taking control underground - viewpoint 11/aedq0077... · khorloo pays special attention to the cat...

REBUILT CAT® PLOW HELPS PINNACLE MINE

BREAK WORLD RECORD FOR PRODUCTION

A publication of Caterpillar Global Mining

2015: ISSUE 11

GLENCORE TAKES MAINTENANCE

TO A NEW LEVEL

TAKING CONTROL UNDERGROUND

CAT® DOZER DELIVERS 20 YEARS OF RELIABLE SERVICE

IN COAL-RICH MONGOLIA

OVERCOMING PRECONCEPTIONS ABOUT AUTOMATED HAULAGE

CAT DEALER IMPLEMENTS DEFINED MAINTENENCE AND REPAIR PROCESSES

Customers will realize the benefits

IMPROVING SAFETY THROUGH TECHNOLOGY:

Fatigue & distraction management

c Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 11

Wherever there’s mining, we’re there. For the past four years, that has been our rally cry

and our promise to our customers. In times of

prosperity, when increasing productivity is the top

priority, and in times of uncertainty, when lowering

costs is the goal — we’re there to be a partner to

this important industry.

We’ve developed this issue of Viewpoint to

showcase that promise in a multitude of ways.

• We show how Caterpillar and Cat® dealers

Finning S.A. and Toromont were there to help

our customer Glencore adopt contamination

control best practices—and reap the rewards

financially as well as through improvements in

safety and site culture.

• We prove that we’re there for underground

mining operations by showcasing dealer Carter

Machinery, which provided a full plow rebuild to

Cliffs’ Natural Resources’ Pinnacle mine within

weeks of taking on the former Bucyrus product

line. That same plow was later used to break a

world production record.

• We prove our commitment to quality and

highlight our dealer Wagner Asia, who was there

to help a dozer in Mongolia achieve greater than

a 20-year life.

• We show that we’re there with expertise beyond

the iron, with an educational article on the change

management required with the implementation of

an autonomous haulage system.

• We highlight our commitment to safety and

how we’re there with technologies, consultative

expertise and an understanding of data with

an in-depth article on fatigue and distraction

management.

• We demonstrate how Cat dealer Trakindo is

there to help customers get the most from their

machines by following all 10 of the defined

Caterpillar maintenance and repair processes.

We also demonstrate “we’re there” through this

magazine, which we produce to help our mining

customers learn from Caterpillar, Cat dealers and

each other how to succeed in this industry. Soon

we’ll be offering even more opportunities to learn

through ViewpointMining.com, our online version

of the magazine that will feature additional content

and new articles on a more frequent basis.

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to share

these stories with you. We’re looking forward to

many more opportunities to demonstrate our

commitment in the years to come.


Chris CurfmanPRESIDENT MINING SALES & SUPPORT DIVISION

Tony Johnson, Editor. David Edwards, Safety & Sustainability. Sean Gladieux, Product Support. Tim Siekmann, Product Support. Cara Barrick, Product Support. Bill Dears, Technology. Mindy Elsasser, Technology. Kent Clifton, Applications. Charlie Zimmerman, Marketing. Mike Lisowski, Americas North. Mark Richards, Americas South. Dan Wyatt, Asia Pacific. Martin Gill, Europe, Africa, Middle East, India. Mary Wang, China. Mike Unes, Global Accounts. Chantel Jones, Surface Product Marketing. Wrenn Miles, Underground Product Marketing. Converse Marketing, Publisher.

Viewpoint is a publication of Caterpillar, producer of the mining industry’s broadest line of surface and underground equipment and technologies. Caterpillar is headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, USA, and serves the mining industry through its Caterpillar Global Mining organization.

EDITORIAL BOARD:

Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint 1

Change management makes the difference OVERCOMING PRECONCEPTIONS ABOUT AUTONOMOUS HAULAGE 18

Fatigue and distraction management IMPROVING SAFETY THROUGH TECHNOLOGY AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT 30

6TAKING CONTROL UNDERGROUND

COAL-RICH MONGOLIA

TABLE of CONTENTS

GLENCORE MINE TAKES MAINTENANCE TO A NEW LEVEL

CAT® DOZER DELIVERS 20 YEARS OF RELIABLE SERVICE IN 2

CAT DEALER IMPLEMENTS DEFINED MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR PROCESSES CUSTOMERS WILL REALIZE THE BENEFITS 40

PINNACLE MINE BREAKS WORLD RECORD FOR PLOW PRODUCTION 24

NEWS FROM CATERPILLAR 53MINING FOR A BETTER WORLD 50» THIS SYMBOL MEANS THERE IS ADDITIONAL CONTENT ON VIEWPOINTMINING.COM

2 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 112 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 11

In 1993, a Cat® D8N Dozer went to work at the Shivee-Ovoo mine in a coal-rich region of Mongolia, where the temperatures drop well below zero during a winter that sometimes lasts six months. More than 20 years later, the mine continues to operate, the winters remain harsh—and that Cat Dozer is still working.

Located between Russia and China, Mongolia has

the potential to be one of the most prosperous

mining regions in the world. With its rich deposits

of coal, iron ore, copper, gold and uranium, which

are often located close to the surface, the country

could almost be called a miner’s paradise. The

only drawback is the harsh winter climate, when

temperatures can drop as low as minus 35 degrees

Celsius (minus 31 degrees Fahrenheit) in a season

that sometimes starts in early October and doesn’t

end until late May.

CAT® DOZER DELIVERS 20 YEARS OF RELIABLE SERVICE IN

COAL-RICH MONGOLIA


MINING A RICH DEPOSIT

Shivee-Ovoo operates in one of the largest brown

coal deposits in the country, located across the

Dornogovi and Govisumber provinces and

spanning about 775 square kilometers (230 square

miles). The mine was established in 1990, covering

about 30 000 hectares (74,000 acres) of land with a

coal reserve of 2.7 billion tonnes (3 billion tons). The

reserve of the current operation area is estimated at

646.5 million tonnes (712.6 million tons).

The mine’s primary product is high moisture

brown coal. The Mongolian National Mining

Association reports that the mine is responsible

for providing 30 percent of domestic coal demand

and 40 percent of coal demand for the country’s

central region. The mine’s location along a railway

line connecting Russia and China allows the site to

transport coal within Mongolia as well as export its

product outside the country.

The Shivee-Ovoo mine produces about 1.2 million

tonnes (1.3 million tons) of coal per year and has

a rated production capacity of 2 million tonnes

(2.2 million tons). The mine continues to grow

its output and is gradually attaining the targeted

level. At the same time, the mine is working to be

a good citizen of the community and respectful of

the environment, initiating measures to control

dust and wastewater under the guidance of the

Mongolian government.

OPERATING AROUND THE CLOCK

Shivee-Ovoo has been operating non-stop since

1990, producing 7.4 million tonnes (8.1 million

tons) in that time.

“Since its establishment, Shivee Ovoo coal mine

has been operating 24 hours a day, with two shifts

regardless of the weather conditions,” says Khaliun

Khorloo, vice director of technical support for the

4 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 11

operation. “We are proud of our highly skilled

employees, and also give credit to our reliable

equipment for that achievement.” Khaliun, who

reports directly to Otgonbaatar Oyunbat, Chief

Executive Officer of Shivee Ovoo Joint Stock

Company, held several management positions in

government agencies before joining the Shivee-

Ovoo operation.

When discussing machine reliability, Khaliun

Khorloo pays special attention to the Cat D8N

Dozer purchased by the mine in 1993.

“ This dozer is the only machine purchased that year that is still running 20 years later,” he says.

“ This proves to us the quality of Cat equipment, as well the quality of service that our Cat dealer, Wagner Asia, has been delivering for us.”

Since its commissioning in 1993, the sturdy D8N

has logged 78,000 hours: about 27,000 from 1993-

2002, 8,000 from 2002-2004, and nearly 43,000

hours from 2004 to today. And it’s still going

strong, working 8 to 9 hours a shift for a total of

around 500 hours per month.

The only exemption from the dozer’s non-stop work

cycle was a two-month period in August 2007 when

Wagner Asia performed an engine overhaul. After

the overhaul, the D8N continued its productive,

reliable performance, surpassing the life of other

machines on site. Khaliun Khorloo gives credit to

the service and support provided by Wagner Asia

since the dozer’s blade first touched the ground at

Shivee-Ovoo.

BUILDING A PARTNERSHIP

Wagner Asia Equipment LLC handles the

maintenance and repair for the site’s Cat equipment

for the full machine life cycle. Preventive


1/ Shivee-Ovoo and Wagner Asia technicians perform an overhaul of Shivee-Ovoo’s Cat® D8N Dozer’s engine.

2/ Khaliun Khorloo, vice director of technical support, joined the Shivee-Ovoo operation after holding several management positions in government agencies.

3/ Shivee-Ovoo operates in one of the largest brown coal deposits in Mongolia, covering about 30 000 hectares (74,000 acres) of land with a coal reserve of 2.7 billion tonnes (3 billion tons). The mine is responsible for providing 30 percent of domestic coal demand and 40 percent of coal demand for the country’s central region.

4/ Shivee-Ovoo and Wagner Asia have developed a strong partnership through the years, with Wagner providing service and support for the full machine life cycles of all the Cat equipment on site.

1 2

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maintenance work is typically done at 250, 500,

800 and 1,000 service hours. At 12,000 hours,

Wagner technicians perform a standard repair or

replacement of components.

Because of the strong partnership Shivee-Ovoo has

developed with its dealer, as well as the quality and

durability the mine is experiencing with current

Cat equipment, the site is considering the purchase

of additional pieces of equipment from the dealer.

“Rather than looking at the price and delivery

terms, we prefer to purchase some key pieces of

equipment because of durability and high quality,”

says Khaliun Khorloo.

Wagner Asia, the official Cat dealer in Mongolia,

is a 100 percent subsidiary of Wagner Equipment

in the United States. The dealer sells and rents Cat

machines for applications in the mining industry

as well as the construction business, including the

construction of roads and railroads. The company

is also focused on serving

Mongolia’s infrastructure,

agricultural, energy and

industrial industries.

Currently, the company has

more than 500 employees.

For the last eight years

Wagner Asia has been a

leading Cat dealer in sales

and service in the CIS and

Mongolia region. With

its contribution to the

national economy, business

development and social responsibility, the dealer

is one of the Top Ten companies in Mongolia,

measured by the metrics of the Mongolian

Government and the Mongolian Chamber of

Commerce and Industry. Wagner Asia has been

recognized as a market leader in Mongolia for its

efforts to follow business best practices, as well as

introduce new technologies, products and services.

“We are totally satisfied with the dealer’s technical

service,” he says. “Wagner Asia is fast and reliable,

and they always come on time to keep our machines

up and running.”

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

Future development at the deposit makes this

a promising site of economic production. The

Mongolian and Chinese governments plan to

build six new power plants at the Shivee-Ovoo coal

deposit with a capacity of 3,600 megawatts, which

will be located on 4 384 hectares (10,833 acres).

In addition, the company is at the development

stage of a new project involving Japanese

technology to extract liquid fuel from coal. The Coal

to Liquid (CTL) Plant would significantly contribute

to local fuel production in Mongolia, which is

necessary to reduce the country’s dependence

on imported fuels. π

4


The conventional wisdom is that underground mining is a dirty business. And in many ways, that’s true. Underground miners work in spaces that are often cramped, damp and dark. The environment is challenging at best.

Because of these conditions, underground maintenance and repair shops often are not held to the same standards as surface mines. But one underground mine decided to change this perception, building a world-class maintenance shop underground and following best practices for contamination control.

As a result of its efforts, this mine — Nickel Rim South in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada — earned the first Caterpillar Certified Five-Star Contamination Control designation for an underground maintenance facility. It’s no coincidence that this underground site is owned by the same company that owns the first-ever mine to earn the five-star designation for a surface operation — Minera Alumbrera copper-gold mine in Argentina, which recently celebrated its 10th consecutive year as a five-star site.

MAKING MAINTENANCE A PRIORITY

Both Nickel Rim South and Alumbrera are owned by Glencore, one

of the world’s largest commodities producers, created through a merger

of Glencore and Xstrata in 2013. While they are on different continents

and produce different materials, the mines share the same goal of being

world-class producers. And both sites recognize the important role of

maintenance in achieving that success.

GLENCORE MINE TAKES MAINTENANCE TO A NEW LEVEL

6 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / Issue 11

In 2005, Alumbrera implemented a new

maintenance strategy in an effort to extend

component life in its truck fleet. Key to the strategy

was the implementation of a contamination control

program in partnership with Caterpillar and

Finning S.A., the Cat® dealer in Argentina.

While the individual elements of contamination

control are widely known best practices, Caterpillar

has developed a defined set of procedures that must

be followed and a formal auditing process to verify

that a site is meeting the standards. Cat dealers

and individual mine sites can earn “star” ratings

based on their performance. The highest is a five-

star rating, which indicates 95 percent or better

compliance with the standards.

Alumbrera shares maintenance and repair duties

with Finning, working as a team to ensure

high reliability of the equipment. Alumbrera

maintenance personnel are responsible for a

portion of the mobile fleet, while Finning has

the remainder.

After seeing the success Finning technicians

on site were having through an adherence to

contamination control procedures, the mine

partnered with the dealer and Caterpillar to begin

an 18-month process to implement the program.

Today, 10 years later, the site continues to achieve

the five-star designation, reaping the benefits of its

world-class maintenance program.

“This site is one of our shining stars,” says

Simon Bishop, contamination control market

professional at Caterpillar. Thanks in large part

to its contamination control program, the site has

estimated savings of millions of dollars over the

life of the mine, including US$7 million alone

through the extension of major component life

in the truck fleet. In addition, the site enjoys

significant improvements in Mean Time Between

Stoppage (MTBS) and reductions in unscheduled

maintenance, all contributing to increased truck

reliability and availability.

The program has proven so successful that the

mine owner used Alumbrera as the maintenance

model for its mines around the world. In addition,

Alumbrera serves as a benchmark for Caterpillar’s

five-star customer sites.

TAKING ON A CHALLENGE

During a Caterpillar mining forum event,

participants were challenged to take away one thing

from the sessions that they could implement at their

site. Tim Hinds, maintenance general foreman

at Glencore’s Nickel Rim South mine, was in

attendance — and he chose contamination control.

That topic was still top of mind in 2011, when

Nickel Rim South mine was in the beginning

stages of developing a new $US10.3 million

underground maintenance shop. Caterpillar

contamination control market professional Ron

Meischner visited the mine to evaluate the workflow

and contamination control compliance of the new

facility. During the visit, he was asked by Stu

Greaves, the mine’s representative from Cat dealer

Toromont, to give a presentation on contamination

control to some of the site’s key management

personnel.

“When I completed my presentation, I was

approached by Tim, who asked if I would support

him if he decided to implement a contamination

control program,” recalls Meischner. “My response

was, ‘Toromont and Caterpillar are your first line of

support, and my job is to support them — so yes,

I will!’ ”

Hinds requested Meischner return a month later

to perform a baseline assessment and to provide

guidance on the prioritization of continuous

improvement projects. “The mine team was

excellent to work with and very proficient at project

management,” says Meischner, who continued

to support the site along with Susan Gaugush, a

Caterpillar service technical representative.

“ We showed Tim how a proactive contamination control program could lower their operating costs, and we brought metrics to prove it,” says Meischner.

“ He brought in other people on the team and began to build collaboration and a commitment to making contamination control part of the culture.”


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“We pointed out the fact that Glencore had the first

surface five-star mine,” continues Meischner. “And

we said, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if they also had the

first underground one?’ Tim jumped on board, and

here we are.”

SUPPORTING AN UNDERGROUND OPERATION

Nickel Rim South is the largest mine in Glencore’s

Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations, which has

been mining in the area since 1929. The mine is

located in a 60-kilometer (37-mile) wide geological

formation known as the Sudbury basin. In addition

to Nickel Rim South, the operations also include

Fraser mine, Strathcona Mill and Sudbury Smelter.

The site primarily produces nickel and copper, with

some gold, silver, platinum, palladium and cobalt

also produced. The Sudbury operations employ

about 1,300 permanent workers.

Ore was discovered at the site between 1100

and 1700 meters (3,609 and 5,577 feet) in 2001.

Construction of Nickel Rim South began in 2006

and the mine has successfully operated at full

capacity since October 2010. The mine produces

about 1.25 million tonnes (1.38 million tons) per

year.

Nickel Rim South is a blasthole mine, allowing the

site to take advantage of gravity and a minimum

amount of hauling. The mine drills 30-meter

(98-foot) panels and handles the ore with scoops.

Production equipment includes 10 Cat R1700G

underground loaders, one Cat AD45 underground

articulated truck, three 420F backhoe loaders, a

120M motor grader and three TH40 telehandlers.

On the surface, operations are supported by an

IT38G integrated tool carrier and a V300B forklift.

Originally the mine operated with three

captive levels, which made it necessary to have

maintenance shops on each level. Each shop was

about 5 meters high and 5 meters wide (16.5 feet by

16.5 feet), a tight fit for a Cat R1700.

“We had one foreman for all three levels, which was

a little difficult,” recalls Hinds. “We couldn’t share

equipment and it was an effort to move people.”

New shops were built in 2008, but they were still

located on different levels and were far from ideal.

But Hinds looked at the challenges as a learning

opportunity for the next step. “We learned quite

a bit during those days about how we could make

improvements and what we ultimately wanted

our shop to be,” he says. “We listened to the

tradespeople and listened to our people to see how

we could get a better shop. We came up with a

vision of what we wanted that shop to be, and how it

could improve our operation.”

TAKING MAINTENANCE TO A NEW LEVEL

In 2010, the Nickel Rim South team shared

its vision for a new maintenance shop with its

corporate owners, asking for US$10.3 million to

make it happen. That vision was broken down into

five key focus areas:

1. Safety. A more ergonomic shop design, combined

with a larger workspace and storage areas to

improve housekeeping, would make working

conditions safer for everyone on site.

2. Quality and reliability. A new shop

would improve maintenance across the

board — extending the lifespan of equipment,

minimizing the cost per hour of the equipment

fleet, and enabling a more comprehensive

component replacement program.

3. Revenue opportunity. Improved maintenance

leads to equipment that runs better and lasts

longer. A decrease in Mean Time to Repair

and fewer breakdowns make equipment more

available and could make it possible to reduce the

size of the fleet required to run the operation.

4. Materials savings. When maintenance is

proactive and components are replaced in a

timely manner, fewer parts and components

must be kept on hand in case of an emergency

repair. In addition, managing inventory of

parts and tools in a centralized facility leads to

improved efficiencies.

5. Labor productivity improvements.

Providing a centralized space for maintenance

employees, with active supervision, would create

synergies and build a unified, focused team. In

addition, the new space would allow the mine to

do more work on its own equipment rather than

contract it out.

“ In order to get the funding for the new shop, we had to work hard to ensure that we achieve the high standards in all of our focus areas,” says Hinds. “And I have to say, we’ve achieved our target and are able to showcase every one of them.”

» » »

TAKING CONTROL OF CONTAMINANTS

Nickel Rim supports its underground mining

equipment in partnership with local Cat dealer

Toromont. Both Toromont and Caterpillar were

key advisors to the maintenance team during the

planning and construction of the new shop.

“We went through many phases during the

development,” says Hinds. “We met with our

mechanics and got their input. We talked to

tradespeople. We went to Toromont’s rebuild shop

to see how they are organized. We got a lot of best

practices from watching how they work.”

Hinds had long taken advantage of the expertise

of Caterpillar and Toromont. In 2010, he attended

a Caterpillar mining forum event during which he

first began to think about contamination control

and how he could implement some of these best

practices into Nickel Rim South.

“We decided that we didn’t want to run our facility

like we had been, and like many other underground

sites traditionally do,” he says. When Caterpillar’s

Meischner visited the site, his initial analysis

led to a 2 ½-year project to advance the cause of

contamination control.

After the initial assessment, Glencore took on the

challenge to achieve Caterpillar five-star status — a

challenge that would take the mine from a base

score of 23 percent compliance to the required 95

percent. “Nickel Rim South took ownership of the

project,” Meischner says. “The mine assembled

a team, developed the action items and made the

commitment.”

“ They advanced their shop in a sustainable way,” Meischner continues. “You can’t sustain something this monumental if you try to do it all in just a few months. We looked at every aspect of the process as a continuous improvement project.”

INCORPORATING CONTAMINATION CONTROL INTO DESIGN

Because Nickel Rim South was in the process of

building an entirely new maintenance shop, the

mine was in the perfect position to design a facility

ideally suited to control contamination.

Ventilation was a key consideration, making the

air safer for underground workers but also reducing

dust that is a leading contributor to contamination.

Air is forced in and out of the shop and the space is

designed for ventilation flow. This eliminates the

need to purchase expensive electricity to

power fans.

The entire area is designed with a one-way system

of travel. A staging area helps with traffic flow

10 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint

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1/ To reduce dirt in the shop, all equipment must be cleaned in the wash bay before it comes in for maintenance.

2/ Community tools owned by the mine take up less space and stay more organized.

3/ The shop itself is ergonomically designed to make maintenance tasks easier on the technicians.

1

into the maintenance area, which also keeps the

environment safer for those working in the shop.

A wash bay is located just outside the shop, and all

equipment must be washed before it comes in for

maintenance.

The shop itself is ergonomically designed to make

maintenance tasks easier on the technicians. The

area includes three individual ramps and a crane

that hangs from the back of the shop to keep the

floor area clean. Work benches were eliminated

from the new shop. “Work benches tend to get

cluttery and things pile up underneath them and

they just become a mess,” says Hinds.

Hand tools are stored in a specially designed area,

eliminating the need for each individual mechanic

to have his own tool box. “Tool boxes usually sit

up against the wall, and that means there’s dirt

underneath,” says Hinds. “In addition, we have 44

mechanics down there, which would mean 44 tool

boxes. That takes up a lot of space. So we buy the

tools, and even though we’re spending money on

them, we save that tenfold by not developing that

extra landscape underground.”

A reference library contains maintenance manuals

and computers so the mechanics can make up work

orders and order parts. The parts department and

warehouse are nearby but are kept locked to keep

them clean and organized.

STARTING WITH SOME QUICK WINS

The mine’s road to the five-star achievement started

with some simple changes well before construction

of the new maintenance shop was under way.

“They had to go back to basics,” says Meischner.

“Sometimes it’s just as simple as making sure the

right oil goes in the right hole at the right time.

You have to pay attention to the basics before the

bells and whistles will do you any good.”

Hinds agrees. “At the same time we were

incorporating contamination control into the design

of our new shop, we went after the low-hanging

fruit and made some changes.” These sometimes-

easy fixes are based on best practices and can be

implemented quickly and for minimal cost.

Eliminating oil-absorbing granular material

When visiting Toromont’s rebuild facility,

Hinds noticed that the shop didn’t rely

on “floor dry” to absorb spills on the

shop floor. “At Nickel Rim South,

the crew would bust a bag open,

spill it on the floor, scatter

dust everywhere. They’re

breathing it in,” he says.

“Then we don’t always

clean it up right

away so we end up

shuffling it around. The next day you clean up

half of it, and the other half gets kicked around

under the tool boxes and the benches, the scoops

run over it, creepers are catching in it and it’s

embedded in the floor.” The mine purchased

some environmentally friendly absorbent pads,

got some mops and pails for cleaning, and gave it

a trial. The use quickly spread to other levels.

Taking care of fluids

Nickel Rim South buys the best oil possible for

use in its equipment, but that doesn’t guarantee

cleanliness. By putting dessicant filters on barrels

and bulk tanks, sealing them, adding a kidney

loop system and doing particulate counts before

refilling the tanks, the site has made great strides

in protecting components from the dangers of

contaminated oil. “We continuously clean,” says

Hinds. “It’s working out great.”

In addition, the maintenance department installs

a kidney loop system on the hydraulic system of

electric-powered machines to eliminate the dust

and contamination that are continually being

pulled in. The mine has two portable kidney

looping units for use across the fleet. “This has

been extremely successful for us,” says Hinds.

Protecting hoses

In addition to building an ergonomic hose rack,

the maintenance team found they could keep

hoses cleaner by using re-sealable plastic bags to

cover hose ends, eliminating the need to shuffle

through a pile of contaminated plugs of different

sizes in search of one that fit. “These are just

pennies apiece,” says Hinds. “And they make a

huge difference.”

Protecting new parts

In addition to working with OEMs to ensure parts

and components arrive properly packaged, Nickel

Rim South now bags and seals every product that

doesn’t come in an appropriate container. “Parts

are expensive. We try to protect our investment,”

says Hinds. “We don’t keep anything in open

bins. We have drawer systems, plus the second

layer of protection in a re-sealable bag or the

original packaging.”

In addition, the mine invested in an inexpensive

backpack vacuum that is used to pick up the

dust in the parts area that is not captured by the

ventilation and pressurization system. “We’ve

got millions of dollars invested in parts, and

when I go to use them, I want them to last. This

small investment makes a world of difference in

keeping the area clean.”

Keeping fuel clean

Hinds admits that Nickel Rim South had a lot to

learn when it comes to clean fuel. “Our breathing

systems were open to the atmosphere,” he says.

“Every time we sent the fuel down into the mine,

there was a risk that we were contaminating what

we were buying.” The mine invested in dessicant

breathers and added weighted explosion discs to

keep the fuel covered. “This stuff is cheap, but it

was stuff that we missed,” he says.

Leveraging technology

Working with Toromont, Nickel Rim South uses

a scheduled oil sample program (S.O.S.SM) on all

equipment, down to the smallest machines. The

system allows for real-time auditing, measuring

30 different parameters and sending emails

to keep the maintenance team informed of oil

pressures, temperatures, idle time and more.

“We don’t have to rely on the operator to tell us if

a machine is having a problem because now we

know it, too,” says Hinds.

CHANGING A CULTURE

Hinds and the Caterpillar experts are quick

to point out that while making contamination

control a priority may seem obvious, changing

the way things are done at a mine site is not

an easy task. The achievement of five-star

status required training, good communication,

continued reinforcement, regular assessment

and the buy-in of everyone involved. Even now,

it takes constant reminders to make the effort

sustainable. “This was tough to do, and it’s a

never-ending battle,” says Hinds.

Communication is key to Nickel Rim South

mine’s success. In addition to telling the team

what is expected of them, it’s important to listen

to what they have to offer. “There are a lot of good

ideas out there,” he says. “Knocking down the

low-hanging ideas created an environment of

trust and engagement, inspired creativity among

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1/ The mine bags and seals every product that doesn’t come in an appropriate container. Small parts are stored in drawers to keep them clean and organized.

2/ Keeping fluids clean requires a routine of dessicant filters, kidney loop systems and regular particle counts.

3/ Simple plastic bags make it easier to cover hose ends.


the workforce, and allowed change to be embraced

instead of resisted.”

Operator buy-in is especially important. “It takes

a while to prove that there is a better way,” Hinds

says. “We explained what contamination control

was and how it could help. We shared the results,

like reductions in downtime and the availability of

equipment. Then they started looking at the things

we were doing and watching those results.”

Hinds and his team shared ideas with the operators

on what they can do to help with the contamination

control effort. “We gave them examples, like wipe

off the nozzle before you top off your engine

oil, wipe a cap before you take it off, don’t dump

contaminated oil in the machine or carry around a

bunch of open-ended hoses,” he says.

In return, the operators shared their ideas. “We

acted on the ideas they put forward,” says Hinds.

“If you want to sell your ideas, you need to use

theirs. And they do have a lot of good ones.”

Hinds is pleased with the support the Nickel Rim

South operators have given the contamination

control effort. “We quickly saw their buy-in. There

are a lot of crews now washing equipment between

shifts. We see less damage to machines when

they’re coming in for service. In return, we make

sure their machines look good when we return

them. If we keep them running and looking good,

the operators have more pride in their machines

and they take better care of them.”

The team sets expectations at the beginning of

every shift, following a comprehensive list covering

all elements of the shop: entry and exit inspections;

cranes, ramps, floors, barricades and stands;

lighting, housekeeping and garbage; storage and

stacking; bulk lube storage; and more.

“Every morning we get the whole team involved,”

he says. “The mechanics, the tradespeople, the

operators, the mine superintendent. Maybe there’s

an operator talking about a problem with a bucket.

Maybe there is a blade that’s not cutting properly

or there is a problem with the seat. It may be a little

problem to you, but go down there, find out where

they are working and see what you can do. You

can usually solve the problem and also develop a

relationship with your people. It makes a world of

difference because you get to know them and they

THE BASICS OF CONTAMINATION CONTROLThe steps that mines can take to control contamination range from the straightforward — such as good housekeeping — to the less common, such as particle counting. The basic procedures focus on clean facilities, clean components, clean processes and clean fluids.

Simon Bishop, contamination control market professional at Caterpillar, shares best practices for sites to begin reaping the benefits of this important activity.

• An ongoing training program for all shop and parts personnel (including management and labor) must be in place. Classroom and on-the-job training are required to ensure all those who have an impact are thoroughly familiar with all of the processes and procedures of a successful contamination control program.

• All machines and components should be washed using high-volume, high-pressure wash equipment before entering the shop. The intent is to remove dirt and oils that could contaminate the machine being worked on as well as to keep the shop clean. Once the machine has been washed, it is equally important to have a clean concrete or crushed stone/gravel path from the wash bay to the shop and a concrete apron to prevent dirt entry in the shop. Underside water nozzles at the entrance or in the center of the wash bay complement high-volume water cannons, reducing machine wash time and freeing time for planned maintenance, backlog repairs or a faster return to production.

• Hoses and tubes require special care. All hose / tube ends should be appropriately capped or plugged and all hoses and tubes that are removed during the repair process must be cleaned prior to reinstallation. A supply of clean caps, plugs and plastic wrap or bags should be in a readily accessible area where they are protected from shop and parts warehouse contamination. A portable cart that is easy to move to the machine and around the machine makes it more likely that proper caps and plugs will be used and reduces time wasted retrieving the right cap or plug.

• A preventive maintenance cart is recommended. The contents should be staged prior to a planned maintenance activity and outfitted for the specific machine being serviced. This ensures the necessary equipment is available and the contents are clean and protected. Contents may include items such as clean exchange magnetic plugs and screens, vacuum pump and tubing (for fluid samples that cannot be taken live), fluid sample bottles, filter cutting tool, digital camera, low-lint towels, etc. All should be bagged and protected.

• Oil spills should be cleaned immediately using a vacuum or absorbent pads specifically designed for collecting oil. Final cleaning is with a clean water mop and degreaser; hot water is preferred. The use of oil-absorbing granular material is not recommended as it creates airborne dust, which contaminates other areas of the shop and makes a mess during disposal. Granular materials have a high probability of being tracked throughout the shop and becoming a source of contamination.

• Parts must be kept clean until installation. They should be kept inside the original packaging until they are ready to be installed. This will significantly reduce contamination problems.

– Filter boxes should be kept clean and unopened, and filters that are shrink wrapped should remain in the shrink wrap until installed.

– O-rings require two levels of clean protection, which could include storing in re-sealable plastic bags and a clean cabinet. Contaminated O-rings have the potential to create a leak path when installed and in service.

– All fluid-carrying hoses and tubes should be stored with end caps in place. When an uncapped hose or tube end is found, the hose or tube should be cleaned before being capped. It is important that the right-sized cap or plug is used to cap the hose or tube. (continued on page 15)

get to know you and they want to do a good job.

It makes my life a lot easier.”

A key component of the morning meetings is safety.

The site incorporates a Positive Attitude Safety

System (PASS) that brings safety to the forefront

before the start of every shift. “We tell our people to

call out their co-workers when they see them doing

something safe,” says Hinds. “We give people the

opportunity to talk to each other about safety and

to thank each other for their efforts. They can share

information on what they’ve seen, what they’re

worried about, things they have noticed. They

coach each other.”

REAPING THE REWARDS

It’s easy to see the results of Nickel Rim South’s

contamination control efforts by looking at its

compliance scores — taking its adherence to the

program’s principles from 23 percent to 96 percent

in just three years. Success was realized in a

number of areas:

Component life

In 2008, it was estimated that the mine’s

equipment component life was reduced about

2,000 hours from its expected lifetime. Engines

that were supposed to last 14,000 hours were

instead being replaced early at 12,000 hours.

By 2011, components were lasting their expected

lifetime and today the site has added an average

of 2,000 additional hours to the expected lifetime

of components.

Planned vs. unplanned maintenance

In 2008, Glencore maintenance engineers told

the Nickel Rim South mine that 60 percent of its

maintenance work should be planned. In 2009

the site was averaging just 35 percent, which

meant the rest of the maintenance team’s time was

spent addressing breakdowns. In 2014, planned

work hit the 87 percent mark. The benefits of this

achievement are significant.

“A planned job can be up to eight times cheaper

than a reactive job,” claims Hinds. “It also gets done

a lot quicker and we can plan around the operations

so we’re not pulling a machine out of production.”

At the same time, unplanned maintenance was

being reduced — from a high of around 65 percent

to about 25 percent in 2013, lower than the mine’s

goal of 30 percent. Today, that number is actually

well below the goal at around 13 percent. “Now,

in addition to helping us improve the lives of our

equipment and components, we have time to do

the other activities — to adjust our processes and

procedures and continually improve,” says Hinds.

“And it gives our maintenance team credibility

with the operations team. Equipment is never the

bottleneck at our site.”

In addition, the availability of critical equipment

has surpassed the mine’s target of 80 percent and

today reaches about 93 percent. Prior to the new

shop, radiator operating hours were about 1,000

hours before replacement. The introduction of soda

washing has increased that life to 9,000 hours.

“Yes, replacing a radiator is expensive. But it’s the

lost time and lost productivity that really adds up.

We’re looking at thousands of dollars of deferred

revenue every time a scoop is down.”

Tire life

Improving underground roads is a challenge,

but it’s one worth tackling. By getting water off

the ramps, directing water, improving sumps

and understanding the source of water, the site

has made significant progress. The results are

especially evident when it comes to tire life. “Water

is the enemy of tires,” says Hinds. “By paying

attention to our roadbeds and talking to the miners

about how harmful water can be, we’ve cut our tire

costs in half.”

Safety

The measurable results of Nickel Rim South’s

contamination control program are well-defined.

But the intangible results may be just as

valuable. The site has seen improvements that

have affected all of Glencore’s corporate values:

entrepreneurialism, simplicity, safety, responsibility

and openness. “Our five-star designation touches

all of these values,” says Hinds.

Safety, especially, has been impacted by the new

shop and its adherence to contamination control

principles. “Safety is very important to our mine

and the Sudbury community,” says Peter Xavier,

Nickel Rim South Director. “We’re very proud to

say our employees as well as contractors worked

13 months without a single lost time injury in our 14 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint

integrated business of exploration, mining, milling

and smelting activities. That means not a single

person went home — for 13 months — because

they were injured on the job.” In 2013, the site

was awarded the prestigious regional John T. Ryan

award for its record as the safest mine in the

province of Ontario.

SHARING THE CREDIT

Hinds is quick to point out that Nickel Rim South

mine’s successes are the work of everyone on

site — the operations and maintenance teams, the

tradespeople, and the Caterpillar and Toromont

employees who advised them.

“You have to make sure that you take that award

down to the miners and technicians. They are the

ones who made it happen. I’m just an enabler.”

In addition to earning the Caterpillar Five-Star

Contamination Control designation, the site was

named Best Maintenance Facility by Planned

Engineering & Maintenance magazine, earning a

spot on the magazine cover and a full-length article

about the mine’s maintenance journey.

“With proper facilities, tools, processes and

leadership, the mobile maintenance group

have raised the bar when it comes to safety and

equipment reliability,” the magazine reports.

“The team’s list of examples demonstrating

cost-saving efforts that have been successfully

implemented in the now-integrated maintenance

shop is commendable.”

CONTINUING THE JOURNEY

Now that Nickel Rim South has achieved the

five-star designation, the goal is to never let it lapse.

“We will keep auditing what we’re doing. We’ll

learn from our mistakes, listen to our OEMs, get

wisdom from everyone we can,” says Hinds.

While the construction of the new shop had a

significant impact on the mine’s success, Hinds

predicts the mine would have gone after the five-

star designation even without it. “We may not have

achieved it, but we would have taken a shot. The

paybacks are amazing.”

“It’s a tough environment in which to make money

right now,” he continues. “We all have to do our

part to cut costs and help us produce. I think the

five-star designation has helped us a lot.” π

THE BASICS OF CONTAMINATION CONTROL (continued)

• Components and parts must be protected when work is in process. During system invasion repairs or during component remove and install, all of the machine’s exposed cavities should be covered with plugs, metal or magnetic covers, plastic wrap with tape, or guards. Contamination-sensitive parts should also be protected with clean drop cloths or plastic during periods of inactivity such as breaks, meals, shift changes and overnight.

• Housekeeping makes a big difference to contamination control efforts. If the shop environment is clean and uncluttered, it will reduce the chances of contaminating equipment being serviced and repaired, as well as increase repair and maintenance efficiencies. Seal floors and clean them daily or more often if needed, keep tools and equipment clean and organized, maintain work benches, install material on work surfaces to protect sensitive parts, and store parts off the floor.

• Protect bulk fluids.

– Start with clean bulk storage tanks.

– Filter fluids entering the tank to keep the tank clean and to allow the filtering of fluids exiting the tank to be more effective.

– Equip bulk tanks with 4 micron breathers with the ability to remove water. As temperatures change from day to night and/or fluid levels drop, the fluid is replaced by outside air. This air must be filtered and moisture removed to keep fluids free of contaminants.

– Implement a tank preventive maintenance program that includes periodic draining of water and debris, tank inspection and cleaning, filter and breather inspection and replacement dates, etc.

– Filter oil at the point of use and dispense into machines at ISO –/16/13. Depending on the cleanliness of the oils delivered / received there could be a need to clean the oils to the recommended cleanliness levels using kidney loop (off-line) filtration.

– All machines should be enrolled in a scheduled oil sample program (S.O.S.sm) to include particle count technology (portable or lab) and monitored at PM intervals and during system invasion repairs such as component removal and installation. Kidney loop filtration may be needed to restore the system to the recommended cleanliness target.

• Protect bulk fuels.

– Clean fueling ports prior to fueling and ensure they are covered with the standard cover.

– Maintain machine fuel tanks, routinely draining them of sediment and water.

– Filter bulk distillate fuels at both entrance and exit/dispensing points. Exit filtration should have the ability to remove water in order to dispense fuel at the recommended target of ISO 18/16/13.

– Equip and maintain lubrication and fuel trucks just like bulk storage tanks. A good rule of thumb is that any time fluid is transferred, it should be filtered. π


Minera Alumbrera, the first Caterpillar customer mine site to achieve the Five-Star Contamination Control designation, reached another milestone in November 2014 when Caterpillar and Cat® dealer Finning S.A. representatives visited the site in Argentina to recognize the mine for 10 consecutive years of maintaining the designation.

That’s 10 years of commitment to clean facilities, clean components, clean processes and clean fluids. And 10 years of reaping the benefits. From an initial investment of US$700,000, the mine has saved millions of dollars by extending major component life, reducing the cost of maintenance, reducing unscheduled work and improving equipment availability.

Alumbrera estimates that over the last decade, the site has saved about US$3 million per year in operating costs related to major and minor components thanks to the contamination control program. This represents about 3 percent of the site’s annual maintenance budget.

“We are very proud to have achieved five-star status for 10 years,” says Miguel Seu, maintenance manager, who gives credit to the site’s maintenance and operations personnel for making the commitment. “We achieved this certification through the training of our people, and we reinforce it by continuing to learn and by promoting teamwork. It shows our strong commitment to good practices and the implementation of the highest standards.”

In addition to the overwhelming support of the maintenance team, bringing operators on board to help in the effort was a key contributor to success. “We explained the implications of implementing the program and trained the operators on what they could do to help, such as using clean fluids. We held weekly meetings to talk about the program and keep the whole team involved. We also made sure everyone knows that the management team is committed to supporting this strategic process.”

DEVELOPING A NEW SITE CULTURE

In addition to the financial benefits of the program, Alumbrera has used the contamination control initiative

as a springboard to a new site culture. Thanks to extensive training and new attention to detail throughout the mine, the site saw a 50 percent reduction in safety incidents in the truck shop, tire shop and other maintenance areas in the first two years of certification. Personal injuries, damage to the plant and equipment, near misses and environmental incidents have been reduced throughout the mine.

Total Recordable Injuries dropped in the first five years — from 13 in 2005 to eight in 2009 — but significant reductions continued and held in the next five years, dropping from six in 2010 to only two recordable injuries in 2011, 2012 and 2014, and just one in 2013.

“Changing the culture was a great challenge, but it was worth it,” recalls Seu. “The implementation of the program generated a strong work culture, eliminating improvisation and sub-standard work practices.”

The designation has also given Alumbrera international recognition as a leader in the industry. “We are shown as an operation with the highest standards and best practices,” says Seu.

RELYING ON PARTNERSHIPS

The Caterpillar contamination control program was developed initially as a program for Cat dealers. A number of dealerships have implemented the program and reached the five-star designation. Finning S.A., the Cat dealer in Argentina, is a pioneer of the program and follows the standards when performing maintenance at Alumbrera and many of its other locations. In fact, the dealership has made financial investments to improve customer maintenance areas in order to maintain its own high standards on site. Close to a third of the nearly 300 people in the mine’s maintenance organization are employed by Finning, which has two managers, four supervisors and 70 technicians on site to support the mine’s maintenance activities.

“ Cat dealers really are the experts in contamination control,” says Bishop.

“ In fact, it was watching their performance that led Alumbrera to begin its own journey to be the first customer location designated a five-star site.”

MINERA ALUMBRERA:

A DECADE OF CONTAMINATION CONTROLA DECADE OF SAVINGS


Alumbrera recognizes that its partnership with Finning was a key to success. “The partnership with Finning is very important,” says Seu. “We have been working together conducting internal audits since 2003, when we had a three-star rating. In 2004, we conducted another internal audit with the dealer and were rated four stars. Finally, in 2005 we brought in Caterpillar for an official audit and earned the five-star rating. The teamwork we have with the dealer made it possible for us to apply all 14 sections that Caterpillar outlines in its contamination control guide. The dealer helped us understand and implement the program.”

Caterpillar, too, had a role in getting the program started and helping Alumbrera continue it successfully for the past decade. “Caterpillar has strongly supported this initiative since the start in 2003,” says Seu. “The company shows its commitment by providing us the standards, evaluating our performance and helping us continually improve. They visit our site every year and provide valuable feedback.”

GETTING HIGH PERFORMANCE FROM AGING EQUIPMENT

Alumbrera is one of the world’s largest and lowest-cost copper and gold operations. In operation since 1997, the mine sits at 2600 meters (8,500 feet) altitude in the eastern foothills of the Andes. The mine uses standard trucks and shovels on 17-meter (56-foot) benches, with 2-meter (6.5-foot) sub-drill, and ore is hauled to processing facilities nearby.

The production fleet includes four Bucyrus electric rope shovels; three large wheel loaders, including a Cat 994D; 55 Cat 793B and 793C 218-tonne (240-ton) trucks; and four drills. A D11R and five D10R dozers handle production dozing work. Cat wheel dozers are used to clean up loading areas, and motor graders maintain the haul roads. Finning maintains 30 of the site’s 793 trucks while Alumbrera takes care of the rest.

In spite of the age of its fleet and the mine’s elevated grade, the equipment continues to perform well. The contamination control program has certainly had an impact. “Following this program allows us to fulfill our planned availability — even with equipment that has more than 120,000 hours,” says Seu.

After the implementation of the program in 2003, engine and transmission life increased 29 percent, differential

life increased 27 percent, and wheel group life increased 13 percent. The program has helped the mine strengthen its maintenance planning and scheduling as well as further take advantage of condition monitoring.

In addition to improving the overall cleanliness of the site and maintenance shops, the addition of fuel filtration has had a significant impact on component life, says Seu. Premature injector failure and associated fuel system downtime were dramatically reduced by installing both tank inlet and dispensed filtration, as well as an Alfa Laval fuel polishing system. Fuel is dispensed at or below the Cat recommended cleanliness target of ISO 18/16/13. In addition, the installation of underside water spray jets in the wash bays helps the maintenance team get a better view of the equipment during visual inspections.

The quality of maintenance and the availability of machines has improved. “In some cases we maintain equipment availability according to budget despite its age,” says Seu. “In other cases we have improved availability, with an increase of 15 percent in major component life. Truck availability has continued to remain high throughout the last 10 years.”

CONTINUING THE JOURNEY

As Caterpillar’s first five-star customer site, Alumbrera has set the bar for contamination control. And the mine has no intention of losing the coveted designation.

“Our employees are committed to contamination control,” says Seu. “We have made them participants and owners of the program so they stay involved and have a strong sense of belonging on this important team.”

The site will continue with monthly internal audits to ensure the standards are continually followed in all equipment maintenance practices and procedures. Training will continue to reinforce the lessons learned and to motivate the team.

“We have a culture of continuous improvement,” says Seu. “That includes our commitment to remaining the industry leader in contamination control.” π

There is a natural resistance to change in any form. When it comes to implementing a game-changing technology like autonomous haulage on an operating mine site, the resistance can at times appear insurmountable. Whether based on real information or misguided preconceptions, it’s essential that mining companies don’t underestimate the effort it will take to overcome this resistance, while clearly recognizing when it’s worth the effort.

These realizations did not happen overnight

for sites where autonomous haulage has been

implemented. Nor did they happen overnight for

manufacturers of autonomous mining equipment.

Caterpillar, for example, began building toward

autonomy more than 30 years ago and had a truck

operating in the mid-1990s. “Lessons learned

during those early years led to the realization

that there was much more to be learned — not

just about the machines themselves, but about

the systems and knowledge that must be in place

for a successful implementation,” recalls James

Humphrey, a senior mining market professional

in the Caterpillar Global Mining organization.

Humphrey, a professional engineer, has over

30 years of worldwide operational and technical

experience in the mining industry. His recent

work with Caterpillar in the development of an

autonomous haulage system led to multiple patents

and patent applications.


CHANGE MANAGEMENT

“Working closely with customers, initiating

real-life demonstrations on mine sites, having

discussions with regulatory agencies and other

stakeholders — these and many other activities

were necessary before autonomy could be fully

and successfully launched,” he says. After decades

of effort, Caterpillar’s first official commercial

autonomous mine site went to work in 2011 in

Farmington, New Mexico, USA.

ENSURING AUTONOMY IS THE RIGHT SOLUTION

While the early days of autonomy were exciting

and mining companies and manufacturers were

eager to see it come to life in the real world, these

pioneers recognized quickly that implementing

a technology for technology’s sake should never

be a goal.

“We first need to identify a problem and then

determine if a technology solution exists to address

it,” says Humphrey. “That technology may or not be

autonomous haulage. In fact, there are more sites

that aren’t candidates for autonomy than there are

sites that would benefit from the implementation of

this technology.”

There are five key characteristics to look for when

determining which sites are the best candidates for

autonomous haulage:

• Safety. Are there potential safety issues that could be alleviated with autonomy?

• Utilization. Is there an opportunity to eliminate significant delays such as shift changes, lunch breaks, meetings and training, etc., if drivers were not operating the trucks?

OVERCOMING PRECONCEPTIONS

TO ENSURE THE SUCCESSFUL DEPLOYMENT

OF AUTONOMOUS HAULAGE

CHANGE MANAGEMENT

20 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 1120 Caterpillar Global Mining / Viewpoint / issue 11

1/ Operators in an autonomous haulage application require specialized technology skills and must be able to work toward the mine plan.

1

• Productivity. Are there efficiencies to be gained with a higher degree of consistent and reliable truck performance, in addition to deployment velocity? Autonomy eliminates driver-influenced inefficiencies such as truck bunching behind an overly cautious driver or dilution caused by loads going to unassigned locations. Additionally, it offers the ability to remove trucks or add them to a circuit and is not dependent of the number of operators who showed up for work that day.

• Remote Regions. Does the logistics of bringing workers to a location where they must be housed, fed, entertained, etc., present a challenge or create significant expense? Autonomy reduces the infrastructure requirements by reducing the number of people required on site.

• People – Skilled Resources. Is it difficult to find skilled people who will be able and willing to handle the challenges and rigor of a mining lifestyle? Autonomy helps reduce the number of people that must be hired.

MANAGING THE CHANGE

Once it is clear that autonomous haulage is the

right technology solution, implementation can

begin. Humphrey stresses that nothing is more

important in this beginning phase than initiating

a formal change management process to overcome

the resistance that is likely to occur.

Caterpillar experts have identified three areas that

when combined can build a case for autonomy

that is greater than the resistance to change:

Urgency / Burning Platform. Sites must provide

a legitimate reason for the change. What is

autonomy and why is it needed? How is it

going to help the operation improve safety,

increase productivity or overcome challenges?

Vision. What is the site hoping to achieve by

the implementation of autonomy? What is the

vision for the operation in the future?

First Steps. How will the site get started

on its autonomy journey? Autonomy can

be a monumental undertaking. Can the

operation take small steps and build up to

the final outcome?

“It’s important to understand that resistance to

change comes in two forms: conscious resistance

and sub-conscious resistance,” Humphrey explains.

“Conscious resistance is based on real information

that people have experienced first-hand or learned

from sources they trust and respect. Sub-conscious

resistance is more difficult to overcome and is

rooted in deep beliefs that may not have a legitimate

cause. We have to find ways to identify the causes in

order to overcome these negative perceptions.”

Whether conscious or sub-conscious, Humphrey

shares several concerns that rise to the top when

considering potential resistance to autonomous

haulage:

• Socio-economic. One of the key benefits of

autonomy is the ability to improve a site’s

productivity with fewer people. A logical question

follows: Will the implementation of autonomy

put people out of work? If there are fewer people

earning an income, how will that affect the

local economy? Or does this technology provide

opportunity for new or longer-life operations,

thereby ensuring more employment for the rest

of the mine staff?

• Safety. While safety is a key reason for the

implementation of autonomy — keeping workers

out of harm’s way — there are concerns that

driverless trucks will lead to increased danger

on a mine site. It’s one of the most important

concerns that employees will have and it’s

essential to have the technologies in place and

the answers ready to address these questions.

• Mining Processes. How will autonomy affect the

processes currently in place on the mine site?

Will the site adopt existing processes, adapt the

ones it currently follows, or create new ones?

Will the site replicate or innovate? People

comfortable with the status quo may react

unfavorably to a change in the way things

are done.

• Regulatory. The implementation of autonomous

haulage will fall under strict regulations, both

internally at the corporate and site levels and

through regulatory agencies. How will the site

adapt to these challenges?

21

ADOPTING A MULTI FACETED STRATEGY

While each site and its employees will have their own individual concerns and

demonstrate their resistance to change in different ways, there are some things

that can be done to overcome the resistance and preconceptions that are a barrier to

autonomy implementation.

Minimize change. “The goal should be to minimize change whenever possible,” says

Humphrey. Because brownfield mines are the most likely locations for autonomy, the

implementation will have to take place within the standard roads and incorporate the

different types of loading tools currently being used. Autonomous machines must be

able to go into these sites and work with the current equipment and the existing road

configuration.

Minimize risk of the investment. Autonomous machines must be designed for

autonomy, but also work in a standard mining operation with typical load and dump

scenarios. For example, a truck does not need an operator cab when it’s being operated

autonomously. However, with the significant investment mining companies make

when purchasing a truck, they may want to be able to use that truck with a driver

in the future.

1/ One of the key benefits of autonomy is the ability to improve a site’s productivity with fewer people. However, that doesn’t necessarily translate to lost jobs. Initiatives that help ensure the sustainability of operations can in turn ensure longer-term employment for the rest of the mine staff.

1


“Knowing that the machine is not a single-

application-only vehicle will help alleviate this

concern,” Humphrey says.

Introduce in stages. With a staged introduction,

participants are brought into the discussion

early and the building blocks of autonomy are

implemented and successfully used before full

autonomy is deployed.

Be disciplined in mine planning. While it’s

important to be able to integrate autonomy into

existing operations as seamlessly as possible,

autonomy inherently requires more planning

discipline than a traditional loading and hauling

scenario. “Autonomous trucks follow the plan

you have developed, which is one of their greatest

values,” says Humphrey. “However, you have to

make sure your plan is a good one. Regimen and

discipline are essential in planning autonomy to

ensure it is possible to meet production goals

today and in the future.”

Provide education, training and experience.

Informational sessions and specialized training

programs for both hands-on workers as well

as those on the periphery of the operation are

essential, Humphrey says. ”There’s no such thing

as too much information when there is resistance

to change, which means communication is key.

Personnel need a point of contact — a dedicated,

focused resource for answers.” Specialized

training programs are also important. Caterpillar,

for example, built the first simulator-training-

based program to prepare people for autonomous

operations.

Ensure compliance with internal policies and agency

regulations. “It’s easier to meet these requirements

from the beginning than it is to try to adapt to them

later on or launch an effort to get the regulations

changed,” Humphrey says. “It’s very important to

work with regulatory agencies well in advance to

ensure a complete understanding and consensus on

the interpretation of the requirements.”

Adopt as many current processes as possible.

In order to overcome resistance and get the support

of personnel, it’s important to adopt as many of the

site’s current processes as possible into the new

operation. “At the same time, be cautious that the

current processes don’t artificially inhibit benefits

of the technology. Once workers are comfortable

with the changes, it will be easier to transition

to new processes that will further improve

operations,” he says. “We should always look to the

future, allowing the operation to evolve in order to

get the complete benefit of the technology.”

GETTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE

At the heart of a successful autonomy

implementation are the people

involved. Change management isn’t

for everyone, and champions for

the project — who lead by example

and reinforce the importance of the

strategy — are essential.

“Change is fragile, and if there

isn’t someone on site committed to

maintaining forward progress, it’s

easy for sites to take a step backward,”


cautions Humphrey. “Good champions bring

people along through their leadership and continue

to be involved. It’s important that these people

remain in this role for a long time to ensure

good continuity.”

Operators, too, must be exceptional, with

broad skills beyond those of a typical operator.

In an autonomous operation, they will need

the specialized skills to successfully use the

autonomous technology while understanding

and working toward the mine plan. Autonomous

operations require a small team, which makes it

even more important that personnel are capable

of handling a variety of tasks.

“We call these people ‘experienced innovators,’ ”

says Humphrey. “They have the knowledge and

expertise to evaluate new situations — finding a way

to do the right things and the safe things while at

the same time being innovative enough to try new

ideas and leverage the value of new technologies.”

ENSURING SUCCESS

Caterpillar believes implementing a game-

changing technology like autonomy on a mine

site is a challenge worth tackling, Humphrey

says. The benefits in terms of productivity, safety

and efficiency can be highly significant in the

right application. Recognizing that there will be

resistance to the changes required is essential to

a successful implementation.

“Don’t underestimate the time and planning that

will be required to overcome this resistance,”

Humphrey recommends. “Use the tools we’ve

identified — such as minimizing change,

introducing autonomy in stages, and providing

education and training — to improve the results

of your change management efforts. And perhaps

most importantly, choose the right people to

manage the change. You need strong, dedicated

champions with the right balance of experience

and an innovative attitude to successfully lead

your autonomy efforts.” π

James D. Humphrey, a Senior Mining Market Professional for Caterpillar’s Global Mining organization, deployed and managed the first autonomous haulage operation in North America. He has over 30 years of worldwide operational and technical experience in the mining industry. His recent work with Caterpillar in the development of an autonomous haulage system led to multiple patents and patent applications. Humphrey is a Mining Engineering graduate of the University of Missouri — Rolla (Missouri University of Science and Technology), and he is a Professional Engineer, a Registered Member of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) and a member of the Mining Academy of Missouri S&T.

Humphrey has been a member of the SME for over 30 years and is currently Vice-Chair of the Mining and Exploration Division Executive Committee. He is a contributing author to Surface Mining 2nd edition, the Mining Engineering Handbook 3rd edition and the SME E-Learning programs. In addition, he has authored numerous technical papers and regularly chairs sessions at the SME annual meeting technical sessions.

PINNACLE MINE

BREAKS

WORLD RECORDFOR PLOW

PRODUCTION

» It was the first longwall operation in the

United States to use a plow rather than the

more common shearer for its primary

production machine.

» In 1989, it implemented the world’s first fully

automated plows, eliminating the need for an

operator at the face.

» In 2012, with a new state-of-the-art longwall plow

system manufactured by Bucyrus (now owned

by Caterpillar Inc.), the mine became the first to

produce 29 400 tonnes (32,400 tons) in a 24-

hour period — a world record.

» In 2013, those plows became the first to

be rebuilt by Cat® dealer Carter

Machinery after the

dealership took on the

support of the former

Bucyrus products

purchased by Caterpillar

in 2011.

» And in 2014, this mine

claimed another first —

producing 32 400 tonnes

(35,700 tons) and breaking its

own world record for production.

MINING THE POCAHONTAS SEAM

Pinnacle mine is wholly owned by

Cliffs, a major supplier of low volatile

metallurgical coal used worldwide to

produce the highest quality metallurgical

coke for the steel, merchant coke and

foundry coke industries. It is also used

as a blast furnace injection product in

steelmaking.

Cliffs’ North American coal reserves are some

of the largest high-quality metallurgical reserves

in the United States. Cliffs owns and operates two

metallurgical coal operations in West Virginia and

Alabama. Its Pinnacle Complex, made up of the

Pinnacle and Green Ridge mines, as well as the

Pinnacle Preparation Plant, has a rated annual

capacity of 3.6 million tonnes (4.0 million tons).

24 Caterpillar Global Mining

CLIFFS NATURAL RESOURCES’ PINNACLE UNDERGROUND COAL OPERATION IN WEST VIRGINIA, USA, HAS EXPERIENCED A NUMBER OF FIRSTS.

Pinnacle mine’s 2013 production totaled

2.5 million tonnes (2.8 million tons).

The Pinnacle coal mine lies in southwestern

West Virginia, near the city of Pineville, and

coal is mined from the Pocahontas #3 seam.

This seam lies at a depth between 300 and 500

meters (984 and 1,650 feet) and has an average

thickness of 1.4 meters (54 inches). All mine

activities are in horizontal deposits, with an

inclination of less than 5 degrees.

Coal has been mined at the

Pinnacle site (formerly U.S. Steel #50) since

1969; since 1977, scores of panels have been

mined using roof-fall exploitation with plows

and roof supports. Faces are extracted using

the retreat mining system. Initially, four

parallel entries were prepared on each side of

the face, resulting in very high heading costs.

PINNACLE MINE

BREAKS

WORLD RECORDFOR PLOW

PRODUCTION

The number of entries was later reduced to three to

enable timely preparation of the entries for the next

panel, an issue because of the high mining speeds

of the plow system. For this reason, transport and

conveyance were located in a common entry. The

entries at Pinnacle have a height of approximately

1.8 meters (70 inches). Only the main transport

and conveyance entries have a height of 2 meters

(79 inches). Initially, coal was transported to the

surface by rail carriages, but a central belt conveyor

was later installed.

The mine complex employs about 550 workers and

estimates a total annual economic impact on the

region of US$193 million, with US$20.4 million

of that amount being its contribution to state and

local taxes.

PLOWING INSTEAD OF SHEARING

A number of factors make the Pinnacle mine

unique, but one of the most notable is the site’s

decision to use longwall plows rather than shearers.

While plows are slowly becoming the system of

choice for longwall mining in seams with an

average height under 1.8 meters (70 inches),

Pinnacle was the first to adopt this method in 1977

and today — nearly 40 years later — remains the

only longwall mine in the United States to use a

longwall plow.

“While many mines around the world embrace

the use of plows, all of the longwall systems in the

United States use shearers,” says Rodney Mowles,

mining operations manager at Carter Machinery.

“But Pinnacle felt decades ago that with the blocks

of coal they have, and the height of their seams, a

plow better suited their needs. They still believe

that today.”

The plow used in 1977, though, was vastly different

than the modern machines of the last few decades.

In the late 1980s, the mine decided to build on the

success it had with early plows and purchase a new

system that incorporated the latest technologies.

The two longwall plow systems delivered to the

mine in 1989 and 1990 by Westfalia Lünen of

Germany (a predecessor of Bucyrus/Caterpillar),

were the world’s first fully automated plows.

As Pinnacle continued to successfully produce,

updates were made to that system — including

a new plow guide in 1991, a new armored face

conveyor (AFC) drive system called Controlled Start

Transmission (CST) in 1994, and a new plow body

in 1995. In 1999, an additional fully automated

plow system was installed. Over the years, plow

power increased from 2 x 270 kW (362 hp) to 2 x

400 kW (536 hp), then to 2 x 600 kW (800 hp).

After more than 10 years of very intense mining

activity, the Pinnacle mine decided to purchase a

completely new longwall system. A comprehensive

study of available technologies was undertaken

to select the most reliable and efficient system

and ensure the lowest possible production costs.

After a very detailed analysis, Cliffs decided to stay

with what was working and purchase a new plow

system — still manufactured in Lünen, Germany,

but this time by Bucyrus, which would become part

of Caterpillar less than two years later.

In July 2010, the system was assembled and

extensively tested in Houston, Pennsylvania, a

Bucyrus room and pillar equipment manufacturing

facility in the same region as Pinnacle, before being

set up, tested and screened on site that same year.

The GH1600 plow system has 2 x 600/300 kW

(2 x 800/400 hp) of installed power for the plow,

with two operating speeds of 2.0/1.0 meters per

second (395/197 feet per minute) and 2 x 600 kW

(2 x 800 hp) installed power for the AFC. Each

roof support in the system has a total leg cylinder

capacity of 649 tonnes (715 tons) with an operating

height range of 890 to 1968 millimeters (35 to

77.5 inches) and is equipped with its own PMC-R

electrohydraulic roof support control. Other units

from the Cat Programmable Mining Control

family are used for overall face automation and

visualization, as well as for drive control. The

longwall is equipped with a PF4/1132 face conveyor,

a PF4/1542 stageloader and a SB0815 V-belt crusher

with a 225 kW (300 hp) motor.

KEEPING PRODUCTION MOVING

In order to ensure peak productivity from its

longwall system, Pinnacle follows a strict preventive

maintenance plan for the GH1600 plows. “We

take the plow down for two hours every day for

maintenance,” says Tyler Davis, Cliffs’ longwall

manager, who is responsible for the Pinnacle site.


Underground mines typically perform this type

of maintenance themselves, and Pinnacle is no

exception. Mine personnel take care of equipment

on a daily basis, relying on the manufacturer

for parts and support when specific expertise is

required — such as troubleshooting problems,

maintaining automation or other complicated

technologies, and performing major activities like

machine rebuilds.

Carter Machinery has provided maintenance and

support for equipment on the surface side of the

Pinnacle operation for a number of years. “An

underground coal operation requires construction

on the surface,” says Scott Looney, Carter mining

area manager. “The infrastructure must be in place

to process, load and ship the coal, and we maintain

the Cat equipment they use in the process.” Surface

equipment includes Cat D10 and D9 dozers and

988B and 980 wheel loaders.

“As we were coming on board with the Bucyrus

responsibility, we sat down with the managers of

Pinnacle,” says Mowles. “We talked through the

surface side, where we do most of the wrench-

turning. We’re trying to work with them and

get a similar relationship with the underground

operation. Right now they do their own repairs, and

we help by providing technical information. We

work remotely as well as go underground with them

to figure things out together.”

Because the plows are automated, computers are

an essential component. One employee sits in a

control box, where he operates the plow and roof

supports remotely through a computer system.

At the same time, Carter technicians are able to

access and troubleshoot this equipment from the

surface if needed.

“Our technicians have access to the computer

systems from above ground,” says Mowles.

“They can sit at home and see how the plow is

operating. We can take readings and fix problems

without ever leaving the computer.” This work

is supported by technical service representatives

who go underground to get a firsthand look at the

equipment, and then communicate it back to the

surface. “Yes, the computer can tell us a lot, but

we also rely on having someone see it in person,”

Mowles says.

ENABLING CONTINUOUS PRODUCTION

With two plow systems that are designed for more

efficient movement from face to face, and support

equipment on hand to prepare the site, Pinnacle

mine is able to begin mining on a new face almost

immediately after the previous one is completed.

Continuous miners, including two Cat CM340s,

dig out entryways and get the faces ready for the

longwall. While one panel is being mined, the next

is being prepared to keep production moving.

At about 2590 meters (8,500 feet) long, each panel

takes between seven and nine months to plow.

While one plow is hard at work, the other is getting

maintained and prepared for the next panel. That

preparation typically requires a complete rebuild of

the machine.

In the past, rebuilds of the GH1600s were done

by the plow’s manufacturer. With the Caterpillar

purchase of Bucyrus, that process became the

responsibility of Carter Machinery. Carter took

over the Bucyrus business just weeks before the

first rebuild was scheduled. Mowles admits it was a

challenging time.

While personnel at the prep plant have been

partnering with Carter for decades, those

responsible for the mine’s underground operations

were not familiar with the dealer. “We hadn’t even

met most of the underground mine people,” says

Looney. “We hadn’t had an opportunity to build

their confidence in what we can do.”

Pinnacle finished mining a panel in June 2013

and the plow was scheduled to be put back to work

in January 2014. The mine worked so efficiently,

though, that they got ahead of schedule — which

meant they would be ready to start mining another

panel in October.

While the urgency put additional pressure on

Carter, delaying the mine’s production was never an

option, says Looney. “ We had to move faster than we expected, but we knew we had to stay on their schedule. Even though preparation delayed the new panel until December, we had it ready to go in October.”

BEFORE

AFTER

Crusher


GETTING UP TO SPEED

The Carter team recognizes and understands

that Pinnacle viewed the rebuild with a bit of

apprehension. “Of course there was some hesitation

on Pinnacle’s part,” says Mowles. “The plow is

essential to their productivity. They can’t have it

going down in the middle of the cycle. We knew

that we couldn’t let that happen. We had to get

the rebuild done on time, and the machine had

to be ready to run for as long as it took to mine

that next panel.”

While Carter took over responsibility for Bucyrus

equipment just weeks before the Pinnacle plow

rebuild, the dealership had been preparing for

that day for many months. Mowles credits the

Caterpillar integration team for making the process

as comprehensive as possible.

“Caterpillar committed to doing anything and

everything to train dealerships to handle this type

of process,” says Mowles. The Caterpillar facility

in Houston, Pennsylvania, was on call to answer

questions anytime. Carter personnel visited the

facility on a number of occasions to watch rebuilds

in progress. Carter technicians were sent to work

alongside them, and former Bucyrus employees

joined the Carter team to ensure a seamless

transition.

Carter found Caterpillar’s support during the

transition invaluable. “One of the best things

I’ve ever seen Caterpillar do was this integration

process,” says Mowles. “They helped in every

way they could.”

In addition, Carter personnel learned as much

as they could on site, visiting the Pinnacle

underground mine while the plow was in operation.

“We wanted to watch it in action, see how they use

it, understand how it works,” says Looney.

COMPLETING THE REBUILD

The longwall rebuild encompassed a complete

rebuild of the GH1600 Plow headgate and tailgate

armored face conveyor drive, the headgate and

tailgate special AFC pans, the stageloader drives

and return end, the complete crusher, and all

gearboxes for the plow, AFC and stageloader.

At the same time, Carter was able to solve some

ongoing problems the mine had had with the plow.

“We wanted to address these issues together,” says

Davis. “So in addition to doing the rebuild, the

Carter team was diligent about finding a fix for

these problems. Some of them were very minor,

but they were a big deal to the dealer. They wanted

it to be right.”

Davis was pleased with the overall process as well

as the outcome of the rebuild. “It went really well,”

he says. “They do a good rebuild.”

DELIVERING ADDITIONAL ADVANTAGES

While Pinnacle hadn’t considered its previous

plow maintenance process a challenge, the mine

has begun to appreciate additional benefits that

partnering with a Cat dealer can deliver.

More personalized attention is a key advantage.

“We’re seeing that our mining customers find our

partnership approach and personalized service a

welcome change from what they were used to,”

says Mowles. “It’s a real differentiator for those

sites that were accustomed to dealing directly with

equipment manufacturers.”

The dealership’s proximity to the mine helps in

that effort. With a branch fewer than 5 kilometers

(3 miles) from the mine, support is literally just

minutes away. “The longwall manager passes by

our store on the way to work,” says Looney. “It’s a

great convenience to the customer. They can stop in

and check on their equipment and ask questions.”

In addition, the location where the rebuilds take

place is just 48 kilometers (30 miles) from the

mine. With previous rebuilds, the plow would have

to be hauled to Pennsylvania — over 400 kilometers

(250 miles) away.

“I’m working with many of the same technicians we’ve always worked with but now they work for the Cat dealer,” says Davis. “They continue making the service calls. However, now they are more available to us, and parts and knowledge are also easily accessible.”

BEFORE

AFTER

Stage loader

The rebuilt plow, ready to be shipped

“Pinnacle made multiple visits to see the rebuild

in progress,” says Looney. “Some were announced

and some were not. And we were OK with that.

We want to be their partner. We want them to feel

comfortable stopping in.”

Being on site during parts of the rebuild helped

Pinnacle personnel become more comfortable with

the process. “They saw our equipment, our tools,

our facility,” says Looney. “That helped a lot.”

Mowles stresses that the connection customers

have with the manufacturer is not lost by the dealer

model. “We have a large voice with Caterpillar,” he

says. “So the fear that mine sites lose the ability to

reach the manufacturer is unfounded. In fact, the

opposite is true. We understand our customers’

issues and carry that message back to Caterpillar.

And they listen to us.”

SETTING RECORDS AND EARNING RESPECT

While there was some hesitation on Pinnacle’s part

when Carter performed its first rebuild, the end

result was an overwhelming success. In fact, just a

few months after putting the plow back to work, the

mine broke its own world record for production.

In a 24-hour period on April 10 and 11, 2014,

the Pinnacle longwall produced 32 411 tonnes

(35,724 tons) at a seam height of just 1.42 meters

(56 inches) along the 298-meter (980-foot)

longwall face. The previous record of 29 423 tonnes

(32,430 tons) was set by Pinnacle in August 2012.

“Caterpillar congratulates the Pinnacle team for

this great achievement,” says Denise Johnson,

president of Caterpillar’s Material Handling and

Underground division. “Without their efforts and

dedication this record would not have been possible.

To safely deliver that kind of output from such a

thin seam is remarkable. We have been privileged

to work alongside their team.”

To set the new record, the cutting depth was

calibrated to cut 140 millimeters (5.5 inches) at

a speed of 2.0 meters per second (197 feet per

minute) while traveling toward the headgate, and

250 millimeters (9.8 inches) traveling at 1.0 meter

per second (395 feet per minute) to the tailgate.

The depths and speeds are customizable and were

PLOWS VS. SHEARERS IN LONGWALL APPLICATIONSThe majority of the mining industry agrees that the longwall method is more effective than room and pillar mining in low seams, but there has been disagreement when determining whether the plow or shearer is the best choice for longwall operations. Two Caterpillar experts recently published a paper comparing the performance of plows and shearers under comparable conditions, determining that the answer lies in the thickness of the seam.

Advancements in drive, control and transmission systems — with more powerful motors, a stronger plow chain, increased plow speeds, higher advancing force provided by the roof supports, precise control of the cutting depth, and plow bit design improvements — have combined to make plowing the preferred method in low and medium seam heights.

selected to optimize loading of the

face conveyor.

Davis gives credit to the maintenance team

for its role in setting the production record.

“You have to have the plow up and running

or nothing will be happening,” says Davis.

“That’s why we are so diligent about our

two-hour preventive maintenance downtime

each day. On the day we set the record, we felt

confident skipping that two hours and ran the

plow 24 hours without stopping. If we would

not have been so diligent in our maintenance

practices, we would not have broken the

record.”

Pinnacle recognizes the role both its own

maintenance team and the technicians from

Carter play in the overall success of the

underground operation.

“We have a really good relationship,” says

Davis. “Whatever time I call them, if I am

having an issue in the middle of the night,

I can call any of them. They will fix it remotely

if possible, or they will come right down.

Carter has made my life a little more pain-

free,” says Davis. “My headaches are less

with them on board.”

Caterpillar, too, gives Carter credit for

stepping up into its new role. “Supporting and

rebuilding a longwall plow system was a new

experience for the Carter service team,” says

Chris Curfman, president of the Caterpillar

Global Mining sales and support division.

“However, given the record production results

attained by the rebuilt system at Pinnacle, it’s

obvious that they are up to the challenge of

supporting the underground product lines at

the same high standards and quality level that

they have been delivering for many years on

the traditional Cat surface mining products.”

From Carter’s perspective, the customer’s

success is its own success. “Our goal is to

maintain equipment, perform rebuilds,

whatever we’re doing, to please our

customers,” says Mowles. “If we fail in any

manner, then we’re a failure. That’s how we

build our reputation.” π

» READ MORE AT VIEWPOINTMINING.COM

Studies have shown that more than 40 percent of

employees who work non-daytime hours report

nodding off several times per week — or even per

shift. Fatigue is considered a leading contributor to

35 to 40 percent of all incidents. By some estimates,

shift workers have been conservatively projected to

cost companies as much as us$10,000 per employee

per year over their traditional daytime counterparts

in higher healthcare costs, reduced performance

and increased incidents.

But these numbers have never been fully validated

and the direct impact of fatigue on operations

can be difficult to measure. New information is

indicating that the impact may be much greater.

Effectively controlling fatigue and distraction may

be the biggest single opportunity to reduce serious

incidents, injuries and fatalities in mobile fleets.

As a result, the rate of adoption of fatigue

management programs is quickly accelerating

in a number of fields.

As an equipment manufacturer and partner on

mine sites around the world, Caterpillar has been

involved in the search for — and development

of — fatigue-mitigating technologies and processes

for many years. The company’s Safety Services

organization has made helping customers manage

fatigue one of its key focus areas, offering a

complete solution that combines technology with

consulting services to help customers build and

sustain a culture that supports fatigue management.

The effort is led by senior consultant Todd Dawson,

who over the past 20 years has become one of the

leading experts in developing and implementing

comprehensive fatigue risk management systems

in large and complex environments. He has played

an integral role in shaping the landscape of fatigue

management in a number of industries, mixing a

strong academic and research background with real-

world experience.

UNDERSTANDING THE CAUSES

There are many contributors to fatigue and

distraction — long working hours, low lighting,

repetitive duties, shift schedules and solitary work

environments. All are characteristics of mining

operations.

“ But it’s not just people who are in shift work operations or those working long hours or night shifts who experience fatigue,” says Dawson.

“ It exists even in our straight day operations.”

For decades, mining companies have recognized that fatigue and distraction are having an impact on their operations. But many don’t know the magnitude of that impact — the risks it imposes and the overall cost to the bottom line.

A new approach is making it possible for mines to finally get the full picture — combining the latest technologies with people and processes to drive zero-incident performance.

30 Viewpoint / issue 11

FATIGUE AND DISTRACTION MANAGEMENT

IMPROVING SAFETY THROUGH TECHNOLOGY AND CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT


Dawson says the root sources of fatigue fall into

three categories: physiological, behavioral and

operational.

1. PHYSIOLOGICAL

On a daily basis, all people experience times

when they are most alert and times when they

are more fatigued. Physiological causes of

fatigue include:

• Sleep profile — how much rest is achieved during sleep

• Medical issues — such as sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome

• Time of day — working a shift that falls during a typical sleep time

• Genetics

2. BEHAVIORAL

Behavioral causes of fatigue include:

• Diet

• Sleep priority

• Exercise

• Activities away from work

“These causes are usually based on the choices

that we make as individuals,” says Dawson.

“What kind of priority do we put on our

sleep? Do we skimp on sleep when we have

to do personal things or work overtime? Do

we get called in the middle of the night to fix

something, or fill in for someone who didn’t

show up? We have choices that we make and

those obviously influence our fatigue.”

3. OPERATIONAL

• Schedules

• Time spent on task

• Site policies and procedures

• Workplace design. This includes lighting and colors as well as the outside environment — high heat, high altitude, humidity, etc.

“When we talk about operational issues, we’re

looking at the schedules and rosters,” explains

Dawson. “Do we provide enough opportunity

in our shift schedule to give people time

to get good sleep? Do we look at job tasks

and vary monotonous tasks? Do we look

at policies and procedures, putting limits

on the number of hours that people can

work or the number of days they can work

in a row?”

Cultural differences also need to be

considered. In North America, workers are

accustomed to sleeping in a single-family home,

in their own beds. In other cultures, operators

may share a home with a large extended family,

which makes it difficult to rest. In remote locations,

workers may be on a bus for several hours before

their shift begins, which contributes to fatigue.

“We need to appreciate where everyone is coming

from,” says Caterpillar Global Mining Safety

Solutions Manager David Edwards, PhD, an expert

in Human Factors and researcher in operator

fatigue. “We must take into account the workforce’s

unique challenges and build a fatigue management

solution that fits their circumstances.”

RECOGNIZING THE CONSEQUENCES

Fatigued operators can lose the cognitive ability

to react safely to changes in their environment,

and the consequences can be disastrous — from

injuries to loss of life. “These obvious consequences

are top of mind and receive the most focus,” says

Dawson. “These ‘big ticket items’ are serious and

very important — but perhaps are not as prevalent

as some others.”

It’s the symptoms that occur on a daily basis

that can have the most significant impact on an

operation, he says. For example:

• Increases in absenteeism. “This may seem like a small thing, but when you look at the percentages there is a definite impact on the bottom line. If people are taking days off because they are ‘sick and tired,’ then that starts to become an issue.”

• Losses in productivity

• Equipment losses due to abuse or damage

• Property damage

• Higher fuel usage

• Overall health of the workforce, which can influence productivity as well as health care and workers’ compensation costs

“Any one of these consequences can result in a

challenging scenario for employees — and

a significant financial risk for the operation,”

says Dawson.

MANAGING THE SITUATION

There are few, if any, mine sites in the world that

don’t recognize that operator fatigue and distraction

are issues that need to be addressed. Over the past

decades they have tried to manage the situation

through policies and procedures, and through

various education, training, scheduling, diet and

motivational efforts.

“Sites have focused on scheduling and roster

solutions, ensuring that they have the right

schedule to fit the amount of work that has to

be done with the staffing levels that they have,”

says Dawson. “A lot of good work has been done

providing education and

awareness programs for

operators and employees.”

Ultimately, though, it is

often left up to the individual

operators to manage their

own fatigue. While many

shift workers are well-trained

and highly skilled, most have

never been trained in how to deal with fatigue,

manage their sleep schedule or adapt to the social

and physical challenges that come with shift work.

“ The way that translates a lot of times is to drink more caffeine, have another cup of coffee, and suck it up,” says Dawson.

“ That can work to a certain extent. There is a bit of strength in the mind that can get through certain times of fatigue. But the reality is that once certain levels of fatigue begin to set in, it’s difficult for us to overcome those.”

While Dawson gives credit to operators who are

aware of and try to manage the problem, it’s very

difficult for an operator to address his or her own

fatigue. “We lose track of what it feels like to be

fully alert and so that frame of reference starts

to go away. So if you ask anybody at any given

moment how they feel, most of the time they

will say they are fine. We lose our ability to self-

measure and identify how fatigued we are. And

that increases our risk.”

FINDING A COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTION

Throughout their decades-long research into

fatigue management solutions, Caterpillar experts

have come to the realization that there is no single

solution to the problem.

Edwards predicted this outcome nearly 10 years ago.

“There are some things you cannot change,” he said

in 2007. “No matter how much you do, you can’t

prevent it from happening. The best thing you can

hope for is to manage and mitigate the risk.”

But saying that there is no single solution doesn’t

mean there isn’t a way to manage the situation.

It just takes a combination of tools, technologies,

processes and culture changes—a complete system.

“What we’re recommending as a solution, and

what we are now able to offer to our customers,

is a complete Fatigue Risk Management System

(FRMS),” says Edwards. FRMS incorporates

technology to predict, measure and mitigate fatigue

events, and provides operators with the knowledge

and tools to improve their alertness. Through this

combination of technology, people, processes and

systems — along with comprehensive monitoring

and analysis capabilities — FRMS can reliably

reduce the risk of operator fatigue.



Dawson explains that while the FRMS approach

has been around for quite some time, it has gone

through an evolution that is now making it a robust

answer to this important challenge.

“There were periods of time when a lot of people

had a fatigue management plan or alertness

assurance programs,” says Dawson. “And they

often were very well-written, excellent documents

that were very comprehensive. But one of the

things they lacked was a process that allowed for

continuous improvement. The program would be

implemented, the book that governed it was put on

the shelf and it collected dust. And so there was this

initial ‘put a Band-Aid on it’ approach. But what we

know now is that it is continuous improvement that

makes a robust and strong fatigue management

system.”

Caterpillar’s FRMS is a holistic approach to

managing fatigue that is part of a continuous

process, Dawson explains. “You engage, you assess

the current state, you define,

develop, implement and check. Did

we have a positive impact? Do we need to

make changes? Do we need to address some other

issues? And that process continues to go around.”

TAKING ADVANTAGE OF TECHNOLOGY

New and existing technologies are changing

the way fatigue can be managed. Caterpillar has

spent decades investigating the right technology

solutions. There are caps that measure brain waves,

glasses that have tiny cameras inside, and in-cab

technologies that measure eye movement and

driving habits.

“The reality is, technology can take a lot of forms,”

says Dawson. “Some of them are designed to deal

with the physiological challenges. Others help to

educate and create awareness around behavioral

challenges. Others still are focused more on the

operational side, so they live and exist within the

operation itself. All of those together form kind of a

band around our fatigue challenge and, depending

on what our problems are, we have to decide which

of these technologies fit best.”

In addition to those technologies that have a

direct impact on the challenges, another type of

technology that can have a significant impact are

the systems or databases that help sites identify,

track and assess trends in their fatigue metrics.

“These kinds of databases and technologies,

whether they’re in the Cloud or on site, are what

help us as part of that continuous improvement,”

says Dawson. “It’s important to use the data that

comes out of a wearable technology or an in-cab

technology.”

SELECTING A TECHNOLOGY PARTNER

A partnership with a leading fatigue management

technology company — Seeing Machines — has

helped Caterpillar in the growth of its complete

FRMS. While there are several technologies that

are used in a holistic system, the key technology

component Caterpillar offers is the Driver Safety

System (DSS).

The DSS machine technology uses infrared

cameras and sensors to detect facial features and,

more specifically, characteristics of the eyes. The

system continuously measures operator eye and

eyelid behavior to determine the onset of fatigue

and microsleeps and delivers real-time detection

and alerts.

In machines where the Driver Safety System is

installed, sensors inside the operator’s cab provide critical information that is used to prevent accidents.

There is no need for operators to interact

with the system.


One of the differentiators between the

DSS and other technologies available

is that there is no need for the driver to

physically interact with the system. The

driver does not have to wear glasses or

a hat, and automatic initialization and

calibration of the dash-mounted camera

requires no input from the operator. In

a sense, the system is transparent to the

operator.

The DSS looks for two things:

distraction and fatigue. Distraction

events are times when an operator

is looking away from the task at

hand — using a cell phone, reading,

glancing out the window. “These are

long glances away,” says Dawson. “The

system is intelligent enough to identify

a glance that we want, such as a mirror

check or a check for obstructions,

compared to someone who is looking

down at a cell

phone and

texting while

driving.”

Fatigue-

related

events are

times when

the camera

actually picks up eye closures. It has

the intelligence to tell the difference

between a long blink and a fatigue-

related event.

There are usually three steps to

the full implementation of the DSS:

1. CREATING A BASELINE.

“We’re trying to get a picture or

a sense of what is going on in the

operation today,” says Dawson.

“We want a sense of how big the

problem is, how many of these

events we are having. And we do

that without any intervention

with the operator.”

F R E E P O R T - M C M O R A N :

MANAGING FATIGUE FOR DECADES — AND CONTINUING TO IMPROVE

When it comes to mine site safety, international mining company Freeport-McMoRan has been an industry leader for decades. Safety practices are integrated into all aspects of the company’s operational activities around the world — from its large copper and gold deposits in Grasberg, Indonesia, to the large-scale Morenci minerals district in North America and the Cerro Verde operation in Peru, to the TFM copper and cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A leading producer of copper, gold, molybdenum, cobalt, oil and gas, Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, USA.

One focus of the company’s safety efforts has been the management of operator fatigue and distraction. FCX had a fatigue management program in place more than a decade ago, working with employees on sleep habits and helping them manage the difficult lifestyle of shift work.

“Freeport-McMoRan has been ahead of the curve on this topic,” says David Edwards, a safety solutions manager in the Caterpillar Global Mining organization. “Just as

Caterpillar has been looking for the right combinations of technologies and processes to manage this risk, Freeport has been on a parallel path.”

The project was driven by John Caylor, a Freeport McMoRan vice president who recognized the significance of fatigue and distraction and who supported the team searching for new technologies in safety. “We’ve had incidents through time that are directly related to fatigue,” says Caylor. “We knew it was an issue and we knew we wanted a system that would help us manage it.”

The majority of FCX sites around the world have had fatigue management

plans in place, but most did not leverage the latest technology in their efforts.

Technologies available today include safety glasses that incorporate miniature cameras, baseball caps that calculate drowsiness by measuring brain waves, and the dash-mounted Driver Safety System (DSS).

FCX selected the DSS as its corporate fatigue monitoring technology, initially on a trial basis, and was immediately impressed with the results.

“ From our baseline reports to the current day, we have had a significant reduction in fatigue-related incidents,” says Tim Cuestas, a safety engineer who leads the current implementation of the technology.

To date, FCX has installed the DSS at 11 of its sites — two in South America, one in Indonesia and eight in North America. (continued on page 37)


2. ENABLING ALARMS. Once the baseline is

developed, alarms are turned on in the cab.

“These can be a combination of a rumble in

the seat, voice commands or alarms that can

go off,” he explains. “They’re not designed

to startle or to scare a person awake, but to

notify and let them know that something is

going on that may need some attention.” The

operator is not the only person to receive a

notification of an event. At the same time, the

DSS is collecting data and reporting back to a

central location, often a dispatch center.

3. INTERVENING. The next phase is an

intervention that takes place as a result of the

alarms. Sites that implement the DSS will

have a fatigue management plan in place to

dictate how interventions will be handled.

If a fatigue-related event is detected,

what does the operator do? What does

the supervisor do? At what point does a

supervisor talk to the operator?

“At some point there has to be an intervention,

especially if there are multiple fatigue events

throughout the course of a shift,” says Dawson.

“The supervisor can look for alternatives and

determine if that person should be relieved of their

duties, or if they can be brought back to a state

where they are not experiencing those fatigue-

related or distraction events.”

The use of the DSS, initially designed for the

transportation industry, is growing rapidly in the

mining industry. The system has been installed in

more than 5,000 haul trucks and has more than

8 million hours of operation on mine sites.

BUILDING AWARENESS

One of the first — and most important — outcomes

of a FRMS is awareness. Leveraging technologies

like the DSS gives management and operators what

may be their first real look into the significance

of fatigue and how important it is that they take

responsibility for mitigating it.

At the management level, the collection of data

allows leaders to see the risks of fatigue and

distraction — where they are, what they are, the

scale, and the potential benefits that can be realized

by managing them.

At the same time, the drivers themselves start

to recognize their own fatigue and the impact

it can have. “Without some kind of an objective

measurement, it’s very difficult for any of us

to identify how much at risk we are for falling

asleep,” says Dawson. “Often, in our own frame

of reference, we know we’re tired but we tell

ourselves that we’re OK. One of the benefits of

these technologies, like the DSS, is that we start to

recognize as individuals what our behaviors are,

and what impact our choices outside of work have

on our day-to-day operations within a mine site.”

The data also makes it possible to determine those

times of excessive drowsiness that don’t result in

an incident or accident. This data can be used to

identify when people are most at risk, or if there

are specific areas within the operation that lend

themselves to times of fatigue or distraction.

“Is there a particular part of the haul road where

we’re just grinding away at 8 miles per hour, and

the monotony starts to set in? These technologies

see those times, and we’re able to predict when

fatigue might become an issue,” Dawson says. “So

we can identify times and places or types of work

that are at higher risk without an event actually

occurring. This allows us to put programs in place

that really meet the needs of what the site-specific

operation is.”

COVERING MULTIPLE LAYERS

The results that mine sites have seen with the

implementation of the DSS are promising, says

Edwards. But the technology itself cannot be solely

responsible for improved safety.


Dawson describes a complete fatigue

management system as having multiple

layers of protection, reducing the risk

that a hazard can pass through all of

the layers. DSS technology is just one

of these layers. Other important

elements include:

• Leadership support

• Defined protocols

• Training and education for drivers

– How to manage sleep

– How to maintain alertness

– How to eat healthy and have a healthy lifestyle

– Understanding medical challenges that may cause fatigue

“ When these pieces are in place, it’s not uncommon to see a 90 percent reduction or higher in fatigue-related events and similarly positive numbers in the distraction events,” says Dawson.

CHANGING A CULTURE

As operators become more aware of

their own behaviors, sites can begin

to see a change in the way they think

about fatigue and how to manage

it. They keep track of their activities

(continued from page 35)

PILOTING THE SYSTEM

Freeport-McMoRan selected its Safford open pit copper mining complex in southeast Arizona, USA, as the pilot for its DSS implementation. The operation consists of two open pits feeding a crushing facility with a capacity of 103 000 tonnes (113,538 tons) per day.

The DSS system was not originally designed for mining, and there were some initial issues when the pilot began. “We grew along with the DSS as it was improved, and we worked on how we use it,” says Cuestas. “The system is now achieving about 95 percent availability.” The Safford pilot project began with a DSS system installed on 10 trucks, about half the fleet at the time.

OVERCOMING HURDLES

Aside from the initial growing pains of implementing any new technology, Cuestas says the biggest hurdle to the successful implementation of the DSS was gaining the acceptance of the operators who were uncomfortable with the idea of being “watched” by the system and were concerned about what their supervisors’ responses would be to an incident.

Cuestas cites good communication and understanding as the keys to overcoming this initial opposition. “ We had to show them that this is really there for their benefit. Its sole purpose is to get them home to their families. It is only looking at fatigue events — it’s not recording them all day long.”

“You have to develop that upfront framework,” Edwards recommends. “Education and awareness are so important. You have to get the information out about how the DSS can benefit individual operators and the site as a whole. You have to get in front of the employees.”

Edwards also stresses the importance of having a very clear plan for how fatigue events will be managed — how an intervention will be handled and what the organization will do to support

operators who have incidents or events.

“You need to develop ahead of time what the intervention plan will look like,” says Edwards. “Identify who is responsible for it and what steps will be taken if there is an event or intervention required. Then you have to communicate that, along with the technical information the operators need. You have to be available to answer questions and listen to concerns.”

Cuestas says it took a few attempts before the Safford site came up with an intervention protocol and approach that works. “We ended up taking a soft approach,” he recalls. “We’re caring and speak to them about why we’re investing in this — it’s for their safety. We talk to our supervisors and communicate that how they deliver the lesson is critical. It’s important that all of the supervisors address issues in the same way.” (continued on page 39)


away from work in order to have fewer fatigue- or

distraction-related events captured by

the DSS.

Dawson shares this example: “We know that seven

hours of sleep is what most people need to feel alert

and well-rested. And we find that people working a

night shift will get on average around five. A typical

discussion around the coffee pot in the break room

revolves around sleep — not how much operators

get, but how little. In some cases it’s considered a

bit of a badge of honor to say, ‘I’m tough. I only got

three hours and here I am, ready to work.’ As the

DSS data builds awareness and the culture begins

to change, operators are more proud to say they got

seven hours of sleep.”

By combining technologies like the DSS with other

Caterpillar fatigue management services, sites can

start to affect a change in behaviors at work, and

also start to influence and have positive impact on

behavior away from work. Operators begin to focus

on their fitness for duty and make better choices

about what to eat and how much

sleep they need.

“No longer does fitness for duty

mean stopping for 32 ounces of

coffee on the way into work,” says

Dawson. “The focus starts to be

more on sleep quantity — and sleep

quality. Typically we focus on how

much sleep we got; sometimes the

better question is ‘How good was your sleep?’”

OVERCOMING OPPOSITION AND MANAGING CHANGE

While state-of-the-art technologies, defined

processes and protocols go a long way in helping

sites manage fatigue and distraction, without the

buy-in from everyone in the organization, the full

benefits of a FRMS cannot be realized.

“My experience over these many years has shown

me that those technologies that have some kind of

a support or implementation change process are

the ones that succeed,” says Dawson. “Many of the

technologies that are available today do exactly what

they’re supposed to do. They’ve been scientifically

validated, they’ve worked well in field studies,

they’re robust, they’re rugged, they can stand up

to the wear and tear on even our heaviest sites. But

without a change management process, you tend to

find that the technology doesn’t work so well.”

Support at a management level is key. “There

has to be clear ownership and leadership support

for the process,” Dawson continues. “There’s the

day-to-day management of the data. What do I do

if I have a fatigue-related event? Those activities

all need to be spelled out and handled, and a clear

message sent to all layers of an operational site on

what the path forward will be and how a situation

will be handled. Without that, the risk of failure

increases significantly.”

Dawson says that from a site leadership role, there

must be some type of outward-facing, visible sign

that FRMS is being supported; however, equally

important are the less visible signs. “There are

a lot of ways that leadership at a higher level can

influence and show their support, not the least of

which is financial, providing funding for the types

of programs and activities that you really need to

have as part of a healthy fatigue risk management

system.”

Over the past 20 years, Dawson has learned

that support from site leadership and direct

supervisors goes a long way to helping sites

overcome the initial resistance from operators who

may be uncomfortable with having their in-cab

movements so closely monitored.

“ If an operator shows up for a shift and suddenly there’s a camera in his cab, that typically doesn’t go over well,” says Dawson. “But in places where we have been able to make the end user aware of the goal, and how it benefits him or her, that’s where we have success.”

End users want to know what is being measured,

what supervisors are viewing, what will be

reported — and how it will be acted upon.

It is essential that leaders support operators in their

fatigue management efforts. “We’ve found that a

disciplinary approach typically doesn’t have the

CATERPILLAR FATIGUE RISK MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

To help its customers in the mining industry manage the significant impact that fatigue, sleepiness and distraction can have on their sites, Caterpillar has combined technologies, processes and expertise into a complete Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS).

With specialized in-cab equipment that alerts an operator when a fatigue or distraction event is detected and data monitoring to identify risk trends, FRMS can help sites prevent incidents in the moment and give line of sight to a host of factors that influence safety and operational performance. Caterpillar also offers safety management consulting and training to help sites build and sustain a culture that supports their fatigue management system.

» READ MORE AT VIEWPOINTMINING.COM


(continued from page 37) FCX has developed an intervention protocol that focuses on being helpful rather than disciplinary. “We track high fatigue offenders — those who get a lot of alerts,” says Cuestas. “And then we consult with them. We try to get to the cause of the problem and see if there’s something we can do to help. Together we come up with a plan and continue evaluating their progress.”

SHARING RESPONSIBILITIES

In addition to having operator buy-in, support from the entire organization has been critical to the success of the program. The site’s general manager, mine manager, shift supervisors and Human Resources department all have a responsibility for fatigue management.

“ It takes the support of the entire organization,” says Caylor. “The operations department ‘owns’ the system, coaching is provided by the safety team, and the maintenance team ensures that we’re able to use the system with confidence. They all need to work together, with the overall purpose of saving lives.”

CONTINUING TO IMPROVE

FCX recognizes that the DSS is just one tool in its fatigue-management toolbox, and understands that without many other pieces in place, it won’t do its job. The company continues with its other fatigue-management initiatives and has daily, weekly and monthly conversations about this important topic.

“It’s part technology, part culture — and a lot of face-time,” says Cuestas. “Technology is just the enabler. Without the face-time, the operator will just tune out the rest of it. The alarm or the bell or the vibration will wake them up, but it’s the interaction with the dispatcher to make sure they are OK that makes the difference.”

Edwards stresses that the DSS is a tool, not a solution. “It helps sites manage fatigue on a daily basis,” he says. “But it’s the human interaction that makes it work. You must take the knowledge the DSS delivers and put it into practice. It will not save lives all by itself.”

Despite some initial resistance, Cuestas says operators have quickly come on board not only in their acceptance of the DSS but in their focus on fatigue management as a whole.

“They realize why we’re doing this, and they’re seeing the results,” he says. π

desired results,” says Dawson. “It leads

to under-reporting or non-reporting

of incidents, events and near misses.

And it also doesn’t solve the inherent

problem, which is the operator is

fatigued.”

“The reason we’re implementing

technology is for their personal

safety and to help them manage this

situation. Think back to those moments

when you’ve experienced fatigue. It’s

terribly frustrating. You’re fighting

and struggling just to stay awake. And

this allows us to give them a kind of

safety net that can help keep them

awake and alert them when they are

starting to experience fatigue. It’s a non-

disciplinary support mechanism to help

them through those difficult times.”

Dawson stresses that while the DSS

can serve as a safety net, it’s not meant

to replace the other activities that are

part of a fatigue risk management

system. “People can’t just go out and

stay up all night and plan on the system

waking them up,” he says. “That’s not

the intent. That’s why we consider this

technology a part of a broader system

where people are making good choices

away from work. The technology is a last

line of defense within the cab.” π

Freeport-McMoRan, an industry leader in mine site safety, has

made managing operator fatigue and distraction one of its top

priorities at sites around the world.

CUSTOMERS WILL REALIZE

Managing equipment is a necessary component of doing business that takes mining companies away from their core competencies—extracting and processing materials. While equipment management may be time-consuming, costly and complex, it also offers mine sites a number of improvement opportunities that can have a significant impact on their bottom line.

Over the years, Caterpillar Inc. has recognized

the benefits that can be realized by improving

the way Maintenance & Repair (M&R) activities

are performed. As early as the 1990s, the heavy

equipment manufacturer began developing a

maintenance model for mining mobile equipment,

and in 2006 formally adopted a set of 10 distinct

processes and routines that enable a proactive

maintenance support system. The majority of

Cat® dealers make many of these processes a key

part of their maintenance activities for mining

customers, and encourage customers that do their

own maintenance to embrace them, as well.

In 2012, Cat dealer PT Trakindo Utama began

a substantial undertaking to incorporate all

10 of the defined M&R processes in an effort

to support and standardize its maintenance

operations within Indonesia. Two years later,

after a significant investment in time and

people and a pilot implementation on an actual

customer site, Trakindo became the first Cat

dealer in the world to implement the full set

of the recommended processes.

The achievement earned the dealer accolades and

recognition from Caterpillar for its effort and

commitment. But the true beneficiaries of the

M&R processes are Trakindo’s customers, who

will reap the rewards of improved maintenance

and repair services with increased machine

availability, faster turnaround time, improved

fleet performance —and lower costs overall.

CUSTOMERS WILL REALIZE THE BENEFITS

CUSTOMERS WILL REALIZE

CAT® DEALER IMPLEMENTS

DEFINED MAINTENANCE

AND REPAIR PROCESSES


CUSTOMERS WILL REALIZE THE BENEFITS

DEFINING A PROACTIVE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM

Today’s mining companies are focused on meeting their production goals

efficiently and at the lowest possible costs. And the companies that support

them — like Caterpillar and Cat dealers — are continually searching for

ways to help them achieve these demanding goals.

Equipment plays a primary role, and the ability of machines to

perform according to their specifications relies on three major

factors — maintenance, design and application. Each of these three areas

has to be considered and managed effectively to optimize equipment

productivity.

“The primary goal of the maintenance organization is to make sure

machines keep doing what they’re designed to do, in the application where

they’re operating, for their entire productive life cycle,” says Tim Siekmann,

a product support manager for Caterpillar’s Global Mining organization.

“There are a number of routines and processes that must be followed to

make sure that happens, and by following them we can help minimize

equipment downtime and the production losses that come with it.”

A machine’s productive life cycle is determined by the life of its major

components. The end and beginning of each new cycle are marked by

the Planned Component Replacement (PCR) event. Inside these multiple

cycles, the equipment will require distinctive maintenance activities that

are either predictive, preventive or corrective.

A maintenance system is made up of many functions that co-exist and interact with each other. The 10 processes developed by Caterpillar were designed to define the functions of an effective maintenance system, not the organization itself.

“No matter how your maintenance organization is structured, you have to make sure that the key functions are present,” says Sean Gladieux, a product support manager for Caterpillar’s Global Mining Organization, “These functions will ultimately determine the roles and responsibilities that any organization will have to consider in the process of structuring its on-site and off-site support.”

1. PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE High-frequency, fixed-interval, planned activities that include well-defined service routines, proactive defect detection and repair execution.

Preventive maintenance activities provide a good and steady platform to execute and control the basic maintenance tasks, and also provide maintenance teams an opportunity to accomplish minor repairs at the same time. Each of the activities must be fully planned by defining the activities, procedures, personnel, time, tools, parts and consumables required.

2. CONDITION MONITORING Timely and accurate detection of changes in equipment health, operation and application severity in support of a repair-before-failure maintenance strategy.

The goal of Condition Monitoring (CM) is the early detection of any potential failures or abnormal conditions. But the real benefit of CM is realized when those detections are quickly turned into actionable recommendations that allow the scheduling of repairs to address them.

“At world-class mines, there are often many different kinds of machine inspection and condition monitoring routines and disciplines,” says Gladieux. “These routines complement one another, and each one provides part of the total picture of the machine condition.”

These routines include: 1. Equipment Inspections

2. Fluid Management / Analysis

3. Machine Electronic Data

4. Application Severity

5. Machine Repair History

3. BACKLOG MANAGEMENT A planning function designed to effectively

OUTLINING THE 10 PROCESSES


“Every one of these maintenance events must be

managed and executed efficiently, triggering all

the necessary processes,” says Abelardo Flores, a

Caterpillar senior market professional. “The goal is

always to repair before failure, so we can maximize

availability at the lowest cost.”

With access to the maintenance organizations of

mines around the world through its Cat dealer

network, Caterpillar was able to study them and

build a solid understanding of processes and

techniques that are effective, as well as those that

should be corrected or avoided.

“We learned a lot about processes and the resources

required for an effective maintenance organization,”

recalls Sean Gladieux, a product support manager

for Caterpillar’s Global Mining organization.

“But we also realized the importance of partnership.

A combined commitment from the mining

customer, from Caterpillar as their equipment

manufacturer, and from their dealer as a support

partner, is the key to success.”

This experience and understanding led to the

development of a Proactive Maintenance Support

System—a maintenance model in which the

condition and application of the equipment are

being constantly monitored to detect and schedule

needed repairs before failures occur. Key to the

model are 10 defined processes organized around

five principal steps:

1. Detect machine defects

2. Plan repairs before failure

3. Execute the repairs

4. Evaluate process performance

5. Correct through continuous improvement

“These five principle steps reinforce the main

concept of condition-based maintenance and the

search for ways to continually improved based on

the results and performance we’re measuring,”

says Gladieux. “While adherence to the defined

processes is important, we also left room for new

approaches and techniques that contribute to

successful results.”

manage the pending to-do list via scheduled repairs or corrections before failure.

Backlog is the work that has not been completed by the nominated “required-by” date. Backlogs are also managed as pending workload for the repair centers. Caterpillar’s approach to Backlog Management is to view it as a powerful tool to proactively prevent failures.

“We like to say that if your machine has a defect that needs to be corrected, you are already late,” says Abelardo Flores, a Caterpillar senior market professional. “That defect is indeed a backlog.”

4. PLANNING & SCHEDULING The “brain” of the maintenance operation. It plays a critical role in achieving a target of 80 percent scheduled events.

A repair-before-failure philosophy and achievement of a high percentage of planned and scheduled repairs should be the foundation of the overall repair strategy. The Planning & Scheduling function plays

a critical role in the achievement of these goals. During this process, the maintenance organization defines and gathers necessary fleet equipment information, transforms it into clear and effective plans and activities, schedules their execution and controls the results.

“During this process, we determine what to do, how to do it and when to do it,” says Flores. “To be effective, we need to identify any special resources or parts that will be needed, understand the labor required, and make sure we will have the shop space to complete the activities. Then we pass this information on to the scheduling team to coordinate facilities and select the best execution dates.”

5. PARTS MANAGEMENT An essential logistical function that will help ensure the right part, in the right quantity, is in the right place at the right time.

A maintenance team that has the parts and components necessary at all times is the ideal

scenario, and achieving this goal requires strong and clear communications between the parts and maintenance departments. An accurate and complete demand history and a well-supported forecast of future needs will enable the parts team to successfully define, implement and maintain the correct on-site parts support.

The role of the parts organization goes well beyond simply ordering parts. An optimized parts department is responsible for managing the parts supply channel, hiring specialized labor, ensuring the right support tools are in place, maintaining facilities, and managing an inventory of parts, components, consumables and tools.

“The on-site storage of parts and components is a challenge,” says Tim Siekmann, a product support manager for Caterpillar’s Global Mining Organization. “These items are expensive and must be properly stored to ensure they are in perfect condition when needed.” (continued on page 44)


PUTTING THE PROCESSES IN ACTION

Cat dealer Trakindo’s journey to the successful

implementation of all 10 M&R practices began

nearly a decade ago, when the dealership was

introduced to what was available from Caterpillar

in terms of M&R support. While attending training

and learning more about the processes, the dealer

team realized the importance of implementing

these activities for its customers in Indonesia,

where Trakindo has responsibility for supporting

equipment at multiple mining projects.

“The mining business in Indonesia has always

been challenging. Providing consistent, world-

class product support has been one of the most

critical ways we can support our customers,” says

John Noreiks, head of Trakindo’s Product Support

Division. “Our journey to succeed at Equipment

Management has had its highs and lows since

our first MARC in the mid-1990s in the jungles

of Kalimantan, but we strive for a continuous

improvement culture that helps us progress our

performance.”

The growth of mining over the years has challenged

Trakindo specifically in the area of people skills.

“The M&R disciplines presented us with an

opportunity to further progress our ability to

achieve consistent world- class performance year

after year with our predominately Indonesian

workforce.”

Trakindo agreed to pilot the M&R project in

partnership with Caterpillar to better meet

the needs of its customer Newmont Mining

Corporation, at its Batu Hijau site in Indonesia.

Batu Hijau, operated by Newmont subsidiary PT

Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT), is a large

open-pit mine located in the southwest region of

the island of Sumbawa in Indonesia. The mine ore

deposit contains primarily copper with gold and

silver in a minor content scale.

PTNNT operates a large fleet of Cat equipment:

111 793C and 793D haul trucks, two 994F Wheel

Loaders, 11 Cat dozers (four D10Ts and seven

D11Rs), four 854G Wheel Dozers, three 24M Motor

Graders, and three 390D Hydraulic Excavators.

(continued from page 43)

6. COMPONENT MANAGEMENT A combination of many activities necessary to successfully manage components and achieve their expected lives, which is critical to meeting the desired cost per ton.

There are dozens of major activities that make up the component management process, which begins by defining the component life goals; a component repair, rebuild, replace strategy; and inventory. Activities include component tracking, contamination control, CM, PCR forecasts, inspections, transportation and storage, and planning and scheduling. A successful component management process relies on close communication, accurate data and performance evaluations through all steps of the process.

“While all repairs are important and affect equipment availability, those that affect components have the greatest effect on operational costs,” says Flores. “Components are key cost drivers. That’s why we made component management a separate process. It’s very important.”

7. REPAIR MANAGEMENT The organization and management of the resources necessary to perform efficient and effective repairs.

Once the repair and maintenance activities have been determined—whether scheduled or unscheduled — resources must be allocated and prepared to complete the work. There are two distinct service areas to be considered: the shop and the field. Because of the nature of the services performed in these two areas, effective mine-site maintenance organizations recognize the need to establish the support in the same way, developing and assigning specialized crews and equipment to each of them.

Field service is the first line of support. This organization is responsible for responding to unscheduled calls, quickly diagnosing and making a repair decision, and defining the course of action. This team also serves as the eyes and ears in the field — observing application and operations and reporting performance.

The shop is dedicated to scheduled repairs, such as preventive maintenance activities and

PCRs, as well as unscheduled repairs that cannot be performed in the field because of their duration, resources, and contamination control concerns. The shop is also responsible for coordination of other on-site repair centers, such as tires and welding.

“We also can’t forget the importance of enabling our people with the appropriate tools and facilities to get the results we need,” says Gladieux.

8. HUMAN RESOURCES / TRAINING A defined list of activities that ensure that the maintenance organization successfully manages its most important asset — its people.

Each person in the maintenance organization brings a set of values, personal goals and competencies that will depend on their past experience and education. Successful organizations take an inventory of these skills and assign the correct person to the appropriate function or role in the organization. Other considerations of this process include recruiting, outsourcing, career management (including skills assessment and training needs), labor management, benefits and compensation,

This large fleet is primarily maintained by Trakindo under

a Maintenance and Repair Contract (MARC). Trakindo

considers itself a partner with Newmont, not only because of

the contractual obligations outlined in the MARC, but also in

the success and sustainability of the Batu Hijau operation. To

help in this effort, Trakindo began an initiative to implement

defined maintenance and repair processes that will help sustain

the gains on site, prepare the organization for future challenges,

and deploy the process standardization region-wide. Flores

served as the project leader from the Caterpillar Global Mining

organization.

“ While meeting the terms of the MARC is important, what we really focus on is giving that specific site what they need to succeed,” says Flores. “At Batu Hijau, they were looking to increase the physical availability of their machines — having equipment available to meet their production goals, and increasing their utilization.”

Mick Turner, who was on the on-site technical support manager

at Batu Hijau during the process implementation, explains

that the site had a goal of no more than 10 percent equipment

downtime. “Trakindo accepted the challenge to deliver that goal,

retention and succession, and regulations compliance.

“Having the right number of people, with the right skills, is the key to any successful maintenance organization,” says Flores. “They must be organized effectively to execute their jobs, and they must share a common goal.”

9. PERFORMANCE EVALUATION The gathering of relevant data, and then transforming that data into information that can be used to manage performance.

Effective maintenance management requires measuring performance, comparing results with targets and goals, discovering those areas that are substandard and focusing on activities to improve or correct them, and ensuring sustainability of the gains already obtained.

During this process, the maintenance organization must identify goals; define the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that will be used to measure performance; design and implement the data collection process; gather information; calculate, analyze and report results; and finally, identify

the corrections that will be necessary to manage them.

“We specifically included performance evaluation as one of our recommended processes to encourage the disciplined analysis of the information gathered by the on-site maintenance organization,” says Flores. “You can’t successfully manage your operation without solid information and meaningful metrics.”

10. CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT The logical final function in the M&R Process, involving the entire organization in the search for solutions.

After measuring and detecting problems or areas of opportunity, a formalized approach is necessary to guide the organization and keep the team on track and focused on these areas. There are many Continuous Improvement (CI) methodologies or models available from which to choose, adopt and adapt to specific site characteristics. Caterpillar follows the 6 Sigma approach to identify the root causes of problems and identify possible

improvements. The major steps in any CI process include:

• Identify opportunities

• Determine the impact and prioritize

• Assign projects

• Define the problem, scope and outcomes

• Conduct meetings to measure, analyze and document

• Present a solution to the process owners

• Implement

• Follow up (measure, analyze, document)

• Validate the solution or recycle back to the CI team

• Communicate results

“Continuous Improvement is a never-ending effort, not a one-time solution for all problems,” Flores stresses. “It’s a long journey that we have to keep alive as long as our maintenance organization exists.” π

Caterpillar Global Mining experts also supported

the re-launch.

“We worked alongside Trakindo to provide training

and help develop the necessary skills,” says Flores.

“We developed a baseline for their performance and

did regular reviews and validation based on that

assessment.”

The four core processes —Preventive Maintenance,

Condition Monitoring, Backlog Management

and Planning & Scheduling — were successfully

implemented from May 2012-May 2013, and the

remaining six were implemented and successfully

validated in May 2014.

MAKING AN INVESTMENT

The Trakindo initiative at Batu Hijau proved that

it is possible for a maintenance organization to

successfully implement all 10 of the Caterpillar

M&R processes. But it also proved that it is not an

easy endeavor.

“ It requires a lot of training, focus and investment from everyone involved,” says Flores. “The project at Batu Hijau required a long-term commitment from Trakindo and Caterpillar Global Mining, as well as the patience and support of the people at the mine site.”

Trakindo dedicated 10 people from its Jakarta

headquarters equipment management readiness

team to join the 50 people already working on the

implementation in Sumbawa, as well as provided

project leaders at Jakarta and on site. The dealership

estimates more than 115,000 man-hours were

invested in the project. Caterpillar provided an on-

site performance engineer as well as a Caterpillar

Global Mining Subject Matter Expert (SME) for

a total commitment of nearly 5,000 man-hours.

These man-hours combined are the equivalent of

25 full-time employees dedicated to the project for

its 2½ -year duration.

TRANSFORMING THE MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION

After identifying the gaps in its performance of the

processes in 2011, the Trakindo team in Sumbawa

providing a reliable fleet of mining equipment that

would enable the site to achieve production goals at

the lowest cost per tonne,” he says.

Machine availability at Batu Hijau was at

86 percent, says Flores, with a goal of moving that

up to the 90 percent benchmark. Newmont began

an improvement initiative to achieve this goal in

partnership with Trakindo. The initiative began in

2010, when experts from Caterpillar Global Mining

completed an assessment of the maintenance

organization’s performance at Batu Hijau.

“We identified that the maintenance model

required some attention to ensure peak

performance was being delivered and that it would

be sustainable,” recalls Turner. “Caterpillar subject

matter experts completed a detailed review, along

with representatives from Trakindo. As a result, a

project charter was developed, goals were set, and

process owners were identified and trained.”

The initial assessment identified a number of

“quick wins” that could be easily implemented

to start getting availability headed in the right

direction. “These activities showed a direct positive

impact on the physical availability of the 793 fleet

and served as a turning point in the effort to prove

that the M&R processes had great potential for Batu

Hijau,” says Flores.

The first attempt at implementing the M&R

processes began in January 2011, but the outcome

was not progressing well by Caterpillar Global

Mining standards. “The effort and commitment

were there,” recalls Flores. “But an additional

study at another mine site identified performance

gaps and confirmed that additional training was

necessary to improve the M&R processes within

the Trakindo organization.” Trakindo officially re-

launched the M&R

Implementation

Project at Batu

Hijau in Janary

2012, with support

from the equipment

management team

from the dealer’s

headquarters in

Jakarta, Indonesia.


has transformed its maintenance organization in

just a few short years. The team made remarkable

improvements in its baseline scores to achieve and

exceed its process conformance score of 85 percent

in all 10 M&R processes, becoming the first Cat

mining dealer to accomplish this task.

Many of the team’s most significant changes

were seen in the four core processes. Preventive

Maintenance performance went from a baseline

of 45 to a final score of 85. Condition Monitoring

improved from 50 to 87, Backlog Management

from 42 to 85, and Planning & Scheduling from

40 to 88. Trakindo’s biggest improvement was

in Performance Evaluation, which soared from a

baseline of 35 to a final score of 85. The dealer’s

highest score was in the Parts Management area,

which improved from a baseline of 70 to a final

score of 94.

“Implementation of the processes and making

the changes necessary to succeed has provided

Trakindo with many benefits,” says Noreiks.

“The dealership now has a team of well-trained

technicians, a premier equipment management

organization, and the tools and systems necessary

to succeed not only at Batu Hijau but on any

mine site. The processes are scalable to meet our

customers’ specific requirements. We are also

now taking these disciplines to customers in

other industries.”

DELIVERING RESULTS TO THE MINE SITE

At Batu Hijau, the results of Trakindo’s massive

process implementation effort are being seen

directly in the performance of its equipment fleet.

Since March 2014, physical availability of machines

has been consistently at 90 percent, a remarkable

achievement considering that most of the site’s haul

trucks have exceeded 100,000 hours of operation.

By using the KPIs identified by the customer site —

such as Physical Availability, Mean Time Between

Shutdowns and Mean Time to Repair — Trakindo

is able to measure performance and continue to

ensure it is meeting the targets.

At one point, asset utilization began to fall below

targets, but thanks to its new adherence to the

processes, Trakindo was able to quickly remedy the

situation. “Trakindo’s on-site organization is not

only capable of maintaining the fleet and obtaining

world-class KPIs, but it also has the tools to apply

when needed to recover from a difficult situation,”

Flores says.

“Passion, discipline and a full commitment from

the whole team are the key success factors in

achieving the certification,” says Marsy Marsiyah,

Trakindo site project leader. “We are committed to

advancing the customer forward, and recognize

that sustainability of this process implementation

is crucial.”

“ Newmont is really seeing the benefits of this initiative,” says Flores. “They’re impressed by how far Trakindo has come and are excited about the additional results they will see in the future — not just at this site, but at others.”

In fact, Mick Turner, who was one of the leaders of

the maintenance organization at Batu Hijau, has

now begun working at Newmont’s Boddington

gold mine in Australia and has asked the Cat dealer

there to begin a similar continuous improvement

project to allow Boddington to enjoy the same type

of results.

“Sustainable results have and continue to be

delivered at Batu Hijau, to a point where they are

now considered best in class,” says Turner. “The key

driver to these results was the fact that Newmont,

Trakindo and Caterpillar worked together as

one team. These trustworthy and enduring

relationships played an important role in ensuring

key milestones were delivered.”

Since joining Newmont Boddington Gold, Turner

has begun working with Caterpillar and local Cat

dealer WesTrac team to look for ways to improve

M&R performance on site. Five of the 10 M&R

processes were assessed the team has been working

together to implement quick wins.

“Having experienced the positive contribution the

M&R processes have made, I would encourage all

maintenance organizations to consider replicating

the program,” says Turner. “It’s all about being

better today than we were yesterday — and even

better tomorrow.”


EARNING RECOGNITION

As a result of it efforts at Batu Hijau, Trakindo

earned special recognition from the Caterpillar

Global Mining organization. “This is a very

significant achievement,” says Ruediger R. Kaub,

a Caterpillar Global Mining regional manager

in Southeast Asia and Japan. “Trakindo worked

extremely hard for this achievement and proved it

can be done. We are proud to have them represent

Caterpillar.”

This achievement is also an example of how

mining operations and equipment management

organizations around the world can share

Ali R. Alhabsyi, director and chief operating officer for PT Trakindo Utama, receives a recognition plaque from Ruediger R. Kaub, Caterpillar Global Mining regional manager for Southeast Asia and Japan. Special recognition was also given to:

• John Noreiks, the leader of Trakindo’s product support division, for his commitment and recognition of the value that the M&R processes would add to Trakindo’s mining customers.

• Peter Cochrane, Trakindo’s former General Manager for the Batu Hijau Division, for his continual support,

involvement and commitment to the on-site organization throughout the duration of the M&R implementation project.

• Mick Turner, former on-site technical support manager, for his involvement, support and role in leading the on-site support team.

• Andries Smalberger, Newmont Batu Hijau maintenance support manager, for his constant support and advice in enabling the implementation of the M&R processes within the Newmont operation.

• Stuart Pendlebury, project leader from Trakindo’s Jakarta headquarters.

• Andi Mauraga, former Trakindo Equipment Management Manager.

• Marsi Marsiyah, on-site Trakindo project leader.

In addition, everyone involved in the project gave special accolades to Jason G. Meyer of Caterpillar Global Mining, the on-site product performance manager who recognized the need for the M&R processes implementation at Batu Hijau and who was closely involved with the project until he passed away in April 2012.

information and learn from one another to

positively impact their operations — and their

profitability.

“Caterpillar has always gathered and shared

best practices from its customers and dealers

around the world,” says Gladieux. “We know

that standardizing processes, like we have

done with equipment management, is critical.

We succeed when we establish a common

foundation, incorporate and share best practices,

measure with the same KPIs, and join efforts

in a well-structured environment of continuous

improvement.” π

The adoption of all 10 of Caterpillar’s defined Maintenance and Repair Processes was a long journey for PT Trakindo Utama. In the process, the Cat dealer has been able to deliver significant benefits to its customer Newmont at its Batu Hijau mine in Indonesia. But that was only the beginning.

“The project at Batu Hijau served as the model for future Trakindo product support organization development,” says John Noreiks, Trakindo’s product support division manager. “We’ve built a solid foundation, improved the knowledge of our people, increased our proficiency levels and are ready to replicate the M&R processes at other sites. We’re more qualified than ever to provide mine sites with leading, efficient and effective equipment management services.”

A detailed Equipment Management-Project Management report, generated in Jakarta, captures the solid results Trakindo has delivered in almost all of the 10 processes.

Planning & Scheduling. The percent of scheduled downtime increased from 60 to 75 percent, while service accuracy went from 85 to 95 percent. Product improvement and product support programs are being 100 percent completed, and schedule compliance is at 90 percent.

Backlog Management. The maintenance organization is achieving its targets and managing the balance of backlogs, with an outstanding result in backlogs pending per machine (2-4), and just 5 percent of backlogs pending longer than 30 days.

Condition Monitoring. Mean Time Between Failures is at 175 hours, within the benchmark of 150-200, and the backlogs generated per month are increasing.

Preventive Maintenance. Service Accuracy is between 85 and 95 percent, and the Mean Time Between Shutdowns after planned maintenance activities is consistently greater than 100 hours and in some months above the benchmark of 104. In addition, unavailability due to planned maintenance is very well managed at less than 3 percent.

Parts Management. Service Fill Level is consistently above the target of 95 percent,

and backlogs waiting for parts is very well managed at less than 2 percent.

Component Management. The organization is achieving a remarkable result in component life, achieving 90 to 100 percent, and equipment unavailability due to components is within the target of 2 percent. PCR compliance is at 90 percent.

PROCESS DEVELOPMENT

The implementation of the M&R processes at Batu Hijau promoted the development of several tools and processes documentation that serve as the foundation for process standardization and replication.

• Every M&R process now has a complete and customized strategy document, which is used to develop new personnel, serves as an operation guide for process owners and operators, and serves as a support document for future implementations.

• Specific tasks within each of the processes implemented are supported by detailed Standard Operating Procedures developed by the process operators and the equipment management readiness team at Trakindo’s home office in Jakarta.

• Trakindo’s “to-be” process maps were updated and upgraded. These process maps are displayed in different locations of the operation and serve as guidelines for the process owners and operators.

TOOLS DEVELOPMENT

Several tools were developed to support the operation of the processes.

• Monthly Equipment Management report. This report is being generated by Trakindo’s headquarters office using data that is supplied by the sites. The report is analyzed every month and action plans are being developed as a result of the analysis. Combined with a Continuous Improvement process, this report is a key tool that enables the Trakindo support organization to become professionally self-sufficient in terms of equipment management.

• Equipment Data Sheet. This tool was developed to support the execution and

effectiveness of the machine inspection routines. It provides key information to the inspectors, such as equipment ranking, system problem distribution, high level KPIs (machine-based), most repetitive problems and pending (active) backlogs.

• Unavailability Management Tool. Trakindo implemented and expanded an existing Caterpillar Global Mining best practice incorporating the analysis of the drivers for possible deviation. The unavailability distribution is checked every day, week and month. Actual results are compared with the targets, and action plans are defined and followed. This tool has been the key enabler for effectively controlling and managing downtime.

FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT DEVELOPMENT

Implementation of the M&R processes indicated a need to upgrade current maintenance facilities and equipment. These upgrades not only benefit the Batu Hijau operation but also set a standard for the rest of Trakindo’s operation.

For example, field service was improved by relocating the field base, building new facilities and completely upgrading vehicles and tools to provide efficient and effective support for field repairs. Workshop facilities were also upgraded, with improved layouts, organization of tools and equipment, and communications to the floor technicians.

PEOPLE DEVELOPMENT

The most important benefit to Trakindo —and to Trakindo’s customers — has been the development of personnel trained in the latest processes and techniques in equipment management, says Flores. Nearly 100 people received training in equipment management and M&R.

“Trakindo’s people are now able to see the bigger picture of what they do, why they do it, and how it impacts the entire maintenance organization as well as the mining operation,” says Andi Mauraga, Trakindo’s Equipment Management readiness manager. “They were able to see for themselves how the concepts are applied in a real operation.” π

ADVANCING A MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION

LEIGHTON CONTRACTORS MANAGER RECOGNIZED FOR SUPPLIER DIVERSITY PROGRAM

Leighton Contractors’ Supplier Diversity Manager Kaljit Bhachu was named the Supplier Diversity Advocate of the Year at the Supply Nation Connect 2014 Gala Dinner Awards in Sydney, Australia. The Supplier Diversity

Awards pay the highest recognition to companies, government agencies and individuals who strive to grow indigenous business and enterprise.

Bhachu’s Supplier Diversity Program created increased opportunities for indigenous businesses and other underrepresented parties throughout the supply chain in all the areas where Leighton Contractors works. In the

first three months of 2014 alone, the company spent twice as much with certified indigenous suppliers as it did in the entirety of 2013.

Some of the program’s key initiatives include a supplier directory that ensures indigenous businesses are given the chance to compete and a forum that connected 40 indigenous businesses throughout western Australia. Bhachu also provides advice and guidance to help indigenous businesses receive certification, and a promise of continuous improvement in removing barriers for entry to indigenous businesses.

ARCH COAL MINERECEIVES THREE STATE AWARDSThe West Elk mine—owned by Arch Coal subsidiary Mountain Coal Company—was honored with Colorado’s highest state coal mine safety award, as well as two state environmental awards, at the 117th annual National Western Mining Conference and Exhibition in Denver.

The Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (CDRMS) presented the 2014 Excellence in Safety Award to West Elk, marking the sixth consecutive year that the mine has been recognized as the safest underground coal mine in Colorado.

The CDRMS also recognized the mine for outstanding reclamation and the successful stabilization and remediation of a large native landslide area.

The mine was also given an Environmental Stewardship-Pollution Prevention Senior Participant Award with special recognition. West Elk achieved its goal of remaining a zero water discharge facility in 2014 and also recycled more than 344 730 kilograms (760,000 pounds) of metal during the year.

GLENCORE IMPLEMENTS

HUMAN RIGHTS PRINCIPLESIn March 2015, Glencore announced that it officially joined the Plenary of the Voluntary Principles on

Security and Human Rights.

The Voluntary Principles were established in 2000 to provide guidance to companies through an operating framework that supports the safety and security of operations by encouraging respect for human rights.

Glencore began implementing the Voluntary Principles in locations with a high risk of human rights abuse in 2013. After a rigorous review process that involved work with governments, other companies and non-governmental organizations, Glencore was officially accepted to join.

BHP BILLITON BENEFITS

FROM DIVERSITYSpeaking at the 2015 Women in Energy and Resources Leadership Summit in Perth, Australia, Vanessa Torres, BHP Billiton’s head of group investments and value management, celebrated the contributions of female leaders in the industry and spoke on the need for diversity.

Torres reflected on her own career in the mining industry and talked about the importance of diversity in the workplace as a source of value and even competitive advantage.

“The best ideas come from people who think differently and work collaboratively,” said Torres. “Diversity of thought is the ultimate objective, which can only be achieved in an inclusive environment where everyone feels their ideas are valued and can speak up.”

Torres went on to say that diversity and inclusion can only be achieved with good leadership. BHP Billiton has long prioritized diversity and inclusion as a key strategic objective, and has undertaken a number of initiatives to ensure diversity in its workforce.

PEABODY ENERGY HONORED

FOR LEADERSHIP IN SUSTAINABILITYPeabody Energy receivied an Energy and Environment Foundation Global Excellence Award for advancing clean coal technology solutions at the fifth World PetroCoal Congress in New Delhi, India.

“Advancing social and economic progress with clean energy is the role of leaders globally,” said Peabody Chairman and CEO Gregory H. Boyce.

Under Boyce’s leadership, Peabody has advanced a multi-step plan to alleviate global energy poverty with clean energy solutions. Peabody also led development on one of the largest new clean U.S. coal plants built in the last 30 years—a facility that has over $1 billion in emission control technologies.

Peabody also delivered low-carbon solutions across its global platform, resulting in a 10 percent reduction in greenhouse gas intensity over 2014.

RECOGNIZING CATERPILLAR CUSTOMERS AROUND THE WORLD FOR THEIR EFFORTS IN HEALTH, SAFETY, ENVIRONMENT AND COMMUNITY

MINING BETTER WORLD

FOR

A

STORIES IN THIS SECTION FIRST APPEARED IN PRESS RELEASES AND ON CORPORATE WEBSITES.


FREEPORT-MCMORAN HELPS EDUCATE THE NEXT GENERATION

In November 2014, Freeport-McMoRan and Discovery Education partnered to release the Dig Into Mining digital education program to provide students, educators and families with access to interactive resources and materials about the Earth’s metals and mining.

Dig Into Mining targets students in grades six through eight with resources that are aligned with U.S. education standards. The program educates students about the benefits of mining and develops critical thinking, problem-solving and key skills in science, technology, engineering and math. The program also includes materials hat students are encouraged to share with their families at home.

A variety of interactive digital tools help students learn about the impact of mining on the world around them, and a virtual fieldtrip gives students access to Freeport-McMoRan’s leading geologists and engineers as they explore the geological wonders of the world.

By sparking students’ interest in mining at an early age, Dig Into Mining is helping to prepare the next generation of employees to enter the mining industry.

NEWMONT IMPROVES WATER INFRASTRUCTURE IN PERU

At Newmont Mining’s Peruvian joint venture Minera Yanacocha, optimizing water management and supply is just one way to give back to the local community.

Minera Yanacocha is a joint venture between Newmont and Minas Buenaventura, and is located near the village of Yerba Buena Chica. Recently, Yanacocha invested in a number of water management projects that resulted in reliable access to potable water and indoor toilets for 157 families. These improvements also improved sanitation, which in turn reduces the spread of diseases in the village.

This is only the latest in Yanacocha’s efforts to help with community development through improved water management. In 2013, Yanacocha partnered with Cajamarca’s municipal water authority to improve water availability for nearly 180,000 people.

These long-term infrastructure investments help support community development in the region and contribute to sustainable and responsible mining. π

For eight years, Caterpillar Global Mining has produced Viewpoint, a magazine filled with stories for and about the mining industry. Now all of those stories—and more—are available online at ViewpointMining.com.

A dynamic, comprehensive online magazine, ViewpointMining.com is a resource to learn about industry best practices, trends and innovations in products and technologies, sustainability efforts, safety initiatives and more. It’s an opportunity to see how others in the mining industry are addressing their challenges, along with the support of Caterpillar and Cat® dealers around the world.

You can search for articles by topic and check out the archives to read past issues. Articles are supported by videos and links to additional content. New stories are added regularly, and an opt-in email feature ensures you’ll get the latest content delivered to your inbox.

The website is available in six languages—Chinese, English, French, Russian, Portuguese and Spanish. Printed editions of future issues will be available in limited quantities, so please visit the website to sign up for Viewpoint emails.

VIEWPOINT IS MOVING TO AN ONLINE FORMAT

VISIT VIEWPOINTMINING.COM AND JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

TO BE ENTERED TO WIN A HAT!

» THIS SYMBOL MEANS THERE IS ADDITIONAL CONTENT ON VIEWPOINTMINING.COM

KEEPING WOMEN SAFER AND MORE COMFORTABLE IN THE MINING INDUSTRY

A new clothing option is making it possible for women to work more

comfortably and more safely in mining environments — and may be

removing an obstacle to this important segment of the workforce.

This new work wear was developed by Alicia Woods, who has worked

in mining environments for more than 15 years. As Director of Sales-

North America for MacLean Engineering, she has spent time at surface

and underground mines around the world. And she’s no stranger to the

challenges these environments present — especially for women.

A trip to the porta-potty during one mine visit was a turning point. Outfitted

in ill-fitting men’s coveralls, she was forced to strip to the ground to use the

facilities, spilling the contents of her pockets and vowing that it would be the

last time. After that experience, Woods developed an idea to manufacture a

coverall designed specifically for women. In 2013, Covergalls was born.

Covergalls is the first coverall made for women working in industrial

environments such as mining, construction, automotive and forestry.

They are tailored for women’s proportions, with arms and legs that

are the right length, a roomier chest, and an adjustable waistband—

and without the extra material that could easily become a

safety hazard. Special features include a rear opening

and two-way zipper; secured pockets to safely carry

belongings; and snaps at the wrists to ensure

the material doesn’t hang from the arms.

“I believe women have a lot to offer the

mining industry,” says Woods. “In order

to attract and retain them, we need to

make them aware that there are

tools specifically made for them.

Inappropriate clothing is a deterrent

to women wanting to enter the

mining sector and may be responsible

for some leaving the industry.”

Made from 100 percent cotton,

polyester/cotton twill, or fire retardant

material, Covergalls are made to stand

up to heavy wash and wear and are

available in sizes from small to XXXL.

Covergalls are designed in Sudbury,

Ontario, Canada, and manufactured in

Montreal, Quebec. They are available online

and are sold all over the world.

www.covergallsworkwear.ca


A COMMITMENT TO BIG DATA

As data and analytics become more and more important to mining customers, Caterpillar has announced plans to lead the way in finding innovative ways to collect and analyze data.

In April 2015, Caterpillar announced the formation of a new division —Analytics and Innovation (AI). Built around a culture of innovation, AI aims to create a broad, connected analytics ecosystem by partnering with third-party providers to develop the best possible data solutions across all of Caterpillar’s product lines.

The first of these partners is Chicago-based Uptake, a start-up that provides a dynamic analysis platform that is used in a number of industries. Since 2014, Uptake has provided predictive diagnostics and fleet optimization services for locomotives to Caterpillar subsidiary Electro-Motive Diesel. Based on the success of that project, Caterpillar and Uptake decided to work together to provide similar services to other Cat® products.

Both the formation of AI and the partnership with Uptake are cemented by the construction of Caterpillar’s first Data Innovation Lab in Champaign, Illinois, USA. Working with the University of Illinois, Caterpillar has created a place for leading minds in a number of fields to come together and create innovative new ways for customers to gather, analyze and use data to improve their operations.

CATERPILLAR ANNOUNCES TWO NEW LOADING TOOLS

At an event in Tucson, Arizona, USA, in November 2014, Caterpillar announced two new loading tools: the 6020B Hydraulic Shovel and the 994K Wheel Loader.

Weighing in at 224 tonnes (247 tons), the 6020B carries a 22-tonne (24-ton) payload. Based on customer input, the 6020B features a state-of-the-art operator’s cab, superior serviceability, industry-leading efficiency and a modular design that reduces field assembly time. With its high digging forces, efficient operation and innovative design, the 6020B is the first in a new breed of Cat shovels that meet customer demands for safety, simplicity and reliability.

The new 994K Wheel Loader includes a number of improvements over its predecessor, the 994H. The standard configuration carries 41 tonnes (45 tons) per pass — 20 percent more than the previous model — and can work longer and harder without stopping. It can be fitted with a number of high-performance buckets to adjust to a number of applications.

CELEBRATING 85 YEARS ON THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE

On December 22, 2014, Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange in celebration of the company’s 85th year on the NYSE. Caterpillar was first listed on December 2, 1929, and is among only 2 percent of companies listed on the Exchange that have been listed for 85 years or more. On that first day in 1929, 400 shares of Caterpillar stock were traded. On December 2, 2014, almost 4 million shares were traded.

“Not only are we celebrating 85 years on the NYSE this year, but next year we will also celebrate the 90th anniversary of Caterpillar as a company,” said Oberhelman. “Both milestones are a testament to the strength of our global brand, our dedication to customers and strong reputation with stockholders for financial strength and performance through the years.”

CAT® SHEARER BREAKS PRODUCTION RECORDS

Whitehaven Coal’s Narrabri North longwall mine set new weekly and quarterly production records in 2014 using a Cat EL3000 Shearer. In June, the mine produced a record 256 733 tonnes (283,000 tons) in a single week. The mine went on to break its quarterly production record in the last quarter of 2014.

The Narrabri North mine is located in the Gunnedah Basin of New South Wales, Australia. Last year, it produced a total of 5.66 million tonnes (6.24 million tons) of coal. The EL3000 was first installed at Narrabri North in 2012, and production has increased steadily since then. The machine has been more productive than the mine’s original design levels ever since production began.

In fact, Whitehaven has been so pleased with the machine’s production that the company recently ordered a second EL3000 for delivery in August 2015.

CATERPILLAR NAMED ONE OF WOMAN ENGINEER’S “TOP 50 EMPLOYERS”

In a survey provided to readers at private-sector companies, government agencies, colleges and universities, Woman Engineer magazine ranked Caterpillar eighth in its list of the top 50 employers in 2015. The survey asked readers which companies they would most like to work or which they believe provide a positive working environment for women engineers.

Several women currently employed by Caterpillar echoed the survey’s results, praising Caterpillar for providing a positive environment and a diverse workforce with equal growth opportunities for all employees.

“In my 26 years as an engineer at Caterpillar, I’ve had the opportunity to travel the world, working on interesting and rewarding assignments. I’ve had supportive leadership that has challenged me throughout my career,” said Stacey DelVecchio, product manager.

STRENGTHENING ROOTS IN PEORIA

After a multiyear study focused on modernizing its global headquarters, Caterpillar confirmed that it will remain in Peoria, Illinois, USA — and construct a new campus that will one day span 12.5 hectacres (31 acres) on the city’s riverfront.

The new headquarters will be centered around a three-tower office building located at the heart of the six-block campus. In addition to innovative, comfortable workspaces, the campus will include green space, walking and biking paths, food and retail options, childcare, and a fitness center. The buildings will also make use of sustainable design features.

“This is outstanding news for Peoria, Central Illinois and the entire state of Illinois,” said Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner. “Caterpillar has been a tremendous Illinois employer for 90 years. This is the kind of project we want to see — businesses making investments to engage, attract and retain the brightest and most innovative talent.”

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CAT, CATERPILLAR, their respective logos, “Caterpillar Yellow” and the “Power Edge” trade dress, as well as corporate and product identity used herein, are trademarks of Caterpillar and may not be used without permission.

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