Kennecott Utah Copper C6 Project
- Client: Rio Tinto
- Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
View project
Project Overview and Scope
The C6 conveyor is a critical overland conveyor in the Bingham Canyon Mine ore handling system, transporting ore from the primary crusher to the Copperton Concentrator. Following catastrophic overspeed and braking failures in March 2023 and January 2024, confidence in the conveyor’s ability to safely operate at its design capacity of 11 ktph was significantly reduced. EMtek was engaged by Rio Tinto Kennecott to support the recovery of operations and develop the control system and functional safety upgrades required to restore confidence in full-capacity operation.
Services and Outcome
EMtek delivered control systems and functional safety engineering for Phase 2 of the C6 return-to-11 ktph project, focused on improving the conveyor’s operating logic, monitoring systems and safety functions.
Key areas of delivery included:
- Development and update of functional safety documentation, including safety management plans, risk assessment documents, verification and validation plans, safety requirements specifications and commissioning plans
- Control system design and implementation for upgraded mechanical brake systems, including PLC code, IO lists and SCADA/HMI updates
- Implementation of the ALM belt monitoring system, including updated function specifications, PLC programming and operator interface updates
- Development of the SIL 1 overspeed interlock safety function as part of the upgraded safety system
- Rewrite of the C6 conveyor functional description and PLC logic to support improved operational control
- Safety PLC development, including software FAT and SAT documentation
Deliverables included project management documentation, design review records, constructability inputs, updated functional safety documentation, PLC software, IO lists, SCADA/HMI updates, functional specifications and testing documentation required to support safer full-capacity conveyor operation.
Related Projects
