The Ritchie Bros. two-day Grand Opening sale at its new Raleigh-Durham, N.C., location was deemed a huge success by participants on all sides of the auction block.

Held Sept. 26 and 27, the sale focused on the mining industry and with the positive response it met with, it could turn out to be the first of several mining equipment sales. More than 2,100 bidders, 1,300 of them online, registered to snap up more than $76 million in equipment that was presented in 300-plus lots. Bidders came from as far as Australia and Hong Kong, with 96 percent of the equipment being purchased by buyers outside of North Carolina.

Popular items included 60 Caterpillar D11 crawler tractors, as well as skid steers, articulated trucks, motorgraders, dozers and loaders. Many items were 2010 and 2011 model years, the availability of which have been fairly scarce in recent years.

In addition to being a success for buyers and sellers, the event also was a success for the Amran Shriners of North Carolina, who received more than $7,000 during a charity auction of items donated by local businesses.

For more information, please visit www.rbauction.com.