Leaders in track construction and maintenance machinery
SPECIALTY track maintenance machine supplier Plasser Australia has wrapped up another successful year, delivering a number of new machines to the mining industry, as well as rail network operators throughout the country.
Plasser Australia said this included the RM900 ballast cleaning machine, which was proudly delivered to Rio Tinto Iron Ore.
“This machine forms part of a major network maintenance operation at Rio Tinto Iron Ore which is planning on ballast cleaning and resurfacing works for its rail network in an effort to enhance reliability, and ensure that this critical link in its supply chain remains operational and supports product delivery,” the company said.
“The tail end of 2018 also saw a great achievement for Plasser Australia in the delivery of the RM/FRM 902 ballast cleaning machine to Aurizon.
“After 40 months in the making, this machine has come to fruition, which was a very proud moment in the company’s history.”
At about 160 metres long, the RM/ FRM 902 was the biggest ballast cleaner delivered in the southern hemisphere.
Weighing in at a combined 553 tonnes, it has 14 bogies and 28 axles – 12 of which are hydraulically driven.
It also had a total of 37 conveyors, three C27 and one C13 series caterpillar engines, and 69 fixed and variable hydraulic pumps.
The RM/FRM 902 has a peak production rate of 1650 metres cubed per hour.
Once connected with the previously delivered 24 MFS-3/150 material handling wagons and other support equipment, the RM/FRM 902 would be just under one kilometre in length.
Plasser Australia also delivered the SSP305 ballast regulator to Rio Tinto Iron Ore in late 2018.
As part of a major planning and maintenance strategy, this machine would form part of the ballast cleaning operations soon to commence on the RTIO network.
Plasser Australia were also in the privileged position of supplying numerous SSP series ballast regulators to various network operators throughout the country – the first being the SSP303 supplied to Rhomberg Rail Australia.
“The machine has the latest cabin designs and safety features incorporated in a well-proven machine,” the company said.
In January, the company delivered the first of many machines to Queensland Rail.
The SSP302 ballast regulator was the first of 12 resurfacing machines that would be supplied to Queensland Rail over the next two to three years as part of its fleet upgrade project in an effort to future proof its resurfacing and track maintenance operations.
These new machines would replace the existing Plasser units that have been in service for the better part of 20 years.
Established in 1970, Plasser Australia has built a solid reputation supplying machines to the mining industry and has remained at the cutting-edge of track construction and maintenance technology.
This included using the latest in sensor and communications technology to give its customers direct access to machine data.
Using the company’s PlasserDatamatic 2.0 module, operators could monitor their machine through a desktop, smartphone or tablet with live information covering the location and condition of the machine, its operations, and the condition of the track below.
The system could keep operators abreast of anything from engine oil pressure, to battery voltage, right through to the conditions of hydraulic oil.
According to Plasser, its machine-enabled measuring and monitoring could generate smart data and a virtual track, allowing maintenance to be more efficient.