Europe, Africa, Middle East +44 1455 825712
Long_S_Henry@cat.com

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Comments Off on “Space.. The Final Frontier”
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“Space.. The Final Frontier”

Mining robots key to colonizing Mars — Elon Musk

You can read the entire article here: http://www.mining.com

SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk, who last month revealed details of his ambitious plans to get at least a million people to Mars, said mining robots will be a key part of the planned colonization of the red planet.

In reply to several inquiries during a question-and-answer “AMA” session on Reddit on Sunday, the tech billionaire — who also heads electric-vehicle specialist Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) — highlighted the vital role mining equipment is set to play when it comes to help people establish their homes in Mars.

Musk envisions geodesic domes on the surface that would have additional areas digged out below the surface by mining robots.

He said he envisions geodesic domes on the surface made with glass panes supported by carbon fibre frames. Such structures would have additional areas mined out below the surface by robots for “industrial” uses.

“Initially, glass panes with carbon fibre frames to build geodesic domes on the surface, plus a lot of miner/tunnelling droids,” Musk wrote. “With the latter, you can build out a huge amount of pressurized space for industrial operations and leave the glass domes for green living space.”

Concerning transporting those heavy machines as well as materials and people, Musk said that the first crewed mission would have about a dozen people, who will be tasked with building out and troubleshooting the propellant plant and Mars Base Alpha power system once it lands.

He also said it would be a year or two before the company releases mock-ups of habitation environments.

arriving-at-mars

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News

What a drone sees flying through a stope

The use of drones never ceases to amaze me, and oftentimes, I sit back and say, “why didn’t I think of that?” Who knew that the use of a drone could be put to such good use?

The original story appeared here: www.mining.com

Newmarket Gold (TSX-NMI) is developing a drone to inspect open stopes, map walls and conduct emergency response.

The video of the drone flight, posted by Newmarket Gold, was shot in the company’s Fosterville Mine.

“We designed and built our own drone last year,” said Ion Hann, Mine Manager of the Fosterville Gold Mine.

“The aim was to develop a way of inspecting our open stopes for misfires etc and to geologically map the walls where possible to reconcile visuals against the model.

“We hope to get to the stage where a drone becomes standard kit for our emergency response teams—especially in search and rescue in the underground environment. We think the possibilities here are tremendous. The opportunities of using the unit to assist with operator training on the job are also apparent, i.e. the unit sending live feed back to a trainer while an operator bogs a heading.”

Hann says the ultimate goal is to get the unit fully autonomous so that it can perform mine re-entry duties and site inspection duties while operators are still on the surface at shift change.

The unit has a range of about 150 metres line of sight and a bit less when going around corners.

Hat tip, Mining Mayhem

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Comments Off on Lucapa unearths 172.6-carat diamond, second big find in a week
News

Lucapa unearths 172.6-carat diamond, second big find in a week

Gem is the sixth diamond over 100 carats to be pulled from Australian company’s Lulo mine in Angola

You can read the entire article here: http://www.mining.com

Is 2016 the year of the “rock”? It certainly seems like it, with another 100+carat diamond unveiled today by Lucapa Diamond Company Ltd. (ASX:LOM)

The Perth-based diamond miner was quick to announce the discovery of the 172.6-carat D-colour, Type IIa stone from its Lulo mine in Angola. The rare gem tops the 104-carat stone, also a D-colour Type IIa, which Lulo pulled on September 21 from Lulo.

And earlier this month, Lucapa stirred imaginations with the recovery of a 38.6-carat pink diamond. The coloured stone is the largest “fancy” pink diamond recovered to date from Lulo, surpassing a 28.5-carat light pink diamond, which sold as part of a parcel of other rocks for a total of AUD$5.8 million said the company.

In February Lucapa found what it said is the largest diamond ever recovered in Angola, a 404.2-carat stone which sold for AUD$22.5 million. The huge rock bested Angola’s previous record for its largest diamond, the Angolan Star, a 217.4-carat gem recovered in 2007.

So far Lucapa has unearthed six diamonds over 100 carats from the Lulo diamond project. Located 150km from Alrosa’s Catoca mine, the world’s fourth largest diamond mine, Lulo hosts Type IIa diamonds which account for less than 1% of global supply.

 

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Uncategorized

Komatsu at Mine Expo 2016

I had the privilege of attending the 2016 Mine Expo in Las Vegas last week. I knew that I would see heavy equipment, but I was not prepared for the “extent” of the heavy equipment I would be able to view. I was blown away by everything, especially CAT’s extensive layout, however one piece of equipment just made a major impression on me and it was Komatsu’s Innovative Autonomous Haulage Vehicle. The sheer size of the vehicle, was nothing compared to the fact that it is completely cab-less. I couldn’t wrap my brain around the fact that it didn’t need a “driver” to do its job. I know autonomous vehicles are being used already by many mines and other companies make these, but something about this one, just struck me.

img_0092

This vehicle is spectacular and boasts many specifications that are advantageous to the Mining sector.

“..Unlike 930E and 830E autonomous models, Komatsu has newly developed this vehicle exclusively as an unmanned vehicle designed to maximize the advantages of unmanned operation. Komatsu plans a market introduction in the near future. By distributing equal load to the four wheels both when the vehicle is loaded and unloaded, and adopting four-wheel drive, retarder and steering, Komatsu is aiming for high-performance shuttling of this vehicle in both forward and reverse travel directions, thereby totally eliminating the need for K-turns at loading and unloading sites. In particular, Komatsu expects that this new vehicle will considerably improve the productivity at mines where existing unmanned haulage vehicles face challenging conditions, such as slippery ground due to frequent rain/snow fall as well as confined spaces for loading.“

It’s specs include:

  • Nominal Gross Vehicle Weight: 416 metric tons
  • Nominal Payload: 230 metric tons
  • Gross power output: 2014kW (2700HP)
  • Maximum Speed: 64Km/h
  • Turning Radius: 15.9m
  • Total Length: 15m
  • Total Width: 8.5m
  • Tire Size: 59/80R63

See for yourself why this vehicle is truly innovative! You can read about it here: http://www.komatsu.com/CompanyInfo/press/2016092705594127458.html

 

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CAT S60 Phone

You’ve read that right. CAT has a smart phone. They actually have several smart phone models, but today I want to introduce you to the S60.

WHAT IS THE CAT S60?

The CAT S60 is one of the most interesting smartphones. Featuring a rugged, near-indestructible chassis, the S60 is the first phone with a built-in thermal imaging sensor. This acts as a useful tool in a variety of work, DIY and extreme sports environments. This, combined with its top-notch hardware and software, make it the ideal choice for everyone from adrenaline junkies to professionals working in hazardous environments.

The CAT S60 puts function over fashion, and as a result looks different to a regular consumer smartphone. The device is built from a mixture of a hardened polymer and sturdy metal. The side-facing microSD and Nano SIM ports are covered with plugs, and the front’s adorned with a chunky bezel and clicky physical home, back and menu buttons. Some people will be put off by the design, especially when they realise that, at 12.7mm thick, it’s almost twice as chunky as a regular smartphone, The design is entirely fit for purpose and and boasts what a rugged smartphone should. For starters it’s close to indestructible. You won’t get away with driving a car over it, but with regular use you’ll struggle to put a dent in the S60. CAT quotes the phone as being drop-proof from heights up to 1.8m. It’s waterproof to depths of 5m, and impressively scratch-proof. The microSD port lets you add a further 256GB of space to the phone’s built-in 32GB of storage, which will be handy for professionals who regularly need to save images recorded using the S60’s thermal sensor.

The CAT S60’s powered by a Snapdragon 617 octa-core processor and 3GB of RAM. It’s not the most recent processor out there, but it gets the job done. Apps open very quickly and navigating menu screens is very easy. The CAT S60’s use of Android Marshmallow is a huge step up from previous smart phone versions.  The CAT S60 comes with a basic 13-megapixel rear camera and secondary FLIR thermal imaging sensor. The thermal imaging sensor is the phone’s stand-out feature. The thermal sensor is based on MSX thermal imaging camera tech and can be used to capture pictures or shoot video in infrared. It’s accurate at distances up to 30m and can be used in a variety of ways, including highlighting temperature contrasts and identifying hot and cold spots. The battery can last up to 24 hours with simple use, but quite a bit less than that with regular use (Read: playing games and answering emails) and streaming.

It is the best rugged phone money can buy, but it won’t be for everyone.

To find out more about this phone and where you can get it, go to: http://www.catphones.com/en-us

Want to WIN this phone? Go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgFdvNH8ejs to find out how!

s60-close-up-back s60-front

 

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Caterpillar targets aggregate market with new equipment

Caterpillar releases new equipment: medium wheel loaders, articulated haul trucks, and wheel tractor scrapers.

Caterpillar recently released a number of new machines targeted towards the aggregates market. For the first time ever, a group of trade editors were invited to the AGG1 (Aggregates Academy & Expo) to witness live demonstrations.  Among the new applications include wheel loader models, articulated trucks, and a scraper.  Caterpillar’s group president of resources industries stated “We are certainly in challenging times but we are very committed to those industries.”  Caterpillar is the heavy equipment manufacturer industry leader and has invested $2 billion into research and development concentrating particularly on optimizing assists and connecting them by integrating the same technology found in automobiles and cell phones.

Medium Wheel Loaders

Caterpillar’s M Series Wheel Loaders in the 950M, 962M, 966M, 966M XE, 972M, 972M XE, 980M, and 982M. The upgrades include 3 new focus points: adding safety features, optimizing site efficiency, and reducing operating costs.  The new Caterpillar wheel loaders feature the following:

  • Product Link Elite – allows for quicker communication to the office
  • Cat Production Measurement v1.2 – lets the machine operator navigate truck and material identification lists via the monitor in a more time efficient manner
  • Cat Rear Object Detect System – radar-based sensor that notifies the operator of objects behind the machine. Not only does it sense objects, but it also detects how quickly the operator is approaching said object.
  • External seat belt indicator – safety feature
  • Variable ground speed limiter – reduces fuel usage

Caterpillar 982M

Articulated haul trucks

Caterpillar introduced the Tier 4 Final: 725C2, 730C2, and 730C2 EJ articulated dump trucks. An algorithm is able to record the weight of the machines throughout its cycle.  Scott Thompson, one of Cat’s senior product specialists, states “No longer will operators under load or over load that machine.”  The new series of Caterpillar haul trucks features the following:

  • Use of wet brakes – allows for increased breaking performance and reduced machine downtime
  • Automatic traction control – automatic engagement of both inter and cross-axle differentials, making the machines easier to operate (all machines now have this feature)
  • Cat Production Measurement System – notifies driver and loader operator of load capacity. With the first load, a green light signals that the system is working. Once the load reaches 75%, a red light signals them of the upcoming last pass. A solid red light notifies them that the truck is at 75%.

Caterpillar 730C2

Wheel Tractor Scrapers

Caterpillar released two new Tier 4 wheel tractor-scrapers: 631K and 637K. Both of these new applications replaced the existing 630G and feature the following:

  • Design updates include: high pressure steering, engine-over-speed protections, tire-spin reduction, differential-lock-engagement protection, and machine/ground-sped control
  • Four optional technologies include: Grade for Scrapers, Grade with Sequence Assist, Grade with Load Assist, and Payload for Scrapers.

Caterpillar 637K

Read full article.

heavy equipment undercarriage
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Heavy Equipment

Tips for heavy equipment

Protect your assets: Guide for heavy equipment.

If you own heavy equipment, you already know that undercarriage maintenance plays a vital role in the overall productivity of your machine. Routine maintenance and appropriate operation can be very cost effective for your company as well as extend the life span of your machine.  Listed below are just a few of the proper maintenance and operating practices.

  • Inspect your machine daily. This should be your top priority. Be sure to look for excessive wear and damaged or missing components.
  • Investigate your track tension. If your track is too tight, it can create added load. If your track is too loose, it can cause instability and derailment.
  • Maintain cleanliness. Always remove excess mud and debris from the machine.
  • Knowledge of track widths plays a vital role in your undercarriage life. Know your surroundings. Look for firm ground conditions, soft and swampy ground conditions, slopes, and low impact/highly abrasive ground conditions. Take all of this into consideration.
  • Train, Train, Train!! Keep resources handy – i.e. manuals. An adequately trained employee will follow the best maintenance and operating practices.

Vast Management International, Inc. has had direct contact with large mining companies, equipment manufacturers, and dealers for 10+ years. We know the business and will assist you with any questions you may have concerning your heavy equipment.

By working closely with construction, aggregate, and mining sectors throughout the OTR Tire industry, Vast Management International Inc. can guide you in the right direction!

How clean is your machine? 

Click here to read for more tips.

 

 

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Comments Off on Load More, Make More
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Load More, Make More

Caterpillar is at it again! The new 6015B Hydraulic Shovel provides superior stability, extending component life, and improved machine uptime. It bears a significant productivity advantage over other 100-tonne shovels. Thanks to its large standard bucket, powerful engine, and payload capacity of 14.6 tonnes, this new equipped shovel is leading in its class. Magnify your probability!

C10724805The new 6015B Hydraulic Shovel:

  • Efficient Operation
  • Reliable Performance
  • Safe and Comfortable

Vast Management International has built one of the largest networks by working directly with mining companies, equipment manufacturers, and dealers. With this network and our extensive procurement experience, Vast can procure and deliver globally. If you want it, we can get it!