Size of stockpile: An equipment breakdown analysis approach for a case study

Abstract

A case study of an opencast mine is presented where work is being carried out using an interconnected system, with mined ore fed directly to a processing plant. Breakdowns in the mining process or in the plant affect the overall mine production. To separate the two interconnected units, an intermediate stockpile before the primary crusher of the plant has been proposed. The stockpile should be of an adequate capacity to provide the necessary coverage for the breakdowns, but should not be too large or rehandling costs will be too high and it will take up too much space. The minimum size of the stockpile required has been estimated using detailed statistical analysis.