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Hitachi makes a difference in Polish quarry

EX1200-6 excavator maximizes efficiency and simplifies limestone extraction process for Polish cement firm

A LARGE Hitachi excavator has maximized efficiency and simplified the extraction process at a Polish limestone quarry owned by Cementownia Warta. The cement company is a relatively new Hitachi customer, but since it purchased an EX1200-6 in July 2010, annual production at the Dzialoszyn limestone quarry has increased to 2.5 million tonnes.

The 200ha quarry, one of the largest in Poland, needed to boost limestone production rates in order to meet daily production targets of 3,000 tonnes of cement, and upgrading to Hitachi equipment helped to make this possible.

Quarry manager Waldemar Rataj explained: ‘Before the EX1200-6 arrived, we extracted limestone by blasting once a day and using smaller electric excavators to load material on to dumptrucks. However, the larger EX1200-6 has greater capacity to extract the material without the need for blasting, and is much better for areas such as this with underground water.

The Hitachi excavator has a 6.5 cu m bucket capacity and is capable of working in difficult conditions, including under water, excavating material from depths of up to 11m.

‘The large bucket capacity has maximized the efficiency of the loading process,’ added Mr Waldemar. ‘The EX1200-6 can also be moved easily to a variety of locations around the quarry, which makes it more versatile than our previous excavators. It does the same work as four of our electric excavators, but only needs one operator.’

The limestone extracted at Dzialoszyn is an excellent raw material because it contains around 55% calcium oxide, which allows Warta to produce high-quality cement for use in bridges, motorway surfaces and airport runways, particularly for the military.

The company’s investment in the EX1200-6, supplied by Polish Hitachi dealer Tona, is part of an ongoing modernization process at the Dzialoszyn site, which will include the installation of a conveyor belt within three to four years.

 
 

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