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2024
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11
"Digital" drives the entire coal chain development.
In the giant mining pit, yellow earth is stripped away, and black gold is exposed. Mining trucks shuttle back and forth, busy with transportation operations. Unlike usual, these trucks have no drivers; apart from safety personnel on-site, the vehicles are "driven" by computers several kilometers away, and the loading and unloading processes are automated. Recently, at the Heidaigou open-pit coal mine of Guoneng Zhuanneng Group in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia, three working faces are undergoing heavy-load debugging of unmanned trucks.
By the end of this year, 10 types of vehicles and 165 ultra-large mining trucks will be assembled and put into operation at the Heidaigou and Hala'usu open-pit coal mines, working in coordination with auxiliary vehicles such as excavators and bulldozers. At that time, the Zhuangeer mining area where the two mines are located will become the world's largest unmanned transportation open-pit mine, which is also a model of digital transformation in the coal industry.
The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Energy Bureau recently released the "14th Five-Year Plan for Energy Digital Transformation," further clarifying the need to "promote the comprehensive application of digital technology in the coal industry," with a digital investment scale of about 12 billion yuan. In addition to coal mining, more processes such as transportation and washing will also be driven by "digital" technology.
The demand for digitalization is greater and the requirements are stricter.
"We have formed a professional team focusing on the deep integration of IoT, big data, cloud computing, Beidou + 5G communication technologies with coal mining," said Cao Yong, deputy general manager of Guoneng Zhuanneng Group. The group has planned a path for intelligent construction centered on "intelligent control of single equipment, intelligent collaboration of multiple equipment, and interactive integration of management systems." In the future, it will have a unified high-speed network, a unified control platform, a unified data center, and diversified application systems, ultimately achieving comprehensive perception, real-time interconnection, analytical decision-making, autonomous learning, dynamic prediction, and collaborative control, fully creating a replicable benchmark for intelligent mines.
Represented by this, Inner Mongolia has successively launched projects such as "5G + Smart Mine Demonstration Base" and "5G + Unmanned Mining Truck Joint Laboratory." During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, the local area will continue to strengthen the application of cutting-edge technologies such as 5G, edge computing, and artificial intelligence in the coal industry, with digital technology covering exploration, mining, safety, ecological protection, and other processes.
In addition to open-pit coal mines, digital technology also "penetrates" underground layers. Taking Shaanxi, another major coal-producing area, as an example, reporters learned from the Xi'an Heavy Equipment Smart Mine Company of Shaanxi Coal Group that its self-developed full lifecycle management platform for the coal industry has recently been continuously operating at the Dafa Temple Mine of the Binchang Mining Company. With the support of digitalization, mining equipment can be controlled 24 hours a day, and the entire life process from installation, operation and maintenance, remanufacturing to scrapping can be tracked and monitored.
"This is not traditional equipment monitoring, but a digital and systematic management platform based on the industrial internet, collecting, organizing, scientifically analyzing, and providing fault warnings for massive data, thus providing scientific decision-making basis for management at all levels," said Wang Heng, technical manager of the project management department of Xi'an Heavy Equipment. He admitted that the underground environment of coal mines is complex, and based on the principle of "fewer people means safety," there is a greater desire for digital empowerment than in other industrial fields. "However, due to the complex and variable conditions underground, with safety hazards such as gas and roof collapse, the digital transformation of the coal industry is more difficult and has stricter requirements."
Facing the dual challenges of hardware and software upgrades.
Where are the difficulties and strictness? "The development of digitalization and intelligence is not only constrained by technological advances such as IoT and artificial intelligence but is also restricted by factors such as the conditions of coal resource deposits, process methods, geographical location, and existing levels of informatization," Cao Yong stated. Currently, there are major issues such as research and development lagging behind enterprise needs, insufficient support for intelligent technology equipment, difficulties in information exchange between systems, poor real-time performance, low data utilization rates, and a shortage of high-end talent.
Wang Heng cited that the conditions of underground mines are special, and equipment must pass professional explosion-proof certification to go underground. Many intelligent devices that work well on the surface have limited applicability underground. "For example, the coal mining face needs to spray water regularly to reduce dust, and the operating conditions of the equipment are different from those on the surface. We often encounter situations where underground sensors are contaminated with dust or water, leading to decreased sensitivity and clarity, or even failure. Hardware performance is the foundation for achieving digitalization and must be strengthened."
"There are shortcomings in technology, and the ecosystem needs improvement." Dong Lin, director of the Skills Master Studio at the Du'erping Coal Mine of Xishan Coal Electricity, shares a similar sentiment. Taking 5G as an example, existing applications are mostly concentrated in areas such as video transmission, and due to the limitations of related technologies for integrated applications, breakthrough applications that can solve the pain points of intelligent construction in coal mines have not yet been fully realized. As a new technology, 5G is still in the exploratory stage of integration and development with coal mines, and there is still a lack of unified standards in management and operation. Additionally, the requirements for digital management are more refined, and there are relatively few professionals equipped in coal mines, making it costly to rely on operators for service.
Earlier at the China International Coal Development Summit Forum, Wang Hongqiao, vice president of the China Coal Industry Association, reminded that coal enterprises face risks in digital transformation, such as strategic adjustments and information security. "Changes in industrial policies and major strategic direction adjustments of enterprises can render digital transformation projects based on original designs unable to continue or require starting over. The Internet of Everything poses a huge challenge to information security, but investments in information security cannot directly generate benefits and are often overlooked."
"Every enterprise is unique; there is no fixed routine for transformation."
In fact, digital transformation is both a challenge and an opportunity. According to estimates by the China Coal Industry Association, by the end of the "14th Five-Year Plan," the annual output value of the digital economy in the coal industry is expected to reach a market scale of 100 billion yuan.
"Digital transformation varies from enterprise to enterprise, with no fixed path or routine to follow. It requires steady progress, top-down approaches, and gradual advancement. Digitalization is merely a means; its essence is to improve efficiency, not technology," Wang Hongqiao believes that coal enterprises should focus on top-level design, improve digital infrastructure and data governance systems, and incorporate intelligent construction into the overall digital transformation, accelerate the construction of the industrial internet support system for coal, enhance digital collaboration across the industrial chain, and prioritize talent cultivation and reserve, as well as network and information security.
Dong Lin also stated that even within Shanxi Province, there are nearly 900 various coal mines, with a large number and significant differences, necessitating the construction of different types of digital application scenarios. On one hand, it is suggested to carry out research and development and manufacturing of 5G + coal machinery and other equipment, providing support in terms of funding for major projects, tax incentives, etc., to encourage equipment manufacturers, software developers, and research institutions to settle in Shanxi; on the other hand, support should be provided in terms of discipline setting and the construction of double first-class universities to accelerate the cultivation of talents in 5G applications. Special funds for 5G construction in coal mines can also be established, rewarding mines with full coverage of 5G applications based on the ratio of software and hardware investment, and prioritizing coal resource allocation and project approval.
Cao Yong stated that coal mine development involves the deployment of systems related to production, safety, electromechanical, and technology, with multiple levels and complex structures. Intelligent construction is a process of comprehensive upgrading and transformation of all systems and components, not only reflected in "single components, single equipment, single systems," but more importantly, achieving global information exchange and efficient application. "The key lies in the equipment, and the core is intelligence. It requires equipment manufacturing enterprises and research institutions to be involved in the entire construction process from the design stage, providing technical support for the entire lifecycle, extending the industrial chain of intelligent equipment manufacturing, and shifting from primarily providing products to providing products and services, and to providing overall solutions, promoting the coordinated development of manufacturing and services." (Source: China Energy News)
The digital transformation of energy during the "14th Five-Year Plan",Coal mining development
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