A private wireless network — Private LTE — will be launched at the Udokan copper deposit. The network will provide employees of the company with stable communication, automate complex processes and increase security.
The corporate private LTE network in the 1800 MHz range will cover the entire territory of the field: the quarry and the technological complex of the future mining and metallurgical plant, which will unite the concentrating factory and the metallurgical plant. According to Yevgeny Samoilov, Minister for Housing, Energy, Digitalization and Communications, such networks allow the operation of complex monitoring and remote control systems on the whole plant territory and provide the personnel with internal communications.
— Thanks to the geolocation modules built into the means of communication of personnel and equipment, the operational services of the enterprise will always be able to track the location of employees and combine them into groups to solve problems. In addition, it will be possible to eliminate the likelihood of people being in the area of dangerous types of work. Besides, it will be possible to carry out such work without human participation — using remotely controlled robots, — said the deputy head of the department. For instance, drilling and blasting operations will be automated as much as possible. For an enterprise operating in difficult climatic conditions of permafrost, reducing the number of processes with the direct participation of people is one of the primary tasks. Where this is not possible, technology is used to optimize performance.
At the first stage, the mobile operator will provide workers of the enterprise and contractors involved in the construction site of the plant with a stable 4G connection. For this, by the end of the year, four base stations will have been built and fault-tolerant redundant communication channels based on fiber and radio relay stations will be organized. In 2022, with the start of industrial production, the coverage will be strengthened, in particular, through the introduction of the Private LTE network.
