Ampcontrol produced the world’s first 11,000 volt (11kV) Armoured Face Conveyor (AFC) longwall system for installation in Zone 1 hazardous areas. Ampcontrol supplied a full turnkey electrical solution for the project including engineering, manufacture, installation, testing and underground commissioning support.

As part of this project Ampcontrol developed a new Intrinsically Safe (IS) LED lighting system, an innovative 11kV protection scheme and a SIL-3 rated high integrity isolation system.

The innovative 11kV longwall system eliminated the operational problems normally associated with starting large capacity motors on AFC’s when powered at the existing standard voltage of 3.3kV. These included excessive voltage drop, significantly reduced motor starting torque, reduced motor efficiency, increased short circuit currents and cable handling issues.

Powering three 1,600kW AFC motors, the Ampcontrol 11kV electrical system addressed all of these issues and provided a step change in AFC capacity to deliver increased production rates along with the potential for increased coal face widths which were not feasible using 3.3kV.

Ampcontrol, together with Xstrata and Joy Mining Machinery, were awarded Winners of the 2010 National Engineers Australia Engineering Excellence Award for this project.