Theory of Sampling and Sampling Practice PDF

Preface

The first edition of this book (1988) was devised as an adequate but simplified condensation of Dr. Pierre M. Gy’s work, suitable as a two-volume manual for the teaching of a short-course. Despite a few minor mistakes, the first edition was a success and well-received by engineers around the world. For example, the book helped to launch a series of short courses sponsored by Francis Pitard Sampling Consultants and the Australian Mineral Foundation around the Pacific Basin. Therefore, it was only natural that a second edition of the book would be in demand.

The second edition of this book (1993) stayed consistent with the spirit of the first book; however, collaboration with some practicing mathematicians, statisticians, and research scientists helped me to prepare a much better, more complete version. It was an overwhelming success and this edition of the book became a classic around the world for more than 25 years. The attendees to my courses learned from me, and I most certainly learned from them. It became rapidly clear that the Theory of Sampling needed to be integrated with the philosophies of Statistical Process Control, Six Sigma, and Total Quality Management. This was the primary objective in the additional chapters of the second edition. Therefore, the “motto” for the second edition was:

There are no such things as reliable feasibility studies, unbiased ore grade control, accurate environment assessments, effective process control, if you cannot identify and minimize the eight major sources of sampling variability.

Furthermore, Total Quality Management cannot exist without effective Statistical Process Control, which itself cannot exist without a thorough understanding of the Theory of Sampling.

The World Conference on Sampling and Blending (WCSB) was created in 2003, and ever since took place every two years on different continents. A huge amount of new knowledge was acquired with eight successful conferences. However, sadly, a new textbook on the Theory of Sampling (TOS) was never created, only compilations of many papers were published, therefore today, the second edition of this book, though outdated is still immensely successful around the world as a classic reference.

A natural consequence of this unfortunate gap fully justifies the creation of a third edition of this successful book that is long overdue. This third edition could have been highly technical on Sampling and Statistical Process Control, but it would have missed its primary objective, which is to successfully explain why each of us, in the Mining Industry and other industries, at any given place of a process, is a customer and supplier of somebody else. Therefore, it is imperative for this third edition to provide high-level theoretical background, but also pragmatic solutions to the many problems we face every day. Because of the background of the author the reader may complain about an over emphasis on the Mining Industry, however, TOS is universal and applies to many other industries such as the Food Industry, the Chemical Industry, the Oil and Gas Industry, the Pharmaceutical Industry, and many more.

This third edition of the textbook could have been a highly philosophical guideline about the many subtleties of Total Quality Management, but it would have missed its primary objective, which is to successfully explain why each of us, in all these industries, at any given place of a process, is the mean by which objectives are met on target, within specifications, and within acceptable cost.

Therefore, what is special about this third edition of the book is to find an equilibrium between how far someone must go through the theoretical and technical aspects of a given task to better understand, predict, control, and improve conditions leading at the end of the day to a successful job. The theoretical aspect of our problems is an essential means for penetration. The technical aspect of our problems is a necessary implementing process. The pragmatic aspect of our problems is a necessary product of our creativity, and we are paid to be pragmatic without giving up too much on theoretical and technical necessities; this is how we become a successful professional. If we learn how to do this, we may never lose the scope of our story: every time we leave work, we shall feel happy and proud of making the job of somebody else easier, better, and more effective. You made somebody else to look good. That somebody else can be a boss, a subordinate, a coworker, or even someone from another department or another company.

Some readers, familiar with my former editions may be tempted to say: “It is just another one of those books on sampling! We went through this before.” This third edition of the textbook is different because a special effort has been made to present sampling and laboratory problems in their inescapable, economic context. The main reason for the Theory of Sampling being neglected in the past is due to the failure to place it in its economical context. As a result, many important executives around the world saw the TOS as an academic achievement with no obvious practical value. To correct this unfortunate situation, this third edition of the book is a proper blend from several important worlds:

1. The Management Method of W. Edwards Deming

2. The Sampling Theory of Dr. Pierre M. Gy

3. The undeniable touch from Geostatistics with variography leading to Chronostatistics

4. The extraordinary competence of a famous analytical chemist and sampling expert, C.O. Ingamells

5. The works of J. Visman

6. The modern philosophies of Statistical Process Control and Six Sigma

Blending these different worlds was a daring endeavor on my part. I hope that the result will make sense to many of my clients. This third edition of the book should help set priorities to optimize operations, eliminate costly and incorrect practices accumulated through the years by tradition, mistaken beliefs, shortcomings from naïve common sense, and wrongdoings from practitioners and manufacturers with conflicts of interest.

The third edition of the book is therefore the basic, essential tool to make sure due diligence in many modern applications is friendly enough when applied.

Authors: Francis F. Pitard, Francis F. Pitard