African Mining September 2021 | Page 37

CRADLE TO GRAVE •

Mining has played a crucial role in South Africa ’ s economy for the best part of two centuries . And while it may not play as big a role as it once did , it still contributed R400-billion to GDP in 2020 and employed more than 450 000 people . But if the sector is to remain competitive at a global level , it has to evolve , particularly when it comes to embracing digital transformation .

While South Africa ’ s unique circumstances should be considered , especially when it comes to factors such as the orebody depth and labour intensity of the country ’ s mining operations , that doesn ’ t mean that mining companies should shy away from digital transformation .

The application of digital technologies , both in their current form and in future digital forms such as artificial intelligence ( AI ), machine learning ( ML ), big data analytics , and the Internet of Things ( IOT ) is increasingly pivotal to mining success . The players in the space which understand that and use these technologies as enablers are the ones most likely to thrive going forward .

Those were the overriding messages at a webinar hosted by Joburg Centre for Software Engineering ( JCSE ) at Wits University , which included speakers from mining houses , software builders that specialise in solutions for the mining industry , and Huawei .

“ When we look at mining , what people don ’ t comprehend is that the mining value chain is extremely complex ,” says Alex Fenn , head of technology and innovation at Sibanye Stillwater . “ The infrastructure varies from space to space , meaning that achieving digital transformation is far less simple than it would be in a factory , for instance .”

That does not , however , mean that it doesn ’ t hold benefits .

“ Digital transformation is a key enabler to value delivery that is both incredibly specific as well as all encompassing ,” he adds . “ The aggregated benefits across the value chain are huge . That is why we are working towards becoming a digital first organisation that creates cultures , structures , and processes which support digital transformation .”

Practically , Pierre Swart , CEO of mining software specialist Accutrak , agrees with this whole-view approach to digital transformation .

He does , however , believe that optimising data is crucial to any digital transformation initiative .

“ Everything , for me , boils down to the optimisation of data at the end of the day ,” he says . “ If we have accurate data , we can analyse it to identify patterns , or when patterns break .

We can create business improvement tools and start to use predictive algorithms that can tell us that something will likely happen before it does .”

That kind of data optimisation cannot , however , occur without the necessary levels of connectivity .

Huawei

Gys Malan , solutions manager at Huawei .

As Gys Malan , Solutions Manager at Huawei , points out : “ What one absolutely cannot miss when it comes to thinking about a digitally-transformed mine is connectivity .”

Unfortunately , he adds , this is something that sometimes get neglected when mines try to embrace digital transformation . Here , Malan says , it is important to understand that a typical mine may need a combination of several different technologies to meet its connectivity needs . “ It ’ s important that you have different options for transporting the data from sensors embedded in different parts of the mine to upper layer platforms ,” he says .

He also points out that it is important to be able to integrate the data from different platforms to create a central “ data lake ”, which allows for easier central decision making .

“ At Huawei we assist our mining clients to achieve these objectives with a variety of products and services ,” he says . “ When it comes to connectivity , for instance , our 5G and private LTE offerings allow for large amounts of data to be transmitted at very low latencies .”

While these forms of connectivity are important , Malan still believes that Wi-Fi and Fibre have important roles to play in mines across the globe . Whether it ’ s connectivity or any other aspect of digital transformation , he cautions against anyone pegging their bets on any single technology .

“ We have to diversify the communication technologies that we use based on environmental factors and application requirements ,” he says .

If mining is to continue playing an important role in South Africa , then it must digitally transform . As the webinar speakers demonstrated , however , that ’ s not just about adopting new technologies but being selective and using them in the way that best suits a particular mine ’ s needs and aspirations .