Managing Swing Track Chains in the yard

Chains must be able to be tracked from cradle to grave. In any mining environment, chains needing maintenance, whether it’s a regrousing of shoes or a pin and bush turn, will need to be taken off the machine and placed in the yard, ready to repair. To keep the machine productive while the maintenance is being completed on the removed chain, a replacement chain needs to be installed on the machine. Once the maintenance has been completed, this chain is then available for installation on a machine, but it is more likely to then be placed on another machine. To track the performance or hours on each chain, an important KPI, the chain needs to have a Serial Number or some form of identification associated with it. Typically, a number is welded-on under the shoe at the join. This number is then stored in the TrackTreads system enabling the chain to be identified and tracked wherever it might be. Once the chain is uniquely identified,

1. It can be inspected.
2. It can be repaired – bushes turned, shoe re-grouse/re-barred, or shoes replaced. Seals replaced.
3. The chain can be moved from one jobsite to another or back onto another machine.

Throughout all these activities, the unique serial number identification allows the hours on the chain to be tracked. This ensures that the overall performance of the chain can be assessed. These hours feed into the KPI of chain and component performance: –

Total cost of ownership – initial purchase cost + repair cost

Total hours achieved – the sum of hours achieved on each machine on which this chain has been installed.

TrackTreads provides all the functionality for tracking the performance of your chains on machines and through inventory.