MINING

Innovation and Technology

GCM is at the forefront of surface mining in Australia and continues to be one of the most innovative contributors to the development of surface mining operations in the region, and worldwide.

 

Amongst our innovations include:

  • Cutting tool design and development
  • Drum wear protection
  • Reengineering and capability improvements to the Surface Miners
  • Strengthening packages
  • Chassis upgrades to make them stronger and more reliable
  • Cooler pack & hydraulic modifications to improve performance, life and serviceability
  • ROPS, FOPS and framework designs to improve mobilisation speed and reduce transport
    costs
  • Ongoing dust control modifications

Cutting Tools

With operations in Iron Ore, Limestone, Coal, Bauxite, Granite and even Uranium Carnotite, GCM have invested significant time and resources over the past decades to develop and trial GET tailored to our machines and applications.

In partnership with tool manufacturers worldwide, we continually iterate and validate new designs, pushing the limits of GET life and productivity – ensuring we always have the most effective, and cost efficient, tool for the job.

Gamma Detection Technology

Global Civil and Mining are continually investing in and developing new technology, helping to deliver lower mining costs, and increase productivity. GCM have pioneered the DGCS system in Surface Mining to determine material properties through passive detection of naturally occurring gamma levels on the fly.

In conjunction with our Surface Mining equipment, this system is able to accurately detect seam contours to efficiently remove coal without contamination from partings material, to produce a higher-quality, bypass-candidate product. This technology allows us to recover previously uneconomical coal seams, and has the potential to create a bypass quality product requiring no additional infrastructure or capital.

Dust Suppression System

Dust generation can be a significant issue in both civil and mining applications; to nearby infrastructure, environmentally sensitive areas and personnel working in or around the area.

Following a number of years of early development trials, successive iteration and significant investment, GCM have developed and produced a completely in-house, tailored, machine-mounted dust collection system that virtually eliminates all dust produced during operation. The compact system is fitted within the machine’s existing footprint, and runs from onboard power, collecting and filtering dust directly at the cutting head.

Paired with the inherently low-impact nature of Surface Mining, GCM’s Surface Miners that are fitted with this system can operate without impact near existing infrastructure and residential areas, in space-restricted and weather-constrained situations, and near sensitive areas without risk of disturbance.

No water, no extra machines, no dust.

Equipment Development

With years of experience operating Surface Miners in all conditions and materials, GCM have developed and integrated a number of upgrades and improvements to our equipment.

Just a few examples include:

  • Tropical cooler pack modifications allowing our equipment to work longer in hotter environments,
  • Frame/chassis modifications that expand the working life and envelope of our equipment,
  • In-house operator cabin development and replacement with integral ROPS & FOPS, reducing mobilisation and setup timeframes, increasing operator comfort and lowering transport
    costs,
  • GET design and development, improving production and machine utilisation,
  • Advanced monitoring and tracking systems for machine health and location data
  • Component design and manufacturing – increasing service life, reducing costs and streamlining serviceability
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