Operations
Rio Tinto ’ s Mine of the Future™ is no ordinary mine strategy . In fact , it ’ s like nothing the mining world has ever seen . Unveiled in 2008 , the futuristic program aims to change the face of mining through the use of autonomous equipment and technology only witnessed in science-fiction films .
The Mine of the Future™ , however , is no sci-fi fantasy film .
Rio Tinto is putting the finishing touches on a group-wide initiative that involves next-generation technology and big-data utilization which will ultimately alter mining operations forever .
Mining 2.0 The goal behind the Mine of the Future™ isn ’ t necessarily to build one autonomous mine but rather a holistic approach to find new ways to mine and extract minerals more efficiently , while also reducing environmental impact and improving safety .
“ Focusing on two key themes – achieving efficiency in surface mining through autonomy and improving recovery practices – the Mine of the Future™ program is aimed at mining safer , better and faster ,” says Andrew Harding , chief executive
Rio Tinto utilizes Komatsu for its driverless trucks
of Rio Tinto ’ s iron ore division .
The Mine of the Future™ program develops step-change technologies , which include : a centralized operations center for remotely managing operations , autonomous truck haulage , autonomous train operations ( AutoHaul™ ) and autonomous drilling .
The company , which first unleashed its autonomous vehicles in 2008 , currently has 54 autonomous trucks operating across three Rio Tinto mine sites in Western Australia .
10 November 2014