The plow will go into service at SCC’s Hongyang mine, where suitable mining conditions combined with the advanced automated plow technology are said to give the mine a good chance of becoming one of the world’s most productive thin-seam longwalls.

According to DBT, geological conditions at Hongyang are very favourable, with relatively soft coal varying in thickness from 1.6-1.8m. The 260m longwall is the widest bought by a Chinese coal mining company to date.

The plow is DBT’s modern Gleithobel plow body 5.7, which permits on-face changing of all components. It is powered by two 400kW transmission units with integrated overload protection and is controlled by the proven DBT PM 4 shield control unit, providing full automation of longwall operations. The single plow/face operator is located in a dust-free environment in the head-gate entry.

DBT said its automated longwall system did not require operators to be present at the face or to travel with the machine, boosting mine safety.

The longwall will be equipped with a DBT low-seam PF-3 822 armoured face conveyor (AFC) with installed power of 800kW, resulting in capacity of more than 1700 tonnes per hour.

“The plow is expected to perform to this capacity,” DBT said.

The head-gate discharge is a compact cross frame. With an excellent safety record, the DBT automated plow system can mine thinner reserves of high-quality coal profitably, allowing some thicker coal reserves to be preserved for future generations.

“DBT's solution is clearly meeting the needs of the Chinese mining communities,” the company said.

“Four automated longwall plows are already in operation and a further two are on order, with excellent potential for sales of similar systems. The automated DBT plow is rapidly becoming the longwall system of choice for mining medium and thin coal reserves in the People’s Republic of China.”

While much of the equipment will be supplied from Germany, DBT China’s manufacturing facilities in Langfang south-east of Beijing will also be making a substantial contribution, in particular supplying the plow track and the conveying system.