Newcrest Mining has signed a collaboration agreement with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading global IT services, consulting and business solutions organisation, to create an Innovation and Digital Operations Centre (IDOC) in India.
The IDOC will leverage TCS’ global research and innovation networks to explore opportunities to improve activities across Newcrest’s business including ore processing, techniques for predictive targeting, and leveraging learning from other industries, the gold miner said.
Newcrest will work with TCS experts in engineering, research and development, data analytics and IoT, and process control. The collaboration with TCS will build on Newcrest’s existing digital platforms. This has included numerous big data initiatives including a collaboration with Petra Data Sciences at the Lihir gold mine’s mill in Papua New Guinea.
Sandeep Biswas (pictured), Newcrest Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We want to enhance and accelerate the way we use automation and artificial intelligence across our business to improve our returns to shareholders. I welcome our new partnership with TCS. It presents an exciting opportunity to leverage TCS’ and Newcrest’s strong track record of innovation.”
Biswas added that TCS would help the company fast track its transformation towards its 2020 aspirations. This includes, by 2020:
- Zero fatalities and industry-leading total recordable injury frequency rate;
- First quartile organisational health;
- First quartile group all-in sustaining costs per ounce;
- Five “breakthrough successes” in its technology and innovation division by 2020, and;
- Exposure to five Tier One orebodies (operations, development projects or equity investments).
Debashis Ghosh, President – Energy & Resources at TCS, said: “We are excited to embark upon this innovation and transformation journey with Newcrest, strongly backed by our Business 4.0 framework.
“Our independent agile method provides the foundation for the strategic collaboration with Newcrest, for the design and adoption of innovative digital mining solutions to enable Newcrest’s aspirations.”