Sandvik’s surface top hammer drill rig Ranger^TM DX900i is convincing in operation

The new Sandvik top hammer drill rig, Ranger^TM DX900i was presented at the Sandvik stand at Steinexpo 2017 as an novelty prior to the official market launch. On this occasion, potential operators were impressed at first glance by the 290 ° working radius of the machine, covering a drilling area of 55 m². With fewer transfer operations, fixed drill grids can be drilled faster, more precisely and more safely. New and powerful RD920 series rock drills with outputs from 21 to 27 kW are available for the drill rig. The drill rig is equipped with Sandvik GT60 drill steel for straight holes in diameters from 92 mm to 127 mm. All this, combined with a fuel efficient 210 kW engine, make it the most powerful and economical surface top hammer drill rig in its class.

“What is special about this powerful type of drill rig is that even difficult, narrow and very uneven drilling fields can be drilled, which is not possible to the same extent with any other rig,“ says Klaus Berge, transport, drilling and blasting contractor from Alheim/Germany. This aspect, in combination with the strong drilling performance, was decisive for him and ultimately pivotal in the purchase of a Ranger DXi drill rig – as well as the advantages of the iTorque control system. This control system brings important advantages to the drilling process, such as the automatic adjustment of drilling parameters for high drilling accuracy even on difficult rock types. In this way, optimum drilling performance and drilling accuracy are achieved, while at the same time minimizing drill steel wear.

Acceptance by conviction

Impressed by the possibilities offered, Klaus Berge has invested in Ranger DX900i. “We have been using the predecessor of the new model, i.e. Ranger DX800, for the past six years and are completely satisfied with it. That is why we wanted to rely on a model in the Ranger series again for our upcoming supplementary purchase.” Already after the first few days of operation, Berge witnessed the fulfillment of another promised advantage: “The construction of the new Ranger DX900i is different from its predecessor. That means it is, once again, noticeably more stable. It has also been confirmed that the new rock drill is stronger and, accordingly, strikes perfectly. For that reason, and also because more flushing air is available, it is more economical to drill.” The real use of the intelligent system equipped with Industrie 4.0 docking stations will only be revealed in practice over time. After the thorough four-day supplier training right at the start of the operation, there will be a second training four weeks later, where all unanswered questions concerning the drill can be clarified together with the manufacturer’s instructors.

Ideal drilling site in northern Bavaria

Klaus Berge’s references are exemplary. In addition to heavy haulage and drilling jobs, the company also provides complete services for the operation of quarries. Nevertheless, no matter how much experience a company has racked up, thoroughness is essential to rapid operational success and safety when training on completely new devices. For this reason, Klaus Berge‘s personnel were trained on the newly delivered Ranger DX900i in September 2018 at Hartsteinwerke Schicker OHG‘s Diabas quarry in Kupferberg. The traditional company currently operates four quarries in northern Bavaria – in Bad Berneck, Kupferberg, Stadtsteinach and Rugendorf. While extraction and processing have so far largely been handled by the company‘s own workforce, since the acquisition of the fourth site and due to the currently very high demand, the integration of additional drilling service providers has been necessary. The site is located 270 km away from Klaus Berge’s headquarters, i.e. beyond the usual deployable radius of the Hessian supplier‘s external drill meter. However, with demand and supply fitting together just perfectly, exceptions are ever present in such cases.

In remarkable silence – thanks to collaboration with the Finnish Technical Research Centre VTT the noise levels in the new iCab-cabin have been brought to a minimum level – the instructor explains the new user interface and control panels of the touchscreens. The user-friendly joysticks are handled correctly by all Ranger DX900i newcomers right from the first try in the test run. Just a few days later, operator Andreas Soldan has also established a trusting relationship with Ranger DX900i and appreciates its advantages – at least as far as the hardware is concerned. The hydraulic, self-propelled surface drill rig with a nimble automatic rod changer will do great in terms of visibility during production drilling in quarries.