STOCK PROJECTION MODEL FOR CRITICAL COMPONENTS OF EX5500 EXCAVATORS

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study provides evidence related to the improvement of the management of the maintenance area as well as the operational efficiency of mining sites, by analyzing a model applied to a real case. The results highlight the benefit of incorporating EBO in the stock projection of critical components of EX5500 hydraulic excavators. In addition, by considering the typical concerns related to the topic, the model was evaluated based on the company’s annual budget restriction. Savings of 557,128 EUR compared to the stock investment of the current company policy (estimated at 5,273,511 EUR) at a service level of 98% and warehouse availability of 95% were found. Furthermore, by using a solver, the projection was optimized and adjusted to the annual budget, increasing the savings to 928,753 EUR, at a service level of 96.4% and warehouse availability of 93.7%. Although the EBO approach has been previously studied within the equipment availability context, the equipment operating conditions were not the same as they vary depending on the area in which they operate. Therefore, it is necessary to provide clear evidence of its effectiveness of application before adopting actions which rely on promising results developed in other contexts. This is even more crucial when dealing with excavators, which are critical, large-scale, capital intensive pieces of equipment. Keywords: EBO; availability, optimization, stock, critical components, mining.