Modern Mining July 2019

COVER STORY

Sandvik’s interoperability gives miners the ‘big picture’

rights and control, and data privacy. To enable interoperability, Sandvik has introduced the AutoMine ® Access API which provides stan- dard, pre-defined interfaces for connecting third party loaders and trucks for control by Sandvik’s AutoMine ® system. Digital twin The mining industry is trending towards high levels of digitalisation and Sandvik is leading the way regardless of mixed fleets and diver- gent information systems. The addition of AutoMine ® into the interoperability realm is the next step for mines to achieve a high level of automated management of all kinds of min- ing systems. “This means that a mine can have a complete digital twin where, for example, SCADA sys- tems talk to production management systems with communication to and from operational task and scheduling tools,” says McCoy. “Until now, there has not been a mine infor- mation management solution that could cover a mine from the front-to-back. Our system which

Technology developed by Sandvik Mining and Rock Tech- nology is allowing unprecedented sharing of data across different information systems to allow fully integrated man- agement of mines. This kind of interoperability between platforms allows mines to build a comprehensive digital twin of their operation with all the information needed to visualise and better manage all areas of their operations.

N iel McCoy, Business Line Man- ager Automation for Sandvik Mining and Rock Technology Southern Africa, says the po- tential of a complete mine op- erational management system, where all role- players’ solutions talk to each other, is almost limitless with significant benefits for mines which adopt the technology. Sandvik released its Interoperability Policy in April 2018, outlining the principles by which Sandvik systems can communicate within a digital ecosystem including data accessibility, fleet data compatibility, data

The Sandvik TH663i high productivity 63-tonne articulated underground truck features a wide range of intelligence integrated technology.

focuses on underground process management allows you to communicate across platforms giving our custom- ers the ability to integrate all their systems and manage the whole operation simul- taneously. Similarly, the day-to-day management of a mine can be fully managed and controlled via OptiMine ® and newly acquired Newtrax ® which is not tethered to any specific brand of mining equipment or network.” Evolving automation Sandvik has been an automa- tion leader since 2004 and has looked at simultaneously developing information man- agement systems to digitalise mines, even those that can- not adopt full automation due to physical or design constraints.

18  MODERN MINING  July 2019