Better Insights into Mining with IoT and Analytics

By CIOReview | Thursday, June 7, 2018

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The mining industry has frequently found itself at the tip of the sword that is innovation, and it is now entering a new era—that of artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), big data analytics and machine learning. This digital transformation that is in the process of taking place will be the key to solve a number of challenges that have dogged the mining industry for years.

By embedding multiple sensors in the physical objects present in the mines, it will give the organizations vast amounts of data that can be analyzed, as well as being used for communication among the machinery. This will enable more accurate data of the rock face than ever before. Using these advanced analytics, complex tasks like that of geological modeling and scheduling can be done proactively, reducing the need for machinery downtime for maintenance reasons—boosting productivity in the mine while also maximizing the utilization of equipment through smarter fleet management systems. All this data can also be used to track the health parameters of the miners while inside the mine. It can be used to identify harsh working conditions, and in the event of an approaching hazard, they can be pulled out preemptively. This will save lives of the miners as well as greatly improve working conditions and bring down costs. The mining industry has always been known for its uncertainty, these tools and technologies will help take some of the guesswork out of the equation.