Used plant has held a solid position in the tunnelling equipment market for many years – and for sound reasons. Leading contractors often view used plant as a logical way to procure appropriate machinery on tight deadlines at a highly cost-effective price. When buying used machinery, depending upon the type of equipment, potential savings of between 30% and 60% can be expected. Added incentives such as lease purchasing, hire agreements, and buy-back clauses offer the contractor flexibility and a chance to recoup some of its capital outgoings at the end of a project.
In addition, the decision to use refurbished equipment can cut down on the time waiting for new plant to be delivered.
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Nevertheless, in recent years some clients concerned about completion of projects on time or influenced by third party interests have been specifying the type of plant to be used on projects, and are often adamant that new machinery should be bought. This has been a point of frustration for many leading contractors. Matt Pope of Mining Equipment, for example, says: “Quality used plant helps contractors to be more competitive, especially with rental options. When renting refurbished equipment, contractors don’t have an initial large cash requirement. It just makes solid financial sense.”
Ironically, the trend for refurbishing plant is being led mainly by original manufacturers. Many now offer rebuilt and often upgraded machines. As Peter Remnant of Specialist Plant Associates points out: “Used plant will continue to be a feature in the tunnelling industry, as many equipment sales are subject to buy-back clauses. Contractors are becoming increasingly shy of long-term ownership of plant and look to recover money at the end of a project. All the bought-back equipment has to re-appear on the market somewhere in the world.”
Alterations to health and safety legislation and contractual requirements also bring the need for adaptation even with fairly new equipment. In the UK and Europe, for example, recent changes in legislation for compressed air work may be expected to have implications for existing TBM air locks. Such changes are obviously welcomed by manufacturers and used plant specialists who embrace the chance to prove the standard of quality of refurbished plant to more pessimistic clients.
“Prior to refurbishment, the equipment – whether tunnelling machines, locomotives, rolling stock or conveyor systems – will generally be complete, but in worn and possibly damaged condition,” Remnant points out. “Companies undertaking rebuilds need to have a thorough knowledge of the plant they tackle to incorporate modifications and upgrades if they are to do the job proficiently. The finished product needs to be of high enough standard to stand comparison with new tackle. Contractors expect warranties, and an assurance of good service, even on refurbished plant.” he says.
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By GlobalDataMike Peace of Morgan Tunnelling in the UK sums the situation up nicely: “The tunnelling business encompasses a huge scope of different types of plant and machinery. This makes the choice of new or secondhand a long and complex process, especially if there is a joint venture involved.”
Advances in design and technology mean that new equipment will always have a major role in meeting changing demands. But the current level of refurbishment of used plant by leading manufacturers and suppliers who provide warranties similar to or the same as those for new machinery, at reduced delivery times, has encouraged the use of large refurbished TBMs on numerous projects. Herrenknecht, Wirth, Lovat, Robbins, CTS and many others are competing to offer re-worked TBMs at competitive rates and with tight lead times.
Marco Giorelli, product manager for Lovat, believes the most significant growth recently in the refurbishment market has been in relation to the countless utility and service tunnel projects under way worldwide. He says: “Because in most utility tunnels diameter and tolerances are somewhat flexible, TBMs don’t have to be custom made. Existing machines can be used even if they don’t match the diameter exactly. However, I would say that the reduced price and reduced delivery time are the relevant factors in most cases.”
Giorelli admits there are projects where the owner specifies that refurbished equipment cannot be used even if it is fully applicable. But he believes this is mostly because of the perception that used plant brings along a higher risk of breakdown. “In fact,” he says. “The majority of our refurbishments receive the same warranty as a new machine.”
He says that as the number of TBMs worldwide grows the number of secondhand TBMs on the market is also growing. “Because utility size TBMs are more likely to be reused than metro size TBMs, contractors tend to keep such machines even if they don’t have immediate use for them. Also, because buy-back clauses at time of sale are becoming very common, this forces TBM manufacturers to push even more for secondhand equipment.”
Another side benefit of many buy-back clauses is that they increasingly feature on-site factory technicians, supplied by the manufacturer to ensure regular servicing and maintenance of the equipment. This means the contractor receives regular servicing and repairs to equipment as part of its purchase agreement, and the manufacturer ensures the machines it buys back at the end of the project is well maintained. This was the case recently on Boston’s Central Artery Project for which Webster Schaeff supplied four WS2000 Roadheaders to the SIWP joint venture of Slattery, Interbeton, J.F. White & Perini. The machines cut the first headwall and excavated frozen ground from the three box-jack tunnels, working an average of 1,000 hours on two levels to complete excavation of the three tunnels in early 2001. The four machines have now been entirely refurbished and are available from Schaeff for resale.
The future certainly looks promising for those already established in the used plant market, as Matt Pope illustrates: “It’s actually difficult to find a tunnelling job in North America that Mining Equipment doesn’t have some machinery on. We have equipment on multiple projects in Birmingham, Boston and Chicago not to mention other jobs in Los Angeles, Utah, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Montana and British Colombia in Canada.”
David Parnham of Dosco Overseas Engineering also agrees that used plant will hold its position in the market for some time to come. “Although Dosco have the technical and manufacturing ability to design and build new equipment, in the civil tunnelling sector 90% of our business over the past five years has been refurbishment and modification.”
Overall, as purchase and maintenance costs of equipment continue to fall over time, and the reliability and life span of machinery lengthens, project savings can only be increased by encompassing used plant. This surely will drive continued growth in the industry as a whole.
Specialist contact details Equipment is used but not abused Equipment is used but not abused One of four Webster Schaeff WS2000 roadheaders recently used on Boston’s CAT project. Dosco refurbished MD1100 roadheader with bolters for UK Coal Ltd Dosco refurbished MD1100 roadheader with bolters for UK Coal Ltd Kiev TBM personnel air locks in SPA workshop, refurbished and ready for despatch. Kiev TBM personnel air locks in SPA workshop, refurbished and … Lovat TBM currently deployed on the London Connection cable tunnel for the UK’s National Grid Lovat TBM currently deployed on the London Connection cable tunnel …
