Remote Mining poses challenges for Australian Airlines
There’s a shift underway in the mining industry that will likely catch Australian airlines out if they aren’t paying attention – the shift toward ‘remote’ mining. Remote mining is being pushed by the automation ability across all aspects of current mining technology, which at the basic level, means that fewer humans are needed on site in mines. And that suggests a major challenge for airline companies of all sizes, who’ve come to rely on the FIFO (fly in and fly out) model of human capability delivery to mines across Australia. The technology advancements are across almost all aspects of mining operations with perhaps just one area (maintenance) still likely to need onsite human capabilities.
The non human automatic technology advances are quite stunning in their scope. Right now technolgy for remote explosives placement and detonation; extraction (digging or shovelling); loading and transportation are all on the cards or well down the patrh to development. What that means is that there’s far less requirement for truck drivers, load operators or explosive expertise in the human form.
Instead, and in much the same way as an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is controlled from some far distant shore using satellite and where needed canera technology, we can expect the mine of the future to be remote and unmanned. And if you don’t need people, you don’t need airlines which means the highly profitable regional routes that have developed over the past seven years suddenly become redundant. Planning by airlines must consider the impact of a profit stream evaporating as quickly as a pool of water in the Pilbara sunshine.
The challenge also begins to impact on the property speculators who’ve been snapping up shacks and homes in mining towns in the idea of obtaining a quick turnaround – without the onsite employees, the remote and regional housing bubble also pops, only with a bit more of a loud BANG.
The remote off site mining control starts to lower the impact of FIFO on local towns and economies where locals can’t afford to live in their own houses and food prices and other commodities spike in response to profit opportuniuties being captured by local businesses. The automated mining approach does suggest some other benefits to the Australian economy however – all those plumbing, bricklaying, electrical and other trade apprentices who left low paying entry roles will have to give up driving their mining trucks and go back to their earlier career paths. And that might see the delays in construction activity in both the commercial and domestic sectors begin to shrink as more capacity comes online.
In a recent article in The Age, Clive Williams of Macquarie University’s Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism suggested that athletes booked in to attend the Commonwealth games in India need to consider a terrorist attack as a potential wildcard. Whilst an interesting perspective, I’d like to suggest that a potential terrorist attack at…
Read More >If my information is correct, the 14th of February is the start of the New Year and instead of the usual flowers and chocolates, you might be wise to invest in another gift for your heart’s desire Because Feb 14 is the start of the Chinese New Year – the year of the Tiger. So…
Read More >Had any thoughts yet? I have – plenty and judging from the number of media inquiries it appears lots of other people are also curious to know what might lie ahead in the next year or next decade. I’m putting my thinking hat on so that we can consider what 2010-2019 might hold, the second…
Read More >I’m tipping that Consensus will be reached at Copenhagen this week. Alas it will be a consensus for more talking, thinking and commitments to agree to a proposal to set a time for a discussion around more concrete targets. In otherwords, a commitment to not commit. The politicians waver whilst our planet is being poisoned.…
Read More >The cycle of consumption rears its head as it has done for quite some time. Consumption is neither good, nor bad, it ‘just is’ and right now the majority of media exposed potential consumers are being lured, enticed and occasionally conned into parting with their hard earned money to satisfy needs and whims. Some consumers…
Read More >Our son has just celebrated his fifth birthday and although we don’t make a huge fuss about milestones (the kids get a party every second year), there’s no doubt that he is learning about desired future outcomes and goals. I doubt he is different from most kids in his ability to spot something and declare…
Read More >Here’s a little something I’d like you to think about. Are you really who you say you are? And, how do I know that I can trust you? Identity Theft is one of the most debilitating crimes a person can suffer for it strips away the very core of your own belief system and that…
Read More >‘World – we have a problem’ (apologies to astronaut James Lovell). We are killing ourselves with food and it’s happening at both ends of the continuum – millions starve each day whilst a gluttony caused obesity epidemic is killing others off in different ways. We have a growing global population requiring sustenance, whilst Climate Change…
Read More >Anyone looking at the final rainfall figures for Melbourne’s rainfall might be heartened by the news that the final result was about 10mm above the September average. Compared to last year’s disastrous result where we had about 12mm, it was over 50mm better. But I wonder if the final result, and the current ‘average’ isn’t…
Read More >Strategic Futurist Marcus Barber discussed the future of travel at the ANTOR session at The American Club in Sydney, NSW on the 24th of September. Along with Angela Smith from Roy Morgan Research, Martin Kelly from Travel Trends and Gail Rehbein from the Australian Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility Marcus proposed some of the emerging…
Read More >