Equipping the mining industry in Alaska: N C Machinery and Construction Machinery Industrial fill niche market.

• Author: Armstrong, Amy M.
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Mining

Mining operations in the state of Alaska require heavy-duty, specialized equipment that simply is not available at just any dealership or even readily available on the showroom floors of those that do. It is a niche that only two firms fill in the Last Frontier: N C Machinery and Construction Machinery Industrial (CMI).

Friendly Competition

Both have corporate offices in Anchorage and outlets throughout the state with a significant portion of their day-in, day-out parts and maintenance departments equally located in Anchorage and in Fairbanks near the action of the Fairbanks Mining District. Both are also in a friendly competition with one another as each represents different manufacturers, providing equipment with similar, yet proprietary, technology aimed at giving mining operators greater accuracy and precision in extraction.

"Between us and N C Machinery, we represent more than 95 percent of the equipment in use in mines in the state of Alaska," Bob Gerondale says. In his role as CMI's chief operating officer, Gerondale often competes against his long-time acquaintance Wayne Lowman, the current mining manager for N C Machinery operations in Alaska, Montana, and Washington. Gerondale met Lowman years ago when Lowman worked as the regional representative for Hitachi, one of the equipment lines CMI represents and services.

Today it is Lowman representing Caterpillar, or CAT, and its extensive mining equipment line-up. N C Machinery strengthened its long-standing relationship with the heavy equipment manufacturing giant based in Peoria, Illinois, in May of this year by acquiring the expanded CAT Mining equipment distribution and support business from Caterpillar Global Mining.

This was a major solidifying move for N C Machinery and CAT in regards to mining in Alaska because it represents improved access to CAT's exclusive Bucyrus-originated equipment. Purchased by CAT in 2011, Bucyrus has been a leader in the manufacture of mining equipment since 1880 with its steam shovel design that was used in 1904 to dig the Panama Canal. Its late twentieth century stripping shovel and walking dragline designs quickly became industry standard and made it an attractive addition to CAT's product line.

"We are very excited about the expanded product mix and the acquisition by N C Machinery of the distribution of the Bucyrus line and the capabilities this represents for mining operations in Alaska," Lowman says.

As of the 2014 mining season, only legacy CAT...