SUPERVISION OF COMMERCIAL EXPLOSION MATERIALS IN INDONESIA
Book Review – SUPERVISION OF COMMERCIAL EXPLOSION MATERIALS IN INDONESIA. By Dr.H.Kasmen, M.E Published by PT. Derko Global Mandiri (Jakarta). . Second Printing March 2019.
At the recent 5th Drill & Blast Conference (Jakarta 13-14 August 2019) organized by PERHAPI & ASPRODISPA, Dr. H. Kasmen delivered an interesting talk about the Police Departments role in supervising the permits and use of explosives for the Indonesian mining industry. Dr. Kasmen kindly provided copies of his book PENGAWASAN BAHAN PELEDAK KOMERSIAL DI INDONESIA. [SUPERVISION OF COMMERCIAL EXPLOSION MATERIALS IN INDONESIA]. This is one of those rare gems of a book that is a valuable compilation of much dedicated work that gives a broad understanding of regulations and supervision of the Indonesian Explosives Industry. The book is written in Bahasa Indonesia, and includes many figures and tables. This book can be obtained by contacting the author.
Supervision of commercial explosives is carried out starting from the production or import of explosives and related material, transportation, storage, use, or the destruction of commercial explosives that have expired or are no longer needed.
This book reflects upon the supervision and monitoring of commercial explosives, from the theoretical and practical perspective. Each chapter covers a separate topic; 1) Introduction to the use of commercial explosives in Indonesia, 2) Types of commercial explosives, 3) Trade and transport of explosives, 4) Supervision & control, 5) Policy of control, 6) Institution framework for supervision, 7) Ongoing research on supervision, 8) Supervision of explosives in other countries, 9) Problems in supervising explosives, 10) Academic aspects of explosive supervision, 11) Conclusions and recommendations.
At present the supervision of explosives is by regulation, wherein the author recommends the supervision be upgraded by issuing suitable laws, and developing a special body (under the President) to supervise all aspects of commercial explosives. Business associations are seen as strategic in supporting the effective supervision and control of explosives.
In my early experience with coal mining in Indonesia there was the preference to avoid using explosives, as this involved layers of permits, extra cost in constructing magazines and sequencing the explosive blast into the mine schedule. At that time, the mining industry was trending towards bigger excavators with greater break out power, or for pre ripping of harder layers. However, today the picture has changed, where improved drill and blast practice, more competitive supply of explosives, and Industry 4.0 improvements to blasting patterns have turned mining towards more blasting to improve fragmentation as a means to improve faster mine cycle performance.
The book contains a wealth of experience that records the insights and working of a part of our mining industry that expands upon my own experiences in the supervision of blasting. I am always so excited to come across rare treasures of such books.