John Lee from Lampson tells ABHR about Australia’s first Dragline and Shovel.
In Australia the first Dragline was relocated on Lampson’s crawler transporters. BHP required two of its used machines to relocate from Gregory to the growing Blackwater Super-pit in Queensland’s Bowen Basin.
The 2550 tonne Marion 8050 Dragline was raised by jacks to allow removal of the tub and walking shoes then installation of three Lampson crawler transporters.
The Crawler Transporters are the tracks component of the massive Lampson Transi-Lift crane, each with four V8 engines and large surface area tracks for low ground bearing pressure.
A path between the coal mines was lightly graded or filled as required to allow passage of the Crawlers with the Dragline on top; the resulting GBP was 160 kPa.
Subsequent development of the Lampson Dragline Relocation System LCT-6000 involved three CT-2000’s and a walk-on/ walk-off frame; this system did not require Dragline disassembly prior to loading.
This arrangement has since been utilised on many occasions and it has proven to significantly minimise wear on dragline components and reduce the costs of travel path preparation.
The speed of travel is also a favourable attribute being six times faster than a Dragline’s normal self-propulsion. This means the amount of downtime is also reduced before the machine can return to moving overburden again.
The first face shovel moved by Lampson was a shovel nicknamed “Rocky” at Ravensworth Coal Mine in the Hunter Valley. The shovel walked onto a pair of 18 axle Goldhofer Self Propelled Modular Trailers for a short trip across an internal mine bridge to allow access other parts of the coal mine.
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At that time the face shovel was ready for an overhaul and was not able to the walk. The SPMT also avoided the need for laying power cables for the electric machine.
The current day transport of excavators, face shovels or diggers in QLD and NSW sees multiple relocations occurring per month. Lampson has increased the frequency and efficiency of these events such that a 20-axle platform trailer will move a 600-tonne excavator with just a few experienced personnel in a single shift.
These trailers are also used to move modules or other over-sized loads onto barges, around sites or throughout phases of fabrication. During assembly of a new reclaimer or for the disassembly and removal of obsolete equipment Lampson has moved components and completed units with Crawlers Transporters or SPMT.
Iron Ore or Coal Blending Yard Reclaimers typically arrive or depart their working location in large components. SPMT are perfectly suited to these operations however Crawler Transporters have their application too; with a small footprint the crawler can be a good solution where tight space and high loads require them.
Lampson continues to provide transport solutions with self-propelled trailers and crawler transporters across Australia.
Lampson has been moving reclaimers, face-shovels, draglines and excavators since the mid 1990s.