Shovel–truck cycle simulator
Watch how one constraint moves spotting, loading, queueing and production together, then put in your own FMS averages to see what queueing is costing your operation.
Simulation parameters
Your own numbers
What is queueing costing your fleet?
The simulator above is a teaching model. This calculator uses your figures instead: take the averages from your FMS reports and see the truck-hours and tonnes spent waiting.
- Truck-hours spent queueing
- 36 per day
- 1,080 per 30 days
- Tonnes those hours could add, at most
- 626 kt per 30 days
- 21 kt per day at your own cycle rate
- Queue share of the cycle
- 10%
- Loading-unit utilisation
- 58%
- Match factor, queue-free cycle
- 0.65
Loading units are likely waiting for trucks. Queues that still appear point to allocation, not fleet size.
How this is calculated
- Cycles per day = trucks × operating hours × 60 ÷ cycle time
- Queue truck-hours = cycles × queue time ÷ 60
- Queue tonnes = queue hours × payload × 60 ÷ cycle time
- Spare loads = loading units × operating hours × 60 ÷ load time − cycles
- Tonnes those hours could add = the smaller of queue tonnes and spare loads × payload
- Loading-unit utilisation = (trucks × load time) ÷ (loading units × cycle time)
- Match factor = (trucks × load time) ÷ (loading units × (cycle time − queue time))
- Loading units are assumed to work the same hours as the trucks.
Indicative only. Averages hide when and where queues form; a performance review measures them from cycle-by-cycle FMS data, and not every queued hour is recoverable.
Understand the cycle
Five phases, one connected cycle.
Each phase has its own causes and its own owner, which is why a review breaks the cycle apart instead of reporting it as one number.
- 01
Spotting
30–60 seconds
The truck positions itself at the loading unit. Long or variable spotting often points to face conditions, dispatch logic or operator practice.
A review checks: Spot time by operator and loading unit; approach paths at the face.
- 02
Loading
1–3 minutes
The loading unit fills the truck in three to five passes. Bucket fill, operator skill and the shovel–truck match all show here.
A review checks: Passes per load, load time against payload, loading-unit and truck match.
- 03
Hauling
1.5–5 minutes
The loaded truck travels to the dump or crusher. Road condition, grade, speed limits and traffic set the time.
A review checks: Travel time by road segment, before and after road maintenance.
- 04
Dumping
20–45 seconds
Material is tipped at the crusher or stockpile. Dump design and crusher availability decide whether trucks wait.
A review checks: Queue at the dump and crusher by hour; dump-point layout.
- 05
Return
1–3 minutes
The empty truck heads to its next assigned loading unit. Assignment quality shows up here and in the queue that follows.
A review checks: Assignment decisions and overrides; queue on arrival at the loading unit.
What to measure
A metric is useful only when it changes the next decision.
TBOS validates definitions, data quality and operating routines before treating a dashboard value as evidence.
- 01
Cycle time
Spot, load, haul, dump, return, queue and delay components.
- 02
Fleet utilisation
Productive time, standby, queue exposure and operating losses.
- 03
Asset health
Availability signals aligned to the production decision window.
- 04
Operating discipline
Status quality, dispatcher practice and supervisor response.
- 05
System reliability
Coverage, latency, interfaces, configuration and master data.
- 06
Efficiency context
Payload, distance, grade, speed and fuel viewed as one operating cycle.
This is an educational scenario model, not a mine plan or production forecast. Validate assumptions with site data and qualified engineering review before making operational decisions.
Your cycle, measured instead of modelled.
The simulator shows how the pieces interact. A performance review decomposes your real cycle from FMS data and ranks what to fix.