“Shadrinsk Automotive Components” plant (a UMMC company, chaired by Iskander Makhmudov) manufactured the first Ferrit LHD loader model PDM14-UMMC-Ferrit with a load capacity of 14 tons.

– The fourteen-ton machine was designed as part of an extensive program to design and produce a complete range of mining machines that until now have not been manufactured in Russia, – explains Alexander Fomin, an adviser to the technical director of SHAAZ Ltd. – At the beginning of June, the first LHD loader was presented by our partner, the Ferrit company, and a month later we completed the work in Shadrinsk. The PDM14-UMMC loader is capable of transporting up to 14 tons of powdery products over short distances. The loader was created to work in underground mines, but it can also be used in tunnel construction and earthworks.

According to Alexander Fomin, this machine manufactured by SHAAZ in collaboration with Ferrit is, due to its technical features, the complete equivalent of the production of the world-famous brands. The machine has a classic construction for this type of equipment – including a side cabin and an engine at the rear. The supplier of 375 hp diesel engines is the company “Kamminz Kama” (a joint venture of KAMAZ and Cummins Inc.), the supplier of running gear is the Belgian company, DANA Spicer.

This new LHD loader differs from its ten-ton counterpart PDM10-UMMC not only by a higher load capacity of its excavator but also by other features. The PDM14-UMMC model is more powerful, larger, and ten tons heavier, its weight is almost forty tons. In addition, its enclosed cab allows for the installation of heating and air conditioning systems, which considerably improves the operator’s working conditions.

Another specificity of this new machine is the possibility to operate it remotely. In all cases where there is a potential danger to humans, the operator can be at a safety distance of 20-30 meters and operate the machine with the help of a control panel in the same way as from the cabin: the joysticks on this panel are identical to those in the cabin. The remote control system includes surveillance cameras that send the images to the control console.

– The mining machines often work under difficult conditions, that’s why we attach particular importance to quality aspects at every stage of production, – emphasizes SHAAZ SA Quality Director Andrey Biakov. – We analyze the work of the LHD loaders of all our companies on a daily basis, we are in constant contact with specialists from Ferrit and the maintenance service, the company “SibTransServis”, and we carry out regular technical maintenance of these machines. In short, we accompany each machine throughout its life.

Currently, the PDM14-UMMC loader has been sent to Uchaly Mining and Metallurgical Combine. It is this UMMC company that will operate this machine after the road tests and training of specialists.

It is worth mentioning that the investment project for the production of LHD loaders at the Shadrinsk Automotive Components plant was presented by UMMC on the occasion of the International Industrial Exhibition “INNOPROM 2018”. It was a 1:10 scale model. And the first Ferrit PDM10-UMMC machine was launched in November 2018. Since the start of the project, Ferrit and SHAAZ have jointly manufactured nine LHD loaders with a load capacity of ten tons.

– The project to produce LHD loaders at the Shadrinsk Automotive Components site is growing, – notes Alexander Fomin. – By the end of 2020, we are to produce two more machines with a load capacity of 10 tons and one more with a load capacity of 14 tons. At the same time, we are working on the project of an LHD loader with a 17-ton load capacity, which is scheduled for production next year.

In the long term, the company plans to produce up to 50 units of underground mining machinery per year, including LHD loaders with 10, 14, and 17 tons load capacity, as well as mine dump trucks.