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VALE InCo’S CREIghTon mInE:

digging deeper by the day

mInIng FLEET AChIEVES

100,000 hours and beyond

Spence mine:

a publication of Caterpillar global Mining

in a few short years

Building the technologies FoR ThE mInE SITES oF ThE FuTuRE

2008: ISSuE 4

From greenfield to major producer

The reclamation of Sudbury:

The greening of a moonscape

AddRESSIng unIquE ChALLEngES wITh

drive train options for mining trucks

c Cat global mining / Viewpoint / 2008: issue 4

We take readers to Freeport-McMoRan’s Sierrita

mine in southern Arizona, USA—where adherence

to a world-class Preventive Maintenance program,

in partnership with Cat dealer Empire Machinery,

has resulted in a fleet of high-hour 793 trucks.

Our underground mining story features Vale Inco’s

Creighton mine in Ontario, Canada—a 105-year-

old nickel mine that is successfully addressing the

challenges of being one of the deepest mines in the

world. This mine is located near the City of Greater

Sudbury—also showcased in this issue. We tell the

story of how the community and the mining industry

came together to save a barren landscape.

Above ground, we present Spence mine, operated by

BHP Billiton in northern Chile. This new mine has

quickly become a major producer in the copper market.

This issue’s technology feature explains what will

have a significant impact on the future of the mining

industry—autonomy. While the building blocks

of autonomy have been in development—and in

use—for decades, the time is drawing near when

these technologies will combine to produce a truly

autonomous mine site. Not only does autonomy

address cost-per-ton challenges—it also has a

significant impact on safety by removing operators

from harmful environments.

Finally, we’re pleased to introduce the new,

advanced fleet of Cat mining trucks—including

two trucks with electric drive. This article shares

some of the behind-the-scenes details of the

development of the new Cat AC trucks.

Caterpillar editorial board: dan hellige, Editor; erik elsmark, wheel dozers and Loaders; John enderby, China and India; greg gardner, Europe, Africa and middle East; Chris gehner, underground mining; larry gregory, Trucks; dan hellige, Safety; tony Johnson, marketing; Kent lynch, Tractors; Keith Malison, Latin America and the Caribbean; patrick Mohrman, Field Support; glenn Morrison, Australia, Indonesia and new Zealand; shane o'brien, north America; david schricker, 6 Sigma

I’m pleased to present this edition of Viewpoint, a Caterpillar Global Mining publication produced for and about the mining industry. Thanks to the support of our customers, in this issue we’re able to share best practices from three mine sites around the world.

Viewpoint is a publication of Cat global Mining, producer of the mining industry’s broadest line of equipment and technology. Caterpillar serves the worldwide mining community through its vast dealer network and a single division called Caterpillar global mining, headquartered in Peoria, u.S.A., with additional offices worldwide.

Chris CurfmanPRESIdEnT, CATERPILLAR gLobAL mInIng

Cat global mining / Viewpoint 1

Mining fleet achieves

100,000 houRS And bEyond 2

FRom gREEnFIELd To mAjoR PRoduCER In A FEw ShoRT yEARS16

nEwS FRom CAT: 45

The reclamation of Sudbury:

ThE gREEnIng oF A moonSCAPE 32

Table of ConTenTs

FoR ThE mInE SITES oF ThE FuTuRE 38

Vale Inco’s Creighton mine: dIggIng dEEPER by ThE dAy 22

AddRESSIng unIquE ChALLEngES wITh

drive train options for mining trucks 10

buILdIng ThE TEChnoLogIES

Spence mine:

2 Cat global mining / Viewpoint / 2008: issue 4

Mining Fleet aChieVes

100,000 hours and beyond

people and proCesses are Key


Caterpillar’s first 793A-series truck was put into

service at Sierrita in 1991, and is one of five 793s

on site that have worked in excess of 100,000

hours. It has undergone more than 200 preventive

maintenance services, consumed more than 17

million liters (4.5 million gallons) of fuel, and had

132 tire changes.

“No one really expected this truck to do the hours

that it has already achieved,” says mine manager

Derek Cooke. “It has already passed even the most

optimistic of expectations and is performing well.

Indeed, it is Sierrita’s intention that this haul truck

will run another 50,000 hours. I think I can safely

say there are several more years left in this truck.”

While these factors are significant in themselves, it

is the condition of the truck that is most impressive.

Despite its age and long hours of service, truck

availability remains high at 90.4 percent.

“It’s not the hours run by this machine as well

as others in the fleet that is unique, but their

condition and the availability that these trucks

have enjoyed that is so impressive,” notes Steve

Maracigan, account manager at Caterpillar dealer

Empire Machinery. “The remarkable availability

has been achieved through hard work, pride in

workmanship, and an adherence to a structured

maintenance process.”

Sierrita’s Connie Puckett, Remote Asset Monitoring

Project fleet coordinator, attributes the high

hours to the basic maintenance philosophy of her

department. “It goes right back to the basics,”

she says. “Have a good, thorough Preventive

Maintenance (PM) program, do your fluid changes

when they need to be done, monitor equipment

condition and application, and respond to keep the

equipment in the best condition that it can be.”

Being proactive

As mining equipment gets older, its availability

tends to decrease. However, this has not been

the case for the haul truck fleet operating at

Sierrita—due in large part to the fact that the mine

has a world-class PM program, with processes and

procedures in place to support its equipment fleet.

“The truck fleet was new, the maintenance

philosophy was not,” says Puckett. “We were

fortunate enough to start with a good piece of

equipment, then with Empire and Caterpillar

supporting our maintenance philosophy, we’ve

kept it that way, and in some cases we’ve actually

been able to improve the performance of

those trucks.”

One part of Sierrita’s maintenance program is a

pre-PM inspection, which involves a thorough

inspection of the truck about five days before it is

due to arrive at the maintenance shop. This ensures

Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold’s sierrita open-pit mine is a low-grade copper operation located in southern arizona, Usa, some 48 kilometers (30 miles) north of the Mexican border. While the mine is known for its copper and molybdenum production, the site is currently being recognized for the performance of its fleet of high-hour Caterpillar® 793 trucks—and the people, processes and service excellence that have led to this achievement.

1

1/ marco Cordero, a Preventive maintenance (Pm) technician, inspects a transmission screen in the Sierrita mine shop. Site-specific Pm checklists, proactive inspections, staging of Pm parts, and dedicated specialists all contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of the site’s maintenance program.


that any replacement parts, specialized equipment

and appropriately skilled mechanics are available

the minute the truck enters the PM bay.

“The biggest challenge to getting a truck to operate

at over 90 percent availability is the sustainability

of a robust maintenance program,“ says Larry Kitto,

Empire Machinery’s director of mining. “Maintaining

this high degree of professionalism does not happen

by chance; it is an attitude that starts at the top and

filters down—without dilution—to every part of

the organization.”

Economic analysis illustrates that it is better to

rebuild a well-maintained haul truck that is in good

condition, than it is to retire it in order to buy a new

one. “Every piece of equipment has a life expectancy,”

says Maracigan, “But even after this time, it is still

worth maintaining it as replacement costs are so high,

and even new trucks still need to be maintained.”

Those who set in place a comprehensive program to

keep their machines in good condition with high

availability are now reaping the rewards which they

justly deserve, says Maracigan.

Finding the right people

The maintenance team at Sierrita has not

changed much over the years, which is unusual

for a mining operation, and the pride and

diligence they share in maintaining equipment is

illustrated by the high availability of the machinery.

This team has developed highly consistent

processes for maintaining equipment to world-

class standards—and has rightly earned the respect

of the mine. In fact, an audit of the maintenance

program, performed by Empire, Caterpillar and

Sierrita, found excellent and effective processes

already in place.

Cooke is clear that ensuring that the right things

happen comes down to good people. “I would like to say that it’s a complex collection of systems and procedures alone that is the key to our success here at sierrita, but in the end it is the people who execute it all that make the difference,” he says. “We

have excellent people throughout the team. Larry

Buhlke, Sierrita’s maintenance superintendent, has

high expectations, holds his people accountable

and is always looking to correct even the smallest of

details. We have a great group of supervisors, and

a fantastic work force. They all take pride in their

contributions in support of this haul truck fleet—

which operates at a level of availability that some

mining operations can only dream of.”

The partnership with Empire is key. “Unforeseen

breakdowns are a major issue at any mine,”

says Tony Sharpe, Empire’s project manager at

Sierrita. “Empire and Sierrita’s maintenance and

operations staffs work together, doing everything

they can to ensure that breakdowns do not occur.”

The mechanics have a great relationship with the

operational side of the mine, which also contributes

to the overall health of the haulage fleet. Each

understands the work and responsibilities of the

other, says Sharpe, and they all have a mutual

respect for each other’s work.

1/ Tony Sharpe, Empire machinery’s on-site project manager at Sierrita, regularly attends the mine’s daily maintenance and operations department meeting.

2/ maintenance and operations department personnel meet daily to communicate machine status, review maintenance plans, and coordinate work between all parties.

3/ Truck unit no. 30, shown here at the Sierrita crusher, is one of five 793 trucks that have achieved over 100,000 hours of operation.1 2 3


Much of the maintenance work requires a high level

of technical expertise and involves many man-hours.

Sierrita’s maintenance crews include some of the

mine’s most dedicated performers—people who are

bright, enthusiastic and experienced. These teams

have an emotional buy-in for the machines for

which they are responsible, explains Maracigan, as

well as an immense sense of pride in keeping them

in excellent condition and running at high levels

of performance.

Following a coMponent replaceMent plan

One part of the maintenance program is the

Component Rebuild program, which involves

removing a component that is old, worn out or has

reached the end of its useful life, and replacing it

with a component that has been rebuilt to meet

Cat standards for durability and reliability. These

“old” components are sent to Empire’s component

rebuild center, where they are rebuilt and then

reinstalled into another Caterpillar machine

operating in Empire’s territory.

Sierrita depends on Empire to deliver quality

components. “We want to be able to take a

component that’s delivered to us and install it on

a piece of equipment, maintain it in the way we

have been taught is proper and correct, and for

that component to run its expected life without any

significant issues,” says maintenance coordinator

Connie Puckett, who has been at Sierrita more

than 20 years.

The key to successful component management is

the development of a detailed Planned Component

Replacement (PCR) program, which requires

defining a component’s life expectancy, ongoing

knowledge of its condition, appropriate response

to any reduction in performance and efficiency,

and replacement before breakdown, or—at the very

extreme—a catastrophic failure. Every major and

minor component is set up on a PCR interval.

“A component failure is an indication that your

maintenance program has failed,” says Sharpe.

“Component rebuild is all about having a process and

sticking to it. The dealers know they are investing

in the customer’s success through the component

rebuild program and that they cannot cut corners,

as this will only lead to issues at a later stage.”

Puckett believes part of Sierrita’s success with its

high-hour trucks was the ability to build its PCR

program from scratch. “We were able to start with

a fresh machine and build information as far as

our PCR program,” she says. “I’ve been basically

watching that truck, keeping track of everything,

since it was brand new.”

Sierrita and Empire have moved away from using

fixed interval “worked hours” as the sole indicator of

when a component should be replaced. “Today we also

look at condition-based factors such as cumulative

‘fuel burn’ as a better guide to the total work that

an engine has experienced during the course of its

life in the application,” explains Kitto. For example,

instead of replacing an engine once it has reached its

hours-based target life, Empire will now, based on its

condition, extend it for another 500 or 1,000 hours—

monitoring the filters, oil condition and consumption,

and overall operating performance, before making a

decision on when to replace the engine.

Following condition Monitoring processes

Another key part of Sierrita’s high-hour success

is its condition monitoring program. Condition

monitoring describes the collection of routines

that facilitate the early detection of changes in

equipment health, operation or application severity.

These processes support a repair-before-failure

approach to equipment management and guide

modifications to the maintenance plan, operation

or application. In its simplest form, condition

monitoring involves studying the state of machine

systems and components, as well as external factors

such as application severity that could—and do—

impact equipment health and longevity as a whole.

A successful condition monitoring program can:

• Reduce the number of failures and unscheduled

downtime repair events

• Favorably impact overall operation and

maintenance costs

• Promote efficient use of labor resources


• Improve equipment reliability / availability

• Increase production and reduce cost-per-ton

Sierrita employs a dedicated team that monitors

various aspects of equipment operating characteristics

including temperatures, pressures and speeds.

“Condition monitoring is not an exact science,” says

Kitto. “But by monitoring and studying the indicators

you gain an improved understanding of the operation

of the equipment as well as the operating environment

the equipment is working in. Sierrita’s approach to

condition monitoring helps support its repair-before-

failure strategy, resulting in optimized component

costs and equipment availability.”

The aspects of condition monitoring associated

with machine components can be sub-divided

into three parts:

• Proactive management of machine systems

and components

• Defect detection

• Application monitoring and management

The condition monitoring process can be

further broken down into sub-processes such

as inspections, fluids management, on-board

electronic data management, machine systems

performance tests, application analysis, and

learning from failures / failure analysis.

Puckett has described her role as maintenance

coordinator as being the “mother” of the truck fleet.

“I keep track of the component hours on the trucks,

the hours on the trucks themselves, the lubrication

changes, making sure everything is done at the

correct intervals,” she says. “I also record all of the

service that was done to them, all the work orders. It’s

my job to see that vital or important information is

recorded and kept. I have to schedule it in at the right

time. I’m not doing the work to the trucks myself, but

I am keeping track of the program so that everybody

else knows what they need to do to that truck.”

controlling contaMination

Paying attention to contamination control has

contributed to the high hours achieved by the

truck fleet at Sierrita. This reliability and durability

initiative helps equipment owners realize superior

value through the avoidance of component failures

and consequent longer component and product

lives, as well as optimized productivity throughout

the product’s life cycle.

Contamination control has two parts: Fluid analysis

/ management, and maintenance process /

environment cleanliness control.

Fluid analysis / management involves monitoring

contaminants and trace elements in lubricating fluids

and fuels. Anything that doesn’t belong in a fluid is

considered contamination. Particulate contaminants

are the most common—and the easiest to control.

They include dirt, metals, weld spatter, paint flakes,

rag fibers and sealing materials. Heat, water and air

also are considered contaminants. They combine to

break down the oil’s chemical composition, forming

oil oxidation and acids.

“We have found that even a small amount of

debris in lubricating fluids can significantly

reduce component lives,” explains Kitto.

“Lubricants are pumped through an off-board

filtration system which removes particles and

contaminants to achieve and maintain a higher

level of oil cleanliness.”

The second aspect of contamination control

monitors the cleanliness of the environment in

which the trucks are maintained, as well as the

maintenance and repair procedures employed in

that environment. To meet the highest standards,

maintenance environments must be dust-free,

closed from the outside, and spotlessly clean.

“ Contamination control is something we try to pay a lot of attention to,” says Puckett. “It’s like general good housekeeping. not only is that a good thing for your equipment as far as keeping contaminants down while you’re working on them, but it’s also a safety factor in our workshops for our employees. It provides a much safer working environment for our folks, so housekeeping is a big deal here.”


1/ Peter Cuevas and Clint mathews, Sierrita maintenance personnel, discuss repair options in the mine maintenance workshop.

2/ Sierrita’s component life optimization plan includes fluids management—scheduled oil sampling, oil filter management, fluids dialysis and more.1 2

Caterpillar has focused a considerable amount of

effort on all areas of contamination control for the

last five years. The company itself strives to:

• Build and ship clean components and machines

• Design machines, engines and components

so they are easy to keep clean

• Provide tools and services to help manage

contamination

• Educate others on the causes and effects of,

and solutions for, contamination.

Caterpillar dealers play a large role in a successful

contamination control program. Empire has an

assigned contamination control administrator

and follows established procedures within the

parts and service departments. Employees receive

ongoing training in contamination control and

have access to the proper tooling and particle

count capability.

Sierrita takes its role in contamination control

seriously as well, making sure everyone on the

site understands the importance. The shop and

parts warehouse operations follow established

procedures, and maintenance personnel ensure

the equipment meets Cat’s recommended

cleanliness targets after self-performed maintenance

and repairs. Indeed, the facilities at Sierrita have

obtained Caterpillar’s Five Star contamination

control rating.

taking advantage oF upgrades

While Sierrita’s high-hour 793 trucks are

technically A-series models because of their

original frames, they have been extensively

upgraded over their years in service and are now

more similar to a B-series truck. These upgrades

include an electronic injection engine (HD) as

well as the addition of the Vital Information

Monitoring System (VIMS) electronic data

monitoring system.

As a result of the proactive repair philosophy

followed by Sierrita and Empire, overall maintenance

costs have been low. Sierrita has taken advantage of

every applicable upgrade that Caterpillar has offered

as a means of ensuring maximum machine life;

as a result, the mine has not had to invest in new


replacement equipment. These upgrade programs

are just one of the many factors ensuring the truck

fleet retains a high level of availability.

“I believe this truck has better performance today

than what it had when it was new,” says Buhlke.

“It runs a little faster on the ramps and it’s a little

more fuel efficient than what it was with the short

stroke engine—and the life of the HD engine is

considerably more than what we were getting out of

the short stroke engine that came with the truck.”

“We’ve done all the frame modifications and any

other upgrades that Cat recommended on the truck,”

Buhlke continues. “We got that information and we

acted upon it to make the truck a better truck.”

training eMployees

Both Sierrita and Empire are actively involved in

the training of their maintenance and operations

personnel. Training is designed to ensure that both

groups of employees work with a high degree

of professionalism.

Mining companies know that highly trained and

skilled operators will perform safely and efficiently

in a variety of weather and road conditions.

Sierrita uses PC-based training aids and a haul

truck simulator on-site, which allows it to train its

operators in the basics of haul truck operation before

they are allowed to climb into a full-sized vehicle.

“We never turn a person loose until we feel confident

that they can safely handle the truck,” says Cathy

Fontes, senior training specialist at Sierrita. “Then

we usually give that person another couple of days

on day shift driving solo so they really know all the

locations and have a full understanding of the truck

and then they are assigned to their rotating crew.

Once they’re on their crew they do come back and go

with another trainer on the night shift, because we

feel strongly that night-time driving is a lot different

than the initial driving during the day.”

In addition, Sierrita operators are trained to

understand how their machines should operate—

and the serious situations that could develop if they

are not operating properly. This helps Sierrita make

any repairs before a serious problem develops.

“I believe that the detailed training we provide

does help with machine health,” says Fontes. “We

even assign our new drivers back after they’ve been

rotating for about a month. They go to the truck

shop, shadow a PM mechanic, ask questions. Maybe

they don’t understand the mechanical language, but

have driven long enough to understand ‘that doesn’t

feel right, that doesn’t smell right, that doesn’t

sound right.’ It sure helps them understand what

makes the truck tick so they can recognize when a

problem’s about to happen and I do believe that has

helped us obtain longer life on our trucks.”

Empire has a regional training center where

it trains its own mechanics as well as those of

customers and other dealers. Mechanics’ training

courses are similar to an apprentice program.

A new employee in the maintenance workshop

will work alongside an experienced maintenance

technician to learn about both the equipment and

its components. In addition, mechanics will attend

training classes that are run by the Empire Group

at its facilities in Mesa, Arizona.

1/ management of electronic data for on-site condition monitoring is a planned part of the Preventive maintenance program. john wilson is one of the many trained mechanics who are able to quickly review data and immediately take necessary corrective actions.

2/ Careful attention to haul road conditions is an integral part of the Sierrita operation. Rubber tire dozers clean up any spillage on haul roads that can cause premature failures of haul truck tires.

3/ Connie Puckett, Remote Asset monitoring Project (RAmP) fleet coordinator, has worked at the mine for over 20 years and plans the maintenance and repair program for the 793 fleet.

Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold’s Sierrita

mine, located 40 kilometers (25 miles) south

of Tucson, Arizona, is an open-pit copper/

molybdenum operation. The mine’s product

feeds a 104,000-tonnes-per-day (115,000-short-

tons-per-day) sulphide ore concentrator, a

molybdenum plant, two roasters and a rhenium

processing facility.

While the Sierrita property was first claimed

in the 1890s, the current open pit was begun

in 1957. The mine employs approximately

1,000 people. The site produces 73 million

kilograms (160 million pounds) of copper

and 8 million kilograms (18 million pounds)

of molybdenum per year. There are minable

reserves of about 1,100 million tonnes (1,200

million short tons). Average ore grade is 0.26

percent Cu, and 0.027 percent Mo.

Sierrita is one of the safest mines in the United

States, having earned the federal government's

prestigious Sentinels of Safety award as the

safest mine in the open-pit hard-rock mine

category in 1993, 1997, 1999 and 2001.

The Sierrita mine

1

2

3


Maintaining haul roads

Following maintenance procedures and programs

has a profound effect on the life of Sierrita’s

equipment, but mine site operations also play an

important role. In particular, Sierrita pays a lot of

attention to its haul roads in order to increase the

life of its trucks and their components.

“Haul roads are one of the most important things

that we have to take care of,” says senior engineer

and quality analyst Gary Perry. “We have the ability

to capture a lot of data from our Cat® trucks. We

put people in the trucks and we measured what the

responses of the trucks were to the different areas

in the pit in each of the haul roads. What we found

is that our haul roads, while we thought they were

really perfect, were not so perfect.”

Perry explains that the engine was responding

differently as they measured the haul roads in

9-meter (30-foot) segments. “We went in and we

profiled all of the roads every 9 meters (30 feet) and

then we prioritized what areas of the road needed

to be fixed,” he says. “We were able to reduce rock

spillage, we were able to take the stress off of our

equipment, and we were able to take the stress off

of our tires from going up and down through ruts.

You end up actually taking the stress away from

the truck, which saves you money.”

By reducing haul road grade variation, Sierrita

was able to increase the speed of the trucks and

reduce the number of high-energy transmission

shifts. “That reduces the amount of rocks that

are being spilled, so it actually is a very good cost

savings,” Perry says. “In addition to that there has

been a noticeable increase in component lives.

Minimizing transmission shifts reduces drive train

shock loads and, if you are bouncing up and down

with a 236-tonne load (260-ton load), you’re going

to have failures in your struts at some time. You’re

also likely to have structural failures that must be

repaired. You’re going to have failures in the seats in

your truck that can cause employees to get injured.

If you fix those haul roads so that you can drive in

a pick-up at 35 miles an hour (56 kph) comfortably,

not bouncing off the roof, you are going to end up

having a lot longer component life, a lot less damage

throughout the truck, and your drivers are going to

have a much better quality of life.”

working together

While Sierrita is happy with the performance of

its truck fleet, Perry says that doesn’t mean the

site will stop looking for ways to improve. Teams

of people will visit other Freeport-McMoRan sites

in a constant search for best practices that could

improve operations at Sierrita.

“For example, we’ll look at things like water

trucks,” says Perry. “How can you use them better?

Water trucks are necessary to control the dust, but

they can wreck the roads if used incorrectly, so

how can we use them differently? What kinds of

additives can we use?”

“It’s interesting when you pull in 10 or 15 people

from different areas and sit down and try to see

what best practices that you can use, whether we’re

talking about the trucks, the haul roads, the shovels,

or any other areas involved in mining operations,”

Perry continues. “one of the things that we’ve done here recently is we’ve put compactors at all of the properties. We’ve got these Cat compactors on our dumps, on our haul roads, on our shovel pits and even out on our drill surfaces where we’re going to be drilling in order to cut down on the stress. That’s the kind of continuous improvement idea that we’re always looking for.”Perry stresses that open communication is the key

to success. “We have constant communications

between our operators and our dispatch system,” he

says. “If things are going wrong, our operators are

actually empowered to directly call the truck shop

and talk to the people there in order to communicate

information accurately and in a timely manner.

Our shovel operators do the same thing. They

call back and forth between the operators or to

maintenance or to dispatch. There’s a large amount

of communications that takes place in order to get

things done correctly.”


addressing uniQue Challenges With

For Mining truCKsdrive train options



Off-highway trucks have continued to evolve since

their inception in the 1950s. While customer

demand drove much of the evolution, technology

played an important role. Take Caterpillar Inc., for

instance. The company was a pioneer of the electric

drive in the 1950s, while at the same time working

on a mechanical drive truck. After entering the

hauler market in 1962 with the mechanical

drive 32-tonne (35-short-ton) 769, Caterpillar

immediately proceeded to design and test a range

of diesel-electric trucks, targeting the top end of the

scale. The 68-tonne (75-short-ton) 779 went into

production in 1965, and larger prototype trucks in

90-tonne (100-short-ton) and 218-tonne (240-short-

ton) sizes were also developed. A fleet of five

218-tonne (240-short-ton) electric-drive coal haulers

operated in an Illinois mine for several years.

But with the advancing improvements in

transmissions and drive trains in mechanical trucks,

Caterpillar concluded that mechanical drive offered its

customers the best haulage solution at that time, and

chose to withdraw its electric drive from the market.

Although Caterpillar advanced its mechanical drive

mining trucks to become world leaders, it never

completely abandoned the idea of electric drive for

its trucks. It monitored the situation, and watched

as new AC drive technology with brushless motors

and solid state control expanded the application zone

for electric drive to provide an efficient alternative

in large earthmoving equipment.

Today AC drive technology is well established in

the giant shovels and draglines being installed in

surface mines worldwide. Against this advancing

technology and coupled with improved components

and technologies from existing Caterpillar products,

the company concluded that now is the appropriate

time to offer electric drive as a complement to its

mechanical drive mining trucks.

In an effort to meet the needs of its customers,

the company has developed two electric drive large

mining trucks, one in a new size class. Cat electric

drive will make its debut at MINExpo 2008, Sept.

22-24 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

listening to custoMers

While advancements in technology encouraged

Caterpillar in the development of its new and

improved mining trucks—including electric drive—

customer feedback was another main driver.

Customers have indicated there are certain

applications where an electric drive truck may best

meet their preferences. Building on their feedback,

Caterpillar embarked on a large investment in

improving its entire large mining fleet. New

technologies have allowed the company to make

as mining companies set record production standards to meet the unprecedented demand for mined materials, equipment manufacturers strive to meet their needs—building trucks that are larger, more efficient, and customized to address unique challenges and environments.

1950 1980 2009-2011

Caterpillar enters the hauler market in 1962 with the mechanical drive 32-tonne (35-short-ton) 769

68-tonne (75-short-ton) 779 goes into production in 1965







next generation of trucks go into production

new mechanical and electric drive trucks showcased at Minexpo 2008


trucks more reliable, easier to maintain, and more

friendly to both the operator and to the environment.

At the same time, Caterpillar looked at the wide

variety of applications—uphill, downhill, extreme

and unique—and found that the electric drive truck

has a place in today’s mining industry.

“ We are very proud of the strong position that Caterpillar has attained with its mining trucks,” says Chris Curfman, president of Caterpillar Global Mining division. “now we can provide our customers unique solutions by offering both mechanical and electric drive trucks.”

Does this mean Caterpillar no longer sees a need

for its mechanical drive trucks? Not at all, says Ed

McCord, product manager, large mining trucks.

“We see the addition of electric mining trucks as a

complement to our existing mechanical drive trucks

and have no intention of backing away from our

commitment to that market.”

choosing electric or Mechanical

Caterpillar product leaders offer no short answer

when it comes to choosing mechanical or electric

drive trucks. The company believes mechanical

drive is still the best solution for the vast majority

of situations but acknowledges there are situations

where electric drive is preferred by customers.

Each job must be analyzed on its own merits, says

Jim Humphrey, Caterpillar’s market professional

for mining products. “A site analysis with

simulated hauls will help, but there are other

factors at play that will influence a customer’s

choice,” he says. “Company tradition plays a part.

It’s a giant leap to introduce electric trucks to a

large mine primarily running mechanical drive

trucks, or vice versa. There’s the major expense

of re-equipping the maintenance shop, changing

parts inventory, added safety requirements,

and the ongoing training of maintenance and

operating personnel to accept the unfamiliar.”

involving custoMers in developMent

Caterpillar has taken its customer feedback a step

further, partnering with mining companies in the

development of its next generation of trucks.

“a key element in the design process for these new trucks has been customer feedback and suggestions for improvements to all our existing mining trucks,” says Josh Wagner, product

marketing for electric drive trucks at Caterpillar.

Major customers such as BHP Billiton and Rio

Tinto have been involved since the very early

design phases.

Rio Tinto sent a group to Decatur to perform a

complete audit and analysis of the prototype 795F AC

truck built there. The group included maintenance,

maintenance planning, service, purchasing and

engineering personnel. All major components were

inspected and scrutinized to compare Caterpillar’s

design with Rio Tinto’s expectations, providing

important feedback for Caterpillar.

A second group from Rio Tinto witnessed haul

truck demonstrations at Caterpillar’s Tucson

Proving Ground, near Tucson, Arizona, USA, where

performance tests were evaluated. Rio Tinto’s in-

house specifications have largely been incorporated

into all Cat mining trucks. Improvements include:

• Improved operator access/egress, allowing

personnel to board the truck on the left side in view

of the driver. Also, in addition to the main stairway,

an emergency ladder is provided on each side.

• Battery boxes located behind the front bumper so the

battery pack can be removed directly by a forklift.

• Fluids evacuation station at one point, accessible at

ground level.

Craig Mamales, Rio Tinto’s principle advisor on

equipment specifications, is confident that the new

trucks will meet their demands. “With completion

of our design audit and evaluation, and knowing

that Caterpillar has incorporated recommendations

from ourselves and other key players in the surface

mining industry into the new design, we are satisfied


1/ The Cat® 795F AC is a new truck model for Caterpillar, filling the gap between the 793F and 797F.

2/ The brushless alternator is remote-mounted so it can be individually serviced.

3/ A unique radial grid system reduces noise and improves cooling for the resistor elements.

4/ The power inverter cabinet is pressurized and filtered to ensure a clean environment.

1

2 3 4

that Caterpillar’s next generation trucks will meet

our expectations,” says Mamales.

Similarly, representatives of BHP Billiton visited the

Caterpillar factory in Decatur, saw prototype trucks at

the Tucson Proving Grounds, and watched them in

operation in Canada’s Oil Sands. The feedback BHP

Billiton provided was instrumental in developing the

future of Cat’s mining fleet, says Wagner.

Building a truck For every application

At MINExpo 2008, Caterpillar will introduce

four new trucks. The 793-series in the 227-tonne

(250-short-ton) class will be available in both

mechanical (793F) and electrical (793F AC) versions.

The 313-tonne (345-short-ton) 795F AC, a new size

for Caterpillar, will be offered in electric drive only,

while the flagship 797B will be replaced by the new

797F, maintaining its 345-tonne (400-short-ton)

target payload.

Completing Caterpillar’s new mining truck

line will be new versions of the 785 and 789

mechanical drive trucks, upgraded to meet

customer requirements for serviceability, safety,

operator comfort and emission standards.

designing a new engine

Some of the new Cat models are powered by variations

of the new Caterpillar C175 engine, which is EPA Tier

II emission compliant and flexible for adaptation to

the next EPA tier. The 16-cylinder C175-16 powers

the 793 and 795 series trucks with gross ratings of

1,976 to 2,535 kW (2,650 to 3,400 hp). Variations are

derived from different turbocharging and engine

software. The 20-cylinder C175-20 is matched to the

797F, rated at 2,983 gross kW (4,000 gross hp).

Trucks being used in lower horsepower applications

will be powered by an improved 3500C engine,

which also meets EPA Tier II emission

regulations.

oFFering a new size

Having decided to introduce a new truck sized

between its two largest existing models, Caterpillar

focused on a carrying capacity that matched today’s


mining shovels. Humphrey was intimately involved

in capturing the customer requirements that drove

the changes and direction for the next generation

mining trucks.

“The 313-tonne (345-short-ton) target payload of

the 795F AC is a very popular size class for mining

trucks on a worldwide basis,” says Humphrey.

“It’s a good match to receive a load in only three

passes from the largest shovels currently being

manufactured, or four or five passes from 82-tonne

(90-short-ton) or 64-tonne (70-short-ton) capacity

shovels as well.”

conducting extensive testing

Caterpillar’s new electric drive trucks are the

culmination of extensive design, development and

testing programs extending back for more than a

decade. An electric drive was considered during the

design phase of the first 345-tonne (400-short-ton)

797 truck announced in 1997, but was discarded

in favor of mechanical drive, considered more

appropriate for market conditions at that time.

However, in 2004 Caterpillar senior management

gave the green light to include electric drives for its

next generation mining trucks, and the program

began in earnest.

Toward the end of 2005, a chassis converted from

a mechanical-drive 797 and powered by AC drive

technology was put under test at the Tucson Proving

Ground. Known as a “mule” truck, it was really a

laboratory on wheels, and its purpose was to test the

basics of the drive system. In November 2007 the

first prototype electric 793F AC was completed at

Caterpillar’s Decatur plant, where all Cat mining trucks

are manufactured, and shipped to the Tucson Proving

Ground. In December 2007 the first prototype 795F

AC was assembled at Tucson with components from

Decatur and other sources. This truck was introduced to

a select group of Caterpillar dealers in February this year.

Meanwhile, a second prototype 795F AC has

been built at Decatur, where it has been subject to

intensive analysis and auditing programs. Caterpillar

will present this truck, along with a 797F mechanical

drive truck, at MINExpo 2008. After MINExpo, the

show truck will go to the proving ground, where

it will join the other models of Caterpillar’s next

generation trucks to continue testing.

[ mechanical drive system ]

EngInE

ToRquE ConVERTER

TRAnSmISSIon

dIFFEREnTIALgEAR box

gEAR box

[ Electric drive system ]

EngInE

ALTERnAToR

PowER ConVERTER

gRIdS

ELECT moToR

ELECT moToR

gEAR box

gEAR box

photo/ Caterpillar will offer its 793F truck in both mechanical and electric drive.


Trucks are put through a number of rigorous

tests to prove and evaluate engineering designs

of each major function, in particular to assess

performance in field conditions. Safety, reliability,

durability and performance tests are devised

for braking, steering, noise emission, engine

emission and control systems, just to name a

few. In addition the trucks are subject to obstacle

courses to test suspension behavior on uneven

ground, cornering with full load at speed and

many more critical functions.

training on electric drive

From the outset Caterpillar realized that introducing

electric drive technology into the Caterpillar dealer

network steeped in mechanical and hydraulic

transmissions could be a challenge—so an intensive

training program is already under way. Offering

more than classroom courses, the phased approach

will first target those dealers where the test units are

operating, then expand the training to worldwide

locations where 227-tonne (250-short-ton) and larger

trucks will operate. The training program aims to

produce technicians with the high level of expertise

expected from Caterpillar customers.

developing electric trucks

Caterpillar’s electric drive trucks are fundamentally

different from its competitors’ trucks. First, the two

main AC propel motors are mounted in the rear

axle housing, rather than in the wheels. Keeping

them separate from the wheel-mounted final drives

improves maintenance access, and allows changeout

of motor or final drive without affecting the other,

says Wagner. Service can also be performed

independently on either the propel motors or final

drives, as each runs on different service cycles.

Similar advantages are gained by positioning the

main alternator remote from the engine, again

affording improved maintenance and allowing

independent changeout of engine or alternator.

Unlike much of the industry, Caterpillar chose to

develop its own electric motors, alternator, controls

and software—making all the major components

in the new trucks, including the diesel engines for

both mechanical or electrical options—entirely

Caterpillar products.

“ Caterpillar boasts something unique in the industry,” says Wagner. “one manufacturer, one supplier, and—more importantly when it comes time for service, training or parts supply—all can be provided from a single source: Caterpillar’s global dealer network.”

Caterpillar’s electric drive layout consists of an

engine-driven alternator supplying AC current

to a DC control box through a rectifier. The

DC power is taken through an inverter, which

provides AC current to the drive motors.

Caterpillar’s alliance with Mitsubishi Electric of

Japan has worked to provide the power inverters

and Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT)

technology for the new drive.

Mitsubishi’s core knowledge of AC technology has

been employed to advantage. The rest of the system

has been developed in-house by Caterpillar experts,

including the alternator, computerized controls,

hardware and motors.

sharing a design

In comparing the 793F and 793F AC trucks, the

one size currently offered in both mechanical

and electrical versions, only the drive trains are

different. The appearance of the two is almost

identical, as they share the same main frame, body,

radiator, hydraulic system and accessories.

Both feature state-of-the-art modular cabs offering

improved visibility with 40 percent more window

area, and a host of operator comfort features.

oFFering options

Caterpillar’s goal in developing electric drive

trucks—as well as improving its entire truck

line—is to provide a mining truck specifically

suited to meet all customers’ preferences and

match any haul profile in the mining world.


spenCe Mine:FroM greenField to Major producer in a Few short years



spenCe Mine:

It’s not every day that a major mInIng company starts an operatIon from scratch, but that’s just what BHP Billiton has achieved at its

Spence copper operation in northern Chile. Spence

is the first large-scale, greenfield mining project to

be developed in the country in the last six years and

the first solvent extraction / electrowinning (SX-EW)

project constructed since 2000.

photo/ The dramatic, yet hostile and unforgiving landscape of the Atacama desert in northern Chile provides the backdrop to the Spence mine, one of the newest and most significant mining operations in South America.



35%

8%

7%6%6%

5%

5%

28%

Chile: 35%

u.s.a.: 8%

peru: 7%

China: 6%

australia: 6%

indonesia: 5%

russia: 5%

others: 28%

World Copper produCtion

british geological Survey accessed in june 2008

This is no insignificant achievement considering

the mining activity the country hosts. Indeed,

Chile is the world’s largest single source of copper,

accounting for 35 percent of the world’s current

copper production—the majority of it sourced from

about two dozen surface and underground mines,

including Escondida, Cerro Colorado, Collahuasi,

Zaldivar, Radomiro Tomic, Chuquicamata, El

Tesoro, Mantos Blancos, Los Pelambres, and Los

Bronces. The mining industry as a whole accounts

for 10 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic

Product and employs 6 percent of its work force.

Located 1,700 meters (5,580 feet) above sea level,

the Atacama Desert in northern Chile is one of the

driest places on earth. Any moisture in the clouds

rolling in from the Pacific Ocean has already fallen

as rain over the foothills of the Andes to the west

long before reaching the Atacama. It is no wonder

that with rain falling once every 20 or 30 years, this

sun-baked scrub-land looks barren.

This hostile and unforgiving landscape provides

the backdrop to the Spence mine, one of the

newest and most significant mining operations

in South America. The mine, 100 percent owned

and operated by BHP Billiton, is located in Chile’s

northern region near the mining town of Sierra

Gorda, 150 km (93 miles) northeast of Antofagasta,

and 50 km (31 miles) southwest of the city of

Calama. The project site is situated alongside the

main highway, rail line and water pipelines, which

connect the two cities.

an aBundance oF copper

The Spence deposit is a supergene-enriched

and partially oxidized porphyry copper deposit

of Upper Paleocene age, formed approximately

57 million years ago. Prior to development, it

was 100 percent covered by gravels. Depth to

mineralization ranges from 80 meters (262

feet) to 100 meters (328 feet) below the surface.

Oxide and supergene sulphide mineralization

(atacamite and chlorite) are both amenable to

heap leaching.

Reserves are divided between 79 million tonnes (87

million short tons) of heap leach oxide grade ore at

a grade of 1.18 percent total copper and 0.88 percent


1 2

3

acid soluble copper, and 231 million tonnes (255

million short tons) of heap leach sulphide ore at a

grade of 1.13 percent total copper, both at a copper

cut-off of 0.3 percent.

BHP Billiton has an ongoing exploration program

focused on identifying additional potential oxide

and supergene sulphide mineralization for use as

supplementary feed to the Spence plant. The company

is exploring the potential mineral resources, within

an economic distance of Spence, that are amenable

to leaching.

exploration and developMent

Initially discovered in 1996 by Rio Algom, the

Spence prospect was bought by Billiton in 2000

prior to the company’s merger with BHP a year

later. Exploration and development work on the

deposit, which began in 1996, included 175,000

meters (574,000 feet) of drilling and 1,133 meters

(3,717 feet) of underground tunnel development

for bulk sampling purposes. Concept, pre-

feasibility and feasibility studies were completed

between 1999 and 2002, with the definitive

project study being completed two years later. In

October 2004, the BHP Billiton board of directors

approved the development of Spence, which was

officially opened by its former CEO, Chip Goodyear,

in March 2007.

Project design and construction benefited from

BHP Billiton’s experience at its Escondida oxide

project and Cerro Colorado mine in Chile, as well

as its Tintaya oxide project in Peru, which the

company sold two years ago to Xstrata.

The construction period of 22 months involved:

• civil earthworks of 8.8 million cubic meters

(311 million cubic feet)

• pouring 53,760 cubic meters

(1.9 million cubic feet) of concrete

• 6,772 tonnes (7,500 short tons) of structural steel

• 617,780 meters (2 million feet) of steel and

polyethylene (HDPR) piping

• 796,790 meters (2.6 million feet) of wire

and cable

1/ As of mid-2006, proven and probable oxide ore reserves for the Spence ore body were estimated to be 310 million tonnes (342 million short tons) with an average total copper grading 1.14 percent at a total copper cut-off grade of 0.3 percent.

2/ The life-of-mine stripping rate is estimated to be 3:1 waste to ore with mine pre-stripping totaling 78 million tonnes (86 million short tons).

3/ From the outset, bhP billiton set out to create a safe and healthy environment for its workers and the community within which it operates.


About 90 percent of the engineering was undertaken

in Chile, and 99 percent of the management team

is made up of Chilean nationals. The construction

work force peaked at 8,500.

Pre-stripping was completed in August 2006.

“Over 78 million tonnes (86 million short tons)

of material was moved,” recalls mine manager

Patricio Picero, “and four months later the first

cathode was harvested.”

The US$1 billion, open-pit, SX/EW project reached

its design capacity of 200,000 tonnes (220,000 short

tons) per year of high-quality copper cathodes during

the third quarter of 2007. The project delivered

its first ore to the crusher in September 2006 and

achieved mechanical completion in early November,

with the tank house producing its first cathode on

Dec. 6, 2006.

In the 18 months since operations began, the

mine produced approximately 270,000 tonnes

(298,000 short tons) of copper cathode. The

permanent Spence workforce totals 728 direct

employees, of whom 70 percent are from the

Antofagasta region, and an additional 969 indirect

employees. The workforce is young and newly

trained, with an average age of 32.

“ It is in our labor force that we have found our true wealth in Spence,” explains Picero. “When we started we had a work force of whom 70 percent had no real mining experience. Our initial intention—and one in which we have succeeded—has been to become a talent developer for the mining industry so that we can exchange personnel with other BHP Billiton operations, namely

Escondida and Cerro Colorado, who are equally committed to working safely and to the highest of standards.”

The current Spence mine plan assumes a mine life

of 19 years at a life-of-mine strip ration of 3:1, waste

to ore. Mine pre-strip totaled 78 million tonnes

(86 million short tons). The mining rate in the pit,

including waste removal, is designed to peak at

about 260,000 tonnes (287,000 short tons) per day.

Production costs during ramp-up were estimated

at US$0.60 per 0.5 kilogram (1 pound) of copper

produced. The designed ore treatment rate is 50,000

tonnes (55,000 short tons) per day.

Mining and reFining Methods

Ore from the open-cut mine is crushed,

agglomerated, and transferred to dynamic (on-

off) leach pads at a rate of 50,000 tonnes (55,000

short tons) per day. The mine’s principle drilling,

loading and hauling equipment includes three Pit

Viper drills, three P&H 4100-XPB 50-cubic-meter

(65-cubic-yard) shovels, two Caterpillar® 994D

18-cubic-meter (24-cubic-yard) wheel loaders, and 25

Cat® 793C 218-tonne (240-short-ton) capacity haul

trucks. Auxiliary equipment, all from Caterpillar,

includes five D10T track-type tractors, two 834G

wheel dozers, three 16H motor graders and three

777D water trucks. Spence mine’s haul-truck

maintenance workshop was the second one in the

world to earn a Five Star Contamination Control

certification by Caterpillar.

Sulphide and oxide ores, which are mined separately

and rely upon different chemistry processes to

achieve higher recovery rates, are treated by different

leaching processes. The chemical leaching of

the oxide ores and bacterial leaching of sulphide

ores is achieved on two different pads, with two

parallel solvent extraction (SX) plants and finally

an electrowinning (EW) circuit to produce copper

cathode from the pregnant leach solution at a

nominal annual rate of 200,000 tonnes (220,000

short tons). Processing technologies and methods

are similar to those employed by BHP Billiton at

1/ Among the mine's principle earthmoving equipment are 25 Cat® 793C 218-tonne (240-short-ton) capacity haul trucks.

2/ ore from the open-pit mine is crushed, agglomerated, and transferred to dynamic (on-off) leach pads at a rate of 50,000 tonnes (55,000 short tons) a day.

3/ A concentrated copper leach solution is placed in long tanks where it undergoes a process called electrowinning, which forms large plates of pure copper.

4/ In the 18 months since operations began, the Spence mine has produced approximately 270,000 tonnes (298,000 short tons) of copper cathode.

1

2

3

4


Cerro Colorado and Escondida. The cathodes are

transported to either the ports of Antofagasta or

Mejillones for onward shipping to customers in

North America, Europe and Asia.

saFety and coMMunity considerations

From the very start, BHP Billiton set out to

provide a safe and healthy environment for its

workers and the community where it operates. To

date, Spence has achieved two awards from the

Chilean “National Service of Geology and Mining”

(Sernageomin)—the most outstanding company

in Safety and Occupational Health, and the annual

prize of Mining Safety (national category). In

addition, the mine has been awarded the John

T. Ryan Award, which was founded by Mine Safety

Applications and the Canadian Institute of Mining,

making Spence the first company in the project

stage to receive this award.

Community considerations include a social

monitoring study, a community relationship

plan, a local sustainable development program,

an employment opportunity facility and an

environmental improvement project, which the

company runs in conjunction with other local

mine operators.

Yet these details tell only half the story: BHP

Billiton has spared no expense in producing a

mining and processing complex that incorporates

every innovation in an attempt to ensure that its

Spence operation continues to be at the vanguard

of science for many decades to come.

photo / given the harsh working and climatic environment, Spence mine relies on its up-to-date equipment maintenance facility as a pivotal part of the operation.


22 Cat global mining / Viewpoint / 2008: issue 422 Cat global mining / Viewpoint / 2008: issue 4


digging deeper by

the daythe 107-year-old creIghton mIne Is one of sIx vale Inco

mInes In the sudbury area of ontarIo, canada—and is its second

most profitable, thanks to its high ore grade, time in service, size of reserves

and existing infrastructure. Creighton’s only drawback is its depth—and the

increasingly high cost of bringing the ore to surface.

Located in the western portion of the City of Greater Sudbury, at 2,400 meters

(7,800 feet), the site is one of the deepest mines in Canada—a distinction that

brings with it certain challenges: High rock stresses determine the mining

methods, which have been designed to minimize the impact of sub-surface

seismic activities, and high virgin rock temperatures have necessitated employing

a novel “ice-cavern” cooling network, through which ventilation air is pumped

to the workings.

vale inco’s creighton Mine:



discovering a Massive ore Body

Creighton’s copper-nickel sulphide ore body was

discovered in 1856, when A.P. Salter observed

marked deflections in compass readings. In 1901,

the first ore was produced from the open pit.

In 1906, underground stoping started and two

years later the open pit ceased operations, having

reached a production level of 725 tonnes (800

short tons) per day.

evolving Mining Methods

In the more than 100 years since Creighton

began its underground operations, its mining

method has understandably varied and evolved

considerably. Shrinkage mining gave way to square-

set stoping, cut-and-fill mining, block caving and

post-pillar mining before the mine reverted back

to shrinkage mining and mechanized undercut-

and-fill mining. More recently, the large-diameter

blasthole method combined with vertical retreat

mining was introduced. In addition, mucking and

support methods have likewise evolved. Trackless

operations, hydraulically placed backfill, mining

of rib pillars and the introduction of cement into

backfill have all been implemented at one time

or another.

Since the start of operations, over 155 million tonnes

(171 million short tons) of ore grading—1.23 percent

copper and 1.59 percent nickel—have been extracted

from the Creighton property.

For operational purposes, the mine has been

sectioned into districts. Division 4, which is the

uppermost region of current operations, extends

from the 1,100-meter to 1,650-meter level (3,570-foot

to 5,400-foot level), and is open above this. Division

5 mainly consists of old workings between the

1,650-meter and 1,950-meter levels (5,400-foot and

6,400-foot levels). Division 6, which contains the bulk

of the ore body, extends from the 1,950-meter level to

the 2,390-meter level (6,400-foot level to the 7,840-

foot level), and is open at depth. In addition, 3-shaft

is currently being reactivated as a training center,

and is scheduled to restart production in 2021.

deterMining types oF ore

Creighton is located in the southern region of the

Sudbury Igneous Complex (SIC). The rocks of the

SIC, which are dated at 1,850 million years, are

exposed within an elliptical ring with a long-axis

of 72 kilometers (45 miles) and a short-axis of 27

kilometers (17 miles).

In broad terms there are three main categories of

mineralization at Creighton: sulphides associated

with the sub-layer norite or quartz diorite; high-

grade sulphide pods located in the footwall; and

sulphides associated with shearing. The main

base metal minerals contained in the Creighton

ore bodies are pyrrhotite Fe(1-x)S, pentlandite

(Fe,Ni)9S8 and chalcopyrite (CuFeS2). Recent

encouraging exploration results below the


2,377-meter (7,800-foot) level are anticipated to add

greatly to the life of the mine.

Production in 2007 yielded 793,000 tonnes (873,617

short tons) grading 1.62 percent copper and 2.8

percent nickel.

“There appears to be plenty of untapped mineralization below current working levels,” explains

Dave Andrews, Creighton’s chief mine geologist.

“In these deeper parts the ore tends to be hosted

in a more granitic footwall complex. The impact

that this transition (in ore geometry) has on the

mining method is associated with the mineralization

concentrated in narrower zones, so we may have to

scale down our stoping sizes, or even switch from

bulk mining to a more selective method.”

Creighton mine ore is poly-metallic, with credits

derived from nickel, copper, platinum, palladium,

rhodium, ruthenium, iridium, gold and silver, with

the bulk of the contribution from nickel and copper.

Creighton Mine uses both bulk and selective

mining methods.

using the selective Mining Method

Selective stoping, using the mechanized cut-and-

fill (MCF) method, is predominantly used in flat-

lying areas and for narrow, high-grade stringers.

Selective mining currently accounts

for approximately 5 percent of the ore extracted

at Creighton.

In the MCF method, stopes are driven transversely

in 4.5-meter-high (15-foot-high) lifts from an initial

7.5-meter-wide (25-foot-wide) slot. Rib pillars

measuring 5-by-6-meters wide (16-by-20-feet wide)

are left between stopes. Recently, MCF has been

modified to MCF-drifting, where the ore body

is mined longitudinally. Selective methods are

currently being used in the Division 5 area (i.e.,

workings between the 1,650-meter and 1,950-meter

levels or 5,400-foot and 6,400-foot level).

eMploying the Bulk Mining Method

Where the ore body is massive and steeply dipping,

the bulk method is used and currently accounts for

approximately 95 percent of the ore extracted from

Creighton. The preferred bulk method employed is

slot-slash.

Vertical retreat mining (VRM) was introduced in

the mid-1980s to replace the cut-and-fill mining

method. The slot-slash mining method, a modified

VRM, was introduced in the late 1990s and

replaced the VRM mining method. The change

from VRM to slot-slash was designed to reduce

blast damage by minimizing the number of blasts.

Both these methods are bulk mining methods

which utilize 152-mm (6-inch) production blastholes

drilled from a top-sill and breaking through into

a bottom-sill. The holes are filled with explosives

1/ Creighton mine operates a fleet of Caterpillar® R1700g load-haul-dump machines for mucking and tramming in both development and in the stopes.

2/ Ray Leahy is the mine superintendent in division 6, which contains the bulk of the ore body.

1 2


and blasted, where the broken ore is picked up by

a load-haul-dump (LHD) on the bottom-sill and

dumped into an ore pass.

In the slot-slash mining method, a slot raise is

drilled into the stope, using a 1.2-meter (4-foot)

diameter raise bore hole. The production holes at

the bottom of the stope, as well as those around

the slot raise, are loaded with explosives and

blasted. The method creates more free blasting

faces and allows Creighton to mine a stope with

fewer blasts.

The stope height varies between 26 and 61 meters

(85 and 200 feet), but the “internal” horizontal

dimensions vary little, so the ore produced from a

single stope may vary from 6,300 to 91,000 tonnes

(7,000 to 100,000 short tons). Some secondary

blasting may be required in lower-grade ore.

In the Division 6 area, an underhand sequence is

used, with mining proceeding downward adjacent

to previously filled stopes. However, the underhand

method does impose constraints on both the

sequence (a rigid echelon must be adhered to)

and fill quality, but has the significant advantage

of reducing seismic activity as no pillar sills are

formed. Additionally, with the stresses being pushed

out to the abutments, there are no permanent

sills / pillars being created, and mining recovery is

therefore increased.

“Due to the depths at which we are mining, it

is very important that we follow this sequence,”

admits Alex Henderson, Vale Inco’s manager for

business planning and mines technical services for

the Ontario Operations. “If we didn’t, we could end up with considerable seismicity. In this area, the horizontal stresses are two times those of the vertical stresses. We are hoping that with depth, the stress differential between horizontal and vertical will become homogeneous.”

photos/ Since the start of operations, over 155 million tonnes (171 million short tons) of ore grading have been extracted from the Creighton mine using a variety of mining techniques. Today, the mine uses both bulk and selective mining methods. The site uses a fleet of Caterpillar load-haul-dump machines and articulated trucks, supported by Cat dealer Toromont.



Drilling for development purposes is undertaken

by two boom jumbo drills with Caterpillar®

R1700G, 6-cubic-meter (8-cubic-yard) capacity

diesel LHDs mucking and tramming in both

development and in the stopes. Trucks are being

employed in the lower areas to bring the broken

ore to the underground crusher station at the

2,100-meter level (7,000-foot level).

Managing seisMic activity

One of the major considerations for the mining

engineers at Creighton are the sub-surface seismic

occurrences, which are initiated by mining /

excavation activity.

“The majority of significant seismic events that we

experience at Creighton are due to the presence of

slip-faults,” explains Henderson, “with the majority

of seismic events occurring during or shortly

after a production blast. At the end of a shift we

leave a new face for several hours to ‘seismically

decay,’ before we re-enter that area. We monitor

these areas, using an array of geophones placed

strategically around the mine, and if we feel the

decay rate is not as we would anticipate, we will

temporarily close down this section of the mine

and extend the period before we will allow re-entry

to take place. There have been several times when

we have followed this protocol and have managed

to avoid any incidents that would have put our

workers in harm’s way.”

The mining methods employed were developed

internally by Vale Inco over time using stress

models. “One of the major innovations which

we are currently working on,” explains mine

manager Kelly Strong, “are not the mining methods

themselves, but the support methods that follow.

Creighton has never been a single support system

mine. We currently employ a series of support

systems in development and production drifts,

and haulage areas.”

These support systems include cemented tailings

as hydraulically-placed backfilling; shotcreteing;

shotcrete arches; enhanced supports; and large

diameter split-set bolts— 46-millimeter-diameter

(1.8-inch) unclipped compared to the traditional

34-millimeter-diameter (1.3-inch) unclipped

split-sets.

“These ‘fatty’ split-sets are too robust to be put in by

hand, so we employ one-man operated Bolter units,

which are able to drill and set these 46-millimeter-

diameter (1.8-inch) sets in place,” says Strong.

“This Boltec is a remote-running machine, so the operator is able to work from a cabin some distance from the unsupported zone. This is significant as we often find ourselves driving drifts underneath backfill.”The backfill contains mill tailings from the

Clarabelle plant, which are pumped as a slurry

(40 percent solids to 60 percent water) along

40-centimeter (16-inch) diameter surface pipes to

a holding tank where it is agitated while waiting

to be mixed with cement / fly ash before being

pumped underground to act as backfill.

“When we backfill a stope we have to do this in

stages to enable the excess water to percolate down

through the fractures in the rock,” says Strong.

“We are currently examining the use of pastes for

backfilling purposes, but to date no decision has

been made on their commercial use at Creighton.”

handling ore and waste

All ore is hoisted up 9-shaft, using a 5,200-kilowatt

(7,000-horsepower) double-drum hoist and two

13.5-tonne (15-ton) aluminium skips. Ore arrives

at the hoisting shaft from one of three distinctive

areas: Division 4, 5 or 6.

• Division 4 ore is mucked to ore passes that feed

a diesel locomotive on 1,500-meter (5,000-feet)

level. Material is trammed for 1,400 meters

(4,500 feet) to a crusher, with the crushed ore

being conveyed to the 1,600-meter (5,280-feet)

level loading pocket at 9-shaft. The skipping rate

from this level loading pocket is 308 tonnes (340

short tons) per hour.


• Division 5 ore is mucked to ore passes that feed

a diesel locomotive on 1,950-meter (6,400-feet)

level. Material is trammed to an ore pass that

feeds the 2,000-meter (6,600-feet) level crusher,

with this crushed material reporting to the

2,036-meter (6,680-feet) level loading pocket

at 9-shaft.

• Division 6 ore is trucked up a ramp by trucks to

the dump at 2,124-meter (6,970-feet) level. This

material is then mucked into the 2,133-meter

(7,000-feet) level crusher, which feeds the

crushed material (via a conveyor) into the same

2,036-meter (6,680-feet) level loading pocket at

9-Shaft as the Division 5 ore. The skipping rate

from this 2,036-meter (6,680-feet) level loading

pocket is 272 tonnes (300 short tons) per hour.

All personnel and materials access the mine via

the 9-shaft cage.

The mine is now looking at alternatives to trucking

this ore upward along the ramp. “We have a great deal of ore at depth and we need to make sure we do not squander the wealth here on an unsuitable and unsustainable ore movement method,” says Henderson. “We are probably talking about putting in a secondary internal hoisting system with a bin to enable ore transfer from one shaft to the other.”

providing adequate ventilation

Creighton 9-shaft workings are ventilated with

45,000 cubic meters (1.6 million cubic feet) per

minute of fresh air, using a single pass system.

Fresh air is drawn from the surface through a mass

of broken rock located in old stopes in the vicinity

of 3-shaft, which forms an “ice cavern” due to the

cold winters and the moisture in the air. This ice-

cavern acts as a heat exchanger, warming the air in

the winter and cooling the air during the summer.

The sub-surface air temperature averages 3 degrees

Celsius (37 degrees Fahrenheit), with a small

seasonal variation.

As a result of the ice cavern system, it has not been

necessary to provide mechanical refrigeration so far.

To date the savings in terms of plant, maintenance

and power consumption have been very significant.

Creighton was one of the first mines in Canada to

employ this simplistic, though novel, ice-cavern

cooling system.

“Because in the near future we will be working

beyond the limit of our current cooling system,”

explains Strong, “we are having to look at a number

of alternatives. One option would be to supplement

our ice caverns with an expensive mechanical

refrigeration plant. The alternative would be

to expand the open-pit in order to increase the

catchment area / cooling-surface available for the air

being drawn underground. However, it is still too

early to say which option will be chosen. Modeling

work in this department continues.”

processing ore

The ore from Creighton mine is crushed

underground before being hoisted to the surface

and into surface loading bins, from where it

is shipped by rail to Clarabelle Mill. It is then

blended with ore from the group’s six Ontario

operational mines, as well as from third parties, as

it is unloaded at the mill. This blended ore is fed

through a crushing circuit then ground through

a series of ball and rod mills before entering

flotation. In flotation, the non-mineral- bearing

rock and the majority of pyrrhotite are rejected and

pumped to the tailings area. The mineral bearing

pentlandite is then recovered and pumped to the

smelter for further processing. A chalcopyrite, or

CU rich concentrate, is also separated and sold to

third parties.

In the near future, the mine plans to begin

production of higher grade separate copper

and nickel concentrates, with precious metals

(platinum, palladium, gold and silver) reporting

to the copper side. Nickel concentrate would

continue to be treated at Copper Cliff, while


copper concentrate would be treated elsewhere

by a third party.

protecting the environMent

For generations, the Sudbury area has been

associated with deforestation due to logging

and smelting activities.

Considerable progress has been—and continues

to be—made in returning the area to pre-

mining conditions. “There has been considerable effort invested in this area to restore the landscape, and to make good some of the environmental damage that has taken place here over the last 150 years,” explains Art Hayden, superintendent

of safety for Vale Inco operations in the Sudbury

area. By and large the Sudbury Soils Study gave

the area a clean bill of health.

The city recently won a UNESCO award in

recognition of the environmental restoration work

that has gone on in the Sudbury area. “We have

invested more than $1 billion to reduce emissions

by more than 90 percent,” says Hayden.

A closure plan for Creighton was filed in July 2001,

in accordance with the Ontario Mining Act. The plan

identifies various site rehabilitation activities that

can be conducted prior to and following site closure.

Closure costs are estimated to be approximately

US$10 million.

Meeting water quality guidelines

Surface water from the mine site flows naturally

through to the tailings area. This water is then

piped to water treatment plants and upon meeting

water quality guidelines, is discharged into the

local watershed.

Underground, Creighton is a relatively dry mine,

with the majority of the water generated coming

from backfill and drilling equipment. Mine water

is collected in main dirty water sumps located

on four levels between 579 meters (1,900 feet)

and 2,100 meters (7,000 feet). Water below the

2,100-meter (7,000-feet) level is collected on three

levels before being pumped to the 2,100-meter

(7,000-feet) level main sump. Solids are allowed to

settle in these sumps and clear water is pumped to

surface in stages.

generating power

Creighton receives approximately 25 percent of its

electrical power from the Vale Inco electrical grid,

and the rest is taken from the provincial grid. At

full production, Creighton consumes on average

between 10.5 and 11.0 million kilowatt hours per

month, at a price (mid-2007) of approximately

US$0.06/kWhr. Approximately 60 percent of the

electrical power is used for ventilation, 20 percent

for hoisting (personnel and rock), and 20 percent

for pumps, crushers, mobile equipment and

production drilling.

taking advantage oF the Mining BooM

The current mining boom has had both a positive

and negative impact on operations at Creighton.

“The rise in metal prices means that there are now

areas in the mine, such as lower grade zones and

remnant mining zones, which we can now look

at as economically exploitable, whereas before

they were not,” says Strong. “In addition, we

have recently started bottom-sill-slashing as an

innovative way to get higher extraction rates where

ore is extremely valuable.”

On the reverse side, given the level of competition

that exists on a global scale, Strong says Creighton

is having difficulty recruiting experienced miners,

operators and technical staff required for mine

expansion and new projects. “The result of this is

that we are spending a great deal of time and effort

on training such people. This is in spite of the fact

that Creighton’s turnover in staff—particularly the

technical ones—is still low.”

participating in non-Mining activities

On the non-mining side, Creighton houses the

Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, which was opened

by Stephen Hawking, the Nobel Prize winner, world

famous astrophysicist and best-selling author of “A


Brief Moment in Time.” The facility is considered,

in the rarefied world of particle physics, to be a

world-class facility. The laboratory is located some

1,800 meters (6,000 feet) underground.

In addition, and in an effort to reduce its

environmental footprint, Creighton also houses

underground greenhouses, where tree seedlings

are grown year-round despite harsh winters on

the surface.

looking to the Future

Creighton’s managers identified a number of

priorities for technical staff that were deemed

worthy of further work, including:

• The continued exploration of the up-and-down-

plunge extents of the deposits

• The completion of the scoping study to identify the

optimal mining methods and infrastructure for

mining at depths of up to 3,000 meters (10,000 feet)

“Not only are there great opportunities at depth,”

explains Henderson, “but there is also some

remnant ore that has been left behind in old

workings. Some of this ore was bypassed over the

last 100 years as being either uneconomic or

because the mining method of the day did not

allow it to be mined, but it is now being extracted

safely and economically.”

Strong estimates the mine is about three-quarters

of the way through its at-depth exploration drilling

program, which will delineate ore volumes, grades

and stresses. “After that there is a great deal of

engineering work that needs to be done to justify

shifting the category from being a resource to a

reserve,” Strong explains, outlining three major work

areas in which the mine is currently involved:

• Developing the mine internally down to the

2,500-meter (8,200-foot) level (i.e., two more levels).

• Exploring the potential to develop the mine at the

3,000-meter (10,000-foot) level.

• Drilling from both the surface and underground

to properly exploit the 402 orebody ores above the

610-meter (2,000-foot) level.

Down to and beyond 3,000 meters (10,000 feet),

the major challenge is to determine if the mining

method Creighton is using at 2,377 meters (7,800

feet) is still viable—given that seismic activity

increases at depth.

To that end, Creighton mine is working with

a number of research agencies, engineering

establishments and technical universities, as well

as the Centre of Excellence in Mining Innovation

(CEMI) to determine if the current mining method

will continue to be a safe workable mining method

at depth.

“In addition, we are examining other mining

methods that are being employed in other deep or

seismically active mines,” says Henderson. “I have

no doubt that in the future, the world will come to

Creighton to see how it should be done.”


The reclamation of sudbury:

the greening oF a MoonsCape

photo/ Sudbury's former landscape consisted of black rock, metal-tolerant grasses and small clumps of unhealthy birches. The area was so devoid of life that dead wood could not be decomposed.



It has been called one of the sunniest areas of

Ontario, with clean air and world-renowned

environmental initiatives. It has even been cited

by the United Nations for its land reclamation

program and has won several other international

and national awards.

However, Sudbury looked radically different just 35

years ago, when a group of transplanted professors,

municipal employees, mining company leaders and

local residents put their heads together to come up

with a way to save it.

Years of mining, logging, fires, smelter emissions

and soil erosion had taken their toll, wiping

out almost all of the vegetation in the area and

poisoning lakes and streams. Because there were

no trees on barren sites, there were no leaves to

create the mulch that protects the soil. As a result,

the barren soil suffered from severe frost in the

winter and too much heat in the summer.

Sudbury’s landscape was compared to the surface of

the moon. Editorial cartoonists joked that birds had

to carry their lunchboxes from tree to tree because

they were few and far between.

And in the late 1970s, the community, its university

and the mining companies decided to do something

about it.

what happened in sudBury

The Sudbury landscape today is the result of several

environmental factors acting together over a period

of almost a century. Vegetation damage began with

irresponsible logging, fire and roasting beds, but

the decades of intense fumigation from smelters

caused most of the damage. The poisoning of the

soil by the addition of acids and toxic metals from

smelter fumes created conditions that were unlikely

to allow rapid natural recovery.

While logging and fires are blamed for some of the

damage to the landscape, mining is held accountable

for most. For the past century, Sudbury has produced

copper and nickel—and a dozen other metals. Today,

the 18 active mines in the area yield more than

50,000 tonnes (55,000 short tons) of ore each day.

Reserves are substantial and new deposits are still

being found—making mining a likely activity in

Sudbury for decades to come.

While mining operations took a toll on the

landscape, the majority of the damage is blamed on

smelting. “The regulations we have in place today

to protect the environment weren’t there decades

ago,” says Dr. David Pearson, one of Canada’s

foremost science communicators, a professor of

earth sciences at Laurentian University, and the

founding director of Science North. “There was

widespread contamination from smelter fumes, as

well as acidic runoff from waste rock.” The damage

impacted over 80,000 hectares (198,000 acres) and

17,000 lakes in the region.

Pearson explains that metal droplets from the

smelters were swept up the stacks by the velocity of

the rising sulphur dioxide gas. The droplets froze

into metallic dust that drifted to the ground and left

the soil heavily contaminated with metal. In turn,

the acidity of the soil mobilized the metals in the

soil and made them toxic to plants. Because the

soil was no longer able to support grass or shrubs,

surface layers of soil that held organic materials

washed away with nothing there to hold it in place.

Slopes and high land in the region lost close to a

foot of soil.

a Mining town

Two major mining companies were responsible for

the bulk of the activity in Sudbury—Inco (now Vale

Inco) and Falconbridge (now Xstrata).

CoMMUnITy and IndUsTRy CoMe ToGeTheR To saVe The enVIRonMenT

sudbury, ontario, Canada, is a tourist destination, with major attractions like science north and its internationally renowned science center and IMaX Theatre, dozens of lakes and scenic attractions.


“Vale Inco and Sudbury grew up together,” says

Vale Inco spokesman Cory McPhee, director of

communications and public affairs. “There was

a period when we were ‘Mother Inco,’ and the

community relied on us for everything. It was

not always a loving relationship. It was born of

dependency and the company was perceived as

arrogant at times.”

At its peak, Vale Inco employed 20,000 people in

the mines and processing plants. Through the late

1970s and early 1980s, both the company and the

community were hit by a downturn in the world

nickel markets that saw layoffs, shutdowns and

lengthy labor disputes that strained the relationship.

“The company faced a number of ongoing

issues that threatened its relationship with the

community,” says McPhee. These included the

atmospheric sulphur emissions that scarred the

surrounding landscape and destroyed vegetation

and acidified lakes; sulphur dioxide leaks into

the surrounding community; blasting noise and

vibrations in people’s homes; and operating noise

and dust.

McPhee said the company finally came to an important

realization—that Vale Inco and the community must

work together. “We benefited from the ore and the community benefited from the ore. We finally realized that we could get much further if we were partners.”

iMproving perForMance and reducing eMissions

Government regulations and newly developed

methods of removing sulfur from the ore and

smelter fumes have caused significant reductions

in emissions. Emissions were reduced at both

the Copper Cliff (Vale Inco) and Falconbridge

(Xstrata) smelters—in some cases by as much

as 90 percent.

“We recognized early on that improving our

communications and social responsibility would

only take the company so far,” explains McPhee.

“We knew we had to work on our performance—

reducing emissions, dealing with the impact

of our operations to-date, and improving our

blasting operations.”

In the early 1970s, Vale Inco erected the Superstack,

a 380-meter-tall (1,247-foot-tall) chimney constructed

at a cost of US$25 million to protect the nearby city

from smelter emissions.

In 1994, the company completed a US$600 million

sulphur dioxide abatement project, significantly

reducing emissions and improving air quality in

the Sudbury region. Work on emission reductions

continues today—with close to US$1 billion spent

since 1980. The company has reduced emissions

in Sudbury by more than 90 percent. Most

recently, a further 34 percent reduction was

achieved in October 2006 with the introduction

of new scrubbing technology at the company’s

fluid bed roaster facility. More significant cuts are

planned by 2015.

“The essence of our emission reduction efforts is

to capture and convert the sulphur dioxide that

would otherwise be emitted and transform it into

marketable products,” says McPhee. “We do it for

environmental reasons, but we’re also able to sell the

resulting sulphuric acid and liquid sulphur dioxide.”

The reductions in emissions set the stage for

further reclamation activities including pioneering

techniques such as aerial seeding of large tracts of

barren land inaccessible by traditional treatment

methods. The company also launched and paid

for a US$10 million soil study in partnership with

Xstrata, looking at the impact to human health and

the environment of years of metal deposits. Other

partners in the study included the City of Greater

Sudbury, the Sudbury and District Health Unit,

the Ontario Ministry of Environment, and Health

Canada Inuit and First Nations Branch.

Vale Inco also improved its blasting operations. “We

agreed not to blast before or after certain hours,”

says McPhee. “And we set up a phone system that

automatically calls residents before blasts over a

certain size. Residents told us that just knowing what

was happening has made a huge difference. It wasn’t

a technical solution; it was a community solution.”


perFect tiMing

While mining companies were working on becoming better citizens of Sudbury, an

effort was under way to begin turning around the community’s barren landscape.

The newly formed Regional Municipality of Sudbury created a “Technical

Tree Planting Committee,” which in 1978 changed its name to the Vegetation

Enhancement Technical Advisory Committee (VETAC). The organization is

committed to the restoration and protection of Sudbury’s air, land and water.

At the same time, joint work between the Ministry of Natural Resources and

Laurentian University was under way to create the “science” necessary to regreen

Sudbury’s landscape.

As part of its reclamation efforts, Vale Inco had tried sowing grass seed—which

would germinate, but the roots would wither as soon as they encountered the

contaminated soil. After years of experimentation, Laurentian researchers—led by

the late Keith Winterhalder, a Laurentian professor and former VETAC chairman—

learned that an application of ground limestone could detoxify soil. They also

learned that if a sparse grass cover could be established on a rocky hillside that had

been treated with limestone and fertilizer, seeds from the few existing trees in the

area would blow in, germinate and grow.

“This effort was a marriage of research expertise from the university and

municipal involvement,” says Pearson. “For the university, it was both a research

project and a public service. The people in municipal administration were also

keen to get on with the work. They were conscious of the city’s image and wanted

to change it.”

“The science isn’t really complicated,” says Pearson. “First lime is scattered onto the

soil to help deal with the acidity. And then fertilizer is added to provide the nutrients

that plants need. In the first four to five years of research, Keith Winterhalder and his

colleagues learned what were effective mixtures of lime and fertilizer, what grasses

would provide cover, what trees would survive, and how best to plant them.”

While the process isn’t complicated, it is very labor intensive. “everything had to be done by hand, by armies of people carrying bags of lime,” says Pearson. “and after that was done, they would walk the land with bags of grass seed and fertilizer.”Newly hired environmental planner Bill Lautenbach came across Winterhalder’s

research just as the community learned that the mining companies were laying

off thousands of workers. Lautenbach led a task force to come up with short-

term job creation opportunities—and thanks to a number of federal and local

grants, the city was able to put some of those unemployed people to work in the

regreening effort.

“I knew about VETAC,” says Lautenbach. “So I tried to get funds for some short-

term jobs to help with VETAC’s efforts, and they agreed. Over the years we have

received numerous types of grants and funding to keep this project going.”

1/ greater Sudbury’s big nickel, located at Science north’s dynamic Earth, is said to be the icon of Sudbury.

2/ A new forest grows on the shores of one of greater Sudbury's more than 300 lakes.

3/ Pine stumps photographed in the 1980s show exposed roots—testifying to the amount of soil loss that occurred due to erosion.

4/ Spreading limestone by hand is a very labor-intensive process, but is crucial to decreasing soil acidity—blocking the uptake of certain metals in the soil by plants.

1

3

2

4



The community of Sudbury, Ontario, Canada,

has a history rich in science—from mining

technology to geology to botany. Suggestions

for a Sudbury museum began in the mid-1950s

and continued until the late 1970s—when the

chairman and vice chairman of mining company

Vale Inco agreed to finance a study to explore the

concept of a science center in Sudbury.

In January 1981, Vale Inco donated US$5 million

to the project—the largest single corporate

donation to a community project in Canadian

history at that time. Falconbridge Ltd. donated

US$1 million—the largest donation in its

corporate history. And the Province of Ontario

committed US$10 million to the project,

paving the way to start construction on the new

museum, called Science North.

Science North opened its doors in 1984 and now

includes six attractions: a science center, IMAX

Theatre, butterfly gallery, motion simulator,

special exhibitions hall and Dynamic Earth,

home of the Big Nickel.

The science center boasts exhibits, theaters

and science labs. It is configured around the

labs, each led by a staff scientist, known as

a Bluecoat, whose job it is to involve visitors

in scientific activity inside the labs. The labs

explore astronomy, biology, physics, robotics,

computer science, human physiology and more.

In 2003, Science North opened Dynamic Earth—

a mining and geology attraction that combines

both above- and below-ground experiences.

The seven-story Vale Inco chasm leads to an

underground mining tour, where visitors witness

the transformation of mining over the last 100

years. Other attractions include the Rockhound

Lab, where visitors can trade their own rock and

minerals for samples in the lab; a newly renovated

Explora Mine—a scaled down version of a real

working mine—and Mining Command Center,

which includes a new Caterpillar® excavator

simulator training program; and the Xstrata Nickel

Gallery—a walk-through theater that takes visitors

through above-ground mineral processing.

Celebrating science—and mining—at Sudbury museum

the greening oF sudBury

Between 1978 and 2007, the “Greening of Sudbury”

saw 3,300 hectares (8,100 acres) limed and seeded,

and more than 8.8 million trees and 43,427 shrubs

planted. This is one of the largest re-greening efforts

in the world. It has been estimated that a total of

15 million trees have been planted over the past 30

years by VETAC, the industry and the community.

VETAC supplies seedlings, planting equipment

and guidance to groups, clubs and schools. It

also distributes thousands of pine seedlings every

year to citizens for residential planting. Many of

those seedlings come from Vale Inco, which grows

100,000 trees a year underground at its Creighton

Mine, where temperatures are 20 to 24 degrees

Celsius (68 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit) year-round.

“VETAC did not, of course, act alone,” says

Pearson. “Federal and provincial governments

provided funding. And without the investment of

hundreds of millions of dollars in new technology

by the mining companies that drastically reduced

sulphur emissions, all efforts of VETAC would

have come to nothing.”

seeing iMproveMents

For its first re-greening efforts, VETAC selected

areas of Sudbury that were highly visible—near

schools, in the center of the city, or along corridors

coming into the community. It didn’t take long

before the improvements were visible—and before

community residents became even more energized

to expand the efforts.

1/ This view of the martindale Road area in the early 1980s shows black rock and a few metal-tolerant grasses.

2/ The martindale Road area in the early 1990s shows great improvement. Today, trees block the view of the houses.

1 2


“Everyone knew it was going to be slow, slow work

and we were in it for the long haul,” says Pearson.

“A few dozen acres was the most we could expect

to do at one time. But even early on there were very

dramatic improvements.”

Lautenbach says the changes are both profound and

subtle. “It seems a gradual change to those who grew

up here, but to those who have not seen it in a while

it is remarkable. It attracts people to Sudbury. It’s a

different place today.”

why it worked

While the technical side of the regreening effort was

important, the social side has been equally as vital to

the success of the program. “Getting the community

involved is what has sustained the program,” says

Pearson. “About 25 percent of the trees have been

planted by community groups—Scouts, schools,

Lions and Rotary clubs. Some groups volunteer over

and over again.”

Many of those involved with the regreening effort

point to the people involved as the reason for its

success. Some of the early members of VETAC—

including Lautenbach and Laurentian botanist /

ecologist Peter Beckett—are still involved today.

“This continuity of individuals, their

determination, and the recognition that everyone

would work has helped make this project

succeed,” says Pearson.

Beckett agrees. “These people wanted to get things

done,” he says. “after 35 years, there are still about 20 people who were there from the beginning. and the mining companies are a part of it, too.”Pearson also points out the lack of finger-pointing as

a key to success. “There was no blame,” he says. “The

committee didn’t want to create hurdles by trying to

figure out whose responsibility it was and who would

pay. They looked within the city administration and

applied to the government for small amounts to

keep the work going. The mining companies were

spending plenty of money working on their issues,

so there was no advantage in laying blame.”

the Future oF the regreening eFFort

While much work has been done, much work remains.

Pearson estimates that just 30 to 40 percent of the land

that needs to be revegetated has been completed.

There is work done every year on a small scale.

“The big question is ‘when will it be finished?’ ” says

Beckett. “But we don’t know. We’re trying to bring back

a forest. There are areas of Sudbury that were reclaimed

over 30 years ago, and we still don’t know. How much do

we do ourselves—and how much do we leave to nature?”

This is an important question to ecologists and

to mining companies—which are charged with

returning the lands they disrupt as close as possible

to their pre-mining state.

“In the ecological world, when we cause a ‘disturbance,’

it may take 100 to 200 years to have a new forest,”

Beckett continues. “We’re trying to move things along

faster. We’ve overcome some of the critical inhibitions.

We’ve fixed the soil so nature will take over. We’re in the

process of assessing the sites to see if we can make a

projection of how things are going.”

Beckett says the woodlands in Sudbury have been

restructured. There are trees, insects and birds. “But

we’re still missing many of the species. We haven’t got

the whole assemblage of plants and animals back. We

don’t have all the trees or ground species back.”

A new ecological concern also will affect the

conditions in Sudbury: Climate change. “The annual

temperature has increased 1 degree since 1970,” says

Pearson. “That increases evaporation, so it seems

likely we will have drier soil conditions. The soil

isn’t as deep in Sudbury because of erosion, and the

trees are young. There is some concern that drought

might damage revegetated areas.”

Beckett says climate change may affect the planting

schedules as well as the types of trees selected. “We

can now plant trees in the fall when it used to be too

cold. But our spring planting is affected by hotter,

drier summers so many of the trees we used to plant

in spring are not surviving,” he says. “We’ll keep

doing research to see how well the sites are faring,”

Beckett continues. “We’re also always looking at

other ways to improve reclamation.”


The development of autonomous mining has

been a topic in the industry for more than

a decade. Caterpillar first demonstrated the

technology at MINExpo in 1996, but found not

only that the technology was not ready at that

time—but its customers weren’t ready either.

“Mines didn’t have the same business drivers

then that they do now,” says Caterpillar’s Ed

McCord, product manager, large mining trucks.

“When we talked with the customers about what

they needed, they indicated they weren’t ready

for autonomy.”

Mike Verheyen, Caterpillar Electronics & Connected

Worksite product manager, recalls, “Based on what

the mines told us and the limited technology at the

time, we focused on addressing their immediate

needs, while continuing our autonomy program

behind the scenes—concentrating on the building

blocks that are becoming the autonomous system

of the future.”

the tiMe is now

As technology improved and mining companies

faced new challenges in people and productivity,

autonomy again came to the forefront of the

industry and the equipment manufacturers who

support it. But perhaps the main driver for the

autonomy push is the boom in the mining industry.

Commodity prices are strong and economies

are thriving—and the demand for minerals has

grown at a staggering rate. Mining companies

eager to take advantage of the situation are

working to quickly move as much material as

they possibly can—while maintaining their focus

on safety.

“In the previous decades, mining companies were

meeting the demand with the equipment and the

people that they had,” says Ken Edwards, Caterpillar

mining technology manager. “That’s not true today.

In order for them to capitalize on the demand, they

need to get more ore out of the ground as quickly

and efficiently as possible.”

In addition, the mining boom has led to a time

of profitability for mining companies—and the

funds they need to invest in the future. “Mining

companies now have the money for research and

development, and they are focused on autonomy

as one of the technologies they want to see move

forward to support their operations,” says Edwards.

Many mining companies consider autonomy the key to the future of their industry—and for good reason. a successful autonomous mining haulage system accomplishes a number of their key goals, including positively impacting safety and increasing productivity.

the tiMe is right For autonoMy

the Futurebuilding the teChnologies For the Mine sites oF


the BeneFits oF autonoMy

Mining companies look at autonomy as an enabler

that will help them make quantum leaps in safety,

efficiency and productivity—lowering costs and

increasing availability.

Safety

“Zero injuries is the mantra of mining companies,”

says McCord. “A switch to autonomous mining

equipment will have a tremendous influence on their

achievement of that goal. When you can remove the

operator from harm’s way, he is not impacted by any

of these concerns.”

For example, significant injuries can occur as

operators access or egress from a machine. However,

with an autonomous machine, there is significantly

less need for a person to climb on and off.

Studies have also shown that head-to-head and

head-to-tail truck crashes are some of the most

common collisions in a mine. With autonomy, the

interaction between machines is tightly controlled

with various layers of redundancy to prevent non-

manned vehicles from hitting each other.

Consistency of operations

A key benefit of autonomous mining is consistency

of operations. All workers feel fatigue at the end of

the day—whether they’re working in a truck or in a

mine office. As a result, their efficiency goes down.

“Inefficiencies and human inconsistencies can add

up to millions of dollars of operating expenses or lost

revenue,” says Edwards. Consistency leads to better

efficiencies, lower costs and higher overall productivity.

Autonomous mining allows for repeatability and

consistency by using software to manage

the processs. Consistency results in a number

of potential benefits:

• In an autonomous operation, a truck can be

programmed to consistently back under the shovel to

within 25 centimeters (10 inches) all day, every day—

so the shovel operator does not have to waste valuable

time trying to chase the truck due to poor spotting.

• An autonomous truck cycle time will be

consistent throughout the shift—beginning,

end, and in the middle.

• An operator gets tired at the end of a shift, while

an autonomous machine operates at the same

efficiency 24/7.

• Visual truck safety checks can be done during fueling,

while the truck’s health is being continually monitored

by on-board health monitoring systems such as

VIMS (Vital Information Management System).

• An autonomous system will eliminate

misdirected loads.

• With “virtual shift change” on the trucks,

bunching at the start and end of the shift will

significantly disappear.

• By controlling speed, location, and truck routes,

the autonomous system may offer improved

algorithms to impact tire life.

• Consistently running the truck within design

specifications improves mechanical availability.

• Allowing the on-board and off-board computers

to maximize the truck and the autonomous

system may provide opportunities to minimize

fuel burned during the load-haul-dump cycle.

Caterpillar’s autonomous mine and truck simulator

will be used for testing fuel efficiency.

“With an autonomous system, the truck will do

whatever the shift supervisors have told the software

to do—and it will do it consistently,” says McCord.

“This will improve efficiency and utilization and

result in a lower cost-per-ton—the goal of every

mining company.”

Time wasted due to inconsistencies and

inefficiencies adds up to millions of dollars of

operating expenses, Edwards explains. “Mines

want to work to their maximum potential at

all times. This is the key role that autonomous

machines and mining technology products play

in the future of mining.”

People shortage

As mine sites move into more remote areas, it

becomes even more difficult to find qualified

people willing to operate the equipment. And the

increase in mining activity worldwide has depleted

the existing pool of operators. Autonomous

equipment offers a solution to this issue.


“Mining companies want to expand their operations

and increase production to take advantage of the

boom, and they just can’t get the people,” says

Edwards. By making new or expanded sites

autonomous, current employees can be deployed to

other positions while autonomy makes up the gap.

“ Mines will always need people, so it’s not a matter of companies reducing their work force,” says McCord. “Rather, they will be able to increase production using the employees they already have.”

Autonomy also may play a role in attracting a

new generation of employees to work in mines.

“This generation has grown up with high-powered

computers, instant communication and the

Internet,” says Michael Murphy, autonomous

mining commercial manager. “Autonomy’s ‘video

game’ feel is something that will attract them to

work in the industry. It will be something they

easily accept.”

In addition, autonomous mining will allow mining

companies to reduce the infrastructure required for

operations. When fewer people are working on-site,

there is less housing to build, less training required,

and fewer flights to and from remote areas.

the technology Building Blocks

Over the past 10 years, Caterpillar has focused

on building the core technologies for autonomy,

understanding that they would be needed one day.

In fact, mining companies around the world are

using the building blocks of autonomous technology

on surface and underground sites every day.

Today’s technologies include:

• Autonomous equipment systems such as MINEGEM,

which is used in a number of underground mines.

• Information management systems

• Machine health and condition monitoring systems

• High-precision Global Positioning System (GPS)-

based guidance and control systems

• Broadband wireless communication technologies

“Caterpillar has continued to advance toward

autonomy over the past 10 years by focusing

on the key core technologies and products, which

we call building blocks,” says Verheyen. “The

advancement of our fleet management system,

onboard monitoring systems and research on cost-

effective radar are examples of work directly linked

to autonomous systems.”

Cat customers use a number of products that

are considered the building blocks of autonomy:

MineStar™ Fleet Commander, MineStar™ Health,

MINEGEM, AQUILA™ Drill and Dragline

Systems, VIMS, Computer Aided Earthmoving

System (CAES), Slow Speed Object Detection,

Remote Control, Condition Monitoring, and

Predictive Analysis Service.

“ Today’s technology is laying the foundation for a technology revolution that will change the face of the mining industry for years to come,” says Chris Curfman, president of Caterpillar’s

Global Mining Division. The technology is moving

from machine guidance systems, to integrated

automated machine controls, to remote control

operations, to autonomous machines, and finally

to autonomous mine sites.

technology partnerships

Leading universities have partnered with equipment

manufacturers to begin enhancing the core

technologies for a fully integrated, autonomous

mine site. One such partnership exists between

Caterpillar and Carnegie Mellon, a global research

university of more than 10,000 students, 70,000

alumni and 4,000 faculty and staff.

“We’re aligning ourselves with the best and

the brightest minds in the fields of science and

engineering,” says Gwenne Henricks, Caterpillar vice

president of Electronics and Connected Worksite.

The Caterpillar / Carnegie Mellon collaboration is

a longstanding relationship, created to co-develop

automated equipment.

“I’ve been working with Caterpillar for more

than 20 years,” says robotics professor William

“Red” Whittaker. “And one of the outcomes of our


partnership has been 13 patents for technologies

and inventions.”

The two organizations are co-inventors of GPS

guidance for off-road machines, computer planning

for robotic digging, and operator-assistance for

loading trucks.

“ The utilization of GPs to guide an outdoor vehicle was envisioned and created 20 years ago—before the GPs constellation was even in the sky,” Whittaker recalls. “no one else could even envision that it would be a core technology used across all types of outdoor machines.”

The collaboration also resulted in the development

of sensors to safeguard a moving vehicle. “It’s

essential that a vehicle sees where it’s going and

stays out of trouble,” Whittaker says. “Equipment

operators are able to sense their surroundings,

make plans, and then take action. Humans aren’t

even conscious of the fact that we are sensing,

feeling, hearing and seeing. We just do it. But

machines need technologies to help them see and

react to what’s around them.”

For example, if a machine needs to follow a haul

road that requires a right turn, it must be told first

to see the road. Then it must plan to make a turn;

operate the steering, braking and throttle in order

to take that action; then decelerate into the turn and

accelerate when coming out of the turn.

Caterpillar and the university also have developed

technologies that make it possible to orchestrate

multiple vehicles on a mine site—which requires

fleets of machines to do the digging, the loading

and the hauling.

Typical projects begin as two-year studies at the

university. Once the technologies have reached a

level of relevance and their viability for a product

appears solid, then the organizations work together

to create a prototype of the product or feature

on a Cat machine. In addition to Caterpillar,

Carnegie Mellon has a number of other research

partners in industries like automotive, defense and

Caterpillar has partnered with Carnegie

Mellon University for decades, working

together to build technologies and develop

innovations that are the building blocks of

autonomous haulage.

That partnership also includes Caterpillar

sponsorship of the award-winning “Boss,”

an autonomous Chevrolet Tahoe that won

first place in the 2007 DARPA Urban

Challenge. The competition is sponsored

by the Defense Advanced Research Projects

Agency to help the United States defense

department develop a fleet of autonomous

ground vehicles to improve troop safety.

The Urban Challenge featured autonomous

ground vehicles maneuvering in a mock city

environment, executing simulated military

supply missions while merging into moving

traffic, navigating traffic circles, negotiating

busy intersections and avoiding obstacles.

CMU and its Tartan Racing group received

a US$2 million cash prize along with the

recognition as a national leader in robotic

engineering. The victory was based on

three criteria: data collected during the

competition, race time, and the ability to

comply with traffic laws.

“Team Caterpillar is tremendously proud

to be involved as a sponsor of CMU’s

Tartan Racing team,” says Tana Utley, vice

president of Caterpillar’s Technology and

Solutions division. “This victory represents

what can happen when business and

academia combine forces and work toward

a shared goal of advancing technology.”

As part of the sponsorship, Caterpillar

provides advanced technologies such

as drive-by-wire steering, sensing

and software. In addition Cat has an

embedded engineer working full-

time with CMU’s Tartan Racing team.

Electronics control the engines and

Caterpillar’s Morelectric™ system

generates the electrical power and air

conditioning for the on-board navigation,

control and guidance systems.”

Team leader William “Red” Whittaker, a

CMU robotics professor, says Caterpillar’s

business of developing innovative

equipment to performing rugged work

conditions made the company the perfect

partner in this project.

Nearly 60 participants applied for the

event, with the field narrowed to 11

finalists following a series of qualifying

events. Also receiving high honors was

Caterpillar-sponsored Virginia Tech’s

“Odin,” which took third place, and

Oshkosh Trucks “TerraMax,” one of

the finalists.

In addition to the benefits of

participating in the development of

the technologies used by its sponsored

teams, Caterpillar benefits from the

other teams as well.

“We’re leveraging the knowledge of all

the teams,” says Utley. “DARPA gives us

access to the brightest minds in the world,

and we’re taking that knowledge back to

Caterpillar and using it in our machines.”

Building an award-winning autonomous vehicle


CONTINUED ON PAGE 43


agriculture. That ongoing research—which leads to

technological advances—also becomes valuable in

the projects CMU is developing with Cat.

The collaboration strengthens the knowledge base

of both organizations. It exposes both CMU and

Caterpillar researchers to the rigors of applied

science and engineering, and to leading-edge

automation challenges.

advanceMents in technology

While the technology was not viable when

Caterpillar was ready to introduce autonomy more

than a decade ago, that is no longer the case.

“Technology has moved forward by leaps and

bounds in the last 15 years,” says Verheyen. “Back

when Cat first demonstrated its autonomous truck,

the Internet was in its infancy and WiFi-radio

communication was a concept in the university

research labs. And it was like something out of

‘Star Wars’ to think that you could get your e-mail

anywhere in the world on a hand-held device.”

CMU’s Whittaker agrees, explaining how far

technology has come since the university began

collaborating with Caterpillar more than 20 years

ago. “When the technological advances are viewed

over decades, it’s almost like going from fantasy

and science fiction to reality and manifestation,”

he says. “The differences are profound.”

“Every version of what we develop builds in

aspects of technologies we’ve developed before,”

he continues. “It benefits from advances we create

together—and the advances the world creates

for us.”

Automation technology has benefited from advances

in computing, in GPS, in gyroscopes and many

others, says Whittaker. “The mining industry and

Cat and Carnegie Mellon didn’t directly improve

those things,” he says. “But mine automation

benefits immensely from them.”

gps

The GPS constellations that are so important for

autonomous navigation did not even exist 15 years

ago, recalls Whittaker. “In 1990 it took several racks

of electronics and processors just to estimate the

machine’s position—and even then we couldn’t do

it accurately or quickly. LCD screens and flat panel

displays didn’t exist. Neither did the networked

radio systems that allow communication among the

vehicles and the mine managers.”

Electronic componentry

Many of the components that are standard on

the mining equipment of today didn’t exist when

the partnership began researching autonomous

technologies two decades ago. For example, electronic

control modules and embedded controllers are

standard features on every wheel loader, excavator

or truck made today. When the research began,

machines had mechanical controllers—not electrical.

Similarly, machines used hydraulics instead of

electro-hydraulics; sensors that are now available

at the time were expensive, low capability and

temperamental; and the algorithms, software and

processing that make autonomy possible were

either poorly understood, or tentative at best.

Perception technologies

One of the biggest challenges in the development

of autonomous mine sites is obstacle detection

and avoidance. Early versions of obstacle avoidance

systems caused a machine to come to a stop when

it detected an obstacle—resuming motion only after

the obstacle was cleared. More advanced technologies

enable an autonomous machine to determine

alternate routes around the obstacles it detects.

Significant advances have been made in these

“perception technologies,” which make it possible

for a vehicle to look at its environment and

recognize what it sees. “Any autonomous vehicle

has to take in sensor data, then process it fast

enough to plan a route and make adjustments,”

says McCord.

As autonomous fleets of mobile machines become

more widely used and complex, the task of planning

alternate routes to avoid multiple, and often moving,

obstacles requires the development of unique and

inventive methods to be successful.

“Radar sensors are one part of the perception

equation, but a number of different sensors are

required,” says Verheyen. “Any single technology


wouldn’t provide enough information to make the

truck work as a part of the total mining system.”

Management of exceptions

A human operator processes information without

even realizing it, and can handle exceptions; a truck

cannot. “We must be able to manage exceptions

with the software,” says McCord. “For example, if an

operator hears a strange noise, he’ll take preventive

action, such as reporting it to maintenance. So we

must expand VIMS to include those items normally

monitored by an operator. Likewise, an operator can

see a flat tire on the truck ahead of him, so we are

developing technologies that are able to monitor tires.”

an autonoMous haulage systeM

An autonomous mine site involves a lot more than

autonomous trucks. While the technology exists to

build a truck that can navigate a haul road, it has

to be able to work as part of a mine site system—

interacting with every piece of equipment and every

person on the site.

“We’re developing an ‘autonomous haulage

system,’” says Edwards. “It’s not just a truck.

It’s the process, the truck, the office software,

the infrastructure. It may include a drill, tractor,

truck, etc. It will incorporate technologies like

MineStar®, CAES and Aquila™, as well as radio

communications and positioning technologies.”

Site automation is much more than the

machines or the technologies. “Caterpillar is approaching autonomy in a comprehensive manner, where everything is automated—from blasting to loading to hauling to site management,” says edwards. “It’s a very different approach. all of the vision will not happen overnight but Caterpillar is laying the foundation for the fully autonomous mine to be there one day.”The successful implementation of these new

technologies will require significant changes in

people and processes. “Some mining customers

Sponsoring the teams also allows

Caterpillar to build actual components and

test them in real environments. “We’re

using these vehicles as a test bed for the

technology,” says Utley. “It’s a different

approach to product and technology

development and it’s working.”

Boss is a 2007 Chevy Tahoe that uses

19 sensors of six types to perceive its

surroundings. Software running on 10

blade computers uses the sensor input to

build a model of Boss’ environment and

to choose an appropriate set of actions for

each road and traffic situation.

Boss is equipped with more than a

dozen lasers, cameras and radars to view

the world. High-level route planning

determines the best path through a

road network. Motion planning requires

consideration of the static and dynamic

obstacles detected by perception, as well

as lane and road boundary information,

parking lot boundaries, stop lines, speed

limits, and similar requirements. Boss

handles surprises such as other vehicles

running a stop sign or making sudden

stops or turns. Defensive driving skills

allow Boss to avoid crashes.

Technology enables Boss to:

• Follow rules of the road

• Detect and track other vehicles at

long ranges

• Find a spot and park in a parking lot

• Obey intersection precedence rules

• Follow vehicles at a safe distance

• React to dynamic conditions like blocked

roads or broken-down vehicles

Each of the semifinalist teams had to

demonstrate technical prowess to get

invited to the event, but Tartan Racing

believes that it has several characteristics

that set it apart:

• Rigorous testing. Tartan Racing used

two identically prepared vehicles to

double the team’s testing capabilities,

logging more than 2,000 autonomous

miles during more than six months of

rigorous testing.

• Analysis tools. Tartan Racing has

developed tools that allow team

members to rapidly identify and correct

problems that arise during testing.

"Just as a good football team improves

itself by watching film of its games, our

system allows the team to visualize the

vehicle’s performance during tests,"

Whittaker says.

• Sponsors who are embedded on the

team. The Boss’ sponsors were active

participants, working side-by-side to solve

problems. Caterpillar has an Automation

Center near Carnegie Mellon University

which provided strong support to the

team, including an embedded engineer.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41


believe the biggest challenge to introducing

autonomy is not the technology, but the people and

processes,” says Murphy. “Oftentimes, engineers

focus on the product, but fail to understand

that people and processes must change if the

technology is going to deliver value.”

Recognizing that there will be new mining

processes resulting from autonomy, Caterpillar

recently announced a groundbreaking alignment

with BHP Billiton—the world’s largest diversified

natural resources company—to develop an

autonomous mining haulage system.

“This close collaboration will focus on Caterpillar

building an autonomous haulage system that will

tightly integrate with BHP Billiton mining processes,”

says Caterpillar group president Stu Levenick.

The two companies are launching joint development

programs, which includes enhancing existing

mining trucks by integrating them with robust

autonomous sub-systems—many of which Cat has

already proven in the marketplace.

the Best applications

Like any new technology, mine site automation will

not immediately be relevant in all ways on all sites.

Individual companies will have to distinguish which

sites have the best circumstances for early adoption.

Companies may find autonomy most useful where:

• The location is most remote

• Labor is less available

• Operations are highly repetitive

• Operations are simple

• A new site is being developed or an existing site

has significant expansion

“Of course areas like the frozen North, where

there are new opportunities to mine diamonds and

uranium, are extremely amenable to automation,”

Whittaker says. “But that’s not to say a 40-year-old

mine on the outskirts of a city, one that’s already

entrenched with human operations, would not be

the right application to get started with autonomy.”

the payBack

While development of an autonomous mine site will

require more capital upfront than a traditional site,

paybacks are rapid.

“ There are some costs for familiarization and for the learning curve and for embracing the new capability,” says Whittaker. “but there is an immense return on investment. Much of the componentry is already there. so the industry will get a lot for a little more. It’s inevitable that they’re going to embrace it.”

the Future

Whittaker maintains that autonomous technology

will move forward as quickly as the marketplace

demands. Once a number of mine sites are onboard,

other sites will work quickly to follow suit.

“Development is rarely paced by the technology,”

he says. “The technology is there, and it can be

built very quickly and introduced in a product.

Once the industry starts demanding it, it will go

much faster.”

“It can become such a value-add and such an

important competitive edge that it becomes

something you can’t be without,” he says. “It will

quickly go from being folly to being fundamental.

It is something that pretty quickly mining

companies won’t do without.”


CAT PLANS TO MEET EMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

Caterpillar has announced plans to meet stringent Tier IV emissions requirements, building on the success of its ACERT® Technology and integrating state-of-the-art systems that are designed, produced and supported by Caterpillar. System design will be tailored to optimally meet customer needs in each application and horsepower range. Instead of using selective catalytic reduction to meet the requirements, Cat Tier IV engine systems will be equipped with particulate matter after-treatment technology, including oxidation catalysts and diesel particulate filters with advanced regeneration systems that will optimize uptime, fuel efficiency and operator convenience.

CAT TO BUILD SMALL EXCAVATORS IN CHINA

Caterpillar plans to build small-sized (less than 18 tonnes or 20 short tons) hydraulic excavators in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, China—building a facility that fits into the company’s emerging markets strategy and will be a key element of the company’s worldwide excavator manufacturing footprint. Caterpillar plans to begin construction on the 33,900-square-meter (365,000-square-foot) facility in early 2009 pending appropriate government approvals. Caterpillar has 16 operations—both joint venture and wholly owned businesses— in China today.

CAT TO EXPAND MANUFACTURING IN INDIA

As part of its strategic plan to increase its manufacturing footprint in the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific region, Caterpillar has announced a four-year, US$200 million investment to increase manufacturing capacity in India. The company will significantly increase production of off-highway trucks made at its facility near Chennai. These trucks are used for coal and other mining applications in India. The company also will expand engine production at its facility in Hosur, adding production of the Caterpillar® 3508 engine, to be used primarily in off-highway trucks produced by Caterpillar in India.

CAT ACQUIRES BRAZILIAN LOCOMOTIVE COMPANy

Caterpillar has reached an agreement to acquire all of the capital stock of MGE Equipamentos & Servicos Ferroviarios Ltda (MGE), the manufacturer and reconditioner of traction motors, main and auxiliary generators, control equipment and auxiliairy components for locomotive and transit cars. Customers include several transit authorities and railroads in South America. MGE will become part of Caterpillar’s Progress Rail Services division, one of the largest integrated and diversified suppliers of railroad and transit system products and services in North America.

ACQUISITION TO ENHANCE CAT REMANUFACTURING BUSINESS

Caterpillar has announced that it will acquire certain assets of Gremada Industries, a leader in the process of remanufacturing and reclaiming metal parts and components used in transmissions, torque converters and final drives. Gremada provides service support and remanufacturing expertise for off-highway equipment used in the mining and petroleum industries. Based in North Dakota, the company will join 16 other Cat remanufacturing facilities located in the United States, Mexico, Europe and Asia.

CATERPILLAR INVESTING $1 BILLION IN FACILITIES

Demonstrating confidence in its ability to compete globally from a strong U.S manufacturing base, Caterpillar has announced a multi-year US$1 billon capacity expansion that will position key factories in Illinois and other areas to compete for the long term. The investments will allow Cat to

meet continued demand and bolster its global leadership for machines used primarily in mining and large infrastructure applications. The company will invest US$1 billion from 2008 to 2010 in five existing facilities in Illinois—East Peoria, Joliet, Decatur, Aurora and Mossville.

WHEEL LOADER DESIGNED FOR EFFICIENCy

The new Caterpillar 992K Wheel Loader will have new features that enhance productivity, operator efficiency and safety, serviceability and durability. The loader efficiently matches with the Cat® 777 and 775 off-highway trucks. The new loader delivers fast cycles and high bucket fill factors for productive truck loading. The 992K features the Cat C32 ACERT® engine for increased performance and US EPA Tier II and EU Stage IIa emissions compliance. Also boosting productivity is Positive Flow Control hydraulics—the next generation of load-sensing hydraulics.

ACCUGRADE HAS NEW ON-BOARD RADIO SySTEM

Caterpillar has introduced a new CR Series on-board radio that enables users to switch between GPS and ATS grade control without changing out the machine radio. Firmware on the CR radios upgrades directly through the display, eliminating the need for using a PC and simplifying machine installation and integration. The radio is available in two configurations—single band 900 MHz and 2400 MHz, and dual band 900/2400MHz. CR Radios share a common housing and electrical interface, which simplifies machine installation and integration. The new radios replace the TC450, TC900 and TC2400 radios.

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» For more Caterpillar news, visit www.cat.com


Visit www.cat.com/mining— starting September 22, 2008

In conjunction with MINExpo, starting September 22, 2008, visit www.cat.com/mining to request free materials; the new industry film “Ground Rules: Mining Right for a Sustainable Future,” “Managing a Mining Lifestyle” safety DVD, and a new poster series, “Mining safely. Mining more. Mining right.”

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