HxGN MinePlan Release 4 2022 introduces some highly anticipated features to our Engineering and Geosciences product suites.
Improving Activity Scheduler Performance and Capability Through a Change in Data Storage
This bundle includes a change to how data is stored in Activity Scheduler and Planner. This change will allow users to access and store data more efficiently which in turn will lead to performance enhancements for loading and editing project data. We have observed how Activity Scheduler is used across a host of commodities and environments. Each mine has unique challenges and a set of unique variables. Scheduling solutions developed in the Activity Scheduler grow in maturity with our users’ understanding of their operation. Our customers strengthen their modelling capability which in turn improves the accuracy of their operational plan. This change will allow us to continue to grow the complexity of our planning assumptions and provide performance that improves the user experience.
This bundle includes a project conversion tool under the Utilities menu that enables users to select their older Activity Scheduler project files (pre–Activity Scheduler 6.2) and convert them to our new storage mechanism. At this stage, you can choose to rename your project or add a more detailed description that captures its intent.
When creating a brand-new Activity Scheduler project, users will be presented with a new option for specifying the location of the data store. This location will store all projects created locally.
Visualize and Validating Practical Schedules in Schedule Optimizer
Schedule Optimizer users who store their reserve information in a Planner project for the benefits of ore block management, will be able to use the new data source as they could our older formats.
Schedule Optimizer provides a uniquely scalable solution. We have customers running feasibility and life of asset plans using reserve stores and bench cuts. We also have customers using the tool to optimize their five-year budget plans. Some use the application for optimizing production plans at an even shorter horizon. We continue to add functionality that places more operational control in the hands of users and allows them to communicate these operational plans in the results that Schedule Optimizer produces.
Shovels can be assigned to a cut grouping enabling more control over how digging equipment is assigned. Without this control, a mathematically optimal plan could be impractical, with shovels zooming around the pit without consideration for the time and cost of moving physical equipment.
An effective plan is one that can be communicated well and executed with accuracy by those who receive the targets and instructions. This update includes visualization properties that enable the effective communication of where shovels should be in each scheduling period.
Drillhole Manager: Deeper Capabilities
Hexagon clients have been storing their geological drillhole and sample data in MinePlan’s Drillhole Manager (Torque) integrated database solution for years. New enhancements with this release improve the flexibility of the solution to store even larger datasets with more customization, while allowing users to work with their data more efficiently. Drillhole Manager has always supported an unlimited number of tables and attributes, but now each table’s attributes can be uniquely and independently customized, enabling users to store all their drilling data from all data sources easily in one central, collaborative database.
The release also includes other frequently requested features including ability to create new drillhole intervals more easily in bulk, and more options in our scriptable calculated sample attributes. Further, the solution has seen more speed improvements, as we continue to enhance performance to meet the demands of constantly increasing dataset sizes in a transforming industry. All these solutions are meant to save our geologists time and enable everyone to work with their complete drillhole datasets more easily on the fly throughout the connected MinePlan suite.
To download the latest version of MinePlan or other product releases, visit the Client Center or contact technical support to find out more about the release. As always, stay tuned to our blog and newsletter to receive future product updates.