Orica’s next-generation centralized blasting system ORBS has made a leap into the digital world, allowing customers in the underground mining segment to now experience its benefits.
ORBS, or the Omni Remote Blasting System, is now available to i-kon and eDev customers. It is designed to provide operations with the ability to safely initiate multiple development headings and production blasts concurrently from a remote, central location.
Building on Orica’s flagship Blaster 3000 architecture, ORBS enables greater productivity by initiating up to 30 Remote Blaster 3000, or up to 90,000 detonators, in one blast sequence. Its browser-based interface provides users with full visual oversight of all connected hardware and detonators and has enabled a host of valuable new features.
A key feature of ORBS is its ‘plug and play’ system that doesn’t require customers to invest in additional infrastructure. It connects to a mine’s communication network over LAN, Wi-Fi or LTE and users operate the system from a similarly connected electronic device such as a PC, tablet or iPhone.
With improved firing capacity and compatibility with Orica’s range of electronic detonators (i-kon III and eDev II), ORBS provides customers with greater versatility.
“Upgrading our electronic blasting systems is as much about strengthening the capability as it is about enhancing our customers’ experience,” said Rodney Williams, Orica head of Initiating Systems. “We were conscious about developing a secure, simple-to-use and powerful system, and we’ve achieved this with ORBS.”