Having taken delivery of the first ten Volvo A50 articulated dump trucks (ADTs) in southern Africa, leading South African mining contractor, JCI Mining, has put the newly acquired fleet to work. Deployed on one of the company’s new mining projects in Limpopo, the trucks have thus far hit the ‘sweet spot’ with good cost-per-tonne prospects.

Following the award of several new projects, JCI Mining went into the market to bolster its ADT fleet. Fortunately, the timing of the fleet expansion programme coincided with Babcock’s local launch of the new generation Volvo ADT range in southern Africa, allowing JCI Mining to order and take delivery of the first A50 units in the region, bolstering its existing large fleet of Volvo A30, A35, A40, A45 and A60 units.

“We have recently been awarded several new projects, and this necessitated for the expansion of our fleet to service these new contracts. In addition, we needed to replace a portion of our ageing fleet, which led to this large-scale investment,” explains Matthew Abraham, MD of JCI Mining.

Given that the A50 is a completely new product on the market, Abraham says that a lifecycle cost analysis was one of the most important considerations in the company’s purchasing decision. Based on the numbers the company ran on paper, the A50 offers the best cost-per-tonne and overall lifecycle costing in its size class. 

“Based on a lifecycle costing model we conducted, we were convinced that the A50 hit a ‘sweet spot’ with unmatched cost-per-tonne prospects, and we seem to have been proven right. Our new A50 machines – which have already clocked over 750 hours to date, on average – have returned good fuel consumption figures, with efficiencies very much in line with our expectations, which is pleasing,” says Abraham.

When Volvo CE first unveiled the A50 to the global market, one of the major selling points of the machine was always going to be the full hydraulic suspension concept. This was definitely one of the key features that attracted the attention of Abraham and his team at JCI.

Pioneered by Volvo CE in 2007, the full suspension has proved to be a reliable system for the toughest of driving conditions. The A50 takes the concept to new heights as the only full suspension machine of its size class on the market. As a result, it offers a significant improvement in cycle times, an increase in hauler production per operator-hour and lower costs when compared to its standard suspension counterparts.

“In general, the A50 is a first-class product with a host of cutting-edge features designed with the operator in mind, especially the accessibility into the machine and the ergonomics in the cab – one can easily recognise that a lot of thought has gone into the design,” explains Abraham. “Operator comfort for us is a big pull factor. A comfortable operator ensures increased productivity and efficiency through reduced fatigue and better focus.”

Investments in capital equipment are big-ticket purchases by their very nature, and Abraham reiterates the importance of dependable aftermarket support from the supplier to keep these machines running. For JCI Mining, the support for its mission-critical equipment has never been more important as it seeks to maximise availability and ultimately efficiency and productivity.

Abraham commends Babcock for placing value on aftermarket support, saying that the Volvo CE dealer in southern Africa goes beyond equipment sales. “They go the extra mile to meet our operational needs, which is very important for us because in our line of business, downtime is the enemy – and service is everything,” says Abraham. “Generally, we have built a good relationship with Babcock, based on trust, and testimony to that was the decision to buy a completely new product with no reference in the local market.”