Viabilidade econômica de aplicação das técnicas de corte de rochas ornamentais: estudo comparativo de custos

Abstract

The extraction of dimensional stone has being more common in the world, and Brazil plays a prominent role in production this material. In 2007 it was the 5th largest producer. Its main use today is in buldings finishing, being a product with great economic value. There are two main steps in the process of dimensional stones extraction: the mining and the cutting. The last step it is the object of the present study. There are several cutting techniques for the extraction of dimensional stones, some of which require a high investment value. Others, that have fallen into disuse, have being replaced by modern techniques, which typically shows better cost effectiveness and operationally. One of the most important barrier that are producers face to initiate the operation of mining a deposit is a cutting method to be adopted, since it depends on a number of factors, such as a detailed analysis of the type of material to be extracted, the geometry of the material, among others. Thus, this study presents the types of cut techniques used on the world scene, with their main advantages and disadvantages. It also presents an economic discussion making it possible to evaluate, of all techniques that can applied to the deposit, the most feasible from the economical point of view.