A large mining company tendered transport of its mineral concentrates from mine to smelter. The existing supply chain used dry powder pneumatic discharge road trains to carry the dry powder to a silo at a depot situated on rail. Dry powder pneumatic discharge rail wagons loaded with the mineral concentrate were then delivered to the smelter and discharged into silos. Steadily rising costs over 25 years were analysed and understood by one tenderer, who saw an opportunity to reduce costs by using a fleet of the ISOTAINER Model ITV-27-4 to carry the concentrate on skeletal trailer road train combinations directly from the mine to the smelter.

Isotainers Australia, through its previous experience and understanding of the transport and discharge of mineral concentrates, was able to offer a suitable version of it’s ISOTAINER Model ITV-27-4 with features to ensure that the best performance could be achieved for the contractor. Standard features, including the high capacity, low tare weight and robust construction of the were essential factors in choosing this equipment for the task.

Added features included:

·      A second fill hatch was provided to allow the contractor to trim the load across axle groups for maximum allowable payload

·      Internal and external modifications to the discharge pipework were provided to accommodate the abrasive nature of the mineral concentrates in a pneumatic discharge application