Yesterday I flew from Peru to Santiago while flying over the largest copper mines, read about how they launched an absolutely incredible system of infrastructure adaptation on one of the largest closed mines - Chuquicamata.
To extend the life of the mine for another 40 years, Codelco builds a whole underground “Country”:
• 148 km of production by 2020, the result is 750 km;
mining is carried out at a depth of 898 m;
• 5 ventilation shafts (two for 4.3 km) supply 3.6 million cfm air;
• 14-km, the conveyor takes 140 000 tons ores/day;
• Capex - 5 billion; 13,000 people worked at the peak.
But the numbers are only the top of the iceberg. Engineering solutions simply amaze:
1 control of deformations. Microsismic is monitored by digital doubles and laser scanning 24/7. For those who do not know, Chile shakes almost every day and any structures here require incredible calculations, reliability and further constant monitoring.
2 ventilation and ESG. Co₂ sensors control the CTI, which allowed to withdraw up to 97 % of the emissions! This is a wow indicator!
3 Logistics. Four “tiers” of movements (people, technology, ore, materials) are divorced by different galleries. Route error of downtime hours.
4 Concrete 24/7. For the crepe on the surface, a mini-zap was deployed with QA/QC and RFID tracing of each batch.
The result is a lively illustration that industrial consulting today is the synthesis of BIM coordination, risk management and digital quality control in one of the most dry and seismoactive zones of the planet.
Conclusion: Project below the level the seas and above the level of complexity begins with the digital model and the discipline of processes - otherwise even kilometers of concrete will not be saved.
What is still amazing, the entire object is completely digitized and most importantly - it is translated into a digital double, this is an incredible job.
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