Barrick Goldstrike Orders 400th Circuit Breaker System from American Mine Research, Inc.
30 November 2005
Barrick Goldstrike, located in Elko, Nevada and a subsidiary of Barrick Gold Corporation, recently ordered its 400th CB System from American Mine Research, Inc. Barrick has used AMR's CB-200 and CB-PRO Systems on its mining equipment's circuits since the early 1990s in a unique configuration that dramatically improves both the safety and efficiency of its underground mining processes.
Located in Rocky Gap, VA and in business since 1975, American Mine Research, Inc. is proud to offer the mining industry the attractive combination of improved safety and productivity in all of its product lines.
AMR's CB Series makes use of appropriately sized vacuum contactors and fuses. Our units are fitted with control units that rapidly indicate a wide range of hazards in mining practices (ground faults, overcurrents, unit faults, under-voltages, etc). Magnetic and thermal trip values can also easily be set to prevent nuisance tripping. The CB-PRO also features saved fault histories, remote lockout by any data acquisition system or PLC and power monitoring / metering. The CB Series offers more effective protection to workers and equipment in the mining industry as well as reduce downtime. Voltages are available from 480V to 7,200V.
MSHA-approved, the CB-PRO completely replaces a traditional molded case breaker by utilizing a microprocessor-based control unit with properly-sized vacuum contactors, current and ground fault transformers, and fuses. At Barrick, the CB-PRO is used in conjunction with AMR's GM-200 pilot ground monitor to remotely monitor and control the circuits for the mine's ventilation fans (50HP to 200HP) and trailing power feeders to the drilling equipment (480V and 995V). Each CB-PRO is configured to comply with MSHA CFR regulations for both trailing cable and motor applications.
The CB-PRO/GM-200 circuit configuration allows drill operators to remotely open and close their circuits without having to travel back and forth to the power source. By pushing either the start or stop button located on the drill's controls, an interposing relay then closes or opens the pilot circuit, provided the circuit is within the grounding circuit ohm values. The circuits are also interfaced with a programmable logic controller (PLC) located on each mobile load or power center. The PLC will validate that certain open and closed conditions are met and then digitally actuate the CB-PRO to open or close the circuit. The PLC also allows the circuits to be remotely opened or closed through a distributed control system (DCS) master station located at the surface. Data from the CB-PRO (phase currents, phase voltages, fault conditions, etc.) is also communicated real-time to the surface via Data Highway+™ to the DCS' master station. Trip settings and trip delays on each circuit can also be altered from the master station. Presently, Barrick has 33 mobile load centers (1,000kVA) each with 12 circuits on each center.
