Tag Archives: FMS

Haultrax to emphasise effective change management strategies at IMARC 2023

IoT, Mining events, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , ,

Haultrax, a mining consulting company and a software provider of fleet management systems (FMS) and mining productivity technologies, is set to highlight the potential of effective change management, emphasising how proper implementation of technology can lead to remarkable advancements in mining operations, at the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) 2023, in Sydney, Australia.

By highlighting the significance of aligning people, processes and technology, Haultrax says it aims to emphasise the crucial role played by each element in achieving optimal outcomes.

Visitors to the stand will have the opportunity to delve into the common pitfalls that lead to technology project failures and the key strategies to mitigate them and embark on successful digital transformation journeys, the company says.

“At Haultrax, we understand the mining business, operations, its people and processes to implement technology for the end user and make sure it’s delivering value for that company,” Shyamal Sharma, Managing Director at Haultrax (pictured), said. “We bring specialisation at a strategic level but also dirt-underneath-the-fingernails experience to ensure our solutions will work for our clients. All our solutions or proposals on how to implement technology work because of that understanding.

“Our participation at IMARC 2023 provides us with an exceptional platform to showcase how digital solutions and mining technology can be integrated into a business and implemented with the people at the frontline.”

Haultrax says it is committed to leveraging technology and innovation to make the lives of individuals easier, safer and more productive, and its participation at IMARC 2023 reflects its dedication to supporting mining companies’ decision making and business outcomes.

“We look forward to engaging with industry peers, customers and stakeholders at IMARC 2023 and sharing our vision for the future of mining,” Sharma added. “Our team is excited to explore collaborative opportunities and demonstrate how Haultrax’s solutions can drive positive change within the mining ecosystem.”

International Mining is a media sponsor of IMARC 2023, taking place on October 31-November 2, in Sydney, Australia

MaxMine Carbon to help mining sector’s ‘net-zero’ transition, du Plessis says

Environmental, Mining software, Sustainable mining, , , ,

As miners chase their mid- and long-term ‘net-zero’ ambitions, MaxMine’s CEO, Coert du Plessis, says they can start cutting their open-pit carbon output by 5-20% today with MaxMine Carbon.

MaxMine’s sensors and cloud-based processing system (MaxCube) extract and process 10,000 times more data from mining equipment and operator behaviour than incumbent systems, according to the company.  It is this platform that MaxMine Carbon is leveraging to reduce operations’ carbon emissions.

“MaxMine’s secret is providing highly accurate, trusted data that is automatically converted and contextualised into practical measures that mines can take to significantly reduce their carbon emissions,” it said. “Covering mine, machine and operator performance, urgent actions and decisions are communicated directly to operators, improvement leaders, and mine operators.

“In just 12 months, MaxMine has also increased site productivity by up to 12% at mines all over the world.”

MaxMine Carbon leverages trusted, high-quality data and operator behaviour that helps customers understand and manage their carbon footprint, according to du Plessis. “Our customers will be able to leverage the MaxMine Carbon Driver Tree and our new online MaxMine Carbon Calculator to provide a baseline of their current carbon emissions,” he said.

Backed by over 5 million hours of machine asset and operator data, the Carbon Calculator helps mines build their case for change, according to the company, allowing sites to quantify their current carbon emissions and then make critical trade-off decisions towards reducing emissions, while maintaining and even improving productivity.

“The MaxMine Carbon Calculator really is a first for the industry,” du Plessis said. “The first step in reducing carbon emissions, is being able to accurately quantify your current starting point.”

MaxMine Carbon measures a highly detailed carbon footprint across the entire mine, from every piece of equipment to each individual operator’s behaviour, according to the company.

“There are many operators in the mining chain with vast variations in behaviours,” du Plessis says. “An example might be one worker who drives fast and another slowly who holds up both trucks whilst producing unnecessary diesel CO2 and nitrous oxide. Or both trucks are loaded but not filled.

“Had they been fully loaded, only one carbon-free trip would have been required.”

MaxMine Carbon generates significant $/material tonne cost savings and early mover CO2/tonne of material savings, according to the company.

du Plessis said: “Clients can expect MaxMine Carbon to pay for itself in just 20 weeks from fuel savings alone. When combined with the broader MaxMine suite, this figure drops to less in 10 weeks.

“The average mine site is 150,000 t/y of carbon from the diesel fleet, and we can save up to 30,000 t of that CO2 right now every year.

“If we don’t reduce carbon every year, raw material prices will rise significantly across the supply chain, hampering net-zero for the world.”

Robert Friedland and Ivanhoe eye Arabian Shield opportunities ahead of FMS in Riyadh

Mining events, Mining people,

Speaking in advance of the landmark Future Minerals Summit (FMS) in Saudi Arabia, on January 11-13, the Founder and Executive Chairman of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd, Robert Friedland, has spoken of his excitement at the development of the largely unexplored, mineral-rich Arabian-Nubian Shield (ANS) region.

He described the forthcoming summit as “very important” for the mining sector generally.

On the back of his confirmed participation at FMS in Riyadh, Friedland was interviewed last week about one of its themes: defining a new mining hub in the Middle East, Central Asia, and North and East Africa.

He said: “We think the [Arabian Shield’s] potential is limitless for diamonds, rare earth, lithium, copper, gold and other minerals we haven’t even thought about. It’s big. It’s unexplored, and it’s blessed by cheap energy, at the bottom of the world cost curve, with new infrastructure, and proximity to markets.”

The Ivanhoe Group concentrates on regions where it can make “super-large discoveries” because of a lack of previous exploration. Friedland has been involved in 59 countries over the past 20 years, and describes Saudi Arabia’s mineral potential as “enormous”. Because of the recent positive change in government policy, Friedland said he “couldn’t be more excited about what is happening in the Kingdom”, and that “Ivanhoe would love to be part of it”.

Friedland also believes there is potential in the south of the Craton in Oman and Yemen, and across the fault into North Africa.

FMS is a meeting of senior political and business leaders to address issues facing the global mining industry. Convened for Riyadh on January 11-13, 2022, the themes also include a focus on mining’s contribution to society and on advancing the industry through technology and innovation.

The Kingdom’s Vice-Minister of Mining Affairs, His Excellency Khalid Al-Mudaifer, told the recent Mines and Money (M&M) conference in London that his country wanted to play a part in “reimagining the mining sector” and showcase the ANS as a “new frontier for mining”. This part of the world, he said, will play a “vital role in meeting the exponential growth in global demand for the critical minerals needed in a low-carbon society”.

KSA’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has confirmed that mining company leaders at FMS, in addition to Friedland, will include the CEOs of Barrick Gold and Alcoa, Mark Bristow and Roy Harvey, respectively, and the chairman of Fortescue Metals, Andrew Forrest. Numerous other industry leaders attending include Jeremy Weir, Jeffrey Dawes and Rohitesh Dhawan, the CEOs of Trafigura, Komatsu Mining and the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), respectively.

The summit in Riyadh will play an important part in driving home the message that mining is part of the solution to cutting the world’s carbon emissions, and that unexplored mineralised regions can, and should, be opened up to deliver the necessary raw materials, the conference organisers say.

Newcrest looks to new FMS, haul truck trays for Red Chris improvements

Base metals, Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , ,

With gold and copper production dropping and costs increasing, the Red Chris mine, in British Columbia, Canada, is set for a number of improvement initiatives, according to 70% owner Newcrest Mining.

In the company’s September quarter results, Newcrest said Red Chris gold and copper production came in at 12,636 oz and 7,050 t, respectively, during the three-month period. This was down from the 15,440 oz of gold and 8,401 t of copper registered in the June 2020 quarter.

Newcrest said the circa-3,000 oz drop in gold output reflected a higher proportion of lower-grade stockpile material being fed to the mill due to unseasonal rainfall hitting the availability of higher grade ex-pit material.

This lower-grade mill feed adversely impacted recovery rates, partially offset by a 13% increase in mill throughput following process control improvements and a higher proportion of stockpiled material with “characteristics that enabled increased processing rates”, it said.

Red Chris’ all-in sustaining cost of $2,621/oz in the September quarter were significantly up on the $1,536/oz seen in the previous quarter. This was driven by increased sustaining capital expenditure, higher operating costs due to “seasonal benefits allowing increased activities to be scheduled”, together with the impact of a strengthening Canadian dollar against the US dollar and lower copper sales volume, it said. These factors were only partially offset by the benefit of a higher realised copper price.

With one quarter of Newcrest’s 2021 financial year down, the company said it is planning to put in place a number of additional improvements across the site. Included in this is a new fleet management system, the replacement of the conventional Cat 793 truck trays with “high-performance trays” to realise payload benefits, and several throughput and recovery-related projects.

The company has 45,000-55,000 oz of gold and 25,000-30,000 t of copper production slated for Red Chris in its 2021 financial year.

Upon announcing the acquisition of a majority stake in the asset in 2019, Newcrest Managing Director and CEO, Sandeep Biswas, said there was potential to turn the Red Chris orebody into a Tier 1 operation.

It also outlined a two-stage plan to deliver value from the $806.5 million acquisition. This included applying its “Edge transformation approach” to the existing Red Chris open-pit mine and processing plant, and potentially leveraging industry leading mining methods and technology such as block caving, coarse ore flotation and ore sorting.