MINING AUTOMATION MARKET ANALYSIS

Mining Automation MarketSize and Trends

The market for global mining automation is expected to witness significant growth due to increased need for safety, higher productivity, and increased energy efficiency requirement and environmental sustainability. According to a Fatal Accidents in the Mining Industry Report, by Government of Western Australia Department of Mines and Petroleum, there were 52 fatal accidents over the period (2000–2012), in which 17 were underground and 35 were on the surface. Mining was primarily considered as a high risk job due to exposure to harmful vapors, flammable gases, unbalanced materials, susceptibility to fires and roof collapses, leading to serious threat to human lives. Most conventional systems are not adept at detecting the presence of the target material that needs to be mined and also any such hazards that might be lurking beneath the surface, without human intervention. Mining automation technology helps in detection of dangerous areas in underground mining by sending drones or robots, which collects samples and make a model for best outcome before attempting. Thus mining automation reduce unnecessary expenditure, avoid waste, incorporate operation and faster production rate. Deployment of automation aids in improving safety in mines as it requires less human intervention. For example, Penguin System is robotic system used for determining exact path to follow within a rock mass in real-time, with the help of synthetic rocks, for ensuring safety of workers and replacing manual labor. Automated underground vehicles based on laser technology, can be utilized to monitor leg pressure and analyze performance. Thus, mining automation enhances individual safety of mine workers.