Efficiency and productivity have increased significantly at a Western Australian Gold and Copper mine thanks to the implementation of RCT’s Digital, Autonomous technology across its mobile mining fleet.
The site was no stranger to RCT’s state-of-the-art autonomous solution, having benefitted from our analogue technology for many years before the latest upgrade.
The decision to transform operations was made to future proof themselves with RCT’s latest digital solution.
The project involved transitioning a mixed machine fleet consisting of three existing Sandvik 514 loaders and two 1700 CAT loaders. The technology upgrade utilises RCT’s Connect - the full-scale digital communications solution that is designed to meet the demands of autonomous machines in real-time for both existing and future fleet needs.
“RCT’s innovative technology ensures all remote loaders on site can operate autonomously now and well into the future,” said RCT Account Manager, Scott Phillips.
As well as improved operating efficiencies, the upgrade in technology has enabled operators to remote from the mine’s surface.
While the technology implementation is still relatively new, a spokesperson from the mine said there have been a myriad of benefits so far.
“Managing the fleet from the surface or "hot seating" has boosted production. Capturing the lost time from shift change and continued operations over firing has tangibly improved our remote productivity,” said the mine site’s spokesperson.
“In addition to this, the digital system is proving to be a very reliable and easy to manage solution,” they added.
The changes have been well-received by our operators with improved picture quality following the digital upgrade.
RCT’s digital solution also paves the way for multiple machine control which was also a deciding factor for the upgrade.
“This particular mine site is known for its long production drives so having one operator operate multiple machines simultaneously will allow the operation to dramatically increase productivity – it’s the perfect scenario,” said Mr Phillips.
“This progressive mine site is now set up to introduce RCT’s latest features as they are released,” he added.
Today, RCT’s agnostic Automation can be found at many of Barminco’s operations throughout the Goldfields region, and now there is one more to add with the completion of our most recent project at IGO’s Nova mine.
Despite the site's existing automation infrastructure, when it came time for upgrading, RCT Automation was selected as the preferred supplier by Barminco, which is a subsidiary of global mining services group, Perenti.
“Technology and innovation are a key focus for Barminco, and we appreciated the simplicity of the RCT Automation solution—quicker setup times and ease of use for our operators,” said Darren Kwok, Head of Mining Electrification and Technology for Perenti Contract Mining.
The loaders are operated from the safety and comfort of Automation Centres which have been situated both underground and on the surface of the mine.
To enhance sustainability and cost-efficiency, existing cabins were repurposed, meticulously refurbished at RCT’s Kalgoorlie branch.
“The cabins required sandblasting and painting before we lined them with fridge panelling and fitted them out with RCT’s state-of-art ergonomic chair and operations centre,” said Kalgoorlie Branch Manager, Rick Radcliffe.
In addition to providing agnostic, state-of-the-art automation, RCT was able to work with Barminco to utilise both the existing underground communications technology and supplement it with the RCT connect to ensure we provide the best and most cost-effective solution for the client.
Because RCT is a full-service company as well as supplying and installing the technology, the team provided extensive operator training to empower site and ensure self-sufficiency with the technology. This commitment to client support aligns with RCT’s ethos of providing comprehensive local assistance.
“We have a good working relationship with RCT, and this extends beyond just the service delivery and project delivery,” said Darren.
“Outcomes from the project have been positive and we have worked collaboratively with RCT to ensure any operational concerns raised were reviewed and their product offering improved based on our feedback,” Darren added.
RCT’s Kalgoorlie Branch Manager, Rick Radcliffe said it was a pleasure to complete this project with the Barminco team based at Nova.
“From the beginning to the end, everyone was well organised, communicated well and had a common vision of making this transition as seamless to the mining team as possible,” he said.
“When two companies have the same goal of implementing quality products into a technology focused operation, they will always be successful, and that was certainly the case at Nova.”
“We are looking forward to working with Barminco over the coming months to assess the impact that the project has had,” added Rick
Barminco has enlisted RCT to carry out what is believed to be the world’s first agnostic remote installation on CAT’s Hybrid underground loader.
The mining services company will be using the R2900XE loader which has a diesel engine and electric driveline at the IGO-owned Spotted Quoll underground mine.
“Technology and innovation are two of Barminco’s core components, so it made sense they chose RCT to carry out the installation of this automation project,” said RCT’s Kalgoorlie Branch Manager, Rick Radcliffe.
“We are receiving a lot of interest in this project as it is a hybrid loader which reduces fuel burn resulting in low diesel particulates which is something companies are looking at doing to mine more sustainably in the future,” he said.
This project is currently underway with RCT’s Kalgoorlie branch completing the installation.
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Leading technology specialist RCT has partnered with Northern Star Mining Services (NSMS) to implement a digital autonomous mining fleet at the Ramone gold mine in Western Australia.
The Ramone mine, near Wiluna, is owned by Northern Star Resources, the parent company of NSMS.
The state-of-the-art technology has significantly advanced autonomous fleet production activities and sets the underground operation on a pathway to full mine digitisation.
The rollout represents the latest in a long line of successful projects that has seen RCT automate NSMS’s underground mining fleets across the Kalgoorlie and Yandal regions.
At Ramone, machine operators will utilise RCT’s ControlMaster® Automation Centre and supervise two Sandvik LH517i underground loaders commissioned with the latest ControlMaster® digital solution.
The technology significantly enhances production by enabling faster autonomous loader cycles and greatly reduces maintenance downtime caused of machine damage.
Once RCT’s ControlMaster® Automation Centre is relocated from underground to the surface on site, it will allow for fast “hot-seating” and enable site managers to capture the time previously lost over the shift changes and continue production cycles during firing activities.
RCT Account Manager Scott Phillips said RCT was delighted to continue its support of NSMS’ technology requirements.
“Our digital automation technology will provide the Ramone operation with every advantage to mine safely, efficiently and continue to make solid advancements for years to come,” he said.
“Northern Star Mining Services’ investment in our specialised communications technology provides a strong foundation from which to grow autonomous operations as the mine evolves and site needs change.
“Our experienced Goldfields team has worked very closely with the Ramone site team to ensure this initial rollout goes smoothly and we are very pleased with the successful outcome.
“This is just the first chapter in what we hope will be a long and very productive working relationship between RCT and the Northern Star Mining Services crew at Ramone.”
RCT’s latest partnership with Gold Fields in Australia has seen the transformation of its Granny Smith mine and machine fleet into a state-of-the-art, digitally connected powerhouse, in a project which embodies the mining company’s key value of innovation, designed to increase productivity.
Gold Fields’ Granny Smith mine is no stranger to RCT, having been one of their technology partners for more than 20 years.
This latest project has seen the Eastern Goldfields underground gold mine become one of the most innovative, digitally connected mines in the world. The project saw RCT’s Kalgoorlie-based team of innovative technicians upgrade the site’s six existing Cat loaders from analogue to digital. This required the Kalgoorlie branch team to design and build specialised mounts and overhaul the site’s existing cabins. In addition, a total of 11 Area Access Controls (AAC) were also converted from analogue to digital to facilitate the upgrade.
“We recognise that they made a significant investment into the original technology, and we wanted to find the most cost-effective and sustainable solution available,” said RCT’s Kalgoorlie Branch Manager, Rick Radcliffe.
The team converted three of the site’s existing analogue TeleCabins and transformed them into digital ControlMaster® Automation Centres for underground use and two surface Automation Centres to digital, bringing them into the future.
The site chose to use RCT’s own full-scale digital communications solution – RCT Connect to meet the demands of autonomous machines across the mine site. The technology will cater to Granny Smith’s current and future machines.
The Kalgoorlie branch finished the upgrades in December last year, and although the technology has only been in place for a few months, the site has experienced amazing results from day one.
“The ability for the operators to mine from the surface with a pristine picture/video thanks to the digital network, has meant they have been able to increase the number of buckets per shift, while adding to the comfort of the operators,” said Granny Smith Mine Manager Michael Place.
“Implementing the new digital infrastructure RCT Connect has significantly improved both the availability and reliability of Granny Smith’s semi-autonomous remote production loaders and stoping fronts to date,” said Mr Place.
The upgrade saw the popular analogue technology that utilises the Yagi antenna replaced with RCT Connect.
“While the Yagi’s have been a tried and tested technology for many years, our digital RCT Connect Access Points has taken the Control Master underground communications system to another level. The system is now more reliable and provides a clearer picture and improved operator visibility,” Mr Radcliffe said.
“The feedback we have received from site is that the operators love the new technology and they wished they implemented it ages ago,” he said.
As well as experiencing the significant benefits of digital technology today, Granny Smith is futureproofing themselves, allowing them to make small, incremental changes as and when they are ready.
RCT Connect is a plug and play system, making it easy to install and maintain. The technology has produced a remarkably clearer picture which has greatly assisted Granny Smith personnel to continue operating their machines safely, in high-risk locations.
“Another added benefit to moving to digital is that RCT can now remotely support our clients to a higher level and are able to monitor and complete repairs in a short timeframe, as it eliminates the need for a technician to travel to site to troubleshoot in many cases,” Mr Radcliffe said.
Smart technology specialist RCT is pleased to partner with mining services company Develop and deploy state-of-the-art digital automation technology at its recently awarded Bellevue operation in Western Australia.
RCT’s digital ControlMaster® solution empowers Develop with the best autonomous technology to safely manage their underground mobile equipment fleet and make consistent production gains.
The autonomous solutions are in line with Develop’s innovative business ethos of combining impressive technology with experienced professionals to transform operations into mining powerhouses.
Develop machine operators are excited in anticipation of utilising the ControlMaster® Automation Centre and manage a Sandvik LH517i underground loader within the underground complex.
In the future the company will roll out additional autonomous Sandvik LH517i loaders in line with their evolving mining fleet requirements as they move into production activities.
To accommodate a larger autonomous fleet, Develop will harness the power of ControlMaster® Multi-Machine Select (MMS) and Multi-Machine Control (MMC) capabilities into their Automation Centre.
These features mean machine operators can switch between underground loaders located throughout the mine and subsequently take control of each machine.
Develop will further support the Bellevue fleet by rolling out RCT Connect which is the only available mining communications infrastructure designed to accommodate autonomous mining equipment.
The specialised Wi-Fi network will ensure consistent communications and very low machine latency between the machine fleet and Automation Centre.
RCT’s Kalgoorlie Branch Manager Rick Radcliffe said the work at Bellevue will provide a strong foundation on which to grow a business relationship between the two companies.
“We are very pleased to be Develop’s automation technology supplier and provide cutting edge solutions and a very high level of service from the beginning at Bellevue,” he said.
“We will be there alongside Develop as they kick off autonomous machine activities and we are confident that our technology will deliver results every shift.”
“RCT proudly has 50 years of experience supporting Goldfield’s mining companies and we look forward to applying all our knowledge to whatever situation Develop faces in the future.”
World-leading autonomous solutions specialist RCT has fulfilled requests from mining clients and devised a unique warning system designed to prevent oversized equipment from getting stuck inside underground mining portals.
Staff from RCT’s branch in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia were separately approached by two major mining clients in the Goldfields and asked to devise a solution to prevent portal blockages which can severely disrupt regular mining operations.
Branch technicians subsequently produced the Over Height Portal Warning System which consists of a laser mounted at a particular height connected to a unit placed at the portal entrance.
The unit will produce an audible alarm and flash the word “STOP” to alert machine operators and nearby site personnel there is a potential over-height hazard.
Site personnel are able to determine the system’s field of view and isolate areas such as a corner or pole so that the system will only activate when it senses new objects.
RCT Kalgoorlie Branch Manager Rick Radcliffe said the local technicians were happy to rise to the challenge set by the company’s clients.
“The system was designed and built in our workshop here in Kalgoorlie and we supplied it to our clients who were quite happy with the result,” he said.
“Occasionally underground haul trucks try to re-enter the portal with their trays accidentally in a raised position and this causes the trucks to get wedged in the portal.”
“The time needed to dislodge the haul truck from the portal is very costly to the mining operation.”
“Therefore, the Over Height Portal Warning System is a cost effective and easy solution that will help keep mining operations running smoothly.”
Since its development the Over Height Portal Warning System has been sold to 10 mine sites throughout the Goldfields.
World-leading autonomous solutions specialist RCT is proud to be the first independent technology provider to successfully automate CAT’s recently released R1700K underground loader.
The “K” Series represents the latest iteration of CAT’s heavy equipment product range and boasts several advanced featured not previously accessible on the manufacturer’s machinery.
Recently, RCT successfully installed and commissioned its ControlMaster® Guidance Automation solution onto a CAT R1700K underground loader in Kalgoorlie merely weeks after it was introduced into the Western Australian market.
Guidance Automation enables equipment operators to manage the CAT R1700K loaders from the safety of a ControlMaster® Automation Centre located on the mine’s surface or in designated areas in the underground mine.
RCT Automation & Control Product Manager Brendon Cullen said the work is a major milestone for the company.
“RCT has a long history of successfully integrating with machinery developed by any Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and this project is no different,” he said.
“Our technicians assessed the R1700K underground loader in our Kalgoorlie workshop and configured our automation solution to interface with the machine and utilise all of its functions.”
“Machine operators can use Guidance Automation and operate the loaders in higher gears and access proportional braking to safely and efficiently carry out their work.”
“Guidance Automation incorporates features such as autodig, autodump, bucket positioning and it can make use of the machine’s traction control if required.”
“Going forward we will be able to commission ControlMaster® Guidance Automation on the CAT R1700K loader on any mine site backed by technical support from our regional offices around the world.”
In 2019 RCT commissioned ControlMaster® Guidance Automation onto Sandvik’s newly released “i” Series loader and previously installed ControlMaster® Guidance Automation on a new Eprioc ST18 loader.
RCT will provide full technical assistance and ongoing after-sales support from its Kalgoorlie branch to regional mining companies which have purchased the CAT R1700K loader.
Leading autonomous solutions specialist RCT and Westgold Resources have marked the completion of a major automation project at the miner’s Western Australian operations with a show of support for breast cancer awareness.
In recent months RCT has commissioned its market-leading ControlMaster® Guidance Automation technology onto 10 of Westgold’s underground loader fleet including CAT R2900Gs and Sandvik LH517s.
The final loader in the project – a CAT R2900G – was recently painted pink and delivered to RCT’s branch in Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to be commissioned with Guidance Automation.
The loader will soon be utilised alongside other automated mining equipment at Westgold’s Big Bell, Paddy’s Flat, Comet, South Emu and Starlight operations.
The project standardises Westgold’s production technology and will deliver major production efficiencies and synergies.
RCT Kalgoorlie Branch Manager Rick Radcliffe said he is pleased to help Westgold to promote a worthy cause.
“Breast cancer can affect anyone and have terrible consequences on individuals and their families so it is important to always be vigilant about possible symptoms among yourself and your loved ones,” he said.
“It is very rewarding to know that the pink loader is now working with the rest of the automated fleet to not only protect machine operators on mine sites but promote healthy living into the future.”
Westgold Resources Plant Manager Barry Jastremski said employee wellbeing is the company’s top priority.
“It is our hope the loader will serve as a visual reminder to our workforce about the need to maintain their health and to seek medical advice if they need to,” he said.
“We are very pleased with RCT’s work and are confident that ControlMaster® is the best autonomous solution on the market to put us on a pathway to full mine digitalisation.”
RCT will provide on-ground technical assistance to Westgold’s mining operations and other forms of after-sales support.
Autonomous solutions specialist RCT is thrilled with the result of the Worthy Parts Industry Link Auction and Expo in Kalgoorlie last week.
Staff from RCT’s Kalgoorlie branch attended the two-day event and showcased the company’s automation and control products, protection systems and parts range.
Mining industry workers and families alike were drawn to RCT’s Automation Centre which simulated how the company’s automation technology is being utilised at mines around the world.
RCT’s staff engaged with roughly 200 individuals over the course of the event who represented Australian mining companies, mining suppliers and civil contractors.
RCT Account Manager Scott Phillips said the event presented an invaluable opportunity to engage with everyone in the Goldfields region.
“Everyone loved the opportunity to sit in the Automation Centre and to see how equipment operators can use this technology to safely carry out various mining activities in the region and around the world,” he said.
“The Worthy Parts Expo enabled all the local mining industry figures to come together under one roof and being able to network and engage with everyone at this event has been very valuable for us.”
“We fielded a lot of enquiries about our ControlMaster® automation range as well as our Muirhead® protection systems.”
“We also had the unique opportunity to meet with motorsports legend Casey Stoner who was very interested in our automation technology.
RCT also contributed to an expo charity project by installing our ControlMaster® Teleremote technology and Muirhead® Fuel Cap Isolation system onto a refurbished CAT R2900G underground loader which was auctioned at the expo with the proceeds being donated to a local charity.
RCT is looking forward to attending similar projects in the future.
