What Is Assaying?

What is an assayer? An assayer is a laboratory technician that analyzes geologic materials (rocks, minerals, etc.), milling products, and waste by-products to provide data that makes it possible to locate, mine, and extract minerals in a safe, economic and environmentally acceptable manner:  Click here for a JAVA simulation of this relationship. (Note: This applet, which models the impact of assays on determining the difference between ore and dirt, is slow to load and may display poorly on older model computers or browsers.) Click here for a narrower, more traditional definition of assayer.

Why does assaying matter? A large number of people depend on mining to make a living; everyone depends on mining as the foundation of daily life. (In general, everything you use to live begins in agriculture or with raw materials from mining. Recycling can reduce, but not eliminate human needs for raw material.) If assayers don't do their job right, people loose economic opportunities today; tomorrow's environment suffers. Assayer data is the foundation for locating and running a mine; assayer data also insures that producing mines doesn't create long-term environmental damage.   (Click here to view a brief University of Nevada report on the economic impacts of mining; click here to download a more in-depth UNR report on gold mining industry economics.)

What does it take to be a good assayer? Typically, assayer skill requirements are defined in an open market (caveat emptor). This web site provides descriptions of assayer skills, an example of one mine site's assayer training program, and references to documentation which can assist assayer training. However, the information on this site is not a universally recognized standard. There are no federally mandated certification standards for individual assayers or assay labs in the United States. Canadian federal authorities are moving to nationwide laboratory (not assayer) certification standards, but the law is not yet finalized. (Note: local state or province jurisdictions may have assayer certification standards.) To an assayer, no matter how much you learn, moving between different labs can seem like starting over.

How do you identify a good assay lab? Assaying is a complex, multidisciplinary field. Unless a lab has strong internal quality review programs, hidden (or fraudulent) assay errors can lead to costly investment error. In a caveat emptor market, it is particularly important that people who buy assayer services review a lab's internal training documentation, quality assurance documentation, and general reputation before acting on any assay data. A reputable lab routinely verifies assayer excellence thorough administrative programs that include quality control systems, assayer training, method testing /research, and external "round robins." Laboratory certification programs (a growing trend) are also useful indicators, but "following procedure" does not insure that a procedure is appropriate. All reliable assay labs, certified or not, routinely and aggressively review all assay procedures, quality control data, and quality review methods for evidence of bias, deceptive values, or error.

Note to Mining Investors: An assay's practical value is always limited by the quality of the samples delivered to the lab (i.e., garbage in = garbage out). Even the best assay lab cannot guarantee representative assays in the face of poor or fraudulent sampling.  Although quality assay labs can spot and reject certain procedures or client requirements associated with "Bre-X" type sampling fraud, mine validation involves much more than a set of assay data. Investors interested in mining prospects should either rely on the careful evaluation and development skills of a reputable mining company or hire the assistance of qualified mining consultants. "Hot" assays are not enough to guarantee the existence of a "hot" investment opportunity.

Try the links below to find more pictures and explanations of assaying at work: Click here to call a table with links to explanations of assayer skills as well as more assayer images from where I work. Click here for a list of assaying images from Canadian labs. Click here for images of assaying from an Australian lab. Click here for assayer images from Finland.

If your view of this page does not have a set of button controls on the left of this page, click here to call the opening page of the normal frameset site structure. If you would rather browse this site without frames, click here to open a site map view in a new window. Most features can be reached through the site map.

Thank you for visiting Tom's Assayer Library. Content suggestions are welcome!