Editor’s Note: Two of our previously published articles about the proper maintenance of mining equipment – Ensuring your idler rolls meet the Minimum Run Out Tolerance and Maintaining your scales to keep your bulk material handling systems in balance – sparked the interest of one of our blog subscribers and inspired him to offer his own set of maintenance tips. Barton Henderson of Statewide Bearings offers these guidelines to keep your mining and earth-moving machinery in tip top shape.
Barton Henderson
by Barton Henderson, Statewide Bearings
Maintaining earth-moving machinery is something that must be done to prevent major problems down the road. The last thing you want on a mining site is non-working equipment. Improper maintenance will shorten the lifespan of machinery, cause it to breakdown frequently, require costly repairs, and slow down your operations. Also, there are workers who die each year due to heavy machinery accidents — often caused by non-maintained equipment and improper training. Following these tips might help prevent injuries and deaths.
Tip #1: Always Keep Machinery Lubricated
All moving parts of a machine will eventually fail if they aren’t lubricated. Without proper lubrication, parts will create excess friction, and this friction can cause severe wear and tear on the machinery. As a result of this deterioration, the lifespan of the moving parts will be drastically shortened. In order to avoid this slow destruction, earth-moving machinery should be properly maintained, and all moving parts should be well lubricated.
The proper amount of lubrication is just as important as the part itself. With too little lubrication, you are not ensuring the moving parts will operate properly. With too much lubrication, the machinery won’t be able to handle it properly, and this could cause energy loss, seal issues and an excess accumulation of grease.
To properly maintain heavy machinery, you should also use the lubrication specifically recommended by the manufacturer. Using the wrong type could be ineffective or even damage the mining machinery.
Tip #2: Clean Heavy Machinery Well
Another great tip for properly maintaining earth-moving machinery is to make sure it stays as clean as possible. Dirt and debris can damage one or more of the delicate parts of heavy machinery — which could necessitate costly repairs.
Earth-moving machinery parts are fitted with special seals and filters designed to keep dirt and grime out of sensitive areas. If a seal cracks or breaks, it won’t properly protect the machinery. Filters that are clogged with excess dirt and grime won’t correctly do their job. Even a machine’s cab contains many delicate pieces of equipment that will malfunction if contaminated.
Broken seals must be repaired immediately. Breathers must be kept clean. And all filters should be inspected regularly, and changed when they become dirty or clogged.
One of the best ways to protect your mining machinery from dirt and the elements is to keep it housed in a building. Anything from a shed to a garage will do; just make sure the building is clean and free from standing water or leaks. By sheltering the machinery, you will prevent rust, grime build-up, and problems that result from these issues.
Tip #3: Maintain Earth-moving Machinery Regularly
Inspecting and repairing heavy machinery every now and then isn’t enough to keep it in peak condition. You need to create and follow a maintenance schedule. Include notations on how often each part of the machinery should be inspected for problems, repaired, and generally maintained.
Be consistent and make sure your inspection is thorough. Gaskets and seals should be regularly inspected to ensure they aren’t damaged or broken. Check belts and pulleys for proper alignment. Bolts should be closely inspected to determine if they have stretched. Any broken parts should be replaced immediately if they do not pass the test. Gears and other moving parts should be inspected for wear and tear, and then lubricated properly, cleaning off any excess grease.
Make a checklist of everything that needs to be regularly maintained and repaired, and then execute on it. By maintaining earth-moving machinery frequently, you will extend its life and increase its performance.
Tip #4: Pay Attention to Wear and Tear
During normal operations you may see signs that point to wear and tear. Be aware of these signs because they may signal problems that can cause machinery to malfunction more often or result in needed repairs or component replacements before your regular inspection.
Some common signs of wear and tear are vibration, heat, and belt shape. Vibration can be caused by a number of items, from misaligned belts to gear glitches. If you notice higher temperatures than normal, improper lubrication or overuse may be the root of the heat source. Misshapen belts are another clue that something needs to be repaired. Fix any issues as soon as they are found so they don’t cause worse problems later.
Tip #5: Keep Employees Trained Well
One of the most important ways to protect heavy machinery is to make sure employees are skilled at operating it. All new employees must be trained thoroughly; and existing employees should be re-trained often to ensure everyone operates the machinery safely and at current standards. Without proper operator training, employees could damage the machinery or even injure themselves or others.
I urge you to follow these tips to help lengthen the lifespan of your mining equipment and to prevent dangerous injuries.
Statewide Bearings is a distributor of bearings and other parts for heavy duty mining, construction and agricultural machinery with branches right around Australia. If you have any questions about this article, you can email Barton directly at: mining@statewidebearings.com.au. Thermo Fisher does not endorse or make any representations about this third party. See Terms and Conditions.
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I would think that tip number four would be especially important. The stress and load put on moving machinery must be incredibly large. A small problem could become a big one very fast due to the copious weight that a moving load is made of. http://www.donmurraysbobcatandtipperhire.com.au
Thanks for your comment Heather. I’ll pass it along to the author.
very good infomation to maintaing tipps of earth movers….thank u very much
Thank you Nageswara. I will pass your comment along to the author.
If you use this type of equipment, then you should take care of it. If you don’t, then you will be taking a big risk. Now I would suggest always getting that done by a professional if you can. For renting equipment like this, you should check to see if it was being taken care of.
At first thought, it seems somewhat silly to recommend keeping earth-moving equipment clean. It’s constantly in dirt and mud, so it seems like it would be a pretty difficult task to clean it after every use. However, as you said, certain parts of the machines are very delicate, so you want to make sure the parts protecting them are in good repair. Plus, keeping the rest of the machine generally clean probably wouldn’t hurt. Thanks for the article!
Thanks for your comment, Hazel. Make sure you subscribe to our blog to get new articles every week.
I think your best suggestion is to make sure the operators are well trained. Not just in how to run the equipment, but in how to clean and maintain it. I still think you should perform regular maintenance checks, but the more people you have consistently taking care of the machines, the longer they will last, and the sooner you will be able to find and fix problems.
Thanks for your comment, James.
I don’t know why the thought of cleaning earth moving machinery is kind of contradictory to me. I hadn’t been aware of the necessity of how much dirt and debris could affect the equipment. These tips sound simple but also crucial to maintaining heavy equipment like bobcats.
Thanks for your insight, Zequek!
I think that tip about maintaining earth moving machinery regularly is important. The condition of the equipment would probably be a good indicator of the quality of service you’ll be getting. there seem to be so many factors that business needs to take care that allows customers to see that they will give you the best service.
The fifth tip about well trained employees is spot on. It’s monumental to have you employees know their way around this equipment. If everyone knows how they work, they’ll know when there’s something wrong with it. My dad was always very good at knowing his machines.
Thanks for your comment Skylar. I’m sure you will follow in the steps of your dad.
Great tips you shared with us about the Maintenance of Machinery. These tips sound simple but also crucial to maintaining heavy Machinery,Thanks for the article!
Thank you! And if you have any other topics you would like to see covered, please let us know.
The “enabling development” was supposed to preserve public access and save the buildings. The risk is that this is a precursor to blocking public access to the site until such time as a buyer is found who is willing and able to fund the restoration of the listed buildings.
I truly like your tip to hold fast to a general maintenance schedule of earth moving machinery. I also like what you said in regards to how key schedules are for machinery maintenance. I’ve additionally heard that earth moving machine should be properly insured, I’ll need to look more into it however!
You made a great point about cleaning the machinery well so that it continues to work properly. My husband and I are looking for an earthmoving service that can help us as we renovate our yard for more parties. We will keep these tips in mind as we search for a professional that can help us best.
Really appreciate you taking a time to educate us about cleaning the machinery . I would have never thought about the maintenance of Machinery, but it makes perfect sense.
You did an excellent job keeping it entertaining and not boring. Thank a ton !
Earthmoving machinery parts wear out very quickly during the operation of the machine. These will indeed help out in maintaining the machine.
Great to find such a beautiful article. Thank you
Great stuff
It’s great that you point out that mining equipment requires regular maintenance in order to function properly. I’m thinking about buying some mining equipment this year, so I should probably find someone to perform maintenance on repairs on it for me. I’m going to look for a good provider of mining equipment maintenance and repair services that I can use.
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Great Read thanks!