Increasing mine safety and productivity in China
Photo: Copyright © 2016 Eldorado Gold Corp.
Safety is always high on the priority list within the construction, quarrying and mining industries.
Gone are the days when underground mines used canaries to detect methane gases, etc. as modern detection methods have evolved.
Today, advanced technology takes mine safety to a new level and is being adopted in parts of the world where safety has not necessarily been given the priority it should.
A pioneer in this area is the international group, formed in Australia, Remote Control Technologies (RCT) who provide solutions around the world.
Improving safety should not be seen as a cost but as an investment, because the return in productivity it makes possible is often under estimated.
Safety With Economic Benefits
Canadian-miner Eldorado Gold’s decision to deploy RCT’s Smart Technology at its White Mountain gold mine in north-eastern China saw the site strengthen its safety culture, as well as increase mine productivity at the same time.
Operators control the Cat R1700 loader equipped with RCT’s ControlMaster Teleremote system from the comfort and safety of a remote trailer mounted module.
Prior to implementing the new technology, White Mountain utilised handheld Line-of-Sight equipment which required two workers (one to remote control the machine and the other to manually control the bucket) to operate the one machine in order to adhere to regulatory requirements.
The site wanted to utilise proven technology to increase both safety and productivity on site and it was decided that installing RCT’s ControlMaster Teleremote system onto its Caterpillar R1700 loader was the best way to achieve these outcomes.
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