Enhanced Drillhole Database Function Highlights Release of Micromine 2018

Micromine 2018, MICROMINE’s latest version of their market leading 3D modelling and mine design solution, includes various new features, updates and enhancements for a more intuitive, user friendly mining software solution. Micromine 2018 assists mining and exploration companies to capture, manage and interpret critical data pertaining to the mineral extraction process and is relevant to all stages of mining.

The journey to the release of Micromine 2018 involved extensive consultation with Micromine’s global client base, allowing the development team to focus on features and enhancements that will provide real value to the user. This includes a new licensing system, which works with or without a dongle and includes the ability to temporarily borrow a network license without the need for a dongle or persistent network connection. This will mean more flexibility for Micromine users.

Other new features for Micromine 2018 include:

  • Block extents, a new tool to visually adjust the extents of a block Model, Search Ellipsoid, a new tool to visually adjust the position, orientation, size, and anisotropy of the Vizex search ellipsoid
  • Variogram Map and Chart semi-variogram, new Auto calculate automates the selection of initial values for displaying a variogram map or variogram chart
  • Changes to the File Editor/DATA file, combining the capabilities of the old structure editor (replicate, increment, copy/paste) with new dialog options (undo/redo, sort, move up/down)
  • Added new string smoothing methods to Strings function

A key focus for the Micromine development team has been enhancing the functionality and performance of the drillholle database audit tool. Mining companies invest a lot of time and money collecting drillhole data, thus drillhole database management becomes an increasingly important task in the mine planning process.

Micromine offers a data management solution that forms an integral part of any exploration project of mining operation. Geological Data such as collars, survey and assay data are the key inputs needed to build a robust 3D resource model. However, any geological model is only as good as the data provided.

Micromine has always been able to effortlessly display, manage and analyse drillhole data to give the user the confidence to make informed decisions during the modelling process. The drillhole database functionality of Micromine has now been upgraded to include a database audit tool as one of the many new features of Micromine 2018.

The current drillhole functionality allows for data contained in a Collar, Survey, Event and Interval file to be compiled into a single Drillhole Database (a database with a .DHDB extension). Once the project database is set up the user can check the integrity of the drillhole databases, using a number of validation tools. They can also calculate the roof, floor and mid-point co-ordinates of each sample as well as create a trace co-ordinate file that is used to control the display of holes in plan view and in cross section.

The new database audit tool gives additional value to the existing validation tools. The tool generates a report listing the contents of the project drillhole database, for example, a user can easily see which data points have been used for structural modelling and which points have been used as part of the resource estimation. The report also lists the number of records in each field of every file associated to the project database, seen in the image below.

An additional feature in Micromine 2018 is the drillhole database export function in which the project database can be exported as a CSV or an Excel Workbook. This export function also allows for an Include audit summary option in which the number of records of each filed will be written to a report file.

These enhancements to the drillhole database function in Micromine 2018 will save time for users and assist in improving cost efficiencies across their operation.

“The goal has always been to make our clients’ job easier, Micromine 2018 has the necessary tools to achieve this” Micromine Product Strategy Manager Paul Hooykaas commented.

“We are really excited about the new features and enhancements for Micromine 2018 and we feel these changes will greatly increase the overall usability of the software” he added.

Micromine 2018 is now available for download, for more information about Micromine 2018 including its new features and improvements please visit our website.