An Approach to Locate an in Pit Crusher in Open Pit Mines

Transportation costs are a significant part of capital and operating costs of large open pit mines. Cost efficiency and high reliability of in pit crushing and conveying systems compared to conventional truck-shovel system makes it more appealing to be utilized in modern mining activities. In this paper the suitable location of an in pit crusher is investigated as a single hub location problem. In selecting the optimum location, two factors are considered. First, the overall haulage cost is minimized, and second, the location is chosen such that it is not located inside the mining area, and crusher site is fixed through a period of at least one year. Application of single hub problem is quite effective in determining the location of the in pit crusher. The method is applied in Sarcheshmeh copper mine, to determine the optimum location of the in pit crushing and conveying system.