Annual Meeting Preliminary Program - Full Brochure (PDF) - SME

TECHNICAL PROGRAM
3:25 PM
Common Pitfalls in Mining Projects Appraisal
J. McIntyre; Behre Dolbear Australia Pty Limited, North Sydney,
NSW, Australia
When appraising mining projects, technical and economic viability depends on
the validity and accuracy of fundamental assumptions used at various development
stages. There is a disturbing tendency for many mining industry practitioners
to allow project enthusiasm to override industry history, personal experience
and knowledge. Many of the assumptions are too optimistic, while others fail to
take account of critical technical issues. Some of these issues could be regarded
as fatal flaws, while others are less obvious and need careful review to identify
and quantify their effect. Common faults in mining project development plans include
failure to apply appropriate dilution and loss factors, failure to recognize
the shortcomings of certain mining, adoption of geostatistical methods that give
unrealistic upgrades, use of inappropriate mining methods and/or equipment,
optimistic forecasts, dismissing risk as a factor, and use of inexperienced technical
and operations personnel. The level of risk and the adoption of appropriate
mitigators may have a material effect on both the technical feasibility and any
subsequent valuation.
barrick north america’s
oPeratorS SeSSIon
4:00 PM • Tuesday, February 26
WedneSday, February 27
chair:
9:00 AM
Introductions
coal & energy:
business Process Improvement
9:00 AM • Wednesday, February 27
MornInG
D. Shaver, Alpha Natural Resources, Abingdon, VA
9:05 AM
Innovation in Mining Process Improvement
A. Schissler; Tetra Tech Inc., Golden, CO
Mining companies worldwide since 1993 have implemented process improvement
methods to improve productivity, safety, and cost control. A specific method that
has achieved success is utilizing a standards program to reduce inefficiences in a
process at a mine. The purpose of this paper is to present selected case histories
from the Summit on Mining Performance database including the 2011 Summit on
how to implement a standards program and the results achieved.
9:25 AM
Measuring Blending Variability on Large Scale Coal Mines Using
an Operations Simulator
V. Tenorio and S. Dessureault; Mining and Geological Engineering,
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
Coal operations in large scale mines require a complex production infrastructure
in order to attend the demand of their customers. One key factor is to provide
the right value of BTU for each contractual requirement. This accuracy is affected
by several factors that are difficult to identify. After analyzing the
processes that are involved in the definition of the quality of the coal delivered,
a simulator that reproduces every step of the production process has been developed.
Data from past production cycles can be retrieved from the corporate
Data Warehouse and historical performance can be reproduced. The results can
be used for analyzing history or for creating what-if scenarios to help operators
decide what adjustments are required according to specific key performance indicators
displayed during each simulation. A probability cloud of standard deviations
is generated to help measure the variability of the BTU delivered, providing
a practical methodology for analysis and settings adjustments applicable in
present-time operations.
9:45 AM
A Model Based Human Machine Interface for
Frontline Supervision
R. Rojas and S. Dessureault; Mining and Geological Engineering,
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
MIKe rayburn
Mike Rayburn is a captivating keynote artist with a presentation completely unlike
any you've ever seen! Having been called "the World's Funniest Guitar
Virtuoso," Mike uses his astounding guitar creations, uproarious songs, and veteran
presentation skills to encourage, challenge and inspire his audiences to leap
beyond their perceived limitations. He can focus his program completely on entertainment,
depending on your needs. Mike draws from a wealth of life experience
as an adventurer, business owner, comedian, world-class guitarist, author,
philanthropist, husband, and father, to deliver a presentation which is motivational,
hilarious, and musically amazing!
Just to set foot on the stage at Carnegie Hall is a career moment for any performer.
Mike Rayburn is one of a handful of people in the world to become a regular
headliner at Carnegie Hall and to have recorded a live "Mike Rayburn at
Carnegie Hall" CD . However, Mike performs most often for the world's leading
corporations and associations, doing more than 100 presentations every year.
Some clients have booked Mike as many as 10-12 times! His program is so
unique he has been featured in USA Today, Newsweek, Billboard, Gig,
Programming, American Entertainment, and Successful Meetings magazines.
Mines produce vast amounts of data yet it remains underutilized. Instead, supervisors
obtain their knowledge from observing activities and from the dispatch
area. With the affordability of mobile devices and connectivity, this concept of
supervisor should evolve. A model for reengineering frontline management into a
streamlined and informationrich approach through IT tools combines the use of
a control room, and mobile computing, and information cloud that provides supervisors
with a better understanding and control of the operation. By providing
strategic information, Real-Time (R-T) decisions can be made. Reengineering the
frontline supervision includes R-T monitoring and an analysis infrastructure
using the most appropriate interface while remaining flexible. The process has
four stages: (i) process mapping of data and flows, (ii) identification of supervisor
s critical tasks, (iii) reengineering activities considering technological and cultural
capabilities, (iv) evolving the system with careful considerations. Embracing this
innovative model the supervisors will get knowledge about production, machine
alarms, safety and traffic events in R-T for the decision making.
This is the Technical Program as of September 1, 2012. IT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
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Please see the Onsite Program for final details.