In addition to increased capacity and big fuel savings, Norwegian crushing contractor Finsveen Maskin appreciates the easy transportability of Metso’s Lokotrack LT220D cone plant.
The revolutionary two-in-one crushing and screening plant has enjoyed worldwide sales success since its Las Vegas, US launch in early 2014. After logging more than 2,500 equipment operating hours, Finsveen Maskin says it knows with certainty that the unit really does boost production and significantly lowers fuel costs – to the claimed tune of more than €100,000 per year.
“The figures verified by us are very convincing. The LT220D cone crushing plant with a full-sized screen increases capacity by 25% and consumes only 34litres per hour, resulting in 40% fuel savings compared to its predecessor, the LT1100 cone plant,” says Runar Finsveen, manager of Finsveen Maskin, Norway.
“And, as a big added bonus, the LT220D, weighing only 48 tonnes, can be transported easily as one piece – no dismantling necessary.
According to Runar, better transportability is a big advantage in crushing contracting: “We move our LT220D between sites about 25 times per year. Thanks to the hydraulically lowered screen, feeder and conveyors, getting the machine ready for transport goes quickly and it can be transported on an ordinary trailer. Upon arrival to a new site, the unit is ready to work in 20 minutes,” he says.
Finsveen Maskin was among the very first companies worldwide to start operating the Lokotrack LT220D in August 2014. In ten months, more than 2,500 hours were clocked and some quarter of a million tonnes of aggregates crushed and screened.
Runar expects to save 60,000–70,000litres of fuel/year with the new LT220D. With the average price of diesel about €1/litre in Norway, the total fuel savings will range between €60,000–70,000 euros/year. At the same time, he will get 25-30tonnes more production/hour compared to the LT1100.
Finsveen Maskin concentrates on the contracting of secondary and fine crushing jobs. It operates in a manner commonly practiced in Norway: a dump truck feeds a static hopper silo, from which a conveyor moves the material up to the LT220D’s vibrating feeder.
The GP220 cone crusher on board the LT220D is operated at a 16mm closed side setting, providing capacity of about 130tonnes/hour. The patented, centrifugal lifting conveyor takes crushed materials back to the screen, saving a lot of space.
Normally, the LT220D produces end products of 0–4mm, 4-8mm, 8-16(16-22)mm, 8–11mm and 11–16mm, with an additional mobile screen further producing 0–2mm, 2–5mm and 5–8mm grades.
Runar Finsveen’s career in the crushing and screening business has already spanned more than 25 years. He actually started his first screening job at the age of 14 and was running a crushing plant just one year later.
Runar founded his first company at the age of 19, working with an excavator and a truck. Finsveen Maskin was established after a company merger in 2007. Today, the company has 22 employees and executes contracts around the village of Bø, south of Norway’s capital city of Oslo.
Before the LT220D, Finsveen Maskin operated Lokotrack LT105 and LT110 jaw plant models for primary crushing and an LT1100 for fine crushing. This year, the company’s secondary and tertiary crushing will produce 270,000tonnes, and it has plans to increase it to 300,000 – 350,000tonnes by 2016.
Normal working days at Finsveen Maskin tend to be 12 hours’ long, usually including a one-hour service break. This way, the company is said to ensure smooth, efficient operation and avoid unexpected breakdowns. The fact that the diesel engine on the LT1100 was operated more than 16,000 hours without opening is a good indication of the effectiveness of the company’s service culture.
“The service requirement for the LT220D seems to be rather minimal. We try to handle it on our own, but we do use Metso experts when necessary.”
