A large order for mobile crushers and screens sees Sandvik Japan deliver the first heavy mobile crushers in over 20 years to a customer
Part of the Fujisaco Group, the Showa Corporation has been a Sandvik customer for five years, purchasing a variety of Sandvik drill rigs, breakers and medium range mobile crushers and screens.
Now, Sandvik says it is also Sandvik’s first customer in Japan for the U-440 range of tracked crushers.
Mr. Yamanoi, the owner of the Showa Corporation, is one of the biggest quarry owners in Japan with ten sites employing over 500 people.
Discussions between the Showa Corporation and Sandvik began in late 2011 when Hiroshi Kezuka, Sandvik regional product line manager for mobile crushers and screens, together with Peter Delbrant, Sandvik product line manager for the U-range crushers, met with Mr. Yamanoi. As a result of this meeting Mr. Yamanoi placed an initial order for eight mobile crushing and screening units.
The order comprised two sets of equipment each consisting of an UJ440i jaw and US440i cone crusher complete with hanging screens plus an UH440i cone and QA450 triple-deck screener.
According to Sandvik, a key piece of equipment to the successful operation of each crushing and screening train is the UJ440i jaw crusher, a state-of-the-art machine that is said to maximise production through its feed opening, which coupled with a hydraulic close side setting (css) enables rapid changes through push-button operation enhanced by integral intelligent operation.
The HD crusher on the UJ440i is capable of handling any type of hard rock, in any climate including the most extreme weather condition when fitted with an optional engine pre-heater, says Sandvik.
The in-built intelligence control system automatically and continuously monitors the production process.
The Sandvik UH440i and US440i tracked cone crushers make up the other key components of the two production units, and like the jaw unit fitted to the UJ440i, the cone on both crushers is able to handle any type of hard rock material, in virtually any climatic conditions.
The cone unit’s automatic setting system, ASRi, is said to further optimise cone crusher efficiency, and automatically adapt the crusher to variations in feed conditions. By continuously measuring and compensating for crusher liner wear, ASRi allows for optimal utilisation of crusher liners, and schedule liner replacements to coincide with planned maintenance stops. It also assists in keeping the crusher choke fed in order to maximize rock-on-rock crushing.
The Sandvik U-440 tracked crushers are currently used in two crushing trains to specifically produce aggregate for concrete production.
The first production unit concentrates on producing a 20-5mm limestone product, while the second produces both a 20-5mm and 5-0mm product from a hard sand stone and andesite. Both crushing trains are reportedly operating at high throughput, and producing “superb product shape.”
In addition to this, smaller members of the Sandvik mobile crushing and screening range, the QJ340 jaw crusher; QA140 screener and QE330 scalper, are used for special size production at various points of the sites, while the QJ240 jaw crusher is utilised to crush concrete for recycling and reuse.
These latter elements further provide the Showa Corporation with enhanced operational flexibility whenever and wherever it is needed, says Sandvik.
Four people were invited from the Showa Corporation to visit Europe as guests of Peter Delbrant. Initially they undertook service training in England, and then proceeded to the Svedala factory in Sweden to learn more about the Sandvik heavy range of equipment as well as to see heavy units operating in the field.
To capitalise on the successful trip to Europe, Peter Delbrant recently ran a further course in Japan after which Mr. Yamanoi placed a third order with Sandvik comprising two additional QA440 screens and a US440i crusher along with two members of the super-heavy range of mobiles, the UJ540 jaw and UH640 cone respectively.
According to Sandvik, the order from the Showa Corporation is the first step in introducing the Sandvik U-range of larger, heavy duty mobile crushing and screening equipment to Japan, and seeks to build on the excellent work already undertaken in expanding the market for the Q-range of crushing and screening equipment.
