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Developed by Perth-based company Metech, acQuire is a data management system that brings together disparate data sets into one database.

At many underground coal mines, drillhole data from exploration boreholes is kept in a hard copy library that can amount to 10,000 or more individual records. If, for example, a geologist is drawing up a hazard plan, the library has to be manually interrogated. acQuire provides the opportunity for all the information to be available on a desktop.

Metech geological data analyst Jared Armstrong said the ability to query data offered big paybacks for mines, such as breaking down the “silos” that exist between different parts of a mine and at different times in the life cycle of an operation. Exploration geologists typically dealt with information in slightly different ways to mine planning engineers, Armstrong said, and both used different software packages to achieve their tasks. With acQuire, however, both professions can “tap” into the same data source with the use of acQuire’s API technology.

“Coal strength, for instance, is difficult to test for,” Armstrong said. “Variations in coal strength and roof strength across longwall and gate road panels can be useful for determining roof support needs.

Some data collected from quality samples, such as HGI (Hardgrove Grindability Index), can be indicative of coal strength, and having the data readily available in the same data source as sonic logs and geotechnical test results means it can be fed into mine hazard plans more easily.”

The system consists of a fixed data model, a set of relational database components designed to overcome the problems of geoscientific data storage.

“The beauty of the fixed data model is that it is easy to support,” Armstrong said. “Mines can usually expect a response within a day.”

The software also caters for variability between sites because it is has a flexible component through the uses virtual fields (site-defined fields) for different data requirements.

A data tracking feature is a key element. With the replacement of the paper-based systems of the 1980s with electronic systems in the 1990s, good audit trails of data changes were somewhat overlooked. acQuire addresses this and offers the best of both worlds, Armstrong said.

Not only can data changes be monitored, but data can also be locked down to prevent changes being made. For example, drillholes can be locked to prevent associated data being changed.

Globally, there are over 700 acQuire licences, operating at over 200 sites in over 120 companies in 28 countries.

The system has been installed at Xstrata Coal’s Newlands operation and was being installed at the Oaky Creek mine at the time of press.