Capgemini Invent, the Capgemini Group’s digital innovation, consulting and transformation brand, and Eramet’s close collaboration in the past three years has resulted in a successful development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across all of the group’s mining and metallurgical activities. As an example, Eramet mines manganese at the Moanda mine in Gabon, nickel at Société Le Nickel mines in New Caledonia, minerals sands from its Grande Côte operations in Senegal and quartzite from quarries in Norway.

The results obtained around productivity improvement, commercial performance and metal recovery will allow Eramet to accelerate its energy and environmental transition.

Eramet wanted to industrialise the use of Artificial Intelligence. To reinforce this deployment, it set up, together with Capgemini Invent, a “Data Factory” comprising around fifty experts from the two companies. At the heart of this program lies the optimal use of data generated by the information systems, drones and connected sensors present in the group’s 39 industrial sites around the world.

This transformation journey covers Eramet’s entire value chain: real time industrial risks prediction, energy mix of industrial facilities optimisation, and selective extraction of ore to ensure sustainable exploitation of resources. For example:

• In Norway and New Caledonia, metallurgists at Eramet’s high-temperature furnaces are taking advantage of AI by analysing predictive information on production quality and economic performance, with the aim of increasing the production of manganese and nickel alloys.
• In Sweden, Erasteel, a subsidiary of Eramet and a pioneer in powder metallurgy, is deploying an application to optimise the time it takes to make high-performance steels available to customers.
• In Gabon, a new solution is being validated by Setrag, Eramet’s rail transport subsidiary, to predict track wear and tear in order to optimise maintenance.
• In Senegal, activities are underway to improve the mining process in order to make it more agile using data science approaches.

Eramet is consolidating its ecological transition through the collective construction of innovative solutions for responsible, sustainable production, a priority for the group.

Ludovic Donati, Eramet Group’s Digital Transformation Director, said: “Since 2017, Eramet has been transforming itself with a clear vision of the industry of the future: intelligent, connected, safe and responsible mines and plants for people and natural resources. We have put digital transformation and digital intelligence at the heart of our performance. The first results are visible in the productivity of our mines and plants. Capgemini Invent’s teams are working with us over the long term to deploy a high-performance data strategy in co-construction that is adapted to the challenges of our rapidly changing industry. Our ambition is to go even further in the control of our data, which gives agile players a competitive advantage.”

Mathieu Dougados, Executive Director of Capgemini Invent in France, adds: “We are proud to support the Eramet Group in this ambitious program to transform its mining and metallurgical activities by leveraging our in-depth knowledge of the sector and our globally recognised expertise in data and Artificial Intelligence. This partnership with Eramet, a flagship of French industry, is emblematic of what Capgemini Invent wants to bring to its customers and its teams: an end-to-end digital transformation with data as the driving force and a permanent results-oriented co-construction approach.”