For several years now, Normet Academy; Normet’s training body, has used simulators as the vital part of service (in hydraulic and automation), concrete spraying and scaling training programs for mining and tunnelling operators. The use of simulators in operator training is safe, efficient and environmentally friendly. Also the most sophisticated training methods attract young and old trainees. Advantages of the simulator training include that the equipment fleet is not tied to training and can be used in productive work; and that there are no risks of accidents or machine failures in simulator training but difficult and dangerous situations can effectively be trained without risk.
The stress free training environment also supports quick learning and there is no electric or fuel consumption. In the case of concrete spraying simulator training there is also no cost on the used concrete or accelerator. Finally, every operator has a fair and equal environment to show their performance. Normet has now updated its concrete spraying simulators. The environment where spraying is done can be chosen. The user can spray either in a mine, in a tunnel site or even a scanned environment can be used. There is also a wide selection of Normet tunnelling and mining sprayers to choose from (Spraymec 8100 VC, Spraymec 6050, 1050 WPC, MF 050 VC or Alpha 30).
In the pre-training scenario, the trainee learns how to manipulate the spraying boom with the machine’s original radio control. After familiarising themselves with basic boom movements using radio-control joysticks, the trainee can start to pierce balloons with the spraying nozzle tip. When the spraying boom manipulation starts to be fluent, basic spraying techniques exercise can be started. It is an instructive exercise with spraying order/path, distance and angle rehearsals.
Actual spraying exercises include spraying in a straight tunnel, at tunnel end, in curved tunnel or at tunnel cross section.
Competition mode is also available under training scenarios, as introducing some competition can help to improve performance. In this new generation Normet Concrete Spraying Simulator high quality graphics also makes spraying more realistic. Visual indicators help trainees to learn quickly the correct operating methods. When spraying the coloured concrete layers indicate the thickness of the concrete while spraying (red layer – too thick; green layer – perfect; and blue layer – too thin). Nozzle angle indicators and indicators showing nozzle distance from the wall help trainees to learn the right nozzle position. In the new version, concrete flow and its behaviour has been made as realistic as possible. Original spraying boom kinematics from 3D models with material properties, hydraulic and concrete hoses modelling ensures natural behaviour in the simulation, while a new graphical user interface is modern and easy-to-use.
After each exercise, a detailed individual operator report is produced based on performance that can be printed out or transferred as a text file. This report includes information with informative pictures and graphs on the accuracy of concrete thickness, sprayed concrete quality, nozzle distance and angle accuracy. It also shows material usage, rebound, efficiency (sprayed area per hour), excessive accelerator and concrete usage and costs based on spraying parameters adjusted before the exercise.
Normet states: “Simulation is the best way to measure operators’ skills and their improvement as results are always comparable and there are no changes in concrete quality or circumstances. The power of simulators in training can only truly be realised if they are integrated into a well-thought-out training program including, in the case of concrete spraying, classroom and hands on training on the equipment, their operation and maintenance, and the basic understanding of concrete spraying and chemicals used in concrete as well as economy in spraying.”
On average, trainees who have undergone Normet Academy’s simulator training has shown an improvement in operator efficiency by 23%. The improvements have been: less rebound and usage of accelerator, lower cost per square metre of sprayed concrete on the wall and faster cycle times, together with higher quality of sprayed concrete. “According to feedback from customers after simulator training they have had huge reduce of rebound and improvement in sprayed concrete quality.”
