Keeping tabs on tools

Hard work, caring and results; those core values are becoming a standard in the mining industry in regards to condition-based management tools and processes.  Currently, at least eight of the largest mining companies in the world with a significant presence in Canada are using customized software services and tools to help provide solutions to issues the industry is facing today.

“Two of the major issues we see companies facing today are a diminishing skilled and experienced work force, and the continuous push to do more with less,” says Steve Bradbury, President of Dingo Mining, an international company specializing in developing and implementing maintenance software systems for mining companies.  

The declining number of skilled and experienced personnel is an issue that has kept many leaders in the mining industry up at night.  To help companies magnify the talents of their existing skilled personnel, Bradbury’s company has developed software tools that provide functions essential to supporting a robust condition management program, and also bring expert knowledge to the shop floor where it is needed the most. 

“The software allows an expert to look at component condition with supporting detailed trouble shooting recommendations remotely,” says Rick Derkach, Dingo Mining’s Operations Manager, Canada. 

The software has the capabilities to allow users to proactively follow up on work until the issue has been resolved.  A company can use the software as a stand alone, integrate to existing CMMS or EAM systems or use Dingo’s Condition Intelligence® service, which provides a remote expert to analyze the data and issue a detailed recommendation.

Derkach says customers benefit from the enhanced control of their assets that affect the bottom line by engaging continuous improvement and good change. The service is designed to remotely diagnose abnormal conditions, improve performance by identifying failures and reducing emergency and maintenance break-in to schedule, while improving availability and utilization. 

Maintenance teams can monitor asset health and performance anywhere, anytime, using a web-based, online system, analyzing at an enterprise level down to a detailed site group or asset specific view. 

Some remote mining customers, such as those working in the oil fields of Canada, are now using the Condition Intelligence® services and program leadership because of employee retention concerns and remote employee turnover in the 50% range. Coupled with increasing competition to recruit the top talent, mining organizations are being challenged to attract the very best.  As a result, it is becoming harder to retain the new Generation Y workers.

Disciplined recruiting and training processes have allowed companies to do more with less and return substantial results not only in terms of personnel, but in the areas of maintenance and reliability, which results in safety and environmental improvements.

All of these factors equate to reducing field-level risk for emergency breakdowns, lower energy consumption, thus diminishing the carbon footprint and decreased environmental impact, while at the same time help improve production capacities. 

For example, Derkach says one Canadian company has experienced a three-million-hour increase above average component life by leveraging the new systems, tools and expertise.  “Another company,” he says, “has proactively avoided unplanned breakdowns resulting in improving lead time for planning and maintenance, which has helped them increase their shovel fleet availability by six per cent.  The goal is to actively manage components early in their failure mode.  It’s clear, all companies care about the bottom line.  Our focus is to help care for their assets at the utmost level possible which will result in bottom line improvements.” 

Bottom line results come from customizing the tools and processes to align with each site’s resources and goals.  Before a mining company utilizes a Dingo system, there are multiple assessments that lead to pilot programs to help  ensure minimized risk and to make sure a program provides the right solution to the clients needs.

Derkach says his firm’s goal is to help mining companies capitalize on rapid growth while creating disciplined processes designed to maintain value during market fluctuations.  In fact, he says his company has returned successful program results worldwide. Its programs consistently assure companies a rapid payback with a minimum 3:1 return on investment in less than 24 months, and many clients have reported greater than 5:1 ROI. 

Since 2007, Derkach says Dingo has worked with clients in Canada, from oil and gas in Fort McMurray and coal operations of Northern and Southern British Columbia, and Alberta, delivering value while making meaningful changes to their clients’ bottom line. 

Derkach says, “One example of success has been recognized by a major mining company who has multiple operations across Canada.  Currently this client utilizes our Condition Based Asset Management programs and has seen benefits resulting in an ROI of greater than 5:1, while reporting over $60 million in program cost avoidance savings to date. 

“What makes this really exciting,” says Derkach, “ is that these savings come from the implementation and continuous improvement of grass roots, best practices for condition-based oil and fluid analysis, which are not always utilized to their fullest potential in the mining industry today.” 

One mining company that Dingo works closely with in Canada recently received Uptime Magazine’s “Best Emerging Maintenance Reliability Program for 2011” award. Dingo has been credited for establishing stability and control within their lubrication management program. 

Another Maintenance Superintendent in Canada recently commented that Dingo also plays a huge role in their condition-based maintenance program to help accomplish their maintenance and reliability goals by keeping fleet availability at target levels, while ensuring equipment is running at the lowest cost per operating hour.

“By closely analyzing, monitoring and trending the conditions on their assets and components, a reduction of components in a critical state  has  been reduced to less than one per cent,” says Derkach.  

Information provided by Dingo Mining. www.dingo.com 

---