Modelling All Possibilities
GEOVIA CEO, Mauro DelleMonache, puts the recent M&A glut in the software space down to the entry of a set of “nimble” organizations with shorter “ideation cycles” able to quickly bring their offerings to the market. This has stimulated an interest in M&A, he claims, bringing with it new-found dynamism the whole sector is benefitting from.
Alongside this, there has been a significant change on the demand side of the mining software business. “The mining sector has traditionally been seen as risk averse, with many of the companies perceived to be in the ‘swim lane’ of technology developed specifically for mining,” he told. “What I have seen over the last several years is mining organizations starting to implement technology, thought processes and capabilities from adjacent industries.”
GEOVIA, Dassault Systèmes’ natural resources and urban planning division, is benefitting greatly from this, bringing its modelling and simulation design and virtual twin learnings in industries such as aviation and manufacturing to the mining space.
“We are finding there is some openness from the mining companies to start looking at those technologies and seeing how they can apply in mining,” DelleMonache said. “For us, that is of great benefit as we have this expansive tool kit. “It is now a matter of continuing these dialogues with companies, showing them how these solutions could be of benefit to their organization and working together to realize the value of applying them.
”These dialogues are increasing in regularity around mining company ESG evaluations, with GEOVIA and Dassault Systèmes offering input for educated decision-making on considerations such as resource evaluation, mine design, mine production, and more. “Our brand has a promise of modelling the sustainable planet,” DelleMonache said. “We realize that, in the mining context, the more criteria you can include, the more value we can bring to these models. ”This has seen the company break down the silo mentality often observed within mining and create a collaboration platform for all aspects of a mining operation – from exploration and mining to processing and closure.
“If you were to break down those barriers, you create visibility of the entire system and the flow from exploration to rehabilitation,”DelleMonache said. “The only way you can do that is to get your organization to collaborate – externally as well as internally. The challenges in adopting a piece of software suggests it is likely to fail, yet, if you adopt a spirit of collaboration around a defined solution, the likelihood of value generation is that much greater. “That is something we are advocating for in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.”
This platform connects people, ideas, data, and solutions in a collaborative environment, offering a “single version of the truth” to anchor outcome-based processes and capture all activities in one place, according to the company. The platform is aiding collaboration within the context of the Electric Mine Consortium, which includes 23 members made up of mining companies, vendors, and service suppliers, all looking to accelerate progress towards the fully electrified zero CO2 and zero particulates mine.
GEOVIA is providing access to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform for the Electric Mine Design working group, working with several members to model and simulate what this future-proofed mine could look like. DelleMonache says this type of collaboration is representative of the right approach towards decarbonisation and electrification. The findings will allow the wider industry to obtain a glimpse into how they could implement such changes at their own mine sites. He explained: “The consortium allows you to generate these small-scale references with several industry partners to provide the wider industry with something tangible.”DelleMonache is confident the company’s 3DEXPERIENCE platform will become even more sought after with mining companies seeking to quantify and potentially improve on their Scope1, 2 and 3 emissions in line with climate goals.
“The only way to capture a lot of that –especially with Scope 3 emissions – is through collaboration and connecting your suppliers, customers, and contractors,” DelleMonache said. “When I look at what we have to offer as GEOVIA, we have some great virtualization technologies, but, as Dassault Systèmes, we have an even bigger platform that allows these organizations to digitally connect, share information, and highlight where the big opportunities are to focus on and make a sizeable impact on sustainability metrics.”
Such modelling and simulation also benefit the ‘S’ and ‘G’ of the ESG dynamic, allowing miners to display how they will meet regulatory requirements with their ongoing development plans while retaining their social license to operate with all relevant stakeholders. “We are trying to show not just government bodies, but the broader community in which an operation is located, that the plan for a mine is in everyone’s interest,” DelleMonache said.
“We will also have a community portal within this platform so all parties can feel involved and listened to in terms of understanding their challenges. “This all comes together to show what the mine will look like, how it is going to operate, and the ESG impact of those operations. Bringing all those processes together is very valuable.”
GEOVIA CEO Mauro DelleMonache, talks to International Mining Magazine about 'modelling on possibilities' with GEOVIA and Dassault Systèmes offerings.