ABB provides motors and drive for anti-personnel landmine clearance rig01 August 2018

(L to R): Chris Pym - The HALO Trust, Andy Withers – MMD, David Blissett – ABB, Steve Hughes – ABB and Rachael Brock - The HALO Trust

ABB has supplied motors and a variable speed drive (VSD) for an anti-personnel landmine clearance rig.

The machine, which is the outcome of five years of R&D by MMD (Mining Machinery Developments), was donated to The HALO Trust charity at quarrying and construction industry event, Hillhead 2018.

It will work whereby excavated soil is fed into the main body of the rig by a conveyor and passed through two SizersTM (crushers), ensuring that any landmines contained in the soil are crushed or detonated.

Each Sizer is driven by an ABB 37 kW four-pole, flange-mounted motor, which have been built for very demanding applications and can withstand up to 5g of force.

An ABB VSD regulates the speed of the conveyor that feeds the soil into the rig. This prevents the Sizers from becoming overloaded, which could potentially cause the rig to break down. The ABB drive monitors the current drawn by the conveyor’s combined motor and gearbox and adjusts the conveyor speed accordingly.

The rig is destined for deployment in Zimbabwe – a highly mine-impacted country – where every month, around 500 mines are removed manually.

MMD’s demining rig will automate the process, thereby making it faster and safer.

James Cowan, CEO of The HALO Trust, said: "We are very grateful to MMD for this generous donation. Once this machine is set to work, it will increase the area of contaminated land we clear each day in heavily mined countries such as Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. In the places where we work, cleared land simply means more food for farming families and safer routes to school for children. MMD’s Sizer technology will make a real difference to tens of thousands of people.”

David Blissett, area sales manager of LV motors at ABB, added: “ABB is delighted to support the work of The HALO Trust and to be involved with such a worthwhile project. We congratulate MMD on its hard work and determination over the last five years to develop this very special machine that will change the lives of many thousands of people around the world for the better.”

Adam Offord

Related Companies
ABB
MMD Mining Machinery Developments Ltd

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