Digital automation and energy management specialist Schneider Electric has reached the final stage of its information technology (IT) and operational technology integration project in South Africa’s Northern Cape province, for a South African diversified miner.

The project began in 2019 – in collaboration with digital communications technology multinational AVEVA – to increase the operational automation and control of mines remotely at its sites in the province.

As part of the modernisation drive, the operator focused on how the mine could derive value from automation solutions for employees, the plant and the equipment.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution’s (4IR’s) continuous development results in data, generated in the operational technology space – which previously was not fully used – becoming more recognised through its convergence with IT, explains Schneider Electric mining, minerals and metals segment lead Craig Hudson.

He says business systems are now working with operational systems to drive efficiency.

In a mining operation, IT and operational technology integration is key to helping mines analyse data gathered through cloud-based platforms and make better sense of the net effect. The information can then be displayed and made accessible to decision-makers, who can then base decisions and processes on well aggregated data.

Hudson explains that, in addition to real-time data, equally prioritising on-time data is important. On-time data refers to providing the right information for the right person at the right time to allow for correct decision-making.

Integration Project

In line with its modernisation drive, the South African diversified miner ensured that its mine had a good vertical integration between level one, two and three automation layers. These levels refer to the field level, the edge and applications and analytics.

Based on that integration, the mine initially created a central control room to increase the value it gained from the automation equipment and processes installed.

However, the mining operation reached a point where the central control room no longer delivered the value that it initially generated, consequently resulting in the introduction of Schneider Electric’s AVEVA software.

“We sat down with the customer to really understand what we'd like to see as the next phase in the digital transformation,” says Hudson.

In collaboration with the mine, the system integrators and other third-party software vendors on site, Schneider Electric identified ways of “fundamentally” changing the way the mine operated.

The project began with a consultative process of about 18 months to understand the customer’s requirements and challenges, in addition to exploring potential systems and solutions. This also entailed “talking to the people on the ground, understanding their pain points and how to address them”.

Following the completion of a functional description, the execution phase started in 2021, with the customer building a new facility with the relevant infrastructure and hardware to prepare for the deployment of the software platform.

The phased approach enabled all stakeholders to understand what worked well and what did not. This enabled the mine to change, improve and then reimplement solutions until it was satisfied with the platform.

“The final step in this stage is to define a centre of excellence, which is the core of any integrated operation. “This is where the data analysts make proposals to the business on what the next steps or the next actions should be, based on the analytics they conduct,” says Hudson.

Currently, the mine site has integrated remote operating facilities, which have enabled the mining operation to analyse the information from a central control perspective, as well as collect, aggregate and present information to the operators in a comprehensive manner.

“Digital is not a destination, it's a journey,” says Hudson.

He explains that the value of integrated, centralised systems is that they can drive collaboration and bridge the gap between various silos in a mining operation.

Consequently, employees can bring data together to understand the impact of a mining process on other functions or departments, and the extent of such impacts, which can include delays or equipment breakdowns.

Hudson comments that an important aspect of fully using IT and operational technology processes is to continually assess operations to identify new value streams and execute new platforms, as well as address any issues that need to be resolved.

This allows for the value of such systems to have a ripple effect, such as increased productivity through efficiency, he concludes.