{"id":12345,"date":"2026-04-09T19:26:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T19:26:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northamericanmining.com\/?p=12345"},"modified":"2026-04-09T19:34:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T19:34:12","slug":"coal-logistics-optimization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northamericanmining.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/09\/coal-logistics-optimization\/","title":{"rendered":"Coal logistics optimization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Moving beyond child\u2019s play in an industry that is increasingly challenging and changing\u2028everyone\u2019s expectations by the day.<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Edited by Donna Schmidt<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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Let\u2019s face it, there\u2019s no way to sugar-coat the truth: mining is hard work. What\u2019s more, the logistics of moving those resources have grown more and more complex as regulations, environmental considerations and evolving technology change the game every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NAM <\/em>recently sat down with someone well acquainted with that reality: Deswik\u2019s Jon Jensen. To look at the mining industry from a miner\u2019s perspective is one (very interesting) angle, but to examine it from someone who has long been involved with its transport and travel from mine to port to customer is a very different and insightful facet of the industry as we know it today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cFor years, the process of mining coal has been focused first and foremost on the mine itself \u2013 which isn\u2019t necessarily a bad thing if it\u2019s not the only thing and if it doesn\u2019t just stay there within the mine,\u201d said Jensen.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

He likened it, and our understanding of the grand scheme, to the children\u2019s favorite, The Whisper Game. As Jensen explained it, the basic premise was to gather in a circle, and the first player would start with a message and then whisper it into the ear of the next person in the circle, and so on around the circle until the last player received the message and would share it with the entire group. What always happened to that message when it got to the end of the circle? It was always completely altered and different from what the original was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cOften it was hilarious to hear what came out of that last player\u2019s mouth, [yet] sometimes it wasn\u2019t, as the message was so far off script, it had little to do with the original message and its intent,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

That said, Jensen explained that the same idea can be applied to the industry. Mining coal is hard work, and it\u2019s challenging and difficult \u2013 with labor, equipment, complex geological challenges and regulations abound. However, do we make it harder by not optimizing the entire process? Are there lessons to be learned from the Whisper Game that would apply to the adult world we live and operate in with coal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jensen said, unequivocally, yes. What came out of this discussion was both insightful and paradigm-changing, and it may be something others can benefit from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NAM: You\u2019ve worked for nearly a quarter of a century in logistics, mostly in North America and also in Australia. What\u2019s one of your most impactful lessons learned?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jensen: <\/strong>Most of my time in industry has been spent working in high tech solving complex problems for operations. I\u2019m somewhat ashamed to say, however, that we always seemed to focus within our own small vertical pillar and rarely, if ever, looked at the entire process of getting the logistics problems solved and optimized. Working only on improving one link of the supply chain was a lot like playing the Whisper Game as a child \u2013 you could have the best plan (story) known to mankind to begin with \u2013 but if your partners down the line (around the circle) weren\u2019t involved and also operating on that same plan, then you were almost guaranteed excess costs and delays, no matter what part of supply chain you operated in (mine, rail, maintenance or port).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With respect to the coal mining industry, what thoughts or suggestions specifically would you suggest to positively impact throughput and bottom-line efficiency\/profitability?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the mining industry, one word: optimization \u2013 but with two different focus areas:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Optimization of your mining process. Much of mining, other than coal, has been doing this for years. Gold, copper, potash, or iron ore. However, in coal mining, there\u2019s been a bit of a lag in adoption. Having a mine plan based on solid geographical data and planning can make a huge difference in your profitability for your mine. Specifically, I\u2019d recommend the following steps (again, help here is specific to the mine).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Optimization of your logistic plan. And here\u2019s the paradigm shift: including your logistics transportation partners in formatting a plan that includes all the players, including the mine, the rail, the equipment providers and the port\/plant. Maintenance for each player is part of this plan, and \u2013 I\u2019ll say it again \u2013 this plan must be optimized to maximize performance and create the best plan possible. Simulation is great, but without optimization (modelling all the rules and constraints of our network and using complex linear mathematics to find the statistically best decisions to maximize margin), it will come short of producing the optimal result with optimal profit potential for your company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This all sounds great, but are there real-world examples and, more importantly, real-world results you can share where this has happened?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Absolutely! There are numerous case studies and white papers I can share with you and readers if they\u2019d like more information. In a nutshell, however, here\u2019s some quick hit facts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. For coal mine planning with optimization software, we\u2019ve \u2028seen the following happen in numerous mines around the world:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • Mining \u2013 15% increase in NPV by making better block sequencing and grade-driven decisions<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Stockpile and blending \u2013 6% increase in profit margins by timing stockpile movement for better blending outcomes<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Refining and processing \u2013 9% refining and processing improvements by selecting better processing and configuration options<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Reducing planning effort by 10x manual efforts\u2028\u2028<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    2. When you expand your focus and include the logistics supply chain in planning, results have been spectacular. Here are some data points:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    1 Logistics \u2013 12% increase in profit margins by better aligning rail schedules with vessel departures (this is huge!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    • Rail \u2013 10-15% increase in velocity\/throughput. Assets are sweated and in instances when unneeded, removed from \u2028inventory, allowing train consists turn quickly, rail congestion is minimized<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Crewing \u2013 50% reductions in crew costs for overtime, extra- board pay and associated lodging\/transportation cost<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Port and vessel operations \u2013 20% reduction in demurrage by reducing vessel turn times<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Maintenance \u2013 15% maintenance savings when maintenance is planned and communicated as a part of the overall logistics plan (reducing unplanned outages, delays and costs)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Marketing\/revenue \u2013 10% increase by entering better contracts with customers based on supply\/grade<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
      \n
      \"Jensen
      Jensen likened progress in mining logistics to the the children\u2019s favorite The Whisper Game, also known as Telephone.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

      It sounds like coal logistics is much more than a child\u2019s game, in your opinion?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Donna, that\u2019s for sure! It took me most of my career to begin to realize the huge potential that is out there if we stop playing the Whisper Game and start working collectively to improve coal logistics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Moving beyond child\u2019s play in an industry that is increasingly challenging and changing\u2028everyone\u2019s expectations by the day. Edited by Donna Schmidt Let\u2019s face it, there\u2019s no way to sugar-coat the truth: mining is hard work. What\u2019s more, the logistics of moving those resources have grown more and more complex as regulations, environmental considerations and evolving technology change the game every…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12346,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[871,613,4512,4513],"coauthors":[1644],"class_list":["post-12345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-deswik","tag-mining-industry","tag-optimization","tag-optimization-software"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t