Stockpile Reports: Top Story in Australian Bulk Handling Review

If Stockpile Reports takes off it could spell the end for traditional survey techniques at bulk handling facilities.

Stockpile Reports is a new app that allows users to establish an accurate, detailed estimate of the volume of bulk materials in a stockpile, using only an iPhone, two marker cones and a 7.6m measurement rope.

David Boardman, chief executive of StockpileReports.com, says the strength of the app is its “ease of use, rapid turnaround, and accurate results.”

Boardman isn’t alone in his enthusiasm for the product.

Since the app gained some exposure in the US media just over a fortnight ago, Boardman says his company has fielded calls from more than 130 North American miners, intrigued by the prospect of an accurate, on-the-go stockpile measuring system.

To measure the volume of a certain stockpile using the app, a worker needs to place two cones along the base of a stockpile, separated from each other by the 7.6m rope. Then it’s simply a case of slowly circling the stockpile, while recording it onto the app with the iPhone’s camera.

Once data is collected, it is uploaded to the web via mobile, Wi-Fi or USB, allowing companies with access to view and monitor their stockpiles remotely.

The company’s website allows users to see their stockpiles overlayed onto Google Maps satellite photos, allowing managers to give themselves a better idea of the state of their project site, without actually travelling to it.”

Source: Australian Bulk Handling Review