EXPLOSIVES AND BLASTING
customer priorities: safer pit walls, steadier plant feed and lower energy consumption per tonne.“ Considering the data feeding these AI systems is verified and trustworthy, the insights are actionable across the entire operation, from blast design to final product,” he explained.
Hariparsad reported on the deployment of XPLOSMART across a growing number of customer sites globally as part of BME’ s Blast Alliance™ digital ecosystem.
“ Integrated with BLASTMAP™, XPLOLOG™ and AXXIS™, the platform provides a fully data-driven, end-to-end blasting solution,” he said.“ This allows our customers to leverage advanced capabilities, which include dronebased photogrammetry, fragmentation analysis, rock mass characterisation and drill analytics to gain deeper operational insights into their operations and has resulted in improved fragmentation, enhanced downstream processing performance, reduced risk, and stronger ESG outcomes through more predictable and controlled blasting.”
He said the partnership with Strayos reflects BME’ s strategy to combine the company’ s extensive blasting expertise with leading AI and analytics capabilities.
“ This‘ best of both’ approach accelerates innovation and enhances the overall customer value proposition,” he explained.“ By leveraging external technology partnerships, BME is able to rapidly expand its digital capabilities, reduce time-to-market and deliver scalable, future-fit solutions for global mining customers.”
These collaborations are structured to generate long-term value, enabling new revenue streams while strengthening BME’ s position as a technology-enabled solutions provider, delivering value today, according to Hariparsad.
BME has several other partnerships with Hypex Bio, Dyna Energetics and other collaborators.
He concluded:“ AI-enabled platforms such as XPLOSMART are reshaping drilling and blasting by automating analysis, enabling predictive modelling and integrating data across the mining value chain. This drives improved productivity through better fragmentation, higher throughput and reduced energy consumption, while also supporting sustainability objectives such as reduced waste, lower emissions and improved safety outcomes.
“ All of this contributes to a better, dataempowered mining world.”
Site-specific explosives
Speaking of partnerships, Thiess has extended its joint operating agreement with global explosives leader AECI through to December 2030, supporting blasting services and product supply at Lake
Vermont, Olive Downs Complex and Mount Pleasant in Australia, and reinforcing a long-standing partnership built on safety, reliability and operational excellence, it said.
The partnership combines AECI’ s expertise in explosives and initiating systems with Thiess’ large-scale operational capability to improve blast performance, strengthen safety systems and manage complex ground conditions. These capabilities also enable greater scheduling
The XPLOSMART AI-enabled blasting optimisation system allows, among other things, to track face profiling with 3D photogrammetry tools from other vendors
processes in the drill and blast process, while showcasing the ability of BlastIQ™ Underground to improve efficiency, transparency and decision making at mine sites.
While more than 15,000 km apart, the two underground mine sites in question shared several of the same challenges.
Chelopech mine, owned by DPM Metals, was actively searching for solutions that would allow it to manage and digitise drillflexibility while maintaining performance and reducing explosive requirements, Thiess said.
“ Thiess takes a strategic approach to supplier partnerships, working with specialist providers such as AECI to deliver tailored blasting solutions aligned to site-specific geological conditions and production requirements,” Rae O’ Brien, Thiess Group Executive – Australia East, said.“ This collaboration optimises blast design, improves predictability in blasted ground response and enables safe, consistent and efficient operations.”
Thiess has partnered with AECI at operations in Australia since 2015, building on successful collaboration in Indonesia and the subsequent global expansion of the relationship. The extended agreement will continue to deliver improved blast efficiency and fragmentation control, enhanced safety outcomes and stable supply chain continuity.
AECI’ s Executive Vice President – Mining, Stuart Miller, said:“ We’ re proud of the partnership we’ ve built with Thiess over the past 12 years. It’ s grounded in trust and a shared focus on safety, reliability and innovation, and this extension reflects the strength of the partnership and AECI’ s ongoing commitment to supporting safe, consistent and efficient mining operations.”
Digitalising drill and blast
Two recent case studies from Orica Digital Solutions have highlighted the negative impact of fragmented systems and manual and-blast activities to a hole-by-hole level of granularity and remove the reliance on paper-based recording. Even with a surfacebased digital operations hub( SMART Centre) that centralises real-time monitoring and remote control of both underground mining and processing plant activities, plus leverages 100 % underground Wi-Fi coverage, its stope blasting activity was still managed by hand.
Rosebery Mine, wholly owned and operated by MMG Limited in Tasmania, Australia, was also hindered by paperbased drill-and-blast plans, often waiting over multiple shifts to get plans up from underground. Efforts to maintain consistent performance while reconciling historical data for future optimisation were hindered by fragmented systems and manual processes. This has become an increasingly pressing problem as the mine continues to operate at depth with more detailed stope geometries and multiple mining fronts.
Sophie Clayton – Product Manager – BlastIQ Underground, Orica Digital Solutions, said BlastIQ Underground implementation is becoming increasingly typical across the industry – not just at Chelopech and Rosebery.
“ Over the past several years, we’ ve seen a significant shift from paper-based QA / QC processes to digital platforms, driven by the need for greater accuracy, traceability and real-time decision making,” she told IM.
Traditional paper-based QA / QC methods can be slow, fragmented and difficult to
International Mining | AUGUST 2026