Mahase, M.J.Musingwini, C.Nhleko, A.S.2018-08-292018-08-292016-11Mahase, M.J., Musingwini, C. and Nhleko, A.S. 2016. A survey of applications of multicriteria decision analysis method in mine planning and related case studies. Journal of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallugy 116(11), pp.1051-1056. http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2411-9717/2016/v116n11a72225-6253https://hdl.handle.net/10539/25507This study forms part of an MSc research project undertaken at the University of the Witwatersrand.In an environment like the mining industry, which is characterized by different stakeholders with multiple objectives, multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) is a useful approach for optimal decision-making. The application of MCDA techniques in the mining industry has predominantly been in mine planning and related problems, although no comprehensive survey has previously been undertaken to establish the application trends. A survey of the use of MCDA techniques was therefore conducted using case studies from the literature. It was noted that often two or more methods are applied to the same problem in order to increase confidence in the solution derived. As the number of criteria and alternatives increases, some methods become inefficient. A combination of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method with other MCDA techniques was the most frequently used approach, indicating the efficiency of the AHP method, especially when evaluating problems with more criteria and fewer alternatives. A combination of fuzzy theory with AHP or other methods incorporates uncertainty. The findings from the survey will benefit users applying MCDA techniques to solve mine planning and related problems.en© 2016. The Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. This Journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.Mine planningMulti-criteria decision analysis (MCDA)Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM)Multi-objective decision-making (MODM)Decision makingAnalytic hierarchy processSurveysMining industryArticle