New Dino DC400Ri impresses in Seinäjoki, Finland

Production of the new Sandvik Dino DC400Ri drill rig began in 2014, with the first Finnish customer receiving his rig at the very end of the year. This Dino DC400Ri is now drilling in Seinäjoki, the main area in which contractor Pekka Saarela operates. After many months of productive use, it is safe to say that the rig has not only met his expectations but exceeded them. +

Advertisement

Panostus Pekka Saarela Oy is a highly experienced Finnish company specializing in excavation and blasting. In addition to its new Dino, its equipment list includes a Sandvik Commando drill rig, an excavator and a tractor with a transport trailer for moving the machines from site to site. Saarela has been working in the field of earthworks since he was 16 years old, and in 2000 he established his own company, which has gone from strength to strength developing a reputation for excellence in its field.

Being highly experienced in operations, Saarela explains that his two-rig policy enables him to have a rig of a suitable size for every site. This is important as Saarela's customers include the city of Seinäjoki, as well as various construction companies and private persons. "Commando is outstanding in tight spaces, and in many cases a bigger rig could not be operated on my sites." Saarela mainly works alone, though his younger son has also been working as a drill operator for a couple of summers.

A completely new rock drilling solution

The excellent stability of the rig is the first characteristic of the new Dino that has impressed Saarela. "Normally, I don't need to use the ground support because the holes in my projects are not very deep. The rig stays in place and doesn't start pitching. The coverage area is also excellent, and the stability is good even at the maximum distances." Weighing in at just over 10 tons, the Dino 400 possesses excellent strength and stability. "The steel makes it steady," says Kari Tantarimäki who works in sales support at Sandvik. "The material used in the rig has been carefully considered and designed to make the final product as we wanted it."

The next new thing Saarela singles out for mention is the RD414 rock drill. It is now the smallest Sandvik rock drill equipped with a stabilizer. The output of this high-frequency rock drill is 14 kW. "Normal drilling speed is achieved at half power, and at full power the penetration speed is amazing – it looks almost impossible." Says Hemmo Ruusuvuori, Sales Manager at Sandvik.

Ruusuvuori, who supplied the rig, has assured Saarela that also the durability experience of the drill steels has been good. "We have already delivered new Dinos abroad and the user experience has been good. It seems that the demand for a modern rig of this size is very high both here in Finland and around the world."

The drilling of a hole size of 64 mm was a starting point for the design of the Dino 400, but the rig is highly suitable for hole sizes from 51 to 74 mm. "I have seen the prototype rig drilling with a 127 mm, i.e. 5-inch, drill bit, and that went well. Naturally, the speed starts to slow down at these diameters," Tantarimäki mentions. The rig is also able to facilitate the drilling of smaller holes of 43 mm with a drifter rod.

The drill steel type used is R32, T35 or T38. The length of the starter rod is 4.3 meters, and the extensions are 3 meter rods, i.e. 10 feet. "The extension rods are shorter due to the occupational safety regulations that limit the maximum weight that can be lifted manually on a worksite to 27 kg. At the moment the Dino 400 is equipped with an automatic rod-handling system for adding one extension rod. If more than one extension rod is required, each new rod must be lifted into the cassette," Tantarimäki explains. Saarela notes that the required hole depths on his sites are mostly such that one extension rod is enough. "However, we are planning to have a new option for adding even more rods automatically. This new rod handler option will be available for customers in 2016." Tantarimäki adds.

Fuel efficiency

A new feature of Sandvik drill rigs is a Volvo engine. "This engine really has low fuel consumption. I have not measured any exact consumption figures but they are clearly lower than those of the Dino 550 I had before this model. And the low noise level is something I value highly," Saarela says. The Dino 400 has a 4-cylinder, 5.1-litre Volvo diesel engine producing 105 kW. The engine is equipped with a urea injection system and complies with Stage IV emission standards.

Modern design

Transportability is also one of the characteristics that Saarela values which its new design easily facilitates. The boom can be folded on the rig in the same way as on the Commando, thereby enabling a low transport height of 2.8 meters, with the width of the rig being 2.4 meters. This stylish and very attractive appearance of the new Dino 400 is not without importance to Saarela who has even enhanced its looks with reflective stickers and additional lights. As well as the appearance, the designers have succeeded in positioning the service points to aid maintenance, with Saarela noting they are easily accessible.

Moreover, an important feature for every contractor is that all the cover panels are made of sheet metal. Other features worthy of note include one clever detail which sees drill rod storage space integrated into the rig frame, keeping the rods neatly out of the way. Additionally the tramming motors in the new Dino are the same as in the Ranger. This means that power will not be an issue in tramming. In effect operators are not able to tram the rig deep enough as it will always climb back up.

Continuous improvement

The new Dino is already quite an attractive drill rig as it is. However, the designers at Sandvik have not stopped to admire the final product but continued to develop the rig further. They are currently testing a roll-over device that enables radial drilling, i.e. one that basically allows the holes to be drilled in any direction. With this equipment available later in 2016, the Dino will also be ready for tunneling sites.