The introduction of telemetry systems in mining is changing the way mine sites function - minimising the risks of machinery failure and hazard exposure, and allowing sites to keep track of where their equipment is, whether it's working properly, and even if it's actually needed.
Coates Hire has developed a universal telemetry solution that integrates data from telemetry-enabled equipment within their own hire fleet, as well as customer-owned equipment fitted with a telemetry device, to help mining customers work smarter during normal day-to-day operations and during shutdowns.
Here's how it works.
Advanced Analysis
Telemetry uses sensors on equipment to capture data, which is then transmitted to a web portal for monitoring and analysis. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) are increasingly embedding telemetry sensors into their products, while Coates Hire is retrofitting thousands of devices to their hire fleet.
Telemetry makes it possible to locate equipment, such as light towers, earth moving equipment, dump trucks, excavators, generators and air compressors, on large and often remote sites, and ensures the equipment is working as it should be. It can also improve utilisation rates, reduce equipment hire spend and allow companies to make smarter hiring decisions.
The Challenge
According to Joshua Tompkins, Product Owner at Coates Hire, every OEM has its own proprietary tech, so accessing telematics data could require extensive analysis of 20 different portals, or more.
"In practice, not only were people not checking all the relevant portals, they were often unaware of the existence of most of those portals," Joshua says.
This is why Coates Hire developed a universal telemetry solution that integrates telemetry data from all sources - new equipment purchased from OEMs, existing hire fleet and customer-owned equipment - to create a ‘one-stop shop' for customers. This makes it much easier for mine sites to operate effectively.
"Before we launched the universal telemetry solution our customers were, more or less, flying blind. Staff were wasting time - and potentially putting themselves in harm's way - wandering around trying to find a spare forklift. Or that an elevated work platform was getting hired for 10 days when it was only needed for five. Or Cost Centre A hiring an excavator when Cost Centre B had one sitting idle elsewhere on site," Joshua says.
In Your Best Interest
To turn raw telemetry data into actionable analytics, Coates Hire provides a dedicated data analyst to any customer that wants one.
The analysts conduct three-day reviews on every piece of equipment on a site - which leads to immediate and ongoing savings. Joshua says it stops customers from hiring excessively on the current job, and they are also less likely to hoard equipment on future jobs as well.
By engaging a dedicated data analyst, one Coates Hire customer was able to reduce their $600,000 monthly spend by an average of $50,000 a month.
"This was achieved through the analyst arranging early off-hire of underutilised equipment, preventing redundant hires, driving reduced transportation costs by facilitating the freer sharing of equipment among cost centres and completely eliminating long-term hires where the utilisation didn't support the quantity," explains Joshua.
The more data a company accumulates, the more accurate these forecasts become, which allows mine sites to cut costs on future projects.
"Both overspeccing and underspeccing can quickly whittle away profit margins on projects. Having Big Data, or more precisely the data analytics, available to avoid that happening can make a significant difference to the bottom line," Joshua says.
