MINE RESCUE & SAFETY
purpose , with its 2023 strategy focused on perfecting its Level 7 solution while , concurrently , running customer trials to develop its Level 8 Advisory Control requirements to maximum efficacy .
“ In 2024 , as the underground hard-rock mining industry understanding of Level 9 Interactive Control requirements matures , Maptek will provide the dedicated resources and expertise to work with them to develop a best of breed system ,” Godfrey said .
“ As with our Level 7 Proximity Detection System , Maptek will only offer a Level 9 solution to industry when we can deliver the most reliable and cost-effective support systems .”
Eliminating live work
Outside of the mine rescue and proximity detection segments , a big focus in the safety sector is the elimination of live work ( ELW ).
The goal of ELW is to eliminate the need , as much as possible , for technicians to work within the footprint of energised equipment .
ELW has companies at all levels of the mining equipment supply chain working toward ways to review processes and reimagine procedures to reduce the inherent risk associated with working on heavy machinery .
Caterpillar , for instance , has been working with its dealers and customers for several years to help move the technician away from the danger zone of working on a piece of live equipment . One of the first efforts , which continues today , was to review and update manual maintenance and service procedures . Afterward , these updates are communicated through Caterpillar ’ s standard Service Information System ( SIS ), which is open to Cat dealers and customers .
The OEM is also clarifying in service manuals if a maintenance procedure can be accomplished without the machine being live , so the technician doesn ’ t have to assume . To date , Caterpillar has opened , resolved , or is in the process of resolving over two thousand tasks targeting ELW , it says .
Additionally , Caterpillar has released more than 100 service magazines stating ELW procedures now available , completed approximately 90 specific procedure changes included in SIS maintenance and service manuals and generated more than 30 general service magazines to drive awareness of ELW enhancements .
“ These changes impact a range of mining equipment , from haul trucks , loaders and shovels to dozers , drills and underground hard-rock vehicles ,” it says .
When it comes to future solutions , the company has its Cat Electronic Technician ( ET ) in field follow for an expansion to mining equipment . A licensed software available for dealers and customers , ET allows the technician to connect to the machine ’ s Electronic Control Module to access items such as status parameters , active and logged diagnostic codes , and diagnostic tests and calibration to help identify machine issues , the company explains .
“ Rather than using a wired connection to the machine , the ET field-follow unit is wireless , so this information can be viewed on a tablet by a technician outside of the energised machine ’ s
Caterpillar has been working with its dealers and customers for several years to help move the technician away from the danger zone of working on a piece of live equipment
footprint ,” it said .
The OEM has also partnered with Newmont on developing all-electric and autonomous haulage fleets , with the gold miner saying recently that it is focused on incorporating live work elimination ( LWE ) solutions into equipment designs and new technologies .
In its 2022 annual report , Newmont said : “ We are also collaborating with industry peers , including Anglo American , BHP and Rio Tinto , to share LWE strategies and align on a common definition of LWE .
“ Our LWE program aims to accelerate efforts to eliminate tasks that place personnel in the line of fire of unisolated or energised equipment , wherever possible .”
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OCTOBER 2023 | International Mining 55