SMART MINING of parts — and in shortening delivery times ,” says Ronne Hamerslag , Head of Supply Management at Boliden .
“ This trial will give us a deeper understanding on how we can move forward and develop our business in a competitive way .”
3D printing is an exciting prospect for OEMs too , as Sandvik ’ s Erik Lundén , President , Parts & Services at Sandvik Mining & Rock Solutions , explains .
“ Mining equipment can last up to 25 years – and needs to be supported throughout that time – even in the most remote of locations ,” he says .
“ We have many different SKUs ( stock keeping units ), and from an inventory point of view , we can ’ t tie up the capital that keeping all these parts in stock would entail . 3D printing of parts locally offers us the prospect of not only getting parts to the customer much faster , but doing so far more sustainably .”
Although in theory any part could in future be 3D printed , it is likely to be maintenance and repair operating items that are the first to get the additive manufacturing treatment — elements that customers need to change every 3,000-4,000 hours , such as the bushes , brackets and drill parts .
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