Australian
iron ore giant
Rio Tinto announced the opening of its new operations center, which it calls "a key part of the ‘Mine of the Future'", in Perth, Western
Australia on June 25.
According to a
Rio Tinto press release, the high-technology, purpose-built center, located alongside Perth's domestic airport, was opened by the Western Australian premier, the Hon. Colin Barnett, to become the primary control center for
Rio Tinto's vast network of mines, rail systems, infrastructure facilities and port operations in the Pilbara region of Western
Australia.
The operations center features 200 controllers and schedulers and more than 230 technical planning and support staff, using cutting-edge networks that ensure all Pilbara operations up to 1,500 kilometers away are not only controlled from Perth, but can be performed with the maximum efficiency, the company said.
"This operations centre is fundamental to our vision of the Pilbara as a single, integrated ‘one mine' logistics system," said Sam Walsh,
Rio Tinto chief executive
Iron Ore and
Australia.