The shaft-adit system offers significant energy savings and cost reductions, making it widely adopted in cement material open-pit mines. However, its application effectiveness is greatly influenced by the topographic and geological conditions of the mine site, as well as the physical properties of the ore and rock. This paper systematically introduces two mainstream design configurations of the shaft-adit system and their technical characteristics. Based on five typical mining engineering cases, it analyzes the application schemes and operational performance of these two configurations in actual projects. The study shows that the key to successful application of the shaft-adit system lies in: during the design phase, fully investigating the engineering geological conditions, reasonably determining the shaft diameter and the structural design at diameter transition points, and implementing targeted treatments for unfavorable geological sections; during the production phase, strictly controlling the moisture content of materials entering the shaft and the proportion of oversized blocks, avoiding prolonged storage of ore, and maintaining a full-shaft production condition. The two design configurations each have their own applicable scenarios, and the appropriate configuration should be selected based on the specific conditions of the mine, rather than simply copying the management model of the truck haulage system.