RIYADH: Industrial technology company Hexagon has made a significant investment in King Saud University to help train the next generation of mining talent in the Middle East, according to a top official.
Speaking to Arab News on the second day of the Future Minerals Forum, which is being held in Riyadh from Jan. 14 to 16, Dave Goddard, executive vice president of mining at Hexagon, explained that the training would utilize advanced digital tools and software.
The agreement, finalized during the forum, builds on Hexagon’s ongoing collaboration with mining ventures in the region. This follows a landmark deal in 2024 with Saudi Arabian Mining Co. to launch the region’s first-of-its-kind digital mine.
The initiative also aligns with the Kingdom’s broader efforts to position mining as the third pillar of its industrial economy.
“One of the things that’s important for us is to give back to the mining community and ensure the long-term viability of the mining industry,” Goddard said. “And the only way that happens is people retire every year, and college students come into the environment as well.”
He continued: “So, what we’ve done is we’ve made a partnership with the universities in order to provide them some digital tools that the mining companies use, so that when they graduate, and they go into industry, they are already digital natives. They already have the skills and attributes necessary to enter into the digital mining realm. And so that’s what we’re really doing: investing in the future of mining by investing in the future leaders of mining.”
Goddard also elaborated on the firm’s partnership with Ma’aden.
“We have a partnership agreement with Ma’aden, our primary customer here in Saudi Arabia. And we have a partnership with them to build a digital mine, where we’re providing the tools, materials, and software to digitalize their mining operations in order for them to be an optimal miner and a world-class miner, which they currently are,” he said.
Regarding the mining process, Goddard described it as breaking down large rocks into smaller pieces to extract valuable minerals or compounds.
“You have a mine plan that has a digital representation of what that ore looks like inside the ground, and then you have a digital representation of the truck that is carrying that mineral around, and you have a digital representation of the drill that is drilling through the material,” Goddard explained.
“When you take that software and those digitalization parameters, what you’re really doing is reflecting the real world in a digital model and allowing yourself to model an optimal process to extract that real-world material in a digital manner,” he added.
He also mentioned the company’s drill assist product, which helps equipment drill 30 percent faster than a human.
“In terms of a fleet management system, we can provide the same material flow rate using 20% fewer trucks if you use our fleet management system. So, if you think about it, there’s not only the cost savings, but there’s also an energy savings because you’re using less material,” Goddard said.
“And that energy savings correlates to less impact on the environment, a lower carbon emission, and a smaller carbon footprint. So, we help our mining customers address not only their operational challenges but also their sustainability challenges as well,” he added.
Goddard further highlighted how mining influences global wealth and standards of living.
“Knowing that the world around us would not exist without mining and the natural materials that mining provides, as the wealth of the world grows and people enjoy richer lifestyles, demand for mineral resources will increase. And we want to be in the middle of that, providing the tools necessary to optimize the extraction of those resources,” he said.
He also discussed Hexagon's approach to providing digital solutions for mining operations.
“What we have are two different portfolios,” Goddard explained. “One is a planning portfolio that allows mining companies to optimize the extraction sequence in order to maximize the material that comes out of the mine. The second portfolio is our operations portfolio, which helps them optimize equipment and material movement during the actual mining operations and extraction activities.”
