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Bucket Wheel Excavators for Extracting Raw Materials

Bucket wheel excavators offer highly efficient, continuous removal of large volumes of material. Combining excavation, loading, and transport in a single, integrated system, bucket wheel excavators streamline overburden removal and raw material extraction. They are commonly used in mining for handling overburden, brown coal (lignite) or hard coal, marl, and other mineral resources. Bucket wheel excavators may also be used for stockpile management and materials reclamation in ports and power stations.

HOW BUCKET WHEEL EXCAVATORS WORK

Unlike conventional machinery that must pause for unloading or repositioning, crawler-mounted bucket wheel excavators support continuous excavation by integrating excavation, loading and transportation in one machine. As part of an opencast mining system, they help mine operators achieve consistent and efficient material flows to meet volume targets and achieve higher productivity.

The main feature of a bucket wheel excavator is the large wheel on its front end, which is fitted with a series of specially designed buckets. The wheel is mounted on an adjustable boom, and, as it rotates, the buckets scoop up material and transfer it onto belt wagons and then onto belt conveyors for onward transport, forming a continuous, efficient material flow from pit to processing or stockpile.

KEY BENEFITS

Higher productivity
Integrated system
Scalable
Less site congestion
Improved safety
Lower operating costs

EFFICIENT MATERIAL EXCAVATION

FAM Bucket Wheel Excavators are robustly engineered for the high-impact task of cutting and removing unprocessed material from the earth. These machines have a wide range of design capacities, with volumes of 200-10,000 m³ per hour and handling rates of 400-14,500 tonnes per hour. A key advantage is the extended reach of the bucket wheel and boom conveyor, which allows the machine to cover a wide working area with minimal repositioning. The use of electrically powered conveyors makes FAM Bucket Wheel Excavators more energy efficient, which can lower operating costs and improve profitability. These machines also dramatically reduce truck movements, improving safety and reducing site congestion.

CHOICE OF CONFIGURATION

FAM Bucket Wheel Excavators are available in various configurations and classifications to align with specific customer requirements, site conditions, and material types.

The compact models feature an L-shaped superstructure with a low counterweight, mounted on a double crawler. The discharge boom features a robust hydraulic luff cylinder for accurate bucket wheel positioning. These machines are particularly well-suited for operations with short benches, variable terrain, and challenging site conditions where agility and compact design are essential.

The giant models typically feature a C-shaped superstructure with an upper counterweight, mounted on multiple crawlers for easy repositioning. This scale of bucket wheel excavator has a load-compensated discharge boom and a winch luff system, enabling bulk material extraction at various levels.

ADAPTABLE FOR MATERIAL RECLAMATION

FAM Bucket Wheel Reclaimers use the same robust and reliable technology as FAM Bucket Wheel Excavators, adapted to recover pre-deposited material from stockpiles in mining, industrial, power, or port facilities.

FAM BUCKET WHEEL EXCAVATORS IN ACTION

Customer: JSC Eurasien Energy Corporation

Project: Opencast Mine Vostochny, Ekibastus

Delivery and scope of service:

1x Bucket wheel excavator 4108 SR(K)2000

Material / Output:
Coal 4500 m³/h, 1589 t/h

Kazakhstan
2012

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