T
he Hardox 500 Tuf developed by SSAB
combines the hardness of Hardox 500
with the toughness of the Hardox 450,
delivering high strength, extreme hardness and
guaranteed toughness in one and the same
wear plate. Typical working conditions include
loading and unloading of heavy and sharp rocks
in quarries and mines, handling large and heavy
steel scrap, and in demolition when pieces of
concrete with rebar are loaded or dropped into
tippers.
Manufacturers using Hardox 500 Tuf can
choose to increase wear life or increase payload,
or both. Using a thinner plate in Hardox 500
Tuf can easily give 10–15% greater load capacity
for a dumper or container. Staying with the
same thickness on the other hand will give a
30% longer service life or more, depending on
the abrasive material. In addition to high wear
resistance, Hardox 500 Tuf is tough enough to
EARLY ADOPTERS GIVE FEEDBACK
ON SSAB’S LATEST HARD AND
TOUGH WEAR STEEL
perform as a structural wear steel. This off ers
new opportunities to reduce or exclude the
supporting structures. Hardox 500 Tuf can be
processed with the same kind of machinery
used for other Hardox grades. Bendability
recommendations are similar to those for
Hardox 450.
For more than a year SSAB customers
in diff erent parts of the world have been
thoroughly testing the Hardox 500 Tuf on
tippers, buckets, liners, containers and wear
parts of all kinds. Some of the results they
have reported are as follows: up to two times
the service life compared with Hardox 400;
high dent and crack resistance when hit
by sharp, heavy objects and material; high
performance in tough or freezing conditions;
tight dimensional tolerances; and toughness to
perform as a structural material.
Jenny Brandberg Hurtig, product manager,Hardox wear plate, SSAB, said: “The feedback
we are getting is amazing. Hardox 500 Tuf will
be the new standard for premium heavy-duty
tipper bodies, containers and buckets.”
UK-based tipper body manufacturer
Thompsons has six bodies made with Hardox
500 Tuf for real-life testing. Thompsons has
also introduced Hardox 500 Tuf on its lighter
bodies, for example the newly designed tipper
body Loadmaster X-lite.
Neil Griffi n, engineering manager,
Thompsons UK, said: “The increased abrasion
resistance of Hardox 500 Tuf allows us to use
a thinner plate and keep the same excellent
service life, thereby reducing the body’s weight
by more than 100kg. The payload can of course
increase by the same amount.”
Austrialia-based Bruce Rock Engineering
(BRE), which provides transport equipment
for mining, construction and agriculturalTECHNICAL REVIEW
32
PLANT / MACHINERY / VEHICLES AUGUST 2019 http://www.pmvmiddleeast.com