Deswik.

IS for Open Pits

Introductory Training Manual

Release Date: 27 August 2010

Version: 1.3

428 Upper Edward St., Spring Hill, Queensland, Australia, 4000

Email: [email protected]
Tel: +61 (0)7 3218 2915 • WITHIN AUSTRALIA 1300 DESWIK (337 945) • Fax: +61 (0)7 3218 7377
ABN 37 136 642 450
Contents

1.0 Introduction..............................................................................................................................................4

2.0 Installation................................................................................................................................................4

3.0 Process Flow..............................................................................................................................................5

4.0 Startup......................................................................................................................................................6

4.1 Manually Start.......................................................................................................................................6

4.2 Start Automatically................................................................................................................................6

5.0 Importing Data..........................................................................................................................................7

6.0 Create DTM of the Pit Design..................................................................................................................10

7.0 Create Material Class Legend..................................................................................................................12

8.0 Settings....................................................................................................................................................14

8.1 Project Options....................................................................................................................................14

8.1.1 General Settings - Data................................................................................................................15

8.1.2 Attributes – Define......................................................................................................................17

8.1.3 Attributes – Field Builder.............................................................................................................18

8.1.4 Interrogation - Settings................................................................................................................19

8.1.5 Interrogation - Fields...................................................................................................................20

8.1.6 Scheduling – Resources...............................................................................................................23

8.1.7 Derived Tasks..............................................................................................................................24

9.0 Activity Types..........................................................................................................................................31

10.0 Design.....................................................................................................................................................34

10.1 Create Pit Shell Solids..........................................................................................................................34

10.1.1 Trim by polylines.........................................................................................................................39

10.1.2 Trim by elevation.........................................................................................................................39

10.1.3 Separate and Remove by Volume...............................................................................................40

10.2 Validate the Resultant Pit Shell...........................................................................................................41

10.3 Create Mining Blocks...........................................................................................................................43

10.3.1 Create a Grid...............................................................................................................................43

10.3.2 Create Mining Blocks...................................................................................................................46

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 10.4 Assign Attributes.................................................................................................................................48

10.4.1 Assigning Attributes Manually.....................................................................................................49

10.4.2 Assigning Bench Attribute to the Bench Block Polygons.............................................................51

11.0 Bench Block Reserves..............................................................................................................................55

11.1 Create From Elevations.......................................................................................................................55

11.2 Delete Tasks from Schedule................................................................................................................59

11.3 Create Tasks from Polygons................................................................................................................60

11.3.1 Create the Tasks..........................................................................................................................61

12.0 Scheduling...............................................................................................................................................63

12.1 Dependency Creation..........................................................................................................................63

12.1.2 Create and Edit Dependencies Manually.....................................................................................66

12.1.3 Creating Vertical Overlap Dependencies.....................................................................................68

12.1.4 Create Shortest Path Dependencies............................................................................................72

12.1.5 Create Final Pit Surface to Include in Animation.........................................................................74

12.1.6 Viewing Animations.....................................................................................................................75

12.2 Update Survey Actuals........................................................................................................................79

13.0 Tools........................................................................................................................................................83

13.1 Batch Updates.....................................................................................................................................83

13.1.1 Interrogate..................................................................................................................................84

13.1.2 Update Scheduler Attributes from the Graphics.........................................................................84

13.1.3 Update Graphics Attributes from the Scheduler.........................................................................84

13.1.4 Update Start and Finish Dates from the Scheduler.....................................................................85

13.1.5 Export Bench Block Solids for use in Deswik.Scheduler Visualizer..............................................85

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1.0 Introduction

This document provides an Introductory Tutorial in how to use Deswik.IS (Interactive Scheduler) in an Open Pit
operation.

It is assumed that the user is familiar with the basic operation of Deswik.CAD as covered in the
Introductory training course.

2.0 Installation

Install the latest version of Deswik.IS and the Deswik Scheduler on computer.

Ensure you have Administrator rights when installing.

Refer to document ‘Deswik.CAD Licensing - Client Side Registration’ or contact Deswik Support
([email protected]) for more information on connecting to a license.

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3.0 Process Flow

The following process flow illustrates the steps required to complete an open pit design by either
slicing the pit into Bench’s by Elevations, or doing more detailed design and breaking it out into blast
polygons.

Cut into Benches by Cut into Blast Blocks

Elevations using Polygons

Schedule Template Schedule Template

Pit Stage Design Pit Stage Designs

Project Options Project Options

Create Pit Shell Solids Create Pit Shell Solid

Assign Attributes Block Polygons Grid

Create Bench Blocks Create Mining Blocks

Crete Dependencies Assign Atributes

Schedule Create Bench Blocks

Crete Dependencies

Schedule

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4.0 Startup

Deswik.CAD can be opened from the Start menu: All Programs | Deswik | Deswik.CAD.

The Interactive Scheduler runs as a plugin to Deswik.CAD. It can be started from the main menus each time
required, or alternatively started each time Deswik.CAD is opened.

4.1 Manually Start

From the Deswik.CAD menus, select Tools | Interactive Scheduler.

4.2 Start Automatically

The plugin can be set to restart each time Deswik.CAD loads from the Plugin Manager (Tools | Plugin
Manager).

 Click and select the Interactive Scheduler file.

o C:\Program Files\Deswik\Deswik.OpenPit.InteractiveScheduler.dll

If the plugin has been loaded previously through the menus, it will already appear in the list
Information about the plugin is loaded into the Plugin Options panel.

 Toggle on the Load on Application Startup check box to have the Interactive Scheduler open on
starting Deswik.CAD.
 Toggle on the Restore Plugin Dock Position check box to have it open in the same location as it was
when last closed.

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  Press to load the Open Pit Interactive Scheduler. A green arrow appears next to the
plugin if it has been loaded. The main control panel will appear in the top left of the Deswik.CAD
window:

5.0 Importing Data

The data required for this tutorial can be found in the Tutorial directory (C:\Deswik Software\Deswik\Deswik
Software\Documents\Training Manuals\Deswik Open Pit Interactive Scheduler - Introductory Training
Manual).

pitdesign.str Pit design polylines

topo.dtm Topography DTM at EOM March 2010
pit_eom_201004.dtm Survey DTM at EOM April 2010
bench_blocks.dm Designed bench blast blocks

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 orebody.dm Orebody block model

Spatial data can be imported from various formats. The supported formats appear under the File |
Import menu.

It is a good idea to carefully structure the data using layers so that it can be easily found later and also to
quickly change the visibility of the data grouped under these layers. A suggested structure for this tutorial is as
follows:

 Add layers by right clicking in the Layer Control and selecting Add.
 Import data to a layer:
o Select the layer to add the data to. The selected layer will remain highlighted.
o To import, select the file type from File | Import | … or drag and drop the data file into the
Model Space
o The data from the file will be imported to a new layer of the same name as the file under the
selected layer.

The layer structure should look like the following after importing:

The orebody.dm data is not pictured on a layer above. It is imported later in the tutorial.

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 To distinguish between the different solids, it is advisable to change the color of them. This can be done
by changing the Pen Color values in the Properties grid:

 Change the color of the topography (0\SURVEY\TOPO_DTM) to Color Index 20.

 Change the color of the survey DTM (0\SURVEY \PIT_EOM_201004_DTM) to Color Index 2.
 The loaded information should look something like the following:

 To make the layer names more meaningful, change the name of the 0\SURVEY\TOPO layer to 0\
SURVEY\PIT_EOM_201003.
 The resultant layers should like this:

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6.0 Create DTM of the Pit Design

Tools are available to create a surface from polylines. In this example we will create a DTM of the pit design
from the pit design strings.

New entities added to a project are placed on the Active Layer. The Active Layer is displayed in bold in
the main Layer Control Tree View.

 Display only the data on the layer 0\PIT DESIGN\PIT DESIGN_STR.

o Method 1: Right click on the layer and select Isolate from the menu.
o Method 2: Hold down the Ctrl key and click on the check box next to the 0 layer. This will turn
the display of the 0 layer and all children layers off. Make the desired layer visible by checking
the box on the left of the layer.
 Add a new layer called DTM under the layer 0\PIT DESIGN\PIT DESIGN_STR.
 Make the layer 0\PIT DESIGN\PIT DESIGN_STR \DTM active by double clicking on it.

 Run the Tessellate command (Draw | Solids | Tessellate) to create the DTM based on all visible data.
o Select Visible Entities in the dialog box that displays to create the DTM from all visible entities
and click OK.

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 In the dialog that displays, the way the DTM is created can be manipulated. The only setting we will
change for this DTM is to Use Boundaries:

 Click OK and select the polyline that defines the boundary of the pit DTM:

 Right click to finish the selection and a DTM will be created within the bounds of the selected polygon
and placed on the Active layer.

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  Finally, change the PenColor of the DTM to Color Index = 0 in the Properties grid to make it red.

7.0 Create Material Class Legend

To be able to report on different material categories from an interrogation, a legend must be created that
defines how to identify the different material categories in the input block model.

Define the Legend that will be used in the Interrogation in the main Deswik.CAD toolbars:

 Open the Legends dialog from the toolbars by clicking from the Legends toolbar.

or from the menus select Edit | Legends | Edit.

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 Create a new Legend by clicking in the top left of the form and enter the name of the Legend as
Codes

 Add a new Bin category by clicking under the grid in the centre of the form
o Set the name of the Bin = Blue.
o Select the Value tab on the top right of the form.
o Set the Field value to CODE.

This is the Block Model field name containing the material class information. This code
was assigned by the geologists using a macro based on grade ranges.
o Set the Value = 1
o Set Pen Color for this bin to Blue
 Repeat the above steps until the legend looks like the one below. The Values of the CODE Field need
to be set as follows: Blue = 1, Cyan = 2, Green = 3, Orange = 4, Yellow = 5, Pink = 6, Red = 7, Waste = 0.

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8.0 Settings

All of the global settings to be used in the project are configured in the Project Options.

8.1 Project Options

Configure the locations of the main planning data to be used in the process of creating or updating a schedule.
Also define attributes, interrogation and resource assignment options.

Setup the project using the options defined in the following sections.

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8.1.1 General Settings - Data

If modifications are made to the Deswik.Scheduler Project Settings while open at the same time as the
Interactive Scheduler Options dialog, the lists of available fields can be updated by clicking on a different tab
of the settings form.

 Scheduler File – The file containing all of the settings and data for the project. Set the file as C:\
Database\Deswik Tutorial Data\Open Pit Interactive Scheduler\Pit Schedule.exf. The Scheduler File
needs to be created before the Interactive Scheduler can be configured as information such as the
Production Fields, Text Fields and Code Fields are read directly from it.
 EPSViz Graphics File – The Datamine format file to be created for use in EPSViz. Set this to something
related to the name of the project in case there are multiple projects in use to allow multiple pits to
be displayed in the Visualiser at once.

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 This file is only used if interfacing to the EPS scheduler in combination with EPSViz.

At the end of every process which alters the graphical data, this file will be updated ensuring the
EPSViz graphics are up-to-date.

 Task Polygons Layer – The layer to store the resultant Task Polygons on.
 Task Solids Layer – The layer to store the resultant Task Solids on.
 Graphical Dependencies Layer – The layer to store the graphical dependencies on when editing
dependencies.

If any of the layers do not exist, they will be created automatically when leaving the Data tab of
the Settings form.

 Scheduler To Use – The scheduling application to use. Select Deswik.Scheduler.

Interfacing to EPS is also supported although with reduced connectivity and functionality.

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8.1.2 Attributes – Define

Set the Attributes that will be read from the graphics when creating tasks as shown in the picture below.
These Attributes will be synchronized between the Scheduler and the Graphics at various points in the
process.

In the Primary Grouping Attributes grid, the custom fields (as defined in the Scheduler File) can be selected
from. In the Other Attributes grid, Production fields and Custom fields (as defined in the Scheduler File) can be
selected from. A few other standard Deswik.Scheduler fields such as Description and Name can be selected as
Primary Grouping Attributes or Other Attributes to Assign From Graphics.

 Click to add rows to the grids and select the fields to add as in the picture above.

All attributes defined as Primary Grouping Attributes and those set in Other Attributes Grid will be
added to the graphics as Attributes. The main difference is that Grouping Attributes will be used to help group
and structure the data in other processes.

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 When creating tasks, all of the Attributes defined in these grids must be defined on the input design
items before the process can be run. This ensures that the tasks created do not have invalid data assigned to
them.

On closing the Options dialog box, the Attributes will be automatically added to the Bench Block and Pit Shell
layers.

8.1.3 Attributes – Field Builder

Define naming conventions in one or more fields that are a combination of other Attribute fields.

 In the Field grid, add a new row by clicking and select the Name attribute.

Text fields defined in the Scheduler File and a few standard Deswik.Scheduler fields such as
Name are available for selection.

 In the grid on the right, add 7 rows by clicking and select the Fields as in the picture above.
o As an example, for the Bench field, the values defined in the columns will do the following:
 Field – Read the value from this attribute when creating the new field value.
 Text – Used only for Delimiters and defines the text to be inserted.

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  From – The position in the attribute value to start reading text.
 Length – The number of characters to read.
 Format – The format to be applied to the string, e.g. 000 will turn a value of 43 to 043
and 0,000 will turn 12345 to 12,345.
 Set Fill blanks with character as the underscore character “_”
 Set Position to place filler characters as Before

If the Length is defined as 3 and the value in the Attribute is only 2 characters long, a “_”
character will be placed before it e.g. _43.
 Set as Attribute on Graphics – Select this check box. The Attribute will be added to the graphic entities
(solids and polygons) when the tasks are created

8.1.4 Interrogation - Settings

Define the settings that control the Interrogation process. As a part of creating tasks, the solids will be
interrogated using these settings.

In the Interrogation Settings, set the values as below:

 Filter – Select <No Filtering> so that all input tasks are interrogated using the model.
 Model Type – Select Datamine Block Model.
 File – Select the block model to be used in the interrogation as C:\Database\Deswik Tutorial Data\
Open Pit Interactive Scheduler\Input Data\orebody.dm.
 Density Field – Set as SG as this contains the density values in the block model.

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  Default Density – Set to 2.65. This will be used to calculate the Tonnes where there are voids in the
block model.
 Legend – Set the Legend to Codes (the Legend we created earlier in the tutorial).
 Default Density (General Options) – Set to 2.65.
 Show Advanced Options – Leave this check box toggled off, as the advanced options are not required
in this tutorial.
 Set Block Model Name in Field – Leave toggled off
 Set Interrogation Date in Field – Leave toggled off

8.1.5 Interrogation - Fields

Set the fields that will be used in the Interrogation. These fields must exist in the Scheduler File as Production
Fields and define the Tonnes, Volume, Density or Grades associated with a Task.

All fields defined as Grade fields under Field Type must exist in the Block Model defined under
Interrogation – Settings as well as in the Scheduler File. The fields must be numeric fields in the Block Model
and Production Fields in the Scheduler File.

 To add an Interrogation Field (e.g. Tonnes):

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 o Click to add a new row to the grid.
o For the Scheduler Field, select the Tonnes field from the list of Deswik.Scheduler Production
Fields.
o Set the Field Type = Tonnes to indicate that this field stores the Tonnes information.
o Set the Default = 0. This will be assigned only to voids for Grade fields.
o Set the Legend Bin to <None> indicating that the field is to store the Total Tonnage.
o Set the Model Field to <None> as the tonnes are not calculated from a field in the model.
 Repeat the above steps for the remainder of the fields displayed in the grid above.
 To add the Fields that will store the Legend Interrogation information to the grid, use the

button.

 Select the values as displayed. Note that the Spacing Character between Field and Legend is a single
space (i.e. not a blank).
 Upon clicking OK, the system looks for field names which are a concatenation of the total Scheduler
Field name e.g. Tonnes, and the Legend Bin name e.g. Cyan. If an existing Scheduler field is found that
matches the combination of these names e.g. Tonnes Cyan, the field will be assigned as a Legend
field.
 After assigning the Legend fields, the grid should look like the following:

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 Fe Waste, Mn, Waste, P Waste and Si Waste fields will not be added, because these fields do not exist
in the Scheduler file. .

Should the Legend Field Configuration not provide the desired field settings, these can be
configured manually by adding additional rows to the grid.

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8.1.6 Scheduling – Resources

Define the Resources that can be assigned graphically and set the default assignment properties to assign to
tasks.

 Click to import all of the Resources defined in Deswik.Scheduler. This will

import the Resource Name and Default Rate.
 For each Resource:
o Set the Default Assignment method as Driving.
o Set the Default Rate. Leave this as imported from Deswik.Scheduler.
o Set the Default Number = 1.
o Set the Color to use when hatching mining blocks that have been assigned this resource. Use
a different color of your choice for each piece of equipment.
o Set the Dependency Layer to To Excavation. This is used to indicate the path of the
equipment and allows quickly switching between Dependency-based scheduling and Priority-
based scheduling for the equipment.

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8.1.7 Derived Tasks

Derived Tasks can be created from any Parent Task. They represent another activity that is involved in the
cycle of extracting the main mining block. For example, the Parent Task is the excavation of the dirt within a
block or bench, and the predecessor tasks to the Parent Task are Drilling and Blasting. So that these tasks can
be scheduled and resourced, they are created as Derived Tasks of the Parent Task.

Derived Tasks are created when a Parent task is created. You cannot go back and create them in a
batch once the Create Bench Blocks process is complete. Therefore, the setup of the Derived Tasks should be
considered carefully when setting up the project.

 Create a new Derived Task by clicking :

o Enter the name Drilling for the new Derived Task and it will appear in the list.
o Set the Filter to <No Filtering> as we wish to create a Derived Task for all new tasks.
 Move to the Fields tab:

Unless defined in the Fields tab, all Text and Code fields will be copied from the Parent Task.
All Production Fields will be reset to 0 for a Derived Task.

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o Add a new row to the Field grid by clicking .
o Select Drill Metres.
o Select <No Filtering> from the Filter grid (as we do not wish to set a different value in the Drill
Metres field for a subset of the drilling tasks).
o Toggle on the Set using Formula check box so that the value in the Drill Metres field can be
assigned using a formula.

o Click next to the formula text box to create or edit a formula. This will bring up the
Formula Builder dialog:

o Enter the formula [Volume]/50.

Double click on the Field name in the Fields list or the function in the Functions list to
insert it into the formula at the curser position. A formula can also be manually edited.

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 The validity of the formula syntax is displayed in the bottom left of the window. The
formula is validated as you type; therefore it is common to see error messages displayed
occasionally until your formula is complete. It must be a valid formula when you click OK.

o Click OK to set the formula for the Derived Task.

o Set the Final Wall Strike Meters to be equal to the value from the parent using a formula.

 Move to the Graphics tab:

o No graphics will be created for the Drilling Derived Task, so leave Objects to Create = None.

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 If you wished to see a polygon or solid representing the Derived Task, this can be
achieved by selecting the Objects to Create and setting the Objects color.
o Parent Point Offsets – Define a point to use in the Dependency Creation process.
 Symbol To Use – The Insert to represent the activity by
 Distance – Distance from the parent activity symbol.
 Azimuth and Gradient – Direction to move the point
 Move to the Dependencies tab:

o Toggle on the Create Dependencies check box. We wish to create a dependency from the
Drilling task to the Blasting task and another from the Blasting task to the Parent excavation
task.
o Set the Type = Successor. This indicates that the link will be created to a successor task.
o Set the Link Activity = Blasting.

You need to create the Derived Task save called Blasting before setting up the Drilling
Dependency save or you will not be able to assign Blasting as your Link Activity. Details on the
Blasting task selections will follow. For now, simply add to the list so that it appears in the Link
Activity. No further details about this task need to be assigned at this stage.

The list contains all of the Derived Tasks and the Parent Task.

o Set the Delay to 2d to allow for charge up.

o Set the Dependency Layer = To Drilling.

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 Move to the Scheduling tab:

o Set the Task Type = Fixed Rate.

o Set the Rate = 300dm/d.

Care must be taken in setting the unit for the Rate so that it is a valid unit as defined in
Deswik.Scheduler.

o Set the Constraint Type = As Late As Possible so that the Drilling task happens just in time to
achieve the Excavation task.
o Toggle on the Assign Resource check box so that a drill can be assigned to each task.
o Select the Drill Rig Resource.
o Se the Assignment Type = Required to indicate that the drill rig is required full time on the
blast block.
o Set the Number of = 1.

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 Create another Derived Task called Blasting, if it has not already been created, by clicking .

o Enter the name Blasting for the new Derived Task and it will appear in the list.
o Set the Description for the task to Blasting. This will appear in the Description attribute.
o Set the Filter to <No Filtering> as we wish to create a Derived Task for all new tasks.

 Move to the Fields tab:

o No fields will be populated for the Blasting task, so leave the grid blank.

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 Move to the Graphics tab:

o No graphics will be created for the Blasting Derived Task, so leave Objects to Create as None.
o Parent Point Offsets
 Symbol To Use = DM_Symbol2
 Distance = 1.
 Azimuth = 90.
 Gradient = 0.

 Move to the Dependencies tab:

o Toggle on the Create Dependencies check box. We wish to create a dependency from the
Blasting task to the Parent Task.

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 o Set the Type = Successor. This indicates that a link will be created to a successor task.
o Set the Link Activity = <Parent Task>
o Set the Delay to 2d for contingency and preparation.
o Set the Dependency Layer = To Excavation.

 Move to the Scheduling tab:

o Set the Task Type = Fixed Duration.

o Set the Duration = 2h.
o Set the Constraint Type = As Late As Possible so that the Blasting task happens just in time to
achieve the Excavation task.
o Toggle off the Assign Resource check box, as no resources will be assigned to the Blasting
task.

Once all tabs in the Options – Derived Tasks section have been completed, the Settings – Project Options
section is now complete. Press OK.

9.0 Activity Types

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Activity Types define how to create the various types of Tasks. They also define how to link the graphical
design data to the Activity Types. For the case of Open Pits, we use the Bench Blocks type. Generally all
benches with the same bench height can be defined using the same Activity definition.

 For the Bench Block Activity Type, delete all rows from the Linking Attributes grid by clicking . By
removing all Linking Attributes, all Bench Block tasks will be created using the same settings.

The Linking Attributes define how the graphical design data will be linked to the Activity Type
definitions. The simplest way to link is using the Pen Color. If a design item is colored red, it will be
linked to the Activity Type definition set as red and the settings from this definition will be used in the
task creation process.

Add a row to the grid by clicking to create a new Bench Block Activity definition. Set the values in the
row as per the following (reflect in picture above):

 Bench/Description – Set the Description to be assigned to the bench polygons as Bench Block.
 Bench Height/Default Height – Set the bench/flitch Default Height to 9.

Bench Height can also be read from an attribute on the input bench polygons during task
creation processes to account for varying bench heights.
 Bench Height/From Attribute: Leave check box toggled off.
 Bench Height/Attribute Name: Leave blank.
 Polyline/Position – Set the position for the Bench polygons to be both created at and read from as
Crest.

If designing polygons to represent bench blocks and creating tasks from them, the input
polygons must reside at this position in the bench. Task Polygons created from slicing solids at
elevations will be created at this position.

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 Color/Set and Color/Index: Toggle the check box on and set the Index = 2. The color of the output
bench polygons and solids will be set to the color green.
 Schedule/Rate Based – Toggle the check box on so tasks will have their duration calculated based on
the defined Rate.
 Schedule/Rate – Set the default Schedule Rate to be assigned to all Mining Blocks as 2000miT/h.
 Level Attribute/From Position – Define how to name the Bench Attribute based on the RL of the
bench. Define it from the toe, mid or crest elevation of the mining blocks. For this tutorial, set to Toe.
 Level Attribute/Decimals – Assign the number of decimals to use when naming a bench. Set the value
to 0 for the bench to be named 261, 264, etc. (If it was set to 1, the names would be 261.0, 264.0, etc.)
 Flitches/Use – Toggle the Use Flitches check box on. Benches can be split into flitches to represent
drilling a 9m bench and mining it in 3 x 3m passes for example. One task would be created for the
drilling and 3 mining tasks.
 Flitches/Define – Open the Flitches definition form by clicking the button to the right of the Define
field. In the form that opens, define how many Flitches to create by adding 3 rows to the grid.

o Flitch Name can be used to fill an Attribute or Name for each task.
o Insitu Height is the physical height of the bench.
o Swollen Height is the height after blasting. This can be used to name the flitches.
o Flitch Name Attribute – Select Flitch from the available Grouping and Graphic Attributes in the
drop-down list, as defined in the Project Settings.
o Toggle on Use Insitu Height to increment Bench Name Attribute to name the Flitch attribute
based on the physical RL of the flitch to be mined.

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  Flitch Field Values – Set the default values of system, text or property fields for each task as shown
below.

Set the default values of Attributes or Properties that are common for all tasks of this type. Use
Production Field Formulas in Deswik.Scheduler to set the values of fields in more complex ways.

10.0 Design

10.1 Create Pit Shell Solids

A closed Pit Shell Solid representing the volumes to be mined is the core input required to generate open pit
planning tasks. At the end of each month, after the survey updates have been completed, the updated survey
End of Month (EOM) topography should be used to create or update pit shell solids.

A Wizard is available to assist in creating the pit shell solid. Access it by clicking Create Shell Solids.

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 The following Create Pit or Dump Shells Wizard dialog box will appear:

 Output Closed Shell Layer – Enter the name of the layer to place the pit shell to be created. If it does
not already exist, it will be created. To make it easier to keep track of the pit shell solids, set it to a
layer name that includes the date of the survey surface to be used. Click Next.

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  Click Yes at the prompt to create a Closed Shell layer.

 The Input Data is the current topography and pit shell design DTM’s.
 Topography Layer – The layer containing the topography DTM (0\Survey\Pit_EOM_201003). Only a
single DTM must be visible when the Wizard is run.

In the grid, each pit stage DTM is added by selecting the layer the DTM resides on, or by selecting it
graphically.

As long as there is only a single DTM on a layer, using the Select by Layer method is the simplest.

 Select the Topography Layer as 0\SURVEY\PIT_EOM_201003.

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 In the grid, add a row by clicking .
 In the Pit Stage DTM Layer column, click on the button that appears to the right when the grid cell is
selected.

 Select the Pit Stage DTM Layer as 0\PIT DESIGN\PITDESIGN_STR\DTM.

 Stage Attribute – The attribute to store the spit Stage or pushback number. The number from the
Stage # column of the grid on the previous Wizard page will be inserted in this Attribute field. In this
case only a single Stage is being used.

Selecting a value for Stage Attribute is optional. If no field is entered, the stage number will not
be set on the outputs.

 Minimum Volume Solid – The minimum volume of solid to be used to create a task. If the cut block is
less than this volume, no task will be created in the scheduler.
 Delete existing Shell Solids from the output layer – Toggle on. When checked, any previously created
solid data will be deleted from the output layer before the process is run.

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 Not deleting existing data can be useful when running multiple stage pits, or processing multiple
pits in different runs. Care needs to be taken when not deleting existing data to avoid duplication of
output tasks.

The topography DTM must extend past the extents of the pit stage DTM’s. If the surface DTM does not
extend beyond the extents of the design DTM’s, the command Modify | Surfaces | Expand can be used to
increase the size of the topography surface.

 Clicking Next will run the Wizard processing stage and boolean merge the pit shell and topography
data. If the process completes successfully, the following message wil be presented and the data
should look similar to below.

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The next stage of the Wizard allows for adjusting of the Pit Shell Solids.

10.1.1 Trim by polylines

To remove portions of the solid within a polyline, a polyline can be digitized on the screen and used to trim all
portions of the solid above or below the polyline. This polyline does not need to be at a constant elevation.

This feature is not used in the tutorial.

10.1.2 Trim by elevation

All portions of the Pit Shell solid above or below an elevation can be removed using this tool.

 Set the Elevation to 278.

o Check the elevation by viewing the data in section using one of the following view buttons

 Select Above Elevation.

 Click .

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10.1.3 Separate and Remove by Volume

This process removes small slivers or unwanted solids against the edges of the Pit Shell Solid that are generally
created during the Update Shell process.

 Set the Min. Volume to 100.

 Click Remove

After running, the number of closed pit shell solids remaining will be displayed:

Always use this command after running the trimming commands to remove unwanted small solids.

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 Click Finish.

10.2 Validate the Resultant Pit Shell

Once the Pit Shell has been created, it is essential to validate the solid to check there are no problems.

Although this is done internally in the Wizard, it is always a good idea to check.

 Select the solid in the Model space.

 Right click to show the Quick Menu.
 Select Modify | Solids | Validate.

 Choose to process Selected Entities and click OK.

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 Leave all of the Generate... checks off so that no polylines will be created.
 Clear the Check Overlapping Triangles on Surface check box, as this is only valid for surfaces.

 Check the Output window for the results of the Validation

 If the status of the Handle <variable> is OK, then the solid is valid.
 Click Close once done

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  If it states anything else, then the solid needs to be checked further to remove any issues. Try the
following:
o Validate and Decimate the input surfaces to ensure they are free from errors.
o Use input surfaces that are not already cut at the boundary of the other e.g. a pit design that
has been cut to the topo.
o Close the output pit shell solid and further Decimate it.
o Use the Separate function on the pit shell solid to ensure there are not small sliver solids
attached to the main solid.

10.3 Create Mining Blocks

Create Mining Blocks will automatically generate bench block polygons from a grid and the pit shell solids
representing the final pit shell and pit shell stages (if applicable).

This process will also merge the small polygons created at the edge of a pit shell with their larger
adjacent blocks to create practical mining shapes. For this reason, if using a grid to define the mining blocks, it
is highly recommended to use this process.

10.3.1 Create a Grid

Before we click Create Mining Blocks, we will create a grid to define the mining blocks. The grid can either be
manually digitized or automatically generated. In this example we will be using the automated grid creation
tools to demonstrate their functionality.

 Add a new layer called 0\BENCH BLOCK DESIGN\GRID.

 Make the pit shell solid layer and new grid layer the only 2 visible layers and get into plan view.
 Make the new grid layer Active.

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 From the menus select Draw | Regular Grid.

Base Coordinate – Click . In the Model space, while in Plan view, select the bottom left
hand corner of the grid, and then right click to exit the command. This sets up the Base Coordinates
which can be manually adjusted to more rounded numbers if desired. NB: The Z coordinate can be
ignored here.

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 If instead of right clicking to exit the command after selecting the first point, you click again on
the screen, the Azimuth will be set based on the azimuth of the 2 selected points.

 Set the X and Y Size and Count to: . This will

generate a 3X3 square grid, where each square is 75 X 75 units.

 Click to generate a temporary representation of the grid.

 Examine the grid to see if it looks adequate. Check to ensure it covers the extents of the pit shell and
that it is somewhat centered to reflect the desired mining block layout.
 Adjust the Base Coordinate position, either manually or by picking a new position in the graphics, and
the size and number of grid cells. Click Apply to view the modified grid after each modification. The
previous grid will be deleted before the new grid is created.
 Set X and Y Attributes to create a unique bench block ID. Set the X Attribute = EASTING and the Y
Attribute = NORTHING.

 Click OK to create the final grid.

 Confirm that the Attributes have been assigned correctly by selecting a grid square and viewing the
Properties.

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10.3.2 Create Mining Blocks

Open the Create Mining Blocks form (if not already open) and set the Input Pit Shell Layer and Input Block
Grid Layer as shown below. Define a new layer – the Output Design Polygons Layer – as 0\BENCH BLOCK
DESIGN\BENCH_BLOCKS_NEW. This is where your output grid will be placed.

 Starting Crest Elevation – Set this as the upper most crest elevation of the highest block grid to create.
The max. elevation of the pit shell can be obtained from the Properties window.
 Create to Minimum RL – If toggled on, bench blocks will be created to the base of the pit shells. Leave
this toggled on.
 Number to Create – If not creating to the minimum elevation, set the number to create.
 Bench Height – Set the height of the benches to 9.
 Merge Blocks with area less than – The minimum area mining block to create. Blocks created with an
area less than this minimum will be merged with adjacent blocks to create more practical sized mining
blocks. Set this to 500.

The minimum block area should be set to approximately the size of the smallest block to be
blasted.

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Leave the inputs on the other tabs blank for this run.

Click to generate the mining blocks.

To review the created blocks:

 Set the Working Plane to be in Plan View at the Elevation of the top bench
 Set the clipping to Far = 2 and Near = 2
 Step through the created solids, checking how the mining blocks have been created on each bench.

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 At this point, the mining blocks could be manually edited before being used to create mining tasks if so
desired.

Close the Open Pit Design Tools dialog box once done.

10.4 Assign Attributes

The attributes defined in the Project Options as Grouping and Graphic Attributes need to be assigned to the
Pit Shell Solid or Bench Polygons before creating tasks. When tasks are created, these Attributes will be carried
across to Deswik.Scheduler.

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10.4.1 Assigning Attributes Manually

Depending upon the method used to create the tasks, Attributes need to be assigned to different design
items. For creating tasks using the Create Tasks From Elevations function, the attributes need to be on the Pit
Shell Solid as this is the only input. When using the Create Tasks From Polygons, the Attributes can be on
either the Pit Shell Solid, the Bench Block Polygons, or a combination of both.

 Select the option to Assign to design entities on selected layers.

 Click .
 Select the layers containing both the pit shell solids and the bench block polygons.

Click OK.

In the form that appears, all of the Grouping and Graphic Attributes defined in the Project Options will
be displayed in the list at the top. If the Attribute is a Code field, all of the allowable attribute values will be set
in the grid. If the field is not a Code field, all of the values assigned to the entities on the input layers will be
present in the grid.

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 Turn on Auto Color by Code Field to display the graphics temporarily colored by the Code Field values.

 Click to show all entities that have not been assigned a valid value from the
available list.
 Assign the values for each Code Attribute as follows:
o Activity – Select EX, then click Apply Selected Value to All Visible Entities
o Pit – Leave as the default (Tutorial)
o Stage – Leave as the default (1)

 Click for each Code Attribute

The color changes to reflect the value of the newly assigned Attribute

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 The Bench, Flitch and Final Wall Strike Length attributes do not need to be set in this form. Bench
and Final Wall Strike Length will be assigned using another automated tool, and the Flitch will be assigned
automatically when the tasks are created based on the rules defined in the Activity Definitions.

The Attributes of the design items could also be edited in the Properties grid in Deswik.CAD. Once the
tasks have been created however, this is the best method to alter the Attributes of the tasks graphically.

10.4.2 Assigning Bench Attribute to the Bench Block Polygons

This only needs to be done when creating tasks using the Create Tasks From Polygons functions. This
is required in this tutorial as both methods are demonstrated.

To automatically assign open pit specific attributes, click in the Attribute Assignment
dialog box.

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10.4.2.1 Assign the Bench Attribute

 Block Polygons Layer – The layer the bench block polygons reside on. Select the layer that the block
polygons were created on using the Create Mining Blocks function.
 Bench Attribute – The attribute to store the bench RL. Select Bench.
 Bench Height – Set to 9.
 Bench Polyline Position – Define as the Crest.
 Elevation From – Assign the elevation from the Toe.
 Number of Decimals – The number of decimals to assign to the Bench Attribute. Select 0.

Click to add the Bench Attribute to all of the polygons on the selected layer.

10.4.2.2 Wall Strike Length

In order to calculate the quantity of pre-split drilling, the wall strike of the final pit and stages can be
calculated and assigned as an Attribute to the polygons.

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 The quantity of pre-split drilling would be then calculated from this strike length using a formula in
Deswik.Scheduler.

This process is best run on the final block polygons i.e. the ones that represent the block shapes closely
to get the most accurate results. The task block polygons can be used as inputs to this process and the values
automatically loaded to the tasks in Deswik.Scheduler if the mining blocks are created using elevations for
example.

 Block Polygons Layer – Select the layer containing the mining block polygons. In this case, select the
layer containing the polygons created in the Create Mining Blocks process.
 Final Pit DTM – The figure handle of the final pit design DTM. Select the Final Pit DTM surface in the

model space, and then click to get the handle.

 Final Pit Wall Strike Length Attribute – The Attribute to place the Final Pit Wall Strike Length values
on. Select Final Wall Strike Length.

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 If the Assign to Scheduler Tasks check box is toggled on, this must be a Production Field from
Deswik.Scheduler.
 Wall offset distance – The distance to stand the holes off from the final pit wall. Set = 1.
 Show Strike Length Polylines – If toggled on, will display the trace of the polylines that illustrate
where the Wall Strike distances are. Normally, it is recommended to leave this toggled off, unless
trying to understand how the figures are being calculated. For this tutorial, toggle it on.
 Assign to Scheduler Tasks – Toggle on to have the calculated Strike Lengths automatically added to
Deswik.Scheduler. Toggle off for this exercise.

Click to run the process and assign the Attributes.

If the Show Strike Length Polylines check box is toggled on, a new layer will be created under the
selected Block Polygons layer called FINAL PIT OFFSETS. The polylines represent how the strike lengths are
calculated. In the picture below, the red lines indicate the mining block polygons and the white lines indicate
the strike lengths within each block.

Select the polygons to see the value calculated for the Wall Strike Length.

If any of the strike lengths do not look valid, modify them as need be. Use the tool
to then update the strike length values directly from the modified graphics.

When a multi-stage pit is used, the Stage Wall Strike Lengths can be used to calculate information such
as the quantity of Face Holes that require drilling.

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11.0 Bench Block Reserves

Generate pit reserves and tasks in the scheduler by running the Create Bench Blocks option.

Creation of Tasks to model the bench blocks is achieved by splitting the Pit Shell solid at elevations or by using
polygons.

To model blocks that will be extracted in the long term, or for a small pit or pushback, splitting by elevations
may be effective. To model more detailed blast blocks, or an entire bench in more detail, using polygons is
more accurate.

For the purposes of this tutorial, we will create mining tasks by Elevations for the entire pit. We will then
delete these tasks and replace them using the polygons method to create more detailed mining blocks.

11.1 Create From Elevations

From the main Interactive Scheduler menu, select Create Bench Blocks in the Reserves section.

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The dialog box containing the settings to create new Bench Block tasks is displayed. Make the Create From
Elevations tab visible to use this method.

 Set the Input Pit Shell Layer as created earlier in the tutorial – 0\PIT SHELL\EOM_201003.

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 Elevations need to be added to the grid. This can be done by clicking or by using the
batch process.

 Click to display the Add Benches dialog box.

The vertical extents of the Pit Shell solid will be used to automatically fill in the values in the
form.

 Adjust the Bench Height to 9 and set the Number Of benches to 5. Click OK to fill the elevations grid.
 Set the Activity Type to assign to the new tasks = Bench Block.
 Set the Bench Attribute to Bench.
 Adjust the Minimum Block Volume to the smallest size block to create. If the volume of the created
block is less than the volume, no task will be created.
 Check the Create Derived Tasks so that Derived Tasks are created as a part of the process.
 Check the Open Scheduler at end of process so that the scheduler opens at the end of the process.

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 The Pit Shell solid to be used to create the tasks must be located on the Pit Shell layer and must be
visible. All Visible solids on the pit shell layer will be used in the task creation process.

 Click to start the process of creating tasks.

If a warning appears indicating attributes have not been assigned correctly, return to the
Manual Attribute Assignment dialog box.

o A progress bar will display indicating the progress of the task creation
o Tasks will be automatically added to the graphics environment as well as to Scheduler File
o The tasks will have the Attributes assigned from the original pit shell solid
o At the end of the task creation process, a message box will appear indicating if there were any
problems during the task creation process

 At the completion of the process, tasks can be viewed in Deswik.Scheduler.

o Double clicking on the task will display the Task Information dialog. The Field values and
resource assignments can be checked.
o Any reports setup in Deswik.Scheduler will be automatically populated
o Dependencies between parent and derived tasks are visible and honored

 Graphics representing the tasks have been created on the Bench Block Polygons and Bench Block
Solids layers.

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 Note that the exact shape of the final pit design is adhered to so that the true volume of
material to be mined is calculated.

o There may be more than 1 solid representing a task. However, there is only ever a single
polygon created to represent the task. The bench blocks are sliced and the resulting polygon
with the greatest area is used to represent the task.
o If Derived Tasks had graphical objects created for them, they will be created on a layer of the
same name as the Derived Task under the parent Bench Block Polygons and Solids layers.
o Graphics have been exported to a file called solids_tr.dm in the same directory as the
Scheduler file. These can be used in EPSViz for animation.

11.2 Delete Tasks from Schedule

To illustrate how the granularity of the schedule can be increased, we will replace the Tasks created by slicing
at elevations with Tasks created from the bench block polygons.

To remove the Tasks, go to Manage Activities from the Main Interactive Scheduler menu.

In the Dialog that appears, select the Edit or Add Block tab and click .

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Select the graphics representing the Activities to delete.

This process will delete all of the polygons and solids representing the tasks as well as all of the tasks in the
Scheduler File. Any Derived Tasks created from the primary tasks will also be deleted.

Graphics from non-task layers will not be deleted by this process if accidently selected.

11.3 Create Tasks from Polygons

For the creation of tasks that represent a defined block of ground within a bench, polygons are used as the
input.

The polygons must extend beyond the edges of the pit solid on each bench to ensure that the entire pit
solid shape is modeled. If the polygons are smaller than the extents of the pit on the bench, there will be a
volume reduction effect at the edges of the pit.

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11.3.1 Create the Tasks

 From the main menu in Deswik.CAD, select Create Bench Blocks in the Reserves section.

 Select the Create From Polygons tab in the form.

 Set the Input Design Polygons layer to the layer the pit blocks were created on earlier in the tutorial.

Only the visible polygons on this layer will be used in the process.

The Group shells and polygons by Attribute does not need to be set, but has been set to Stage
to illustrate how it would work in a multi-stage pit.

 Toggle on the Reslice Polygons check box.

If toggled on, the benches will be sliced at the position defined in the options. This results in a
better fitting polygon representing the slice being created, rather than using the expanded input
polygons.
 Set the Minimum Block Volume to 100. This is the smallest block that will be created as a task.
 Ensure that only the polygons that need to be turned into tasks are visible.
 Turn on the display of the Pit Shell solid layer so that the pit shell to slice the polygons against is
visible.

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 Click to start the process of creating tasks.
o A progress bar will display indicating the progress of the task creation
o Tasks will be automatically added to the graphics environment as well as to Deswik.Scheduler
o The tasks will have the Attributes assigned from the block polygons
o At the end of the task creation process, a message box will appear indicating if there were any
problems during the task creation process
 At the completion of the process, Tasks can be viewed in Deswik.Scheduler.
 Graphics representing the tasks have been created on the Bench Block Polygons and Bench Block
Solids layers.

o Note that the exact shape of the final pit design is adhered to so that the true volume of
material to be mined is calculated.
o There may be more than 1 solid representing a task, however there is only ever a single
polygon created to represent the task. The bench blocks are sliced and the resulting polygon
with the greatest area is used to represent the task.
o If Derived Tasks had graphical objects created for them, they will be created on a layer of the
same name as the Derived Task under the parent Bench Block Polygons and Solids layers.
o The updated graphics have been exported to a file called solids_tr.dm in the same directory as
the Deswik.Scheduler file.

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12.0 Scheduling

12.1 Dependency Creation

The dependency creation section provides for not only the graphical creation of dependencies or links
between tasks, but also the graphical assignment of Resources and Resource Priorities.

For this tutorial, a combination of Automatic dependencies and Manual assignment will be used to illustrate
the available functionality.

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The controls at the top of the dialog box define the type of links to be created as well as the Resources to be
assigned.

12.1.1.1 Creating Dependencies

When creating Dependencies using each of the methods described below, the Dependency type will be
created using the settings in the Dependency section.

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To alter the Dependency Layers and to filter out dependencies on the different layers, use the tools within
this section.

Set the properties of the selected dependencies to those selected in the controls.

Edit the Dependency Layers and their visibility.

Refresh the dependencies display based on the View status of the dependency layers.

Define the task types to link from and to by selecting the Link Task Types.

12.1.1.2 Assigning Resources

The properties for assigning resources are drawn from the controls at the top right of the dialog box in the
Resource section.

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12.1.2 Create and Edit Dependencies Manually

Creation of the dependencies can be achieved using a manual linking approach. This approach also allows the
Resources and Priority to be assigned.

To create dependencies on a single bench, change the view settings so that just a single bench is displayed:

 Set the Near and Far clipping limits to less than the height of the bench e.g. 2.

 Running plane by 1 point from the toolbars and snap to one of the bench polygons. This will set
the working plane to be in plan view and at the same RL as the bench.
 Turn on the clipping.

In Deswik.CAD, set the RL to 263 and create dependencies manually on this bench:

 Set the Dependency Layer to To Excavation, the Type to FS, the Delay to 0d. These will be used in the
creation of any new links.

 Click to start creating a dependency.

 Click anywhere in the middle of a bench polygon to create a dependency from.
 Click anywhere in the middle of another bench polygon to create the dependency.
 A line will be created in the graphics defining the dependency and the tasks will be linked in the
scheduler.
 Continue clicking in the middle of bench polygons to create a sequence of links.

To modify a dependency graphically:

 Deleting - Select the graphical dependency and either click , select Modify | Erase from
the main menu or press the Delete key. The dependency will be deleted from the graphics as
well as from Deswik.Scheduler.

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 To delete all dependencies assigned to a task, click then select the tasks to remove
dependencies from.
 Moving – Select the dependency to move. Select the start or end grip point and move the
point to another bench.

 Reversing – Select the dependencies to reverse and click or use Modify | Polylines |
Reverse from the main menu.

The results of linking on bench 263 may look like this graphically:

And in Deswik.Scheduler:

Continue to create dependencies on other benches as required.

Move between the benches by setting the Plane move distance in Deswik.CAD to the bench height and
using the Up and Down arrows in the Working Plane toolbar or the Page Up, Page Down keys on the
keyboard.

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12.1.3 Creating Vertical Overlap Dependencies

Creation of the fundamental “undermining” dependencies, ensuring that a mining block does not commence
until the one above it is complete, are simply applied using an Automatic Dependency Rule.

Once these links have been created, they can be manually adjusted either in Deswik.Scheduler or in the
Graphical Interface.

The overlap in plan view of the mining blocks is considered and if there is an overlap greater than the
Percentage Overlap Tolerance, a dependency created from the upper block to the block below it.

 Go to the Automatic Dependencies tab.

 Setup a rule by clicking .

 Add a new save called Vertical Overlaps by clicking on in the top left and entering the name of
the save to create.

 Add a new rule by clicking on in the bottom right of the grid. A new grid row will appear that
should be configured as below.

 Select Method as Vertical Overlap.

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o When the Method is changed, the rule settings will appear.

o Create From Bottom to Top - Toggle off.

o Data Type to Test – Select Solid.

Using the Solid or the Polygon will yield slightly different results. As the solids have their
heights set to a physical position, a more accurate set of dependencies will be created. Using
polygons runs faster on a large dataset.

o Percent Solid Height Vertical Tolerance – Set to 50.0. The amount of overlap between solids
that will flag them as being directly above each other.

Helps to stop dependencies being created from all blocks above a block lower in the pit.

o Minimum Overlap Percent Tolerance – Set to 20. If the percent of the planar area of either
block is overlapping by this percent a dependency will be created.
o Maximum Vertical Link Height – Set to 5 (greater than the flitch height, but less than 2x flitch
height). The maximum vertical distance between two block centroids to create a dependency.
Also limits the number of vertical.

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 Also helps to stop dependencies being created from all blocks above a block lower in the pit,
especially when using polygons.
o Expand to Simulate Offset Distance – Set to 0. By expanding a polygon outwards by this
distance before checking for overlaps, it will ensure that blocks beneath it, but slightly offset
are definitely linked to. Simulates a standoff distance between diggers on different benches.
o Link From Derived Task – Toggle off.
o Link To Derived Task – Toggle off.
o Link to Parent if Derived Task Type does not exist – Toggle on. Ensures there is a link created
between Parent Tasks in the case where Derived Tasks are not created for some mining
blocks.
o Click OK to exit the rule configuration.
 Select the Filter BB: Bench Block in the Predecessor column.

All Activity Definition Types will appear in the column as a filter. The Bench Block Activity Types
will start with BB: and end in the Description of the Activity Type.
 Select the Filter BB: Bench Block in the Successor column.
 Set Delay as 0d.
 Set the Type as FS – Finish to Start.
 Select the Dependency Layer as To Other.
 Add a Description that helps to remind you and others what the rule aims to achieve.
 Set the rule to be used by placing a check in the Use column.
 Click OK to exit the rule setup.
 Select the Vertical Overlaps rule from the list of Automatic Rules to Run at the top of the Automatic
Dependencies tab.

 Click to run the rule and generate the dependencies.

All existing vertical inter-bench dependencies created by this rule are deleted before the routine
starts if the Delete existing vertical overlap dependencies check box is toggled on.
 At the end of the routine, the grid will be populated a row for each rule that is run indicating how
many dependencies have been created.

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 Dependencies that have been created appear graphically in Model space colored red.

 The dependencies have also been added into Deswik.Scheduler and appear in red between the tasks.

Select from the main Interactive Scheduler menu to open the Scheduler File.

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12.1.4 Create Shortest Path Dependencies

To quickly create a dependency path through a bench based on taking the block closest to the access point,
routines to automatically determine a shortest distance path from an access point can be utilized. These can

be run a single bench at a time using , or for multiple

benches from a ramp string using

To illustrate the concept, the will be used.

 Digitize a ramp centerline string from the surface to the base of the pit.
o Close the Dependencies creation form
o Make the 0 layer Active
o Turn the display of either the pit design surface or polylines on

o Set the snapping to midpoints

o Digitize a line (Draw | Polyline) from the top of the main ramp to the base of the pit, snapping
to the midpoints of the ramp polylines or surface triangles

If using the pit shell surface, if any of the points do not snap correctly, use the Project
To Solid surface (Modify | Project | To Solid) command to project the ramp polyline to the pit
design surface.

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 Open the Dependency Creation dialog box again.
 Set the Bench Attribute = Flitch which defines the individual bench flitches. This will be used to filter
all of the bench polygons so that dependencies are only created between blocks on the same bench.

 Click .
o Select all of the bench polygons to create the dependencies between
o Right click to complete the selection
o Select the ramp string
o The dependencies will be created automatically
o The results of the linking can be best viewed by:
 Setting the Near and Far clipping limits to less than the height of the bench e.g. 2.

 Running plane by 1 point from the toolbars and snap to one of the bench
polygons. This will set the working plane to be in plan view and at the same RL as the
bench.
 Turning on the clipping.

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12.1.5 Create Final Pit Surface to Include in Animation

Create a surface representing the final pit surface merged with the current topo for presentation purposes.

 Close the Dependencies animation dialog.

 Display both the current topo and final pit surface surfaces.
 Add a new layer to store this merged surface (0\PLANNING\FINAL PIT SURFACE) and make it Active.
 Ensure the Pit Design surface extends completely through the topography by extruding the pit design
up by 10m.

If the Pit Shell surface and the Topo surface do not intersect all the way around the crest of the pit,
a merged topo will not be able to be created. Also, using a pit design that has not already been cut to the
topo at the crest will produce a result more quickly as there are less duplicate points to process.

o Select the Pit Design solid

o From the main menu, select Modify | Surfaces | Extrude
o Select the following options and click OK

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  Select the topography surface and then the final pit surface.
 From the main menu, run the command Modify | Surfaces| Boolean Operations | Merge Below

 The resultant solid will be a merge of the 2 surfaces.

12.1.6 Viewing Animations

Animations of the schedule can be viewed at any time using the Deswik.CAD animation tools. The
Animation window can be opened while creating dependencies to assess the differences to the schedule,
or at any other time from the main Interactive Scheduler menu.

The Schedule File must first be opened in Deswik.Scheduler and the file linked in Interactive Mode.

 Open the Scheduler by clicking . The schedule will open in Deswik.Scheduler in a separate
window.

 Enable the Animation dialog by checking

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  Click to open the Animation dialog.

The Task Solids layer will be loaded to the grid by default. Change the settings as desired to
animate the polygons or any other layer.

 Scheduler – Toggle on to indicate the animation dates are provided by the task dates in the
scheduler.
 Layer – The layer to animate. Select the SCHEDULER\TASK SOLIDS layer.
 Direction – Set to Backward to make the blocks disappear as they are mined.
 Start Attribute and Finish Attribute – Only used if not deriving date information from the
Scheduler.
 Active Color – Color to set the Active mining blocks.

 Set the Interval to 1 Day, and click to read the schedule information from the
Scheduler.
 Set the Pause Time (secs) to 0.4 to allow time to view the changes in the animation steps.

 Click to view the animation.

 Use the other controls to step through the schedule.

12.1.6.1 Assigning Resources

Resources can be assigned to the bench polygons graphically.

 Select the resource to assign to the tasks from the list in the dialog box.

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  The Assignment Type, Rate, and Number will be automatically set based on the default values for the
selected resource.

 Click and select the task polygons to assign the resource to.
 The resource will be assigned to the tasks and can be viewed in the Properties window.
 If the Hatch check box is toggled on, the polygon will be hatched the color assigned to the resource.

The graphical hatching can be turned off and on by toggling the Hatch option.

Resources can be assigned at the same time as linking the tasks. Toggle on the Assign while linking
check box and the selected resource will be assigned to the task that is selected during the dependency
creation.

12.1.6.2 Assigning Priorities

While creating dependencies, the Priority field value can also be set.

If Resource Leveling or Blending are to be used in Deswik.Scheduler to meet objectives, the resource
path defined by dependencies can be turned off by setting the Dependency Layer to not be scheduled. The
Priority of the task the Resource is assigned to is then used to define the order of extraction. This can then be
over-ridden by the algorithm as, unlike the dependencies which cannot be broken, Priorities only define a
suggested path for the resource.

To assign the Priority and a Resource to tasks while creating dependencies:

 Delete the dependencies on the 263 bench.

 Toggle on the Assign while linking check box to assign the selected Resource.
 Toggle on the Set Priority while linking check box to set the Priority value.

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  Set the value of the Priority to assign to 0.
 Toggle on Auto Increment so the Priority is increased after each assignment.

 Click to start creating dependencies and assigning Priorities and Resources.

12.1.6.3 Dependency Tools

A number of tools exist on the Manual Assignment tab of the Dependency Creation dialog box to assist
finding dependencies that are unlinked or unassigned, or to resynchronize the dependencies if changes are
made in Deswik.Scheduler that are not reflected in the graphics or vice-versa.

12.1.6.4 Display Unlinked Blocks

Parent tasks that do not have a predecessor and successor dependency can be filtered by clicking

12.1.6.5 Display Unassigned Blocks

Parent tasks that do not have a resource assigned to them can be filtered by clicking

12.1.6.6 Show all Block Polygons

Remove all filters to display all Parent Tasks by clicking .

12.1.6.7 Update links from Graphics

If the graphical dependencies get out of synch with those in Deswik.Scheduler e.g. due to the creation of
dependencies in Deswik.Scheduler manually, they can be recreated as graphical dependencies by clicking

All existing graphical dependencies will be firstly deleted. Dependencies in Deswik.Scheduler will be turned
into Graphical polylines where the task has a corresponding graphical block representing it.

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12.1.6.8 Re-create Derived links

If the settings to create the dependencies between the parent tasks and their Derived tasks are changed in the
Options after the Derived Tasks have been created, the dependencies must be re-created by clicking

Dependencies between the Parent and their own Derived Tasks are stored internally and cannot be
edited graphically.

12.2 Update Survey Actuals

To keep a schedule up-to-date, the monthly survey information recorded from the pit can be used to update
the schedule.

This process will set the % Complete value for tasks as well as cut the bench block solids to the updated
surface. The mined out portion of the block is recorded to allow comparison of mined volumes.

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To update the actuals:

 Import the Surpac file PIT_EOM_201004.dtm.

 Set the layer that the latest End of Month (EOM) survey surface resides on as the Survey EOM Surface
in the form.
 Ensure there is only a single surface visible on this layer.
 Validate the surface by:
o Select the surface, ensuring it is the only entity selected.
o Right click and click Validate from the top of the menu.
o Check the results in the Output window. If the surface has only a single boundary, it is valid.

For the processes to work, the EOM surface must be validated to continue. Lightly decimating
the surface before using it is also a good idea. This will remove points that are very close to each other.
To Decimate:
o Select the surface.

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 o Select Modify | Decimate.
o Set the values in the decimate form; Plane Tolerance is the minimum point spacing and Angle
Tolerance is the maximum angle to consider.

 Enter a Comment for the month e.g. April 2010 EOM survey update. This will be stored on the split
solids to allow later reporting.
 Set the Survey Date as the date the survey was captured.
 Set Ignore % complete less than to 1. If any task solids are split and have a volume change of less than
this tolerance, the % Complete is not updated.
 Set Mark as complete if % Complete is greater than to 99.0. If the % volume mined is greater than
this tolerance, the task is flagged as 100% complete.
 Toggle on the Update Pit Shells check box so the Pit Shell Solids are automatically updated at the
same time as the mining blocks.
 Set Reslice Polygons so the mining block polygons are resliced to represent the remaining portion of
the mining blocks after depletion.
 Set Derived Tasks of mined blocks to 100% complete so that all Derived Tasks of parent tasks are set
as complete as soon as the parent task starts any activity.
 Set Backup original solids so the modified solids have their original solids backed up in case there are
any issues that need to be reversed or checked. This also provides an audit trail.
 Set Remove complete portions from schedule to have all tasks that are set as 100% complete to be
removed from the schedule. This ensures that the schedule contains the minimum number of tasks,
however capturing of actual will not be able to occur using this approach.

 Click to start the process.

o A progress bar appears indicating the status of the process.
o The task bench lock solids are cut to the new surface.
o Task bench block solids are updated based on the latest survey positions.

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o A layer is created under the Bench Block Solids layer as defined in the Options called SURVEY
UPDATES\30 APRIL 2010. The name of the layer is based on the Survey Date entered. On this
layer, the portions of the solids that fall above the latest surface are stored as well as the
original mining block solids and pit shell solids.

Reconciliation of the monthly mining can be achieved by querying the solids stored
under the SURVEY UPDATES layer.

The total volume of the solids on the layer can be queried by selecting all of the solids,
then selecting Tools | Query | Volume from the main menu.

o In Deswik.Scheduler, the % Complete field will have been updated to reflect the portion of the
task that has been complete.

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13.0 Tools

13.1 Batch Updates

A number of tools are provided under Batch Updates. These generally ensure that the data in the
Deswik.Scheduler schedule is synchronized with the data in the graphics and allow for the batch updating of
information.

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 The Interrogate, Update Attributes and Update Start and Finish Dates routines work on the entities
that are defined in the Apply to section.

13.1.1 Interrogate

This process will re-run the interrogation on all Parent Tasks. The tasks will not be modified spatially.

Enter the new block model name in the Options and click Interrogation to update the values.

Generally this would be run if a new geological block model is provided and the tones and grades need to
be updated for the existing tasks.

13.1.2 Update Scheduler Attributes from the Graphics

Update all of the attributes defined as Grouping and Graphical Attributes in Deswik.Scheduler from those on
the graphical bench blocks.

If the From Solids check box is toggled on, the attributes are taken from the bench block solids rather than the
bench block polygons.

13.1.3 Update Graphics Attributes from the Scheduler

Select the Attributes to import from the Scheduler and place on the graphical bench blocks from the
Deswik.Scheduler tasks.

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The attributes are updated on the polylines and solids for each task.

13.1.4 Update Start and Finish Dates from the Scheduler

Assign the Start and Finish Dates from Deswik.Scheduler onto all of the Parent tasks as Attributes.

Use this routine to place the Start and Finish dates from the schedule on the polygons for annotation
and animation.

13.1.5 Export Bench Block Solids for use in Deswik.Scheduler Visualizer

Export the solids representing the Parent and Derived tasks to a Datamine format file named solids_tr.dm to
the same layer as the Deswik.Scheduler schedule.

This file can then be reloaded into EPSViz to provide the most up-to-date graphics in EPSViz for animation
purposes

The solids are automatically exported at the end of each process that modifies them, so this step is
generally not required.

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