On Monday, June 17^th, students of Civil Mining Engineering of the University of Talca accompanied by their professor, Dr. Manuel Reyes-Jara, visited the Delphos Mine Planning Laboratory and the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, at the University of Chile, within the framework of the elective course of advanced optimization, applied to mining. Thus, the students were able to know the Faculty, and the new facilities of the Laboratory, share with its members (researchers, rote students and theses, master's and doctoral), and know the different software that Delphos has developed.

Dr. Nelson Morales, Director of the Delphos Laboratory, received the students and Professor Reyes-Jara: "It was an excellent visit. Students learned about the work of the Laboratory, but at the same time, we learned about interesting things that they are doing. I am convinced that this will translate into a very active collaboration between the two universities."

For his part, Dr. Manuel Reyes-Jara was very grateful for the reception and collaboration: "The students were very motivated to know the Delphos Laboratory, where they developed two software that they are using in their courses and projects: DSIM and Doppler. We had an excellent reception. With a lot of patience, the delphos researchers attended to the queries of the students. As a result, it was possible to exchange ideas, and we were also invited to participate in more laboratory activities."

Visiting students also shared their impressions of this activity:

• Ronald González, a 4th-year student, working on "Evaluation of surface mine with option to sell".

"I found the visit super-profitable. It is always good to interact with people from the same area we are studying and even more so if they have much more knowledge than we do. I rescued a lot the good reception of the different laboratories, particularly that of Delphos, and the willingness to solve our doubts about DSIM and explain the different options of the software. The epic moment was the conversation in the faculty yard with his colleagues and, although I did not handle many of the topics, it is good to know that they exist and then internalize it in the house. Without a doubt, it was a very fruitful visit from the perspective of the projections that can be established with the University of Chile.”

• Nicolas Zerené,a 4th-year student, working on "Doppler comparison project and Pit Optimizer".

"Obviously, the visit was a good experience, especially for us as a university that don’t have development laboratories. In addition to being able to see the branch of mining that interests me so close and being able to talk to professionals in the field helps a lot to grow as a professional."

• Sebastián Arriagada y Felipe Labra, 4th-year students, working on "Stochastic planning project for winery spare parts (Mochila+SAA)".

"It is interesting to see what the work environment of a laboratory like Delphos is like and the desire they have to work to develop tools that are increasingly useful and tailored to the needs. In addition, this as students gives us an almost unique opportunity, since in general, we tend to be mere executors of software, so having the opportunity to contribute with feedback, is a huge incentive to get involved beyond just using it."

"Another important aspect that I highlight, that mining does not necessarily mean going to the north to be working in a pit, but that you can perfectly work in development laboratories such as Delphos or in consultancies linked to the mining sector, which is a good work option for recently graduated professionals, so having the opportunity to know an important laboratory within the mining area, it was fascinating."

• Ricardo Moreno, Title: "Prediction of the value of a pit design based on a set of orthonormal designs".

"It was an inspiring experience on my part, visiting the laboratories where are both developing technology and advancing new processes and ways of addressing the current problems of mining.  In addition, sharing with those who lead these tasks and feeling their willingness to share their work allows me to consider a very interesting line of professional development."

• Joaquín Retamal y Brayan Fonseca, memorists. Title: "Operational plan using Doppler and Mineplan".

"First, I want to highlight the reception they gave us. They made us feel very comfortable. It allowed us to resolve doubts at Delphos about the use of the software they develop, and the feedback that was given, I think, was great for both parties. In addition, I consider very interesting the topics that are developed, the solution problems that occur in mining and generate innovative ideas, see how many of the concepts that we have seen are applied and that maybe seemed to us as "little applicable".

"I also feel that it was a good opportunity to realize that we can develop and investigate mining issues in-depth without being in a mining region. Happy to be able to participate in this activity."