QLD Spatial Excellence Awards 2010
Our first entry was under the category of Research and Innovation we entered 'Calcinator Monitoring - Refractory Lined Vessels'. This entry outlined the development and problems encountered in establishing a real time monitoring system to provide alerts to possible threats of refractory lining collapse.
We were awarded a Highly Commended for the Industry and Entrepreneurialism category. Our entry was 'Isopach Generation for earth works Management and Reporting'. The project built on our Isopach reporting of scan data to visualise areas of change so the client could quickly identify areas of cut and fill.
The case project at a Central Queensland mine, was especially challenging for volumetric calculations. The pit runs for approximately 2 Kms and is around 500m wide. There are approximately five coal seams which are laying in very irregular angles. This meant that they had to carry out very complex earthworks, realigning haul roads and benches to get to the coal.
We are reliant on the client to show us the areas of cut, stockpiling within the pit, pit dumping and blast heave spoil to create the volume boundaries. The Isopach views were an excellent tool to show the client how the pit had changed from the previous month, often jogging their memories on works that had been carried out. Using the Isopach they could identify the different areas for us to carry out the volume calculations.
The client was unsure of the new technology at the start. Over an 18 month period we had developed the field capture processes, capturing the main pit and two stockpile sites in a single day. The data processing was turned around quickly using the Isopach to communicate how the volume calculations were carried out, building the confidence of the client.
We have had a lot of success with the scanning projects over the years at the QSEA. Technically this project was not exceptionally ground breaking or special. Our entry demonstrated how we worked with the client learning each others businesses, creating relationships and how we overcame hurdles such as giving confidence of the technology to the client and general problem solving.