Digital Mine at Quellaveco
Reference
Reference - Digital Mine at Quellaveco
Helping to build the world’s first digital mine
At a glance
Innomotics supplied the digitalization concept for Anglo American’s Quellaveco copper mine in Peru, allowing operators to collect, monitor and incorporate data from automated processes into decision-making across all operations from pit to port.
Innomotics also supplied gearless drives for Quellaveco’s four grinding mills and the overland conveyor system and 22 medium and low voltage motors for the floatation plant to become the main supplier for all electrical, automation and digitalization products, systems, solutions and services.
Challenges
- Development of digitalization concept for world’s first digital mine.
- Integrate data across all whole mine process, from extraction to shipping, into single control system.
- Mine located at remote high-altitude site in the Peruvian Andes Mountains
Solutions
- Innomotics supplied Siemens* plant cycle management platforms to maximize collaboration, continuity and consistency during engineering and operation.
- COMOS* used to graphically display, consolidate, and store automation data through SIMATIC* PCS7 process control system.
- Gearless drives for Quellaveco’s four grinding mills and the overland conveyor system and 22 medium and low voltage motors for the floatation plant.
Outcome
- The seamless pit to port solution allows Anglo American to observe and measure the whole operation in real time.
- Working from a remote integrated operations center, operators can quickly spot problems or inefficiencies and coordinate to take remedial action immediately.
Building the world’s first digital mine
Multinational mining company Anglo American set itself the challenge of building the world’s first digital mine, incorporating the latest advances in automation, digitalization, and electrification technologies to capture measurable gains in efficiency, productivity and sustainability.
Its FutureSmart MiningTM concept was first implemented at its greenfield Quellaveco copper mine which was built in southern Peru at a cost of US$ 5.5 billion. The open pit mine is designed to produce up to 300,000 tonnes of copper annually for the next 36 years.
Anglo American is a global mining company which produces copper, iron ore, metallurgical coal, nickel and precious metals from operations located in 15 countries. The company is headquartered in London, UK, and is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Furthermore, this project once again underlines our position as a pioneer and leader in the field of technology and digital solutions and our ambition to redefine reliable motion for a better tomorrow.
Michael Reichle, CEO Innomotics
The Solutions
Incorporating automation data into
Anglo American’s Quellaveco digital mine is based on Siemens plant cycle management platforms and guarantees the optimal collaboration, continuity, and consistency of all the disciplines involved in plant engineering and operation. The system accomplishes this by consolidating data from a variety of sources. Automation data can be read out of the process control system and imported to COMOS to be graphically displayed, consolidated, and made available for further engineering and vice versa. COMOS uses this data to support the creation of the plant’s digital representation, a fast and reliable migration, and updates to the PCS7 process control system – all through one single solution.
Pit-to-port monitoring to support better decision making
The seamless pit to port solution allows Anglo American to observe and measure the whole operation in real time from the mine pit through mineral processing, logistics and to the port where copper concentrate is stockpiled, loaded, and shipped. Working from a remote integrated operations center, operators can quickly spot problems or inefficiencies and coordinate to take remedial action immediately. Using the plant cycle management platform, Innomotics has integrated engineering data to create a unique data source for schematics from piping and instrumentation diagrams and data sheets to 3D models. Using concepts such as smart data and smart documentation Data from different engineering phases are combined, linked, contextualized and made available for the operation phase.
The creation of a digital representation of the entire mining operation has allowed us to virtually explore different scenarios and anticipate potential issues before they happen in the real world.
Oliver Beck, Senior VP of Solutions at Innomotics
