Atlas Copco - Annual Report 1999

Protecting operator
and environment
When designing the Cobra, the most powerful fuel-driven asphalt
breaker in the market today, the developers at the Atlas Copco
Construction Tools division had to consider several aspects –
both ergonomic and environmental.
The most important goal when developing the new breaker was
to reduce the possibly harmful vibrations which everyone previously
thought were unavoidable in drilling and breaking tasks.
In the Cobra, vibrations have been reduced to a substantial
extent. This is one of the machine’s most welcome features,
according to operators at Frijo, a contractor active in
Sweden. The operators also appreciate having all the buttons
on a single panel at the top, as well as the easy-to-start twostroke
engine.
At the same time, the Cobra is an environmentally friendly
product and meets both Swedish and U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) requirements.
The machine is completely recyclable, and no heavy pollutants
are used in the product. Emissions are minimal – the engine runs
on unleaded fuel.
Greater computerization of drilling
rigs facilitates mine planning
Based on demands from the market, Atlas Copco Craelius has further enhanced the computerized
functions of its Diamec drilling rig. The new computer program helps the driller or geologist
obtain information about the drilling operation and provides a quick analysis of the geology.
The new computer program is a geological data acquisition system
developed by Atlas Copco in concert with major customers.
It is designed to collect data during the drilling operation. The
logging system is easy to use. All that a driller has to do is to
CONSTRUCTION AND MINING TECHNIQUE
plug the memory card into the operator’s
panel, enter the hole depth, and drill.
After the shift, the driller hands the memory
card to a geologist for analysis using
the program, which plots the data as
graphs and compiles a drill report.
A drilling rig equipped with this system
has been tested at the Outokumpu
Pyhäsalmi underground mine in Finland,
where the accumulated data have proved
valuable in mine planning and operations.
The information obtained on the rock
drilled through is helpful in rock mechanics,
for planning and designing stopes. All
these efforts are ultimately aimed at decreasing
costs, a particularly important goal in underground
mining today.
ATLAS COPCO 1999 53
CONSTRUCTION AND MINING TECHNIQUE