COLLISION AVOIDANCE
The Booyco CXS the company says is a comprehensive integrated response to Level 7 , Level 8 and Level 9 safety levels as defined by EMESRT
behaviour and can be used to design an appropriate intervention to prevent accidents being caused by such actions .
Booyco Electronics recently also stated that it is equipping 19 mechanised mining machines with its latest Booyco CXS proximity detection solution to enhance safety during the development phase of underground operations at B2Gold ’ s Otjikoto gold mine , in Namibia .
According to Lourens , the order was placed by Murray & Roberts Cementation , one of the
Built for the Toughest Mining Applications
• Designed for High Vibration
• 3.21MP SONY Starvis Sensor
• H . 265 Triple Streaming
• IP67 Water / Dust Resistant
www . opticomintl . com contractors establishing the underground stoping horizon for the Wolfshag zone at Otjikoto mine . The contract also includes sensing devices for 120 underground personnel on the operation , which will be included in the employee ’ s cap lamp to provide an alarm .
“ Our equipment will help achieve the highest level of safety by mitigating the risk of collisions between pedestrians and vehicles , and between vehicles , on this project ,” Lourens says . “ The installation of our CXS units is in line with the commitment by the mine and the contractor to zero harm in the workplace .”
Murray & Roberts Cementation ’ s project will take 28 months and will be conducted with local company Lewcor Mining . The contract will include a decline of 5 m wide by 5.5 m high being driven to the orebody from a portal in one of Otjikoto ’ s depleted open pits . The operation will be highly mechanised , with equipment including drill rigs , dump trucks , LHDs and utility vehicles , as well as shotcreting and ancillary equipment . MacLean Engineering confirmed earlier this year that it had won an order for 3-Series Cassette Trucks from the mine .
Lourens highlights that Booyco Electronics ’ latest generation CXS system is a comprehensive and integrated proximity detection solution , taking a step beyond being just a warning system to become a “ true collision avoidance system ”.
He added : “ The CXS system on this project will deliver Level 7 and Level 8 capability in terms of the Earth Moving Equipment Safety Roundtable ( EMESRT ) and can also accommodate Level 9 . Although there is not yet a legal requirement for collision avoidance systems in Namibia , our customer and the mine adopt a global best practice approach to all aspects of safety in mining operations .”
With the mine ’ s location more than 300 km north of Windhoek , it is important the equipment is robust and reliable to ensure maximum uptime , according to Lourens . “ To ensure that the equipment performs optimally , we have trained the customers ’ artisans on how to look after it ,” he said . “ A qualified serviceman from Booyco Electronics will also visit the site regularly to audit performance , assess the equipment and conduct any necessary maintenance .”
Becker Mining – Level 9 solution set for 2021
Becker Mining Systems ’ Jonas Maximilian Becker , its Engineering Manager told IM it has a project under development at the moment to take its existing
CAS system to the next level , specifically to meet EMESRT Level 9 requirements and also to conform with ISO21815 standards . “ That is the main goal for our new CAS system which we are calling PDS4.0 . We feel the differentiator will be that it will be more connected than other systems as we wanted it to have integrity with MineView , our state-of-the-art , web-based light SCADA software solution which enables innovative management of complex infrastructure and information using a 3D model . We have various global mining customers that already use MineView with our hardware underground so it is important for us to ensure that PDS4.0 is part of this .”
MineView already helps Becker customers visualise performance of its CAS ( UCAS for underground and ICAS for surface ) via its tagging and tracking capability , using proprietary protocols . Becker says it is aiming to start trials of its PDS4.0 systems in Q2 2021 , probably at the University of Pretoria ' s VDG test centre initially . It is already trialling the tech at its own test mine in Germany . PDS4.0 is planned to be available by Q3 2020 . For now it would be a mine retrofit solution but discussions are also ongoing with equipment OEMs about also offering a factory fitted solution .
The company also told IM that typically a problem with existing systems is that the machine operators view CAS as an annoying system that is always beeping and interrupting their concentration work processes . There have been examples where CAS installations have been damaged by operators . “ So we also wanted to focus on our offering being as practical and intuitive as possible . Notably we wanted something that minimises false positives for the operator without missing real dangerous situations . Our system has three sensor technologies that combine for maximum reliability – electromagnetic for obstacle detection , UHF for long distance detection of other vehicles and workers & RFTOF which offers the required accuracy ."
Perfecting L9 in coal then hard rock
IM spoke to Ian Cillie , General Manager of Strata Worldwide in South Africa , which has one of the longest running and most advanced installed bases of Level 9 PDS globally . He comments : “ In the absence of regulatory standards globally , what EMESRT did was to create a platform on what expectations were . The requirements are without doubt difficult , but they at least represent a start to where ISO will go and where global regulation will eventually be . That said , some mines in South Africa have said that initial EMESRT standards and testing were not as relevant to their own conditions as they would like . We have done a lot of testing for and with customers in an underground situation where they have taken a lot of what EMESRT has done but made it more practical to their own environment . This is a kind of organic testing with customers .”
60 International Mining | JANUARY 2021