About Collahuasi Mine
Collahuasi in the rich Chilean Norte Grande is one of the largest copper resources known anywhere in the world. It sits at an average of 4,400 m above sea level in the Andes, northeast of Chuquicamata, 200 km southeast of Iquique. The environment around Collahuasi is harsh and breathing is difficult in the thin air. Apart from many blizzards and lightening storms, the region also has a number of active volcanoes. There are no trees, signs of animal life are rare and the nearest settlement is almost 100 km away. Operation in Collahuasi began in late 2001 and current resources should sustain production for at least 50 years.
About our partner
Protab is a major integrator for technical and telecommunication solutions for mining operations and their solutions have been implemented in more than 10 mines throughout Chile. Protab boasts over 6 years experience in projects with Alvarion, over 10 certified Alvarion engineers and more than 100 employees.
The challenge
In 2004, Collahuasi mine encountered several problems with the existing communications network. The dispatch system and GPS positioning were not selecting frequencies correctly which was causing several problems including; increased costs for maintaining five different networks, interference and coverage issues, limited bandwidth and the inability to use the network for additional applications. To solve these difficulties and improve communication within the mine, the management of Collahuasi sought a cost effective, robust and reliable solution.
The solution
Due to its success, BreezeACCESS VL networks are now installed in over 10 additional mines throughout Chile and Peru |
Due to the remote location of the mine, there was no room for any errors when implementing a communications network. The management of Collahuasi decided, therefore, to contact Protab, a local system integrator to select a suitable solution, test it offsite and implement it within the mine. Protab chose Alvarion's BreezeACCESS VL product line to support all mine applications including:
- Vehicle dispatching: online control and monitoring of shovels and trucks using dispatch software.
- GPS positioning: accurate positioning of mining machinery for obtaining correct materials, by cross-checking the exact location with an updated 3D geological map.
- Real time geological data: transfer of large volume files of onsite geological test results to dedicated servers where geological applications are allocated for analysis for reduced travel time and faster updates.
- Video surveillance and monitoring: overall visual monitoring of ongoing mine activity particularly following explosion sessions. Video images are streamed from cameras to the mine dispatch control room.
- Structure stability monitoring: transfer of data from a Doppler-based radar in the field to geotechnical servers. Unusual movement is also monitored and an alarm is sent to keep miners out of danger.
- Remote office solution: remote connection of miners from their vehicles during onsite activities to the corporate network. This enables continuous access to all mining and corporate applications, including VoIP.
- Remote control: remote monitoring of water levels and pump operations for ensuring continuous operation.
- Connectivity for people in the field: remote access from the field via WiFi hotspots installed in several locations, enabling connectivity for workers with laptops and PDAs.
The result
Since installing Alvarion's BreezeACCESS VL, Collahuasi mine officials have reported almost no failures or technical errors. The network operates despite the harsh environment and difficult conditions, empowering the open-pit productivity and enhancing security for the workforce. Alvarion's flexible and high-capacity network has been extended to support more bandwidth hungry applications within Collahuasi and due to its success, BreezeACCESS VL networks are now installed in over 10 additional mines throughout Chile and Peru. In addition, several other mines in Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia are currently in the process of analysing Alvarion's network in order to improve their mining operations.