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By G Pattenden, R Hargreaves, P Pettit

"Even with the cyclic nature of mining, when it comes down to it, the bottom line is that whatever direction the commodity market is going there is always a desire to improve the economics of an operation in order to deliver a greater return to investors. Adapting to market pressures by introduction of an operational process change can often have a downstream impact. What may be less obvious is that reconciliation can play an important part in measuring the effectiveness of many operational changes. Through the adoption of best practice reconciliation and related comparisons, it is possible to measure the impact of changes across the mine value chain and identify variability that may have been introduced. Using analytical business improvement tools, examining and monitoring planned changes can be crucial in understanding whether the introduced changes have been effective and whether they have provided the expected result. Using several case studies, the authors will highlight the benefits provided by modern business intelligence tools, which can provide data validation and accurately report data trends related to both planned and unplanned change events.Citation:Hargreaves, R, Pattenden, G and Pettit, P, 2016. Measuring the Effectiveness of Change through Best Practice Reconciliation, in Proceedings Ninth AusIMM Open Pit Operators' Conference 2016, pp 71–83 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Nov 15, 2016

A considerable debate has arisen regarding the best route for the beneficiation of iron ore. Supporters of jigging technology claim that although the technology is old, due to recent advances in jig control and a better understanding of the separation processes within jigs, it offers significant advantages over dense medium separation, especially in terms of reduced capital and operating costs and simplicity of design. Supporters of dense medium separation claim that this technology is proven to provide the best possible separation and that the gain in efficiency over the life of the plant, compared to that of a jig, will more than offset any differences in capital or operating costs. The truth is that both viewpoints are valid and that the choice is ultimately determined by specific characteristics of the ore being treated. Factors that need to be taken into account in deciding upon the correct option include the size/density distribution of the ore to be treated, the different size fractions which must be treated (lumpy or fines), differences in yield at grade, plant layout and capital and operating costs. Each of these factors will be discussed in detail and a case study for both lumpy and fines will be presented.

Jan 1, 2007

By M Monaghan, B S. Gregory

The Geita Gold Mine is located 80 km southwest of the town of Mwanza in the north-west of Tanzania and is 100 per cent owned by AngloGold Ashanti Limited. Open pit mining commenced at Geita in 2000. In 2011, the operation produced 494 000 oz at a cash cost of US$536/oz. This is a significant improvement from 2008, when 264 000 oz were produced at a cash cost of US$742/oz.A period of relatively poor operating performance at Geita was recorded over the period from 2006 to 2009. A period known at Geita as æthe turnaroundÆ commenced in 2009, and has been remarkable to say the least. Over the last couple of years the mine has embarked on a journey, which saw various interventions and initiatives. Among the key initiatives were Project ONE (which focuses on business process framework, systems for people and safety transformation), asset integrity, fatigue management and contract mining of satellite pits.Since the commencement of the turnaround at Geita, gold production has matched market guidance. The mine has returned to positive cash flow on the basis of strong performance on cash management, improved production and increased gold price.This paper explains some of the details of the mine operationsÆ improvements, how they were implemented, their relative contributions to improved mining performance and the path ahead to best practice. Observations will be made about some improvement rules that can be applied generally in open pit mining.CITATION:Gregory, B S and Monaghan, M, 2012. The path to best practice at Geita Gold Mine, in Proceedings Eighth Open Pit OperatorsÆ Conference , pp 41-48 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 18, 2012

By S O. Hille

Modern remote mining operations in Australia are more commonly trending towards fly-in/fly-out (FIFO) sites. This trend is driven by numerous factors including increased business centralisation, reduction in operating costs, and a desire to live in coastal cities that offer closer family networks and a greater diversity of facilities. Consequently, the resource development industry has had to adapt. When WMCÆs Mount Keith Nickel Operation commenced operations in 1994, it was developed as FIFO for its entire workforce. Since then, there have been several permutations of rosters within a 21 day compressed work cycle including the 14/7 cycle. This paper discusses a case study of the change in management process to the 9/5 work cycle focusing on minimising fatigue in the workplace. It includes the discussion of the business case, employee reaction and the practical application. The impact of the best practice change after 18 months is discussed.

Jan 1, 2002

By S Hanke, J Burden, P Spies

The Waterview Connection will complete Auckland’s long-planned Western Ring Route, a 48 km north-south motorway alternative to State Highway 1 that bypasses the central city to the west. The project involves construction of 5 km of new motorway – half of it underground in tunnels – to connect the Southwestern (State Highway 20) and Northwestern (State Highway 16) motorways.The Western Ring Route will link the major population and industrial centres of Manukau, Auckland and North Shore to give the region the connected and resilient strategic road transport system it needs to underpin economic growth and sustainable development. It will also provide a direct motorway link between Auckland’s central business district (CBD) and international airport.The project involves construction of twin 2.4 km driven tunnels with an outside diameter of 14.41 m beneath residential suburbs, a major arterial road and a rail corridor. Enabling works began in January 2012 while tunnel construction using an earth pressure balance (EPB) tunnel boring machine (TBM) began in November 2013.This presentation introduces the Waterview Connection project, its role in the development of the Auckland motorway network, its procurement process, the alliance delivery model and an overview of the project’s design features and construction progress to date.Design and construction highlights of the presentation include the TBM start-up, turnaround and breakthrough arrangements as well as the experience gained during the first tunnelling drive. The presentation also covers an innovative process developed for invert construction behind the TBM that is independent of tunnel excavation.CITATION:Spies, P, Burden, J and Hanke, S, 2014. The Waterview Connection Project – progress to date, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 519–540 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

By D R Quick

The Goodall gold mine is located 30 km east of Adelaide River, within the Pine Creek 1:250 000 map sheet, at 8 525 000 mN: 750 000 mE, on the AMG grid. The first gold was poured in April 1988 and the mine closed in September 1993, having produced 228 400 ounces of gold from 4.095 million tons of ore, at a head grade of 1.99 g/t. Oxide and primary ore was mined from one large open cut and low grade oxide ore from three smaller pits. The gold mineralisation was discovered in 1981 by means of a helicopter borne rock chip sampling survey, which delineated 13 discrete anomalies. Systematic grid sampling of rock chips outlined an area of 1300 m by 300 m within the 2.0 g/t contour. Over 7500 m of costeaning was used to delineate the A and B-Pod mineralised areas. Geochemical soil sampling played only a minor role in the discovery and geophysics none at all. By the end of 1984, 40 diamond drill holes had been completed and a resource of 3.63 million tonnes at 3.0 g/t calculated. In January 1985, Western Mining Corporation Ltd became a joint venture partner and funded exploration to cam a 60 per cent interest. Additional drilling led to a feasibility study in 1987, based on a Measured and Indicated resource of 4.25 million tonnes at a grade of 2.35 g/t. The host rocks are quartzo-feldspathic wacke and interbedded phyllitic siltstone, of the Proterozoic Burrell Creek formation. The main zone of gold mineralisation, A-Pod, occurs in a sub-vertical vein array, up to 50 m wide and 800 m in length, of quartz and sulphide veins (5-20 mm wide), It is parallel to and on the east limb of an upright, north plunging anticline. Five types of veining have been recognised, with the bulk of the gold mineralisation associated with quartz-pyrite-arsenopyrite and chlorite-quartz-pyrite veins. The gold occurs as particles, from 1-20 micron, as inclusions and along fractures in pyrite and arsenopyrite and to a limited extent in chlorite. The mineralisation is epigenetic and structurally controlled by fractures developed during an earlier folding event. The gold is assumed to have been derived from the underlying sediments of the Koolpin Formation by hydrothermal fluids emanating from the deep seated northern margin of the Cullen Batholith. Precipitation of gold may have been controlled by variations in temperature and pressure.

Jan 1, 1994

By M Bilodeau, G Caro, R Beaudoin, D Labrie

In 2005, Dyno Nobel Canada Inc, DynoConsult and CANMET-MMSL used their pool of expertise in blasting, ground control, open pit and underground mining, mineral processing, information technology and applied mineralogy to launch a research project aimed at evaluating the role of electronic detonators in the development of a sustainable energy-efficient rock reduction process. The overall objectives were to improve health and safety in a mining environment and reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) production in the Canadian mining industry. The study was conducted in a quarry located in Nova Scotia, Canada, with the objective of taking advantage of the higher accuracy and flexibility of electronic detonators towards improving blast efficiency and measuring its impact on productivity in a quarry environment and energy savings. Optimising the blast sequence was the first aspect to be considered before starting to look at designing bigger blasts and achieving productivity improvements, without creating additional environmental concerns, as the quarryÆs location was representing a challenge in itself in the surrounding community. The use of high-speed cameras (500 fps) was an improved means of analysing blast dynamics during the firing sequence. Seismic monitoring and linear superposition techniques were also applied to validate the sequences to be tested in all three specific geological areas. The combination of field measurements allowed to identify the optimal blasting sequences that would then be delivered accurately with the electronic initiation systems. The data from 12 blasts (six with electronic detonators and six with pyrotechnic detonators) carried out in three different geological formations (soft, medium and hard rock) showed that the electronic blasting technology could increase rock fragmentation by 15 to 20 per cent. A more uniform distribution of rock fragment size was also obtained. Blast improvements on downstream processes resulted in a five per cent productivity increase in rock excavation and transportation, a ten per cent energy reduction in primary crushing and a 15 per cent increase in the primary crusher throughput. A prototype soft-sensor based on primary crusher data (eg energy consumption, throughput, feed and product size distribution) and a simplified computer process model were developed for online measurement of a rock operating work index. Furthermore, rock samples were collected and specimens were prepared in order to determine the tensile and compressive strength of the rock materials, evaluate the aggregate crushing work index and examine the development of micro and macro-fractures under binocular and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Blast-induced rock damage was evaluated at the end of the laboratory testing program. A reduction in rock hardness by about 30 per cent was observed after blasting. However, the impact of the blasting method (eg using electronic versus pyrotechnic detonators) on the induced rock damage was either absent or not perceptible within the measurement technique accuracy and the number of samples analysed.

Jan 1, 2007

By T Craske, J Sykes, T C. McCuaig, M Jessell, A Trench

The prevalent strategic approach in the mining industry is one of planning. However, it is widely recognised that planning does not work in complex and uncertain situations (Mintzberg, 1994), such as those associated with ‘above ground’ non-technical orebody complexity (Trench, Packey and Sykes, 2014). Mintzberg, Ahlstrand and Lampel (2009) suggest the focus instead should be on strategic ‘thinking and doing’ and using the many ways to think about strategy to make sense of complex, uncertain, and unique situations. They therefore place great value in cognitive flexibility. Scenarios development utilizes several different thinking styles and thus assists with this type of flexible strategic thinking (Figure 1). The ‘Centre for Exploration Targeting (CET) Scenarios’ were developed with the ‘Oxford Scenario Planning Approach’ (OSPA) (Ramírez and Wilkinson, 2016). The OSPA aims more to improve the thinking skills of decision makers, rather than forecasting per se (Wack, 1985a, 1985b). As such, this paper focuses less on the content of the scenarios and instead on the practical value of scenarios in strategizing. CITATION: Sykes, J, Trench, A, McCuaig, T C, Jessell, M and Craske, T, 2018. Strategic thinking about long-term ‘above ground’ orebody complexity using scenarios, in Proceedings Complex Orebodies Conference 2018, pp 60–64 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 21, 2018

The state of sampling practice in South African minerals industry must be appreciated in the context of the changes that the country has recently lived through. These include the entrepreneurship and investment in local mineral developments, the 'unbundling of mineral assets', the rising foreign control of South Africa's mineral assets, developments in the regulatory environment, and the training that has come to the industry through international experts. In terms of their financial contribution the five most important commodities in the South African mining industry include gold, platinum, non-ferrous metals, ferrous metals, and coal. International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards form the basis for international trade in two of these commodities and have had a steadying influence on sampling practice over the years. The contribution of the minerals industry to the economic well-being of South Africa and the strong financial links between good sampling practice and minerals marketing, has acted as a driver for improved sampling practice. The state of sampling practice at mining operations of the five main commodities was found to be quite widely divergent with 'pockets of sampling excellence' in each of the commodities. The stages of mineral development at mines for each of the commodities have been described in terms of the sampling sites, sampling mechanisms, and associated problems at different stages of mineral production from exploration, through face sampling, blasthole sampling, and in-mine grade control, ore processing and handling, metallurgical subsampling, process subsampling, and subsampling in the laboratory. In each case the principal errors were identified and their potential impact on value erosion was estimated. In the final analysis it is evident that the greatest problems arise in the early stage of mineral development, and that ferrous metals and coal are particularly susceptible to loss of value through poor sampling practice. Several examples of value lost through poor sampling at the marketing stage that arise from breaching contract specifications, either in terms of grade or sizing, are described. The conclusion is that larger companies with larger ore deposits and greater human, financial, and capital resources are probably more compliant with 'best sampling practice' than smaller companies. Finally the message that equipment suppliers are sending is that business is booming and the awakened awareness of the issues around sampling practice are translating into rands and cents spent on improved sampling equipment.

Mar 1, 2010

A series of petrological studies were carried out on the characteristics of alteration and mineralisation in mainly structural-controlled (Deep Star, Meikle, Deep Post) and predominantly lithological-controlled (Post-Betze-Screamer and West Leeville) gold deposits in the northern district of the Carlin trend, Nevada. Alteration and mineralisation in these deposits are hosted in a sequence of calcareous clastic units of the Devonian Popovich Formation, into which have been emplaced a number of Jurassic intrusions, and syn- to post-mineral Eocene dikes. Four hydrothermal events have been recognised in these deposits: an initial Devonian base metal system and early diagenesis; a Mississippian stage of alteration in conjunction with burial metamorphism; contact and hydrothermal alteration and base metal-gold mineralisation associated with the emplacement of the Jurassic intrusions; and a Carlin-style gold system related to Eocene magmatism.

Jan 1, 2004

By R J. Romañach

The theory of sampling (TOS) is now followed in the development of near infrared (NIR) spectroscopic methods for the pharmaceutical industry. TOS has been the guiding light for a two-step approach for spectroscopic composite sampling available for the development of real-time analytical methods for particulate-based industrial processes. The two-step spectroscopic sample composite has been used in the development of process analytical technology (PAT), an important regulatory initiative to improve the quality of pharmaceutical products. The two-step sample composite approach overcomes the low sample volume analysed by PAT methods; one of the key limitations to PAT implementation in the industrial production of particulate-based materials.PAT methods need to be validated demonstrating their accuracy, precision, specificity and robustness. TOS provides a deeper understanding of these validation studies which involve discrete particulate material. The validation of PAT methods is now being performed considering both sampling and analytical errors, while practically all previous method validations only addressed the total analytical error (TAE) of these methods. This has been a crucial impediment for the field of chemometrics as well.PAT is a key element of continuous manufacturing (CM) processes, which are considered an emerging technology capable of increasing the flexibility, agility and robustness of pharmaceutical processes while reducing their costs. The outflow of the continuous process is a 1D lot, and variographic analysis has been shown to discern process variation from sampling and analytical errors in pharmaceutical CM processes. Thus, variographic analysis is a process improvement tool with significant potential for improving CM processes. The possibilities for improving pharmaceutical manufacturing are enormous.CITATION:Romañach, R J, 2017. Theory of Sampling – from missing link to key enabler for process analytical technology, in Proceedings Eighth World Conference on Sampling and Blending , pp 63–68 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2017

This paper has been developed for æThe Race for SpaceÆ conference. It ranges over various aspects, all of which are within the umbrella of marketing. The question is posed because many engineers, tunnelling and other specialisations, frequently demonstrate an unwillingness to embrace marketing. The accurate reply is probably à ænot an engineer!Æ The paper identifies some of the possible explanations for this reply. The vast majority of the themes, ideas and principles are based on more than 25 years actual experience for the author with Engineers, Tunnelling and other disciplines. This experience has been gained with leading consulting engineering practices; some of the worldÆs largest construction contractors together with other organisations employing engineers in the public, private and tertiary sectors in the UK; US; Europe; the Middle East and throughout Australia and New Zealand. Experience has been gained in design offices; head offices and construction job sites in four contrasting continents. The most significant themes developed throughout this paper are as follows:æLetÆs go and do some ærealÆ work and leave the marketing to others!ÆæMarketing is just a æsoftÆ option and neither technically based nor true management!ÆNIMBY-ism (Not In My Back Yard) so leave well alone!Engineers regularly confuse services marketing -v- product marketing à a useful cop out, or a genuine cry for help?Marketing databasesæLetÆs get rid of the term æsellingÆ and replace it with the more acceptable à and less distracting for tunnelling engineers à 'marketingÆDistinction between benefits and features à in The Race for SpaceSales Comprehension Test, Benchmarking TestJack WelshÆs æmost difficult decision for a CEOÆHarvard Business ReviewÆs (HBRÆs) formula for performanceMany engineers are losing the balance in their lives Sustainable development and engineering æQuality work doesnÆt mean quality serviceÆMajor recommendationsRecommended references

Jan 1, 1999

By M A. Jardine, J A. Miller, M Becker, M Harris

"Although the role of texture has been increasingly recognised as a geometallurgical indicator of ore characteristics and their variability, the ability to appropriately quantify and correlate it with metallurgical performance remains an ongoing challenge. In this study, we propose the 3D characterisation and quantification of ore textures from drill core using X-ray computed tomography (XCT) with an appropriate image analysis methodology (grey level co-occurrence matrices, GLCM). This methodology has been specially customised for application of 3D XCT grey-scale volumes. This approach has potential as an online mine site analysis tool providing detailed 3D information on both quantitative texture and simple mineralogy.The approach is illustrated in this paper using drill core samples that were manually extracted from various rock types and textures representing the Nkomati Main Mineralized Zone (MMZ) sulfide nickel ore deposit. A preliminary classification of the samples was performed based on their particle size distribution after laboratory scale rod milling. Accompanying QEMSCAN analyses were also used to guide the interpretation of the grey-scale mineralogy and texture in the 3D XCT volumes. The resultant GLCM produced from quantitative 3D image analysis of the XCT volumes indicated sensitivity to ore variability and was able to capture a simple mineralogy and grain size distribution. The approach holds many possibilities for geometallurgy, of which the potential for automation is promising.CITATION:Becker, M, Jardine, M A, Miller, J A and Harris, M, 2016. X-ray Computed Tomography – a Geometallurgical Tool for 3D Textural Analysis of Drill Core?, in Proceedings The Third AusIMM International Geometallurgy Conference (GeoMet) 2016, pp 231–240 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Jun 15, 2016

By Yindong Yang

Despite the importance and usefulness of basicity in metallurgical slags, the optimum quantitative expression of it has remained elusive, partly due to the fact that the precise concept of basicity has not been properly clarified. The two basic approaches to the concept of basicity are the Lux-Flood, which perceives basicity in terms of the activity of the free oxide ion, a O2- , and the Lewis, which perceives basicity in terms of the ability to donate negative charge. The former has been almost universally adopted in the area of metallurgical slags, while the latter has been increasingly accepted in the field of glass chemistry. In this paper, some difficulties of the Lux-Flood approach are pointed out, including the need for indirect measures of a O2- , which have proliferated in recent years. Accordingly, it is suggested that the Lewis approach has a good deal to commend it, and that the quantification of it in terms of optical basicity is the best measure of basicity available, which should therefore be more widely applied in metallurgical slags than it currently is. The fact that there are intrinsic problems in evaluating the optical basicities for the transition metal oxides is acknowledged, and a new scale is recommended. The patterns of iso-optical basicity lines in ternary systems are shown to agree well with the pattern of iso-activity and iso-capacity lines under appropriate conditions. * Originally published in the Proceedings of MINPREX 2000, published by The AusIMM.

Jan 1, 2001

TowerMill - Advantages in Wet Grinding Applications The TowerMill, which has now been in existence for no less than 50 years, is one alternative to the horizontal ball mill and offers several advantages. The TowerMill is widely used in (coal-fired) electric power plants for the grinding of raw material for the FGD (Flue Gas Desulphurisation) process involving very high throughputs, very fine product sizes and high availability. Some companies in the mining industry also looked at the use of such optimised grinding machines several years ago and found that many of the advantages offered in other industries are transferable to new applications. Much development work has been undertaken to improve the TowerMill for new applications and, as part of that work, tests have also been conducted to make direct comparisons of their performance with that of ball mills. Grinding tests were performed using the same raw materials and comparable machine sizes. Some of the results are discussed in this paper, along with a comparison of the advantages and disadvantages. The conclusion provides an outlook for some worthwhile future applications. The test results, which are described and analysed, show that the TowerMill offers significant advantages in relation to operating costs and operational safety. An example based on the wet grinding of limestone is presented.

Sep 13, 2010

By L Galisson, E Audigé, D Sowers

Establishing a robust geotechnical instrumentation and construction monitoring plan is one of the keys to the successful delivery of the world’s largest soft-ground bored tunnel in Seattle, Washington. The paper describes and provides a return of experience on current and best practice for monitoring tunnelling projects in urban areas. The owner’s contractual approach is discussed to highlight the flexibility of the design-built contract in achieving equal or better solutions by allowing for the use of innovative technics. Special attention is given to the management and involvement of third parties (building owners, utility owners), including the public, to overcome all challenges faced during the installation of the monitoring system in downtown Seattle for over 1000 instruments. Finally, the authors present the strategies implemented for managing the monitoring data and communicating with the owner, contractor and stakeholders.CITATION:Sowers, D, Galisson, L and Audigé, E, 2014. Current and best practice for monitoring tunnelling projects in urban areas – Alaskan Way bored tunnel, Seattle, Washington, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 441–450 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

Significance of Ion Interactions in Flotation in Saline and Brine Solutions

Sep 13, 2010

Trends in Test Filtration to Respond to Decreasing Sample Size There has been a steady decline in the quantity of samples available for testwork when developing new mining processes due to the maturing mining technology and the increasing costs of pilot testing. Larox, a supplier of filtration equipment and its co-operation partner Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT) have been actively developing new equipment, testing methodologies and tools to plan test campaigns with the objective of being able to determine the optimum filtration technology and the parameters for sizing full scale equipment with a minimum sample size. With smaller sample sizes, the test scale diminishes from pilot scale to bench scale, and the small equipment size has implications for scale-up. Redesigning the equipment to simulate full scale equipment rather than to match filtration theory has led to some interesting developments. Comparisons between bench scale equipment and production units help identify the limitations of bench scale testing. The nature of filtration is such that it is unreliable to estimate filterability theoretically, and different testing methodologies have been investigated to be able to test the feasibility of filtration from samples as small as few grams. While not optimising the filtration technology, these methodologies provide an adequate level of accuracy for scoping studies. Together with improvements in equipment, a software tool has been developed to reduce the number of tests necessary to optimise filtration technology and parameters for sizing.

Sep 13, 2010

An intensive safety campaign at Mount Isa Mines Limited from 1956 to 1966 saw the lost time accident frequency rate fall to half its original level. A review of the safety programme was carried out in 1967 and in 1968 the Five Point Safety System was introduced. The seven years since its introduction have been years of significant achievement both in production and safety. Improving safety is a fundamental part of Mount Isa Mines Limited's policy and this system has been a major tool in implementing that policy. To be successful personnel need to be prepared and trained for its introduction and subsequently counselled on its use. A carefully prepared programme is required to phase in various aspects of the system and to make use of complementary steps. The system has been a success and it is anticipated that the continued drive to improve the use of principles of the system will further improve safety. It is hoped that this paper will be of value to those personnel concerned with industrial safety in Australia.

Jan 1, 1975

Real-time data collection and plant historians are becoming common place in mining and processing plants. This vast quantity of data must be turned into easily accessible and actionable information for all levels of the organisation.Queensland Nickel use a combination of Microsoft and SAP business intelligence tools to collect, cleanse, aggregate and present plant information to the appropriate people for supporting decision making in the business. SAP Business Objects, for visualisation, and SAP MII, for integration, allows complex and accurate metrics to be delivered as real-time dashboards. Designing a rigid data management architecture to segregate the data collection, integration and logic and visualisation into distinct logical layers, allows for rapid report development and greatly assists with IT maintenance, while also minimising the complexity of any customised programming. This type of architecture ensures a common data source for all business reports, ensuring one version of the truth. The past few years at Queensland Nickel have seen process and maintenance engineers spending considerably less time collecting and integrating data and spending more time analysing what is happening in the plant. Real-time reports and dashboards have been developed around the business needs rather than around the data. Two years ago Queensland Nickel introduced an employee bonus scheme based upon meeting monthly performance targets; an easy to use dashboard that allows everyone, from operators through to management, to monitor these metrics day-to-day.

Sep 26, 2011