Introduction - Advanced Control and Supervision of Mineral Processing Plants - page 10

1.4 Benefits
The benefits of an automation system can be classified into tangible and intangible
benefits. Tangible ones can easily be assigned a monetary value [16]. Although it is
difficult to assign a monetary value to intangible benefits, they are real and valuable.
Automation systems can be beneficial in many different ways. An assessment of
their impact on a mineral processing plant should consider the following:
Increased production . A throughput increase has a clear monetary value. How-
ever, it must be kept in mind that a production increase in some units must be consis-
tent with the processing capacity of downstream units. For instance, it is not sensible
to produce more flotation concentrate if the filtering plant is not capable of process-
ing it.
Process stability improvements . Process stability in the context of a mineral pro-
cessing plant refers to the capacity of the process to run smoothly and to consistently
meet specifications. These specifications can be imposed by either a downstream
unit or an external customer.
Better use of raw materials . Automation systems help prevent the use of raw
materials that will not contribute directly to the process objectives.
Reduced maintenance and improved safety . A well-implemented automation sys-
tem will increase safety by providing timely information about dangerous situations
(alarms) and taking automatic prompt actions. This means less wear and tear, and
fewer catastrophic failures.
Improved process knowledge . This can be regarded as an intangible benefitifit
is not directly linked to a decision-making process.
Many of these benefits are interrelated. For example, improved process stabil-
ity may reduce downtime, thereby increasing production. A number of examples in
Chapter 6 will illustrate these kinds of benefits and their associated monetary value.
The economic assessment of these benefits can be carried out by standard method-
ologies as described in [17]. It is important to stress that the benefits, arising from
a potential implementation of an advanced automation solution, must be the core of
its functional specification.
1.5 Historical Perspective
The mineral processing industry has been very slow to adopt automation technolo-
gies in contrast to the petrochemical and pulp and paper industries. In the last
decades though, there has been an increased interest in intensifying their use [18].
Figure 1.4 illustrates the main developments since 1960 and the range of their ef-
fects.
During the 1960s, some elementary control systems involving measurements of
solid concentration and pulp level were developed and some control loops were im-
plemented aiming at stabilizing the process operation. In the 1970s, new modern
measurement devices, specifically designed for particulate systems, came into ex-