Lubricants Ease the Path to Lower Costs & Improved Safety in Mining
Helping mining companies meet the goal of maximising productivity to reduce costs, while also improving safety.
At Shell, we have worked closely with the maintenance teams of many mining companies. The biggest challenges are often around maintaining equipment, producing more with that equipment and keeping workers safe. This puts added pressure on maintenance teams to extend the life of machinery – for which a smart lubricant strategy can make all the difference.
However, our research shows two thirds of companies believe an investment in lubrication will reduce costs by five per cent, when in fact the real value of investing in lubricants is six times larger – saving up to 30 per cent of the total maintenance budget. For example, upgrading to a higher quality lubricant means you can immediately extend oil drain intervals from day one, shaving a chunk off the total cost of ownership.
Our LubeExperts understand the intricacies of each individual piece of mining equipment, as well as how it interacts with lubricants. This allows them to help mining companies meet the goal of maximising energy efficiency and productivity.
Shell LubeExperts work to help mining companies meet the goal of maximising energy efficiency and productivity.
Specific services and tools used include:
- Inspecting equipment using strobe-o-scope, thermal imaging, and vibration analysis
- Auditing lubrication systems and injectors
- Fitting injector spectrum sleeves
- Optimising greases for fixed and mobile equipment
This all goes hand in hand with improving safety - equipment that is operating properly is inherently safer – and more productive.
We can also make the process of maintenance itself, safer too. Shell’s single point lubricator, Shell Tactic, reduces human-machine contact because, instead of having to lubricate multiple points around a machine, lubrication is applied just at one point and is then distributed around the equipment as required. Also, this approach reduces the amount of lubrication used by up to 60 per cent, compared to manual application, not least because seals don’t have to be broken so the possibility of contamination is restricted, and less grease is needed to re-seal the machine. The single-point lubricator has been used very effectively by mining companies including Codelco in Chile and VALE in Brazil.
We estimate Shell Lube Experts have saved our mining customers more than $63.9 million over the last six years, while improving safety too – a brilliant outcome for any business.
Could you be underestimating the impact of lubricants in mining
Title: Could you be underestimating the impact of lubricants in mining?
Duration: 1:12
Description: Employees from Shell Lubricants and KGHM describe the cost savings that Shell LubeExperts was able to provide KGHM by reducing their grease consumption.
[Techno style synthesized Shell music plays]
[White and Yellow Text Display Over Footage]
Could you be underestimating the impact of lubricants?
[Video Footage]
Aerial of Robinson mine.
[Text Display]
MICHAEL LONGBOTTOM¶
GLOBAL LUBE EXPERT MANAGER¶
SHELL LUBRICANTS
[Micheal Longbottom]
Part of the process, the other area we do look at
[Micheal Longbottom Voice Over]
When a piece of equipment is operating is insuring the lubrication system is working effectively and making sure that the timer settings haven’t changed from the last time we were on the machine. Making sure that the lubrication system of the injectors are actually cycling correctly. If we notice the injector isn’t cycling during a normal operation it will indicate that either the grease line’s blocked, or we’re not getting enough pressure to the injector
[Video Footage]
Shell Lube Expert Michael Longbottom and KGHM employee in hi-vis vest, hard hats, goggles, and gloves walking up to Haul truck and inspecting the automatic lubrication system.
[Micheal Longbottom]
So it’s indicating that there's a problem that we need to identify what that problem may be
[Micheal LongbottomVoice Over]
And then putting the right recommendations to fix that.
[Video Footage]
Micheal pointing to part of the automatic lubrication system.
[Micheal Longbottom Voice Over]
We are looking at trying to reduce consumptions on the shovels and ensuring that the right amount of grease is being applied at the right times. The saving that was identified during the audit process and the change to the GADUS products was mainly due to around 31,000 pounds of grease per year that the machine was actually wasting. And that would attribute to around 100K that KGHM would save.
[Video Footage]
Two Shell LubeExpert employees in hi-vis vest, white hard hats, goggles, and gloves greasing and inspecting inside the shovels.
[White and Yellow Text Display Over Footage]
SHELL LUBE EXPERTS SAVED KGHM MINE $100,000 BY REDUCING THEIR CONSUMPTION OF GREASE
[Video Footage]
Aerial of Robinson Mine.
[Red, Blue, and Gray Text Display Over White Background]
SHELL LUBRICANTS
TOGETHER ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE
[Shell music out]
[Shell mnemonic]
[Graphic Display]
Shell Pecten logo.
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