Abstract: Field experiences shows that it is difficult for a blast design based on personal experience to make a comprehensive quantitative analysis of such factors as blastability of rock masses and free surface conditions, making it unable to assure the reliability of the blasting parameters and fragmentation. The development and application of bench blast design software BLAST-CODE is just an effort to solve this problem.Based on the pit geological and topographical database technology and the rock blastability classification based on clustering method, BLAST-CODE blast design software enables an computer-aid automatic computation of drill pattern design and explosive amount in accordance with the conditional parameters such as rock blastability, free surface conditions and explosive strength, and a detonation network design in a man-machine interaction way. Its application in Waitoushan Iron Mine shows that this software is characterized by scientific and rational selection of blast parameters and easy application, and it is of great practical significance to the improvement of blast fragmentation and the realization of routine blast design standardization

Key words: BLAST-CODE, Blast design, Blastability