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COVER STORY
18
MODERN MINING
February 2016
A
lready two EC750D excavators
have been sold and are working
in the field, one in a coal min-
ing operation in the Middelburg
area, and the other in an alluvial
diamond mining application in the Northern
Cape. “We’ve secured several further orders for
Dave Vaughan, Babcock’s Sales Director – Equipment, pictured at the company’s Johannes-
burg premises with an EC750D in the background.
There are exciting developments underway at Babcock.
The company, which is the Southern African dealer for
Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE), has introduced
to the local market the Volvo EC750D excavator, Volvo’s
biggest excavator yet, and expects to be launching more
Volvo machines in the coming months, including a new
60-tonne articulated hauler. In addition, it was recently
appointed as the official Southern African dealer for Terex
Trucks, which means that it can now supply its customers –
for the first time – with rigid dump trucks.
Modern Mining
recently spoke to David Vaughan, Babcock’s Sales Director
– Equipment, to learn more about the new products and
how they fit into the Babcock line-up.
New machines set to strengthen
Babcock’s ‘footprint’ in mining
the EC750D and are expecting to deliver these
additional machines shortly,” says Vaughan.
“As we all know, the mining industry is cur-
rently in a severe downturn but we’re never-
theless seeing huge interest in the EC750D from
our mining customers as it is the perfect match
for the heavier articulated haulers typically
used in mining, including the Volvo A40F.”
The EC750D –which is a 75-tonne class
machine – replaces the popular EC700CL. “We
have over 140 of these units in the field, which
is testament to the EC700CL’s high production
capabilities, general reliability and low fuel
burn,” says Vaughan. “The new machine is an
upgraded version, which offers even greater pro-
ductivity while retaining all that was best in its
predecessor. Digging force has been improved
by 9 % compared to the EC700 and engine out-
put by 11 % and the unit comes equipped – as
standard – with a 4,6 m
3
bucket as opposed to
the 4,2 m
3
bucket used on the EC700. Our esti-
mate is that the EC750D will deliver an overall
14 % increase in productivity.”
The new excavator is specifically designed
for demanding mining and quarrying applica-
tions and its design and construction reflect
this. For example, the reinforced heavy-duty
boom and arm are built from high-strength
tensile steel – with steel strips being welded
under the arm to further increase protection.
Built-in heavy-duty plates provide additional
protection to the underside of the machine to