Tag: mining innovation

Solid as a Rock

Solid as a Rock

In 1996 Stuart MacGregor designed what was to become central to an evolving and innovative series of anchored instrumentation. A sixth-generation gold miner – and hoping his 19-year-old son is on his way to becoming the seventh generation – Stuart, the managing director and principal geotechnical engineer of SCT Operations, designed the first Rock-IT instrumentation with the effective and accurate measurement of ground movement in mind. "In a former role, I spent a lot of time underground, and my job was to measure the ground moving, so this is where a lot of these ideas crystalised," he said. "When I joined SCT (Strata Control Technology) the coal industry didn't have the experience in monitoring ground movement. "These instruments are all...

Virtually the Best

Virtually the Best

Virtual Reality has become the industry standard for education and training within mining and resources. It’s likely you already knew that. What might come as news to you, is that the global leaders of industrial VR training production are right here in Australia. Perth, to be exact. As Occupation Health and Safety regulations continue to tighten, and become increasingly complex, VR is the key to maintaining simplicity for mining workforces and operational stability. Never was this made more apparent than through the swift change brought about by coronavirus. The need for remote training shot up rapidly. Thankfully VR rose to the challenge and propped up production in the industry, by bridging an isolated workforce with continued training and operations. Core...

Virtual Reality In Mining: Pushing The Boundaries

Virtual Reality In Mining: Pushing The Boundaries

The University of New South Wales' mine simulator. Image: University of New South Wales. BY AMY BLOM THE benefits of virtual reality for miners are growing at a rapid pace, particularly in training and safety. Now, it could be time to expand the technology and begin looking at fully integrated systems. Augmented and virtual reality has become more widespread within the mining sector and according to researchers, exciting developments could be on the horizon. Virtual reality has already been used by numerous universities and organisations in Australia as an educational tool for engineering students and future mine workers. In recent years, the technology has also been used as a safety training tool for miners and rescue brigades in...

Robotics Roadmap launched

Robotics Roadmap launched

Image: Rio Tinto. BY ELIZABETH FABRI AUSTRALIA’S mining sector has an opportunity to cement itself as a world-leader in the robotic space, according to new research by The Australian Centre for Robotic Vision. Its newly launched Robotics Roadmap revealed mining was already ahead of other sectors, but the path to commercialisation was a key barrier in transitioning robotics from the R&D phase to market-ready product. Driverless trucks and drones were already deployed across major operations, delivering productivity efficiencies, improved safety, and cost savings. However, other areas to be unlocked included robots for mining in hazardous and remote geographic areas; using robots to mine on-demand when resources were required; developing independently aware robotic systems to reduce reliance on...

More time required for mine rehab

More time required for mine rehab

A one-year old mine site restoration in WA. Image: Centre for Mine Site Restoration. BY ELIZABETH FABRI TAILINGS dams are among the most ‘ecologically hostile’ by-products of mining operations yet there is currently a lack of sufficient technology to deliver timely and cost-effective restoration outcomes, according to Curtin University’s ARC Centre for Mine Site Restoration (CMSR). In its new report One giant leap for mankind: can ecopoiesis avert mine tailings disasters?, CMSR argues more time is needed to allow for adequate mine site restoration practices, with current legislation providing a short timeframe. “After a mining operation ceases, there is often less than 10 years given to adequately restore the used land back to a sustainable ecological landscape,...

Robots will take over: Hitachi

Robots will take over: Hitachi

Image: Hitachi. BY ELIZABETH FABRI WITHIN a decade Australian mines will be operated almost entirely by autonomous machines, according to global group Hitachi. Game-changing technologies such as remote and integrated operation centres, driverless vehicles, and advanced analytics are set to be “commonplace” across the entire industry by 2030. “Such advances in technology are predicted to increase productivity and reduce costs by up to 25 per cent, which will have a significant impact on retaining Australia’s competitiveness in the Asia Pacific region, in addition to major positive social impacts such as the ability for mining employees to work in metropolitan areas,” Hitachi stated. “Hitachi also predicts that by 2030 most mines will have fully integrated IoT systems that...

Detecting tramp metal

Detecting tramp metal

Image: Mining3. BY ELIZABETH FABRI AUSTRALIAN research body Mining3 has developed a new ‘uncrushables’ detection technology for real time identification of tramp metal in payloads. Led by Mining3 principal research engineer Dihon Tadic, the system uses both hardware and software with a unique detector embedded in the bucket of digging and loading machines that alerts an operator before the tramp metal enters the crushing circuit. The technology was trialled in WA and South Africa on load-haul dump and front-end loader buckets, and a prototype has been deployed in South Africa for extended mine trials. Mr Tadic said the completed site trials confirmed the technology’s ability to improve safety, and prevent costly equipment damage and downtime. “Mining3 has been...

Mining tech giants join forces

Mining tech giants join forces

The winning Digi-MIN team consisting of three Gekko representatives (graduate process engineer Eliza Craig, graduate metallurgist Barry Tuncks and mechanical designer Matt Kurtze) and Monash University student Daniel Bechaz. By Elizabeth Fabri GEKKO Systems has partnered with Rockwell Automation to develop a metallurgical software program that will account for metal content at various stages of ore processing and provide miners with analytic capabilities to audit and improve performance. In late February the two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), and had now progressed to the development and pilot stage of the project. Gekko global mining and processing services manager Renaldo Maras said the company was pleased to be collaborating with Rockwell Automation; a company it had worked with at...