The PC7000 is matched to 200t+ trucks such as Komatsu’s 830E, 860E and 930E units.

According to Michael Hall, Komatsu Australia’s national product manager, the new PC7000 – which had its worldwide release in April at the Bauma tradeshow in Germany– extends the company’s portfolio of loading tools in the plus 200t+ class, joining the PC8000.

“Testing in Australia has confirmed the production benefits delivered by the PC7000’s large bucket capacity, fast cycle times, high breakout force and excellent stability,” he said.

Hall said customer input into the new shovel was a key factor in its development. “It represents the latest in mining technology, and was developed as a result of close collaboration with our mining industry partners from around the world; with mining becoming ever more challenging, we opted for a truly customer-oriented approach,” he said.

“As part of this process, our long-term mining partners were asked to define their requirements for the next generation of shovels.

“They identified safety, productivity, maintainability and performance as key drivers – and all were taken into consideration by our design and development engineers.”

The PC7000’s design was also strongly influenced by industry groups such as the Earth Moving Equipment Safety Round Table (EMESRT).
Hall claims the PC7000 has the highest engine power and breakout force in its class, providing fast cycle times.

“This, combined with an easy-fill bucket design, meant in less time at the face to fill the bucket, along with reduced fuel consumption per BCM [bank cubic metre],” he said.

“At the same time, our Komatsu Hydropilot system prioritises hydraulic flow, ensuring smooth hydraulic response, with simple system layout and a reduced number of components.

“Maintenance-related downtime has also been significantly reduced, with the machine design providing easy access to major components, centralised service points and improved maintenance access through the location and increased width of walkways.”

Customers can check the machine’s operating status through KOMTRAX Plus, Komatsu’s machine monitoring system, which is standard on the PC7000.

“And for Australian, New Zealand and New Caledonia customers, all machine operational data is constantly monitored and checked in our INSITE Fleet Management Centre at our Fairfield headquarters,” Hall added.

“Our INSITE centre constantly monitors data covering key machine, fleet, production and industry parameters across all Komatsu mining, construction and utility machines operating throughout our region, ensuring we harness the latest ICT (information communications technology) to derive maximum benefits for our customers,” he said.

Additional production enhancing technology on the PC7000 is available through Modular Mining’s ProVision system, delivering advantages such as:

• Bi-directional data transfer from mine planning to the machine and from the machine to mine planning;
• Improved bench level adherence to plan;
• Delineation of blocks and polygons to enable selective mining and ore grade consistency, minimising material waste and improving production efficiency; and
• Enhanced safety via hazard alerts, restricted area identification and proximity warnings.