Most mines treat stockpiles as a stopgap - a buffer zone between extraction and processing. But what if your stockpile became an active, intelligent component of your production strategy? With real-time modeling, it can.
This article explains why dynamic stockpile modeling matters, how it reshapes blending efficiency, and what forward-thinking operations are doing today to turn piles into precision tools.
In traditional setups, once material reaches the ROM pad, it’s functionally invisible. Loader logs, truck dispatch, and grade estimates live in disconnected systems - updated manually, if at all. The result? Operations blend by habit, not intelligence.
We’ve seen this firsthand: ore is routed to the plant based on stale averages, not live inputs. Valuable high-grade zones get diluted. Low-confidence material gets treated equally. And metallurgists are left to adjust on the fly, mid-cycle.
As recent research from OZ Minerals shows, “a lack of precision in stockpile tracking leads to suboptimal blending outcomes and inconsistent plant performance.” We agree - and we believe the solution is real-time modeling that treats stockpiles as dynamic digital assets.
At NTWIST, we don’t just scan stockpiles - we build living models. Our systems ingest GPS truck data, topographic scans, and source block estimates to create a constantly updating 3D profile of each pile.
Each block is modeled probabilistically, with metadata like grade, hardness, and tonnage linked back to source zones. This model evolves every time a new load arrives - or is reclaimed - ensuring every scoop is data-informed.
The outcome? Plant teams don’t guess. They know what they’re feeding, how it affects recovery, and where to pull next.
When you model your stockpile in real time, your entire blending strategy changes. You can:
According to a whitepaper on digital transformation in mining, “integrated stockpile data enables precision blending that improves plant throughput and reduces operating costs.” We’ve seen this play out with our clients - both in immediate gains and long-term planning maturity.
Investing in dynamic stockpile modeling isn’t just about operational efficiency - it’s about strategic control. If your stockpile is blind, your plant is reactive. But when both speak the same digital language, performance becomes predictable.
Blending is no longer a guessing game. It becomes a lever for throughput, recovery, and cost optimization. And stockpiles evolve from static buffers into real-time value drivers.
If you're still modeling your stockpiles weekly - or worse, manually - you're flying blind. Precision starts at the pile. And with real-time modeling, you’re not just reacting to what's already in motion - you're steering it.
At NTWIST, we help clients move from passive inventory tracking to precision-grade blending, using live models that speak the language of production. Because when your stockpile is smart, your plant doesn’t have to guess.
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ReferencesOZ Minerals & Maptek. (2021). A framework for near real‑time ROM stockpile modelling to improve blending efficiency. Retrieved from https://www.maptek.com/news/rom-stockpile-modelling/
AVEVA. (2022). A Digital Transformation Approach in Mining Operations. Retrieved from https://www.aveva.com/en/perspectives/asset-performance/mining-material-inventory-and-stockpile-management/