Top business benefits
Removes human error and bias
Leads to better decision making
Significantly increases productivity
Reduces OPEX
Lengthens the life of equipment
Improves operational efficiency
Reduces maintenance costs
Cuts fuel costs
In more detail
Full description
Open mines are reliant on efficient, effective and economic fleet management systems to optimise the safety and performance of their operations. Traditional operator-run dispatch systems can be prone to delays, holdups and miscommunication. One error can impact the smooth running of an entire mine.
This retro-fit, AI onboard fleet management system removes most of the opportunities for human error. It provides a constant, real-time overview of your entire fleet and manages the schedule to optimise fleet movement, fuel consumption, tyre maintenance and plant safety, while improving recovery and raising production.
The challenge
If an open mine’s fleet is out of synch, it impacts on every aspect of the mining operation. It leads to queues and holdups at loading and dumping areas, equipment and assets sent to the wrong places and lower equipment utilisation and tonnages. Time and resources are wasted chasing up where different sections of the fleet are and moving it all to where it should be.
If fleet tyre use is not monitored, tyres can blow while vehicles are in action, causing track blockages and further delays.
When a fleet is not running to schedule, not using optimal routes and getting caught in traffic jams, a mine is not running at optimal performance; and will be less productive and less profitable.
The approach
Using quickly and easily installed retro-fit onboard equipment and sensors, this cost-effective AI platform collects data that allows it to efficiently manage your fleet to ensure that every aspect of your operation is running at optimal performance.
Shift optimisation
It uses the data it gathers to continually optimise the shift pattern, even mid shift, to allow the distribution of dump trucks along routes in an open-cycle. It minimises queues by ordering shovel priority and evenly distributing trucks per shovel. It builds in hot-seat changes, breaks and refuelling; and if a delay or breakdown occurs, it makes in-shift corrections. It also measures tonnes per km and crusher utilisation.
Tyre management
The sensors monitor the mileage, temperature, pressure and condition of tyres to predict when they’re becoming overly worn, so that they can be replaced before they blow and disrupt the mine’s workings. The system also keeps a database of installation, reinstallation, removal and disposal of tyres.
Real-time reporting
Its real-time monitoring and reporting of production statistics allows for optimised control and management of loading-dump trucks, violations and operators KPIs. It also shows current versus forecast versus plan performance and further analytical forecasts. All of this can be integrated with ERP, industrial safety management and planning systems.
Precision shovel guidance and blending
It enables high-precision positioning of the excavator’s bucket, ensures levelling and bench-height compliance and enables in-pit blending. It also provides data to the Fleet Management System for blending calculations and assesses each shift based on ore quality through automatic reporting on operational status and load of each shovel.
Road quality control
Its automatic diagnostics of road quality allows for surface issues to be identified and rapidly fixed, increasing the lifetime of equipment.
Fuel and load management
It monitors fuel delivery from storage to vehicles and highlights unauthorised refuelling. It automates refuelling paperwork and authorises vehicles via RFID cards. By providing a constant overview of your open mine fleet, fully optimising every aspect of it and minimising the opportunities for human error, this system significantly increases productivity, improves health and safety and aids decision-making, while cutting OPEX.
