daily work

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.