CAPABILITY

Whittle Consulting’s approach to Enterprise Optimization involves the application of advanced analytical techniques to construct a model of the operation, from the ore body through mining and ore treatment processes, to products sold to the market. Once modelled, powerful mathematical optimisers are applied to manipulate the variables which are regarded as “negotiable”. The result is long-term plans that excel in terms of a wide range of economic, operational and other business criteria.

Our modelling techniques and facilities are comprehensive, capturing and harnessing the client’s information on geology, geotechnical, mining engineering, process engineering and metallurgy, financial and marketing, to combine into an integrated Enterprise Optimization Model which contains the details of all development options under consideration. The model is used as a basis for pit and phase optimisation, or to direct underground mine design, and to develop life-of-mine business plans which identify the optimal operating configuration for the scenario presented. The result is a unique capability which can resolve planning issues beyond the scope of available packaged planning software.

Once the model is constructed, this integrated approach is generally the quickest and most economic means of getting definitive answers to a wide range of planning questions, whether driven by mining, processing, marketing or finance.

In the past, geological uncertainty was probably the greatest concern, but in the current market, volatile commodity prices are causing the greatest difficulty. Having a responsive Enterprise Optimization Model for your mining business allows you to effectively evaluate the consequences of different possible future market conditions and to make investment and operational decisions today on a fully informed and considered basis.

Knowledge itself is power. Our integrated approach allows mining business leaders to understand the drivers of value within their asset portfolios and to identify what their ore bodies and plant assets are really capable of. It is the ultimate way to assess the potential of mineral resources, to evaluate development options and to improve the performance and value of existing operations.

"During the course of an optimisation study, all the favoured alternatives will be tested,” says Gerald Whittle. “But if we present the problem in the right way, the optimiser is capable of producing superior solutions in forms that had not been previously envisaged. These are often easily understood and ‘obvious’ once pointed out – but weren’t necessarily intuitive at the outset."

"This is fascinating from an analytical perspective, but from a business perspective identifying these possibilities is simply imperative. Operational complexity and flexibility create challenges and opportunities that are best explored using the most powerful techniques and software technology available. Some of these problems involve hundreds of thousands of variables and constraints – even the most experienced and capable human minds cannot deal with that level of complexity."