Why Epiroc’s Scooptram ST14 matters underground

Reviewed: ad hoc news B2B & Pro desk. Edited and checked on 2026-06-20, 09:19. Details in the imprint.

With the Scooptram ST14, Epiroc AB sends a low, broad and unapologetically rugged underground loader into the mine that looks like it wants to chew through rock all shift long. The yellow steel fills a tunnel almost wall to wall, yet the steering feels surprisingly nimble.

Built for tight drifts

The Scooptram ST14 is a 14-tonne class underground loader shaped like a steel wedge, with a low roofline so it can duck under narrow backs while still carrying a generous bucket. Operators step up onto wide, serrated steps and grip solid handrails that feel overbuilt rather than decorative.

Inside the cab, the view forward is framed by the bucket lip and thick loader arms, yet large mirrors and work lights carve out a workable field of vision in dusty headings. The steering reacts quickly, so even in a cramped crosscut the machine can snake around corners without scraping paint on every bolt.

Powertrain and hydraulics feel

Under the steel skin, the Scooptram ST14 typically pairs a high-torque diesel engine with a strong transmission that pushes confidently up loaded ramps. You hear a deep, steady rumble rather than a frantic scream, which underground crews appreciate during long night shifts.

Hydraulics are tuned for deliberate but brisk movements. The bucket lifts smoothly from the muck pile, curls with a firm wrist-like motion and drops into trucks with enough speed to keep cycle times competitive, yet not so abruptly that the operator gets jolted in the seat every time.

Comfort where it matters

The cab of the Scooptram ST14 is still a working place first, but details like an adjustable suspension seat, clear analog-digital gauges and a reasonably quiet noise level take the edge off harsh conditions. Controls fall to hand without a hunt, which shortens the learning curve for new drivers.

Air conditioning, good sealing and efficient dust filtration become more than comfort features once the loader works in hot, diesel-fumed headings. When doors close with a solid, reassuring thud, crews immediately sense that this is a space where an entire shift is bearable, not just survivable.

Maintenance and uptime focus

Epiroc tends to design its underground machines, including the Scooptram ST14, with grouped service points and easily removable covers so technicians can reach filters, fluids and key components without dismantling half the loader. That matters when every unscheduled hour in the shop hurts production.

Large, clearly labelled service panels and centralised greasing points help reduce the temptation for shortcuts. When maintenance is physically easier, mines are more likely to follow the intervals, and the machine rewards that discipline with fewer surprises and more predictable uptime.

Digital integration and options

In many fleets, the Scooptram ST14 does not run alone but as part of a connected underground system. Epiroc offers telematics and digital tools on its loaders so planners can track utilisation, fuel consumption and maintenance needs from the surface in near real time.

Depending on mine strategy, the loader can be specified with automation-ready features, remote control packages or compatibility with traffic management systems. That means a mine can start with conventional operation and later upgrade parts of the fleet as safety rules tighten or labour markets change.

Where the compromises show

All this robustness has a flip side. The Scooptram ST14 is heavy and wide, so it asks for well-designed drifts and careful traffic planning when sharing space with trucks and other loaders. In older, narrower workings, squeezing such a machine through can become a daily puzzle.

Fuel burn under continuous, high-load operation is also substantial, as you would expect from a powerful diesel underground loader in this class. Mines that are aggressively cutting emissions may therefore place the ST14 alongside, or in some cases behind, newer battery-electric models in their long-term plans.

How it fits into Epiroc’s line

Within Epiroc’s range, the Scooptram ST14 sits above smaller loaders aimed at narrow headings and below the biggest machines that feed high-capacity truck fleets. It is a middle-weight workhorse intended for medium to large underground mines across commodities.

For operators, the loader feels like a convincing compromise between capacity and manoeuvrability. It carries serious tonnes each pass without demanding the biggest possible cross-section, which is one reason it appears in so many tender lists when mines modernise their fleets.

Company backdrop and share reference

Epiroc AB builds equipment for surface and underground mining and has made loaders like the Scooptram ST14 central to its strategy of safer, more efficient rock excavation. All told, the product portfolio stretches from drilling rigs to haul trucks and digital solutions that tie the machines together.

Shares of Epiroc AB (SE0015658109) trade primarily on Nasdaq Stockholm in Swedish kronor, where professional investors read demand for underground loaders and related equipment as one indicator of the company’s long-term order pipeline.

This article was AI-assisted and editorially reviewed. Product information without guarantee; prices and availability may change at short notice. No investment advice, no buy or sell recommendation. Stock-market transactions involve risks up to total loss.