Mining in focus
A drill rig in action at De Beers’ Venetia diamond mine
in the Limpopo province of South Africa.
especially those with already large
patterns, will need this subdrill to be
loaded. From my experience, unless a
geologic feature is already present that
eliminates the need for a subdrill, the
subdrill has to be there and no device
can be put in the bottom of the hole
to stop this requirement. Improper
elimination of the subdrill will lead to:
• Poor floors with toes; and
• Possible secondary blasting to treat
floor conditions, reduced haulage
times as trucks need to go slower
over these bumps, and increased
maintenance on equipment driving
over these areas.
Understanding of blasting is
critical
Drilling and blasting is an extremely
complicated process that relies heavily
on proper understanding of design,
[20] MINING MIRROR MAY 2018
loading procedures, geology, and safety.
While many drill and blast teams seek
to optimise their results, they can often
be pushed to reduce drill and blast
costs at a mine. The normal operating
procedures that are seen all over the
world have been mentioned above, but
have severe ramifications to all other
downstream processes. If you do not
work in drill and blast but are involved
in any other operation at a mine, a
basic understanding of drilling and
blasting is critical to ensure that your
process is not negatively affected and
your performance diminished.
If you are on the drill and blast
team, you must either convince your
management that a mine-to-mill
optimisation approach is best, or
look for cost reduction opportunities
that do not impact the other mine
processes. b
About the author
Anthony Konya is a senior engineer
and consultant with Precision Blasting
Services; the co-founder and instructor at
AcademyBlasting.com; and an instructor
at the Missouri University of Science and
Technology. Anthony works worldwide
for mining and construction operations on
drill and blast optimisation programmes,
including Six Sigma, Slope Steepening,
and Advanced Timing Packages. Anthony
can be reached at [email protected]