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By Jay P. Tobin

This paper will address the legal standards applicable to construction blasting lawsuits and offer best practices suggestions for pre-blast inspections, documenting the construction blasting work, recordkeeping, and effectively participating and partnering in the defense of a construction blasting lawsuit.

Jan 1, 2015

By Greg Shapiro, Paul Dr. Worsey

Mining, quarry, and construction blasts are becoming more and more dependent on bench profiling. The use of accurate profiling gives the blaster better data for the most efficient blast results. So, we ask the question: What is the best method for measuring and analyzing burden?

Jan 1, 2019

By Robert Hopler

HUDSON MAXIM A Noted Inventor of High Explosives ALTHOUGH the subject of the present sketch has been a tireless worker in many fields of activity, his name is best known in connection with his work in the development of high explosives and their application to modern ordnance

Jan 1, 2012

By Norman Disley, David B. Counter, Lionel Hebert

Misfires in underground and surface production blasts can be costly. Costs can arise from loss of resource, production interruptions, having to redrill or otherwise refire the blast (a hazardous process at best), due to added secondary blasting or breakage, and/or from increased LHD maintenance costs attributable to poor fragmentation.

Jan 1, 1996

By Norman Disley, David B. Counter, Lionel Hebert

Misfires in underground and surface production blasts can be costly. Costs can arise from loss of resource, production interruptions, having to redrill or otherwise refire the blast (a hazardous process at best), due to added secondary blasting or breakage, and/or from increased LHD maintenance costs attributable to poor fragmentation.

Jan 1, 1996

By Michael David Wilkins, Paul N. Worsey

Little research has been published on stemming blast holes, particularly what happens during the process. Previous work has concentrated on the performance of the inert material to find the best way to seal the hole and retain the explosive energy, at the exclusion of determining what happens during the loading and stemming process.

Jan 1, 1998

By W C. Brukle

Our title for this presentation could be taken in many ways. One course would be terrifying and that would be to cite incredibly bad practices. All of our votes/efforts should be for the reverse direction in which everyone does his/her best to keep their pit or working place free from hazards.

Jan 1, 1983

By Ryan Redyke, Jared Redyke

The demolition of an old power plant boiler house in Parsons, Kansas calls for the use of some linear shaped charges. The steel is thick and the structure is heavy but gravity can be a blaster’s best friend. This entry did not win in a very competitive category. We thought it was worthy of coverage in the Journal of Explosives Engineering.

Jan 1, 2015

By William Reisz

In our line of work,like many other professions, there may be times when circumstances or a series of events may arise, contributing toward unacceptable risk. When multiple parties are involved, there will almost inevitably be differences on how best to deal with these situations. Unless approached in an intelligent and these differences may often have the potential for costly and unexpected results.

Jan 1, 2014

By Ralph E. Burnham, J. Kelly Ratliff

"The words “dynamite,” “TNT,” “explosives,” and “blasting” typically cause the general public, andjurors, apprehension and fear. Although blasting operations conducted by well-trained, skilled, andexperienced blasters rarely cause damage or injury, the public’s perception of blasting is that it isdangerous, disruptive, and results in damage to nearby properties. As a result, blasting operations have always resulted in complaints, claims, and lawsuits. However, in recent years, the public perception combined with an increase in public opposition, social media, more stringent regulations, predatory plaintiffs’ attorneys, and the application of strict liability to blasting claims has resulted in an increased threat of litigation to blasting companies and individual blasters. Consequently, many blasting companies find themselves receiving more complaints, involved in more litigation, and facing an alarming number of frivolous claims, which can result in increased insurance costs and other financial tolls. Accordingly, today’s blasting companies must be prepared for litigation and take steps to eliminate accidents and claims before the first shot is detonated on a job. The best way to accomplish this is standard operating procedures that incorporate best management practices, industry standards, and regulations in daily operations. This paper outlines some of the considerations that a blasting company should incorporate into its standard operating procedures before, during, and after the shot."

Jan 1, 2016

By Randall M. Wheeler

Pre-blast surveys are used to document the condition of a structure prior to the commencement of blasting activities. They provide the best means of determining the pre-existence of visible cracking and deterioration in a structure before blasting is initiated. A small investment in a good pre-blast survey, coupled with good public relations, could mean a large cost savings for a company in the future.

Jan 1, 1992

By Andrew Stirling

Quarry operators are under constant scrutiny by individual neighbors and neighborhood associations due to the environmental issues arising from daily quarry operations. Issues range from truck traffic, to dust, to blasting induced vibration and noise. Quarry operators and shot service providers employ best practices to minimize disturbances to neighbors. However, these efforts have been limited by the accuracy and flexibility of conventional initiating systems and design techniques.

Jan 1, 2002

By J S. Gozon, R R. Britton

Various methods have been proposed over the past two decades to predict the borehole pressure in decoupled boreholes. In an effort to establish which characteristics best accomodate present day explosive effectiveness, a comparision has been made between two explosives. The first displays high detonation characteristics while the second produces gases which continue to fill the borehole and radial cracks for relatively long periods of time.

Jan 1, 1985

By Randall M. Wheeler

Computer analyses of single hole signatures are often used to help blasting operators predict the type of ground vibration effects that may be produced from production blasts incorporating various delay intervals. Frequency analyses of single hole waveforms and subsequent multi-hole waveform simulations can allow an operator to determine the best type of delay intervals to use in order to minimize low frequency ground vibrations.

Jan 1, 1989

By Duane Skidmore, Calvin Konya

The supply crunch and cost rise for ammonium nitrate (AN) over the past year have been influenced by a number of factors. These include a general inflationary tendency, particularly great cost rises in fuel, and by a market condition in which demand for ammonium nitrate is great and supply is limited. Demand is largely confined to agricultural and explosives uses with explosives subdivided into mining, construction, and quarrying. The projections show that demand may be expected to increase markedly for the indefinite future in the agricultural and mining sectors of the ammonium nitrate market while fluctuating with indicators of economic activity for the construction and the quarrying sectors. Supply is projected to increase with plants being designed and built due to high need levels and commensurately high profit potential but not enough are planned to provide an equilibrium market. Constraints upon supply increases to match demand increases include shortages in the raw material, natural gas, high cost of investment capital, high equipment costs and long construction delays. The result should be, even under optimistic conditions, considerable shortage and resultant pressure for higher prices through 1979 for ammonium nitrate. The best hope for relief in the intervening years appears to be conservation. In blasting operations, the earliest and best proven route to conservation seems to be improved utilization available from application of highest available technology and most efficient current blasting practice.

Jan 1, 1975

By Luana Ferreira de Carvalho, Aurelio Manço Garcia, Gustavo Sampaio Lopes, Jose Silvio Corsini, Davi Bastos Martins de Oliveira

The Enaex Mining Technical Solutions (EMTS) team, in partnership with the Anglo American Iron Ore Brazil drilling and blasting team, has developed a study aiming to optimize the blast design applied at the Minas-Rio project. The study consists of modeling the dynamic behavior of one lithological domain to determine the best configuration of drilling pattern, charge configuration, timing and sequencing of the blast designs applied at the mine in this particular rock.

Feb 1, 2020

By David La Rosa, Matthew Craft, Lee Julian

Rules of thumb are ubiquitous in blasting. Typically presented as ratios, they assist with the initial assumptions of blast design and provide guidance for best practice. Examples include the blast hole diameter as a function of bench height, and stemming length as a function of hole diameter. The most common rules of thumb were developed in mid-20th century and it is important for a blaster to know if the rules of thumb are still reliable.

Feb 6, 2023

By Ann Barron

Even though you think your company’s safety program is the best it can be, equipment, processes, supplies, surroundings and people do not always behave or react as expected. Consequently, needless accidents occur each year at quarries, construction sites, surface mines, and other locations where explosives are used. While blasting accidents account for only a small portion of the total accidents reported, the severity rate for blasting accidents is higher than for any other accident category.

Jan 1, 2007

By Scott Giltner, Allan Koski

Blasting is one of the lowest cost yet most critical parts of the mining cycle. This paper discusses the findings of an audit conducted on the blasting operation at an iron ore mine. The purpose of the audit was to review current blasting practices in order to identify opportunities for production/cost improvements. The approach taken in the audit was to observe general blasting practices, their related downstream effects and to compare current procedures to established best practices.

Jan 1, 2009

By Alastair Torrance, George Boucher, Roger Keller

An investigative blast programme has been carried out to provide information on the best blasting methods to excavate Chek Lap Kok island in Hong Kong for the new airport. The objectives of the programme included the assessment of a range of blast design parameters and their influence on fragmentation. This has been evaluated by physical assessment, photo digitising of the muckpile and computer predictions. In addition, a model to predict the three dimensional muckpile shape has been successfully calibrated.

Jan 1, 1992