Book excerpt: The secret to streamlined scheduling of mining and civil engineering projects is a solid understanding of the basic concepts of rock cutting mechanics. Comparing theoretical values with experimental and real-world results, Mechanical Excavation in Mining and Civil Industries thoroughly explains various rock cutting theories developed for chisel, conical, disc, and button cutters. The authors provide numerical examples on the effect of independent variables on dependent variables, as well as numerical and solved examples from real-life mining and civil engineering projects using equipment such as: Hard- and soft-ground tunnel boring machines (TBMs) Roadheaders Shearers Ploughs Chain saws Raise borers Impact hammers Large-diameter drill rigs Microtunnel boring machines This book assists students and practicing engineers in selecting the most appropriate machinery for a specific job and predicting machine performance to ensure efficient extraction, and offers background information on rock cutting mechanics and different mechanical miners.