Tag Archives: 3D-P

Epiroc prepared for more order records after strong Q2

Automation, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining finance, Mining maintenance, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Record orders received, high revenue growth and improved profitability were all part of Epiroc’s June quarter financial results as the OEM also made significant headway on its diesel-to-battery-electric retrofit plan to help electrify the mining sector.

Orders received increased 37% to a record high of SEK11.07 billion ($1.27 billion). This corresponds to 45% organic growth compared with the June quarter of 2020, the company said, noting that the 2020 three-month period was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Within this, equipment had the highest organic order growth of 76%, supported by a few large orders, such as an underground mining equipment order from Mexican contractor CoMinVi for use at several mines throughout the country.

The aftermarket also had a strong development, with organic growth of 26% for service and 42% for Tools & Attachments, Epiroc noted.

On the electrification front, Epiroc also highlighted that the June quarter had seen the company win several orders for battery-electric equipment, including one from Ivanplats for the Platreef project in South Africa, while receiving the first orders for its diesel-to-battery retrofit solution. The latter is starting with the conversion of diesel ST1030 loaders to battery-electric versions.

Revenues increased 15% to SEK9.733 billion in the June quarter, while operating profit and operating margin rose 54% and 22.4% to SEK2.182 billion and 22.4%, respectively.

The period was also characterised by several acquisitions, including the purchase of Australia-based Kinetic Logging Services, Canada-based 3D-P, and South Africa-based MineRP. Chile-based Mining TAG and Meglab, based in Canada, also came into the Epiroc fold in earlier July.

Speaking to IM just after the results came out, Helena Hedblom, Epiroc President and CEO, said the company had seen the automation, digitalisation and electrification trends observed across industry accelerate in these regions, among others, since the emergence of COVID-19.

“We see that different regions are ahead in terms of different capabilities,” she said. “We have seen a lot around digitalisation and automation in Australia, and, in Canada, when it comes to electrification, there are a lot of things happening. South Africa is strong when it comes to software and, on top of that, there are some regional players serving the sector like Mining TAG.

“We, as Epiroc, can come with our global footprint and help these regional players go abroad and roll out the technology on a global level.”

These acquisitions have seen the company’s staffing contingent swell in the last year. At the end of June, Epiroc said it had 14,569 employees across the globe, compared with 13,967 a year earlier, tied mainly to these acquisitions. Indeed, the three companies acquired during the June quarter came with 430 employees in total.

At the end of 2019, prior to the global onset of the pandemic, Epiroc had 14,268 employees on its books.

While Hedblom acknowledged much of the staffing increase was on the back of acquisitions, she did say the company was ramping-up additional workforce in “manufacturing, in supply chain and in service”.

And looking back to the rationalisation carried out across the company during the height of COVID-19 worries – which saw a notice of termination provided to 425 employees in Sweden and the consolidation of the manufacturing of exploration drilling tools in Canada – Hedblom said the company had since repositioned itself for the type of growth it was now experiencing.

“When we did the correction last year, we addressed a lot related to, mainly, admin and back office. With these acquisitions coming on board, of course, the majority of employees are technology-related people…software developers and service people to manage the technology out in the field.”

And, lastly, when it comes to the capacity to keeping up with record orders, Hedblom said: “We have a very flexible manufacturing setup where we do the final assembly, in house, and a lot of the pre-assembly is done by some external suppliers. That is how we are – and have always – managed swings in order volumes.

“We can also add more capacity if needed in our assembly lines. We are not regionally limited there; being able to use the different facilities we have in both the US and Sweden, in addition to China and India. We can balance that demand between the sites.”

Epiroc boosts mine network offering with 3D-P acquisition

Automation, Communications in mining, IoT, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, Mining software, , , ,

Epiroc has announced its second acquisition in two weeks, adding 3D-P, a Canada-based company that provides wireless connectivity solutions for surface mining, to its expanding portfolio.

3D-P, based in Calgary, provides reliable wireless connectivity solutions for mining companies within surface mining.

As Epiroc explains, a robust wireless network is crucial to enable mining automation, including teleremote and autonomous operations. 3D-P is active in North America, Chile, Peru and Australia, offering a variety of networking solutions to miners including “hybrid LTE”. It has about 50 employees and had revenues in 2020 of about $12 million, according to Epiroc.

The 3D-P buy follows an announcement on May 28 that Epiroc had agreed to acquire Kinetic Logging Services Pty Ltd, an Australia-based company that provides mining companies with geophysical logging services.

Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s President and CEO, said having reliable, high-quality wireless connectivity is key for mining companies that invest in automation and digitalisation to strengthen safety and productivity.

“We are happy to welcome the excellent team at 3D-P to Epiroc,” she said. “Together we will ensure that our customers succeed on their automation and digitalisation journey.”

METS companies readying product releases for IMARC

Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Explosives and blasting, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining events, Mining maintenance, Mining safety, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With just over a month to go until the IMARC event in Melbourne, Australia, mining equipment, technology and service (METS) companies are preparing for several product launches across the 12,000 m² expo floor.

According to organisers of the International Mining and Resources Conference and Expo (IMARC), October 29-31, attendees will be the first to see the latest technology and innovations shaping the mining industry.

3D-P will be taking advantage of the 2019 event to promote its latest product, a hybrid LTE/Insta Mesh client, designed to be installed on-board a mine’s heavy mobile equipment.

This hybrid solution solves some of the LTE performance challenges encountered in the mining environment through extended coverage and seamless roaming, according to the company.

Bata Industrials Footwear, meanwhile, will be exhibiting its updated Helix Range with the release of its Beta Industrials Helix safety work boots, styled for the toughest Australian working conditions in multiple leather options and colours, it said.

Bata Industrials is launching its new safety innovation footwear, the PU/RUBBER Mining Gumboot, which combines the benefits of PU with the established slip and heat resistant qualities of a rubber sole.

BlastMovement Technologies is readying its official commercial release of the new Flight Enabled Detector at the 2019 expo. This is a hardware option that offers an alternative to mine operations having to walk the muckpile, post-blast, to retrieve data, the company says.

Electric Vehicle Systems & Technology will be showcasing its newest electric drive system for the first time at the event. The system is installed in a light utility vehicle intended for general mine-site duties, it says.

A global leader in measurement instrumentation, services and solutions for industrial process engineering, Endress & Hauser will be exhibiting the world’s first ever loop powered radiometric density gauge – the FMG50, according to IMARC organisers.

The Gammapilot FMG50 will be one of the most innovative Gamma detector in the market and, as the world’s first true two-wire loop powered Gamma Compact transmitter, has been developed according to the latest SIL standard IEC 61508 (SIL2/3) with Heartbeat Technology being implemented as a differentiator.

MIDECO will be launching the Bat Booth®, a personnel de-dusting system for mines and quarries helping prevent silicosis, black lung and other dust-related diseases.

And, XLM will be launching the Auxiliary Power Unit, which has been built to reduce fuel burn of major mining assets to under one litre per hour while idling, extending service intervals and maximising asset life.

With a showcase of augmented and virtual reality, robotics, AI, autonomous machinery, and sustainable innovations, people looking to attend should take advantage of the free expo pass that is on offer for those who pre-register before 28 October, IMARC organisers said.

For more information please visit https://imarcmelbourne.com/

International Mining is a media sponsor of the IMARC event

3D-P on hybrid LTE: a first step towards mine digitisation

Automation, Communications in mining, IoT, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , ,

While larger mines and those looking to automation are often the most obvious candidates for new LTE connectivity, 3D-P thinks a hybrid LTE solution can offer smaller mines the chance to ramp up their digitisation efforts.

One of the expected benefits of LTE is connectivity at greater distances than what Wi-Fi traditionally offers. This has seen several large companies such as Agnico Eagle Mines (La Ronde), Newcrest Mining (Lihir), South32 (Cannington) and MMG (Las Bambas) ramp up their LTE efforts in recent times.

Yet coupling this distance connectivity benefit with a hybrid solution like the 3D-P hybrid LTE/InstaMesh® (from Rajant) client can offer smaller operations a simple and affordable network, according to the communications provider. This allows remote access to their data in near real time, it says.

“In this scenario, with no network required at the bottom of the pit, vehicles can still remain connected and sharing data via peer-to-peer connectivity,” 3D-P says. “Leveraging the Store and Forward capabilities of the 3D-P hybrid client, data is stored on-board the client while travelling outside the pit and is communicated to the server as coverage resumes and the client connects to the LTE network either directly or through a connected peer.”

With minimal infrastructure requirements, the solution is suited to applications with non-real-time communication requirements, the company said.

With this hybrid network in place, mines need to leverage the data they are receiving.

“The good news is that a number of simpler, more affordable applications have appeared over the last few years making digitisation an option for smaller operations,” 3D-P said. “Even better, and critical to smaller operators, is the ability that those new solutions provide to prove rapid return on investment on the technology.”

3D-P used its partner iVolve’s fleet management system as an example here. iVolve provides miners with a range of modules from production, maintenance, tyre pressure, material management, etc. “With the ability to integrate directly to existing or third-party systems, iVolve offers a scalable application for your mobile equipment as your mine digitises,” 3D-P said.

Through a proof of concept run at a mine in Western Australia, where productivity data was previously recorded manually, implementation of the iVolve solution proved to deliver an immediate 10% efficiency improvement, according to 3D-P.

3D-P gets networking at copper miner’s Americas sites

Base metals, Communications in mining, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , ,

3D-P says it has come up with a solution for a large copper miner looking for reduced wireless network management and improved network performance, all while being able to gather additional machine health data and improve its operational capacity across mine sites in the Americas.

The company had been running an 802.11g wireless network for a number of years, but head office was concerned by the amount of maintenance required to preserve the performance of the wireless network at each of the sites, as trailer moves were becoming a frequent activity, 3D-P said.

“In parallel, the sites had been running several applications on-board their mobile equipment, each using their own hardware, including Honeywell MEM for asset health, Modular Dispatch and High Precision GPS,” the company explained. “Many of these systems were due for upgrade, which in some cases would include increased network requirements.”

Led by the global IT department, the miner was investigating a wireless network upgrade, complete with infrastructure and on-board radio upgrades, according to 3D-P. At the same time, the maintenance department was investigating an upgrade to its on-board asset health dataloggers, adding functionality and supportability.

The brief for the new wireless network was as follows:

  • It should have the ability to reside on Layer 3 to bring network routing as close to the edge as possible, and;
  • It should also require minimal maintenance and have the ability to scale up in line with the miners’ wireless coverage needs.

Part of the global IT department’s vision was to consolidate the radio and the different applications running on-board the fleet into a single platform.

In addition, there was a requirement to include an accelerometer and a gyroscope allowing geo-referenced and time-stamped monitoring of the quality of the haul roads, as well as induced stress on the truck itself. Aligning with the miner’s corporate network switch standard, the solution should include a Cisco switch.

By creating a partnership and factoring in these requirements along with the company’s long-term vision, a “truly unique solution” consolidating these departmental needs into a single on-board platform was created, 3D-P said. This reduced initial costs and downtime significantly while providing the significant performance improvement each department required, it added.

3D-P said: “Additionally, the miner was looking for a technology partner that would support them through the lifespan of the technology from design and deployment, to training, consulting and ongoing support. The partner should also have in-depth mining experience.

“The expected result was an easy-to-maintain end-to-end solution that would support the miner’s requirements overtime while reducing their technology ‘clutter’, improving operations and reducing maintenance time and associated costs.”

The solution

3D-P, in its role as the end-to-end solution provider, recommended the miner deploy a Rajant Kinetic Mesh network. This, the company said, provided the required performance, reliability and scalability, while meeting the miner’s Layer 3 network security mandate.

“Rajant was selected as the technology of choice for the miner’s requirements for its self-forming, self-healing capabilities that would allow significant reduction in ongoing maintenance of the network infrastructure in the mines’ pits,” 3D-P said.

Its meshing capabilities would also allow cost effective increased coverage through dynamic meshing, while Rajant’s RPT protocol and security capability allowed both the required Layer 3 connectivity and the IT departments security requirements, the company added.

For high speed wireless backhaul, Cambium Networks PMP radios were used, with 3D-P identifying their known reliability, GPS synchronisation, channel re-use capacity as well as non-collision based channel access as key features.

3D-P explained the installation a little more:

“The miner’s networks consist of multiple segregated VLAN’s serving machine applications and network management. These networks span multiple Layer 2 segments across each site, being brought from the wired network to strategic locations throughout the sites with Cambium PMP radios. Rajant BreadCrumbs are placed at these locations, and others, creating high speed multi-channel InstaMesh links to other RF visible Breadcrumbs, either embedded in the 3D-P Intelligent Endpoint® (IEP) or standalone.

“Data generated on the mobile clients is transferred from machine to the IEP, or standalone Breadcrumb, to the Rajant wireless InstaMesh network and routed by Rajant’s InstaMesh Cost routing algorithm. This data is routed to its final destination by Rajant’s APT protocol (Layer 2 InstaMesh routing, within single segment) and RPT protocol (Layer 3 InstaMesh routing, between Layer 2 segments) while using the most cost efficient route whilst being blind to the type of network medium used.”

Client access

At the client access level, the solution consists of the 3D-P Intelligent Endpoint. This is designed as an open computing platform and mobile radio with on-board network management and data collection capabilities. The selection of the IEP platform allowed development of a solution that met all of the miner’s needs in a single device, 3D-P said, adding that the IEP model included a Rajant ME4 radio and a Cisco ESS2020 switch, while hosting the Honeywell MEM asset heath system.

“The native suite of tools residing on-board the IEP allowed development of a few customised solutions, including network health monitoring, a publish/subscribe solution for delivery of HPGPS corrections where required, and the firewall capability to provide connectivity via bi-directional network address translation to the P&H (Komatsu) Centurion systems running on their shovels where local static IP addresses are utilised, which are not compatible with the miner’s IP networking scheme.”

The solution saw the miner benefit from a significant reduction in capital expenditure for the on-board solution, as well as reduction in operational expenditure through significant savings in installation and troubleshooting time.

In terms of ongoing network maintenance, 3D-P mentioned its Network Performance Analysis Toolkit (NPAT). This regularly monitors the health of the wireless network from the mobile client’s perspective, with the NPAT data collector running a number of active and passive performance tests directly on the IEP, including ICMP pings of varying size, upstream and/or downstream UDP/TCP throughput, connectivity, neighbour tables, noise levels and location, etc.

The data is then geo-stamped and time-referenced before being visualised on a map for the miner to interpret. 3D-P and the sites are also developing a solution to automate the data collection and provide it to the miner’s own analytical tool, the company said.

The miner decided to perform the upgrade one site at a time over the course of a year, with a former ‘train the trainer’ model followed at each site, 3D-P said.

3D-P says the upgrade of the first five sites has been delivered on time and on budget, with the remaining four sites to be completed by the end of the year.

“Close partnership between 3D-P and the miner played a critical role in this success, through design and development of a complete end-to-end solution that met both the IT and asset health groups,” the company concluded.