SOURCE: Caterpillar | December 16, 2024
Caterpillar demonstrated its new Cat 777 off-highway truck at Luck Stone’s Bull Run plant in Virginia, in the United States.
Luck Stone is one of the largest family-owned and operated producers of crushed stone, sand, and gravel in the US.
In December 2022, Luck Stone and Caterpillar announced an agreement to accelerate the development of Caterpillar’s autonomous solutions for quarry and aggregate applications.
It is Caterpillar’s first deployment of autonomous technology in the aggregates industry and will expand the company’s autonomous truck fleet to include the 90-tonne-class Cat 777.
Caterpillar’s autonomous trucks have travelled more than 325 million kilometres and autonomously moved more than 8.62 billion tonnes on three continents.
For two years, Caterpillar has been embedded with Luck Stone to build expertise in quarry operations, aiming to develop a system that is scalable and economically viable for customers across the quarry industry while also helping them to achieve a step change in safety and productivity.
Caterpillar group president of resource industries Denise Johnson congratulated Luck Stone and the Caterpillar teams.
“It’s meaningful not just for Bull Run operations, but for our customers of all sizes as we develop new technologies to serve the quarry and aggregates as well as construction industries,” she said.
“This hands-on collaboration has accelerated our ability to scale our proven mining solution for this sector.”
Luck Companies chairman and CEO Charlie Luck said the successful implementation of an autonomous hauling solution at the Bull Run Plant is a major accomplishment for the industry.
“Our mission is to ignite human potential and positively impact the lives of others, and this project does just that by providing opportunities and experiences for our associates to grow and learn,” Luck said.
“Caterpillar’s innovative technology will also improve safety and be a tool for attracting the next generation of mining professionals. We’re excited for the future and what’s next for autonomy, and thankful for our continued, collaborative relationship with Caterpillar.”
To comment on this story or for additional details click on related button above.
