J. Smith & Sons has recently won the Innovative Mining Solution Award at the seventh annual Australian Mining Prospect Awards for its development of the Mk4 Hydrapede Dolly. Although Smiths was up against multi-national companies with deep pockets and a lot of resources, the innovative and timely development of the Hydrapede gained the judges attention.
With the development of small satellite mines throughout Australia has come the need for equipment that can haul longer distances between mines and crushing plant. Large dump-trucks, commonly used for carrying heavy payloads up the steep gradients found in open-cut pits, are not well-suited to transporting the same payload on low gradients over distance at higher speeds; transmissions and tyres over-heat and the monthly fuel bill becomes excessive, also reducing availability of equipment. Further, the dump-trucks can be up to 8m wide. Since mine regulations require a minimum road width of 3.5 times the width of the vehicle, the use of dump-trucks for long haul means that the infrastructure costs of building and maintaining the haul road for these large vehicles are prohibitive for remote satellite mines.
The Smith Hydrapede has been developed by the family-owned, Australian company, J. Smith & Sons, who saw the need for an alternative solution to this problem. Smith manufactures a range of heavy-duty on and off-highway trailers for the bulk-haulage transport task. For over 110 years, Smith's have developed a hard-fought reputation for strength, durability and quality; continuously improving their trailer design and manufacture techniques so as to withstand the extreme conditions encountered in the mining, agricultural and on-road environments. The Mk4 Hydrapede is the fruit of over ten year's research and development.
The Hydrapede can be operated within a two, three or four trailer combination. A standard three trailer combination, including Prime Mover, Lazy Gooseneck Dolly and Powered Dolly, spans over 61.5m. The same combination can haul a payload of 315t comfortably at a speed of 45mph (73kph) on long distance haul roads. It is also designed for use on gradients of up to 10%.
The operation of the Hydrapede is automated. The driver simply enables the Hydrapede when starting their shift and is not required to disable it until the end of the shift or for routine maintenance. The Hydrapede operates in the same manner either loaded or unloaded, always providing the required assistance. The tandem drive Mk4 tri-axle dolly is powered by a Cummins QSX15 diesel engine with a Roadranger 18 speed transmission. The engine is mounted above the chassis and the transmission below the chassis, these both connected by a series of hydraulic pumps and a hydraulic motor.
A CANbus network and a custom-built software program are used to fuse communications between Hydrapede components and other equipment in the combination. This technology is complimented by a remote diagnostics unit which gives service technicians at J. Smith & Sons access to the data and programming of any Hydrapede machine within the range of a satellite. This ensures equipment is always up and running in the most efficient timeframe possible.
The Smith Mk4 Hydrapede Dolly is the mining innovation solution for the 21st century.
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