OREANDA-NEWS. On October 15, 2007 OMZ (Uralmash-Izhora Group) (RTS: OMZZ; LSE: OMZD; OTC: UHMVY) reported on a recent round table event in St. Petersburg, held at the official residence of the President of Russia (Konstantinov Palace, Strelnya), reported the press-centre of OMZ.

The round table, held for executives of Russian and CIS mining companies, was devoted to OMZ mining equipment, and in particular its improvement and development.

“We have invited the users of mining equipment to gather together at this round table and have the opportunity to communicate directly, exchange opinions and gain valuable experience,” OMZ General Director Valery Chernyshov said.

Among the invitees were representatives of the leading mining enterprises of Russia and the CIS: Lebedinskiy GOK, Mikhailovskiy GOK, Stoilenskyi GOK, Severstal-Resurs, Mezhdurechye, Evrazholding, Karelskiy Okatysh, Apatit, Norilsk Nickel (Russia), Inguletskiy GOK, Tsentralniy GOK, Yuzhnyi GOK, Poltavskiy GOK (Ukraine), ENRC Management KZ, Sokolovsko-Sarbaiskoe GPO, Kazakhmys (Kazakhstan), Navoiy GMK (Uzbekistan), and others, as well as representatives of BelAZ (Byelorussia), and the St. Petersburg State Mining Institute.

The participants had a chance to examine OMZ solutions directed at raising the effectiveness of the mining business with the use of excavator-truck combinations. A new series of special machines, designed for work as part of an excavator-truck combination, was presented: EKG-136K and EKG-136R (bucket capacity – 18-20 m3), EKG-220K and EKG-220R (bucket capacity – 30-35 m3), EKG-320K and EKG-320R (bucket capacity – 40 - 55 m3). All new excavator models are optimized for work in conjunction with trucks with capacity of 136, 220 and 320 tons respectively, and therefore with the same basic capacities currently used by international companies today and in the future. So, for example, this can be the BelAZ series vehicles (BelAZ 7513 – 136 tons, BelAZ 7530 – 200-220 tons, BelAZ 7560 – 320 tons). Original construction solutions and the application of the latest systems of engineering design and modeling allows unification of the base of these excavators and use the equipment in both rack and dragline versions. The key factors of excavator-truck combination efficiency include the ability to load 3-4 buckets at the same time, as well as correspondence of the equipment’s working characteristics to bottom-hole conditions and roads.

Special attention is given to the quality of the new machines: they are equipped with a modern motor drive, on-board diagnosis system, Lincoln-branded automatic lubricant system, increased wear resistance bucket with insert bit teeth, and new ergonomically improved cab.

Representatives of Gazprombank-Leasing, which currently is developing together with OMZ a promotional program for OMZ mining equipment using various leasing models, spoke at of the round table.

The issue of service maintenance was also discussed, including joint planning of “just-in-time” production and provision of spares, long-term cooperation in preventive maintenance, installation supervision, creation of a specialized service of mining equipment diagnosis, extended guarantee and forecast of remaining service life, central repair and extension of operating life, availability of the full set of spares at consignment warehouses, etc.

The participants in the round table visited the workshops of IZ-Cartex (Izhorskiye Zavody industrial estate of OMZ), where they observed the production capacities and the process of components and parts manufacture for mining equipment. The guests also looked at the corporation’s latest acquisitions – Zayer heavy duty automatic processing centers, gear-grinding machines, and other equipment which the company has begun purchasing as part of the long-term retooling and modernization program in order to reach the highest levels of mechanical processing precision.