MinE 651
Application of Mine Planning and Design
Description
The objective of this course is to develop graduate-level competency in applied mine planning and design. Students will apply mine planning theory, geological and economic data, and professional software tools to solve practical mine planning problems. The course is designed to help students move beyond basic software use and develop the ability to critically evaluate mine planning workflows, assumptions, design constraints, optimization results, schedules, and reporting outcomes.Learning Outcomes
- Apply advanced mine planning and design workflows using professional mine planning software.- Create, manage, and interpret drillhole databases, sections, plan views, and composited datasets.
- Perform data manipulation, geological modeling, surface modeling, solid modeling, and block modeling for mine planning applications.
- Complete volumetric calculations, resource classification, and reporting from geological and block models.
- Evaluate open pit limit optimization results and interpret their technical and economic significance.
- Develop practical pushback designs and understand their relationship to NPV, production scheduling, and mining direction control.
- Apply pit design parameters, bench geometry, ramps, access requirements, and bottom-up and top-down pit design methods.
- Design waste dumps and understand their connection to production scheduling and material movement.
- Export designed pits and pushbacks to strategic planning tools and reschedule them using practical mine planning constraints.
- Apply cutoff optimization concepts, including Lane’s theory and simultaneous optimization.
- Critically assess mine planning assumptions, constraints, and results at a graduate engineering level.
- Prepare professional technical reports and presentations that clearly communicate mine planning methodology, results, limitations, and recommendations.
| Lecture | Seminar | Lab | Credits | Total AU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 1/1 | 0/1 | 3.5 | 44.1 |
| M % | NS % | CS % | ES % | ED % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
None defined
None defined
Undergraduate Program(s)
Sections & Respective Instructors
| A1 - 2026/2027 - Winter - Hooman Askari-Nasab |
| A1 - 2024/2025 - Winter - Hooman Askari-Nasab |
| A1 - 2022/2023 - Fall - Hooman Askari-Nasab |