Tag Archives: NSS Canada

Komatsu to tap NSS Canada MOSS software for improved blasthole drilling

Communications in mining, Explosives and blasting, IoT, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , ,

Leadership teams from NSS Canada and Komatsu joined this week to celebrate the official signing of their MoU as well as an initial commercial agreement that will see Komatsu use and supply NSS Canada’s current versions of MOSS and MOSS AR for use with Komatsu drills, and the drilling retrofits business with support from the NSS Canada team.

The Miner Operated Survey System (MOSS) integrates mine design specifications and drawings when generating a drill plan and provides real-time information to miners, engineers and geologists, NSS Canada says. The company offers both a standard version of MOSS and an augmented reality version of MOSS (MOSS AR), currently ready for market.

MOSS AR is a new innovative technology developed by NSS Canada that incorporates MOSS with an augmented reality display, using the Microsoft HoloLens. The addition of MOSS AR provides real-time holographic projections of all survey and planned data, reduces traditional survey equipment requirements and saves time with a five-minute markup process, all while providing survey-grade accuracy, the company says.

The agreement between the two companies allows for the addition of an optimised solutions package and customisation of MOSS into Komatsu’s drill rig control systems, NSS Canada says. It also opens new possibilities for clients to use a mining package that bridges Komatsu’s products with NSS Canada’s mining software solutions for optimisation of solutions underground.

“Having the ability to work with a company like Komatsu allows for a strategic opportunity to expand globally with our MOSS system,” Bruno Lalonde, CEO/President of NSS Canada, said. “This agreement fits our aligned visions for technology, innovation and adaptation to safety.”

Komatsu’s vision is to create value through manufacturing and technology innovation to empower a sustainable future where people, businesses and our planet thrive together.

Johan Kempe, Product Director Underground Drills, Komatsu said: “We are pleased to sign this agreement with NSS to help our customers to tackle the challenge to improve the quality of drilling blast holes and to align with the mine design and planned drill plans. NSS has several innovative products and solutions that complement our product offering.”

Jaguar Mining to deploy ExynAero autonomous robot for cavity monitoring in Brazil

Automation, IoT, Mine surveying, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , ,

Exyn Technologies and NSS Canada say they have expanded their footprint with Jaguar Mining in response to a growing demand for autonomous robots to capture critical data in complex, GPS-denied environments underground.

Historically, mining in geographically complex areas has been dangerous and intensive in terms of labour, time and cost. The evolution of autonomous aerial robots provides mining companies with faster and safer data capture in critical underground operations leading to more streamlined planning and workflows.

After a successful demonstration at the Caeté mining complex (which includes the Pilar and Roça Grande mines and the Caeté Plant, located in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil), Jaguar Mining made the decision to purchase Exyn’s autonomous robot, the ExynAero, to be used as a cavity monitoring solution in its underground mining operations.

The ExynAero is a fully autonomous aerial robot that intelligently navigates and maps complex GPS-denied industrial environments without a pilot, keeping employees safe and maximising beyond-line-of-sight-and-communications data collection. Equipped with Autonomy Level 4 – the highest level in the industry, according to Exyn – survey teams can confidently send the ExynAero on autonomous missions into open stopes and and other underground cavities knowing that all computation and data collection is stored on-board. Following this with Exyn’s post-processing pipeline, survey teams can refine, subsample and georeference their data sets for volumetric calculations and other mining operations, it added.

Jaguar, which produces more than 95,000 oz/y of gold, has been using Autonomy Level 4 in this latest deployment, Eyxn confirmed.

“We are thrilled to deliver innovations that help reduce risk to humans and increase efficiency and productivity in mining operations,” Raffi Jabrayan, Exyn’s VP of Commercial Sales and Business Development, said. “Our technology can do in a few minutes what traditionally took hours, with countless risks to surveyors working in potentially dangerous environments.”

Bruno Lalonde, NSS Canada President, added: “NSS Canada is proud to provide innovative solutions to help underground mines like Jaguar Mining Inc safeguard employees while optimising efficiency. The addition of Exyn autonomous solutions will help their team improve OPEX, increase safety and get actionable data from dangerous environments faster.”

Eric Duarte, Vice President of Operations for Jaguar Mining, added: “The introduction of Exyn autonomous technologies at Jaguar Mining is another step towards our commitment to quality, by increasing safety, operational efficiency and cost effectiveness in our underground operations.”