Sudbury-based Industrial Fabrication, manufacturer of the Minecat line of utility vehicles, is moving to a new, purpose-built production facility in September.
The 37,000-square foot building on Fielding Rd., a few kilometres west of Vale’s Copper Cliff complex, will allow the company to increase production capacity and streamline manufacturing flow.
The new facility features a dedicated component rebuild shop, a fabrication area, an assembly plant with 5 and 10-tonne cranes, an indoor spray booth, warehouse, offices and loading dock.
Additions to Industrial Fabrication’s product lineup have boosted volume to 100 units a year and forced the decision to invest in a modern, state-of-the-art production facility, said company vice-president Daryl Rautiainen.
“We outgrew our previous location, which wasn’t really ideal because we weren’t situated in an industrial area and didn’t have the yard space we needed to store our equipment,” he said.
In business since 2000, Industrial Fabrication manufactures the MC100 utility vehicle, a rigid frame unit available in some 40 different configurations, including an aerial boom, a scissor lift or an anfo loader.
In 2007, the company also introduced the UT99 utility truck. Featuring full suspension, wet disk axles, spring applied hydraulic release (SAHR) brakes, powershift transmission and a Tier 3 diesel engine, the UT99 is ideal for transporting mine personnel at higher rates of speed over long distances in greater comfort.
“The rigid frame vehicle has a higher carrying capacity, but the mines need both,” said Rautiainen. “You can’t do everything with a rigid frame utility vehicle.”
The UT99 also comes in several different configurations.
“We offhttp://www.sudburyminingsolutions.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=4519&action=editer it in 2-door and 4-door crew cab versions, with different roof designs, with a flat deck in the rear or with a box for carrying personnel. We also have it in a scissor lift configuration, as a mechanic’s vehicle and with an aerial boom.”
The frame can be easily disassembled to bring the equipment in and out of a mine through a hoist without having to cut and weld it back together.
Rounding out the Industrial Fabrication product lineup are the FL6000, a heavy-duty 6,000-pound capacity forklift featuring four-wheel SAHR-type brakes and load leveling capability for smoother tramming, and the NV100, a 72-inch wide narrow vein version of the MC100.
The company has parts depots in Manitoba and Saskatchewan in Canada and sells through distributors in the U.S., Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Russia, Kazakhstan and Australia.
The UT99 mine truck will be on display at MINExpo in Las Vegas September 24 to 26.
MINExpo: Booth 1677
