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Scania elevates truck through Safetech partnership

Scania and Safetech have joined forces to deliver a custom elevated work platform (EWP), designed to reach high places safely and efficiently.

Built on a Scania XT truck, the EWP is highly manoeuvrable on rough surfaces and robust. It is also off-road friendly and has mining-friendly features.

The EWP can undertake significant onsite, in-situ maintenance, keeping costs and downtime to a minimum by allowing machinery to be kept at an operation.

Scania business manager for mining, Rene Van Oppen said, “The New Truck Generation Scania XT is designed for hard work, and it comes with a number of features that make it perfect for mining operations.

“Aside from the protruding steel front bumper, the 40-tonne rated tow hitch and the high riding chassis, the cabin delivers excellent visibility for the driver.

“When you’re backing up or parking among big machines you need great all-round vision, and the XT really delivers here.”

Workers will be able to attack servicing or repair work on a variety of machinery or installed infrastructure.

The EWP can lift up to 1.5 tonnes of payload and is the biggest built on the back of a vehicle by Safetech. Electronic adjustment allows the truck to be levelled out perfectly before extending the platform upwards for greater stability.

Safetech business development manager Chris White said, “One of the benefits for the mining operators is that traditionally while working on the large mining excavators and haul trucks, the technicians have had to climb up the stairways several times each day to access the service areas, while carting all their gear and the service components.

 

“Now the platform will lift them directly to the correct height, so there will be less potential for slips, or strains.

“We have designed the safety gates to be wide enough opening that a forklift can load a pallet onto the platform. The platform can be left in an elevated position all day if necessary, allowing the maintenance crew to leave their tools and equipment in place if working on a particularly long job,”

The build took around three months as Scania had to ensure its truck would accept the Australian body, including the correct power take off installation.

“This has been an intricate build,” White said. “We had to engineer the ladder system, the vehicle self-levelling system as well as the platform traverse system, the on-board controls and the hydraulics, so it has required a broad set of skills.

“However, we design, engineer and build many similar examples for use in mining and other markets.”

Van Oppen said by working with Safetech Scania knew the truck chassis would be a good fit for the body that was being designed.

He added that Scania puts a lot of effort into being easy to integrate with body control modules, as well as securing a body to the chassis.

“And because there are many Scania trucks in operation on mine sites, it makes sense for mining operators to specify the Scania as the workhorse for this EWP concept,” Van Oppen said.

“This gives mining operators so much more flexibility, as well as the opportunity to reduce downtime on their big machines or infrastructure, so it could literally save them millions of dollars per year.”

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