Whether it is fluctuating commodity rates, low-grade ore, changing taxation policies, or other unfortunate situations, you must maintain a profitable business and squeeze every ounce of productivity out of the available assets. In addition, you must be proactive to avoid unplanned downtime and last-minute repairs and replacements.
This is because even a single hour of mining equipment downtime results in delayed operation and decreased productivity. Therefore, it is advisable not to sit back and watch critical mining equipment malfunction and later rush to fix it. Thankfully, some mine operators are economically smart and have started taking every precaution to reduce the downtime.
If you are also figuring out how to improve the machine up-time without making any capital investment, you are at the right place. Here are the impactful ways to spare you from all the downtime roadblocks:
1. Invest in high-quality, reliable machine and equipment
The best thing you can do is put money in high mining equipment. This may appear expensive to you, but it is cost-effective in the long run. Poor quality essentials malfunction more often since they are made of inferior materials. Because mining essentials, regardless of quality, are expensive, you cannot afford to replace them, primarily if they have only been used for a short time. As a result, you end up spending money on last-minute repairs and replacements.
Additionally, the unavailability of equipment leads to slower production and lower profit. This gives you another reason to avoid purchasing low-quality items.
2. Be prepared by having access to pare engine
This is another way of decreasing equipment downtime. Failures are inevitable if you’ve already purchased inferior equipment. But you can’t make your miners wait until it’s fixed before they can work again. Having extra engines on hand, such as a high-quality DD15 overhaul kit, ensures that no time is lost because miners can employ an additional engine in the meantime.
However, here are some words of wisdom. You do not need to purchase an additional engine and can instead seek assistance from suppliers that provide such solutions.
3. Hire trained technicians only
As a mine operator, you know the distinction between planned and unplanned maintenance. The operational time lost due to rest time, scheduled maintenance, and leaves is referred to as planned downtime. You can efficiently address this by subtracting them from the scheduled operating time to obtain the remaining time as planned production time.
The most difficult challenge is unforeseen downtime, which occurs when operating time is wasted due to unplanned occurrences such as human mistakes, technical malfunctions, and a lack of supervision. Because these are unannounced, they must be dealt with on-site as soon as possible, which only a qualified technician can do.
4. Seek assistance from a reliable rebuild service to save time
Is there a difficulty with the engine? Then don’t rush to replace it; instead, be financially sensible. You can reconfigure it to decrease not just downtime but also life cycle costs. However, only seek help from nearby and reputed manufacturers willing to provide specialized services.
The reason for requesting assistance from close range and reputable manufacturers is that these machines are not lighter but weigh more than 15,000 pounds (ca. 7 t). This is roughly comparable to the total size of three to four medium automobiles. In addition, only such manufacturers can repair large horsepower engines through a rigorous technique to assure the finest quality.
5. Employ advanced analytics and telematics
When it comes to increasing equipment uptime, nothing beats the use of advanced analytics and telematics. It is a predictive maintenance technique that notifies you ahead of time as to which machine and equipment parts need to be replaced or repaired. The technique uses modern-day technologies such as AI and IoT to monitor machines and identify the need for maintenance constantly.
The prediction is made by the algorithms that capture data with the help of IoT devices and determine patterns that help identify maintenance needs. This prepares you not just for scheduled maintenance but also for impromptu upkeep. As a result, equipment up-time improves while downtime reduces.
To conclude, your machines and equipment are the heartbeats of the mining operations. You must do all in your ability to keep them running smoothly. Also, if there is a defect, there is a possibility of happening an accident. Employees are not the only ones who suffer; output, credibility, health coverage, and everything else get affected.
It is a big undertaking, but you will undoubtedly regret it later if you do not follow the instructions outlined above. There may be some costs connected with equipment up-time, but saving a few dollars can cost you more in the long run. So, without any further fuss, begin the mining downtime reduction process and thank me later.
