How-To: Optimize Drilling and Blast Effectiveness

In the mining sector, drilling and blasting requires immense knowledge, experience and skill set.  It’s an art form that takes years to perfect.

Mining services company Sandvik Mining has launched new software to optimize drilling and blasting, making it easier for miners to streamline the process.

The new software, Intelligent Sandvik Underground Rock Excavation iSure, offers mining companies guidelines for different stages of the mine site drilling and blasting process through a suite of tools designed to improve speed and efficiency.

“The software is unique and has the ability to advance mine tunneling on the African continent to a higher level. Not only does it guarantee smooth tunneling work, but it can specifically guide users on the different stages of the drilling and blasting pattern process to achieve the best possible results,” says Saltiel Pule, Sandvik's business line manager for underground drills.

iSure provides hole location accuracy to assist miners in reducing the need for scaling and better rock load ability and smoother collaring.

“iSure combines tunnel-line, theoretical pro-file design and drill-plan design, as well as data collection analysis. Rather than relying on less accurate traditional approaches, it provides users with tunneling patterns to be configured at the end of the round (when the success of blasts is critical). iSure also offers a project tree that combines all tunnel plans in one project and can include either one tunnel plan or several different plans,” Pule says.

The new software by Sandvik also introduces the company’s 400-series mining jumbos, including the DD421-60C drill rig, to provide operators with hard data to view blasting outcomes and make adjustments for the best outcome possible.

According to Pule, iSure has been released in South Korea, Switzerland and Sweden with significant results to improvements in tunneling performance.

“Technology like this truly has the ability to transform the industry and we believe it is our duty to ensure local mines adopt and embrace technology in order to remain competitive on the global stage.”