COMMENTARY — Communication and weight reduction

Communicating underground in mines is extremely difficult. Rock densities block out conventional radio signals; telephone lines do not reach more than 20% of a mine’s operating area; and because of the distances supervisors have to cover in a shift, they often cannot speak with all their staff more than once a shift.

To solve these expensive problems, Noranda researchers, working with a Toronto firm on a research project initiated by the U.S. Bureau of Mines, have developed the “Canary.”

Depending on the mine location, this very-low-frequency communication system can penetrate up to 5 km of rock, bringing virtually every miner into instant contact with a control centre.

Acting much like a conventional pager, the Canary transmits data messages over low frequencies that can penetrate rock more effectively than ordinary radio signals. The data arrive on a read-out display integrated with a yellow battery pack about the size of a hiker’s water canteen. The pack also supplies power to the miner’s lamp.

Central Canada Potash miners, who tested the system, suggested numerous improvements which were later incorporated, including a buzzer to augment other signals that alert workers to incoming messages.

In difficult communication environments such as mines, the benefits resulting from this system can be dramatic, particularly in the time saved. The Canary helps supervisors ensure that supplies are delivered promptly to the correct locations and that maintenance and engineering staff can be deployed. It also serves to alert employees to safety problems . . .

Elsewhere, American Racing Equipment, Noranda’s automotive wheel manufacturer, presented a challenge to the computer-aided engineering group at the Noranda Technology Centre in Pointe-Claire, Que.: shave 5% off the weight of an aluminum automobile wheel — a significant task, cents but] in the end, American Racing shaved up to 12% off the weight of wheels without compromising strength. Meanwhile, the same expertise was being transferred to other Noranda divisions.

The Gaspe Mines division used the experience in designing mining chute equipment. And Wire Rope Industries is one of the first companies in the world to use computer-aided analysis of the stress distribution inside each strand of wire cable. Already, new configurations reduce stress by as much as 60% on cable already in production.

— From the latest annual report of Noranda Inc.