Recently, the two 637-meter water diversion shafts of the Songyang Pumped Storage Power Station in Zhejiang Province – a key national "14th Five-Year Plan" project – were successfully completed, setting a new record for the deepest shaft in China's pumped storage industry. This marks a significant breakthrough in the field of intelligent shaft sinking for ultra-deep shafts.
Challenges in Ultra-Deep Shaft Construction
Both shafts at the Songyang project reach a depth of 637 meters, requiring excavation through complex geological conditions including fault fracture zones and high-water-pressure strata. Traditional drill-and-blast methods face low efficiency and high safety risks in ultra-deep shaft construction, making them insufficient to meet the demands of deep underground engineering for both progress and safety.
Intelligent Equipment Solves Construction Challenges
The project team applied China's first 700-meter-class intelligent shaft sinking equipment system, with the core equipment being the 480-ton "Tiangong" full-face shaft boring machine. Featuring a conical cutterhead design, the equipment adapts to complex rock conditions and integrates propulsion, support, electrical control, and 5G communication networks, achieving an intelligent sinking mode of "no personnel underground, surface-based remote control."
During construction, the No.2 shaft set a new industry record with a monthly advance rate of 278.28 meters – achieving 10 times the efficiency of traditional methods – and completed excavation and support for a single shaft in just 61 days, demonstrating the adaptability of intelligent sinking equipment under complex geological conditions.
Wanfeng's Shaft Sinking Equipment Capabilities
In ultra-deep shaft construction, the suspension, mucking, and hoisting systems are critical to project progress.
Hebi Wanfeng has established a comprehensive product range for vertical shaft sinking equipment. In suspension equipment, the JZ/2JZ series sinking winches (commonly known as "stabilizing winches") offer a maximum pulling force of 50-500kN, with a rope capacity of 300-1,000 meters. Equipped with planetary gear reducers and hydraulic disc brakes, they enable synchronized and precise suspension of large equipment such as stages, formwork, and piping. The HZ series center-rotary grab loaders, commonly used in shafts over 4 meters in diameter, feature 0.6m³ grab buckets driven hydraulically for coordinated grabbing, slewing, and lifting actions, rapidly loading muck into kibbles. Supporting equipment including sinking headframes, hook-type kibbles, bottom-discharge kibbles, hook head assemblies, and hoisting sheaves together form a complete vertical shaft sinking equipment system.Mine Shaft Sinking winch JZ（ band brake） - Hebi Wanfeng Mining Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
Global Project Cooperation
Wanfeng's sinking and hoisting equipment has been exported to more than 30 countries worldwide. In Africa, Wanfeng equipment serves mine sinking and hoisting projects in Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and other countries; in South Asia, multiple metal mines in India use Wanfeng hoists and sinking winches; and in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South America, Wanfeng equipment maintains a stable customer base.
Wanfeng will continue to improve its complete shaft sinking equipment manufacturing and services, providing reliable equipment support for deep resource development worldwide.
For more information on shaft sinking or hoisting equipment, please feel free to contact the Wanfeng team.
Wynne Wang
Foreign Trade Manager
Hebi Wanfeng Mining Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
WhatsApp/Tel:+86 13839216889
Email: wynne@wf-cn.com
Website: www.mininghoist.com
