GeoMineHack @Mektory

Time: From 10th of May 15.00 until 12th of May 17.00

Organiser: Tallinna Tehnikaülikooli Geoloogia Instituut

Description: In Mektory Innovation and Business Center will take place very first MineHack which searching new innovative solutions in geology, mining and material processing related topics. MineHack will search solutions to the Estonian mining and material processing industry given challenges, for instance how to improve existing material grinding process, how to more automate processes in the mine or work out feasible communication plan for large scale development projects.

GeoMineHack is welcomed by students from various Estonian universities and professionals already working. The challenges presented by companies are interdisciplinary and require different areas of expertise to solve. Besides resolving challenges we offer also fast business model and pitch training and mentor`s guidance which help participants to achieve expected outcome. And of course, food and drinks to stay sharp throughout the event!

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Challenges are provided by and waiting teammates:


OÜ Rail Baltic Estonia – Develop „cartoon“ of mineral resources processing

Expected outcome:
develop „cartoon“ (max lenght 5 minutes) and its marketing strategy
Short description: Usually youngsters as possible future engineers have quite a fuzzy percpetion of how exactly materials are created before their use in construction and of how many processes it actually consists of. Challenge is to create "cartoon" of mineral resource (aggregate) process for road construction purposes, i.e starting from extraction (e.g. blasting, excavating), processing (crushing, sieving, washing etc), forming as product, transported and used (filled) as road/railway embankment. "Cartoon" gives educational overview of complex and time-consuming stages of seemingly simple process. Result can be used as educational material in school curriculum to create interest of road and railway engineering among young people.


Eesti Geoloogiateenistus - How to better communicate among society major development projects?

Expected outcome: create a long-term communication plan
Short description: Very often discussions of major developing projects or mining projects are based on emotional decisions, much less in knowledge-based data and results. Key question is: "How to bring the idea of major development and resource planning to the public so that a substantive knowledge-based discussion takes place instead of emotional debate?" Challenge is to develop a long-term communication plan (incl when and how to communicate with press, authorities, NGO-s etc, evaluate and create messages etc)   which take into account relevant public opinions but in same time avoid or replace emotional debate with knowledge-based discussion. As study case will be used following major development project - phosphate deposit mining in Estonia


TalTech - How an attractive 3D model show importance of peat?

Expected outcome: develop two 3D models of different peatlands
Short description: Have you ever wondered of what layers peatland actually consists of under the surface?, what are their properties and usefulness? We guess many people don`t know that and now is the right time to change it! Estonia as peatland-rich country is developing digitalized peat deposit public database, which is one of the first kind in the world, i. e we have digitalized peat sample points and peat technical characteristics, but we want also to visualize some peat areas. Therefore, the challenge is to compile 2 or 3 3D models of peat deposit from different peatlands. In the end, it must be easy to use in public database website to demonstrate peat in 3D for study and scientific purposes. That model would contain the peat layers of different genesis. It is important to work out method, which helps to find the different peat characteristics by layers, for example while klick on the layer the model shows detail information and usefulness of the layer. We have all relevant data (see below) to create 3D models - help us to do that!
- The peat deposit maps are digitalized
- Peat technical characteristics are in Excel
- All peat sample points have X, Y coordinates and absolute altitude Exisitng database


OÜ Inseneribüroo STEIGER - How to automate different laboratory analysis?

Expected outcome: create mobile app for receiving/registering samples, entering analysis results and matching them
Short description: Company is analyzing monthly approximately 200 samples. The aim is to automate the reception / registration of samples and the results of laboratory analyzes in a building materials testing laboratory. The task is to make an app where you can simply submit a sample order so that the order data (subscriber, tests, etc.) automatically goes to the information system and later add the analysis results to the same order. Ultimately, these data are compatible so that the customer and the lab can view the final data with the order and the laboratory can also change the data entered if necessary.


Eesti Energia AS – How to better automate processes in oil shale mining?

Expected outcome: Ideas and solution(s) for processes to automate in existing mines, including proposing workplan how company should proceed with this, e.g what surveys, specifications are needed, what software-equipment is most likely required etc.
Short description: Automating different processes to reduce costs and increase safety is a growing need in industry, including mining industry. At first Eesti Energia will describe the working processes of their mines as detail as possible so participants will get overview and start to think what processes or part of the processes are reasonable and doable to automate in the mine? For instance how could it be possible to use remote control in bucket wheel loader, measure quality of oil-shale layer on site etc.  


Eesti Energia AS – Let your spirit fly - what recreational/visiting/architectural/infrastructure objects or landmarks could be built from mining by-product - limestone?

Expected outcome: Create max 5 landmark ideas using this by-product. Perform simple thematic sketch how object or landmark could look like in the end and strategy how to commercialize it, i.e make it usable/needed.
Short description: Limestone is a solid by-product of oil-shale industry, which at the moment is mostly landfilled and in some amounts re-used, mainly in road construction. Annual amount of this landfilled by-product is ~ 4 million tonnes. The challenge is to let your imagination fly freely and generate all kinds of ideas creating landmarks or objects from this material for recreational/visiting purposes near mine site


Viru Keemia Grupp AS - How to speed up and expand communication and data transfer in the mine in the most cost-effective way?

Expected outcome: Idea solution(s) how to speed up and expand communication and data transfer from different areas of the mine
Short description: Mine field of Ojamaa underground mine has dimension of about 6x4 km and is divided into 400x600m blocks. Layout of the field is system of pillars with rather short distances of direct visibility. Information exchange in those conditions has therefore limitations. Workers inside the mine block have radio transmitters to communicate each other. Information from block to maintenance center, mine dispacher or district manager is given by wired phones and is with some delay. However, foreman, who is direct organiser in working places has responsibility area of 3-4 blocks which one visits by car which means foreman gets information only if he visits the place and not by any telecommunication device. The mine has some cell phone and WiFi coverage areas but those are in limited places. Another challenge is getting online operational data of works performed directly from the machines. It would help to better organise operations but limitation is poor spreading of WiFi signal in the mine. Newer machines have more and more sensor data, but due to limited network this data is not received online.


OÜ Rail Baltic Estonia - How to go through in Rail Baltic track from peatland "Rääma" with the most reasonable way?

Expected outcome: Propose the most suitable construction solution with simple sketch/cross-section drawing and rough cost estimation how to pass through "Rääma" peatland with RB railway track
Short description: High-speed railway "Rail Baltic" is one of the megaprojects in next coming years in Estonia and Europe. Currently it is in design phase in all three Baltic countries. In Estonia, one of the most difficult place where alignment should go through is "Rääma" bog. In Rääma, peat layer is thick and layer with good bearing capacity located 20 m deep from the surface. Challenge is to come up with the way(s) how embankment construction of the track through "Rääma" should be built in most cost-effective and environmentally friendly way? Should it stay on rammed pillars, replace all peat with new embankment or use other innovative ways? Participants think and calculate the most suitable technology with making simple sketch/cross-section drawing and very rough cost estimation then using this technology. Reasonable/feasible outcome could propose to the designer for further development. Participants will get relevant info of existing data/solutions in the beginning of the hack.


Neo Performance Materials - Develop better grinding process of FerroNiobium Alloy

Expected outcome: Develop conceptual solution of simplified grinding line description
Short description: FerroNiobium is by-product Alloy produced during enrichment of Tin ore. Besides to be ligand for stainless steel production FerroNiobium is a valuable rawmaterial for production of Niobium and Tantalum. To produce Niobium material should leached in the mixture of different acids. To be leached material should be grinded to core size D50=75 microns. Incoming material average grain size is 50 mm and up to 10 % with grainsize up to 120 mm. At the moment to grind is used three steps of griding: jaw crusher, roll crusher and cone crusher. As a result will be good to receive simplified grinding line descriprtion, which is more effective comparing to existing one.


Agenda:

Friday, 10th of May:

15.00     Start of registration, slight snack and coffee
15.30     Kick-off and introduction to the topics
16.15     Challenge pitches
17.30     Team forming and START
18.00     Dinner
18.30     Business model training
20.00     Continue challenge development
Mektory will be open until ~ 01.00

Saturday, 11th of May:

9.00       Breakfast
9.30       Introducing day + inspiring lecture
10.00     Continue challenge development
12.30     Lunch
13.30     Pitch training
15.00     Coffee break
15.30     Continue challenge development with mentors
17.30     Continue challenge development
18.30     Dinner
19.00     Continue challenge development
Mektory will be open until ~ 01.00

Sunday, 12th of May:

9.00       Breakfast
9.30       Introducing day + inspiring lecture
10.00     Continue challenge development with mentors
12.00     Lunch
12.30     Continue challenge development
15.00     Final pitch
16.15     Jury evaluation, announcing winners and networking
17.00     Wrap-up