Sistemas roboticos

The company is a subsidiary of the HighService Corp holding, specializing in maintenance, technology, robotics, engineering and construction services for mining and heavy industry.

One of the largest mining companies in the world, BHP, published a report on MIRS´s Trommel Palmettes Robotic Manipulator  , which is installed and operative at Minera Escondida.

The robotic solution from MIRS performs, automatically and remotely, the replacement of the Trommel palmettes during programmed shutdowns of the SAG mill, improving the safety and productivity of the operations in the maintenance tasks.

“The robotic arm has benefits for safety and productivity. Workers are removed from potentially dangerous situations by changing the meshes of the trommel and also reduces the time of change of each mesh, “says Susan Lasecki, Head of Commercial Innovation, BHP Minerals Americas.

MIRS -Mining and Heavy Industry Robotics- is a leading Chilean company in development of robotic applications for the mining and heavy industries.

The company is a subsidiary of the HighService Corp holding, specializing in maintenance, technology, robotics, engineering and construction services for mining and heavy industry.

Review the BHP report:

Get to know the giant robotic arm of Escondida – an example of open innovation

To see how the robot works, click here

The General Manager analyzes the technologies that will be key in the digital transformation of mining operations.

To analyze how robotics improves the sustainability of mining operations, the Chilean company MIRS, subsidiary of the holding HighService Corp, participated in the 5th International Codelco Mining Workshop, held within the framework of Expomin 2018.

MIRS General Manager, Javier Espinoza, talked at the seminar “Digital Transformation in Mining: the key to Sustainable Productivity”. During the occasion, the executive reviewed the technologies that will be key in the digital transformation of mining operations, analyzing case studies, as well as the challenges and risks associated with not incorporating them into the processes.

“The challenge of digital transformation goes beyond incorporating a technology into a particular process. It is about solving the most structural problem in the mining industry, which is to improve productivity along the entire value chain,” specified.

New models

During his presentation, the expert verified that the digital transformation emerges as an engine of radical change in the mining industry, providing unparalleled opportunities for the creation and capture of value in each of the stages of the process.

“Digitization changes the nature of operations and their interaction with employees, communities, government and the environment at every step of the value chain,” noted.

From exploration, through mineral processing and metal production, to sales and distribution, digitization opens the door to new commercialization models in mining operations, increasing transparency and sustainability of operations.

“Not only does it help to make it more profitable and make better decisions, but it also helps to empower employees and improve aspects such as their health and safety during work, reduces the risk of accidents and contributes to the protection of the environment, decreasing pollutant emissions and the generation of waste “, concluded Javier Espinoza.

This technological innovation replaces automatically and remotely the the Trommel palmettes during programmed stops at the SAG mill, improving safety and productivity.

Maintenance robot is already a reality. MIRS, a subsidiary of HighService Corp, and Minera Escondida, began the exploration of opportunities and collaboration within the framework of the BHP World Class Suppliers Program.

This gave rise to the automation of the change of the Trommel palmettes, an innovative robotic solution that responds to the challenges posed in the road map of the National High-Mining Program and the objective of increasing productivity.

“One of the main characteristics of this equipment is that it allows replacing up to 100% of the palmettes during the change of coatings of the SAG mill, avoiding operational problems, such as the interruption of the process”, explains the Commercial Manager of MIRS, Igor Elías, during the demonstration event, held at the beginning of March in Antofagasta.

The executive adds that this robotic application minimizes emergency maintenance and reduces the changeover time, improving flexibility and operational precision. “The final result is an important advance in the availability of the equipment, adding, as a result, value to our customers.”

The Challenge

On a physical level, the Trommel is attached to the SAG mill (Semi-Autogenous Grinding) and when the mill stops for maintenance, the palmets must also be changed.

The problem is that the duration of the pallets of the Trommel is not the same as that of the coatings of the mill and, therefore, the availability of the SAG grinding process is affected by stopping only to change the palms of the Trommel, generating a high impact on production.

The risk of accidents is another factor to consider, since the palmettes weigh between 80 and 100 kilos, approximately. By making a manual exchange, operators are not only exposed to possible accidents, but also to possible errors in the installation process.

Security and value for all

The manual process of replacing the palmettes takes approximately 23 minutes for each piece, while this same task is performed in just 3 minutes by the team developed by MIRS: one minute to extract the palmette and two minutes to place it.

That is to say, the automated process reduces up to 85% the replacement time of the Trommel palmettes, in SAG mills of any brand.

For all this, the objectives of this robotic solution are to preserve the safety of the workers and increase the productivity of the concentrators.