Reducing mining vehicle incidents with RealTrac Collision Avoidance System (CAS)
Background
The site: an open-pit mine with its own fleet of 110 vehicles, plus visiting vehicles of contractors.
- The number of vehicle incidents had doubled.
- The mine adopted a program to reduce vehicle accidents.
- The goal was to cut the costs of repairs and downtime caused by vehicle collisions and vehicle-pedestrian accidents.
In the two years before implementation, the site had at least three significant incidents: body and cab damage to two haul trucks while reversing, and a haul truck hitting a contractor's vehicle.
Economic loss assessment
The combined economic losses from the incidents were estimated at no less than $890,000:
- production losses from unplanned downtime of two vehicles: on average 60 hours per vehicle at a downtime cost of about $3,900 per hour, $467,000 in total;
- the cost of repairing and replacing body parts: about $111,000.
Not included in the assessment: administrative costs of investigation and reporting, higher insurance premiums, fines, damage to contractor vehicles, and the risk of a full production stop during the investigation.
Result: fewer incidents
Incidents with mining vehicles: 15 in 2020 and 27 in 2021 before implementation; after RealTrac CAS was implemented, 13 in 2022 and 7 in 2023.
What was implemented
RealTrac CASRealTrac Collision Avoidance System (CAS) for preventing vehicle collisions and vehicle-pedestrian accidents: personal tags for miners, antennas and operator displays on mining vehicles, three control zones with a dynamic shape, and light, sound and vibration alerts for drivers and personnel.
The complete solution for open-pit mining, including personnel and vehicle positioning, is described on the Open-pit mining page.
