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New drill logistically self-sufficient

OPERATOR SAFETY To ensure that the operator is safe, the drill can be controlled remotely using a wired controller

CONFINED CONDITIONS The drill is capable of being operated in smaller areas than conventional drills

Photo by Duane Daws

31st March 2017

By: Victor Moolman

Creamer Media Writer

     

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The new track-mounted VersaMobile KmN.8UM drill from mining equipment manufacturer VersaDrill Canada is self-sufficient to the point that it does not need mine vehicle involvement to facilitate its transportation when operating underground.

This is the first VersaMobile drill developed by VersaDrill that has been built to reduce the moving time between drill bays. The drill reduces the overall number of vehicles required in an underground mine.

The 9 666 kg steel drill has a depth capacity of 800 m and was officially launched at the 2017 Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada international yearly convention, held in Toronto earlier in March.

The drill took several months of development and design to be finalised and can be ordered from the company’s head office and delivered to any mine in the world.

VersaDrill Canada CEO Pietro De Ciccio explains that the fully mobile hybrid electric-powered drill’s diesel engine can operate for four hours underground before needing to be refuelled. The engine is used only for the drill’s displacement, mobilisation and demobilisation, while the drilling equipment is powered by the hybrid electric system.

The remote-controlled drill uses a wired controller, increasing the safety of operating the drill in confined underground mining spaces, which tend to be unsafe. It offers improved manoeuvrability in constrained underground mining operating conditions using tracks instead of wheels, which enables the drill to traverse through rougher areas of a mine.

“With the VersaMobile KmN.8UM drill’s design, we aim to overcome the space restriction challenge associated with underground mining, allowing for its ease of movement, mobilisation and demobilisation while . . . reducing set-up time from site to site,” he says.

De Ciccio explains that set-up time for the drill, compared with conventional underground drills, is reduced by seven to eight hours, which overcomes the logistical challenge relating to the time-consuming process of moving drills to new locations.

The drill is compact enough to fit inside a standard 2.4 m × 2.6 m shipping container for transportation to site; therefore, transporting the drill to remote locations is easy.

“The drill will suit narrow mines and big underground mines with a displacement clearance of 8' wide and 9' high, requiring a minimal clearance for operations in deploy mode of 7.3 m × 7.3 m × 4.2 m,” De Ciccio says, adding that from its pivot area, the drill can operate at 90º up or down.

“The drill has a built-in working platform, which considerably reduces the time required to move between bays by having operators and assistants travel around the drill in a safe area. “The drill is also equipped with the company’s Zero Energy security system, which facilitates the safety of driller assistants through warning systems.”

De Ciccio adds that a drill operator qualification is required to use the drill, with qualified VersaDrill technicians available to assist with start-up and in training at any mining site, with training lasting only a few days for already qualified drill technicians.

VersaDrill’s manufacturing premises is in Val D’or, Canada, from which it can deliver a drill within a few months, time taken for delivery depending on where it has to be delivered, after an order has been placed.

Edited by Tracy Hancock
Creamer Media Contributing Editor

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