On April 24th, the "Independent, Controllable, and Beyond Leading - China's First 300 ton 'Weichai Heart' Mining Truck Reliable Operation 18000 Hours Milestone" witnessing event was held in Zhungeer Banner, Ordos, Inner Mongolia. The 300 ton mining truck equipped with Weichai 12M55 engine has successfully passed the acceptance inspection after stable operation for over 18000 hours under high-intensity and extreme working conditions at the Heidaigou open-pit coal mine of Guoneng Zhuneng Group. This achievement is a historic breakthrough in the collaborative innovation between Weichai and Guoneng Zhuneng Group, marking a key leap from 0 to 1 in the independent and controllable realization of China's 300 ton large-scale mining truck powertrain, and writing an important page for ensuring the security of the national energy industry chain and promoting the high-quality development of China's mining power equipment.  

18000 hours of exam

Domestic large-scale mining truck power has passed practical testing

Heavy duty, high-intensity continuous operation mines are the "ultimate test room" for testing the reliability of heavy-duty engines. What is the concept of 18000 hours? Calculated based on a mining truck operating continuously for more than 15 hours per day, it is equivalent to stable operation for over 1200 days. Previously, in the field of 300 ton mining trucks, no domestic engine brand could enter this threshold, but this situation has been broken by Weichai.

On April 24th, authoritative experts from Guoneng Zhuneng Group, China Internal Combustion Engine Industry Association, China Construction Machinery Industry Association, Tsinghua University, China University of Mining and Technology, Tianjin Engineering Machinery Research Institute and other units conducted a full process and multi-dimensional special acceptance review on the 18000 hour operation of China's first 300 ton "Weichai Xin" mining truck. The acceptance expert group checked the implementation of the project, technical verification results, and related materials one by one. After comprehensive review and detailed demonstration by the expert group, it was confirmed that Weichai's first independently developed mining 12M55 engine had successfully completed 18000 hours of vehicle reliability verification, and all performance indicators and technical indicators of the prototype met the standards. Based on the acceptance conclusion, the acceptance expert group unanimously agreed that the first achievement of the large-scale mining truck engine independent controllable research and development technology innovation project passed the acceptance. Major mining enterprises, equipment companies, industry experts, partners, and mainstream media jointly witnessed the announcement of project acceptance conclusions.

During the event, the attending guests observed representative models of high-end mining power products such as Weichai 16M33, 12M55, and 16M55 on site, and intuitively felt the stability performance of the "Weichai Heart" power through the actual working conditions of two in use mining trucks. The project team gave a special report on the R&D process, core technologies, market validation, and service guarantee system, comprehensively demonstrating Weichai Mining Power's strength from technological breakthroughs to full lifecycle protection.

The reviewing experts stated that 18000 hours is not only a breakthrough in operating time, but also a mark of the market-oriented maturity of Weichai's domestic mining power from "sample" to "product" and from "product" to "commodity", achieving a breakthrough of independent and controllable zero for the 300 ton domestic large-scale mining truck powertrain.

Ten year breakthrough and comprehensive surpassing

From catching up with technology to becoming world-class

China is the largest country in mining output of surface coal mines in the world, and it is also the arena where the global heavy mining equipment brands compete fiercely. However, the technological content and industrial barriers of large-scale mining power are extremely high. For a long time, the core equipment of 100 ton and above large-scale mining truck engines has been firmly occupied by a few foreign brands, and the market share of domestic brands is almost zero. Imported equipment not only incurs high procurement costs, but also imposes a huge burden on maintenance and upkeep. Moreover, many uncontrollable factors may pose a threat to the security of the national energy industry.

Faced with difficulties, Weichai and Guoneng Zhuneng Group take it as their responsibility to ensure the safety of the industrial chain, guided by national strategy, and are duty bound to kick off the breakthrough of domestic large-scale mining power. After years of research and development, they have finally achieved a hard core result of independent and controllable 300 ton mining engine power core.

As the benchmark for the first 300 ton mining truck powertrain in China, the 12M55 engine's dedicated ECU electronic control system can be optimized and customized for calibration at any time, and the ultra-high pressure common rail closed-loop control system can achieve precise control of the fuel system. At the same time, during the verification process, comprehensive optimization was continuously carried out on the sub frame damping, muffler structure, body, powertrain shaft system verification, oil pan structure, etc. The fuel consumption rate was as low as 198g/(kW · h), the full load acceleration time from 0-40km/h was only 46.3 seconds, and the driver's ear noise was as low as 79.7dBA - multiple core performance exceeded imported brands.

As of now, the 12M55 series mining engine has been installed and operated on more than 600 mining trucks worldwide. At the same time, over 2000 Weichai large mining truck engines have achieved batch stable operation in overseas markets, and their product maturity and commercialization capabilities have reached the international first-class level.

Collaborative innovation triggers a turning point

Localization substitution accelerates industrial upgrading

The achievement of the 18000 hour milestone is not only a validation of product performance, but also marks a key turning point for China's independently controllable large-scale mining power equipment to enter a large-scale substitution.

From the perspective of industrial structure, this breakthrough will accelerate the demand for power replacement of existing mining trucks in China. A large imported mining truck can cost tens of millions of yuan and has a lifespan of 20 years, during which the engine needs to be replaced 2-3 times. Weichai's breakthrough not only leveraged this market that has long been monopolized by foreign investment, but also driven the coordinated upgrading of the industrial chain with the core technology it has mastered.

Based on 80 years of internal combustion engine technology accumulation, Weichai has created a full range of power solutions that are compatible with multiple fuels such as diesel, methanol, and natural gas, covering a full range of mining equipment such as large mining trucks, wide body dump trucks, mining excavators, and mining bulldozers. Among them, the mining truck power covers a full tonnage of 100-400 tons, which can meet the differentiated operational needs of large and ultra large open-pit coal mines, iron mines, and non-ferrous metal mines. More importantly, Weichai can provide a complete replacement plan for all models according to customer needs. At present, Weichai has established supporting cooperation with multiple domestic host manufacturers to build a complete supporting solution for all scenarios and power ranges, defining the "Chinese standard" in the field of mining power with technological strength.

In addition, Weichai has also established a dedicated service system for the entire life cycle of the mining industry, ensuring efficient delivery and equipment operation. It has laid out mining service bases and spare parts centers nearby, and helped mining enterprises achieve a win-win situation of safety, controllability, cost reduction, and efficiency improvement through the optimal three guarantee policy, sufficient spare parts reserves, improved training empowerment, flexible guarantee system, and full life cycle protection.

From the launch of the first mining wide body vehicle dedicated power in 2005, to the WP13G 530 horsepower engine becoming a classic model in the market in 2016, to the release of the second generation mining power in 2025, and to the current 300 ton large-scale mining power passing 18000 hours of verification, Weichai has been deeply involved in the field of mining power for more than 20 years, forging national heavy machinery with technological innovation, and safeguarding energy security with independent controllability. Weichai is leading China's mining power industry with firm steps, breaking through the industry and moving towards world-class status.Editor/Cheng Liting