Australia’s contract mining sector is undergoing a quiet revolution—one that could fundamentally reshape the relationship between contractors and mine owners.
AI and automation might reshape the future of mining safety, but Cam Stevens argues the real risk is leaving safety professionals out of the conversation.
Every hour of downtime costs a mine tens of thousands of dollars, and Professor Amir Gandomi told the NSW Resources Regulator’s Mechanical Engineering Safety Seminar how artificial intelligence is now cutting those losses by predicting failures and optimising operations in seconds.
In an era of advanced underground automation and high-tech dust suppression systems, one of the most effective solutions for a pervasive mining problem—stope dust—has emerged not from a manufacturer, but from a loader operator’s workshop.
