Capital Equipment News February 2017

Tipper truck manufacturers are continuously improving their product offerings to challenge for a bigger share of hauling functions in sectors such as mining and quarrying, where these vehicles previously had a minimal role. By Munesu Shoko TIPPING INTO NEW APPLICATIONS Volvo Trucks offers tipper vehicles with 6x4, 8x4 and 10x4 axle configurations.

on critical optimisation of operational efficiencies, tippers offer cost-effective hauling solutions that can significantly reduce operating costs for local mines and quarries. But, are local fleet owners ready to ditch their “bigger is always better” mentality and opt for tippers at the expense of the tried and tested yellow metal haulers? Relooking hauling equipment Roelof Wallace, Astra sales manager at CNH Industrial, says due to the current economic status of South Africa and other African countries at large, fleet owners are starting to look at on-highway options, which are somehow cheaper than their ADT counterparts. Elvis Mutseura, product marketing manager at Iveco South Africa, says every business is looking for ways to increase the gap between earnings and operating costs. As a result, local fleet owners are fast realising that there are applications previously serviced by conventional haulers

U ntil recently, tipper trucks were identified as vehicles with restricted hauling functions in construction- related applications only. In mining and quarrying, tippers have always been regarded as ideal for light duty applications such as re-handling of ore and hauling of crushed material from the crushing plants to stockpiles. For long, tipper vehicles have been excluded from so- called arduous applications such as hauling run of mine material from the rock face to the processing plants, where yellow metal haulers, mostly articulated dump trucks (ADTs) and rigid dump trucks (RDTs), have thrived over the years. However, passing through immense

innovative technological modifications, tipper trucks now offer both cost effective dumping and haulage solutions to the construction, mining, quarrying and related industries. The new models of tipper trucks have been reengineered to their core. They come with better ground clearance, allowing them to operate well on uneven work sites. The trucks have newer tyre variants with better frictional properties, thus allowing them to conquer rough, muddy and slippery terrain. In developed markets, tippers are no strangers in mine and quarry pits, but their uptake in such applications in the local environment has been slow in coming. However, OEMs argue that at a time when the success of every operation depends

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS FEBRUARY 2017 32