CANADIAN TECHNOLOGY
delivered to a customer in the US. Timberland’ s PMRH is a critical piece of equipment fitted with the company’ s latest proprietary Electronic Hoist Monitoring System( EHMS). The EHMS offers state-of-the-art control with unparalleled safety monitoring when hoisting personnel in vertical shafts, Timberland claims.
Like previously manufactured units, this PMRH uses a telescopic boom assembly designed and manufactured by Hawboldt Industries, a member of the Timberland Group of Companies.
The latest version in the Timberland line of mine rescue system is featured on a custom designed trailer. By mounting the system on a trailer instead of a typical truck chassis it allows the customer to use multiple trucks, increasing redundancy and enhancing safety for the system by not having to rely on a single truck.
In detailed collaboration with the client, Timberland developed a system that met specific site and service conditions.
This fully self-contained system is designed to provide emergency personnel egress through multiple shaft locations at the site, each with a depth of approximately 1,100 ft( 335 m). Along with this system, Timberland has multiple designs capable of reaching depths of 7,000 ft( 2,133 m).
The company concluded:“ We pride ourselves on both customisation of this type of equipment to meet customer specific needs, as well as relying on our historic references, reducing our customer’ s risk.”
NSS Canada supports new talent
Also in Sudbury, Collège Boréal students in civil and mining construction engineering will soon start to develop new skills with the donation of a C $ 212,000 MOSS( Miner Operated Survey System) monitoring system from NSS Canada.
MOSS is a software platform that enables miners to survey underground environments with precision. It integrates mine design specifications and drawings when generating a drill plan and provides real-time information to miners, engineers and geologists.
NSS Canada offers both a standard version of MOSS and an augmented reality version of MOSS( MOSS AR), with the latter offering an AR display using the Microsoft HoloLens. The addition of MOSS AR provides real-time holographic projections of all survey and planned data, reduces traditional survey equipment requirements and saves time with a five-minute markup process, all while providing survey-grade accuracy, the company says.
Collège Boréal said the use of MOSS will help students in the Civil and Mining Construction Engineering Technician program enhance their skills and autonomy.
Bruno Lalonde, President and CEO, NSS
Canada, said:“ The students emerging from Boréal’ s programs are the future of our industry. That’ s why NSS Canada is proud to support Collège Boréal’ s Construction Engineering Technician – Civil and Mining program through this in-kind donation of MOSS software. This contribution is a small step toward what we, as a community, must do to support and develop the next generation of skilled professionals.”
Jeff Lafortune, Professor, Construction Engineering Technician – Civil and Mining, Collège Boréal, added:“ Underground surveying has advanced significantly in recent years. Mining technicians are responsible for using state-of-the-art equipment to ensure the collection of measurements essential to the smooth operation of any mining project. This generous donation from NSS Canada will allow our students to learn the innovative techniques used in the mines of today and tomorrow.”
TrulyAutonomous material handling
Driving the value delivered by the Railveyor materials handling system is leading-edge automation technology developed in Canada to enhance Railveyor’ s safety, efficiency and productivity performance, the company says.
According to Dylan Cameron, Railveyor’ s Automation Technologist, the company’ s TrulyAutonomous™ system is fully automated by its sophisticated proprietary software.
“ This allows everyday operations to proceed without human intervention or proximity of personnel, which streamlines material transfer to enhance production levels and prioritise safety,” Cameron said.“ The system automates the loading, haulage and discharge functions of the Railveyor, allowing these to be customised to suit the mine’ s infrastructure and production requirements.”
Simultaneously, Railveyor’ s energy-efficiency is further conserved by avoiding stop-start motion – to help customers meet their sustainability goals.
Bruno Lalonde, President and CEO of NSS Canada( pictured in the centre), says the donation of its MOSS software to support Collège Boréal’ s Construction Engineering Technician – Civil and Mining program is a“ small step toward what we, as a community, must do to support and develop the next generation of skilled professionals”
All critical operating information can be viewed on single screen in a control room, which may not necessarily require a dedicated operator, according to the company. Where a crushing plant is situated at the loading point, for example, a single operator can oversee the control of both the crusher and Railveyor.
“ Through our human-machine interface, the operator has a full view of full track layout, the movement of the trains, and the drive stations turning off and on,” Cameron said.“ They can also monitor the material volumes hauled in that shift, and access a range of operational data relating to system performance.”
Central to the Railveyor system are its drive stations, which propel the train through the contact between rotating tyres at each station and the side plates of the train. Communicating with the variable frequency drives( VFDs) to control the 75 kW motors in the drive stations, the TrulyAutonomous software activates these stations with millisecond timing, the company says.
“ This controls the speeds, torques, currents and other variables related to the operation of the train,” Cameron explained.“ The drive station also includes various sensors that allow us to track the train’ s movement through the system – and reflect this on our user interface.”
A master PLC holds the software and logic for all the system components – including safety systems. The trains are automatically dispatched to collect materials only when required, and tramming speeds are intelligently controlled at every track segment.
Among the most time-consuming and potentially hazardous aspects of materials
18 International Mining | APRIL 2025