Massive water truck takes to the road

Two Australian firms have joined forces to develop and build a revolutionary minesite water spray truck (pictured) to improve dust control and enhance mining operational safety.

Mobile equipment provider Australian Diversified Engineering and mining equipment supplier Austin Engineering have delivered two new ‘stairway access tank’ trucks to the McArthur River silver, lead and zinc mine in the Northern Territory incorporating ADE’s unique spray control technology.

The 159,000 litre capacity trucks are designed to be the safest in the mining industry.

The trucks are CAT 789 models manufactured in Batam, Indonesia and assembled by Austin in Australia incorporating the locally-made ADE Spray System.

The ADE control system delivers a consistent rate of water application onto the road surface regardless of vehicle speed.

Road friction measurements are used to determine the maximum safe water coverage rate which reduces the risk of unplanned vehicle movements and slippage.

During operation the spray system data logs all spray activities which can be used to assess the quality of operations and generate reports.

ADE general manager Clive Gray said too much or too little water spraying could have repercussions such as closure of haul roads and safety issues for mine operators.

Gray said: “By eliminating over and under watering, costs, fuel and water usage are naturally reduced.

“But it is the safety of the mining workers that is at the forefront of our designs…we limit the risks involved to mining workers and that is something we are very proud of.”

Picture: Australian Diversified Engineering

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