Source – cso.com.au
1. Big Data is one of the hottest technology trends today. It provides the mining industry a chance to manage the volume, variety and velocity from any source to boost business outcomes.
2. Big Data plays a great competitive advantage to any company in the mining industry as long as it is properly complied, analyzed and evaluated. It creates a huge impact on the industry.
3. Using Big Data for making predictions, a mining firm will not only increase its overall machine reliability, it also improves business operation efficiency. This could end up saving billions of dollars for the industry.
4. Big Data plays a vital role when it comes to safety for the miners. It could capture information about vibrations in the ground and determines the structural integrity of a mining operation.
5. Mining firms not using Big Data would do so soon due to its better safety procedures, increased efficiency and productivity and lower costs. The benefits are clear with some impressive results.
One of the hottest technology trends these days is Big data. In most businesses, the huge volumes of data come predominantly in the form of customer data as well as financial business data. In the mining industry, the data are more diverse, which means that they have en bigger quantities than most industries. The major data pools that mining firms have to worry about are geospatial and geological, maintenance and asset information, environmental, process control and automation, production and tonnage and the usual supply chain and more.
Big Data analytics provide miners a chance to manage the variety, volume, velocity from any source across the business to boost business outcomes. Data that is more accurate could be used to minimize costs and increase productivity. Thus, it presents a huge competitive edge to any firm in the mining field, if properly analyzed, complied and evaluated.
Mining is definitely complicated and requires using various equipment, technologies and sciences such as geology and engineering. With a lot of moving parts, the chance for Big Data to make a huge impact is great. One example of this would be predicting when an equipment could fail. This could be accomplished in the right use of the Internet of Things. Equipment should be outfitted with sensors that send back real-time information on its operations. From the data gathered, experts could determine if the equipment requires repair or is at risk of breaking down. By using Big Data to make predictions, mining firms not only increase its overall machine reliability but also improve business operation efficiency and could end up saving billions of dollars.
There are a lot of phases of the mining process wherein Big Data could be used. The three major ones include ore extraction, grinding it down for processing and segregating and concentrating components that are usable. Sensors are used to gather numerous points of data every second and send the data to be analyzed. This analysis actually could be taken to another level, wherein the operating center of a mine could actually analyze all sensors and circuits and ensure that they are all running at top performance. Without Big Data at the heart of the process, there is a slim chance that operators will get as much out of their equipment.
When it comes to safety for the miners, Big Data also play an integral role. A lot of mining companies worldwide have installed automated ground control systems used underground or for pit mining. The systems could capture information on vibrations in the ground and could determine the structural integrity of the operation. In the event of a significant, real danger, like for instance ground slide or tunnel collapse, the monitoring system could send out an early warning to miners to evacuate before any incidents occur. Furthermore, the same data could from ground monitoring could also be applied to developing a safer drill and safer blasting procedures.
The mining industry is just scratching the surface on all the potential stemming from Big Data. With better safety procedures, increased productivity and efficiency and lower costs, any organization not using Big Data would likely do so soon. For mining firms that are already taking advantage of it, the benefits are clearer with some impressive results.