Automation, an ever-increasingly popular topic, is just one of those opportunities. SHM representative Jennifer Hawley said the company’s philosophy encompasses the use of automation in scenarios where machine productivity can be increased.

“On one level, this applies to the use of programmable logic control (PLC) technology at the heart of the machine-control system,” she noted.

“Through the use of touch-screen technology, the machine operator not only has simple, immediate-response control over the machine’s functions, but can also adjust these functions in response to changing mining conditions within the entry.”

The other side of this, Hawley said, is a more rapid pushbeam installation and recovery during and after entry mining.

“In this sense, automation has helped to reduce the time taken for a repetitive, wholly mechanical function within the mining and recovery cycle, which at the end of the shift translates into more cutting time, more tons mined and higher shipments through the mine gate,” she said.

Safety is another topic that is of obvious concern with any type of mining, be it surface or underground. Hawley said highwalling bears likeness to both in different ways.

There is a commonality with opencut mining, for example, because of an increased risk for accidents occurring from falling objects.

“The people involved in highwall mining, and the manufacturers of the specialist systems used, understand these risks,” Hawley said.

“In SHM’s case, the design of the machine means that the crew do not go near the highwall, so are not exposed to any loose material that may develop even after the wall has been inspected and made safe.”

However, when thinking about methane safety issues, highwall and underground operations have more in common, she said. “Methane can also pose a threat if its presence is not recognised and appropriate action taken.”

To hold this off, the company has taken its research and development to provide a safer option: “A sudden increase in methane concentrations will result in power to the cutterhead automatically being switched off, and if the seam being mined is known to be particularly gassy, then the umbilical cable that provides power, water, methane monitoring and control to the cutterhead can also be equipped with an air-blowing pipe that will ensure that any methane that is produced during mining is diluted safely.”

The company cites the ever-changing seam conditions present throughout the US as a basis for highwalling opportunities that will only continue to grow.

“The fundamental aspiration behind any highwall mining operation is to produce low-cost coal from resources that would otherwise be abandoned. In today’s coal market, that makes even more sense than it did just a few years ago, especially if metallurgical coal can be recovered,” SHM said.

The key, it said, is determining the most efficient system to use for the particular area being worked in.

“If highwalling is considered to be an integral part of a contour- or trench-mining operation, then the probability is that benches will be laid out to accommodate the miner during a second production phase,” Hawley said.

“By contrast, if highwalling is planned for old bench areas, where mining perhaps took place some time ago, the narrower benches used then will dictate the use of a machine that can operate under these conditions.”

Hawley noted that SHM can assist operators in either circumstance.

While the company is proud of its international successes, it remains dedicated to the American mines that keep it working and said it is looking forward to more opportunities for the highwall sector.

“[We have] a satellite parts depot in Appalachia, providing its customers with faster, more cost-effective service in the area in which it has the largest machine population,” SHM said.