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to address a number of challenges and
opportunities. Once positioned onsite and
connected to an external electric power
source, the unit can be switched to operate
on electricity, meaning it will have zero
emissions, while retaining all the benefits
of a mobile machine.
Some of the names that come to mind as
far as this technology is concerned include
Sandvik Mining and Rock Technology, Terex
Finlay, Metso, Kleemann, Powerscreen and
Keestrack, to mention a few. In 2015, Terex
Finlay launched dual powered variants of
its existing J-1175 jaw crusher and C-1540
cone crusher. The two machines joined the
Terex Finlay 694+ dual powered inclined
screener that was launched early in 2014.
Introduced locally by local dealer, Bell
Equipment, the product launches meant
that Terex Finlay could now offer operators
a full mobile crushing and screening train
that can be powered from mains electricity
and had the flexibility to run self-powered
if required.
According to Sandro Scherf, CEO of Pilot
Crushtec International, the exclusive dealer
of Metso in southern Africa, Metso was the
originator of dual-powered machines and
these are offered across its range.
Kleemann has, over the past decades,
refined its technology behind its dual-
powered offerings on both mobile crushers
and screens. According to Mike Newby,
sales engineer – Mineral Technologies
at Wirtgen South Africa, Kleemann’s
dual power offering can be refined to any
country’s specific requirements in terms of
voltage and hertz.
Keestrack started with its electrically-
driven screening gear in 2012, followed in
2013 by the introduction of its R6e hybrid
impact crusher and electrically-powered
tracked mobile stackers. Marcel Kerkhofs,
marketing manager at Keestrack, says
the company has since continued its
innovation by launching the H4e full hybrid
cone crusher with optional pre-screen and
3-deck afterscreen with return conveyor at
Bauma 2016. Today, Keestrack has 75% of
its tracked mobile equipment available in
hybrid drive, and Kerkhofs says more will
follow in the near future.
Slow uptake
Despite the apparent advantages offered by
dual-powered crushing solutions, there has
been a very slow uptake of this technology
locally. Bell Equipment launched the first
Terex Finlay dual-powered train in 2015,
and product marketing manager, Stephen
McNeill, tells
Capital Equipment News
that the response to the technology has
been slower, mainly because shortly after
launching in 2015, the oil price decreased.
“The initial capital cost of the dual power
units is much more than their regular
counterparts, so the decrease in oil price,
which affects fuel prices, essentially
means that it takes longer for the dual
power units to pay for themselves,” says
McNeill.
That being said, McNeill believes that there
is opportunity in the local market, especially
considering that the option offered by dual
power units to run machines on electricity
significantly lowers production costs and
delivers a lower cost per tonne. “The two
demo units we brought into the country have
been sold into Zambia, where the customer
is impressed with the production rate and
the efficiency in terms of running costs,”
says McNeill. “The customer reports that the
Finlay Dual Power units burn half the diesel
of a competitor’s unit.”
Kerkhofs agrees with McNeill, adding that
most people are reluctant to change, and
initially want to stick with the technology
they know. “But, when the benefits have
been explained enough and the productivity
has been proven, they eventually change. Our
customers who have experienced the benefits
of this technology don’t want to change back to
conventional machines as the new technology
gives them more profit and increased
flexibility,” he says. To date, Keestrack has
over 120 hybrid machines operating in the
Kleemann’s dual power
offerings can be refined
to any country’s specific
requirements.
Sandvik offers dual power mobile
crushing units for large mining
type applications.
CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS
AUGUST 2017
19