Showcasing Technology and Autonomy Leadership at MINEXCHANGE 2023

By Caterpillar | Posted April 20, 2023

The Caterpillar Experience

The sold-out MINEXCHANGE exhibit hall featured over 800 booths presented by nearly 600 companies, from providers like Caterpillar to some of the world’s largest mining companies.

While the expo space wasn’t large enough to display actual mining machines, the joint Caterpillar and Wagner Equipment booth focused on some of the company’s biggest differentiators: technology and autonomy.

Caterpillar commits significant Research & Development funding to innovation. The booth was staffed by subject matter experts eager to discuss how these advanced solutions help mining companies more safely, sustainably and economically extract the minerals our world needs.

Another focus of the booth was showcasing the diverse growth opportunities — including a number of high-tech positions — that are available at Caterpillar. On-site team members were proud to share information on their own career journeys as well as discuss specific opportunities that are currently available.

A machine simulator provided by Wagner Equipment allowed visitors to experience what it’s like to operate a Cat dozer. Simulators are an important tool used to build operator skills before they train on actual machines.

“Caterpillar and Cat dealers support the mining industry together, so it makes sense that we presented our message to the industry in the same space,” said Newhouse. “Cat dealers are an important differentiator for Caterpillar. We accomplish more together than we ever could alone.”
 

Technical Sessions

One of the things that makes MINEXCHANGE different from other mining shows is the focus on education and information beyond the iron. More than 620 presentations and papers were submitted for consideration and 116 were presented during the event.

Topics ranged from specific operational activities such as improving stockpile capacity and controlling dust to broad industry issues like addressing a skills crisis, implementing autonomous haulage and reducing carbon footprint.

Seven Caterpillar employees were selected to share their expertise in these technical sessions. Some presentations were machine- and operations-focused, while others centered on people and processes.

Sarah Loomis, worldwide mining technology product support and worldwide autonomous operations manager within Cat MineStar™ Solutions, Canada mining region manager, presented “Attracting Diverse Talent to the Mining Industry,” sharing her insights on this critical industry topic. Loomis has been focused on the mining industry for the majority of her nearly 20 years at Caterpillar.

“We really struggle with attracting diverse talent to the mining workplace,” said Loomis. “At the same time, we’re facing a skills crisis — which makes attracting new people, particularly women, even more important. As a result, we continue to set aggressive and transparent targets for gender diversity.”

A gender-diverse workforce does more than simply fill a skills gap, however. “Studies show that a diverse workforce is higher performing and highly engaged — which translates to better overall performance,” she said.

Caterpillar has a number of initiatives in place to attract more diverse and mid-career employees, as well as to support those the company already employs.

Caterpillar’s Robert Riggle is one of those who supports these diversity efforts. He also presented at MINEXCHANGE, sharing his insights from a 45-year career in an industry that has been predominantly male for the majority of those years.

“When I began working in mining, there weren’t a lot of women working within the industry,” Riggle said. “But today, more and more women are entering the field in various roles, and they need allies — people like me who understand the challenges they face in a male-dominated world and who are willing to stand up and help them not only overcome these challenges but also thrive in their careers.”

Riggle is a mine site performance consultant who built his expertise working in several mining operations before joining Caterpillar. In addition to presenting his thoughts on building a more inclusive mining industry, he also had an opportunity to share his specific expertise on electric rope shovel operations.

Another Caterpillar expert, Julius Fernandez, was selected to present on the topic of autonomous mining. A MineStar Solutions application specialist, Fernandez discussed the challenges mine sites face when implementing autonomous haulage — in particular the new procedures, infrastructure and roles and responsibilities that are required with a change of this magnitude.

Fernandez said it is critical that sites appropriately manage the change associated with the implementation of any new technology. Fortunately for Caterpillar customers, the company has autonomous specialists on each site to optimize the operation and assist with comprehensive change management.

A Caterpillar change management expert also presented at MINEXCHANGE. Technology Change Enablement Manager Brett Haskins presented “Aligning your People, Processes and Technology.” As a change management expert and consultant, Haskins has seen firsthand the impact that disruptive technologies can have an operation and how important it is to manage that impact to ensure mines are able to get the most value from their investment in technology solutions like autonomy.

“Change is inevitable,” said Haskins. “And while many companies recognize it, most struggle to adapt. They see the benefits that technology can bring, but don’t always understand what it will take to realize those benefits.”

Haskins said the first step is to recognize the impact these changes will have on people, understanding that how they respond will have a direct impact on the success of any new technology implementation.

“Engaging change management early promotes a seamless implementation of new technology by supporting the people along the journey with knowledge, skills and confidence to embrace the new normal,” Haskins said. “At Caterpillar, we’re committed to helping our customers realize the long-term sustainable value of technology by helping them connect people, technology and culture.”

Other Caterpillar presenters included:

• Cat rotary drills product expert Gregory Scott, who discussed the basics of autonomous drilling, explaining that human monitoring and interaction are still required to ensure drilling performance.
• Samantha Melchiori, products and operations manager for mining asset health, who discussed how technology can help mine sites better manage the health of their machines, reducing unplanned downtime and lowering overall operating expenses.
• Product performance consultant John Hoffman, who shared information on mining equipment performance metrics, and how they can offer insight into application severity, operating practices and contract financial health.