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Zitr?n drives innovation in automated mining

Zitr?n?s Booysendal Mine in South Africa. (Image source: Zitr?n)

Zitr?n, a company with a clear vocation for innovation, has developed an intelligent ventilation management system for mining

In most mines around the world, ventilation is not correctly sized. It is necessary to analyse the actual airflow needs to know if the ventilation system is optimised, otherwise the mine could miss out on many opportunities for improvement.

The result of such an analysis is the most important aspect at the moment of planning. It is not only about providing the necessary flow, but also about getting it to the place where it is needed at any given moment, as it is not always necessary to have the maximum flow in the mine. This will depend on the tasks being performed and the location in the mine where they are being carried out. It is essential to measure in order to optimise. 

Zitr?n has developed an intelligent ventilation management system for mining to optimise ventilation in mines, resulting in a significant improvement in the working conditions of miners and a decrease of up to 40% in the energy consumption of mines (which can represent the highest energy cost that mines have).

The rationale is to direct air where it is needed and in the volume that is needed, to have safer working conditions, to increase productivity and to reduce energy consumption. All this translates into a faster return on investment due to energy savings, reduced carbon emissions and greater guarantees in both safety and system reliability.

The system offers a total integration solution that can start from the installation of any type of communications system or can be adapted to the existing one. It is flexible, simple and practical, and its implementation can be done in phases, collecting in real time all the parameters of the equipment that make up the system (main fans, dampers, auxiliary fans, etc.).

Zitr?n?s team of mining experts has been the basis for the development of this system. Their solid knowledge of ventilation systems in mines is combined with their mastery of the different mining methods that exist in mining. This allows the management and monitoring system to be adapted to the real needs of each mine in an efficient and effective way. 

In order to do this, an exhaustive analysis of the primary and secondary ventilation systems is carried out, obtaining the main ventilation KPIs, which become the necessary indicators to optimise the system, in order to subsequently design an automation plan adapted to each mine. This is materialised in a control and monitoring software of the ventilation in real time, being able to implement saving strategies according to the type of mining.

To learn more, visit the Zitr?n website: www.zitron.com