Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
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64 E&MJ; • DECEMBER 2015 www.e-mj.com C O N T R O L S & S E N S O R S Turning Data Into Dollars In the not-so-distant future, successful producers will need to be as proficient at moving data as they are now at moving dirt By Russell A. Carter, Managing Editor "Command and Control" is a term originat- ing in military parlance, referring to a com- mander's authority and management of resources needed to accomplish a mission. Commonly shortened to "C2," it's a con- cept that can be usefully shifted to indus- trial campaigns—but in the case of min- ing, C2 might more appropriately stand for "Connection and Collection." Today, the main mission of most miner- al producers is to survive in a fast-moving, hostile market environment, and some of the most promising weapons in their arse- nal are emerging technologies that allow them to connect—taking advantage of bet- ter, quicker communications with all their productive assets; and collect—implement- ing cost-effective data collection and analy- sis that leads to better decision making. An article published in November by authors from global management consult- ing firm McKinsey & Co., titled How Digital Innovation Can Improve Mining Productivi- ty*, addresses the industry's digital oppor- tunities in detail, stating that, "Embedding vast numbers of sensors in physical objects—churning out large volumes of data for analysis and enabling communica- tions among machines—is increasingly affordable and accessible…Miners already produce huge amounts of sensor data, potentially enabling them to obtain a more accurate and consistent picture of reality at the rock face than ever." The authors went on to say that, "…in processing plants, our work suggests that many plant operators have blind spots in understanding the drivers of yield. By apply- ing new mathematical techniques…we have found that plant yields of gold, nickel, phosphate, and other processed minerals can often be improved by 3%–10% within months." To illustrate, they provided a case history (see sidebar). The rewards of digital innovation throughout the mining industry could be dramatic, according to McKinsey, "Capturing the value from digital innova- tions represents a fundamental shift in vision, strategy, operating model, and capabilities in the mining industry. In par- ticular, much of the value creation in min- ing will shift from how well the operation moves material to how well it collects, ana- lyzes, and acts on information to move material more productively. "This will be a difficult change," the authors warned, "and it will only succeed if industry leadership believes there is a big prize at the end of it. Our analysis indi- cates that the opportunity is indeed siz- able—with a potential economic impact of about $370 billion per year worldwide in 2025. This would amount to 17% of the projected cost base of the industry global- ly in 2025." Don't Overlook the Basics However, high-concept technologies almost always rest on a foundation of basic hard- ware, including the cables, connectors and secure housings, and boxes that link and protect data systems. Once those compo- nents are in place, companies need adapt- able, comprehensive data analysis capabil- ities to assess information coming from both new and legacy I/O points, systems and sensors. E&MJ; turned up a few recent examples of how producers are making sure that giga- and terabytes of potentially use- ful data reach the desired destination. Among the challenges to succeed in the industry is the ability to provide efficient "pit-to-port" infrastructure per- formance, which essentially means ensur- ing that minerals move seamlessly from the point of extraction to the facilities that can then move them to international market destinations. To provide such efficiencies, avoid human error and facilitate automated min- ing functions, producers are increasingly turning to fiber optic cable for "end-to- end" communications and control solu- tions. Many such solutions include ruggedized cable and connectors that ensure survival of fiber-based DCS/PLC automation/control architectures for vari- ous types of mining operations, even in the harshest environments. ICL Brasil, a large industrial minerals producer, will be the first in the world to use Honeywell's state-of-the-art Experion Orion console, shown here, along with Honeywell's Universal I/O technology to modernize its production facility in Cajati, near Sao Paulo. The upgrades are aimed at increasing production, improving efficiency and expanding the effectiveness of plant operators. * By Hugh Durrant-Whyte, Ryan Geraghty, Ferran Pujol and Richard Sellschop (www.mckinsey.com/insights/energy_resources_materials/how_digital_innovation_can_improve_mining_productivity).