A CAT 793C uses approximately 1055 gallons (4000 litres) per 24 hours.
At a flow rate of 80gpm/ 300lpm refuelling will take 13.1 minutes per vehicle.
Using Banlaw Hi Flow with a refuelling rate of 265gpm/ 1000lpm, it takes just 3.98 minutes per vehicle.
The Banlaw Hi Flow system delivers a saving of 9 minutes per truck, per 24 hours.
Coupled with Banlaw’s zero pressure, zero spill technology, at each refuelling every machine is filled to capacity with no waste through spillage. Operating time is maximised and the refuelling operation causes minimal environmental impact by eliminating the risk of spillage.
Assuming a mine life of 10 years, this daily time saving equates to an additional 547 hours of production time per vehicle.
The same level of production could be achieved with one less truck, due to the increase in tonnes / hour / truck. Consequently, production quotas are readily achievable – or existing quotas can be revised upwards.
The net bottom line gain is a significant increase in profit.
In terms of diesel excavators, the benefits derived from installing Banlaw’s Hi-Flow system are equally impressive.
Which ever brand excavator is used, fuel consumption rates are an average 2640 gallons or 10000 litres per 24 hours.
Refuelling at 80gpm/ 300lpm will take 33 minutes per vehicle.
At the Banlaw Hi Flow rate of 265gpm/ 1000lpm, it takes just 9.9 minutes per vehicle.
A total time saving of 23.1 minutes / excavator / 24 hours
Based on the same assumptions of 10 year mine life, the savings achievable are:
- An increase in production time of 1405 hours/ excavator
- A significant increase in tones/hour/machine in production
In one South African mine a production increase of 30% in one year was realized through the installation of the Banlaw Hi Flow refueling system.
Another Australian operator in the ore mining sector increased their refueling rates for just ONE haul truck from 80gpm / 300lpm to 184gpm / 700lpm. This resulted in an increase in bottom line gains of $1 million in the first year. They are now installing the Banlaw Hi Flow system across the entire operation.
Banlaw’s proven technology can help you to work smarter and at the same time considerably improve your bottom line results.Download Our Hi FLow brochure (pdf~76KB)
Underground Mining Applications
Tahmoor Colliery is an underground longwall operation in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, (Australia). The mine produces approximately 1.72 million tonnes per annum of coking coal.
Tahmoor operates up to 30 diesel powered machines. Refuelling of the machines was by gravity fill from the main storage tanks into machines above ground, and by standard splash fill nozzles from fuel pods into the machines at the underground face. The splash fill nozzle forced fuel into the tanks under constant pump pressure.
Problems with personnel safety, fuel contamination and high maintenance costs on fuel related systems on the machines led to Tahmoor contacting Banlaw to assist in finding a solution for their refuelling related problems.
Mine management had identified a specific set of problems and concerns related to their existing refuelling methods.
When refuelling with the splash fill nozzle, the automatic cut off would not always operate automatically when the tank was full. Diesel splashbacks were common, in some cases affecting the hands and eyes of operators.
Besides wastage of fuel, the splashbacks also meant that significant site contamination was occurring at the refuelling stations, with the potential for serious impacts on groundwater and the surrounding land.
Because of the inherently dirty environment at the coal face, dirt and other contaminants entering the machine’s fuel circuit was causing unacceptably high maintenance costs. The mine was replacing up to 10 diesel injector pumps per year. OH&S related issues added an additional urgency to the need to resolve their problems.
The Banlaw Solution
A Banlaw RFS system was chosen as providing the best solution for Tahmoor. Being a fully sealed system with dry break connection between the nozzle and the machine, plus automatic fuel flow cut off when the tank is full, the Banlaw system resolved the problems associated with splashback and fuel circuit contamination of the machines were completely eliminated.
The most telling result for the mine from an operational point of view was a significant reduction in maintenance costs on their machines with an 80% reduction compared to levels prior to the Banlaw RFS system being installed. In 10 years of operation with Banlaw, the mine is replacing one diesel injector motor every five years, compared to the 10 per year prior to installing Banlaw RFS. An added bonus is the reduction in machine downtime.
The safety and environmental performance of the mine is also enhanced by the elimination of the potential for fuel spills during refuelling.
Tahmoor’s experiences are typical of those encountered in all underground mines. In Australia mines that have chosen to install the Banlaw RFS system have seen a raft of benefits including improved operator safety during refuelling, environmentally friendly zero fuel spillage and significant savings on maintenance due to the inherently cleaner fuel being delivered to their machines.
