Ambra Solutions: Driving Communication beyond Limits with LTE

Every year, mining companies hire field workers by the hundreds, and as part of their job description, these people must spend long periods underground, away from their families, with limited to no means of contact. Why? The traditional communication systems within underground mines and structurally complex open-pit mines are mere patchworks of different networks, each supporting individual apps that essentially use up all the available non-licensed frequencies and channels. Paradoxically, these costly and complex systems offer grossly inadequate coverage. These communication systems lack efficiency and robustness, creating operational and communicational challenges for both miners and mining companies.

To address these challenges, Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., a Canadian gold mining company has reached out to Quebec-based telecommunications company, Ambra Solutions, who delivered Canada’s deepest underground 5G LTE network. The 850MHz LTE network solution, located three kilometers below the surface, provides data and voice mobility services across the site. It enables several IoT use cases that, among other things, can greatly improve safety in mining operations. Eric L’Heureux, founder and CEO, Ambra Solutions, recalls a field worker’s response to the deepest LTE installation at LaRonde, “After the system had been deployed at Agnico Eagle, a miner told me ‘thanks to your system my pregnant wife can rest assured that if she goes into labor, my boss can get a hold of me anywhere in the mine, anytime!’”

LTE networks open new opportunities for cost-effective smart mining. The networks allow IoT sensors and devices to monitor, operate, and collect data across the mining site and provide real-time coverage for several kilometers of underground tunnels. Additionally, a single LTE radio can cover up to 6 km of a tunnel, whereas it takes over 60 active Wi-Fi access points to cover the same area. One of the main hurdles in LTE implementation is country-specific LTE regulations.

In order to face these challenges, Ambra Solutions partners with key multinational mobile network operators from specific countries. They source their equipment from multiple manufacturers, including Ericsson, Nokia, and Huawei, for building private LTE networks for their clients.