Sandvik is expanding its plant in Turku, Finland to incorporate the manufacture of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) for underground mining. Alongside the expansion, which is set to be completed in the second half of 2023, the whole of the plant for load and haul equipment is set to be enhanced and modernized.
Sandvik’s Turku Business Park project represents a significant investment of over EUR 10 million. The investment is in response to increasing demand for load and haul equipment for underground mining, together with the industry’s growing trend towards electrification and digitalization. The objective is to increase the capacity of Sandvik’s Turku plant and improve production efficiency. Improvements will be made to all aspects of the plant’s operations, including logistics, warehousing, production and assembly areas and quality control.
Sandvik will acquire an additional 7,000 square meters of production and storage space by modifying space previously occupied by Tunturi, a manufacturer of bicycles and fitness equipment. The project will provide additional capacity for the production of BEV loaders and trucks and includes investment in new welding robots and assembly lines.
“The upgraded production environment and reorganization of operations will improve productivity, lead times and worker safety,” said Matti Seppälä, Project Manager at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions. “Warehouse and recycling improvements will enhance the sustainability of our operations.”
Three completely new machine assembly lines will be built, two of which will be designated for the manufacture of BEVs – a first for the Turku plant, which has manufactured mining loaders and trucks since the early 1980s and employs around 700 people today.
The modifications that form part of the Turku Business Park project will enable flexible manufacturing of both conventional diesel and battery-electric mining equipment.
“BEVs enable the electrification of mines, which increases productivity and improves working conditions, reducing emissions, heat and noise, although there will still remain a need for conventional diesel equipment for some time to come,” said Mats Eriksson, President of Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions’ Load and Haul division.
To strengthen its development of mining BEVs, Sandvik recently acquired Akkurate organization, which specializes in battery technology, particularly remote battery diagnostic and prognostic platforms. Akkurate has now been integrated into Sandvik’s Load and Haul division, accelerating its expansion into battery-electric mining equipment and enhancing the current product offering.