The LMS, designed to measure material balances as well as report to investors and other stakeholders in line with AMIRA P754 and other sampling standards, can be integrated with the Metso Outotec Courier on-line analyser and boost process control improvements.

A single LMS unit has the capability to collect multiple metallurgical samples, lining up with the needs of production reporting and management purposes.

"Each sample can have its own timing, and the system can manage multiple buckets. A simultaneous flexible spot sample can also be taken without any system changes," the company said.

"Integration of on-line analysers will enable different types of sampling data to be combined for production analysis purposes. By combining process history data with different process scenarios, the process control philosophy can be quickly adapted according to the ore type being processed, for instance… [enabling] improvement of production predictability and control of metallurgical mass balance."

The most significant advantages to the LMS include an improved process audit and production transparency, more production predictability and control of metallurgical mass balance, a reduced need for manual laboratory assays, reliable and efficient production reporting, and high integrity of samples.

Tapio Korpela, product manager Samplers andSeparation at Metso Outotec, said the self-diagnostic, self-cleaning system was built to ensure representative metallurgical samples that are transparent.

"Maintenance personnel can use self-diagnostics and reporting data to enhance predictive maintenance and spares management strategies," Korpela added.