Author: Jari Silver

WestConnex: helping to ease future traffic in Sydney

Posted on by Jari Silver

Ever since World War II, the motor car, more than anything, has been the driving force behind urban development in Sydney, Australia’s largest city.

To fight the constant traffic congestion, major investments in infrastructure have been made in the car-dependent city over the last decade. In addition to public transport such as light rail lines and the metro system, these include several motorway projects. WestConnex, the largest of them, has been described as the biggest transport project in Sydney and all of Australia since the Harbour Bridge.

WestConnex, in operation since 2015, is a joint project of the New South Wales and Australian governments. It includes a widening of the M4 Motorway, a new section for the M5 South-West Motorway, and a new bypass of the Sydney central business district connecting the M4 and M5.

The M4–M5 Link Tunnels are the most important stage of WestConnex, providing a vital connection between two of Sydney’s busiest motorways.

Tunneling work, a joint venture between Lendlease, Samsung C&T, and Bouygues (LSBJV), takes place on three separate sites: St Peters Interchange, Haberfield, and Pyrmont Bridge Road.

Drilling began in April 2019. It involves Top Hammer drilling of holes for ground support at all three sites. The supply contract of TH consumables was awarded to Hard Metal Industries (HMI), Robit’s Australian dealer.

“The contract covers the supply of shanks, rods, bits and couplings to LSBJV. Together with HMI we beat off stiff competition from a number of other suppliers”, says Technical Sales Representative Richard Epstein, Robit Australia.

The supply of Robit tools is expected to continue into late 2020. The entire WestConnex project is scheduled to be finished by 2023. Once completed, it will help thousands of motorists by easing congestion on the M4 and the M5, making their daily commute a great deal quicker and safer.

Moving Thailand’s FREIGHT TO RAIL

Posted on by Jari Silver

Moving freight across a large, busy country like Thailand is an expensive business. Thailand’s logistical overhead is around 1.75 trillion baht (€50 billion) per year. To cut this overhead, the Thai government has started an ambitious program aiming to move a large amount of road and air freight to rail.

Thailand has about 4,000 km of rail network, most of which is single track. In order to boost the role of rail – currently carrying only 2 % of Thailand’s freight – the government plan includes doubling large parts of the single-track railroads.

One of the double tracks to be laid in the first phase (2018–2022) is the 120 km stretch on the Northeastern main line from Map Kabao to Thanon Chira Junction in the central part of the country. This involves the excavation of three new tunnels.

Two of the tunnel sites are located in Saraburi province, some 150 km northeast from Bangkok, and one in Nakhon Ratchasima province, 200 km from Bangkok. The main contractor for the work is Right Tunnelling (RT), who Robit have been supplying with rock tools for several years.

Drilling work began in January 2019. “We signed a consignment agreement for the job sites with RT in March. It covers a full set of our tools, including bits, rods, couplings and shanks. Things have run smoothly”, says Yong Woo Jeon, Distributor Business Manager for Robit in the region.

Once completed, Tunnel 1 near Map Kabao – a twin tunnel, 1.4 km each – will be the longest railway tunnel in Thailand. Tunnel 3 at Khlong Phai, Nakhon Ratchasima, will also be a relatively long twin tunnel (1 km each).

Moving a tonne of freight by road costs almost twice as much per kilometre as by rail. The railway project is still in its early stages, but once finished, Thailand can expect huge savings in logistical costs every year.

Meet us at RETC 2019 – one-of-a-kind tunneling event in Chicago, USA

Posted on by Jari Silver

Meet us at the RETC 2019, Rapid Excavation and Tunneling Conference, June 16-19 in Chicago, USA.
You will find us at our stand #509.

We’ll introduce you the patented Robit® RoX Casing Systems series for forepoling. It allows easy driving of the casing tubes into the ground with low torque demand. In modern forepoling also fiberglass casings can be used for ultra-long facebolts.

Robit team will be delighted to tell you more about our tunnelling products and also other drilling consumables in our offering.

Welcome to meet us at RETC 2019!

Robit Team

Welcome to Exponor Chile 2019 – The Global Technology And Innovation Show For The Mining Industry

Posted on by Jari Silver

Join us at Exponor, comprehensive showcase of the products, services, innovations, advances and improvements offered by mining and industrial suppliers to the global market. Exponor brings together the latest breakthroughs in the mining sector, and offers the chance to gain inside knowledge on future investments and expert viewpoints, as well as making contact with Robit professionals with one thing in common: mining

Exhibition will be held between May 27th – 30th, 2019, Antofagasta – Chile.

You will find us at the booth #675, pavilion Lithium.

Warmly welcome, Robit team

Robit DTH Prime – solid success after teething troubles

Posted on by Jari Silver

The product development of drilled piles is constantly advancing. Stronger steel grades set ever higher demands on wear parts such as ring bits. What’s more, piling often has to be performed in densely built environments, which poses risks as pressurized air escapes from drilling holes, eroding the surrounding ground.

To answer these challenges, Robit started the development of the DTH Prime product family in 2015. Originally it included ring bits in six sizes (114.3–323.9 mm) and matching pilots. The ring bits were designed to be used with both welded and threaded tubes. The Flow Control method would prevent air from escaping into the surrounding ground.

The first tests proved the concept as workable. After some minor changes the next batch was delivered to selected customers – and in the field, teething troubles began to emerge. “A contractor tested the Prime at the Tampere Deck and Arena site and found the performance less than satisfactory. Another contractor had problems too: the Flow Control did not work as expected”, Robit’s Sales Manager Sami Paavola recounts.

So it was back to the drawing board. “We paid close attention to our customers’ experiences and produced new versions of the pilot at a rapid pace. Thanks to our manufacturing staff and subcontractors, we managed to deliver improved versions quickly to our customers. These new pilots proved much more durable and usable”, says R&D Engineer Pasi Korte.

The new development cycle was bearing fruit. In the difficult ground conditions of the Tampere Deck and Arena, where piles were drilled 40 m deep, DTH Prime finally defeated the competition. “At a high-rise construction site in Jätkäsaari, Helsinki, they drilled 250 piles into an extremely challenging ground where all sorts of debris such as iron rails, derelict cars and a shipwreck were buried. They drilled an amazing 3,600 metres on a single pilot. Half of that would be a good achievement in a broken ground”, Sami Paavola says.

In the course of 2018, DTH Prime has shown its competitive edge on several construction sites. A drill-through model is also available; it speeds up work as the entire rock socket can be drilled in a single run. The size range has also grown wider, the largest ring bit now being 1,220 mm. In these large-size systems with integrated ring bits, the Robit DTH Prime has no noteworthy competition in the market.

Please watch the Tampere City Centre Development Programme 2015-2030 video.

Pinnacle Drilling Products LP

Posted on by Jari Silver

Pinnacle Drilling Products LP has been appointed as the distributor for Robit construction piling products covering most of large Canadian geography. Pinnacle Drilling Products is known in the industry to be the one-stop shop for all drilling and service needs. They are dedicated in getting the necessary drilling tools through their supply network or by manufacturing specialized products in-house. In addition to Robit products, Pinnacle is representing several other drilling related products that include; Jeffrey Rotary tools, and Matex drilling fluids.

“Pinnacle is happy to partner together with Robit, who has a wide product portfolio of high-quality products. Robit’s comprehensive product lines, will significantly increase our capability of offering the optimal solution to our customers.” comments Simon Bennett, Vice President and General Manager of Pinnacle Drilling Products LP. Mikko Vuojolainen, Robit Vice President for the Americas region: “Pinnacle has such an impressive knowledge about challenging drilling applications that together with our products the end-customers will experience efficient and economical project execution.”

RB Scott Company

Posted on by Jari Silver

Robit Inc. and RB Scott Company have agreed that RB Scott Company will be the distributor for Robit products in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan Upper Peninsula and Northern Illinois. RB Scott Company is a specialized distributor of process equipment and wear parts for the sand and gravel, crush stone, frac sand and recycling industries. For over 40 years, RB Scott has been dedicated to providing customers with the most comprehensive, reliable, and cost-effective process solutions.

“RB Scott is excited to expand our product lines to include Robit as a partner in drilling consumables.  Robit’s products perfectly complement the other wear parts that RB Scott stocks in inventory and supplies to our customers.” comments Scott Napiecek, Business Development Specialist of RB Scott Company. Mikko Vuojolainen, Robit Vice President for the Americas region: “RB Scott Company is representing the kind of values that are essential for long-term customer relationships and together we shall be able to provide excellent value to the end-customers.”

Robit presents the widest offering in Argentina

Posted on by Jari Silver

Arminera, which will be held every two years, presents the latest trends in technology, equipment and services for the mining sector. The fair is organized in Centro Costa Salguero, Buenos Aires between 7-9 May 2019. Get to know the world’s main technological trends that will help you define the new directions to follow. Get a firsthand look at Robit’s new products, comprehensive services and integrated solutions.

You will find us at the booth #3G-15.

Robit Team

TUNNEL AND UNDERGROUND CITIES: ENGINEERING AND INNOVATION MEET ARCHEOLOGY, ARCHITECTURE AND ART.

Posted on by Jari Silver

It is our great pleasure to invite you to visit us at the World Tunnelling Congress 2019. The conference will be held May 3-9 in Naples, Italy  and it will offer the traditional topics on design and construction of underground works, focusing on tunnelling, engineering and innovation. You will find us at our stand A29 during the exhibition dates, May 6-8.

Robit’s products are known world wide. We’ll introduce you our patented Robit® RoX Casing Systems series for forepoling. It allows easy driving of the casing tubes into the ground with low torque demand. In modern forepoling also fiberglass casings can be used for ultra-long facebolts.

Robit team will be delighted to tell you more about our unbeatable tunnelling products and also the other world-class products in our assortment.

Welcome to meet us at WTC 2019 in Naples! 

Robit Team

Robit team looks forward to meeting you in Mining World Russia 2019

Posted on by Jari Silver

You are most welcome to visit us at the largest mining exhibition in the North-West Russia, Mining World Russia 2019 trade fair, April 23-25 at Crocus Expo, Moscow. The Exhibition holds the title of the ‘Largest exhibition in Russia’ on the subject ‘Natural Resources Mining and Quarrying’ in the category ‘International Recognition’ according to the all-Russian ranking of exhibitions.

Learn more about the widest offering in drilling consumables and how we have developed our products further and even more durable. Robit’s MWR2019 team looks forward to meeting you in the hall 1.3. at stand C447B.

See you in Moscow!

Further. Faster. Robit Team

Save the date for your Bauma visit!

Posted on by Jari Silver

Meet us at Bauma 2019 exhibition in Munich, Germany April 8th-14th! You will find us in the hall C2 booth #213.

With focus on consumables, we continuously challenge and push the boundaries of the drilling industry. Still, we don’t lose sight of the reality of your local drilling operation. We know when to go further – into the details of the largest piles, deepest wells and straightest holes – and when to go faster to achieve the lowest cost per meter and the smoothest overall operation.

We know what drives your value and success. Together with our global distribution network, we go further than anyone else to answer all your consumables needs, support your drillers and design the total solution in drilling you need to excel in your work.

Robit’s Bauma team looks forward to meeting You in Munich and telling  more about the widest offering in drilling consumables!

Welcome!

Meet us at 2019 SME Annual Conference & Expo and CMA 121st National Western Mining Conference

Posted on by Jari Silver

Join thousands of your peers at the 2019 SME Annual Conference & Expo and CMA 121st National Western Mining Conference – the mining and metallurgy industry’s premier event! Conference will take place on 24-27 February 2019 in Denver, Colorado.

Get a firsthand look at our new products, comprehensive services and integrated solutions.

We serve You at our booth #2202. You are more than welcome!

Robit team

Recycling drill bits in support of local communities

Posted on by Jari Silver

In today’s environmentally conscious world, sustainability is an issue no business can afford to ignore. Robit intends to be the vanguard of its industry in this respect too – and Robit Australia, together with their distributor Hard Metal Industries, are showing the way.

Mining is an activity that irreversibly changes the environment and affects the lives of local communities in various ways. It is also very consumable-intensive, producing large amounts of waste. While there are regulations and corporate policies guiding the responsible handling of waste, some companies have gone a few steps further.

Hard Metal Industries (HMI), headquartered in Brisbane, is a twenty-year-old company serving the Australian mining and construction industries with consumables. Five years ago, together with Robit, HMI started a Corporate Social Responsibility programme with one of their key customers, a tier one global mining company.

The first step of the programme is the collection of used drill bits for recycling. Discarded drill bits are placed in storage cages, specifically designed for this purpose by HMI. The discarded consumables are then transported to a facility where they are smelted down, separating steel and tungsten carbide for reuse. Finally, the proceeds of this are directed to community groups within the regions the mines operate.

“This is truly an arrangement where everybody wins. Having less manual handling of discarded parts improves site safety. We are saving energy and reducing the carbon output of the mines. What was previously landfill waste is now creating revenue as recycled material. And most importantly: by directing that revenue to local support groups, we are contributing to community health and local services in the regions where we operate. To date, we have jointly provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to these community groups”, says Wayne Beaton, Group Sales and Marketing Manager, Robit Australia.

Building Spain’s infrastructure since 2001

Posted on by Jari Silver

17 years, 240 tunnels, 2 million metres of forepoling: the shared history of Robit and Hard & Wear Technologies in a nutshell.

Spain is a mineral-rich country with a vibrant mining industry. It is also a country crisscrossed with several mountain ranges, which means road and rail construction often involves the excavation of tunnels. Ever since 2001, these industries have been served by the dynamic duo of Robit and Hard & Wear Technologies. During that time they have been involved in more than 80 % of all tunnels executed in Spain.

Geologically, the Iberian Peninsula is very diverse, and in tunneling work you need to deal with many kinds of complicated terrains: volcanic ash, sand, clay, gypsum, and granite, to name just a few. Advancing a tunnel in a soft ground or broken rock requires forepoling, also known as the tube umbrella method.

Hard & Wear Technologies SA, a leading supplier of forepoling tools, is the distributor of Robit casing systems in Spain. The Robit umbrella casing system allows easy driving of the casing tubes into the ground.

2018 was another busy year for the dynamic duo in Spain. It included the completion of two tunnels along the Madrid–A Coruña high-speed rail line: one in Padornelo in the Zamora province, and one in Cerdedelo in the Ourense province, adding up to a total of 40,000 metres of forepoling.

Late in the year, contracts were signed for two joint ventures concerning work on two metro stations in the city of San Sebastián, in the Basque Country in northern Spain. Initially the contracts cover a total of 3,000 metres, but this figure is expected to increase greatly.

The outlook for 2019 shows no sign of slowing down. Robit and Hard & Wear Technologies have signed Letters of Commitment for the supply of materials for six more tunnels in the Basque Country, serving a new high-speed rail line between Madrid and the French border.

ALL DRILL AND ROBIT: a partnership bearing fruit in Argentina

Posted on by Jari Silver

The Andes, the longest mountain range in the world, have been an abundant source of mineral riches for centuries – so much so that the largest Spanish-speaking nation in the world was actually named after a metal (argentum). Over the last ten years, the mining industry has seen a massive boom in Argentina.

Gold and copper are some of Argentina’s key mineral exports. Cerro Vanguardia, a major gold mine in the Santa Cruz province in southern Argentina, has been using Robit tools, such as Top Hammer and DTH RC, for six years. Customer satisfaction is crucial for Robit, and Juan Padilla, a senior Robit Drillmaster, knows where you need to look.

Feedback from the field

“The real challenge for us lies out in the field, in the hands of drillers and their supervisors. They work hard to achieve their goals, and my mission is to give them the best support so they can meet them”, Juan explains.

On his latest visit to Cerro Vanguardia Juan went right to the front line to hear the drillers’ feedback on Robit products. “Cerro Vanguardia is keen on continuous improvement, and it made me happy to learn that our tools continue to be an excellent option for them”, says Juan.

2018 has been a good year for Robit in Argentina, thanks to their dealer All Drill. Since its founder Ariel Fernandez was already familiar with and impressed by Robit products, the decision to partner was easy to make.

One of the new deals All Drill and Robit have signed took place in Casposo, a gold and silver mine in the San Juan province. 20 days of rigorous testing convinced the contractor of the quality of Robit’s Top Hammer tools. Cerro Negro, a large gold mine located in southern Argentina, has also opened its doors to Robit products.

Seamless teamwork

”I felt super confident about the opportunity to represent Robit exclusively in the Argentinian mining market. When you have one of the key brands in the world to offer, and you get great support from their Regional Manager Alexei Albuquerque and his team, you have all a dealer needs to close good deals”, says Ariel Fernandez.

Mining has still a lot of growth potential in Argentina, and Robit and All Drill are searching for new opportunities around the country. ”We are proud to say that Robit has become a major player in the Argentinian mining market, with very positive feedback from the end-users. This is a great foundation for planning the future and our next steps. It is a result of hard work, time investment, and trust between All Drill and Robit”, Alexei Albuquerque concludes.

Picture: Drillmaster Juan Padilla replacing a bit at Cerro Vanguardia

TEST REPORT – Altyntau Kokshetau quarry, Kazakhstan

Posted on by Jari Silver

Tested tools: Robit DTH hammer and bits
Test location: Altyntau Kokshetau quarry, Kazakhstan
Client’s challenge: Finding an alternative for their existing QL6 DTH hammer: problems with the upper adapter not solved by the manufacturer
Reported by: Andrey Dak, General Director, LLP Robit Kazakhstan

Report:

At the site, Robit Kazakhstan has tested two QL6 DTH hammers, with 171 mm Robit DTH bits. Representatives of Robit Kazakhstan and Robit Russia as well as competitors’ technical specialists were present at the test. Each of 3 drill rigs had drilling tools from different manufacturers.

As a result, Robit hammers demonstrated excellent results, whereas the tested drill bits did not show the best performance. Therefore, Kazzinc acquired a batch of Robit hammers.

Once in operation, quality issues with the acquired DTH hammers arose: the lifetime of some of the hammers was 30 % less than expected. Lifetime expectation is set by the quarry; we accepted the challenge.

We took a customer-oriented approach and invited a technical specialist from Australia to Altyntau Kokshetau. In addition, two upgraded hammers and redesigned 171 mm DTH bits were sent. Using all the test data, we strove to manufacture the best fit for the customer’s ground conditions. The changes mostly concerned the hammer’s cylinder, make-up assembly, the DTH bit’s check valve and buttons. A second test supervised by our local Robit expert was conducted.

Eventually, thanks to our group’s teamwork and our desire to provide the best service, the performance became excellent again – even exceeding the lifetime expected by the contract. The upgraded DTH bits also showed good results, reaching their expected lifetime. The deal was secured.

Kazzinc decided to continue using Robit drill consumables. Starting from the beginning of 2019, a new contract for a batch of DTH hammers and DTH bits was signed.

ROSH PINAH – boosting quality with Robit tools

Posted on by Jari Silver

Geographically, most of Namibia consists of a desert or near-desert plateau. Underneath this arid ground, however, lies a massive mineral wealth.

Namibia’s economy relies heavily on its mining industry: almost half of the country’s foreign exchange earnings are contributed by this sector. Key exports include diamonds, uranium, gold and silver, as well as a wide variety of base metals such as lead, copper, and zinc.

On the edge on the Namib desert in southern Namibia, the Rosh Pinah underground mine, owned by Canadian-based Trevali, has been producing zinc and lead for 50 years, milling some 2,000 tonnes of ore per day. That kind of production volumes pose a challenge to the supply and service of consumable parts – and that’s where Robit SA was able to help Rosh Pinah improve their performance.

“We signed a consignment stock contract for the “GET” (Ground Engagement Tools) with Rosh Pinah in August. It’s a full-service contract, including a management system”, explains Franco Van Deventer, Sales Director for Robit SA.

The two-year contract covers both development and long hole production drilling, as well as “cut and fill” mining.

Better quality through reporting

“Our management reporting system has marked a significant improvement in quality control. Our monthly feedback reports allow our customer to track the performance of our equipment and compare the efficiency and cost. Before our contract this had not been possible”, Franco says.

Picture: Bird’s eye view of Rosh Pinah. (Image: Hp.Baumeler)