KGHM ZANAM or where Poland’s copper giant gets its mining equipment

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A loader. Source: Wikimedia
A loader. Source: Wikimedia

KGHM is one of the world’s leading producers of copper and refined silver. It uses mining machines and equipment to optimize the process of extraction and transportation of raw materials. They are provided by KGHM ZANAM, a company that produces equipment used in handling systems, transport units, mining and open-pit mines.

KGHM ZANAM, a company owned by KGHM, Poland’s copper giant, is one of the largest manufacturers of machinery and equipment for the mining sector. It supplies equipment used in handling systems, transport units, mining and open-pit mines. The main tasks of the company owned by KGHM are the production of machines with low-emission drives, electrification and automation of mining processes. Its designers work every day on new versions of transport cars built to work underground.

„KGHM ZANAM is one of the largest manufacturers of machinery and equipment for the mining sector in Poland. The company’s design office is constantly looking for and implementing new solutions and developing existing products. An example is the new version of the Zanper 2.0 electric vehicle with a chassis designed by the company. It’s 100% the effect of the work of KGHM’s engineering staff,” said Tomasz Zdzikot, President of KGHM Polska Miedź.

KGHM ZANAM engineers are currently testing the ZANPER 2.0 transport vehicle, the first mining vehicle in Poland powered by an electric motor running on a battery pack, dedicated to working in underground mines that are not at risk of an explosion. The car allows the transport of people (up to 14 people), including victims of an accident, as well as the transport of materials.

Electric vehicles in KGHM are not just used for transporting people. There are currently more than 40 battery-powered blasting utility vehicles in operation at KGHM’s mines, and an electric-powered HT24E haul truck is also under development, which is intended to be an alternative to the machines currently in use. The use of these vehicles will improve the working conditions of miners in the future, increasing engine efficiency and reducing heat and exhaust emissions.

One of the latest acquisitions of the company is a FLASHCUT laser cutter, which is supposed to improve the quality of cut sheets, and make the production cycle itself shorter. Thanks to the high efficiency of the cutting process, production costs will also be reduced. In addition, KGHM ZANAM has invested in technologically advanced, modern equipment including CNC milling machines, CNC lathes, robotic stations for welding and beveling metal sheets, gate milling machines and drill-milling-boring machines.

In addition to manufacturing and a wide range of high-quality products, KGHM ZANAM provides services for the implementation of investments in the EPC formula, maintenance and repairs, transport and forwarding, as well as specialized services in the field of deep-sea mining plants (mining services, machine servicing and underground transport).

KGHM / Jędrzej Stachura