Mining Equipment (ME) has been supplying the tunnelling and underground mining industry for nearly 45 years. They have always been a customer driven, project focused and family operated endeavour.
Robert Pope started Mining Equipment in 1981, and moved the company to Durango, Colorado, in 1983. The business focused on used equipment, buying equipment from mines and completed tunnel projects, and rebuilding and supplying to future projects.
Pope built a rebuild facility in Farmington, NM in 1986. Mining Equipment specialised in rail-bound equipment, fans, drill jumbos, scooptram and various other underground gear.
His sons, Rob and Matt, joined the company in the 1990’s.
Mining Equipment purchased Jetair in 1998. Today, Jetair is a dominant major supplier of axial vane fans and ventilation accessories in North America. The company is a turnkey supplier of complete ventilation systems for tunnel projects. And they are still the only fan manufacturer with forged blades.
They also roll steel ventilation ducting on-site for many mines and tunnel projects. Rusty Johnson started rolling pipe with his grandfather when he was 19 years old, and is still Mining Equipment’s vent duct specialist. He has been on projects throughout North America rolling steel vent duct up to 96” diameter.
Mining Equipment purchased Moran Engineering and CS Card in the early 2000’s. Moran and Card were rolling stock manufacturers for the tunnelling and mining industry. Those early drawings established the foundation of Mining Equipment’s rolling stock designs. More than half of Mining Equipment’s rolling stock supply is now new custom-built equipment. Chief engineer, Eric Bier, has been with ME for 19 years and specialises in rolling stock design and production.
The company began development of its new diesel locomotives in 2008. They had always rebuilt used locomotives, and still do, but as used inventories dwindled and special requirements persisted, the necessity to build new arose. Richard Dotson leads Mining Equipment’s locomotive technical department.
In 2019, Mining made a big leap by opening its first operation in Europe and buying Muhlhauser, a world leader in rail-bound equipment for tunnels and mines. Today, Mining Equipment employs 30 people in Germany, operates a full shop and owns the former Muhlhauser facility located in Michelstad, Germany.
Since opening their operation, Mining Equipment Germany has supplied some of the largest tunnelling projects rolling stock and locomotives, including the Brenner Base Tunnel and Thames Tideway, in London, as well as projects in Oslo, Munich and Doha.
Early in 2024, Mining Equipment partnered with Coral Reef Capital and purchased French MSV manufacturer Metalliance – the world leader in rubber-tired MSV supply.
Mining Equipment has represented Metalliance for more than 10 years in North America. Metalliance has pioneered battery technology use in MSVs and has supplied more MSVs than all other manufacturers combined. They are based in Monceau Le Mines in France where all their equipment is built.
