Technician masters how to drive scraper

Chen Ping, a 34-year-old senior technician, has been working as a scraper driver in the Mining Area III of Jinchuan Group since 2011. After a dozen years of study and practice, he is proficient in running the gigantic machines.

An underground mining scraper is a machine used exclusively for short-distance transporting ore.

“When I first saw the machine, I was frightened to get too close to it. It took me a whole year to learn how to operate it independently,” Chen said.

Driving a scraper well needs experience and brains. They are the two things needed to improve one’s working efficiency in the machine, Chen’s tutor once told him.

“My tutor told me to learn about the vehicle, and observe it under various working conditions. We gradually learn how it runs. I began to love the big guy,” Chen said.

As a scraper driver working in the underground mining area, Chen has adequate skills and energy to run the machinery. The suffocating heat wave, accompanied by the roar of the engine,  constantly hampers the physical and mental health of the worker. It was in this environment that Chen unremittingly exceeded his limits.

His experience in driving a scraper was blank at the start but he now has piled up a good chunk of knowledge after years of hard work. He said he has obtained a strong will as a driver.

Chen works regularly and has a strong sense of time control. Every time he walks around the scraper, he checks the situation of the vehicle to see if there is any scratch, welding or unclean piece which could affect its operation.

Then he checks the dowel sleeve of the vehicle to see whether there is any oil leakage or unfastened parts. Finally, he finishes steps to make sure the oil level is within the specified range; the fire extinguisher and triangle wood are complete; the light, horn and safety belt are normal; the brake, gear and operating valve are flexible and the pressure gauges are within the required range.

“I take good care of the body of the machine with love to make it well protected. We treat the machinery and equipment just like soldiers on the battlefield do so with their weapons,” Chen said.

Over the past few years, Chen repeated such work every day and never let his guard down. From an ordinary front-line worker to a key technician in the work area, his career path has been much quicker than the average, thanks to his cultivation of good behavior and  awareness of the rules.

“I come from the countryside, a less-developed place. So when I got a stable job in this place, I was reconciled to the difficulty of work. The life has not crushed me, but fostered my dignity,” Chen said.

“After I got the job at the Mining Area III, I met professional tutors and a group of concerned colleagues, which is fortunate. I believe learning is a lifelong thing and people should never stop in the path of pursuing higher goals.”