AVAILABILITY

1. Mechanical Availability
Mechanical Availability is time for lost for mechanical reasons.

(%) = 100
+
Hours worked are defined as the time that a crew or an operator is assgned to a piece of
equipment and the machine is operable condition.
Hours worked sshould be recorded from either the operation time card or from the
equipment hours-meters.
2. Physical Availability
Total Operational availability, includes time lost for any reasons
+
(%) = 100

Stand-by hours is the time a piece of equipment is available for operation but is not used
when the mine is on scheduled operation.
Scheduled hours are the number of hours the pit is worked.
Physical Availability as recorded above is basically a historical record of a machine.
3. Use of Availability
Management tool to establish effective use of equipment.

(%) = 100
+
Use of Availability percent is simply a record of how efficiently an operation makes use
of available equipment , and as such, is an excellent tool of management.
4. Effective Utilization
Total % use relates hours worked to total hours.

= 100

The terms used in this equation have been defined previously. Effective utilization is very
similiar to use of availability and differs only in relating hours worked to total hours
rather than available hours.
Effective utilization describes the actual conditions that operators and trucks carry to
operate production with all the time available.
 Mechanical Availability Physical Availability Use of Availability Effective Utilization
DEFINITION Time Lost for mechanical Totl operational Management tool to Total % use relates hours
reason. availability, includes time estabilish effective use of worked to total hours.
lost for any reasons. equipmeent.
EQUATION :
W = Hours worked
+
R = Repair hours 100 100 100 100
+ +
S = Stand by hours
T = Total hours
EXAMPLE :
W = 300
300 300 + 200 300 300
R = 100 100 = 75% 100 = 83% 100 = 60% 100 = 50%
300 + 100 600 300 + 200 600
S = 200
T = 600
SOURCE
1. Hustrulid, W. And Kuchta M. 1998. Open Pit Mine Planning & Design Volume 1, A.A.
Balkema/Rotterdam/Brookfield. Hal 890-892
2. Kennedy, Bruce A. 1990. Surface Mining, SMNE, Littleton, Colorado. Hal 397-400
3. P. Pfeider Eugene, 1968, Surface Mining, The American Institute of Mining,
Metallurgical, and Petroleum engineers, Inc, New York. Hal 664-670