Terex works at iron ore mine

A Terex RT100 rough terrain crane is working at the new Anglo American-owned Minas-Rio mine in the state of Minas Gerais in Brazil.

The site is one of the largest iron ore mines in the world, and will export approximately 26.5 million tonnes of ore from the Minas-Rio mine in 2013. On completion, the ore will be transported along a 525 km long slurry pipeline to the port of Acu in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The mine has the potential of producing up to 80 million tonnes per year and has certified reserves of 4.6 billion tonnes.

The mine is currently undergoing a large infrastructure expansion plan that involves a new office, general storage and processing buildings. For the project an RT 100 rough terrain crane is being used to help erect the structural steelwork around the mine for the new site buildings. The crane is owned by São Paulo-based Montcalm Montagens Industriais.

“We were looking for a rough terrain crane because of the mobility needed within the huge jobsite but it also must have the ability to work in confined spaces,” said Paulo Simonsen, Montcalm operations director. “The RT 100 fitted the bill perfectly because its load charts and reach were better than any of its direct competitors.”

Work for the rough terrain includes lifting 12 tonne steel structures at a 12 metre radius. For these lifts the crane is configured with a 22.5 metre boom. According to Simonsen, transporting the crane to the site was also easy. “The crane had to travel 1,300km in three days to get to the site and only needed one additional truck.” The Terex RT 100 rough terrain crane is expected to work on site until the end of 2013.