Russian Miners Automate Rail Switching at Mining Plant
An ore processing facility has introduced an automated system to manage its internal rail network.
The Kachkanar Mining and Processing Plant has begun using a remote switch control station with centralized management based on an electronic axle-counting system.
Previously, railway switches were operated manually. The new system automatically detects track occupancy and notifies the central dispatch center when train cars pass through the network.
The change reduces the workload for employees responsible for the plant’s industrial rail operations and cuts locomotive idle time by 18 minutes while waiting for routes to be prepared.
Gradual Automation of Logistics Operations
The Kachkanar plant said it also plans to install a mobile module that automatically clears snow from railway switches. The equipment will be able to move between different sections of the rail network and replace manual labor.
Earlier, specialists at EVRAZ’s West Siberian Metallurgical Plant developed an application that can determine rail categories in real time.
The digital solution allows workers to quickly identify a rail’s category after entering its surface marking data, including the method of thermal hardening, hardness class, and intended use.
