MICROMINE is a comprehensive and easy to use exploration and mine design solution and can bring benefits to almost every stage of the mining value chain.
From prospecting and exploration through to geological modelling using implicit, stratigraphic and/or explicit methods), to resource modelling for geologists and for engineers, Micromine covers life-of-mine design and planning through to daily operations in open pit or underground mines.
Product strategy manager Mark Gabbitus spoke to the Australian Mining Review about how the software can improve functionality and productivity on site.
“Having data in a single system throughout the process will definitely improve the ability of geologists, engineers and surveyors to collaborate and work together – increasing productivity just by making their lives easy,” Mr Gabbitus said.
“On top of this Micromine is very easy to learn, allowing new staff to get up to speed rapidly, whilst having the depth of capability that means Micromine will grow with you as your skills and needs increase.”
Mr Gabbitus stressed that each key module of the software (Exploration, Mining, Stratigraphic Modelling, Scheduler, Resource Estimation, Implicit Modelling, Wireframing, Surveying and Pit Optimisation) is scalable and flexible to suit different needs and projects.
“Micromine is a modular solution that allows a resources company to buy what they need, when they need it,” he said.
“The scalable pricing and licensing options means that they can dial up or down functionality as needed but in practice a company might start with a basic Explorer bundle, upgrade it to a Geology Modeller bundle as drilling data becomes available and then finish off the Geology story with the Resource Modeller bundle.”
When a company is thinking about feasibility studies and mine planning they can get the Mine Scheduler bundle which gives them the ability to optimise, design and plan the mine. “Micromine is commodity agnostic and has been used in almost all kinds of deposit from narrow vein gold to massive porphyry to stratigraphic coal and all points in between,” Mr Gabbitus said.
“We also have design and planning tools for most mining situations in both the surface and underground environment.”
Improving exploration
Micromine has a range of benefits in the resource estimation and exploration process, particularly around data management.
Historical datasets (digital and paper) as well as new mapping and drilling, combined with public data such as Government geophysical surveys and maps, all need to be imported and transformed so that an exploration geologist can start planning future exploration activities.
“Being able to plan sampling and drilling projects then take all of this information into the field, execute them and review the results, whilst in the field, can make a massive difference to an explorers bottom line,” Mr Gabbitus said.
“Changing your plans on the fly can save significant dollars!
“Once you’ve found something interesting you can start the modelling process right there and then.”
Geologists can also use the software to build implicit models of surfaces and grade to test geological models, and even drill extra holes to see if the model is robust.
Mr Gabbitus said that as more data becomes available, the model (or even better, models) can develop and grow until the client reaches the points where they are ready to start building a resource model.
“Because it’s all in one system there is no break in the flow of modelling,” he said.
“Micromine has all the tools you need to analyse and estimate grades and information into a resource model quickly and robustly.
“The speed of development means that should new information become available, updating the models is easy.”
Micromine 2020
There are hundreds of new features and fixes for all aspects of the mining value chain expected with the release of Micromine 2020 (MM2020) update in November.
Mr Gabbitus said a few updates included the implicit modelling tools and the new vein and surface modelling tools which would allow the ability to model most geological situations.
“We have also invested a lot of time in our geostatistical analysis and charting tool – this was something our clients had asked us to do and the new charts we have available are going to really help people understand their data,” he said.
“We are releasing a new Stope Optimiser to the market in November which is going to be very different to what the industry has been using to date as it is a true optimiser.
“Our Scheduler has had a lot of development over the last 18 months as has our Ring Design tool.”
Most of the changes and new features are client driven but Micromine has made significant architectural changes to both tools as well for speed and ease of use.
“Finally we have been working on new tools to manage huge point cloud datasets, both from an import standpoint and then how we deal with this data,” Mr Gabbitus said.
“Traditionally it has been hard to turn complex point clouds (tunnels, stopes etc.) into wireframes without significant manual interaction.
“We are going to deliver new tools to significantly simplify and speed up this process in MM2020.”
Micromine is committed to delivering new and updated solutions to the resources industry, beyond software.
“We are also committed to working with the broader community and are engaged in industry projects such as GMG’s Open Mining Format, a project to develop and deliver a standard file format for the mining industry with other software providers such as Seequent, Deswik and Dassault,” Mr Gabbitus said.
“Additionally we are a key participant in the $218M MinEx-CRC working with miners, academics and geological surveys to discover how we can gather and manage data from drilling below cover.
“As a proudly West Australian founded company we are also proud to have a global reach and reputation that is spreading.”
More information:
08 9423 9000
www.micromine.com
