daily work

3M Peltor Lite-Com Pro in the LKAB:s mine in Kiruna
når örat, vilket skyddar hörseln. All lj
decibel ökar risken för hörselskador o
omedelbart ljud över detta gränsvärd
Urban Nykäinen och Mats Mäki,
prenören NCC, tycker att kommuni
fungerar väldigt bra.
– I vårt arbete måste vi ha både b
fungerande kommunikation. Vi befin
en bullrig miljö. Vid till exempel b
decibeltalet gå upp ända till 140. Det
inbyggd komradio i kåporna och vi an
en även om vi står nära varandra, f
bättre än om vi skulle behöva skrika
ljud, säger Urban.
– Vi måste ha kåporna på oss när v
van. Det säkerställer kommunikation
vet hela tiden vad som händer runt o
direkt. Man kan sitta i kuren och hör
nere i schaktet, fortsätter Mats.
The Sound Solution
When communication comes
essential
Urban
for
Nykäinen,
your
NCC, använder den inbyggda
komradion även på nära håll för att slippa
höja rösten i en arbetsmiljö präglad av höga
daily work
bullernivåer.
3M_Mag_1-10OK!x.indd 7

av ammoniak sticker i näsan. Kari berättar
att det är rester av spränggaser,
men han känner ingenting eftersom han
är så van vid lukten.
When
absolute security
is vital
As soon as the vehicle passes through the entrance
to the mine, the strong daylight sun is exchanged for
absolute total darkness. Without the headlights of the
vehicle we would be unable to see anything at all.
Kari Kiviniemi from NCC drives us skilfully deeper and
deeper into the gigantic mine complex at Kiruna, owned
by LKAB.
The rank smell of ammonia hits our nostrils, making our
eyes water. It is the remains of the explosion gas lingering
in the tunnel.
Kari is so used to the odour it does not affect him.
6
Urban Nykäinen, NCC, använder den inbyggda
komradion även på nära håll för att slippa
höja rösten i en arbetsmiljö präglad av höga
bullernivåer.
Kari Kivini
lagen som a
huvudnivå
We stop 740 meters under ground. The present main level is 1045 meters
deep and is the sixth such level since mining started here in 1957. The next
main level planned will be at a depth of 1365 meters. At present, all the
ore-mining at Kiruna is above this level.
Kari is the foreman for one of the teams drilling their way through the
mine. He points out a drill shaft they are working on. This Raise Drilling
Shaft is a rock drilling technique where channels between two levels in
the shaft are drilled. The rock, which is being drilled and blasted, will fall
När kommunikation blir
3M_Mag_1-10OK!x.indd 7
fråga om liv eller
down the channel to the lower level. The round hole is about 5 meters in
diameter. To look down such a shaft makes you dizzy. His team is working
down the shaft at 200 meters depth, where they are putting in bolts to
secure the rock to enable them to work even further down, explains Kari.
10-05-20 09.47.04
Another shaft is being built to lift ore up to the sinter pellet plant – the
work here never stops. Production is around the clock 24/7, 7 days a week,
365 days a year.
We continue our tour even further down the mine, towards level 1338. It
is dark, filthy and wet. Safety is essential when performing any work in the
mines. “I feel no worries for my personal safety. There are more accidents
above ground than below and a cave in is usually a very isolated incident”,
says Kari.
Communication = Safety
We arrive back at level 740 just in time for the workers coffee break in
their shed - strong black coffee out of plastic cups. Today they have the
opportunity to provide feedback on the communication equipment they use
everyday. The communication between the workers is vitally important for
maximum safety.
On their heads the workers wear helmets with attached headsets and
built-in level dependant functionality linked to a communication radio. The
once white helmets are now grey with dirt and the equipment has to endure
much in this harsh, dirty environment. The communication equipment they
use is made by 3M Peltor TM .
The mine is the worst possible environment you can use this type of
product in and why the quality, reliability and performance are so essential.
“If it can work here, it can work anywhere”, says Sune Hägglund, Peltor
Communication Product Specialist at 3M and one of the fellow-passengers
going down the mine. He maintains that communication radio is one of the
most secure and safest ways to communicate in industrial environments.
Microphones close at hand
The Headset has two built-in microphones capturing all surrounding
ambient sounds. These analyze the sound before it reaches the ear,
ensuring that the hearing is protected. Any noise exposure over 82 dBA
increases the risk for hearing damage, but the headset prevents any noise
above this level from reaching the wearer.
Urban Nykäinen and Mats Mäki, who work for the contractor NCC also
find that the communication equipment is working very well.
“We must have good hearing protection and efficient communications
in our work. We are constantly in a noisy environment. For instance the
concrete injection process can be as high as 140 dB. It is ideal to have
a built-in communication radio in the headset and we always use the
microphone, even if we are standing close to each other, as the sound
quality is much better than if we just shout at each other!”, says Urban.
“We must have the headset on when we are in the mine. It guarantees
the communication in our work, so we are aware of what happens around
us at all times and will hear each other straight away. I can sit in the shed
and hear what they are saying all the way down the shaft”, Mats continues.
The coffee break is over and it is time to make our way down the shaft
again. Mats Mäki further clarifies the importance of safety before he
returns to work.
“I cannot manage working here without the headsets. When going up
and down the shaft we must have direct contact with the driver of the lift.
There is no other means to communicate in case of an emergency”. Once
we are two meters away, he can no longer see us in the darkness and we
rely on the radio.

ningen startade
65 meters djup.
enna nivå. Kari
borrar sig ned i
kt som man just
borrningsteknik
r i gruvan. Det
ed till den lägre
r i diameter. Att
Kari Kiviniemi from NCC
leads one of the teams who
are working to reach the next
ers djup och de
för att 1365 man meters. ska
.
lmhiss som ska
sinterverket.
main level, at a depth of
arbete emi från pågår NCC arom.
leder ett av arbetsrbetar
med att nå ned till nästa
som ska ligga på 1365 meters djup.
r i gruvan, mot
tigt. Säkerheten
Brief facts about LKAB
LKAB = Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara is a Public Limited
Company.
The site at Kiruna is one of the world’s largest and most up to
date underground iron ore mines.
LKAB are active in five different locations in north of Sweden
and Norway.
The LKAB Group has approximately 3700 employees, about
600 of them outside of Sweden. The Group consists of some
30 companies in 15 countries.
Mats Mäki, NCC, framhåller det viktiga
Peltor i att
snabbt kunna kommunicera det som händer Lite-Com i
Pro
gruvan till sina arbetskamrater.
Programmable Built-in Two-way communication
Headset
nliga säkerhet.
ch ett ras är of-
en
Kari.
död
nas fikarast, där
ne i kuren. Den
eedback på den
er varje dag.
tterst viktig för
kåpor med inon.
De en gång
• Programmable for communication on max. 30 channels. Separate headset
models are available for the frequencies 403-447 MHz and 430-470 MHz
(a user license may be required).
Det starka dagsljuset försvinner så fort
• Approved for use in environment 10-05-20 with danger 09.47.14 for explosion.
ATEX- certified to Ex II 1 G Ex ia IIC T4.
bilen passerar ingången. Ljuset byts ut
• Built-in level dependent function lets you hear ambient sounds,
mot mörker, det mörkaste mörker du
warning signals, machine sounds, conversation etc.
kan tänka dig. Utan bilens strålkastare
skulle vi inte se någonting alls. Kari
• Sudden impulse noise at harmful levels is immediately attenuated.
• An electronic voice in the receiver tells you the settings of the device.
• Unused, Lite-Com Pro switches off automatically to save the batteries.
• Lite-Com Pro is only sold through authorised retailers.
Kiviniemi från NCC rattar oss vant längre
Models
och längre ner i LKAB:s gigantiska gruvkomplex
i Kiruna. Den lite fräna doften
av ammoniak sticker i näsan. Kari berättar
att det är rester av spränggaser,
men han känner ingenting eftersom han
är så van vid lukten.
Product code Models / Frequency Ch. spacing
MT7H7F403-50 Headset headband, 403-447 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT7H7B403-50 Headset neckband, 403-447 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT7H7P3E403-50 Headset helmet, 403-447 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT7H7F4032-50
10-05-20 09.47.04
Headset headband, 403-447 MHz 10/20 kHz
MT7H7B4032-50 Headset neckband, 403-447 MHz 10/20 kHz
MT7H7P3E4032-50 Headset helmet, 403-447 MHz 10/20 kHz
MT7H7F470-50 Headset headband, 430-470 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT7H7B470-50 Headset neckband, 430-470 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT7H7P3E470-50 Headset helmet, 430-470 MHz 12,5/25 kHz
MT53H7F470-50 Headset headband, 430-470 MHz 10/20 kHz
MT53H7B470-50 Headset neckband, 430-470 MHz 10/20 kHz
MT53H7P3E470-50 Headset helmet, 430-470 MHz 10/20 kHz

3M Svenska AB
Box 2341, SE-331 02 Värnamo, Sweden
Phone: +46 (0) 370 65 65 65
Fax: +46 (0) 370 65 65 99
Email: peltorcommunications@mmm.com
Internet: www.3M.com/Peltorcomms
Please recycle. Printed in Sweden. © 3M 2011. All rights reserved.