What qualities define an exceptional Autonomous Haulage System (AHS) operator?
What makes a good AHS operator?
Autonomous haulage systems have opened up many new opportunities for machinery operators to showcase their skills and techniques, and if you ask any experienced load unit operator about AHS the one thing that they will always mention is the accuracy and repeatability of the autonomous trucks. Gone are the days when a manually operated truck had the potential to really upset a load unit operators' day and have a big influence on loading technique and hence performance of the loading unit. Now any AHS operator worth their weight will understand that the autonomous truck removes that drastic variability between individual haul truck operators and allows the dedicated and motivated operator to shine and really refine their skills and techniques to eliminate as many inefficient movements and pauses as possible. It’s true that the autonomous trucks (ATs) aren’t as manoeuvrable and nimble as a manually operated truck and require more effort, planning and thought to get the ATs into tighter mining areas, but most of this inefficiency can be overcome with good mine design, planning and operator skill.
So, what makes a good AHS operator?
Curiosity, self-motivation, perseverance and adaptability are all very important traits that an operator will need to excel in an AHS pit.
-Curiosity
After a period of initial AHS induction training, it will be curiosity that will get operators to unlock new ways of operating to suit their conditions. The main aim of operating in an AHS pit is to reduce or avoid interactions with the ATs, as this will allow the ATs to perform to their potential. Being curious to try new ways to complete tasks in the pit to always have the free movement of the ATs as the main goal will drastically improve AT performance.
-Self-motivation
With the huge amount of performance data and the ability to review and scrutinise operator performance it is a very beneficial trait if operators can be highly self-motivated to continually understand and review their performance metrics. Daily a good load unit operator will be fully aware of their spot, load times and will work with other team members to improve the load area set up to reduce these times with all the tools and functions available.
-Perseverance
This is a great trait to have when operating with AHS. AHS operating functionalities aren’t as black and white as you would expect, and a lot of perseverance is sometimes what it takes to get the ATs to do what we want them to do. Some days more perseverance is required than others, idleness in an AHS pit will quickly see the greatly reduced performance of the ATs.
-Adaptability
Every day brings new challenges to operators and being able to quickly adapt will greatly reduce AT stoppages and down time. It’s all about the AT performance, free movement and adapting one's daily tasks to best suit the common goal.
One thing operating with ATs has taught me over the years is that every day is a new challenge, and a good operator will need to have a tool bag full of tricks and techniques to unlock maximum performance from the autonomous truck. Absolute Autonomous has a huge range of tools, tricks and experience ready to support AHS operators to improve their performance and reduce their frustrations.
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