Improving Safety and Productivity through wireless blasting

Orica and the Ernest Henry Mine (EHM) successfully partnered to complete the world’s first production trial of the WebGen™ 100 wireless initiating system, in an operational underground mine. EHM is a Glencore owned Sub Level Caving (SLC) operation located in Queensland, Australia, and produces over 6 million tonnes of copper and gold ore per year.
During the trial, 30 rings were pre-charged with WebGen™ well in advance of the cave and then initiated from Mine Control on the surface. WebGen™ eliminated the need for mine site personnel to work near the brow to hook up the blasts, and also demonstrated that lost brows would not remain a production risk. The system was easily integrated into their current method of operation with no misfires or production delays.