Abstract
The availability and the utilisation of drill rigs have great impact on the output of a mine. These can be optimised by reducing the downtimes and operational delays to ensure high availability and utilisation, and consequently higher productivities. In this paper, the causes of the numerous rig breakdowns at Kanjole Minerals Ltd. (KML) were investigated, the availability and utilisation of the rigs were estimated and the impact of the availability and utilisation of the rigs on the mine’s production evaluated. Iron ore occurs on five hills at KML. Five drill rigs which are currently in operation at KML were studied in this work. The causes of the rig breakdowns observed include hose burst, overheating, shank adapter breakage and change out, rod breakage, low flushing, percussion and rotation pressures, track removal and breakage and drilling chain breakage. The operating data of the rigs were entered into drill log books during drilling operations. The period of study was from September 2012 to February 2013. The results show that production of the mine is dependent on the average hours used for drilling which is also dependent on the availability and utilisation of the drill rigs. Also, analysis of logged data indicate that the mine does not schedule rigs to undergo regular maintenance. It is therefore recommended that regular maintenance schedules should be prepared for the drill rigs by the mine to minimise the unplanned downtimes of the rigs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1524-1537 |
| Journal | International Journal of Science, Environment and Technology |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |