Why Designing a New Mining Machine Required New Design Technology

Coal Science Research Institute needed to develop a new mining machine and they needed CAD software that could meet the challenge. By implementing IRONCAD, they were able to develop an award-winning mining machine, the EBJ-120TP, in very little time.

At present, most of the mining machines used in China are quite old. Many were designed in the 1960s and 1970s. These decades-old products are outdated, demonstrate poor reliability of components, have low operating rates, incur large maintenance costs, and deliver low cutting power.

Given this situation, there is an urgent need to develop a new type of tunnel drilling machine with good, comprehensive performance and wide adaptability to support more effective mining operations.

Cutting the Design Cycle in Half

Tunnel drilling mining machine are the main product of Coal Science Research Institute’s Tai-Yuan Branch (Tai-Yuan Branch). In general, due to the model size and complexity of tunnel drilling machines and the lack of advanced design tools at the company, Tai-Yuan Branch required a long design cycle to complete a machine — typically six months or longer.

EBJ-120TP was a new product undertaken by the Tai-Yuan Branch in 2001. By using IRONCAD, it effectively shortened the design cycle from initial proposal to final design to three months. The IRONCAD product provided 2D-to-3D innovative design including completed concept designs, exterior appearance visualizations, as well as part and assembly design. All told, the EBJ-120TP machine has approximately 8,200 parts, all of which were designed using IRONCAD.

A Commercial & Critical Success

In May 2002, the EBJ120-TP tunnel drilling machine received its certification from the Chinese Coal Industry Association, confirming that the machine met international advanced standards with respect to overall design, suitability, and reliability.

Since passing the certification, EBJ-120TP has been adopted by more than ten coal production enterprises and has achieved 17-percent market share in the tunnel drilling machine market in China. It was the number one selling machine in China in 2003 among similar products and reached 80-percent market share in the half coal/rock drilling machine market.

PingDing Coal Enterprise bought 25 EBJ-120TP machines and uses them in six different coal mining sites and has seen significant time reduction (2–3 months) in at least five different areas. Using statistical data comparing it to similar machines, the TBJ-120TP machine drills 150 extra meters per month in half coal/rock tunnels. That saves PingDing $4,000–$6,000 in materials and $7,000–$10,000 in parts and oil.

In January 2005, the EBJ-120TP tunnel drilling machine designed by Coal Science Research Institute Tai-Yuan Branch received the second place Chinese National Technology Advance Award. This was the first time Chinese–designed coal industry heavy machinery had received such an award. The EBJ-120TP machine also received the Chinese Coal Industry Outstanding Science and Technology Award in 2003.

IRONCAD focuses on innovative design and provides an easy to use, productive design platform for customers. It supports conceptual design, overall layout, detail design, engineering design, analysis and simulation, and integration into NC applications. Tai-Yuan Branch leveraged IRONCAD’s parametric design and extended drag-and-drop design methodology to accelerate time to market and to win in the marketplace. The application of IRONCAD in the design of the EBJ-120TP machine significantly reduced the duration of the company’s design cycle, raised its design quality, and reduced costs. It also helped to develop a new design concept and design methodology among the engineers in Tai-Yuan Branch.

 

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