30 Seconds of Info: Remember the ore blocks you design might not be the ore blocks you mine.

This week’s 30 Seconds of Reconciliation Info comes from Ian Glacken our Director of Geology.

Remember that the ore blocks you design may not be the ore blocks you mine:  Always remember that ‘as-designed’ may not (usually will not) be the same as ‘as-mined’.  This applies equally to open pit ore blocks (essentially 2D shapes with a constant vertical dimension) and underground stopes (a more complex 3D issue).  The reasons for the difference can be dilution, ore loss, overbreak, underbreak, finding more ore during inspection (in open pits), mining fill or waste pillars, and many, many other reasons.  A thorough and detailed reconciliation system will measure the as-designed and the as-mined shapes and attempt to understand the difference(s) between them.  This generally happens as a matter of procedure in underground operations but not necessarily in open pit mines.

Some background information about Ian:

Ian Glacken – Director of Geology
BSc (Hons) (Geology), MSc(Mining Geology), DIC, MSc(Geostatistics), Grad Dip Computing, FAusIMM(CP), FAIG, MIMMM, CEng

Ian is a geologist with postgraduate qualifications in geostatistics, mining geology and computing who has more than 35 years’ worldwide experience in the mining industry.

Ian’s skills are in resource evaluation and due diligence reviews, public reporting, training and mentoring, quantitative risk assessment, strategic advice, geostatistics, reconciliation, project management, statutory and competent persons’ reporting and mining geology studies.

Ian has a strong mining production background and is a regular auditor for the world’s largest mining companies.

Email:  iglacken@snowdenoptiro.com

If you’d like to learn more about Reconciliation, Ian presents a 1-day Reconciliation course.
Here is a LINK to the course details.