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NEWS
Rio Tinto’s autonomous trucks pass one billion tonnes
Rio Tinto’s fleet of autonomous haul trucks achieved a significant milestone last week by moving their one-billionth tonne of materialSince commencing trial operations in 2008, haul trucks fitted with Autonomous Haulage System (AHS) technology have now moved more than one billion tonnes of both ore and waste material across five sites in the Pilbara including the newly commissioned Silvergrass mine.
Last year, Rio Tinto’s autonomous fleet accounted for about a quarter of the total material moved across its Pilbara mines. On average, each autonomous truck was estimated to have operated about 700 hours more than conventional haul trucks during 2017 and around 15 per cent lower load and haul unit costs.
Importantly, Rio Tinto says there have been zero injuries attributed to autonomous haul trucks since deployment, highlighting their safety advantages.
With more than 80 autonomous Komatsu trucks currently operating and plans in place to increase this to more than 140 by the end of 2019, the pace of automation across Rio Tinto’s iron ore business is accelerating.
Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive Chris Salisbury said: “Hauling one billion tonnes autonomously is an impressive milestone for our business and again highlights Rio Tinto’s pioneering spirit when it comes to adopting revolutionary new technologies which are making the industry safer and more efficient.”
“We remain committed to working closely with our employees as we expand our autonomous haul truck fleet including providing opportunities for new roles, redeployment, retraining and upskilling,” he added.
Last month, Rio Tinto approved retrofit programs to add autonomous technology to 48 existing Komatsu and Caterpillar haul trucks over the next two years. About 20 per cent of Rio Tinto’s existing fleet of almost 400 haul trucks in the Pilbara is autonomous. Following the completion of the retrofit projects autonomous trucks will represent about 30 per cent of the fleet.
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Written byTrucksales Staff
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Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
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