Efficiency
Henry Dillon, Global Customer Success Manager - Geoscience at Maptek, used his time on stage at APCOM2025 in Perth to challenge one of the industry’s most entrenched habits - treating resource models as static snapshots.
Tailings monitoring is a lot like health care - when it’s reactive, it can cost you dearly, but when it’s proactive, structured and consistent, it becomes a powerful tool for preventing failure, demonstrating stewardship, and building long-term confidence in your facility.
In a sector where “take-or-pay” contracts have long dictated how miners move their commodities, one new entrant is promising a more flexible model that puts the needs of producers first.
A cloud-hosted machine learning model, linked securely to a plant control system, has helped eliminate costly surging in dense medium cyclones - and in one case, safeguarded millions in weekly coal revenue.
AI can transform mining operations, but as Dr Penny Stewart warns, its real value will only be unlocked if the technology is transparent, tested and trusted.
If you think tailings facility monitoring is just about choosing between drones, LiDAR, or satellites, think again – the real power lies in combining them.
In the high-stakes world of tailings storage facility (TSF) construction, ensuring conformance to design and safety standards is a non-negotiable part of the job.
From the outside, the conversation around digital mining often gets framed in broad terms - automation, Information of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI) but for those working underground or in control rooms, the real question is more practical: how do these tools actually solve the daily challenges?
For Stewart Johnston, Account Manager - Mine Electrification and Automation at ABB Australia, the key lies in making information usable, timely, and connected across the mining value chain.
In an industry where safety is non-negotiable and downtime is costly, one Western Australian firm is taking a precision approach to mine maintenance.
In open-pit mining, some of the biggest productivity gains can come not from buying more trucks, but from loading the ones you have with greater precision.
