Reliability Analysis of Overhauled Engines of Dumpers
Mining industry in India currently occupies a coveted position in the world league table. Large scale mechanization has made major breakthroughs in this industry. Mechanization trends have introduced sophisticated off-road dumpers as the main ore/rock transporting equipment in opencast mines. To achieve targeted production and to survive intense competition in the mining industry, it is imperative that the dumper as an equipment and its different operating units should be reliable and maintained effectively to ensure its maximum availability. The diesel engine is the most critical operating unit of a dumper. To improve the performance and to reduce frequency of downtime, the engines need overhauling time to time. The engine after overhauling should be able to perform its desired function under stated condition for a specified period of time. The present study investigates reliability of overhauled engines in a fleet of dumpers used in an opencast mine. In this paper the operational reliability of overhauled engines, mean time to overhaul (MTO) and time between inspection (TBI) are examined. MTO and TBI values predicts the next time to overhaul and inspection respectively, which will aid in reducing the downtime of dumpers and thereby increasing their availability.