Mining operations could benefit greatly from data-driven decision making
By implementing IoT programs, Skage Hem, vice president for mining R&D, FLSmidth, believes that mining operations will realize an immediate 5% to 10% cost reduction, and engineers and plant managers will be able to do their jobs more effectively.
In fact, experts say that only 5% of operations have implemented and harnessed the benefits of IoT. So, if a mine or plant has not yet connected to the data-driven world of decision making, don’t stress, it’s not alone. From a glass-half-full perspective, it means that there is considerable room for improvement.
A great amount of financial benefit could be harvested without much effort. The industry is constantly reminded that the sensors, equipment and software to implement IoT continue to increase. There is, however, more to the program than simply installing and collecting data from a few more sensors.
Implementing IoT is both a technological feat and an organizational effort. If an organization has not been trained or does not see the value in data-driven decision making, then the effort will likely be wasted. The first steps could be as simple as monitoring a problematic bearing and knowing when it must be replaced. Seeing the benefits of avoiding catastrophic failure in a fresh light, often the programs take off and the organizations grow with them.
