Tag Archives: GeoMoby

GeoMoby communication system boosts Gordon Sirdar mine’s safety, efficiency processes

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GeoMoby says its real-time, location-based communication system is keeping workers safe and improving operational efficiencies at FMR Investments Pty Ltd’s Gordon Sirdar underground gold mine, near Coolgardie, Western Australia.

GeoMoby technology for underground mining communications is regarded as the most reliable in the world right now – in the underground mining sector – and uses Bluetooth Long Range, the company says. On top of this, the cost of installing GeoMoby technology is likely to be much less than traditional communications equipment.

Gordon Sirdar was used as the location of the 2023 Underground Emergency Rescue Competition (UMERC, held by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy). Last November, for the competition, GeoMoby deployed its underground solution, which included 35 nodes, dubbed ‘green lunchboxes’ across seven levels of the underground mine, over a timeframe equivalent of 10 hours.

During the competition – competitors in the 14 teams – were given GeoMoby smart watches, tags and linked to a Dräger gas detection device. It was the first time that GeoMoby had been officially invited to be part of UMERC. Its platform seamlessly integrated with key IoT sensors including an environmental monitoringsystem, portable gas sensors and an extensometer, the company said.

“That trial use was extremely successful and team mates and judges could view underground participants, on screens in the control room, in real time,” Chris Baudia, CEO and Founder of GeoMoby, said. “People said it was a ‘game changer’. Our technology can continuously monitor
individual miners’ locations and their heartbeats. During UMERC last year, we watched participants live and viewed the captains’ heartbeats. After the success of that event, we left the infrastructure at Gordon Sirdar.

Mathieu Paul, Director of GeoMoby, said: “Now our technology has been successfully operated by an underground gold mine, over a 10-month period. It is a hugely positive development for our company and we expect it to be one of many such installations, in the Goldfields. We have now also completed a feasibility study and have worked with FMR on how to improve operational efficiencies of truck cycles; track both light and heavy mine vehicles; and, of course, people.

“In addition, we are collecting information on grades of rocks, waste and tonnage in real time. This information is automatically collected by GeoMoby, thus saving time as it eliminates the need to manually input data into spreadsheets, for example. The data is also more accurate.”

John Farr, Manager of the Gordon Sirdar mine, added: “Never before have we had this kind of visibility for our underground operations, it is a massive improvement in safety and efficiency. GeoMoby has delivered what they promised. The technology has improved our mine’s
operational efficiency substantially as well as the safety of our team. For the first time, we can locate their positions, in the event of an emergency, immediately. We recommend all underground operations review GeoMoby technology, as our experience has been extremely
positive.”

Topdrill subsidiary to use GeoMoby Protect for ESG reporting purposes

Environmental, Mining services, Mining software, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

Australian technology company GeoMoby has been contracted by Kalgoorlie-based Topdrill’s wholly-owned subsidiary, JBC Contracting, to roll out GeoMoby’s Protect technology to 30 drilling rigs working in its Australian operations.

It is the first time a large exploration drilling contractor will begin to incorporate GeoMoby’s Protect technology fully into its operations.

Protect uses location services including GPS, fusion sensors and GeoMoby’s own patented live tracking algorithms in order to geofence sites and trigger an alert if users enter or come within close proximity of a heritage site, even in remote areas with no connectivity. Receivers can be carried on-person, in vehicles, machinery or equipment, with the app compatible to most modern devices including smart phones and tablets, according to the company.

The technology allows those operating on site to create or upload geofences on a map from any GIS systems, then define different alerts and triggers, while ensuring minimum drain on the device battery. Information is then uploaded to a cloud-based platform with replay features and reporting capabilities for compliance purposes.

GeoMoby Director, Mathieu Paul, said: “We are delighted to collaborate with one of Australia’s largest and most professional drilling contractors, in Topdrill. We look forward to working together with Tim Topham and the team, using GeoMoby location intelligence technology, to improve the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage and environmental sites in Australia and around the globe.”

Tim Topham, founder and Managing Director of Topdrill Drilling, said: “Topdrill is known for challenging the industry with innovative solutions and thinking outside the ‘drill bit’. We have carefully researched GeoMoby’s extensive suite of Protect applications and believe it is top of its class. Its automatic reporting capability will immediately improve our ESG reporting for Topdrill’s mining clients.”

GeoMoby founder and CEO, Chris Baudia, added: “GeoMoby’s Protect is a key offering in the GeoMoby product line-up which includes three main geolocation solutions for underground mining, surface mining and cultural heritage protection. After years in development and testing, it is great to see Protect having a concrete start in the exploration industry in Western Australia. We believe our easy-to-use technology will soon become industry standard.”

GeoMoby and Digital Terrain to provide real-time environmental monitoring in underground mines

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Mining location technology company GeoMoby has partnered with fellow Australia-based Digital Terrain to, it says, offer real-time monitoring of environmental conditions in underground mines.

“Temperature and potentially lethal gases, such as carbon monoxide or methane, can easily be remotely monitored, recorded and alerts triggered if needed,” Mathieu Paul, Director of GeoMoby, says.

Digital Terrain’s RDI-EMS can monitor temperature (wet and dry bulb), wide (speed and direction), humidity, gases and dust. Gas sensors can detect oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, methane and ammonia. It also detects a firing and sends a message to the blast crew when it is best to start conducting re-entries, GeoMoby says. This saves valuable time, especially in single heading, independent firing situations.

GeoMoby, meanwhile, provides an all-in-one, visibility platform allowing real-time monitoring of assets and people. Its goal is to change the way businesses make decisions and reach people, to help businesses control their data and their future.

“Essentially Digital Terrain has the technology to monitor many conditions – from levels of gases, such as oxygen, to the temperature in underground mines – and GeoMoby has the technology to use Digital Terrain’s data, from its recording devices, to use that information to trigger alarms if necessary,” Paul says.

“We know this is the best, most accurate solution for environmental monitoring in underground mine sites in Australia right now. Both our technologies are fully integrated. For example, if Digital Terrain detects too much carbon monoxide or methane in the mine’s atmosphere, then GeoMoby real-time systems trigger alerts for management and an emergency response can be rolled out much faster and more efficiently. We know this new technology will save lives in the hazardous environments of underground mines.”

GeoMoby says it has installed the technology in several large Australian mines.

Digital Terrain will establish the improved technology in the systems of current and established Digital Terrain clients, while GeoMoby will manage the client relationships with its new clients.

Digital Terrain CEO, Andrew Rouse, said: “GeoMoby and Digital Terrain’s relationship continues to grow – from an initial reseller appointment of GeoMoby products to now starting to integrate our solutions together. We will continue to identify more collaboration opportunities across our combined customer base, delivering value- adding solutions to our customers.”

CEO and Founder of GeoMoby, Chris Baudia, said: “This is another important adaption of our technology to help keep workers safe, so they can return to their families every single day. The ability to record environmental information will also help improve mining conditions and operations for the future and we are delighted to join with Digital Terrain to do that.”

GeoMoby to accelerate rollout of location intelligence platform with new funds

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Mining location technology company GeoMoby has secured A$3 million ($2.03 million) to fund the further rollout of its technology to the global mining industry.

The money will be allocated towards expanding its sales and business development team, as well as adding to a strong team of staff focused on technology development.

The funds have been largely sourced from multiple European investors, GeoMoby said. The capital raise was also supported by existing shareholders as well as a strategic GeoMoby partner – Agreement Hub – and a grant from METS Ignited.

GeoMoby – the name of the company and product – uses wireless, cable-free and reusable beacons to geofence sites, track assets and check on workforces, providing a layer of safety and efficiency never seen before, the company says. The technology allows surface-to-underground communication through smart devices, meaning, for the first time, photographs and video can be sent to the surface from remote tunnels in deep underground sites.

GeoMoby is targeting long-term contracts with Western Australian-based underground mining companies, but its technology can also be applied to surface mining operations and construction sites in Australia and globally, it says.

And, through its strategic partner agreement hub, it is also working with several mining and renewables companies to use the location intelligence technology to protect cultural heritage sites.

Founder and CEO, Chris Baudia, said: “Australian mining companies want to keep their workers – often in remote areas – safe, and this technology is the best, most reliable way to do that right now in the world. This latest funding now enables us to provide Australian miners with a gold standard location service and we are working hard to educate the mining sector about our cost-effective technology.

“We are now Australia’s most advanced location intelligence platform with a specialisation in live tracking and geofencing technologies for the mining and construction industries. We provide a 360° view platform that helps our clients to visualise their assets – trucks, light vehicles, machines – and the most important one, people. This is done in real-time whether it be in a multi-storey building, a remote area or even deep down an underground tunnel.”

Agreement Hub’s Managing Director, Kellie Swanson-Hill, said: “We are really excited to be partnering with GeoMoby to introduce its location intelligence technology to the mining industry in relation to cultural heritage protection. We are calling this application Protect. We are working with companies across the industry, from big iron ore to juniors, to make Protect the new best practice in cultural heritage protection.”

GeoMoby geolocation technology receives plaudits at Karora’s Beta Hunt mine

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Having developed what it says is world-first geolocation technology for mining that could improve safety underground and potentially save companies millions of dollars each year, GeoMoby has now tested out its solution in an underground section of Karora Resources’ Beta Hunt gold and nickel mine, in Western Australia.

GeoMoby – the name of the company and product – uses wireless, cable-free and reusable beacons to geofence sites, track assets and check on workforces, providing a layer of safety and efficiency never seen before, the company says.

It recently tested the location and communication network at Beta Hunt, with results gathered from the project confirming the possibility of live audio and video streams in real time, using Bluetooth Low Energy, GeoMoby said.

Before now, audio and video communication from underground to the surface has only been possible with Wi-Fi or LTE powered wireless networks.

Bluetooth capabilities enable mining companies to reach optimal connectivity without having to stop operations – at a large cost to the business – to lay cables and wires throughout the site, the company said. The technology allows the transfer of live audio and video streams to the surface in real time, in addition to existing real-time location, messaging and photo transfer capabilities, ensuring surface teams can have eyes and ears underground.

GeoMoby CEO, Chris Baudia, said the high-speed wireless network powered by Bluetooth Low Energy was able to transfer a range of important operations information from down the hole to the surface.

“Using our point-to-point network of nodes and technology platform, we have been able to stream audio and video in high quality and real time to the surface, allowing those above ground to hear and see what’s going on beneath them,” he said.

He said the simple, cable free, low disruption deployment method was a game changer for miners looking to improve their communication with minimal interference to operations.

“Key data transferred from underground to surface includes speed calculation alerts for vehicles and machinery, proximity awareness and real time proximity detection alerts,” he explained. “These features, along with file transfer and geofencing technology, are being delivered through our updated Underground Zero Harm application, giving miners the advantage of a one stop technology shop for monitoring people and assets.”

The roll out of a wireless point-to-point network at Beta Hunt involved the installation of 16 nodes across 2 km of underground mine tunnels and was completed in 2.5 hours, with no impact on the mine’s operations, according to GeoMoby. It connects a range of devices – both personal and company issue – directly to nodes, which combine to feed information in to the platform for users to see.

Baudia added: “Our benchmark is entry-level technicians correctly positioning or replacing nodes with no or minimal assistance from GeoMoby. Software diagnostic tools incorporated into the platform allow site personnel to detect any fault in the network and respond immediately, which is critical to ensuring communications remain intact at all times.”

Karora Senior OHS Adviser, Jody Herd, said there had been a steep change in operator behaviour since the GeoMoby technology was installed.

“We have 120 people on site at any given time,” he said. “Previously we tracked personnel and equipment underground the old school way with tag board systems, so we didn’t always know where everyone was at any given time without using a radio.

“We’ve already seen a change in operator behaviour due to workers understanding that machines are now monitored using the GeoMoby solution.”

Baudia said GeoMoby was working through added use cases of contact tracing capability in the instance of infectious disease entering sites, individual health monitoring and geofencing solutions that are currently only available with their on-surface solution.

GeoMoby looks to improve underground mining safety and communications

Communications in mining, IoT, Mining safety, Mining services, , ,

A Western Australia-based company has developed what it says is world-first geolocation technology for mining that could improve safety underground and potentially save companies millions of dollars each year.

GeoMoby – the name of the company and product – uses wireless, cable-free and reusable beacons to geofence sites, track assets and check on workforces, providing a layer of safety and efficiency never seen before, the company said.

The technology allows surface-to-underground communication through smart devices, meaning, for the first time, photographs and video can be sent to the surface from remote tunnels in deep underground sites.

GeoMoby Founder, Chris Baudia, said the accuracy of its Real Time Location Services allowed improved personnel safety, pinpointing locations within one metre of incidents, emergencies or equipment break down.

“If an incident occurs underground, mining companies are currently blind and rely on radio transmissions to pinpoint locations and relay instructions on how to respond,” Baudia said. “Our technology gives operators on the surface a clear picture of who is where underground, while allowing those below the surface to send and receive phone calls, videos, photos and audio files.”

Live mapping of assets is not only beneficial for safety reasons; it also allows operators to monitor equipment like trucks and other expensive machinery, checking speed, location, routes and other information, according to Baudia.

“Data collected can be used to boost productivity,” he said. “In fact, our live field reporting and automated timesheets resulted in a 20% boost in productivity for one of our clients.”

GeoMoby’s geolocation intelligence acts independent Wi-Fi, which can cost companies millions of dollars each year to maintain and does not give the range that GeoMoby’s technology does, it said.