About this ebook
Despite advances in geological modeling, optimization algorithms, and planning methodologies, a persistent pattern remains across the mining industry: by the time underperformance becomes visible, it has already been embedded within the plan.
This book examines that pattern—not as a failure of execution, but as a consequence of how planning systems are structured.
Drawing on cross-project observations and multidisciplinary technical discussions, Mine Plans Fail Quietly introduces a structural diagnostic perspective on mine planning. It explores how geological uncertainty is translated across disciplines, how assumptions evolve through the planning process, and how risk becomes systematically embedded—often invisibly—long before production begins.
Rather than offering prescriptive solutions, this book provides a framework for seeing mine plans differently:
as systems of interconnected assumptions
as structures shaped by translation between disciplines
and as processes that can produce fragile outcomes despite technical rigor
This book is intended for professionals involved in:
mine planning and scheduling
geology and resource modeling
technical services and operations
project evaluation and due diligence
capital allocation in mining
It is not a step-by-step manual, but a diagnostic lens—designed to support more rigorous thinking about uncertainty, risk, and decision-making in complex mining systems.
Discover more
About the author
Andi Anriansyah is a Senior Technical Professional – Mining Systems Integration & Planning, with a focus on the structural dynamics of mine planning and the translation of geological uncertainty into operational outcomes.
Working within multidisciplinary teams across a range of mining projects, he has been involved in technical discussions, evaluations, and reviews at the interface between geology and mine planning. Through these experiences, a recurring pattern became evident: technically sound processes can systematically produce outcomes that underperform expectations.
Rather than focusing on improving individual technical components in isolation, his work emphasizes the structure of the planning system itself—how assumptions are formed, how uncertainty is translated across disciplines, and how risk becomes embedded in mine plans long before production begins.
This perspective forms the foundation of Mine Plans Fail Quietly: Long Before Production, a diagnostic examination of the structural fragility inherent in modern mine planning practices.
His work is oriented toward supporting more rigorous technical thinking in project evaluation, due diligence, and capital decision-making within complex mining systems.
