Getting the most out of machinery is a key to productivity on any busy worksite. But when heavily used, even the best machines can suffer from unexpected failures. Such failures can halt production and prove extraordinarily expensive.

“If a machine goes down, it’s always unplanned,” says Jesper Persson, parts manager for construction at Sandvik. “When a drill rig or a crusher is standing still, literally the entire plant stops. You can lose anything from 1,000 euros a day up to millions per day if this happens.”

To minimize the problem with unexpected breakdowns Sandvik has designed a new insurance programme for its top hammer and down-the-hole drill products and an extended warranty programme for its double-digit breakers. “Our programmes offer longer coverage than anything else out there,” Persson says.

Both the warranty programme and the insurance package enable quick repair responses from qualified personnel if breakdowns occur. By ensuring maintenance checkups, they lessen the likelihood that these breakdowns will occur in the first place. Sandvik benefits from this arrangement because it gains more experience on the lifetime and quality of its products – fueling further improvements and product developments.

For double-digit breakers (suitable for carriers in the 16- to 60-tonne operating weight range), Sandvik has designed a free lifetime warranty programme for any BR2155, BR2577, BR3288 or BR4099 model purchased after the beginning of 2011.

Jukka Kytömäki, market offering manager at Sandvik, cites the unique VIDAT system (Vibration Dampened Tierods) as one reason Sandvik is confident in offering a lifetime warranty for its breaker models. “We have something new that extends the lifetime of the hammer, and we feel confident offering a lifetime warranty,” Kytömäki says.

As a further proof of reliability, the double-digit breakers offer a 1,000- hour service period, which helps reduce service costs. High reliability, however, doesn’t compromise the productivity. All models are incorporate Sandvik’s Fixed Blow Energy, ensuring maximum impact energy with every blow regardless of oil flow fluctuations. “It’s an excellent example of a product that we have developed to a stage where we can promise a lifetime warranty,” agrees Håkan Sundström, Sandvik’s global quality director.

For surface top hammer and down-the-hole drills, Sandvik’s Security+ insurance package offers a 36-month protection period that includes audits by qualified professionals to ensure less likelihood of machine failure. The package is available for all surface top hammer and down-the-hole drill rig products, so is designed to help both construction and mining applications, including drill and blast contractors, larger contractors, quarries and surface mines.

The package offers five levels of coverage to choose from, covering everything from main components to labour costs and diesel engines

For the high annual engine hours needed in surface mining applications, two coverage levels cover up to 7,000 engine hours – longer than anything provided by competitors.
By the end of this year, Sandvik is launching a similar Security+ package for its range of cone crushers, jaw crushers and VSI impact crushers to replace the existing extended warranty programme, CIP.

But given the reliability of Sandvik machinery, it’s useful to question why one should bother with a warranty or insurance package in the first place. One answer is that while operators may seek to fix machinery themselves or seek an alternative insurance programme, locating the right parts or receiving quick service can prove difficult.

“We compare it to a car,” Persson answers. ”There are a lot of components you don’t expect to break down, but you take it for an annual inspection anyway. We know exactly how to run, serve and adapt them to all circumstances to get the most out from their capacity. We make recommendations based on this. This ensures that operators can focus on producing and we can focus on what we are good at, fine-tuning the machine.”

Taking the car analogy further, each programme is transferable with ownership and helps improve resale value. “It’s like a service book for a car — you can have a higher resale value with it,” Persson explains. By following maintenance guidelines, operators will have a documented service history and hard proof the machinery has been maintained correctly when it comes time to sell.

For example, under the Security+ programme, Sandvik arranges professional audits and machine health checks at planned service intervals to ensure the technical availability of the machine. Likewise, the service manual that accompanies all new double-digit breakers helps operators keep track of service intervals.

The response time for repairs if breakdowns occur is also important to minimizing losses and ensuring peace of mind. By supporting operators through the coverage period, Sandvik is able to anticipate which components will need replacing before they are needed.

“Timing is extremely critical,” Sundström says. “Our ambition is to shorten the time from when the customer calls to when the customer’s rig is up and running up again. We are trying to push our responsibilities and developments closer to the customer. We have a global network in place to service as quickly and professionally as possible.”

As a safeguard for investments in capital equipment, the different programmes are proving popular, Kytömäki says. “We have customers who have purchased equipment just because they could see the benefit of the extended warranty programme and insurance programmes.”

Batista Monteiro, based in Santo Estevão, Portugal, purchased a BR2577 for a secondary breaking application because of peace of mind that the warranty programme offers. “One of the most important factors in purchasing the hammer was the possibility to have the lifetime warranty without paying more money for the hammer because this job is very aggressive and needs constant services.”
Davis Shamy

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