Category: References

ROBIT SUPPLYING DRILLING CONSUMABLES FOR THE BIGGEST COPPER MINING COMPANY IN TURKEY, ETI BAKIR A.S.

Posted on by Jari Silver

Robit is supplying rock drilling consumables for face drilling, long hole drilling, ground supporting operations for underground mines as well as surface drilling for open pit mines for ETI Bakir A.S. in Turkey. The consumables are being supplied by Robit’s distributor, Guris Is Makinalari Endustri A.S.

Guris Is Makinalari Endustri A.S. and ETI Bakir A.S. made a contract for supplying Top Hammer drilling tools and as a result, the first shipment was MADE during the first quarter of 2020. Guris Is Makinalari Endustri A.S. supplements Robit quality and good performance by giving the best after-sales, shipping, and technical services support for the valued customer.

ETI Bakir A.S., which was operated by state from 1930’s to 2004, is the biggest copper mining company in Turkey. ETI Bakir A.S. was incorporated into Cengiz Holding in 2004 and the company carries on production activities by growing up day by day within the structure of Cengiz Holding.

ETI Bakir A.S. is operating both on several Turkish mine sites as well as abroad. In addition to this, the biggest smelter and electrolysis plant in Turkey is being operated by ETI Bakir A.S. in Samsun City. The company is known for nature conservation while operating on the mine sites. – These mines are operating fully mechanized with the newest technologies.

 

Case report by:

Ahmet Oğuz Dikmen, Mining Equipments Service Engineer, Guris Construction Machineries Industry Co Inc

James Keenan, Distributor Business Manager, Middle East and Turkey, Robit Group

 

Photo:

Caner Topal, Drilling & Blasting Engineer, ETI Bakir A.S.

Ahmet Oğuz Dikmen, Mining Equipments Service Engineer, Guris Construction Machineries Industry Co Inc

Tayfun Kabaloglu, Mine Captain, ETI Bakir A.S.

 

ROBIT PERFORMING WELL IN HARD ROCK FORMATION IN SOHAR, OMAN

Posted on by Jari Silver

Robit is supplying consumables for gabbro quarrying in Sohar, Oman. The tools are being supplied by Robit’s distributor, Pioneers For Mining.

Robit consumables are performing well in the hard rock formation, in the North Oman, and thus, getting positive feedback from the customer. The gabbro quarries are one of the toughest and challenging areas among Oman rock formation.

Despite the current travel restrictions, the seamless cooperation between Robit, Pioneers For Mining and the customer including continuous follow-up on Robit product quality and support, enables a strong sales development in Sohar region. 

Facts – Gabbro Quarry in Sohar, Oman 

Machine: Furukawa HCR 1200

Rock Formation: Hard and Abrasive

Button Bit Size: C45–89mm

Excellent performance with Robit button bit in Turkey

Posted on by Jari Silver

On July 2020, Robit’s Turkish distributor Guris Is Makinaları Endustri A.S. organized a drilling test at Ozkoyuncu open pit iron mine. The head-to-head test between Robit and globally well-known brand.

The test was conducted on a Sandvik DX800 Ranger with an HL700 drifter. The testing conditions were identical for each brand. The procedure was a simple wear test: To measure how deep each tool will be able to drill without sharpening or replacing. The ground condition is quite difficult and abrasive. It contains high quartzite and silica rate is around 90%. There is fragmented rock, water and spacing in ground.

We are happy to report the results. Robit C51-102 mm drop center spherical bit completed the service life at 1269 meters and this result is 300 meters better than competitor’s same design bit. Given the rock quality at mine site this is an excellent result. Customer confirmed that Robit bit were superior to the other well-known brands’ consumables.

Test Location: Ozkoyuncu Open Pit Iron Mine, Kayseri/TURKEY
Test Dates: Jul 09-14, 2020
Test Objective: Measuring performance of Robit C51-102 mm bit vs. other well known drilling consumable brand.
Reported by: Ahmet Oguz Dikmen, Mining Equipments Service Engineer at Güriş İş Makinaları Endüstri A.Ş.

 

Underwater drilling with Robit® Hyper 31 Hammer in Paracas, Peru

Posted on by Jari Silver

Sub aquatic application drilling with Hyper 31 and DTH bit 90 mm

Robit contributes to the development of infrastructure in Paracas, Peru. Average depth of drilling is 14 m below the sea level and actual drilling is 12 m into the bedrock. The Robit® Hyper 31 showed the best performance in rate of penetration, considering the air volume and pressure delivered by the compressor.

Please see the drilling video:  Drilling with Hyper 31 and DTH bit 90 mm

SUCCESSFUL TESTS CONDUCTED WITH ROBIT CONSUMABLES IN CHILE

Posted on by Jari Silver

Full Safety, the distributor of Robit Group, carried out a successful test with Robit consumables at El Teniente copper mine in Machalí, Chile. 

​The test was conducted for Jumbo drilling on a Tamrock Axera Jumbo with HLX5 drifter by using the following Robit consumables: R32x45S1 bits, HEX35 C38-R32 14′ drifter rod and coupling C38-C38.

The bits averaged out 315 meters without grinding. As for the drifter rod and couplings averaged out 1 724 meters. The meterage is always relative to the rock, the conditions of machinery and operator skills including pressure management.

Robit Part Numb​​er Description Meters
04-132-045-3805 HTG 32R45S 315
06D-07-0891 M/M Drifter Rod C38-HEX35-R32 4305 1 724
06E-07-0497 Coupling C38 D55 SB 1 724

 

As a result of the successful tests, Robit received a confirmation from the site contractor, Astaldi, that Robit consumables were superior compared to the other well-known brands’ consumables.

El Teniente is an underground copper mine in the Chilean commune of Machalí in Cachapoal Province, Libertador General Bernardo O’Higgins Region, near the town of Sewell, 2 300 meters above mean sea level in the Andes.

Mining at El Teniente is reported to have started as early as 1819. Today, El Teniente is operated by the state-owned copper mining company CODELCO. With over 3 000 kilometers of underground drifts, El Teniente is reported as the world’s largest underground copper mine. ​

Excellent job from our Robit SAC colleagues, and our distributor in Chile!

Partnership in the AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK

Posted on by Jari Silver

Western Australia is a land of extremes. It’s sitting on the oldest rock crust on Earth, formed three billion years ago. It’s most likely also home to the oldest life forms on our planet, dating back even further, some three and a half billion years.

Today, human life forms in the state are mostly concentrated on the fertile coastal areas. In contrast, the vast central parts – the Outback – consist mostly of sparsely inhabited hot desert. In these circumstances the only significant economic activity is mining. 15% of all the world’s iron ore is produced in Western Australia; the state is also a major extractor of gold and bauxite.

A young Matt Izett started out as a driller’s assistant, or “offsider”, for a major drilling operator in Western Australia in the 1980s. By the turn of the century he was managing a branch office of a mining supplies company.

In 2005 Matt took another leap forward and founded Ranger Drilling with his wife Julie, specializing mostly in Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling for customersoperating in the West Australian iron ore market. In fourteen years Ranger has, through consistent growth, become a major player in the industry with 19 drill rigs.

A reliable choice for remote locations, RC drilling is a preferred method for mineral exploration. It uses far less water than diamond drilling, making it ideal for arid areas such as Western Australia, where sourcing water is expensive.

Since the beginning, Ranger has made a point of constantly optimizing and customizing tools, equipment and drilling techniques. In this mission, Ranger have enjoyed a great relationship with Robit Australia (formerly DTA) over the last ten years.

Robit supplies Ranger with RC hammers and bits. “We have made DIFOT a priority with Ranger as their business has grown the offering in mining, exploration, and hydro”, says Mark McGrath, Regional Sales Manager, Robit Australia. “Our team does its best to ensure Ranger can continue to provide world class customer service each and every day.”

Top Hammer theoretical and practical training in Ecuador

Posted on by Jari Silver

Training organized by: Maqoperador S.A. (Ecuador) and Robit PLC
Objective: To give Top Hammer drilling tool customers theoretical knowhow and practical training to ensure maximum drilling performance
Location: Guayaquil, Ecuador
Date: November 22, 2019
Drill bits used: Robit HTG bit 45C76 DSR vs. a bit from another brand
Reported by: José Rodríguez, Sales Manager, Robit

Summary:

In ensuring maximum performance in Top Hammer drilling, one key element is selecting the optimal drill bit. To this end, a series of training sessions for our customers in Ecuador were organized jointly by Maqoperador, the distributor of Robit’s tools in Ecuador, and Robit.

In the theoretical part of the training we covered a wide range of topics such as drill string elements, energy flow through the drill string, correct drilling parameters, selection criteria for button bits, and total drilling costs.

For the practical training, Maqoperador arranged a visit to a quarry where the performance of two T45x76 mm bit designs was measured: a Robit Drop Centre Retrac bit vs. a bit from another brand. The other brand had overlarge 13 mm buttons whereas our bit was 11 mm. Typically customers see oversized carbides as a good feature, but our tests proved otherwise.

The difference in penetration rate was significantly in favour of Robit: 1,8 m/min vs. competitor at 1,06 m/min. In other words, Robit was faster by more than 70%.

Being able to drill faster with less effort also means a better energy flow from the drill string to the rock. This is why differences in overheating were also expected between the bits. If percussion energy is not correctly transmitted from the drill string to the rock, it will dissipate into heat, creating additional problems. Due to the overlarge buttons, the energy was not efficiently transmitted to the rock, so the competitor’s bit was overheating the shank adapter at 150 °C, while with the Robit bit, the shank adapter kept a much cooler temperature at 98 °C.

To ensure the reliability of the results, the testing was performed with the same drill rig, the same operator in the same quarry, using the same drilling parameters at a distance of 1 metre between the holes of each bit.

What was particularly rewarding for us to see was how actively the attendees participated in the training. Events like this are very rarely, if ever, arranged by other brands or distributors, so they truly add great value for our customers and help enhance the Robit brand. We will soon be organizing the same training in other parts of the world. Stay tuned!

Gigantic dry dock rising on the Kola Bay

Posted on by Jari Silver

In the coming years, the use of liquified natural gas (LNG) in transport and industry is expected to grow significantly. That is a key reason why earlier this year, a Robit Steel Fist pilot bit started to penetrate granite rock in the Kola peninsula.

As far as fossil fuels go, LNG is by far the most environmentally friendly – it has the lowest CO2 emissions per unit of energy while also having the highest heating value. Thus, it has big potential as a future transport fuel alongside biofuels, hydrogen and electric mobility, and most major fossil fuel companies have begun investing in it.

Treasure hidden beneath the permafrost

Russia has the largest natural gas reserves in the world. The bulk of those reserves is sitting under the permafrost in northwest Siberia, in the Yamal Peninsula and its offshore areas. Recent years in the region have seen a massive investment in the so-called Yamal project, a joint venture between Russian, French and Chinese companies, which includes a huge LNG plant, in operation since 2017.

The Yamal project is now being followed by the Arctic LNG-2, another major international joint venture, located in the neighbouring Gyda peninsula. It has an ambitious plan to cut the production costs by placing the LNG production plants offshore in the Gulf of Ob on so-called gravitybased structures (GBS). These reinforced concrete structures are built on a shipyard, towed to the intended location, and then sunk onto the seabed.

Arctic village transformed

Until recently, Belokamenka was a small village just north of Murmansk in the northwest corner of Russia. In 2017 it was chosen as the location for the new shipyard where the GBSs are to be built. This means a massive transformation in the area, covering more than 150 hectares. The shipyard will have two dry docks, each 400 x 175 m, the largest in Russia. Currently the construction site employs some 4,000 people.

The construction of pipe pile walls for the dry docks is performed by NK-Teplokhimmontazh and the drilling contractor Spetsfundament Plus. It involves the drilling of no less than a thousand piles, up to 32 metres deep, through sand and loam into the granite bedrock. Their tool of choice for this Down-the-Hole job is the large diameter Robit Steel Fist Casing System. Drilling work on dry dock #1 is now completed and will continue into 2020 on dry dock #2.

In 2022, the first GBS built in Belokamenka is expected to start its 1,600 km voyage, with the help of a powerful tugboat fleet, across the Barents Sea to its destination in the Gulf of Ob.

Diamond button bits for Top Hammer drilling

Posted on by Jari Silver

Successful drilling consists of several factors: substrate knowledge, the right tools for the right time, and support when needed. But drilling consumables are always at the heart of operations – and Robit specialises in them.


As its latest innovation, Robit is launching diamond button bits for Top Hammer drilling.

“Traditionally, bits have had hard metal buttons, but in the new Robit Diamond Button Series bits the buttons have an industrial diamond coating, which lasts many times longer than a regular bit and does not need to be sharpened,” explains Robit Plc’s Niko Ojala, R&D Engineer and Materials Specialist.

Unique production method

The diamond coating is made on the buttons in the same way as diamonds are also created, namely by subjecting it to high pressure and heat, which makes it even more durable than natural diamond.

“The coating has several layers, which ensures adherence and enables the diamond bit to withstand the shocks and heat fluctuations of Top Hammer drilling. Robit Group has previously used the diamond coating with success in oil and gas operations in softer substrates. Now the durability of diamond is offered for the first time for shock drilling in hard rock,” says Ojala.

“Traditionally, bits have had hard metal buttons, but in the new Robit Diamond Button Series bits the buttons have an industrial diamond coating, which lasts many times the lifetime of a regular bit and does not need to be sharpened,” says Robit Plc’s Niko Ojala, R&D Engineer and Materials Specialist.

The coating has several layers, which ensures adherence and enables the diamond bit to withstand the shocks and heat fluctuations of Top Hammer drilling.

Backed by in-depth development work

Robit has been developing the Diamond Button Series products for five years.

“Field tests have been conducted extensively with ever-improving results and great success, and now the 0 series products are available to customers. Mass production and deliveries will begin during the latter part of the year; initially 89 mm and 102 mm diamond bits will offered. We have also already signed the first extensive agreement in the mining sector with Agnico Eagle Kittilä mine, Finland, which will start using the Robit Diamond Button Series this autumn,” says Robit Plc’s Kimmo Kangas, Sales Manager.

“Test cooperation with Robit in these new innovative products has been productive. The goal is to use diamond bits to make remote drilling more efficient in terms of use of resources and productivity than drilling using regular bits,” says Agnico Eagle’s Jari Kolehmainen (Production Manager) and Janne Saukko (General Supervisor).

Drilling metres multiply

In test use, the new diamond bits have yielded outstanding results:

“When drilling hard granite you may have to sharpen – i.e. change – a traditional hard metal button bit, for example after 80 metres, while with the diamond button bit you can drill nearly one kilometre. And as the diamond buttons do not, in practice, wear out, then their penetrating ability does not deteriorate like regular hard metal buttons. Drilling speed therefore remains the same throughout the bit’s time of use. Similarly, the diameter of the borehole does not decrease as the bit ages, resulting in a more consistent and predictable end result in production drilling. The many times longer change interval of the bit saves time and is particularly important for remote-controlled drill rigs in fully automated mining environments where people are not present during the process,” says Ojala.

HAKANIEMI: an indoor market completely remade

Posted on by Jari Silver

In June 1914, the people of Helsinki had reason to be proud. A new, grand, two-storey indoor market hall, praised as Europe’s largest and most modern, opened at the Hakaniemi square. Now, over a hundred years later, the venerable marketplace is undergoing the most thorough renovation of its history.

Hakaniemi Hall is one of the most massive renovation projects Stara (the City of Helsinki Construction Services) has ever undertaken. The building is protected, so the exteriors must remain unchanged, but on the inside, practically everything has been torn down. The building is now held together by metal buttresses reaching all the way up to the ceiling.

The project began with ground cleaning and reinforcement, as the land under the hall was found to be heavily contaminated. The old load-bearing wooden piles also proved to have weakened over time. They will be cut off and replaced with new metal piles.

In addition to renovation work, the project includes excavations for an underground connection to the Hakaniemi metro station and to a service yard. The sheet piling work required for the 5–10 metre deep interconnections is carried out by Fingeo Oy.

“In addition to sheet piling, we have driven individual piles in the hall to support the old structures,” says driller Arli Kolamets, Fingeo. Arli operates a DTH drill rig, with wear parts supplied by Robit.

“Robit delivers our drill bits, pilots, DTH hammers, ring bits and adapters, among others. Deliveries are really smooth and the products arrive at the site quickly. Robit’s technical support is also exemplary. I have been given advice on e.g. pile penetration rates and hammer air pressure. The workday often stretches far into the evening and it is great that Robit always picks up the phone. My special thanks to Sami Paavola for his competence and customer service attitude”, Arli says.

The sheet piling will be completed during summer 2019. A lot of work, however, remains to be done inside – and underneath – the walls of Hakaniemi Hall before it finally reopens, completely modernized, for business in 2021.

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.

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.

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)

TEST REPORT – Greenbushes, WA, Australia

Posted on by Jari Silver

Tested tools: Robit C51 bits, rods and shanks
Test location: Greenbushes, WA, Australia
Test date(s): Since May 2018
Client’s challenge: Top Hammer drill bit performance in the hard ground conditions of a lithium mine
Reported by: Mark Thwaits, Technical Sales Representative, Robit Australia

Report:

We began trialling at Greenbushes, the world’s largest lithium mine, in the spring of 2018. They are currently using our C51 Retrac bits monthly, principally the 115 mm Drop Centre Retrac (DSR) and Flat Face (FF).

Through frequent site visits we have developed a very positive relationship with our customer where information has become a two-way street. For example, it was our suggestion to try the DSR bit as a substitute to the FF, as we had seen it perform extremely well in similar conditions elsewhere.

We have secured their TH bit business off the strength of Robit’s bits. The life and performance of our bits has been praised by the client. They easily outlast the competition – and with the extremely hard and abrasive ground associated with lithium mines, the increased life of Robit bits has been greatly appreciated.

In today’s intensely competitive market, Australian drilling contractors have become far less inclined to sign contracts, preferring to give monthly business to the supplier who performs and provides value regularly.

Our top-performance bits have allowed us to continually do monthly business with the client, and we continue to trial new products in an effort to supply all their drill string needs, e.g. rods and shanks, at Greenbushes as well as other sites the client operates on.

FIJI – A new dot on the Robit world map

Posted on by Jari Silver

“Tranquillity” is a word that easily comes to mind on Fiji, the island country sitting almost 3,000 kilometres away from its nearest continent Australia. An ever-growing number of visitors are feeling the allure of its white sandy beaches and coral reefs, making tourism a key driver in Fiji’s economy today, along with agriculture and fishing.

Fiji has also been blessed with wealthy mineral resources, with gold and silver representing some of the country’s largest exports. So-called Development Minerals – minerals mined, processed, and used locally in construction, infrastructure, and agriculture – also play an important part in Fiji’s growing economy. This year, the very first Fiji Development Minerals Trade Fair and Conference was held in Suva, the capital city of the republic. The event, hosted by UNDP (United Nations Development Program) and MRD (Mineral Resources Department of Fiji), also helped Robit add a new dot on its global business map.

“It was a great opportunity to network, meet key players in the Development Minerals industry and get a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing Fiji’s Development Minerals market”, says Technical Sales Representative Richard Epstein, Robit Australia.

“Fiji is diversifying its economy and improving its civil infrastructure, which should have a positive impact on the quarrying and civil construction industries. This means there is an opportunity to gain a strong foothold in the market. To that end, we are partnering with Vinod Patel, Fiji’s largest hardware and construction materials company to help establish our presence in the market and provide much needed local support”, Richard explains.

Golden prospects

Richard also visited the Vatukoula Gold Mine, the largest and oldest mine in Fiji. It has been operating for over 75 years and has produced over 7 million ounces (approx. 200,000 kg) of gold during this time. “Vatukoula spends about half a million euros per year on Top Hammer drilling consumables, but this is likely to increase in coming years as they have plans to expand development of the mine and double production”, Richard says.

“Robit’s threaded jumbo bits were tested underground at Vatukoula, with promising results. A new gold mine, Lion One, is due to come on line in 2019. Add to that our partnership with Vinod Patel and the contacts we have established through them with key players in the quarrying and extractive industries, and we should be well positioned for future opportunities in Fiji.”