Powering the shift to electric in crushing and screening
Sandvik is accelerating the transition toward more sustainable mining and quarrying operations with its “electric train”, a fully integrated, electrified crushing and screening solution. At the 2026 Annual General Meeting, the team behind the solution was awarded the Sigrid Göransson sustainability award.
The electric train combines three key units: the UJ443E jaw crusher, the QH443E cone crusher and the QA452e double screen. Together, they form a high-performance electric-drive system, optimized for a central power source such as a grid connection or single genset, with the option for individual onboard genset operation.
The winning team from Rock Processing includes Stephen Beattie, John Paul Fee, Alex McMinn, Fergal McCarney, Stuart Smyth, Kevin Cullen and Patrick Forrest.
“It’s a real honor to receive the Sigrid Göransson Award. The recognition reflects the close collaboration across our teams and with our customers – bringing three products together into a more sustainable solution with clear operational impact,” says Patrick Forrest, VP Product Management & R&D.
“Traditionally the industry relies heavily on diesel-powered engines and hydraulic drives that bring much higher emissions, fuel usage and additional maintenance, especially around the engines. By removing the need for multiple engines and going with electric drives, we will lower both emissions and fuel usage, while delivering clear environmental benefits,” says Stuart Smyth, Product Manager.
The solution also has a significant impact on operators’ day-to-day work. If you’re responsible for managing three engines—covering servicing, spare parts, downtime, and production planning - reducing that to one engine, or even none at all, represents a major operational benefit.
The electric train also delivers strong business value and significant efficiency gains with up to 30 percent higher productivity. “Our customers recognized the value immediately. The products within our fully electric train reduce total cost of ownership over the equipment’s lifetime, and the equipment’s durability and reliability are widely recognized by customers,” continues Forrest. “We maximize uptime for the customer, and also service costs and fuel consumption are reduced.
Equally important is the collaborative effort behind the development. Cross-functional teams within Sandvik worked alongside external partners, including technology suppliers and customers, to bring the concept to life.
“Our customer-centric approach led us here: this 'engineless' grid-powered solution was designed specifically to address the feedback and unique operational demands of our customers,” says Stephen Beattie, Senior Design Engineer.
“Driven by customer demand for safer, automated and more sustainable solutions, this innovation is a cornerstone of our future development and a blueprint for our sustainable offering,” says Forrest.