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Brevini planetary gearboxes are helping
to reinvigorate coal mining in Wales
The mining industry of South
Wales today may be a
shadow of its former self,
but the region’s days as an
important energy producer are not
yet over. With energy prices at record
levels and a new focus on reduced
reliance on imported oil, he UK’s coal
seams are being revisited to see if
they can once again be exploited
profitably.
At the forefront of this resurgence
in interest is Cowbridge-based Metal
Innovations. The company is devoted
to the design and production of a
new generation of highly efficient
coal mining equipment that it hopes
will make many of the region’s coal
seams economic once more.
While there is certainly coal
under the hills of South Wales, much
of the remaining material is
distributed in relatively small, low
seams. Large, conventional mining
machinery simply won’t fit into these
seams, while manual mining
methods are too arduous and
expensive to consider.
The answer, according to Metal
Innovations managing director
Gareth Thomas, is a new type of
mining machine – one that is smaller,
more manoeuvrable and more
efficient to operate than anything
seen before. Metal Innovations’ first
product was the Celtic Miner 4500.
This compact, tracked mining
machine has a powerful hydraulic
cutter and material removal arm that
can access coal in seams up to 4.5m
in height.
The machine itself is extremely
compact however, allowing it to
squeeze into the smallest
commercially viable coal seams. An
integrated conveyor system within
the machine allows material to be
cut, collected and removed by a
single operator, dramatically
improving productivity compared to
conventional mining approaches.
Demanding environment
Designing a machine with the
capabilities of the Celtic Miner was a
significant challenge. The coal
mining environment is an extremely
tough one. Machinery is exposed to
high peak loads, water, dust, slurry
and freezing conditions, while the
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Stripping out cost
A blower-powered airknife drying system
has achieved a rapid payback for Corus
Increasing competition from
around the world is leading
manufacturers to review their
processes to see if there are
ways of reducing costs. If the new
systems introduced also make a
contribution to enhancing the
production process then that is a
valuable bonus. On this basis, the
new blower-powered Airknife
moisture removal system installed on
the five-stand mill at the Corus
Trostre Works, Llanelli must be
considered a genuine success
because it both saves money and
helps to ensure quality.
Prior to the installation of the
Airknives, compressed air delivered
through 66 nozzles was used to
remove surface moisture (lubricant
and coolant) from steel strip as it
exited the mill. This was both an
expensive process and one of
variable performance.
The 66 nozzles delivered a total
of 1748 scfm at 5 bar. This equates
to more than 7HP/5kW per nozzle
making a total in excess of 345kW
with an annual running cost for a 48
week year of some £75,000. By
comparison, the Airknife system,
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INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY • May 2008