Balancing Efficiency & Employment With Automated Mining Systems
Mining automation is bringing challenges and opportunities.
The mining industry is increasingly adopting the use of automated processes. The industry is in a state of transition from the current methodology to a future where many of the roles currently played by humans will be superseded by automated systems. In this drive towards automation, there are numerous values to be capitalised upon and there are hurdles to be managed. How these factors are implemented into mining automation has the capacity to transform the industry into the future.
“Ultimate automation will make our modern industry as primitive and outdated as the stone age man looks to us today.” — Albert Einstein
As the technology for mining develops there are several key impacts the process will bring to mining operations. Automation is set to improve profit margins in the mining industry by delivering enhanced efficiencies and reducing the risk of accidents. Industrial giant CAT has developed automated systems called Command for Hauling which enables vehicles to autonomously move into position, haul payloads to dump points and report for maintenance. Although the initial investment in automated vehicles is higher than traditional models, these systems promise to be cost-effective over time through their improved efficiencies and reduced employees.
The development in mining machinery over the previous decades has been focused upon increasing the volume of material that can be extracted. However, this next generation of haulage vehicles improves upon the previous generation by enhancing efficiency and safety. Implementation of highspeed communication on mining sites enables faster data transmission and the imminent emergence of 5G networks will improve the efficiencies of automated networks. The ability to track and trace onsite assets will reduce the risk of accidents and environmental damage.
Although there are issues with automation impacting employment practices in the mining industry it is also opening the market to smaller players. The large traditional mining operations are slow to change and adopt new technologies. This is creating opportunities for smaller agile miners to enter the space. Global natural resources are dwindling and becoming harder to mine. Some existing resources have been identified yet represent significant technical challenges to extract. Some industry commentators are identifying mining automation as the solution to maximise resource stocks in the coming years.
Automation may also play a critical role in meeting consumer demand for ethically mined resources. The technological advantages emerging in mining along with blockchain protocols will soon be able to track commodities along the supply chain. Such advancements would mean that consumer pressure through informed purchases would drive profits towards miners who implement ethical practices that are facilitated by automation.
There are significant advantages to be gained from automated mining technologies but these come hand-in-hand with economic and social hurdles.
As mining becomes increasingly automated we will see employment opportunities fall in what has traditionally been a primary employment sector. Australia exports over $2 billion worth of mining services and equipment annually and employs 233,000 people or almost 1.9% of Australia’s workforce. As automation becomes increasingly widespread this will inevitably reduce the industry’s reliance on human resources. The cost of employing miners in developed countries is a factor which will drive the adoption of automated mining technologies. It will be in developed countries where the employment impacts of mining automation will be felt first. The trend seems unstoppable but will inevitably require a managed transition. Tensions over automation and unemployment are likely to be similar to those experienced in the transport industry as driverless vehicles erode employment opportunities.
Interestingly it is one of the oldest forms of mining which may escape the trend of automation. Artisanal mining for gold has taken place on the banks of African rivers for thousands of years. These mineral deposits support seasonal mining from farmers and often have poor safety records due to lack of regulation. Artisanal mining operations are carried out in locations that don’t have enough deposits to justify the investment by mining companies who could afford to bring automation to the site. It is for this reason that artisanal mining may be the last mining sector to be impacted by automation and will continue with the tools and processes that have lasted for millennia.
The automation of mining operations will improve the environmental impact, encourage ethical mining and make it safer. It relies on the new wave of technologically advanced vehicles and systems which are now being developed and implemented. In almost every sense mining automation is beneficial except for the impact it will have on employment within the industry. Mining is about to enter a state of flux and should take responsibility for assisting workforces to transition into other employment. If the industry is not proactive there will certainly be social issues to contend with that mirror those in other automated industries.
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