Easily transportable Lokotrack® revolutionized crushing contracting

“The track-mounted design of Lokotrack® thoroughly revolutionized crushing contracting. Easy transportability and quick commissioning enabled smaller contracts than with wheel-based plants and simultaneously expanded the contractor’s operating area,” describes Mikko Mäkitalo, CEO and all-around quarry man at Veljekset Mäkitalo Oy, one of the oldest and largest family-owned crushing contracting companies in Finland.

“The pace of contracting also intensified with equipment that could be transported on a low bed truck. No longer crushing rock at the same site for months and hundreds of tons at a time – instead, after just a few tens of thousands of tons, the Lokotrack is already off to new site,” Mikko explains.

“I clearly remember the first Lokotrack contracts, when track-mounted crushers were moved from site to site at a furious pace – up to 50 times a year. Rock was crushed in Satakunta and Uusimaa. Scheduling became a challenge for both the contractor and the staff.”

Entering the Lokotrack era in 1998

Veljekset Mäkitalo acquired their first track-mounted Lokotrack crushers in 1998 and 1999, a little over a decade after the original Lokomo innovation.

The first unit, equipped with a jaw crusher, served as the primary stage and was mainly used to produce ballast and coarse aggregates. This was followed by a secondary stage featuring a cone crusher, designed for producing concrete gravel and finer end products.

Today, Mäkitalo operates a fleet of 19 track-mounted crushers, the majority of which are Lokotrack models. Their operations include six independent three-stage crushing plants, with the largest capable of reaching a capacity of 400 tons per hour, delivering all required end products to meet customer demands.

For recycling applications, the company utilizes a Lokotrack impact crusher.

More electricity and automation

Mikko Mäkitalo estimates that Metso’s Lokotrack crushers have evolved most over 40 years with the introduction of electricity alongside diesel, reducing fuel costs. Electronics and automation have also been added, and the crushers have been modernized.

“A combination of three separate Lokotrack units used to be the standard. Especially for smaller contracts, we’re now going back to two-stage setups for cost reasons. Often, a jaw and cone or a crusher and screen are combined on one frame. This reduces the space needed at the site and saves on fuel,” Mikko says.

“Transport costs are also lower when the low bed truck makes even one less round trip with a track-mounted crusher.”

Five years of mining experience

In addition to rock, Veljekset Mäkitalo’s Lokotrack crushers have also processed black schist containing nickel and zinc at the current Terrafame mine in Sotkamo. A contract initially set for two months was extended to five years.

“At its peak, 11 Lokotrack units were crushing at the mine, supported by a reliable subcontractor network. Most of the equipment was moved from Huittinen to Sotkamo, about 600 kilometers away. The mining work was great, though challenging due to the slipperiness of the black schist. Many Christmases and Midsummers were spent in the wilderness of Kainuu,” recalls Jouko Mäkitalo, who has over 60 years of work experience.

“The color of the carbon-rich black schist was so sticky that neither men nor machines could be cleaned properly,” Jouko adds.

Hydrogen power and new crusher models

When asked what Metso’s Lokotrack crushers will look like in 40 years, Mikko Mäkitalo responds clearly and in detail:

“No major revolutions are expected, as hard rock will still be reduced traditionally between jaws and cones using compressive crushing techniques. The plant will still be built on tracks.”

Mikko believes Metso engineers will continue to develop new, improved jaw and cone crusher models and focus on usability, maintenance, and design.

“The biggest change will be in the power source. I strongly believe that in 40 years, Lokotrack crushers will be powered by hydrogen and electricity instead of diesel. Hydrogen is clearly the clean energy source of the future.”

“Fortunately, one of the planned hydrogen pipelines in Finland seems to pass close to our office in Huittinen,” Mikko Mäkitalo notes.