CAES system at KCGM - four years on

When Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM) purchased its fleet of 18 Caterpillar's dump trucks in 1999, as part of its change to owner operated mining, five Caterpillar's Computer Aided Earthmoving Systems (CAES) were also commissioned on Komatsu PC8000 hydraulic shovels and Caterpillar D10R bulldozers. Since then the CAES system has been installed and operational on Komatsu PC3000 hydraulic shovel, Caterpillar's D10R dozers and Cat 994 front-end loader while Cat 854 wheel dozer has been fitted with CAESbasic. This investment in advanced machine guidance and control technology has proven very beneficial over the years for the Super Pit with improved safety and increased operating efficiency and productivity. The paper brings into focus how the CAES system adaptation in unique mining conditions assists in production gain, equipment operator's safety, flexibility and independence, personnel removal from hazardous areas, acquisition of operational information and improvements in mine planning and design, benefiting the entire mining operation.