By making an improvement of just 1% to their operation’s efficiency through blasting optimisation, coal operators can save significant costs, says explosives manufacturer AEL Mining Services regional manager Hennie van Niekerk.
“The impact that targeted and controlled energy distribution during blasting has on the final product for mining is immense. Even the slightest improvements add up to significant operational savings over time,” he says.
In negotiating a set of key performance indicators with a major mine to identify the extent of savings achieved, AEL identified that precision blasting and the correct use of energy had the potential to reduce the full cycle of a dragline by one second or to throw the rock one metre closer to its destination.
Van Niekerk notes that AEL’s data also indicates that these improvements compounded over five years provide major mining houses with the opportunity to generate in excess of R500-million in additional revenue.
Moreover, he points out that these savings opportunities can be achieved without increasing resources, such as labour and equipment, but that it is crucial that companies find strategic blasting partners that understand the unique economic and physical environments in which they operate.
“It is about understanding the environment where commodity prices are struggling and margins are tight or even nonexistent. We are here to assist our customers to optimise operations so they can get to a low-cost curve,” Van Niekerk explains.
In terms of
the physical environment, operators can determine the specific rock size they need at the mill and AEL can work backwards through the process and design accordingly to meet customers’ needs.
“We call this mining optimisation because precision blasting provides value not only on the bench, but [also for] every single stage, from mine to mill,” he states.
Van Niekerk concludes that AEL believes in considering the finer details in order to build up to the bigger picture by capturing data, providing a thorough analysis of the needs and outcomes and implementing plans to achieve these results.