Download White Paper May 7, 2020

H-E Parts met with a gold mine customer with multiple locations in Nevada. The customer was dissatisfied with the life of their current rear wheel groups and in need of increased life on their CAT 789 and 785 rear wheel groups as well as overall better service. With little hesitation, they decided to try out H-E Parts. 

The initial wheel groups brought in had reached the end of their life and had only run 13,000 hours. Our technicians remanufactured the wheel groups to incorporate all Birrana™ technology available at the time, including: 

• Birrana™ control fit wheel bearing setup
• Contamination guard
• Isolation Seal
• Long-life friction discs
• Advanced bearing design and specifications

With these Birrana™ enhancements, the H-E Parts remanufactured 789 and 785 wheel groups showed an average increase of 77%. These wheel groups were removed around 23,000 hours but had not reached the end of their life. In the trial period, the customer was more comfortable having the wheel groups removed earlier than needed to ensure there would be no premature failure. 

Since the initial test, some of the Birrana™ enhanced wheel groups have been remanufactured again, and the customer has expanded their business to include even more 789 and 785 wheel groups. The success of the 789 and 785 wheel groups led to the customer using H-E Parts to remanufacture their 793 wheel groups, as well, which is their primary haulage model. With our proven success, the customer is more comfortable letting our components operate longer. The latest components operated at the mine until its closure and have since been distributed to sister mines – still running on the same remanufactured wheel groups. As of today, these wheel groups have run up to 26,000 hours and are being closely monitored to achieve more. 

Today, the customer runs over 40 H-E Parts rear wheel groups in their mines and has seen exceptional performance.