BUMA to tap into tech startup environment with Plug and Play platform

Posted by Daniel Gleeson on 8th October 2019

PT Bukit Makmur Mandiri Utama (BUMA), one of Indonesia’s top mining contractors, has partnered with Plug and Play’s global open innovation platform to engage with startups focusing on predictive maintenance, safety and health technology.

Ronald Sutardja, BUMA CEO, said the company was looking to engage with such companies to build “breaking ground technologies” in mining services.

“Technology has always been part of our DNA and we’re striving to be the most technologically advanced company in the business,” he said.

BUMA, currently the second largest independent coal mining contractor in Indonesia according to parent company PT Delta Dunia Makmur Tbk. It carries out a comprehensive scope of work from overburden removal, coal mining, coal hauling as well as reclamation and land rehabilitation.

Plug and Play said: “Having technology in place is not merely about improving worker productivity or acquiring more accurate data, but it is also about improving safety conditions for BUMA’s employees and improving employee’s health.”

Eko Prihadi, Director at BUMA, recently said at Plug and Play’s APAC Summit in Singapore in May 2019: “Safety is one of our biggest priorities in BUMA. As we currently employ more than 13,000 people, we are continuously on the lookout for the latest technologies to improve the well-being and working conditions of our employees.

“As a highly progressive company, innovation is the key to our operations. This partnership will give us access to the global startup ecosystem and allow us to work with the latest cutting-edge technologies to develop innovative business strategies in key focus areas.”

Plug and Play’s Supply Chain platform is, according to the company, the world’s leading innovation consortium with strategic locations in Silicon Valley, Hamburg, Shanghai, and Singapore. Focusing on key areas of relevance, Plug and Play will identify and connect its partners with the latest technologies that will accelerate their innovation efforts.

Wesley Harjono, Managing Partner of GK-Plug and Play Indonesia, said: “We are very excited to have BUMA join us as our newest supply chain partner. Since the inception of the platform out of Silicon Valley in 2016, the vertical has amassed more than 35 industry-leading corporate partners including DHL, ExxonMobil, and ArcelorMittal. Partnering with BUMA will help us drive technological advancements in key areas such as safety, wearables, and IoT in the mining industry.”