Our highwall miners, manufactured by Terex SHM, are self-contained and highly productive coal mining systems. Designed to provide maximum safety in the work environment, the system is operated and maintained exclusively on the surface; at no time during mining does any crewmember go underground.

The highwall miner (HWM) works before a highwall. However, unlike the auger, the HWM mines parallel entries, rectangular in section and up to 1000 feet or 305 meters deep. Being the first practical highwall mining system that can mine parallel entries to predetermined depths, the HWM affords the mineral developer the opportunity to link surface and underground operations in a way that maximizes recovery and minimizes per-ton reclamation costs.

The HWM system offers a vertical discharge style machine and a rear-discharge style machine for high-output demands. World Coal magazine reported on the rear-discharge style machine that “Since its introduction, this design has proved that mining depths of over 305 m (1000 ft) can be achieved successfully under practical highwalling conditions, with consistent production of over 113,936 t/month.” In another innovation, the rapid-loading push beam magazine speeds up the process of adding and recovering the conveying sections. In the Colony Bay project this HWM system produced over 363,000 tons in less than four months.

In a contour surface application, a minimum bench width of forty-two feet is required, with 55 to 75 feet or more being ideal. The configuration of the HWM is such that it is capable of mining coal seams ranging from 30 inches to 16 feet in thickness, and to depths of up to 1000 feet. The ability to mine this range of coal seam heights is accomplished by fitting interchangeable cutterhead modules to the HWM for low, medium, or high seam mining applications. Because contour mining requires such a small area for a bench, environmental impact and reclamation is minimal.

For more information on Bucyrus SHM visit http://www.bucyrus.com/mining-equipment/highwall-miner.aspx.