Prior to working with Metallurgical Systems, this facility had several key processes that required optimisation. Its zinc plant lacked the ability to track various flows through the plant; its lead plant blast furnaces were lacking instrumentation; data from the lead plant’s laboratory information management system was also very difficult to interpret and analyse – resulting in limited data-based insights; and there was potentially sulfur being emitted from the acid plant into the environment – putting the plant at risk of non-compliance.
We worked with the facility to implement MI Core® across the zinc plant, lead plant and acid plant.
In the zinc plant, MI Core® now helps track flows in and out of each electrolysis circuit, giving authorised personnel the ability to track performance and determine when new instrumentation is required.
In the lead plant, MI Core® has also improved and automated the tracking of material in and out of the blast furnaces. In the acid plant, MI Core® helped highlight where and how extra sulfur was emitted – enabling the operators can undertake improvements to ensure they were increasing the capture of sulfur dioxide – a potential financial gain of US$120,000 per day (at US$150/tonne) for the plant.
Since implementing MI Core®, this facility can now operate more efficiently and compliantly, and operators have access to the information they need to make sharper and better decisions regarding the productivity and outputs of the complex overall.