Cummins Celebrates 100 Years in Mining With Podcast on Reliability, Automation and Decarbonization
In a new Power Onward episode, Cummins marks a century of powering mining equipment and looks ahead to automation, data and lower-carbon solutions.
- 100+
- 210 hp
- 4,400 hp
- 190
What Happened
This episode of Cummins' Power Onward podcast, 'A century of digging deep,' celebrates more than 100 years of powering the mining industry. Hosts Kim, global brand manager, and Gbile Adewunmi, vice president of Power Systems Industrial Markets, trace how mining pushed Cummins to innovate in high horsepower, turbocharging, fuel systems, remote diagnostics, NOx reduction, filtration and dirt protection. They describe the journey from a 1926 four-cylinder 210-horsepower Model F engine powering a Northwest Engineering excavator to today's 4,400-horsepower engines in the largest mine trucks in Latin America. Cummins says reliability is the difference between productivity and costly downtime, and the company is present in 190 countries where critical mining happens.
Model F engine (210 hp, 4-cylinder) powers a Northwest Engineering excavator.
Pressure-time (PT) fuel systems released, later called legendary in the mining space.
New generation mechanical engines introduced with the K series.
Electronic engines QSK19, QSK38 and QSK60 launched, along with Tier 4 emissions-compliant engines.
QSK95 engine launched at 4,400 hp and 1,800 rpm for copper mines in Latin America.
- Stronger focus on safety: mining is dangerous with heavy equipment and blasting, so every mine prioritizes safety and everything stops if it is compromised.
- More automation and productivity: many mines are fully automated, with two-story-tall trucks controlled from command centers thousands of kilometers or miles away.
- More diverse workforce: more local and female leadership is emerging, with fewer expats in leadership roles.
Miners' expectations have shifted, says Gbile. Many are now racing for copper assets because data centers and AI continue to drive demand, so they are trying to shift their portfolios away from heavy reliance on coal and iron ore toward copper. Cost and reliability still matter, but miners have lots of sensor data and now expect partners to use it proactively. Cummins recently revamped its PreventTech tool, which collects engine data from mines worldwide, brings it to central locations, and turns insights into faster prevention and response.
“There's not one home run solution that's going to get us to a zero carbon outcome for mining, especially for large equipment. The technology is not mature enough. The infrastructure is not pervasive enough. And finally, the cost is not at the desired point.”
Diesel will be around for longer than anyone thought five years ago, Gbile says, so Cummins is upgrading its current portfolio and plans to reveal a new engine in a couple of months targeting the 90- to 120-ton haul truck or 150- to 220-ton excavator space. Cummins has identified two decarbonization pathways. The first is lower carbon fuels: it is testing a dual-fuel ethanol-diesel solution with partners in Latin America that is showing early promising results. The second is electrification, starting with a diesel-battery hybrid based on First Mode technology, which Cummins acquired in 2025, with two pilots running in Chile.
Previously from Cummins Inc.
In late July 2026, Cummins announced QSK60 engine upgrades and PrevenTech remote monitoring updates. It also revealed a hybrid-electric haulage pilot at a Chilean mine and a new clean-sheet engine platform.
Background drawn from MotorClaw's earlier coverage of Cummins Inc.'s official releases.
Why this matters
Mining supplies metals and materials behind nearly everything we use, and Cummins has powered this industry for over a century. The episode shows how reliability remains critical because downtime is costly, and how miners are now asking for data-driven insights and lower-carbon options. For beginners, it explains why engine makers are balancing diesel's staying power with new hybrid and fuel solutions.
Terms in This Story
- OEM
- Original Equipment Manufacturer; a company that makes equipment, such as haul trucks, in which another company's engines are installed.
- Diesel hybrid
- A powertrain that combines a diesel engine with battery electric power to reduce fuel use and emissions.
- Remote diagnostics
- Technology that monitors engine health from a distance, allowing issues to be identified without physical inspection.
- Tier 4
- An EPA emissions standard for off-road diesel engines that requires advanced emissions controls.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.