Dataloop on "Digitising Mines" with Mining Weekly

Each mine and?mining?company, and its needs and?operations, are different; however, small, simple applications that can serve a single fit-for-purpose build or a fully integrated?system?that monitors and reports on every aspect of?operations, can be set up for mines, says data analytics consultancy Dataloop MD?Sean Langton.

Dataloop's range of?solutions?caters to the full spectrum of size and digital maturity, and helps clients to drive?digitalisation?across their organisations.

The company has developed various customised?solutions?for?mining?clients, including to track loads of material being transported between different locations on the mine, to track component wear rates on critical?mining?tools to enable predictive?maintenance?and to identify conglomerate versus singular large rocks on the oversize conveyor on a diamond mine using a computer vision application.

Additionally, it developed a reinforced learning model solution to help desalination plant operational teams with clean-in-place cycles and membrane change-outs in which the model is trained to maximise treated?water?throughput, while minimising cost.

“Our experience developing a range of?solutions?within the?mining?industry means we are able to translate complex requirements into simple, intuitive?solutions?that add value from the beginning, and lay a foundation for future digital?solutions,” Langton notes.

Dataloop has developed robust data?engineering?processes to take the complexity out of data management and data warehousing, and provide simple, scalable?solutions?across?mining, he adds.

“Our team has extensive experience within the?mining?sector and has implemented data management?solutions?on?mining?sites. We understand the practical considerations needed to ensure these?solutions?gain traction and add value from the get-go.

“The?systems?we develop can easily be scaled,” he says.

“Further, as we continue to broaden our offering, we are placing special emphasis on advanced analytics?solutions?that leverage the extensive data available to each of our clients through their structured data management?solutions,” Langton highlights.

INTEGRATED DATA SOURCES

A common solution architecture for?mining?clients includes the development of a custom data management portal application, which digitises their current data capturing processes, as well as providing a full spectrum of?business?intelligence reports and dashboards for access to live metrics and data across their?operations, he explains.

“Integration of data sources across?operations?provides all stakeholders within the?business, from operator through to senior management, with the correct and relevant information to make data-driven decisions,” he highlights.

Dataloop typically starts by?building?out a solution for the greatest pain points a client is faced with and, once those are addressed, it adds on different modules or for different aspects of the?business, as and when required.

“Most often, once a client is able to derive insight from data-driven?solutions?in one aspect of their?operations, they want to extend that value to other parts of their?business?too, at which point we start?building?those out,” Langton explains.

Dataloop maps a client's current data architecture and ecosystem, and then designs a solution that leverages the client's existing?infrastructure, while also developing new or custom?solutions?and applications for data collection where gaps might exist.

“The basics of our?solutions?always include the?systems?that clients already have in place for collecting data of any and all kinds. We determine what measures are in place for tracking data, such as supervisory control and data acquisition?systems, instruments, programs, documents, WhatsApp and Global Positioning?System?data, among others, and we find ways to integrate all of those to bring value to the organisation.

“By combining their current and future data streams into a single data warehouse solution, an end-to-end?business?intelligence solution can be developed with no disruption to their current processes or ways of working,” he emphasises.

“The driving?design?consideration for these types of?solutions?is simplicity. The end-users require a solution that is simple to use, simple to scale and easy to understand.

“The underlying complexity of the data integrations and processing is managed and developed within the solution back-end and proprietary data architecture, taking complex processes and translating them into simple client-facing?products.”

Additionally, once a platform has been developed for a mine, the mine is able to track?operations?from pit to port with?financial?integration and is, therefore, able to get detailed cost-per-ton analysis across the?business, he adds.

“Management is able to drill down into?operations. For example, if the operation ran over budget in the last period, managers could analyse the key cost drivers from a?financial?and operational perspective. Having the full picture provides clear insight into all the metrics that drive all key performance indicators across the?business,” he illustrates.

Meanwhile, the Microsoft platforms that Dataloop builds on provide inherent?storage?security?and multifactor authentication on the?products?that the company develops, he notes.?