Challenges and Innovations in Open-Pit and Underground Mining Operations

Driven by the energy transition and the soaring price of gold, the current mining context is facing unprecedented demand for future open-pit projects. In this environment, the industry is striving to integrate a wide range of new technologies to increase operational performance while reducing its environmental footprint. However, in this race toward digital innovation, it can be revealing—and sometimes more impactful—to return to the basics, to re-evaluate the fundamental principles of mine design, and to identify underestimated efficiency levers.

With this in mind, BVER Solutions is introducing a strategic innovation: a high-capacity berm specifically designed for open-pit production ramps. By significantly reducing the overall width of ramps without compromising safety, this solution paves the way for concrete and measurable economic gains, while transforming a grey area of operational safety into a controlled solution.

Through this presentation, BVER Solutions will show you why we are convinced that this return to fundamental design principles will quickly become the new standard. We will demonstrate how this innovation unlocks the potential of an open-pit project by turning operational expenses into an economic lever. In the era of smart, electrified, and automated mines, you will see that the benefits of our solution will not only collectively reduce our environmental impacts, but also actively contribute to the sustainability of our resources.

The mining industry faces ongoing challenges in optimizing operations, improving safety, and reducing its environmental footprint. Optics and photonics—the science of light—offer a wide range of innovative solutions to address these challenges. This presentation will explore various advanced imaging modalities, such as fluorescence, hyperspectral imaging, short-wave infrared (SWIR), and polarization imaging, which enable rapid and accurate identification of different elements of interest.

Through concrete examples, we will demonstrate how these technologies can be applied for mineral detection and identification, real-time ore sorting, and process automation. The goal is to spark discussion and generate interest among mining industry stakeholders in the potential of optics and photonics, thus paving the way for future collaborations and the integration of these cutting-edge technologies into their operations.

Controlling noise and vibrations remains a major challenge for mines, especially near communities. However, the advent of smart sensors, real-time cloud-based platforms, and advanced automated analysis algorithms is changing the landscape. New generations of instrumentation and software are automating data collection and processing, minimizing post-processing tasks and accelerating decision-making. At the same time, targeted engineering solutions are directly reducing the noise footprint of critical equipment.

This presentation will provide an overview of recent breakthroughs in acoustic and vibration monitoring: from fully automated systems to new generations of acoustic treatments. Using field case studies, we will demonstrate how these innovations help ensure compliance with regulatory limits and promote social acceptability, optimize operational planning, and reduce costs associated with threshold exceedances. The conference will provide participants with concrete avenues for integrating these solutions into their own mining sites.