The global smart mining solution market was valued at ~ US$ 8.3 Bn in 2018, and is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 11.5% during the forecast period.
The hardware solution segment accounted for a prominent share of the smart mining solution market in 2018, due to the rising concerns about increasing operating costs, process optimization, environmental regulations, and risk management in the mining industry. Investments in smart mining solutions are increasing at a substantial pace.
The excavators automated equipment segment held a prominent share of the smart mining solution market in 2018. The integration of Internet of Things (IOT) in equipment and processes as part of smart mining solutions leads to highly efficient operations.
Asia Pacific is anticipated to be one of the high growth regions of the smart mining solution market in the near future, due to the rise in mining activities in the region and increase in investments in smart mining solutions by mining companies.
Key Drivers of the Smart Mining Solution Market
Increase in process optimization and reduction in operating costs are factors expected to drive the global smart mining solution market during the forecast period. The mining industry is facing high operating cost (OPEX) issues. This is adversely affecting the performance of the industry. The industry is implementing smart mining solutions in order to save on its OPEX through real-time data acquisition, data analysis, and data modelling. This enables fast decision-making and increases process optimization.
Rapid industrialization and growth in urbanization are exerting pressure on natural resources such as metal and minerals. Consequently, the mining industry has been constantly striving to increase its productivity in order to meet the rising demand for metals and minerals. Expansion of manufacturing, construction, shipbuilding, and other industries, especially in developing economies such as China, India, and Brazil, is boosting the demand for metals such as copper, iron, aluminum, zinc, and lead.
Increase in the demand for metals is compelling the mining industry to enhance its productivity. The industry is increasingly opting for automation to increase its output and overall productivity. Thus, rise in the demand for metal and minerals plays an important role in the adoption and growth of smart mining solutions.
Asia Pacific Leading the Global Smart Mining Solution Market
Asia Pacific was a key region of the global smart mining solution market in 2018. It dominated the global smart mining solution market in 2018, primarily due to the increase in mining activities in the region, especially in countries such as China, Australia, and India, where mining is one of the major industries. The smart mining solution market in the region is projected to expand at a substantial pace during the forecast period.
Growth in industrialization and infrastructure development in Asia Pacific, especially in developing economies such as China and India, is driving the demand for metal and minerals. This is encouraging mining players in the region to focus on automation and smart mining solutions to increase their productivity.
Global Smart Mining Solution Market – Key Developments
In March 2019, Black Rock mine, a part of South Africa-based Assmang Proprietary Limited, chose Mobilaris Mining Intelligence (MMI) to support its business improvement processes. MMI is a patented product of Epiroc AB. The product would provide 3-D information model, which would represent the position of machines, vehicles, and personnel. It would also provide further data on shift planning, machines, and production.
In March 2019, RCT announced that it would provide its autonomous technology to the Lubambe underground copper mine in Zambia. The Lubambe mine is 80% owned by EMR Capital Resources, while 20% is held by ZCCM Investments Holdings. According to the agreement, RCT will commission its ControlMaster Guidance automation system on three Epiroc ST18 and two Sandvik LH517 underground loaders at the mine. The system lets operators remotely control the machine. It also automatically steers the machine to avoid collisions, enabling higher speeds, eliminating damage, and improving productivity.
In November 2018, Sandvik AB announced that it had partnered with Newtrax Technologies Inc., a provider of wireless Internet of Things (IoT) for the underground metal mining industry, in order to deliver enhanced mining safety, efficiency, and productivity to underground metal mines through digitization. Sandvik’s OptiMine digital platform is expected to seamlessly integrate with Newtrax’s system of wireless IoT to provide all relevant data in one source, delivering both, real-time and predictive insights to improve operations.
In July 2018, Caterpillar and Newmont Mining Corporation entered into a collaboration agreement to improve automation technology for underground hard rock mining vehicles. The collaboration agreement aims to improve the existing technology and accelerate the validation and deployment of new features.
Global Smart Mining Solution Market – Competition Landscape
The global smart mining solution market is dominated by multinational players operating across the globe.
High capital investments and large number of technological collaborations are some of the key features of the smart mining solution market. Players collaborate to develop new technologies and enhance existing ones in order to maintain their competitiveness in the smart mining solution market.
Prominent players operating in the smart mining solution market include Atlas Copco, Caterpillar Inc., Komatsu Ltd., Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd, Rockwell Automation, Inc., SAP SE, IntelliSense.io, Alastri, Symboticware Inc., Stone Three Mining Pty. Ltd., Hexagon AB, Trimble Navigation Limited, ABB Ltd., Joy Global Inc., Sandvik AB., Cisco Systems, Inc., and Alcatel-Lucent.
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PratikshaM Joined: July 2nd, 2019 Articles Posted: 207
