“More and more of the bigger mines are making a determined effort to improve safety, and brake systems for the mine hoists are at the top of their list,” said Borje Johansson, ABB underground mining business.
To date, China’s largest mines have ordered 13 separate brake systems and two complete hoist systems from ABB, and more orders are expected.
ABB said it was the only company able to offer a complete package of electrical and mechanical equipment of its own design.
“This is an important factor for our customers because it means we can integrate and optimize the electrical and mechanical equipment in a way that our competitors cannot,” said Johansson.
ABB’s new drive technology is also making a breakthrough into the Chinese market, with the first mine hoist powered by ACS drives scheduled to go online in 2004.
ABB said its Drive IT ACS6000 SD drives were particularly suitable for Chinese mines, where power networks tend to be weak. Whereas competing drives require harmonic filters and power factor correction equipment to rectify their own deficiencies, ABB drives do not.
ABB has won orders for four mine hoists equipped with Drive IT ACS600SD drives in China.
