Tutorial en

TUTORIAL
SimSched Direct Block Scheduler Beta
August / 2015
www.miningmath.com
MiningMath Associates Tutorial SimSched Direct Block Scheduler Beta
SUMMARY
1. MININGMATH SIMSCHED ............................................................................. 3
2. INSTALLATION .............................................................................................. 4
3. SIMSCHED INITIALIZATION ......................................................................... 5
4. LICENSE INSTALLATION ............................................................................... 6
5. BLOCK MODEL FORMATTING ........................................................................ 6
6. IMPORTING THE BLOCK MODEL ................................................................. 10
7. DIRECT BLOCK SCHEDULLING .................................................................... 14
8. EXPORT DATA .............................................................................................. 21
9. CONTACT ..................................................................................................... 23
www.miningmath.com 2 2
1. MININGMATH SIMSCHED
The Beta version of the SimSched Direct Block software is available as a plugin for the
free SGeMS software (http://www.ar2tech.com/products), which is developed and
maintained by Advanced Resources and Risk Technology, LLC (AR2Tech)
(http://www.ar2tech.com). The goal is to provide tools of graphical analysis and
statistics, without incurring additional costs for the user. The distribution of this version
of SGeMS for MiningMath is authorized by AR2Tech.
Direct block scheduling allows a complete schedule to be executed directly from the
block model, without the need to define a final pit, nested pits, mining stages, cut-off
grade optimization and stockpiles. The scheduler will find a mining plan that maximizes
the net present value of the project, considering all these aspects and optimizing all
mining periods simultaneously; it is defined which blocks will be mined, in which
periods and with an optimization of the destiny decision.
2. INSTALLATION
The installation procedure is illustrated in the steps in Figure 1, by running the installer.
Figure 1 Installation procedure of SimSched Direct Block Scheduler Beta.
3. SIMSCHED INITIALIZATION
After opening the SGeMS software, select MiningMath | SimSched Direct Block
Scheduler under Algorithms. At the bottom of the pane, click the Run Algorithm
function, as highlighted in Figure 2. The SimSched interface will open in a new window,
as shown in Figure 3.
Figure 2 Initialization of SimSched through SGeMS.
Figura 3 Initial SimSched interface.
4. LICENSE INSTALLATION
In the SimSched interface, select License. In case you dont have a license, click on
Request License, insert your information and send an e-mail to
support@miningmath.com. If you already have a license, click on Install New
License, search for the .lic file and click in Open.
Figure 4 Field for license request and Installation.
5. BLOCK MODEL FORMATTING
The block model must have regular dimensions, and the import file must be adapted
to the CSV format. This file must have a header without special characters with fields
separated by commas and using dot notation as the decimal separator. It is necessary
to remove air blocks, in order for the software to identify the topography. The metric
system should be used as units for imported data.
The required fields for each block (each line of the file to be imported) are:
Indices on X, Y and Z;
Grades (at least one element); and
Economic values.
The indices of each block represent its position in the model, indicating in which
column, line and level (IX, IY and IZ) it is. The indices must be integer values, starting
with any value (For Marvin model, it was adopted the indices 1,1,1 for the first block).
The models origin is located in the minimum coordinates at X, Y and Z. Figure 5
highlights the origin of Marvins block model and the first block (1,1,1).
Block (IX,IY,IZ) = (1,1,1)
Block Model Origin
Figure 4 Marvin block model origin and the block (1,1,1).
However, if the block model is with the geo-referencing information based on

coordinates, they must be converted into indices systems before being imported to
SimSched.
To perform this conversion, it was proposed an exemplification based on the

calculation procedure and with the following coordinate data to exemplify:
Table 1 Data to perform the conversion

X Coordinate Y Coordinate Z Coordinate
135 45 75
135 75 75
135 75 105
165 105 135
Origin (Ox,Oy,Oz)m (120,30,60)
Block Dimension
(30,30,30)
(Dx,Dy,Dz)m
Based on the data coordinates, the conversion of the X-axis is calculated according to
the following formula:

( + )
2
=

Ix = Centroid index of the block in the X dimension

x = X Coordinate of the block centroid
Ox = Origin of the block model in the X coordinate
Dx = Block Dimension in the x direction
For the Y and Z-axis, just apply the formula for the corresponding information
The following table contains the data of the converted coordinates into the indices
system.
Table 2 Indices obtained after the data conversion from Table 1.

Ix Index Iy Index Iz Index
1 1 1
1 2 1
1 2 2
2 3 3
Origin (Ox,Oy,Oz) (120,30,60)
Each block must have associated economic values related to it being sent to each
possible destination, which the options are process or waste dumps
Optional fields:
Density (t/m3).
Slope angle (degrees).
Process recoveries (values from 0 to 1).
Figure 6 provides an example of a block model prepared and ready to be imported into
SimSched using the Marvin block model example - based on data available in the
MineLib1 repository
Figure 6 Visualization of the Marvin Model (CSV) through the Microsoft Excel software.
Each field related to economic value (Economic Value Process/Waste) must report the
value of each block as a function of its destination (Process or Waste on this example),
grades, recovery, cost of mining, transport, treatment, selling price, etc. The user is
not required to pre-set the destination, as the software will determine the best option
during the optimization.
____________________________________________________________________
1Available at http://mansci-web.uai.cl/minelib/marvin.xhtml.
To illustrate the calculation of economic values, an example is shown based on the

block with indices (IX, IY, IZ) = (17, 22, 7), highlighted in Figure 6. The calculation
parameters are described in Table 1, below:
Table 3 Parameters for calculating the economic values of the blocks.

Description Cu_% Au_PPM
Recovery 0.88 0.60

Selling price ($) 2000.00 12.00
Selling cost ($) 720.00 0.20
Processing cost ($/t) 4.00
Mining cost ($/t) 0.90
Discount rate (%) 10
Dimension of the blocks in X (m) 30
Dimension of the blocks in Y (m) 30
Dimension of the blocks in Z (m) 30
=
= 30 30 30 2.68 = 72360.00
= /100
= 72360 0.635556/100 = 459.89
=
= 72360 0.334444 = 24200.37

= ( ( ))
+ ( ( ))
( ( + ))

= (459.89 0.88 (2000.00 720.00))
+ (24200.37 0.60 (12.00 0.20))
(72360.00 (4.00 + 0.90)) = , $
=
= 72360.00 0.90 = , $
Therefore, $ 334,793 will be the economic value of the block if it is sent to the process
and $ -65,124 will be the economic value if it is discarded as waste. SimSched will be
responsible for defining the appropriate destination for each mined block throughout
the time.
6. IMPORTING THE BLOCK MODEL
To import the block model select the option Import Model. Notice in Figure 7 that
the File name input field is shown in red, indicating a mandatory field. Browse for
and select the CSV formatted file and press Next.
Figure 7 Import CSV file selection.
In the next window, shown in Figure 8, the Model Name must be entered. Optionally,
the destination folder (Model Folder) can be changed - as well as the Scenario
Name and a Scenario Description added.
0
Figure 8 Import name, destination and description.
Upon clicking Next, the following window will provide a statistical summary of
information for the block model that will be imported, as shown in Figure 9.
Figure 9 Import statistical summary of the selected block model.
1
When Next is selected, a form will appear which shows correlations between the
imported CSV file header and the available field types in SimSched.
Figure 10 Import association of model fields.
As illustrated in Figure 10, the form displays a table containing a preview of the
imported block model and two header rows. The top header row has the definitions
made by SimSched and the bottom row shows the headers of the CSV file. You must
associate each imported column, as, for example, to associate the block indices IX, IY
and IZ to the system variables Index X, Index Y and Index Z, through the list of options
located just above the table. Please note the required mandatory fields, as described
in Section 5.
Upon clicking Next, the CSV file will be imported into SimSched and it will request
additional data related to the block dimension and grade units of the imported
elements, as illustrated in Figure 11.
2
Figure 11 Import parameters of the block model.
After filling in the required fields, the options View Model and Scheduling will be
enabled. Before proceeding with the direct block scheduling, the imported model can
be viewed by clicking in View Model. When selected, SimSched will close and the
preview will be available on the SGeMS interface, as shown in Figure 12.
Please consult the specific SGeMS documentation, including videos available on

YouTube, for details on the options of viewing, creating sections, filters, statistics, etc.
Figure 12 Visualization of the imported block model.
3
7. DIRECT BLOCK SCHEDULLING
After visual validation, reopen SimSched and double click in Recent Projects Guide,
which contains the imported model, as shown in Figure 13.
Figure 13 SimSched reopened.
The Scheduling tab is automatically selected with the General form open, as
illustrated in Figure 14. A default value for the density and slope angle is required to
be entered. The values informed will be used if no specific fields have been imported
and selected through the Field boxes, or if there are blocks with no data. In the
example of this tutorial, the density field must be selected for it to be considered by
the optimization
Additionally, insert the obligatory field of the economic parameter that refers to the
annual discount rate to calculate the discounted cash flow for each period. The value
of 10% was used as the annual discount. Optionally, it is possible to implement the
parameter of stockpiles costs in $/t providing the fixed mining cost and the rehandling
cost of the stockpile.
After entering the required parameters, the Destinations option on the toolbar will
be enabled and it must be clicked.
4
Figure 14 General form filled.
On the Destinations form the possible destinations to where the blocks can be sent
will be defined. Each target must be mapped with their respective field containing the
economic values, as shown in Section 5. To add a processing route, click on Add
Process at the bottom right of the window, as highlighted in Figure 15. To add a route
for waste disposal, click on Add Dump. The destination of each block will be reported
by assigned them with the numbers 1 or 2, which depends on the order that you add
the routes. On this example, the process route will be reported as destination 1 and
dump route as destination 2.
Figure 15 Adding process and waste dump routes.
5
In the Recovery field of the added process, inform the recoveries (between 0 and 1)
of the model variables (Au e Cu) that will be reported in the direct block programming
report, according to Figure 16. In the field Economic value of the process route
(Destination 1), select the equivalent field imported along with the block model
(Economic Value Process), which will consider the economic value of the block if that
is sent to the processing plant. In the field Economic value of the dump route
(Destination 2), select the equivalent field imported along with the block model
(Economic Value Waste), which will consider the economic value of the block in case
it is sent to the waste dump.
Figure 16 Destinations form filled.
After completing the previous fields, click in Constraints. At this stage, surfaces may
be selected, in the form of a grid of elevations in CSV format, with physical limits to
force or restrict mining in certain regions of the deposit. This functionality will not be
explored in this basic tutorial. In the field of operational constraints it must be informed
the minimum bottom width of the pit (Minimum bottom width), minimum mining
width between pits of two periods that must be respected in order to make it
economically feasible (Minimum mining width) and the minimum and maximum
rate of vertical advance for each period (Vertical rate of advance).
In Figure 17 below, it is illustrated the adopted values for each of the respective
parameters mentioned above. For the pit bottom, a minimum width of 100 meters was
filled. For the minimum mining width, the specified value was 50 meters. And for the
pit vertical rate of advance, it was adopted multiple values of the block height both for
the minimum rate as well as for the maximum, being those 30 and 150 meters the
adopted values, respectively. The Production limit in tons (Production limits) of the
processed material, material forwarded to the waste dump and the total production
per period can also be defined.
6
Figure 17 Constraints form filled.
Click in Overview, for a single page summary of all completed parameters related to
the direct block scheduling, as illustrated by Figure 18.
The Save as option can be used to archive the scenario, including the specific input
parameters recorded by the user. With this functionality, it is possible to optimize
various pits, for example, varying economic values, without having to re-import the
block model.
In case the user wants set up which files will be generated by the scheduling, it is
necessary to click in Execution, which will open the field Run Options (Figure 19).
There are options to export the generated surfaces for each period (Surfaces) and/or
the block model with the scheduling information, such that the user has the option to
export just the mined blocks (MinedBlocks.csv) or all blocks of the model
(AllBlocks.csv). There still exists the possibility to choose what to visualize in the
SGeMS after the scheduling: The Surfaces and/or the Model.
Click Run to execute the direct block scheduling.
7
Figure 18 Overview form filled.
Figure 19 - Run Options field is destined to configure which and how the files will be exported.
SimSched will generate the cubage report directly in Microsoft Excel software, as
shown in Figure 19, and the optimized pit (blocks and surface) in SGeMS in case the
user chooses this option, as shown in Figure 20. The automatic preview shows only
the mined blocks, coloured according to each mining period defined by the scheduler.
The results presented in the Excel spreadsheet show, in the Charts tab, the graphs
relative to the reported results calculated in the Report tab. The processed mass
results, discarded mass, stock development, Au/Cu percentage in the process, Au/Cu
percentage in the dump, metal contained in the process, net present value and
cumulative net present value are arranged individually in the Production Process 1,
Production Dump 1, Stock Process 1, AU/CU - Grade Process 1, AU/CU - Grade Dump
1, AU/CU - Metal Process 1, NPV and Cumulative NPV tabs, respectively.
8
Figure 20 Final report of the scheduled pit.
9
Figure 21 Visualization of the scheduled pit.
If the user chooses to export the model, SimSched will automatically save the list of
the scheduled blocks (MinedBlocks.csv) or all blocks (AllBlocks.csv) in the block model
folder, as shown in Figures 22 and 23, which can be imported into other mining
software packages.
Figure 22 CSV file listing only the blocks that are contained in the final scheduled pit.
0
Figure 23 CSV file listing all blocks contained in the imported model
The files MinedBlocks.csv and AllBlocks.csv may contain indices and/or block
coordinates, informing in the MINED BLOCK column if each block will be mined (=1)
or not (=0), the PERIOD MINED column is destined for the period in which the block
will be mined, the PERIOD PROCESSED column informs which period the block will be
processed, the DESTINATION column reports which will be the destination according
to what was specified in the Destination tab. The remaining columns contains only
others data and parameters used. -99 values indicate the absence of information.
8. EXPORT DATA
Select the button Export Model in the SimSched interface. In the window that will
open, select the file of the generated model |.ssmod| illustrated in Figure 24, and
click in Next.
1
Figure 24 Export data.
Figure 25 illustrates the next window with the fields to insert Name and the Full Path
of the .CSV file destination that is generated. Click in Next, and after loading the
export, finalize in the button Finish on the last window.
Figure 25 Nomination and selection of the destination of the exported file.
2
9. CONTACT
If you have any questions, please contact us via e-mail: support@miningmath.com.
3

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TUTORIAL

SimSched Direct Block Scheduler Beta

1. MININGMATH SIMSCHED ............................................................................. 3

3. SIMSCHED INITIALIZATION ......................................................................... 5

4. LICENSE INSTALLATION ............................................................................... 6

5. BLOCK MODEL FORMATTING ........................................................................ 6

6. IMPORTING THE BLOCK MODEL ................................................................. 10

7. DIRECT BLOCK SCHEDULLING .................................................................... 14

8. EXPORT DATA .............................................................................................. 21

Figure 1 Installation procedure of SimSched Direct Block Scheduler Beta.

Figure 2 Initialization of SimSched through SGeMS.

Figura 3 Initial SimSched interface.

Figure 4 Field for license request and Installation.

5. BLOCK MODEL FORMATTING

Block (IX,IY,IZ) = (1,1,1)

Block Model Origin

Figure 4 Marvin block model origin and the block (1,1,1).

However, if the block model is with the geo-referencing information based on

To perform this conversion, it was proposed an exemplification based on the

Table 1 Data to perform the conversion

Ix = Centroid index of the block in the X dimension

Table 2 Indices obtained after the data conversion from Table 1.

To illustrate the calculation of economic values, an example is shown based on the

Table 3 Parameters for calculating the economic values of the blocks.

Recovery 0.88 0.60

6. IMPORTING THE BLOCK MODEL

Figure 7 Import CSV file selection.

Figure 8 Import name, destination and description.

Figure 9 Import statistical summary of the selected block model.

Figure 10 Import association of model fields.

Figure 11 Import parameters of the block model.

Please consult the specific SGeMS documentation, including videos available on

Figure 12 Visualization of the imported block model.

7. DIRECT BLOCK SCHEDULLING

Figure 13 SimSched reopened.

Figure 14 General form filled.

Figure 15 Adding process and waste dump routes.

Figure 16 Destinations form filled.

Figure 17 Constraints form filled.

Click Run to execute the direct block scheduling.

Figure 18 Overview form filled.

Figure 20 Final report of the scheduled pit.

Figure 21 Visualization of the scheduled pit.

Figure 24 Export data.

Figure 25 Nomination and selection of the destination of the exported file.

If you have any questions, please contact us via e-mail: support@miningmath.com.

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