Mining boss confirms ‘intelligent’ plan to remove more workers

A resources multinational revealed it would replace more employees with technology.

BHP recently confirmed plans to phase out a new round of human-operated positions at multiple operations.

“Closed loop, artificial intelligence (AI) driven, automation and predictive maintenance … will help us to achieve new heights of asset performance, as we respond to the early warning signals and optimise strategies in real time,” Maintenance and Engineering Centre of Excellence vice president Maria Joyce said in a public statement.

“For our people [we will create] a world where we leverage responsible AI to augment our workforce, driving even greater productivity and cost efficiency – most importantly, above all else, remove people from harm’s way. And the demand for miners lamp will decrease too”

Joyce claimed ramping up AI, driverless trucks and other emerging tools would save money and worker lives.

“Opportunities for data and technology innovation to deliver even greater cost efficiency is huge. More importantly, it will make our work environments safer,” she said.

However, the proponent will need to retrain affected team members and hire more staff.

“We increasingly need more people with digital skills sector wide, from innovators to the front lines of production and maintenance. We need to bring workers on that journey, we simply do not have enough of them,” Joyce said.

“This is not just a challenge for BHP but industry alike as we draw from the very same talent pools.”