Fatigue Science recently announced that Minera Panama SA, a subsidiary of First Quantum Minerals Ltd, has chosen to utilise Readi, the predictive fatigue management technology, in a site-wide implementation at the Cobre Panama mine.

“We are excited to implement Readi to protect all of our operators at Cobre Panama from the risks of fatigue,” said Edwin Salazar, Mine Production Manager. “After successfully evaluating the platform on site, we are confident that adopting Readi in Mine Operations and Tailings Management Facilities will enhance the safety and productivity of our workforce at Cobre Panama.”

Around 4,000 individuals work in safety-sensitive mining operations at the Cobre Panama mine, which has a focus on extracting copper. Readi serves as a daily operational tool for supervisor decision-making, informing critical decisions regarding break assignment and, in exceptional cases of fatigue, task reassignment to a less fatigued operator. It also serves as a system of record for operational fatigue data, bringing quantifiable insight into fatigue levels at the mine over time.

Readi relies on the scientifically-validated SAFTE biomathematical model and Machine Learning algorithms to generate personalised fatigue predictions. It then provides shift supervisors with tailored fatigue predictions for each operator on their crew, pushed to their mobile device at the beginning of every shift.

“We are pleased to bring Readi’s proven capabilities in predictive fatigue management to First Quantum Minerals’ Cobre Panama mine,” says Andrew Morden, President & CEO of Fatigue Science. “This implementation showcases Minera Panama SA’s dedication to prioritising worker health and safety while tapping into technology that is also shown to measurably improve productivity. Cobre Panama joins a growing list of cutting-edge mines around the world to leverage Readi daily.”

Dr Franco Silva, Occupational Health Coordinator at Cobre Panama, adds: “Readi’s scientifically-validated approach significantly enhances the health and safety of our workforce, setting a new standard for fatigue management with objective and predictive data.”

As part of its rollout, Minera Panama SA has distributed ReadiWatch smartwatches to a significant number of their most safety-sensitive operators in Cobre Panama mine. Although Readi doesn’t require the use of wearables, the devices will allow operators to receive on-wrist Fatigue Alerts, alongside the alerts given to supervisors. Wearables also improve the accuracy of fatigue predictions by supplying sleep data for the system to securely and confidentially analyse. Sleep data are not shared by default.