HIGH PROFILE
activity is something that companies need to do
continuously. In a business that is cyclical –
mining being the most cyclical business we are in
– those companies that invest organically in R&D
during the downturn are the ones that tend to
benefit most when the upturn starts. The ones
that have their offering in good shape are the
ones that win when it gets busy. That is also
where Metso should be.
Acquisitions do play a role, but there are no
easy answers there. We made several small
acquisitions last year and we will continue with
this. New acquisitions can be related either to the
service side of the business or technology.
IM: How has climate change and sustainability
impacted the way Metso develops minerals
processing technology?
PV: There has been a tremendous movement
since the latest climate report was published last
year. Now, everyone is rightly concerned about
emissions. The mining equipment we talk about is
primarily electrically driven. Energy efficiency is
one of our focus areas. If we broaden the topic out
to water, for example, we know some of the
deposits are in difficult places where major parts
of the investment go into desalinating and
pumping the water to the mine site. So, becoming
also more water efficient is something that will be
critical for mining companies.
There are always moments that stop the
industry to think about what can be done to
prevent accidents from happening. Our deepest
sympathies go out to the ones that lost their
relatives or closest ones in the Feijão dam collapse.
It will change how mining is conducted and there
may be some technological developments which
we, as a company, can take forward.
IM: Lastly, what parallels can you draw between
the mining and airline industries?
PV: They are somewhat distant industries, but
both are fairly specialised; mining is something
people very seldom go into just like that. You can
acquaint yourself with many other jobs or
businesses by just walking around in that
environment, but you don’t end up doing that in a
mine or an aircraft. Yes, you travel in an aircraft,
but there’s much more behind the cabin you don’t
know about.
In these type of businesses, people need
special training and need to be selected – not
everyone can work in a mine and not everyone is
qualified to fly an aircraft. Both are people
businesses at the end of the day: even though the
operations may be automated – aircrafts might fly
with the autopilot and mines might be run by an
autopilot – sometimes highly-skilled human
intervention is needed.
A big part of the airline business is service. It’s
a very fast cycle service business, which provides
a good opportunity to learn about how service
works. It’s a daily routine with people spending
anything from half an hour to half a day on an
aircraft. When the flight is over you get quick
feedback. If you look at the mining business,
some of the projects take two years to sell, two
years to deliver and one year to start up. It’s a
long, long cycle. But, you either like the service or
you don’t like it.
IM: Do you have anything else to add?
PV: Just to say, on the results, I am very grateful to
our customers for, first of all, trusting us with their
business. I am also very proud of our people in all
the countries we are in – and in many
departments such as sales and service – who
have done a great job over the past year. IM
*Vauramo previously held several leading
positions such as President, Underground Hard
Rock Mining Division, President, TORO Loaders
Division and President, Drills Division, at Sandvik
AB from 1995-2007