OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
Like many other sectors, the
mining industry still relies on a lot of manual intervention, including for monitoring of facilities such as tailings dams
With regard to how the solution
achieves its mission to assist mining operators, Quillen explains that, “Deploying industrial Internet of Things (IoT) devices combined with a drop-in robust communication network, such as Krucial Connect, allows for a continuous in-depth analysis of site conditions at any mining facility. Readings are transmitted autonomously directly to existing business systems or any data analytical platform meaning critical data is available and accessible by operators at any time even away from site.”
CONTINUOUS MONITORING For tailings dams, a remote monitoring solution that is robust for any environment and off-grid capable means that key personnel will be notified of changes to structure integrity when it happens, regardless of available infrastructure or location of a dam. “Therefore, swift action can be taken to support the integrity of tailings dams before a failure occurs that could result in catastrophic damage,” details Quillien. “Additionally, it reduces the risk of breaching environmental regulations by continuously and autonomously monitoring the environment in and around the dams.” When speaking with Quillien, it
becomes clear that the mining sector is crying out for solutions such as his. “Like many other sectors, the mining industry still relies on a lot of manual intervention, including for monitoring of facilities such as tailings dams,” he states. “Automation of monitoring can make this more cost effective and provide more, better-quality data
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on which to base decision making, improve safety, and meet regulatory and reporting requirements.” Quillien mentions that existing
automated monitoring solutions are often constrained by vendor lock-in, focusing on a limited set of parameters dictated by the specific technology, sensors and software of the provider. “Krucial recognises that comprehensive monitoring of tailings dams needs to span across multiple domains such as geotechnical and environmental monitoring and bring together a wide variety of technologies from across different vendors to optimally meet the needs of different sites and customers,” he confirms. Quillien notes that Krucial Connect
is built on a secure open architecture and is compatible with a wide range of devices on the ground to transfer data seamlessly and. “Once spec’d to meet the needs of a client, the solution is easy to set-up and can be deployed with no specialist skills required. Deployed in mere hours no matter the site location, clients gain access to critical data from a wide range of devices monitoring parameters ranging from local weather, water levels, soil conditions, dam structural conditions, underground conditions, water quality and more,” he says.
RETROFIT REVOLUTION A further advantage of the system is that as it’s able to operate independently from any local or existing infrastructure, Krucial Connect has the ability to easily retrofit assets to unlock the benefits of digital twinning and automated monitoring. Commenting on this point, Quillien observes: “For an
industry with a significant number of legacy and ageing assets such as mining, Krucial Connect offers the ability to modernise operations and enhance efficiency.”
MODERNISING MINDSETS As well as legacy systems, mining often offers up the challenge of legacy mindsets, too. It’s not exactly a sector that is well-known for embracing new technologies; technical evolution in mining tends to be slow and cautious. So, how then, does Quillien sell his solution to such a tough audience? “The industry itself is in desperate need of new site management solutions and ways to streamline operations whilst staying compliant to stringent environmental regulations,” he believes. “With ageing infrastructure and increased numbers of decommissioned (or soon to be decommissioned) sites, the onus
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