Liebherr R9100 Mining Excavator Work Report

Cobre Panama is one of the largest copper mine projects in Latin America. Currently operating fleet: 8 R9100, 2 R9350, 12 PR744, 4 PR754, machine availability up to 98%, Liebherr custom logistics supporting FQM's activities, Liebherr on-site product support personnel provide Liebherr bucket solutions (including grounding elements) to help achieve outstanding performance.

Liebherr R9100 Mining Excavator Work Report

Happening

Standing 120 kilometers ( 75 miles ) west of Panama City is one of the largest copper mines in Latin America: Cobre Panama. The copper mine covers an area of ​​13,600 hectares ( 33,600 acres ), including four districts, and has its own port. After operating at full capacity, the mine can produce 320,000 tons ( 352,000 US tons ) of copper each year. First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FQM) is a strong and growing number of metals and mining company, with Minera Panam 80% stake in a SA company, Minera Panam a SA is a holding Cobre Panama Panama lease company. FQM has been a loyal customer of Liebherr since 2006 and has invested more than 20 mining machines in the Sentinel copper mine in Zambia.

In order to achieve the goal of putting the copper mine into operation by the end of 2018, FQM chose to use Liebherr equipment. The first Liebherr R9100 mining excavator was put into use at the end of 2014 and there are currently eight R9100 excavators in operation. To complete this vast project, the team also included two Liebherr R9350 mining excavators, twelve PR744s and four PR754 tracked bulldozers.

Excellent excavator availability

The R9100 mining excavator is equipped with a Liebherr D9512 diesel engine with a 7m3 backhoe bucket. The R9100 uses a robust and reliable mining-specific part developed, produced and quality-controlled by Liebherr to ensure high reliability. To reduce downtime and prevent mechanical damage, the R9100 is equipped with a piston rod protective cover for the bucket cylinder. This sturdy steel cover prevents damage to the steering cylinder.

Construction Site

FQM trusts and trusts Liebherr's products. These products currently offer the highest level of efficiency with an average cycle time of 22 seconds and a machine availability of more than 90% – up to 98% for certain time periods. These mining excavators are currently operating 24/7 and face high temperatures and high humidity conditions in the area. Xenon lamps provide bright, day-to-day, powerful and broad lighting that allows operators to safely and comfortably operate the machine at night.

Live support from Liebherr

Liebherr product support personnel provide on-site support for FQM, and through constant monitoring of the equipment, it ensures maximum availability every day.

Liebherr developed a logistics solution specifically to provide support for FQM's mine construction. In order to optimise machine uptime and spare parts supply, Liebherr offers specially equipped containers for on-site storage of secondary components, which FQM considers as ready-made solutions. This has brought valuable improvements to parts management and is particularly important in the accelerated production phase of the project. In addition, each component is separately stored and packaged to cope with severe weather conditions. The package is completely airtight and watertight, and it is UV resistant. At the same time, it can keep the components in a brand-new state before use, and the most important thing is to prevent corrosion. In respect of the main components, Liebherr has a commissioned inventory in Colon's warehouse, which is handled by Liebherr's long-term partners and manages the inventory of more than 250 spare parts locally.

Liebherr ground (GET): preferred solution

Liebherr conducted field comparison tests for FQM, comparing Liebherr's GET system with its current GET brand. The Liebherr GET system quickly and unambiguously demonstrates the value of investing in a genuine "original equipment manufacturer" solution. The customer stated that the Liebherr GET system has the highest price/performance ratio: it uses automatic sharpening of components and equipment, which leads to higher efficiency and longer service life. As a true hammer-free system, this Liebherr GET solution provides maintenance personnel with even greater security. Liebherr also offers optimized logistics solutions from the factory to the site, as well as full field service support and training (eg bucket design advice, blade switching and welding).

Therefore, FQM strongly favors the Liebherr GET solution and is currently converting the entire R9100 and R9350 machine bucket fleets into the Liebherr GET solutions Z100 and Z140. This proves that Liebherr is not only a "finished" GET supplier, but also an OEM service provider. (This article comes from Liebherr)