A Tour of Codelco's Santiago Operations Center
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A Tour of Codelco’s Santiago Operations Center INTRODUCTION Copper supplier to the world Codelco – or the Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile – is the world’s largest copper producer, manufacturing 1.8 million tons of fine copper per year, representing 15 percent of global production. The state-owned company controls the world’s largest known copper reserves, deep within the Andes Mountains of Chile. The 118 million tons of copper residing within Codelco mines is sufficient for more than 70 years of production at current production rates. Organizationally, Codelco is split into four areas: research, exploration, acquisition and development. Each of these units support the company’s principal production sites, which are structured into the following Divisions: Andina, Chuquicamata, El Teniente, Gabriela Mistral, Ministro Hales, Radomiro Tomic, Salvador and Ventanas; plus, the El Abra mine, in which Codelco holds a 49% interest. Joint venture with control of its Andes-based mines and production facilities to the cosmopolitan streets Honeywell Drives of Santiago, the Chilean capital. Together with Process Stability and Honeywell, it has built a state-of-the-art, remote 24x7 Operations Center in the heart of the Business Performance city, combining mining operations along with In 2007, Codelco formed a joint venture with concentrator plant, roaster and maintenance Honeywell, through which Honeywell supplies functions for the Ministro Hales Division. Codelco with process automation technology Zamora explains the rationale: “Based on and services to improve the performance of Codelco drivers, we wanted to minimize safety the company’s plants. The joint venture, called risks to workers and improve their quality of life Kairos Mining, was designed to improve process while increasing productivity. The fact is, people stability and business performance at the sites. don’t want to work long-term in the mountains “Kairos Mining is a long-term alliance that anymore, and technical talent is difficult to is helping Codelco achieve greater process retain. So, Codelco decided to migrate plant efficiency through higher automation standards,” functions hundreds of kilometers away, to the explains Claudio Zamora, President and city center.” CEO of Kairos Mining. “Honeywell Connected The Santiago Operations Center uses the latest Plant technologies are enabling Codelco to technologies to foster communication and optimize assets, improve operation continuity, interaction. It incorporates remote operation and and standardize automation processes and remote monitoring centers equipped with video technologies.” transmission equipment, video IP phones and a large-scale display wall; testing, development Innovating through and training laboratories; and meeting, training Connected Operations and video conferencing facilities. Today, Codelco is the midst of an ambitious, forward-thinking project to transfer operational Improving Production making – creating a connected production environment that’s delivering $45 million Efficiencies at Key Sites in incremental revenue annually through Today, the Operations Center is using data improved production quality and productivity analytics, predictive maintenance and for the Ministro Hales Division. The connected Honeywell Connected Plant expertise to deliver operating model was a brave business decision – radically improved production, productivity and and one that’s paying off.” increased revenues at Codelco’s plants. Operators can see production environments Visiting the clearly through cameras and high-resolution Operations Center screens, and are better coordinated since they can work together in the same room. Approved visitors can tour the Santiago Operations Center to better understand how Codelco is also able to achieve the full Codelco is solving production and business automation of its Advanced Process Control challenges through connected technologies, and (APC) systems, and to manage and exploit to see Honeywell advanced solutions at work. large volumes of data to improve production performance. Meanwhile, operations staff are There are eight major Operations Center alerted in real time to potential problems, and functions that visitors can experience: can modify processes to prevent the loss of Remote Support; Ministro Hales Remote continuity. Operations; Competency Management; Connected Assets; Application Development; The Operations Center has helped Codelco fine- Lifecycle Support; Advanced Process tune production, improve the use and availability Control Support; and Process Support. of equipment and systems, reduce costs and increase the productivity of its teams. Over the following pages, we’ll take you on a tour of each of these areas, allowing Zamora says: “Honeywell has helped Codelco you to better understand which functions integrate processes, information and decision are most relevant to your business. REMOTE SUPPORT CENTER For years, Codelco’s far-flung sites were There are three business drivers for Codelco’s constrained by the availability and cost of Remote Support Center function in Santiago, qualified specialists. The Remote Support through which cross-functional specialists Center addresses this challenge by providing support processes, advanced control applications, senior-level support across each plant. DCS and communications at Codelco plants: The Remote Support Center also provides real-time • Sustain automation benefits over time monitoring of open-platform process automation systems, and online access to process data and • Overcome the lack of on-site specialists control application information for different sites. • Reduce downtime and improve This allows Codelco’s process specialists to study operational continuity the impact that one process stage has on the Connected to the plants through a secure private next; the relationship between process variables; network, the Remote Support Center provides the identification of factors that might inhibit centralized access to multi-plant process process performance; and the evaluation of best information and automation resources, plus practices that can be replicated at other sites. services to follow-up processes, support plant operators, identify improvement opportunities KEY OUTCOMES and facilitate changes in operational Increased production yield practices to sustain automation benefits. Reduced operating costs Improved risk and safety profile MINISTRO HALES REMOTE improving the quality of decision making OPERATIONS CENTER through the visualization of productive chain variables; boosting product quality Codelco’s Ministro Hales plant, located in through an advanced control app; and Chile’s northern Antofagasta region, is run reducing water and energy consumption. from a dedicated Remote Operation Center in Santiago managed by Kairos Mining. The remote At the Ministro Hales Remote Operations operating model is having a beneficial impact on Center, you can see various Honeywell solutions process continuity and efficiency at the site. at work, including: the Experion® Process Knowledge System platform; sleek, intuitive The Kairos Mining team is enabling process Experion Orion consoles; an alarm management continuity by improving safety; minimizing system; control operations for SAG, grinding, disruptions to plant access; and using flotation and roasting processes; Digital Video condition monitoring to check the health Manager; and remote radio communications. of the plant’s process equipment. Simultaneously, Kairos Mining specialists have KEY OUTCOMES boosted process efficiency by integrating the Delivering $45 million in incremental annual revenue] management of operations and maintenance; Faster, better access to expertise whenever it’s needed establishing better coordination between Improvement in safety indicators due to less exposure to process operators; and ensuring consistency hazardous areas in operations criteria. Additionally, they are heightening operators’ situational awareness; COMPETENCY MANAGEMENT The training has also facilitated the adoption Through its Competency Management program, of new technologies and operational practices, Codelco is improving the knowledge, aptitude and and helped to standardize the learning of mining efficiency of its employees while adapting them to process behaviors and operational criteria, creating technological change. a strong foundation for operational efficiency and commercial success Nearly 1,400 Codelco employees have completed competency management training to build their KEY OUTCOMES knowledge of control system technology, advanced . Delivering $45 million in incremental annual revenue] control applications and process operations. Faster, better access to expertise whenever it’s needed Training sessions are conducted on-site, in the Improvement in safety indicators due to less exposure to Kairos Mining Remote Operations Center and via hazardous areas the web. The result? Employees are getting more out of Codelco’s installed systems. CONNECTED ASSETS Nearly 1,400 Codelco employees have completed Connected Assets allow operators to competency management training to build their boost operational efficiency, make more knowledge of control system technology, advanced timely decisions, reduce downtime and control applications and process operations. improve information transparency. Training sessions are conducted on-site, in the Kairos Mining Remote Operations Center and Using remote access and monitoring tools, via the web. The result? Employees are getting operators