INNOVATION

"This could change some of the organisational fundamentals of the mining sector"

Gold Fields' Rosh Bardien on disruptive solutions

Staff reporter
Gold Fields’ Agnew gold mine in Western Australia

Gold Fields’ Agnew gold mine in Western Australia

She told Mining Journal's Global Leadership Report advances in innovation and technology provided an opportunity for gold miners to digitise and automate operations, which would help increase levels of efficiency, reduce costs, improve safety and further mitigate environmental impacts.

"The adoption of innovative practices at scale will enable the leveraging of new and emerging technologies for increased synergy across the entire mining value chain," she said.

"This could change some of the organisational fundamentals of the mining sector."

Bardien gave the example of 3D visualisation tools assisting companies with real-time tracking of people and equipment, to ensure safer operational excellence.

"Digital technologies are clearly changing the way of work in three areas: the type of work that people will do in the future; the structure and practices that enable people to create value in the future; and the future skills that will be required to work in an agile environment," she said.

"Leadership will be key to navigate through the digital transformation and disruptive technologies to ultimately harness value creation for all stakeholders."

Gold Fields reported just over 2 million ounces of attributable gold production in 2018.

Its Gruyere joint venture gold mine in Western Australia started commercial production this month, giving the company eight operating mines in Australia, Ghana, Peru and South Africa.

This article was based on the answer to one of four questions Gold Fields executive VP people and organisational effectiveness Rosh Bardien was asked as part of her interview for Mining Journal's Global Leadership Report. The report focus this year was ‘The Workplace of the Future'. The research included open interviews with some 20 major mining executives and a survey of more than 500 industry professionals. The results will be released in late August.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Journal Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Journal Intelligence team.

editions

ESG Mining Company Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Mining Company Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Global Leadership Report 2024: Net Zero

Gain insights into decarbonisation trends and strategies from interviews with 20+ top mining executives and experts plus an industrywide survey.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Project Pipeline Handbook 2024

View our 50 top mining projects, handpicked using a unique, objective selection process from a database of 450+ global assets.

editions

Mining Journal Intelligence Investor Sentiment Report 2024

Survey revealing the plans, priorities, and preferences of 120+ mining investors and their expectations for the sector in 2024.