Three-dimensional visualisation technology has been deployed in an OZ Minerals mine in South Australia.
The Epiroc-owned technology system – Mobilaris Situational Awareness – allows mine operators to remotely track machinery within the mine in real-time. The system is also designed as a helpful tool with fleet management.
Carrapateena is one of the largest copper mines in SA and its owner, OZ Minerals, sought to optimise haulage flows from the lower production levels to the upper crusher levels.
With the help of Epiroc, the company was able to digitise the mine.
“We saw potential to remove some of the constraints we have underground,” OZ Minerals superintendent at Carrapateena Daniel Bruce said.
“You can’t see around corners, and you can’t see through rock, so understanding where things are – where people and machines are – is a lot more difficult than in a typical workplace on the surface.
“Mobilaris Situational Awareness allows you to see … where all the equipment and people are in the mine. It also allows you to navigate to locations, equipment and refuge chambers.”
OZ also chose to adopt a second of Epiroc’s Mobilaris features, Mobilaris Onboard, a tablet that functions as a vehicle navigator, without the need for any dedicated tracking infrastructure. OZ Minerals now has roughly 200 tablets onboard light and heavy vehicles which operate underground.
Mobilaris’ digital solutions have also been implemented at other mines, such as the Granny Smith gold mine in WA.
Granny Smith mine manager Michael Place said the mine is functioning better than ever.
“Mobilaris Onboard allows us to navigate to all locations underground quickly and efficiently. It will improve our productivity and decrease inactive time by reducing traffic congestion and finding equipment and machines faster,” he said.