D AWSON MINE in QueenslandAustralia is a shining example ofhow a real-time machine production

monitoring and integrated fleet managementsolution can be implemented successfullyacross a 48km mine site, assisting decisionmaking and productivity.

Following the Dawson mine’s decision tomove from a paper-based data collection sys-tem to a new generation of integrated miningsystems, Leica Geosystems has recently spentthree months rolling out the systems valued atmore than AUS $3.3m across the mine site.

During the project, various machineautomation modules to monitor and controlthe whole fleet at Dawson mine wereinstalled. These included three DraglineMonitors, as well as four Drill NavigationSystems, Dozer Guidance Systems, FleetMonitoring Systems and Leica’s new Pit Opssoftware that integrates all of the machinedata into one software package. This allowsdispatchers to quickly and easily see the mineoperations and make informed decisions max-imising productivity.

The mine itself is covered by a radio net-work to give saturated coverage for GPS cor-rections and real time data exchange over themine site.

In the early project planning stage a keydecision was taken by Dawson to implement a

Dispatch Supervisor role with responsibilityfor coordinating overall mine logistics, usingthe new Pit Ops software.

Leica Geosystems’ integrated mine manage-ment system provides Dawson mine’s machineoperators and site managers with key real-timeinformation for production monitoring.

Mr Bruce Robey, Dawson commericalmanager, said the implementation of the newintegrated systems by Leica staff has run verysmoothly.

“The team from Leica Geosystems’ havebeen extremely product knowlegeable andhave gone out of their way to assist Dawsonin making this project a success to date. Leicastaff made sure each user of the system under-stood what they needed to do,” he said.

“Automating a mine site can be met with alot of resistance as has been seen on othermine sites in the past. However, good commu-nication by Dawson management with all staffon site in the lead up to and during the imple-mentation process, combined with LeicaGeoystems’ professionalism and attention todetail, has resulted in high operator accept-ance and all involved supporting the manypositive benefits of the new systems.”

Leica Geosystems’ vice president ofmachine automation, Mr Geoff Baldwin, saidLeica’s integrated fleet management solutionis rapidly becoming known as a one-stop shop

for mines to implement real-time operator,dispatcher, and management feedback to driveproductivity gains with ease.

“Leica is proud to be involved in theDawson project. We have never seen a betterimplementation of a fleet monitoring systemacross a mine site ever. The key has beenproper planning and total management com-mitment,” he said.

“Mr John Taylor, director of tailored businesssolutions, who consults to Dawson mine on thisproject, has played an instrumental role in pro-viding the management and vision required tomake it a success from strategic planningthrough to site communication and installations.”

Mr Taylor said that managing the changeprocess initially at the management level andthen identifying key stakeholders and ownersof the various system components was key tothe project.

“When implementing a techology solution,which opens up the opportunity to do businessdifferently, it is essential that there is equal bal-ance given to aligning business process andorganisation accountabilities around the newtechnologies. This integrated approach, support-ed by Leica, has been a major contributor to thesuccess achieved to date,” Mr Taylor said.

Mr Baldwin said that overall, the entire proj-ect has been well orchestrated by John Taylor,Dawson mine and Leica Geosystems’ staff.

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NEWS I SUPPLIERS

Anglo automates Dawson mine

Leica Geosystems recently spent three months rolling out an automated fleet management system at Anglo Coal’s 7mtpa Dawson mine in Queensland. Well accepted by operators, the new system has boostedproductivity while providing instant real-time feedback on machine status.

Fleet in action at Anglo Coal's Dawson mine.

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“It highlights the success that can be achievedon any mine site when we work together for thegreater good – productivity gains,” he said.

Mr Stuart Brown, Dawson’s operations co-ordinator, who has been heavily involved inthe implementation of Leica Geosystems’ fleetmanagement systems across the mine, saidrunning a mine is all about doing it safely andefficiently and that means time and resourcemanagement is critical.

“Leica’s systems have enabled our staff tobetter understand what our fleet of machinesare doing time-wise allowing us to moreeffectively manage the controllable delays.When you lose productive time on a machineor group of machines, it’s critical to under-stand why this occurred.”

Mr Brown said the level of information andaccuracy that Leica Geosystems’ solutions canprovide recently helped with an internal proj-ect Anglo Coal Australia was operating to findout the best way to control ‘hot seat’ changesat the start and end of shifts.

“Knowing what the actual time loss is andwhether it is due to lunch breaks, fueling, alack of trucks, or too many trucks made all thedifference to finding a successful outcome.Leica Geosystems’ fleet monitoring systemshelped provide the feedback needed,” he said.

Mr Brown said access to real-time feed-back also allows Dawson to compare its pro-ductivity to that of other Anglo Coal minesvia the intranet. In this way, productivity canbe measured at another level.

Dawson dispatcher, Mr Neil Pollard, agreedthat real-time operator feedback was making a

big difference to productivity management.

“From the control room, I can see onscreen where our vehicles are on site, delays,breakdowns, hot seat changeovers, and gener-ally how efficiently our site is working.

“With such credible data we are able to swaptrucks around the site to where they are neededor can be better utlised before our on-site super-visors can see the problems in the field. Leica’sfleet management system has really opened upour eyes to actual machine utilisation,” he said.

Mr Pollard said being able to see real-timemine site operations at a glance on screenmeans numerous people can walk into thecontrol room during the day and share in the

accurate information being received.

“Leica’s software is very easy to use andsince the new system was turned on it’s beenworking well. This combined with the supportfrom Brisbane’s software team and LeicaGeosystems’ field support engineer, BryanNoga on site at Dawson, has been instrumen-tal to the success of the implementation of theLeica systems.”

Dawson is one of Australia’s largest coalmines producing seven million tons of coalper year and is currently expanding to meetdemand. It is located in Central Queenslandand is a joint venture between Anglo CoalAustralia and Mitsui Coal Holdings. ��

AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF MINING JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2006 59

SUPPLIERS I NEWS

Metso to supply conveying system to DawsonMetso Minerals will supply a cable belt conveying system for coal transportation to the Dawson mine in an order worth around EUR 22 million.The deal was sealed in late 2005, with completion due for October 2006.

T HE DELIVERY is part of the mine expansion project and comprises two cable belt conveyors, at 10 km and 16 km in length, both with horizontal curves and multipledrives. The new conveying system will transport run-of-mine (ROM) coal at a rate

of 2,400 tons per hour to a new coal handling preparation plant.

Cable belt conveyors are especially suitable where large quantities of material have to be transported over long distances in difficult topography. The route flexibility of the cablebelt conveyor will allow for an environmentally sound installation with the minimum ofground disturbance. The estimated start-up of the 10 km system is in December 2006,with the 16 km system following in February 2007. ��

Dawson dispatcher,Neil Pollard, in thecontrol room.

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