Tag Archives: ore sorters

Strike Resources adds Dynamic Drill and Blast, Lucas TCS to Paulsens East team

Strike Resources, after an extensive evaluation, has entered into Early Contractor Involvement Services Agreements with the preferred contractors to provide drill and blast, mining, crushing and screening services and civil works (including the haulage road and mine site) for its Paulsens East iron ore mine in Western Australia.

Dynamic Drill and Blast has been selected for the provision of drill and blast services, and Lucas Total Contract Solutions has been selected for the provision of mining, crushing and screening services, plus the civil works required for Paulsens East, including construction of the 18 km haulage road (from the mine site to Nanutarra Road), establishment of the Mining Operations Centre (MOC) and siteworks for the mining village.

Strike, which is developing a 1.5 Mt/y direct shipping iron ore operation, says it is working with both parties to finalise the detailed scope of services, schedules and formal contractual terms of engagement.

Dynamic, who worked with Strike to plan, licence and develop magazine and explosives storage facilities for the project in consultation with the Department of Mines, Industry, Regulation and Safety (DMIRS), said the contract is estimated to have a four-year initial term.

On top of this, Strike said the final objection on its proposed haulage road, Miscellaneous Licence (ML) L47/934, has now been withdrawn after the execution of an Access Deed with the underlying tenement holder. With the execution of this deed, the last outstanding ML related to Paulsens East is expected to be granted by DMIRS during the next two-to-four weeks.

“Once L47/934 is granted, and subject to DMIRS having no further issues with any technical or environmental aspects of the Mining Proposal, DMIRS is expected to approve the Mining Proposal for Paulsens East shortly thereafter,” the company said.

Strike also recently made an investment in acquiring a second-hand ore sorter, ancillary materials handling and control room equipment, together with conveyors that were recently sold at auction, resulting in a significant saving in project capital costs at Paulsens East.

“Strike is planning to use specialised ore sorters as part of its processing flowsheet, to assist with the optimisation of the production of high-grade lump ore from the mine,” it said. “To deliver the required throughput for the mine, a total of up to three ore sorters will be required.”

Further long-lead items secured include an order for 13 Ultra Quad Road Trains (comprising 13 prime movers and 52 trailers) for exclusive use on Paulsens East.

On the communications side, Strike has now entered into a contract with Telstra to commence works on establishing suitable communications infrastructure for the mine site and village. Due to the remote location, a dedicated microwave tower on site is required together with associated voice and data equipment. The construction of the tower and provisioning of the service will be critical for safe and effective communications during the construction and operational phase of the mine.

William Johnson, Managing Director for Strike, said: “With Campbells Transport already selected as its preferred haulage contractor, the company has now selected all of its key contractors for Paulsens East. The securing of further long lead time items together with the ore sorter and associated equipment are important steps as the company advances towards making a final investment decision on Paulsens East.”

TOMRA connects ore sorters to the cloud with TOMRA Insight

After a successful launch in its recycling division, TOMRA is rolling out its cloud-based data platform, TOMRA Insight, to mining customers.

TOMRA Insight enables sorting machine users to improve operational efficiencies through a subscription-based service that turns these machines into connected devices for the generation of valuable process data.

Following a successful launch last year by TOMRA Sorting Recycling, TOMRA is now also being made available to customers of TOMRA Mining and TOMRA Food. For all three industries, the platform is enhanced by new features and functionalities that make TOMRA Insight even more valuable than when it was launched to recyclers in March 2019.

The data from TOMRA Insight is gathered in near real time, stored securely in the cloud, and can be accessed from anywhere and across plants via a web portal available for desktop and mobile devices, according to the company.

Felix Flemming, Vice President and Head of Digital at TOMRA Sorting, said: “By capturing and using valuable data, TOMRA Insight is transforming sorting from an operational process into a strategic management tool. This tool is constantly becoming more powerful as we continuously develop it in response to customers’ needs and priorities. New functionalities and features are released every three weeks – a routine during which TOMRA works closely with customers in pursuit of shared objectives.”

Data captured by TOMRA Insight provides valuable performance metrics that help businesses optimise machine performance.

Operating costs are reduced by simplifying spare part ordering and offering flexible access to data and documentation, according to the company. Downtime is reduced by monitoring machine health and performance in near real time, identifying gaps in production and analysing potential root causes. This allows management to move to predictive and condition-based maintenance, preventing unscheduled machine shutdowns.

Throughput, meanwhile, is maximised by evaluating variations and optimising sorting equipment, accordingly. Sorting to target quality is enhanced by having accurate material composition data to enable decisions to be based on more detailed information.

For the mining and mineral processing industries, TOMRA Insight’s ability to collect detailed data from TOMRA’s sorting machines means that previously hidden information can lead to improvements in efficiencies and profitability.

Data captured by TOMRA Insight is analysed on behalf of customers by TOMRA Mining engineers, and key findings shared in confidential reports supplied to customers on a monthly basis. This arrangement has the advantage of combining objective statistical analysis with the interpretive skills of a service team familiar with the customer’s unique challenges, TOMRA says.

“TOMRA Insight’s data-gathering helps mineral processors in near real time and in retrospect,” the company said. “Machine operators are empowered to take prompt action in response to changes in material composition on the line and managers are empowered to make operational and business decisions based on more complete information.”

Comparisons between multiple sites or lines can now be made more accurately and difficult-to-reach processing operations can be remotely monitored from more convenient locations, the company said. This functionality is especially useful in the face of widespread travel restrictions related to COVID-19.

One early, pre-launch user of TOMRA Insight is the Black chrome mine in South Africa (pictured above), one of two mining projects that form the basis of the Sail Group’s plans for long-term sustainable chrome production. Since TOMRA Insight was connected to sorting machines here at the start of 2020, the data platform has convincingly proven its effectiveness, TOMRA said. Among the gains made so far are improvements in process monitoring and streamlining, more efficient line-feeding and machine running times, and reduced downtime.

Albert du Preez, Senior Vice President and Head of TOMRA Mining, said: “By accessing information, TOMRA Insight is unlocking new opportunities. Mineral processors can now move from making decisions based on experience and local observations to decisions based on experience and hard facts. This means TOMRA Insight can help reduce waste rock and downstream processing costs, enabling processors to earn more dollars per tonne.”

To build on these benefits, TOMRA Mining is working closely with customers to continuously develop TOMRA Insight. The future will bring the addition of more features and functionalities, which customers will automatically receive as part of their Service Level Agreement.