Mine safety solutions provider Strata has developed a comprehensive safety system, the Strata Mine Awareness Platform™ (MAP), to fulfill every operations’ mining safety and communications needs.

Strata MAP is an integrated safety suite consisting of stand-alone, yet compatible, systems that when combined promote complete mine-wide awareness for a higher level of safety, efficiency and productivity through technology and data, explains the company, highlighting that HazardAvert® proximity detection and collision avoidance system is a key component of MAP.

This system provides not only critical safety during mining operations but also valuable location tracking, productivity and emergency data. Given the inherent dangers created by heavy machinery working in close proximity with people and other vehicles, the development and refinement of technologies to reduce tragic accidents and collisions has been at the top of the mining industries’ agenda worldwide, says Strata.

HazardAvert® has become a global leader in proximity detection and collision avoidance, and is the most widely used near-field technology. Distinctive design features provide key benefits that differentiate HazardAvert® from competitor products. The system is functional mine-wide on any type of machinery or vehicle, it enables multiple machines and multiple miners to work in close proximity without interfering with the system’s performance and every device worn by a miner interacts with every machine.

Electromagnetic warning fields are generated by fully-configurable, customisable components installed on machinery. The parameters of these fields, set at installation, can remain static or be dynamic. Dynamic fields, configured and preset to various sizes at installation, can be interchanged during operation by the vehicle operator or automatic machine inputs. Strata configured these dynamic fields to enable the most common types of interactions, between machines and between miners and machines, taking place during day-to-day operations.

The core technology of HazardAvert® is consistent across all types of mining, underground and surface; however, the systems are specifically tailored according to the type of mining and application.

Coal Mining

HazardAvert® components are enclosed in explosion-resistant armor and have local test authority approval (MASC). When installed on continuous miners, HazardAvert® works to prevent crushing- and pinning-type accidents that can be prevalent with these machines. The presence of these safety fields may, however, force the operator to stand in dangerous positions during operation.

To prevent this, Strata configured optional dynamic field configurations to enable the fields to be reduced when cutter heads are in coal or rock, allowing the operator to work normally while remaining protected.HazardAvert® on haulage vehicles protects workers when these machines are in motion. Fields are at their largest during tramming, ensuring the protection of individuals in the vehicle’s path or those who may unintentionally enter the its path.

Miners working in a blind spot or around a corner are also protected by HazardAvert®’s ability to penetrate substrates such as coal or rock. Since haulage vehicles are required to interact with other machinery and with miners, dynamic configurations enable the fields to shrink as the vehicle approaches a machine and permits interaction without jeopardising safety.

Surface Mining
On the surface, HazardAvert® works to reduce accidents and collisions between mobile vehicles and machinery. Fields are designed to cover all blind spots and can be customised to specific operations and needs. Compared with other proximity detection products, the HazardAvert® system offers the highest precision and fewest nuisance alarms for near field applications, states Strata.

Data Retrieval
HazardAvert® monitors and logs all activities and interactions. It registers personnel outside of its warning zone even when no alarms have been triggered. The collected data is stored on board the machine and is identifiable by individual. This creates a useful tool in location tracking, productivity measurements and even in assisting in incident reports and investigations.

The data can be retrieved using Bluetooth® or by transmission over a wireless communications network using HazardLink™.HazardLink™ is a Strata-developed radio transceiver installed into the HazardAvert® system and enables the continuous streaming of data to a mine’s central office through Strata CommTrac™ or wireless fidelity networks.

With this technology, mine operators can track and monitor real-time activities, have immediate knowledge of safety breaches and can calculate production matrices.For more information, please contact SP Mine Safety (Pty)Ltd SA GM Jonathan Metcalf on (012) 450 0960 Email: info@strata-safety.co.za or visit www.strataworldwide.com