Safety technology explained: Collision avoidance

Safe production is our expectation at Eldorado Gold. Production keeps the business running and our people employed, but it is never to be prioritized over our team’s health and safety. Safety is always a focus for Eldorado, and we are continually raising the bar through the use of new technologies and safety practices. 

Our next focus area in our operational technology (OT) journey series is collision avoidance. In our underground mines, roads are narrow, and there are sections that can be quite dark. Although there are many safety measures already in place—including traffic lights, barricades, and personal protective equipment with headlamps—implementing advanced technologies can help improve the safety of our mines. 

Collision avoidance in action at Efemçukuru 

At our underground mines, high-level collision avoidance systems use sensors and GPS to help avoid collisions between equipment and personnel, bringing an additional layer of safety for our workforce. 

In the diagram below, you see the technology architecture design of the Newtrax Advanced Proximity Detection System, which is deployed at our Efemçukuru mine site. You can see there are sensors installed on the heavy equipment and light vehicles. These sensors trigger warnings and can even stop the vehicle, a feature which we are looking to use at Efemçukuru. 

Designing a collision avoidance system 

Collision avoidance begins long before the implementation of advanced technology and starts with design and controls, including equipment specifications, mine plan and operating procedures.  
There are nine levels of collision avoidance, as outlined in the table below. Level 7, operator awareness through the use of cameras, maps, mirrors, and traffic lights, has been implemented at all our sites. We have added level 8—proximity alerts, fatigue alerts, over-speed, and vehicle stability— at Efemçukuru, Kışladağ and Lamaque through the implementation of advanced technology. 

The team at Efemçukuru is currently planning for a level 9 collision avoidance system, which includes physical control over the machine in close encounters, similar to some of the safety features built in personal vehicles today.

“With the Newtrax Advanced Proximity Detection System, Efemçukuru operators have reached level 8 in collision avoidance for heavy and light vehicles in our underground mine operations,” said Ibraham Ileri, Mine Manager, Efemçukuru. “Our objective is to reduce the risk of accidents, and we will further reduce these risks once we have completed upgrading our collision avoidance system to level 9.”