Q: How does coordination across multiple disciplines lead to project success?

DB: The participation of various disciplines when developing a project within a company is fundamental. At the beginning, the disciplines involved should be defined according to the project’s needs, the scope of each and the time to be invested.

To start a project, we need to know our client’s requirements to provide the best solution according to the program, budget and applicable regulations. For starters, the structural engineering and architecture department must have prior information and analyses provided by the client, and the base information must contain the following: topographical survey, geotechnical study, hydrological study, environmental impact study and other required information.

Q: What is the discipline that GRUMINEX prioritizes first when creating a solution and what factors does this discipline consider?

DB: The department of structural engineering and architecture sets the standard for ground plans, giving way for other disciplines to prepare the project plans. When the structural and foundation plans are designed, mechanical and electrical equipment must be considered. It is important to know the weight and dimensions of these elements because the overall design will depend on those. Examples would be a base for a pump or a structure that must support a control room.

Q: What disciplines are taken into account when selecting equipment and elements for a project?

DG: We first need to consider the mechanical discipline, which has several divisions that range from the selection of equipment for the development of a mining process to the selection of piping materials for a particular application. For this discipline, specific variables must be considered according to the process that will be handled in the project. In addition, we must define the equipment and elements to be used in the project. In addition, the electrical discipline must be taken into account, as well as the variables,  so we can define the capacities of the equipment that will be used within the project.

Q: What are the main factors that need to be prioritized to efficiently use a project site and its workspaces?

MH: For the land system, communication between the electrical discipline and civil engineering department is key. This is important in order to calculate and design the land network. In addition, it is essential to have communication with the mechanical and structural department to know the positions of equipment and steel structures and their connection with the land system.

For the power system, we seek to have an effective design and obtain a correct operation of the equipment based on architectural and structural designs. We do this to know the spaces and dimensions of buildings or racks and develop an appropriate wiring route.

In the control element, the objective is to optimize the mine process to ensure an efficient and safe project and coordinate all equipment and systems. To do this, it is necessary to coordinate the mechanical, piping and other structures to know the locations and mechanical characteristics of the equipment, as well as having knowledge of the structural elements that will allow the installation of instruments.

Furthermore, in the lighting system, we must design adequate lighting to provide safe work areas for personnel, equipment and machinery. For this, we must know the dimensions of the work area and the locations of mechanical and electrical equipment. All this in coordination with the architectural, structural and mechanical disciplines.

Q: How do you ensure that the coordination of all disciplines is optimal and that there are no disharmonious operations?

DG:  The drawing and calculation stage is done with the use of our specialized software REVIT from Autodesk, which is based on parametric modeling of construction elements and allows interaction and detection of interference with other disciplines involved in the project, so that there is better coordination and multidisciplinary organization.

Grupo Minero Mexicano (GRUMINEX) is a strategic services company dedicated to the provision of comprehensive engineering and construction management services (ECM) to the mining industry, focused on generating efficient and effective solutions to multidisciplinary needs.