Calcium carbonate and limestone processor,
The UK’s leading supplier of calcium carbonate and limestone, Longcliffe, supplies a variety of industries from animal feed manufacturers to glass, plastic, adhesive and construction businesses. Revered for its versatility, high purity limestone extracted from Longcliffe’s Brassington Moor Quarry near Matlock is an essential component of feeds for poultry, pigs and cattle. Calcium carbonate plays an important role in animal nutrition as a dietary supplement and an antacid.
Founded by John Shields in 1927, Longcliffe is a family-owned business focused on continuously achieving customer satisfaction, serving the local community and playing its role to protect the environment. Hidden in the heart of Derbyshire, Longcliffe’s quarry is home to one of the purest and largest limestone basins in Great Britain. Running an around-the-clock operation, the company extracts, processes and delivers more than one million tonnes of limestone and dolomite products annually. Helping to keep production on site at an all-time high, Longcliffe is using Terex Trucks’ proven off-highway machines to move material around its site.
Longcliffe’s partnership with Terex Trucks was first established in 2013 when it issued a tender to replace a dump truck in its fleet that had come to the end of its lifespan. “The company had been happily buying machines from a particular brand, but when I came into the business we were looking to replace a dumper and I wanted to see what else was out there,” explains Chris Wainwright, operations director at Longcliffe. “Terex Trucks and its dealer, TDL Equipment, came up with an offer that was as good as the one our existing equipment supplier was offering. This gave us the opportunity to try something different.”
TDL supplied a 55-tonne payload TR60 on site at the quarry near Matlock for demonstration purposes, and that’s when optimism within Longcliffe started to build. While the proven rigid hauler impressed, Longcliffe required a machine with a bigger payload, which is where the TR70 found favour. “The feedback on Terex Trucks’ rigid hauler was good, and following tests on fuel consumption, cycle times and carrying capacity, we wanted to give the machine a try,” says Wainwright.
The Brassington Moor Quarry is split into two working areas that are connected by a tunnel, which was initially somewhat of a concern for TDL’s area sales manager, Gaz Bourne. Not leaving anything to chance, he was meticulous in ensuring that the TR70 was indeed the right truck for the site, triple-checking the dimensions of the tunnel against the rigid hauler.
With one TR70 working well transporting blasted rock from the face of the quarry to the processing plant, Longcliffe took the decision in May 2014 to add another Terex Trucks machine to its fleet. However, this time the business opted for an articulated dump truck in the form of the versatile TA400.
“We were looking to replace another rigid dumper,” says Wainwright. “We’d always traditionally had rigids at this site but because of the application, which is more tip work and running overburden, we also had the need for a machine with low sides to work in unison with one of our smaller stock shovels. That’s why we started looking at articulated trucks.
“We quickly got in contact with Gaz at TDL to get an idea of what Terex Trucks could offer. We did some tests, brought in some machines from other companies and ran trials looking at turnaround times, payloads, fuel consumption etc. After all that we were most impressed with the Terex Trucks TA400.”
Crafted with almost 70 years of manufacturing expertise, the innovative articulated framed truck achieves a payload of 38tonnes and is powered by a six-cylinder, Scania DC13 EU Stage 3B compliant engine that achieves a gross power of 331kW and a maximum torque of 2,255 Nm. Renowned for high uptime and reliability, the TA400 has great traction and an effective power-to-weight ratio to ensure material is moved as quickly as possible in all conditions – providing excellent productivity and low cost of operation. Additionally, the machine features a spacious and ergonomic cabin, complete with a commanding view for maximum operator comfort.
Happily operating two machines from Terex Trucks within its large fleet of equipment, Longcliffe placed TDL at the top of its call list in May 2017 when the time came to acquire a new truck. Pleased with the overall performance of the TR70, Longcliffe challenged the Scottish manufacturer to modify the truck slightly to increase its body volume by adding side extensions and tweaking the machine to make it a perfect fit for its operator, Andre Needham.
“I gave Terex Trucks a long list of specifications to make the truck just right for me and they didn’t disappoint,” says Needham. “I’ve got 40 years’ experience in quarrying and I’ve operated a lot of equipment but the TR70 is by far the most comfortable ride – even after 30 to 40 rounds a day.”
Well suited to the application, which is made up of hard rock, the Motherwell-built rigid dump truck was created to journey on through the toughest terrains. The TR70 is fitted with a Detroit Diesel MTU-2000TA 12 cylinder, 24-litre engine that provides a maximum torque of 3,323 Nm and a gross power of 567kW. The proven performer, which provides excellent rimpull thanks to a resilient drivetrain and rear axle configuration, is constructed with an Allison H6620AR, 6-speed transmission. Its effective gearing, coupled with optimum weight distribution, means the machine can move more using less fuel in less time.
The high capacity body of the machine comes complete with a 15-degree sloping tail chute and exhaust heating for low material retention and cleaner dumping. The TR70’s haul cycles are kept short thanks to smooth acceleration which helps to keep operators comfortable. Furthermore, to aid productivity, the rigid hauler boasts a spacious air-conditioned cabin with an air-suspension seat to reduce operator fatigue. It also has ergonomic controls, large mirrors, a deluxe operator’s seat, DAB radio and a colour reverse camera to provide excellent visibility. The hydraulic disc brakes also deliver better operator control, while the transmission retarder decreases brake wear, reducing ownership costs and increasing machine availability.
“Terex Trucks’ dumpers are built to do what they should do and with our new TR70, we’re getting additional body volume through the side extensions,” concludes Wainwright. “The fuel consumption of both the articulated and rigid dumpers is better than other trucks we’ve got and the aftermarket service and response times we’ve received from TDL have been good. There’s every chance that as our older machines come up for renewal, we’ll replace those with Terex Trucks’ dumpers too.”
