Tag Archives: Minerals Global Centre of Excellence

Minalyze CS drill core scanner heads to Intertek’s Global Centre of Excellence

Mineral exploration, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , ,

Intertek, a Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide, has announced an agreement with Minalyze to install a Minalyzer CS patented drill core scanner at Intertek’s new Minerals Global Centre of Excellence in Perth, Western Australia.

The Minerals Global Centre of Excellence opened in July 2021, which consolidated Intertek’s Minerals operations into a single 19,000 cu.m building and houses over 500 employees. With the introduction of the Minalyzer CS, the centre’s state-of-the-art laboratory will support the mining and exploration industry allowing its customer’s geological data acquisition and access to related software for data visualisation, Intertek says.

John Fowler, Intertek’s Senior Vice President of Minerals and Exploration and Production, said: “Our new Minerals Global Centre of Excellence is designed to provide instant and efficient access to world-class technology, expertise and service. Incorporating the Minalyzer CS into this exciting new facility delivers on our commitment to investing in advanced technology to continuously improve quality, sustainability, safety, efficiency and deliver value for our clients.”

Minalyze CEO, Annelie Lundström, added: “We are excited for this new agreement with Intertek which demonstrates Intertek’s commitment to bring value to the industry through state-of-the-art technology and through the new Minerals Global Centre of Excellence in Perth. Our strategic collaboration provides our clients with the tools that will enable faster and more efficient discoveries needed for a sustainable green transition.”

Minalyzer CS is a scanner offering a contactless and non-destructive service able to generate geochemistry, high-resolution images, rock quality designation (RQD), structures, specific gravity and bulk density for drill cores and other drill samples. The patented scanner is designed for handling large volumes of drill samples and is capable of scanning drill cores directly in core trays. A laser (LiDAR) generates a 3D model of the topology of the core and trays, and enables the control and precision of the continuous XRF scanning. RQD and structures are also derived based on the 3D model.

The objective, continuous and consistent nature of the datasets as well as the high but compact data density generated by the scanning technology is paramount in machine learning and deep learning applications and approaches to geology, according to Minalyze.

Intertek opens state-of-the-art new laboratory in Western Australia

Automation, Environmental, Metallurgy, Mineral exploration, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , , , , ,

Intertek Group has officially opened its new Minerals Global Centre of Excellence, in Perth, Western Australia, bringing with it world-class technical expertise, automated technology, and pioneering innovation and services, Intertek CEO, André Lacroix, says.

The Centre of Excellence is the largest Intertek Minerals laboratory in the world and consolidates the group’s Minerals business into a 20,000 sq.m, multi-service, facility housing over 500 employees. It is powered by the latest pioneering technology to deliver a broad range of Assurance, Testing, Inspection and Certification (ATIC) services to the industry, according to Intertek.

The new centre was officially opened at an event attended by Hon Bill Johnston, Western Australia’s Minister of Mines and Petroleum.

Intertek said: “COVID-19 has intensified the world’s focus on innovative and sustainable mining practices as industries seek to Build Back Ever Better. From the steel required for the construction of wind turbines to the nickel fuelling the shift to electric vehicles, responsibly sourced commodities underpin a cleaner, more sustainable and technologically advanced future. In order to meet the needs of a growing global population while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, a variety of energy sources and commodities will be needed to power the modern world.”

Intertek’s Minerals business has, for many years, driven innovation and sustainability throughout the resource supply chain, from exploration and resource development, through to production, shipping and commercial settlement, supported by a global network of experts and a customer-centric local delivery model, it said.

“As a purpose-led company, Intertek’s mission is to make the world a better, safer and more sustainable place and these values lie at the heart of the Minerals Global Centre of Excellence, which will feature 3,030 x330 W solar panels, making it one of largest rooftop solar installations in Western Australia,” the company said.

The facility will provide miners with access to global specialists in mineralogy, XRD, XRF, FTIR, ICP and statisticians, alongside a new technology and innovation hub with world-class technical expertise and superior customer service at its core, it said.

It will also include eight robotic automated systems, including sample preparation, XRF and wet chemistry systems.

Demonstrating its commitment to investing in advanced technology, Intertek has installed two Chrysos PhotonAssay units at the Minerals Global Centre of Excellence. These units show Intertek’s unwavering focus on leveraging innovation and will provide clients with more accurate and environmentally friendly analysis of gold and complementary elements, it said.

“The need for creative solutions is becoming ever more critical to solving today’s biggest energy and infrastructure challenges,” the company said. “True to its pioneering spirit, Intertek is constantly evaluating new instrumentation and technology to continuously improve quality, safety and efficiency and deliver value for our customers. The new Centre of Excellence shows Intertek’s unwavering focus on leveraging innovation and its commitment to providing clients with industry-leading, high quality analytical data.”

André Lacroix, Chief Executive Officer of Intertek, said: “The world has reached a tipping point in terms of sustainability and it is the movement of our time. As all industries seek to Build Back Ever Better, responsibly sourced commodities today will form the building blocks of a cleaner, greener, more sustainable tomorrow. This exciting new facility will provide our customers with instant access to world-class technical expertise, automated technology, pioneering innovation and services, all in one location.

“With a strong focus on technical excellence, data analytics and superior customer service, we will help the world’s leading mining companies accelerate to a sustainable future by Unearthing Xcellence, in turn enabling us to fulfil our mission of making the world a better, safer, more sustainable place for all.”

Intertek Minerals provides mineral testing services throughout the mining life cycle from exploration geochemistry, mine site laboratory services, minerals inspection, sampling and analysis, robotic laboratory solutions, environmental services and metallurgical testing services across the mining supply chain.

Chrysos Corp’s PhotonAssay tech hits major milestone

Automation, Environmental, Mineral exploration, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Chrysos Corp has announced that its ground-breaking PhotonAssay technology has now assayed over one million customer samples.

The milestone comes amid accelerating demand for the technology, which has seen the number of samples analysed more than triple in the last six months, the Australia-based company said.

Driven in part by increasing industry focus on safety, sustainability, and sample turnaround time, Chrysos PhotonAssay is competing with the centuries-old fire assay process in the gold assaying market. Chrysos says the technology, which originated out of a CSIRO project, is fast taking over fire assay to be the preferred technology of miners and laboratories seeking a solution to the supply chain and environmental challenges created by traditional gold assaying methods.

Chrysos CEO, Dirk Treasure, explained, “Demand for PhotonAssay has grown over the last year and further accelerated in the last six months as more miners and laboratories have reached the conclusion, through their own due diligence, that PhotonAssay not just meets and exceeds their accuracy and cost requirements, but also overcomes the speed, safety, and environmental challenges inherent in fire assay.”

Recently, Chrysos and Intertek declared a deal to install two PhotonAssay units at Intertek’s new Minerals Global Centre of Excellence in Perth, Western Australia. Chrysos also announced a partnership with MSALABS, a subsidiary of Capital Ltd, to deploy at least six PhotonAssay units across the globe over an 18-month period. Prior to that, the company signed a deal enabling Kirkland Lake Gold to use PhotonAssay for its Fosterville Mine in Bendigo, Victoria.

Hitting samples with high-energy X-rays, PhotonAssay causes excitation of atomic nuclei allowing enhanced analysis of gold, silver and complementary elements in as little as two minutes, Chrysos claims. Importantly, the non-destructive process allows large samples of up to 500 g to be measured and provides a “true” bulk reading independent of the chemical or physical form of the sample.

“The significance of the technology’s ability to analyse large sample sizes is underlined by Novo Resources’ recent announcement that it has signed a multi-year deal for priority access to the two new PhotonAssay units being installed at Intertek’s Centre of Excellence,” Chrysos said. “In finalising the agreement, Novo signalled its belief that PhotonAssay is the ideal technique for analysing the nuggety gold mineralisation at its Beatons Creek operation in Western Australia.”

Dr James Tickner, Chrysos Corp Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, agreed: “Accurate assaying for coarse gold has always been a challenge, and it’s on difficult deposits where the much larger sample mass of PhotonAssay really delivers. It’s great to see industry recognising this, with Novo Resources committing to run at least 20,000 samples per month through each unit at Intertek’s brand-new facility in Perth. The two PhotonAssay units we’ve just commissioned there will really help Intertek deliver faster, cleaner and more accurate results, not just for Novo, but its other customers as well.”

Another factor driving fast adoption of the technology is Chrysos’ commercial and operating model whereby the company leases, rather than sells, its PhotonAssay units to customers, the company says. This approach not only minimises expenditure by relieving the customer of capital expenditure charges and any service, delivery and maintenance fees, but also reduces ongoing staffing, training and related occupational health, safety and environmental costs.

In return, the leasing model facilitates a recurring revenue stream for Chrysos, which the company has used for research and development and the overall broadening of applicability and accessibility of PhotonAssay for wet samples and other metals such as silver and copper, it says.

Reviewing recent successes and foreshadowing upcoming events, Treasure summarised, “Even with more than A$80 million ($62 million) in contracted revenue and 14 PhotonAssay units either in-use or committed, we remain focused on executing our smart, sustainable growth plans. Market feedback indicates that our disruptive technology is helping customers achieve faster, safer and cleaner business outcomes ‒ and that is the type of value creation Chrysos finds compelling.

“Ultimately, we want our customers, shareholders and community stakeholders to feel as much pride using and engaging with PhotonAssay, as we do when we create and deliver it across the globe.”