Mining Companies improve the productivity of mineral processing plants and sustain those improvements thereby increasing the profitability of mining operations.Recognizing the renowned franchises, Insights Success has enlisted "The 10 Most Recommended Mining Service Providers 2019"
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The 10 most recommended mining service providers 2019
1. www.insightssuccess.com
April 2019
Delivering Real Exploration and Claim Staking Experience
10Most
The
Burgex Inc.
Recommended
MiningService Providers 2019
Burgex Inc.
Editor's Choice
3 Remarkable Innovations
in the Field of Printing
Business
President Co-founder
Stuart Burgess
Burgex Inc.
Volume-4 Issue-13
Environmental Talk
Eco-friendly Strategies for
a Better Tech-enabled
Construction World
2.
3.
4. E
he mining industry is considered as one of the fastest growing industries all over the world. The contribution of the
Tmining sector to the economic situation of the world is more significant than one may think. The role of this sector in
day-today life is to provide necessary raw materials to help facilitate the assembly of new ones. This in turn makes it
essential for the world to practice safe mining to keep the other industries going. Everything we use is either made from
minerals or relies on minerals for its production. The technologies that define innovation today depend on minerals.
Maximum products used in modern homes require heavy minerals in some form or the other. The various essential minerals
are extracted from the earth through mining. This is the reason mining is important to our daily life, because, without this
industry, many industries will be crippled, especially the manufacturing sector. Only through mining, essential minerals can
be attained and used for various purposes including economic growth.
Minerals extracted through mining essentially make our lives possible. Minerals are the foundation of life-saving medical
equipment, the building pillars for innovative technologies and the body armor on our troops deployed overseas. Minerals are
health, innovation and defense. Many people may not realize that minerals and metals play significant role in almost every
aspect of our society. Platinum forms the bedrock of modern technologies like smartphones, while gold is necessary to
innovations in fields like renewable energy. Silver is a vital component of medical evolutions such as X-rays and antibiotics.
And, without the copper mineral, modern infrastructure systems can’t even exist. These minerals and many more are used in
defense equipment and various technologies – helping our troops keep our nations safe.
Mined materials are essential to construct roads, hospitals, to build vehicles and houses, to make satellites and computers, to
produce electricity, and also to provide the many other goods and services that customers like to enjoy. Mining is
economically important to producing regions and nations. Mining industry provides good amount of employment, taxes and
dividends that facilitates to schools, hospitals and other public facilities. Mining industry also generates foreign exchange and
it accounts for significant portion of GDP. Mining industry fosters a number of associated and related industries as well. The
economic opportunities and wealth generated by mining industry for many producing nations is substantial.
Mining the Essential Minerals for
Sustainable Economic Growth
5. The modern world simply can’t function without mining industry; because mineral products are necessary components of
mobiles, vehicles, towers, solar panels, fertilizers, wind turbines, machinery and essentially all kinds of construction. In
reality, the mining industry is just the foundational point of important value chain. Some mining companies provide clean
fouling without production stoppages and enable customers to exceed their production goals and improve health and safety as
well as environmental targets.
Some mining organizations specialize in light conversion vehicles. Some mining companies improve the productivity of
mineral processing plants and sustain those improvements thereby increasing the profitability of mining operations.
Recognizing the renowned franchises, Insights Success has enlisted “The 10 Most Recommended Mining Service
Providers 2019.”
Featuring as our Cover Story is a notable mining organization named Burgex Inc. Burgex Inc. is a mining consulting
services company that specializes in mineral exploration, mining claim staking, landman services, general mine consulting,
and the access and documentation of abandoned mine sites throughout the Western United States and the world. The founders
of the company are fueled by a passion for mineral exploration and are enthusiastic about providing excellent service to their
clients. Organization love helping Canadian and Australian publicly traded junior mining companies navigate the claim
staking, exploration, and mineral rights management process for their US based projects.
Also, make sure to go through the articles, written by our in-house editorial team to have brief insights of the sector.
Let’s start reading!
Only through mining, essential minerals
can be attained and used for various
purposes including economic growth.
“ “
Sharad Chitalkar
6. Delivering Real Exploration
and Claim Staking Experience
Cover Story16
Maestro's Opinion
Develop Your Innovation
Culture For A Future-
ready Organisation
30
Leader's Take
Leadership skills essential
for organizational growth
42
Mentor's Standpoint
Why 3D Printing
Consumables Producers
need to get involved in
Printing Technologies?
10
7. Contents
20
24
28
Interlate
Utilizing Data and
Technology to
Improve Productivity
Articles
22
Eco-friendly Strategies for
a Better Tech-enabled
Construction World
Environmental Talk
36
34
Softree Technical
Systems
Civil Engineering Software
for Haul Access Road
Design Optimization
FD 4x4 Centre
Specialist in Light
Vehicle Conversions
Boréalis
The World’s Most
Advanced Stakeholder
Engagement Software
Altum Technologies
Clean Fouling Without
Production Stoppages
40
3 Remarkable Innovations
in the Field of
Printing Business
Editor's Choice
10. .
“ ““ “Burgex provides experienced,
accurate, and honest claim staking,
mineral exploration, and mining
consulting services to clients ranging
from individual prospectors through
major mining companies.
Cover Story
Delivering Real Exploration and Claim Staking Experience
.
12. “ “
In an interview with Insights Success, President and
Co-founder of Burgex Inc., Stuart Burgess, shares
valuable information on Burgex Inc. and its remarkable
contribution to the mining industry. Burgex Inc. has staked
over 250,000 acres of mining claims for its clients and has
experience working in every Western State and across the
world. It has provided exploration services and consulting
on hundreds of projects for minerals ranging from
construction sand and gravel to base metals through
industrial minerals. It is currently primarily focused on the
United States, but has provided services on international
projects as far away as Saudi Arabia.
Below are highlights from the interview conducted between
StuartBurgess andInsights Success:
Give a brief overview of your company, its solutions.
Burgex Inc. is a mining consulting services company that
specializes in mineral exploration, mining claim staking,
landman services, general mine consulting, and the access
and documentation of abandoned mine sites throughout the
Western United States and the world. The founders of the
company are fueled by a passion for mineral exploration
and are enthusiastic about providing excellent service to
their clients. We love helping Canadian and Australian
publicly traded junior mining companies navigate the claim
staking, exploration, and mineral rights management
process for their US based projects.
Describe the ways in which your mining solutions are
focused on being customer centric.
Every project is different, and it can be difficult to navigate
the mineral rights acquisition and management process here
in the U.S. We leverage our experience to help you move
your project forward in a way that is efficient and accurate.
Not every solution is going to be appropriate for every
project, so we craft a plan that works for our clients by
minimizing unnecessary expenses and saving time. We take
time to attend conferences and read the latest information
on a variety of mineral exploration technology and mineral
“ “Burgex Inc. guarantees full
satisfaction of clients with
the quality of its
exploration, consulting,
and claim staking services.
Cover Story
13. for the development and de-risking of
new resources. The mineral exploration
segment of the mining industry can be
a wild place and it is changing all the
time. New technology and shifting
economics are continually driving new
technological advancements and
geological models for discovery. The
latest trend toward the identification
and development of metal deposits
used in the manufacturing of batteries
has led to a shift in the exploration
projects that are being funded and
developed over the last five years – it
will be exciting to see which of these
projects make it all the way through
feasibility and into production!
What are the evident challenges in
the mining industry and what are
your strategies to tackle these
challenges?
There are numerous challenges that are
facing the mining industry right now
and we see a lot of them from the
cutting edge of exploration. Increasing
environmental regulation, geopolitical
tensions, looming trade wars, and a
shrinking professional base are some
of the key challenges that we see right
now. One of the most acute on the
exploration side is the lack of new
engineering and geology professionals
entering the field. Unfortunately, it
seems like many of the brightest minds
have chosen to get into tech instead of
mining and exploration and similar
traditional industries. We have tackled
this problem by identifying bright
candidates still in college and bringing
them into the company to start getting
experience while they are in school.
We think this will give us a great
advantage by having fresh in-house
talent that is starting out with a diverse
basket of real experience. I think the
mineral exploration and mining
industries also have a large PR
problem when it comes to driving
home the point that minerals are
necessary for life – they are in
everything, and to a very large extent
an integral part of the deployment of
green technologies. Electric cars and
renewable energies are all dependent
on a very large network of different
rights law in order to be able to provide
the best services to our customers.
Describe the experiences,
achievements or lessons learnt that
have shaped the journey of your
company.
Initially we focused only on providing
technical access and exploration of
abandoned mine sites throughout the
Western United States. While this was
a very niche segment of the exploration
industry to focus on, it gave us a very
unique look into the inner workings of
many different types of ore deposits. It
also gave us the great experience of
being able to observe the evolution of
mining techniques from over a hundred
years. Our growth into claim staking,
mineral rights management, project
planning, due diligence, and
exploration consulting services was
really driven from these simple
beginnings by our clients themselves.
They really appreciated the work we
were doing for them and pushed us
toward expanding our services so that
they could have a dependable firm to
handle multiple aspect of their project.
On some projects we have handled
everything from initial sampling and
prospecting all the way through claim
staking, exploration permitting, testing,
drilling, geophysics, preliminary
feasibility studies, mine planning, and
the eventual sale of the project to a
larger group. Almost every year since
we were founded we have started
offering a new service based on our
clients’ needs.
I think we know we are doing a good
job because almost all of our business
comes through referrals from existing
clients. As long as that is still the case,
we know we are on track and still
growing organically.
What are your thoughts on mineral
exploration in the mining industry?
Mineral exploration is critical to the
mining industry and really provides all
the substance for future growth. Even
within existing mines that have been
operating for many decades there is
still a process of mineral exploration
14. mines around the globe. It would be nice to see a larger
domestic supply develop for a lot of these key resources.
What is your perception on mining exploration in
relation to climate change?
Climate change is a hot button issue within many industries
and mineral exploration is no different. The potential
environmental impact of every mining project is something
that needs to be considered from the very beginning of an
exploration project. In many ways potential environmental
impact is considered by default as economics commonly
dictate the placement of a project and things such as
transportation distance and overall energy use are
considered to determine if a project warrants further
development. A project that is economically sound will
generally also include energy, transportation, and other
efficiencies that are more environmentally friendly and less
impactful overall. In other ways the commodity being
explored can also have a large impact on the environment
overall, many of our clients have shifted their focus recently
toward exploring for minerals that are critical to the
development of electric vehicles and renewable energy.
These minerals include lithium, cobalt, and copper.
According to you, how technology is playing role in
shaping the mining industry?
I just recently read an article that Rio Tinto, one of the
world’s largest mining companies, has begun using an
autonomous railway system in Australia to service several
of its large mines. This technology has the potential to save
the company money, but will also likely result in a safer and
more efficient system. Cost savings and safety are two of
the largest factors that are driving technology in mining
applications by using autonomous technology we are within
a decade of having mines that operate without having
human miners in them at all. This will allow us to access
deeper and richer ore bodies that have been inaccessible
due to the constraints of the human body. This includes
ultra-deep mines such as those found in South Africa, but
will also allow us to start mining at the bottom of the ocean
and in other hard to reach places.
Within the mineral exploration industry we are seeing a
huge impact with drone technology and with geophysics.
Within our company we have been able to recently leverage
GIS technology and existing project data with new data
collected by our drones to define and refine drilling targets.
This ultimately will improve the accuracy of exploration
projects and will reduce the risk to our clients and their
investors. The ability to visualize an exploration project in
3D has also led to a greater understanding between
engineers, geologists, and the executive team which has
allowed for better decision making. In the mining stage this
leads to better planning and reduced risk, which works out
well for everyone.
Where do you see Burgex Inc. in the long run and/or
what are its future goals?
Burgex has been growing quickly over the last few years
and plans on continuing to grow and seek new ways to
provide better services to its clients. We would like to be in
“ ““ “
Burgex Inc. personally
educates clients about the
mineral exploration and
mining process so that
they can make informed
decisions moving forward.
Cover Story
15. a position within the next five years where we are setting
the standard for claim staking and mineral rights
management services. This would include creating a system
where our clients can track their claims and associated
filings in real time. We think that there is a lot of potential
in improving the current system of claim staking and filing.
On the exploration and consulting side of the business we
are always looking for ways to improve the process and
streamline the discovery and proving of new resources. We
would like to expand our drone and mapping services and
push the limits of what is currently available in the industry.
Testimonials by clients
“Working with the professionals at the Burgex group has
been a blessing for us as we have been clients of Burgex
Inc. for over more than a year and a half. Finding such a
dedicated, committed and communicative group, strong in
process and stronger even in delivering results, has allowed
us to move on many more fronts and accomplish what
would have been inconceivable just by working on our own.
Their knowledge and experience base on title issues, advice
on regulatory processes, their ability to access and process
multiple relevant databases of information and
communicate results clearly has helped our group move
decisively on projects with a strong competitive advantage.
I know they have my back covered, and will look forward to
working with them going forward as much as possible!”
– Jean-Pierre (JP) Jutras, B.Sc Hons geology, P.Geol,
President/Director, Jade Leader Corp. TSXV:JADE
“We have utilized the mining consultation services of
Burgex Inc. for several years to provide technical due
diligence, market analysis, and valuation reports. The
overall timeliness, quality, level of detail, and thoroughness
provided by Burgex in their analysis of marketability and
valuation, across various mineral types, is above and
beyond those of other providers of similar services.”
– Chris Devine, Chief Operating Officer, Green Rock, LLC
“We have worked closely with Burgex Mining Consultants
for a number of years. Our experience with Burgex has
been unparalled, with respect to the precision of
professional services Burgex provides to us, very
economically. In fact, we absolutely rely on Burgex. Burgex
personnel are not only extremely professional, they are also
extremely pleasant to work with. They are capable problem
solvers!” – Tom L. Lee, PhD, JD, President, Montana
Gold Inc.
About the Leader
Stuart Burgess has been involved in Burgex since the very
beginning and his passion for mining, mining history, and
mineral exploration have really been a driving force behind
the company’s growth and expansion into new segments of
the industry. He enjoys being personally involved in most
of the company’s projects and is always looking for ways to
improve the services that Burgex provides and give greater
value to its clients.
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17.
18. s the digital landscape continues to change at a rapid pace,
Adismantling and disrupting the way that we do business, how can
we ensure that our leadership and organisational thinking evolves
at the same rate? The CEO is ultimately responsible for the success or
failure of the company that they lead, which, in today’s world, means
ensuring an organisation can adapt to this fast rate of change. To do this,
leaders need to know how to innovate with agility and speed. This means,
on the ground during day-to-day work, that each employee has a clear
understanding of how they contribute to creating value out of new ideas
and a common language to enable them to work together. As a CEO, part
of your role is to foster a culture of innovation that can harness the often
disparate skills and mindsets required to successfully innovate. The key is
to understand that innovation is a journey, which includes spotting trends
and discontinuities and generating new ideas, through to investing and
implementing those ideas that can potentially have the most impact. The
skill is to know how to match people’s strengths to the right part.
How do employees currently react to innovation conversations?
Often, the first people to embrace innovation tend to love ideas and can
identify trends, patterns and opportunities. They are curious and fit the
classic stereotype of creativity – playful, open-minded and attracted to
Natalie Turner is a Keynote
speaker and Author of the book
Yes, You
Can Innovate. Discover your
innovation strengths and
develop your
creative potential which was
selected as book of the month
in both the
UK and Singapore earlier this
year. She is the Founder and
CEO of
The Entheo Network, a global
innovation company and has
exemplary
expertise in the eld of
marketing, business strategy,
and leadership
development. Under her
leadership, the company
provides a suite of
innovative products and
services to help individuals and
organizations
create new sources of value
whilst building innovation skills,
capabilities and culture. She is
also the inventor of the 6 ‘I’s®
Innovation which measures
innovation strengths of
individuals and
teams to unlock the innovation
culture in an organization.
www.6-i-innovation.com.
About the Author
Develop Your
INNOVATION
CULTURE
for
a
FUTURE-READY
Organisation
16| April 2019|
20. novelty. Innovation, truly deep and sustainable innovation,
combines both creativity and discipline, which are curious
bedfellows. It is a considered process that requires a raft of
different skills and ways of thinking, combined towards
creating a common outcome. In fact, the innovation journey
is more like a cycle that can start at any point, not just in the
playful and curious spaces.
There are probably many employees in your organisation
who do not identify with this sense of curiosity, or think
that they have light bulb moments, but who are nonetheless
crucial to the success of innovation as an outcome. You will
not embed an agile innovation culture without showing
employees of all stripes and skillsets where they fit in. The
innovation culture needs a common framework and
language. Within this shared understanding, different styles
are more likely to interact with, and appreciate, the
contribution of others. Creating the best environment for
each stage of the journey, so that people are empowered to
contribute their strengths will improve the likelihood of
success.
Understanding the innovation journey
Start with aligning teams around PURPOSE, what are they
trying to achieve and why? Then move to how they can
identify opportunities through understanding trends and
patterns, often related to changes in human behaviour. Then
move to the creative space where people ignite ideas,
through practices such as brainstorming and value
proposition design. After you have an array of ideas, submit
them to analysis and experimentation, separating the good
ones from the bad, investigating whether they are useful,
not just novel. The interrelationship between these three
spaces is often where you see design thinking processes in
action. Now, if you have a few really good ideas that have a
high chance of working, start to think through how to best
make them work. If not, revisit the original-identified
opportunity or generate alternative ideas and solutions.
When ready for investment, innovation leadership is really
critical. This is often the graveyard of ideas. Here
demonstrate courage; assign resources, whether it is people,
time or money. Once ideas are funded, find people who are
great at implementation and getting things done. Once the
idea is starting to get traction and have an impact, harness
the skills of improvement and optimisation to scale and
leverage the ideas into other areas of opportunity.
There are no straight roads. This is why innovating is often
so difficult. Not only are you trying to do something new,
you have to harness diversity towards an often unknown
outcome. Creating the best environment for each stage of
the journey, so that people are empowered to contribute
their strengths, will help to create a successful outcome.
This means teaching people when to contribute and when to
pass the baton on to someone else. This is true
collaboration, anchored in a clear purpose that is focused on
the success of the idea.
Give each of your employees a proactive role in the
innovation journey
Culture could be termed “how we do things around here”
and part of what contributes towards this is how leaders act
and behave towards the people that they manage and lead.
Even more so when it comes to innovating. If people
understand their contribution, they will have the confidence
and courage to start thinking of themselves as innovators.
They will also understand when they will have the most
impact. The innovation journey needs a different culture at
different points; a culture that allows for ideas to be
generated is not the same as one needed to investigate those
ideas.
Innovation and the CEO
Lead by example. Understand the part of the innovation
journey that you are best at, and be aware of the bias that
you will have because of that. Increase the awareness of
yourself and others,so that you can empower everyone to
cultivate environments that allow their strengths to flourish.
Ensure that every skillset and its contribution to innovation
is respected and rewarded. This can only be done by
understanding the whole of the innovation journey, end-to-
end. Diversity is key, if you have a lot of people who are
good at generating ideas, you may end up with very little
that actually gets done. If you have a lot of people who are
good at implementation, you may end up dealing with
today’s work very well, but not have the culture of a
future-ready organisation that can adapt to fast-paced
change tomorrow. In empowering your leaders and
employees to develop their creative potential, in the
broadest sense of the word, innovation will start to seep
through the whole of your organisation, embedding a
culture that will increase the likelihood of you creating
impactful value out of new ideas.
18| April 2019|
21.
22. Altum Technologies
Clean Fouling Without Production Stoppages
Altum Technologies
In an Interview with Insights
Success, Bo Malmberg, Co-
founder and COO of Altum
Technologies shares the journey and
contribution of Altum Technologies in
the mining field. The company’s goal is
to provide its customers with solutions
that enable them to exceed their
production goals and improve health
and safety as well as environmental
targets.
Below are the highlights of the
interview between Bo Malmberg and
Insights Success.
Give a brief overview of your
company, its solutions and services?
When an industrial process is started,
its operation is optimal. However, soon
impurities start to accumulate in
pipelines, valves, heat exchangers etc.
reducing efficiency and requiring
regular maintenance and repair.
The revolutionary Altum high power
ultrasonic technology combines
traditional ultrasonic cleaning with
advanced beamforming techniques to
localize and effectively clean a pre-
defined target point. On top of this,
Altum’s system is the only one in the
world that can be applied externally to
any existing production environment
without making any changes to the
production equipment.
Altum Technologies is the first and
only company to use focused power
ultrasound to remove fouling from
industrial equipment without stopping
the process, without dismantling the
equipment and without using
chemicals. We provide our customers
the capability to increase their
production output and operational
energy efficiency by enabling them to
clean their production process without
the need of stopping the production.
Describe the ways in which your
mining solutions are focused on
being customer centric.
Our solution is designed so that it can
be easily adjusted to the specific
customer needs. Also, one system can
be utilized to solve several issues in
different locations of the production
process.
By monitoring remotely we want to
assure that our customers are
continuously getting the benefits that
they are looking for by deploying our
solution to their process. Additionally,
we provide our customers the latest
SW updates that include all the
improvements to make the system
more efficient.
Describe the experiences,
achievements or lessons learnt that
have shaped the journey of your
company.
Product must be easily tailored for
several different business cases.
Software and in the near future AI-
enhanced software is the key to cost
efficiently tailor products for changing
use cases.
Company needs to provide agile
services in the beginning to show
tangible benefits to new customers.
Seeing is believing, as we tend to say
at Altum Technologies.
World is full of fouling issues. We’ve
learned that it’s important to be
pragmatic in solving the cases and
admit that not all cases are perfect for
the technology.
What are the evident challenges in
the mining industry and what are
your company’s strategies to tackle
these challenges?
The main issues in mining are
improving the production efficiency
and at the same time making the
operations environmentally friendly by
reducing the environmental foot print.
In addition, the improvement of health
and safety is has an important role in
the industry.
Our aim is to offer solutions to the
mining industry that apply the process
cleaning and scaling prevention to the
production processes. This approach
enables us to tackle these challenges by
using only one solution. The
production process operates more
optimally and gives higher recovery
rates, when it is free from scaling.
Thus, the process is also more energy
efficient.
The health and safety risks are
reduced, when there is no need for the
process equipment to be dismantled
which, in turn, significantly decreases
the need to use hazardous chemicals
for the cleaning purposes of the
equipment.
What is your perception on mining
exploration in relation to climate
change?
As a highly energy intensive industry,
The
10Most Recommended
Service Providers 2019
10
20| April 2019|
23. “Altum Technologies is the only
company to use software-guided
power ultrasound to remove
fouling from industrial
equipment without stopping the
production process or using
any toxic chemicals.”
—Bo Malmberg
Co-founder COO
the mining industry has its responsibility to reduce the
impact to the climate change. Many companies have put
lots of effort to reduce their environmental footprint over
the past decade. At Altum Technologies, our goal is to be a
part of this continuous work and take a place in the
forefront of provided the needed tools to the industry, so
that companies can proceed working and making
remarkable improvements in the future.
It is also important to remember that new products can be
created and developed with the use of raw materials
provided by the industry. Such products may have even
bigger impact to the total CO emissions globally such as2
electric cars, for instance.
Where does Altum Technologies see itself in the long run
and/or what are its future goals?
Altum will become a major global technology provider in
the field of process scaling prevention and cleaning. Our
power ultrasound technology will enable different
industries to tackle their issues and make industrial
companies more profitable. In the future, we will open new
offices in different continents and enlarge our partner
network to serve our customers even better than today.
Client Feedback
The customer has said that after the planned pilot projects
and transfer to production use, our solution will impact
their operations in a significant manner.
Another customer found our solutions beneficial in reducing
maintenance and increasing energy efficiency.
About the Leader
Altum Technologies was founded by COO Bo Malmberg
and CEO Matias Tainela together with other four co-
founders in May 2016. Through their journey, Bo and
Matias discovered that their customers were asking for a
solution that would clean fouled equipment with power
ultrasound without the need to stop the production. As Bo
and Matias were lacking knowledge on how to develop such
solution, they started to look for the best person to
implement this vision.
After some days, all fingers pointed to Edward Haeggström,
a professor from the University of Helsinki, Harvard and
CERN. Edward approved the idea and highly appreciated
Matias and Bo’s understanding of the industrial market
needs. Edward already had a world-class team that can
develop a high-power ultrasonic solution such as the one
needed. This is how Altum Technologies begun its
development.
Later the company received publicity attention after
winning Slush 100 pitching competition in 2017. Bo
Malmberg pitched Altum’s power ultrasound solution in
front of thousands which led the company to creating
connections with new customers and investors.
|21| April 2019
24. ECO-FRIENDLYStrategies for
ABETTERTECH
oday, the national and global economies are on a
Tconsistent booming pathway. There is an upsurge in
the use and implementation of cutting-edge
technology in the construction-tech companies.
Recognizing these technology trends, many construction-
tech solution providing companies are focusing on its usage
and adoption. Additionally, these global corporations are
now majorly swinging their interest in executing
sustainable construction procedures thereby leading to an
increase in sustainable building materials reaching to the
masses.
It is essential for the construction-tech companies and
developers to adopt the ecological values which can ensure
sustainability and longevity to withstand the market
complexities. The customers and corporations are shifting
towards preserving the environment and the construction-
tech industry is following the suit. Besides, rapid population
growth demands an eco-friendly environment to live in.
There is a need for strategies that provide alternative
construction solutions to safeguard the environment.
Therefore, the construction-tech companies are planning to
implement cost-effective eco-construction practices.
Using Eco-friendly Material
Sustainable tech-based construction operations can involve
the use of environment-friendly and non-toxic paints,
solvents, and building materials. This can enhance an
22| April 2019|
CONSTRUCTIONWORLD
-ENABLED
25. organizations’ productivity highgrounds in the construction-
tech industry lending a hand towards construction of an
eco-friendly building. This creates healthy and safer indoor
spaces in homes, offices, and recreational areas. Besides,
the integration of eco-construction practices in the
technology will prove to be a long-term benefit for
commercial and industrial buildings leading to the end-to-
end customer satisfaction.
Using the safe, natural and readily available insulation
material like the sheep’s wool can prove profitable for the
construction. The recycled cotton sourced from shreds of
discarded clothing can be a strong move towards non-toxic
insulation and sustainable construction. Also, the by-
product of the timber industry wood fiber made from wood
chips can represent a good eco-friendly insulation option.
Reducing the Demolition Procedures
Instead of dumping the hazardous materials like concrete
and structural steel into landfills, these can be recycled and
reused for various other tech-based construction operations.
Using the industrial crushing amenities, the small-scale as
well as large-scale construction-tech organizations can
recycle these materials into dry aggregate for new
construction operations. This would provide the
organizations with a substantial savings opportunity and can
help reducing the demolition construction procedures. It
will also aid and cut-costs associated with the disposal of
toxic materials from the site. Additionally, recycling and
reusing the carpet, flooring and ceiling materials can be a
small but strong move towards eco-friendly construction
environment.
Implementation of Locally-obtained Resources
Construction materials are transported over an extremely
long distance with greater consumption of energy in that
transportation phase. But emphasis can be placed on the use
of locally-sourced materials with green construction. Also,
this would reduce the carbon footprint, and creates a far
more efficient tech-based construction processes. The use of
the resources available in any city or town can help,
support, and grow the local businesses on a large scale.
Conserving and Recycling the Water
Water is the key enabler for every construction-tech
operations; residential, industrial or commercial. Hence,
water must be conserved to power the implementation of
eco-construction processes into any kind of construction-
tech project. This can involve simple techniques like rain-
water harvesting and or watershed management. This
collection and storage of rain-water can be used for
landscape irrigation. In addition, the recycled rain-water
and its condensation from HVAC units can also be
collected and used for same causes. The construction-
tech companies can take advantage of recycling water
through readily available water resources which would
otherwise go down the drain.
Long-term Sustainable Solutions
With the soaring energy costs, investing in solar power
could be a long-term sustainable solution for tech-based
construction companies. It can cut-costs, reduces grid
reliance, and lessens the strain on electricity providers.
The construction companies can transform the rooftops
of the homes and buildings into generators with the use
of this solar power and maintain a good electricity flow.
To take one step further, use of photovoltaic windows
consisting of solar cells can boost the operations
controlling interior temperature.
Another way to execute successful eco-friendly
construction practices can be achieved through the use of
wind power. Having turbine fans at the rooftop of a
building can help in producing energy and also reduce
electricity consumption. Besides, they require little
maintenance, maintain indoor air quality, and reduce
utility investments.
Appropriate Use of Land
With the increasing population, urbanization of smart
cities is also on its way. Planning for green space and
multipurpose areas can be significant in avoiding land
degradation. The construction techniques can support the
ideology of eco-friendly tech-based construction with the
suitable use of landscape. Appropriate use of land by the
builders, architects, and designers while developing a
building, will encourage the addition of green spaces on
rooftops or in other parts of that building. This will
provide the masses with a multiuse space.
The future construction world would witness
transformations with more sustainable and alternative
construction methodologies. However, creativity and
innovations in tech-enabled construction practices will
ensure the maximum longevity of resources for future
generations. Also, these innovations will be the
cornerstones of the developments and could help in
leaving a better landscape for next-gen. Eco-construction
practices and technological advancements will open the
future doors for the green construction leading to a
cleaner and greener construction-tech world.
|23| April 2019
Environmental Talk
26. The World’s Most Advanced Stakeholder Engagement Software
In an interview with Insights
Success, Christine Crowe, who
works in Boréalis’ Business
Development Office, shares insights
on the company’s journey and its
valuable contributions to organizations
through its stakeholder engagement
software. Boréalis helps organizations
build enduring and trusted relationships
with their most important stakeholder
groups. Its field-proven software
reduces social risks and increases
positive outcomes based on shared
value creation.
Below are the highlights of the
interview between Christine Crowe and
Insights Success.
Brief overview of Boréalis, its
solutions and services.
Boréalis helps organizations around the
world build trusted relationships with
their key stakeholders – primarily
through its stakeholder engagement
software that provides organizations a
single platform for planning, engaging
and measuring the success of their
stakeholder engagement strategy. We
also lend our expertise in stakeholder
engagement to clients needing help in
identifying needs, building and training
teams, etc. We’re the only company in
the world that combines sophisticated
stakeholder engagement management
software with extensive on-the-ground
experience. As result, we are able to
help organizations globally turn social
risks into stakeholder acceptance. Our
website, www.boreal-is.com, includes a
number of client success stories
resulting from the implementation of
Boréalis software.
Boréalis is based in southern Quebec,
but its team routinely travels to
customers worldwide, working on-site
with them to configure and implement
the software as well as to provide any
training and strategic expertise that
may be needed. The company was
created in 1998 and has 70 employees
and a strong network of global
partners. Over 50 percent of Boréalis’
employees are software developers.
Ways in which Boréalis software
solutions are focused on being
customer centric.
Boréalis stakeholder engagement
software was developed from the
ground up to meet specific customer
needs in the mining industry. Once
organizations in other sectors caught
wind of what mining companies were
able to do with our online platform,
they came knocking on our door. The
crossover to other industries was quite
seamless. Most issues related to
stakeholder relations apply to any
sector where securing a social license
to operate is essential to corporate and
project sustainability. I’m talking about
issues like community engagement,
land access and management, social
and environmental performance, public
affairs and government relations, etc.
Our software is now used by major
organizations working in utilities, oil
gas, consumer goods, real estate,
government, healthcare and more.
(Interesting case studies available at:
www.boreal-is.com/resources)
We are closely involved with our
clients and constantly improve our
software based on their direct feedback
to ensure they’re reaching their
corporate objectives – whether it’s
implementing a proactive stakeholder
engagement plan, managing grievances
or monitoring regulatory compliance.
We permanently invest in RD and
release about four software updates
each year. Our clients are always
working with the most advanced
software out there. (Learn more about
Borealis Technologies: www.boreal-
is.com/technology)
Experiences, achievements or lessons
learnt that have shaped Boréalis’
journey.
Boréalis’ CEO and founder, Patrick
Grégoire was working on a major
pipeline in 1998 when he had the
creative epiphany that led to the
development of Boréalis software.
Companies were just starting to
consider community and social risk as
part of the execution of their projects –
and the implementation of international
social impact programs was still in its
nascent stage. We implemented
Boréalis software with global players
in natural resources, which quickly
validated its ability to drive results. The
company has continued to play a
leadership role in major infrastructure
initiatives around the world, including
pipelines, renewables, hydroelectric,
mining, oil gas, wind power, ports,
and railways.
Challenges in public participation
and stakeholder engagement and
Boréalis’ strategy for tackling them
Being proactive so that you can create
productive stakeholder relationships
built on mutual respect, transparency
and trust. But being proactive requires
The
10Most Recommended
Service Providers 2019
10
BoréalisBoréalis
24| April 2019|
27. “Industry-leading
stakeholder engagement
tools and expertise for
securing a social license
to operate.”
—Christine Crowe
Business Development Office
real-time access to meaningful data. You need to know who
your key stakeholder groups are, how their expectations,
opinions and level of influence are changing over time, what
regulations and standards you need to comply with, what
commitments have been made – the list goes on and on.
Most organizations now recognize the need to
systematically collect stakeholder data. But herein lies yet
another challenge. As this pile of vital data grows, it takes
the right tools to be able to easily access the pertinent
information, analyze and track it, and report it in a
meaningful way. Boréalis software is the only platform that
can turn endless piles of data into clear, actionable steps for
guiding strategy and high-level decision making.
How social media and public expectations changing the
landscape of stakeholder engagement and corporate
social responsibility
Today’s interconnected world means that people are now
aware of corporations’ activities even thousands of
kilometers away. Anyone from directly impacted
households to national governments and lenders can
influence the course of a project to varying degrees – at a
speed unheard of just a decade or two ago.
As a result, organizations are no longer treating stakeholder
engagement and CSR as an afterthought, but as essential
business functions that need to be optimized. They’re now
putting much more effort into building productive
relationships with stakeholders. They’re also turning to
AI-driven technological tools like Boréalis software to
streamline processes so that they can engage with more
stakeholders more often, without having to add more staff.
Where does Boréalis see itself in the long run?
We have helped to usher in the modern era of stakeholder
engagement and our global community of practice means
we’re at the forefront of where the field is headed. We’re
now incorporating AI learning into our software so that it
actually lessens the workload of teams, freeing them to
spend more time engaging with stakeholders rather than
manipulating data. In the long run we’re committed to
leading this space to support purpose-driven communication
strategies.
Client Feedback
“You have really shown me how the IT-solutions of the
future look like and how a very well thought through
solution service can revolutionize and speed up
implementation and change management.” – Daniel Ördén,
Solution Owner, Business Solutions/Solution Area DPOP,
IKEA Range Supply, IKEA of Sweden AB (Consumer
Goods)
About the Leader
Christine Crowe works in Boréalis’ business development
office, where she focuses on helping companies in the
energy and environment industries across the Americas meet
their environmental, social and governance (ESG)
objectives. Her technical background and international
experience performing field census work and developing
advanced fuels from waste for utilities gives her a
comprehensive view on stakeholder engagement. This
expertise is extremely valuable to organizations
implementing a proactive stakeholder engagement planning
and management tool like Boréalis to ensure sustainable
infrastructure modernization.
|25| April 2019
28.
29.
30. FD 4x4 Centre
Specialist in Light Vehicle Conversions
FD 4x4 Centre
Mining industry has
decided to go 100%
electric in underground
mining and is the first major industry
branch leaving fossil fuels behind
and embracing alternative energy
sources. FD 4x4 Centre is very
proud to be part of this transition.
FD 4x4 Centre specializes in light
vehicle conversions for the mining
industry. It offers a range of
conversions for most common light
mining vehicles as turn-key
solutions.
The best-known product of FD 4x4
Centre is the Tembo 4x4 e-LV, the
electric light vehicle based on the
Toyota Land Cruiser. It has already
been sold to mining companies
worldwide. Its conversions range
from simple vehicle safety
improvements to drivetrain and
bodywork replacements. Examples
of the custom build conversions are
mobile offices, enhanced flatbed
platforms, and primarily the electric
conversion.
FD 4x4 Centre’s own engineering
department designs heavy-duty
products, which are manufactured in-
house. It offers modifications such as
rollover protection structures
(ROPS), bumpers and protection to
drivetrain upgrades, as well as
services such as fleet management
and on-site maintenance and training.
Addressing Needs of Customers
When FD 4x4 Centre receives a new
enquiry it always go into a
conversation with the customer and
visit the mine site where the vehicle
will be used. This way it can get to
the bottom of the problem of the
customer, and take every aspect into
account to get to the best solution
and convert the vehicles for these
particular customer needs.
The example of Boliden Tara is quite
evident of FD 4x4’s commitment.
During a meeting with Boliden Tara
mine it became clear that FD 4x4
Centre had to search for a solution
for the emissions underground as the
diesels didn’t meet the regulations
anymore. And this was the start of
the 100% electric conversion project.
Wealth of Experience
FD 4x4 Centre has almost 50 years
of experience in the production of
special parts and vehicles. With the
roots of the company firmly
grounded in the local agricultural
sector, it slowly switched its focus to
off-road 4x4’s and mining industry. It
offers a complete range of services,
4x4 accessories and 4x4 spares for
private owners and professional
customers, government and aid
relief organizations. With
experienced mechanics, a competent
metal workshop and state of art CAD
designers it can help clients with all
their needs. It offers good quality
parts with great value for money.
100% Electrical Conversion
The mining industry has a bad
reputation regarding health and
environment conditions and has to
comply with legislation which is
becoming stricter every year. As a
result the biggest challenge is to
bring down the exhaust emissions
underground, therefor FD 4x4 Centre
developed a 100% electrical
conversion of the Toyota Hilux and
Land Cruiser, the Tembo 4x4 e-LV.
Reducing Carbon Emission
FD 4x4 Centre’s CEO Frank
Daams has a very clear vision of
how the light vehicles in the mining
industry should be implemented and
The
10Most Recommended
Service Providers 2019
10
28| April 2019|
31. “FD 4x4 Centre is a leading
specialist in light vehicle
conversions for
the mining industry.”
—Frank Daams
CEO
converted to 100% electric to reduce the mining
industries carbon footprint. Reducing carbon emissions
results into major benefits like clean and safe working
environment and effective cost reducing by lower
maintenance and operational costs and less downtime.
Since 2014 Frank Daams is in charge of FD 4x4 Centre,
putting emphasis on in-house production and special
projects for clients all over the world.
Frank owns FD 4x4 Centre together with his wife
Tineke. He says, “We try to look ahead 5 to 10 years and
prepare for the changes we see in society. It gives us a
lead in many fields, for instance in the mining sector and
with the Tembo 4x4 e-LV. All our projects are teamwork.
I want everyone here to enjoy their work and be proud of
what we produce. We get a lot of trust from our clients,
they allow us to make fantastic projects.”
Electrification of Light Mining Vehicles
FD 4x4 Centre will be seen as the industry’s leading
company in electrification of light mining vehicles. It is
currently working hard to expand its global network of
local partners and have set up strategic partnerships in
the big mining countries. The future goal of FD 4x4
Centre is to completely develop and build a dedicated
100% electric mining vehicles in house, under its own
Tembo 4x4 e-LV label.
Broad Vision for Future
FD 4x4 Centre is ambitious and has a skilled workforce,
that looks ahead constantly. It delivers quality products
and innovative solutions for the 4x4 and off-road market
of tomorrow. Its aim is to become one of the top
producers of off-road products and accessories. For its
clients it offers a complete package from design to
production and maintenance, all under one roof. If a part
or product is not yet on the market, FD 4x4 Centre can
make it for clients based on their requirement. FD 4x4
Centre wants to distinguish themselves by the high level
of knowledge in products and the market and also
envisions finding innovative solutions.
|29| April 2019
33. C
an one learn leadership? Every winter semester
I pull my students through the whole spectrum
of “Leadership Theory Parts I and II”:
Taylorism; French Raven; Blanchard; McGregor;
Maslow et al. At the end of the semester I have them test
their knowledge in a tricky exercise involving a climbing
rope and blindfolds. They have to – whilst blindfolded –
form, storm, norm and perform as a team and lay the
rope (which they are not allowed to let go of) in a
predetermined shape on the ground. And yes, they
always achieve the objective – one way or another. In
contrast I have experienced this exercise as a team
member of highly paid and experienced managers and
witnessed first-hand the utter failure to even manage a
plan, let alone achieve even half of the objective.
Although to be fair, what the managers did achieve (as
opposed to the students), was a whopping great conflict
of personal differences, with which the rest of the
seminar was used to sort out. So what was the difference
between these two groups?
A business acquaintance of mine once introduced me to
the “power of trust” as a basic concept of leadership. He
argued that if there is no trust between the leader and the
led, then the possibilities for sustainable leadership are
extremely limited and indeed most probably restricted to
a short period. Without trust in human relationships there
is however a form of leadership and to reference French
Leadership skills
essential for
organizational growth
and Raven, it is the positional power of coerciveness and
reward – the proverbial carrot and stick. That works for a
while as long as the (micro) manager exclusively owns
the processes and information as a means of control. I
believe in the long run, this strategy fails. No (high
performing) employee deliberately hangs around for
very long in such a situation. I’ve seen this happen
numerous times.
Again considering the group of students and the
experienced managers with their climbing ropes and
blindfolds, what I perceived was extreme differences in
levels of trust. The students – in their seventh semester –
were close-nit. They were just entering their final thesis,
they have common objectives and after 3 and half years
spent on campus, an intrinsic trust to one another. In
contrast the managers came from varying business units
of a large company and were “thrown” together to
improve their leadership skills and develop as a
leadership group within the company. Each manager had
his (the group was all male) own agenda and personal
career objectives etc. Each was competing for power and
influence before the board. Instead of collaborating to
achieve the climbing rope objective, all the micro-
politics came out in the exercise and trashed any trust
that might have been there at the outset. The evening log
fire at the beach was a flop.
Trust is the key for sustainable development of organizations
|31| April 2019
Leader's Take
34. rust as a subject is rationally difficult to grasp. It
Tis one of those things we intuitively feel as being
present (or not) in human relationships. To get a
grip on the term, let us start with Peter Drucker’s
definition of management “turning resources into
production”. Now consider that what leadership does in a
company is to apply strategies (resources) to achieve
objectives (production). On the one hand the objectives
should be such that they inspire people, bringing out
their best qualities both in skills and collaboration.
Secondly and as a rule, it is the leader who drives the
strategy in order to achieve those objectives and this is
the key area where trust within the team and across
teams can emerge. It is the means utilized to achieve the
ends that define so much about an enterprise. There are
of course coercive means, non-compliant means, even
illegal means etc., thus the old excuse for bad behavior
“the ends justify the means”. In such an environment sub
groups form, secrecy becomes endemic and there can
only be mistrust and suspicion between people.
Approaching the skill of leadership whith consideration
of social and ecological factors allows decisions to be
made under the reflection for example, of waste
reduction, for the good of the many, for sustainable
growth etc. In utilizing social and ecological factors in
decision-making processes, our unique human form of
emotional intelligence is an influential force that
significantly influences behavior both of oneself as a
leader, and as a member of the collective (the business
unit being led). Over time common values and
understanding emerge in the group, which in turn
develop (forms and storms) and fortifies the culture (the
norms), thus producing the high performance unit that
every person blessed with the opportunity to lead can
aspire to. If you get there it’s the best job in the world!
Trust is a human trait that is available to us all. You can’t
simply buy it by attending a leadership seminar, doing an
MBA or reading a book. Trust has to be earned and
shared unconditionally as a gift. It can be rejected,
withheld, it is breakable and can be destroyed in a
second. Yet for all its non-tangibility and fragility, it has
more power to achieve than anything else in the
leadership toolbox.
About the Author
Mark Rees is the Chief Operating
Ofcer at Secucloud GmbH,
Hamburg. In his last position Mark
Rees was Managing Director of E-POST
Development GmbH in Berlin, a
subsidiary of Deutsche Post. There, he
led an international team comprised
of several hundred employees in agile
DevOps development teams, and was
responsible for employee direction, as
well as the entire budget in the areas
of IT security, DevOps, quality
assurance, operations and user
experience. In his work as COO at
Secucloud, Rees applies his expertise
in agile leadership and his many
years of experience in interdisciplinary
IT organizations in the Media and IT
security industries.
32| April 2019|
35.
36. Utilizing Data and Technology to Improve Productivity
Real-time data analysis is
proving to be a point of
difference for Brisbane based
Interlate, and according to the
company’s Director of Strategy,
George McCullough, this live
reaction to changes in the value chain
provides outstanding results.
Recently Mr. McCullough explained
how Interlate is integrating their
platform with the operations teams of
mines around the country and detailed
how Interlate’s systems work to
identify potential efficiencies.
Feedback to Operations Teams
The data revolution is sweeping the
mining sector, with Interlate at the
forefront of the charge, taking a
holistic view of the complete value
chain for mines.
By not only looking at live data, but
also historical information, as well as
the context of a given mine’s
processes, Interlate provides around
the clock feedback to operations teams
in real time.
While there may not necessarily be
anything fundamentally wrong with the
procedures of a given operation,
Interlate’s systems work to find
possible efficiencies that can
significantly impact on productivity, or
operating costs. The company
estimates that of the 1,400 mineral
processing plants globally,
improvements are possible in 70% of
those facilities.
Acknowledged Leadership
George has a mining technical
background with significant
operational experience in applying
technology to improve productivity. He
has international experience across a
range of commodities and mining
methods.
Leading on from his operational
experience, he has had roles in
consulting, product development,
marketing and executive management
for a variety of international mining
services and technology companies.
George is an acknowledged leader who
relishes in working with high
performance teams to create solutions
for complex problems. He is an
enthusiastic advocate of adopting
solutions and technologies from
outside industries.
Taking an Alternate Approach
George McCullough, the Director of
Strategy for Interlate, explains that by
looking at the overall value chain of a
given mine in real-time, inefficient
sections can be more accurately
identified.
While a traditional approach to data
analysis sees isolated portions of a
mine scrutinised, Interlate seeks to
minimise disruptions over the entire
production chain.
George said, “By having a total picture
of what’s happening we can find
patterns, which gives us insight to how
mining operations can improve.
The operations teams can react to those
insights in the right timeframe and
increase their productivity.
Also, by having access to the right
information when operations teams
need it, they can avoid potential
stoppages or downtime. In that way,
delivering data in the right timeframe
can actually reduce operations’ risk.”
Tunnel Vision
A core strength of Interlate is the fact
that the company’s staff come from
operational backgrounds, and thus,
understand the constraints and stresses
of the task.
While the attention of operations teams
is on mine safety and continual
operation, often focus can be lost on
the bigger picture.
George said, “We’re not in any way
implying that people are doing
something wrong in their operations
teams, it’s just that in our experience
there is a lot of local optimisation;
people focus on the things that they
know. They take care of those
components, but they are not
necessarily aware of downstream
impacts of their decisions, or what is
happening in other areas of that value
chain.
In our experience, the cause of
inefficiency is not incompetence; it’s
being limited to a view of your local
area of operations, rather than an
overarching perspective.”
The
10Most Recommended
Service Providers 2019
10
InterlateInterlate
34| April 2019|
37. “The operations teams
can react to those
insights in the right
timeframe and increase
their productivity.”
—George McCullough
Director of Strategy
The Advantage of Live
Core to Interlate’s advantage is the live feedback the
company’s systems provide to the mines.
Some forms of data analysis can look to improve
performance down the track, but Interlate seeks to add
value as events are unfolding.
George said, “The mining companies in general are pretty
good at doing real time data acquisition. Interlate adds
value by taking that real time data acquisition, and putting it
through some pretty sophisticated analytics - we’ve got
experts that can look for improvements, and then we can
deliver that back in the same timeframe as the data is being
collected.”
Looking Back to Look Forward
While Interlate’s point of difference is in live feedback, that
information can only be made possible via insight into the
history of the mine.
Working from a baseline of previous data, Interlate
combines many factors from the mine site to seek
efficiencies.
George continued, “There’s actually quite a bit more
involved than purely ones and zeroes in data; a part of that
historical component is the actual operating context of the
site, and this is a key feature of how Interlate works.
We are very different in our approach to traditional
consulting companies; we don’t do analysis in isolation and
hand over a result, we literally become an extension of the
operations team.
Getting that historical data, but also the operating context, is
what helps us deliver meaningful insights to the operations.”
The Human Factor
As the digital transformation and continuing progression of
automation makes waves in the mining sector, one factor is
often overlooked – the human decision-making process.
“From the Interlate perspective, you cannot gloss over the
role of people, which is still driving productivity. That is
really the core of our business, one of our central
philosophies.
When a company makes a decision, it’s a person who makes
the decision: a real person, not a machine. People are still
vitally important in making decisions that are going to have
huge impacts on companies and their productivity.
Data can help those people make decisions more
confidently, and make better decisions quicker, by getting
real-time insights to those people.”
|35| April 2019
39. In the year 1450, when Blacksmith Johannes Gutenberg
first introduced a movable type press in the German
city of Mainz, a printing revolution had got erupted.
This invention encouraged more people to proliferate and
distribute their creative/informative ideas though printed
texts. Sooner, plethora of work related to literature,
religious scriptures, scientific papers, ontological treaties,
law texts among other started publishing out in the
European region which later got adopted globally at large
scale and helped individuals and others to promote/sell their
ideas.
This printing revolution still considered as one of the most
important event in the history of printing and for the
humankind as a whole. With the passage of time many
other inventions have been taken places that have boosted
the printing business at large.
Here we have enlisted some of the recent developments that
are worth mentioning, and which are also considered as a
turning point for the arena of printing business.
Nano Printing:
3D printing has witnessed many remarkable breakthroughs
in recent years, Nano printing is one such innovation. Due
to this cutting-edge printing technology it is now possible to
print and integrate tiny components directly on to the
integrated circuits include micro-lenses onto photonic
circuits and deformable structures on MEMS actuators.
Interestingly, what was a dream some decades ago has
become a reality with this technology as it is now possible
to print microscopic objects with complex geometry and
sizes of nanometres to several millimetres. Such things can
be printed on a single printing step and that too on a scale
which was not possible before. Such innovative change of
on-printing brings new perspectives for developing nano
and microscopic 3D component in a hassle free manner.
|37| April 2019
Editor’s Choice
40. Moreover, its application has significance in many vital
areas including Artificial Organs, Tissue Engineering, Stem
cell-based Regenerative Medicine and Therapy, Fabrication
of Nano Scale Devices among other. Customers also reap
huge benefit by utilizing this technology as it provides great
precision, stability, and support 3D custom design at large
scale.
How this Technology Works?
In this printing technology, Nanoscribe’s Photonic
Professional GT system uses the technique of two-photon
polymerization. In this process a laser gets expose to a
photosensitive resin by a high-numerical aperture objective
that too in a controlled trajectory following CAD design.
The interesting thing here is that the material gets solidified
only in the laser focused spot and thus allows printing the
exact 3D structure with submicron features. Such
advancements have expanded the use of this technique for
printing pre-manufactured circuits and opens new ways for
executing on-chip printing as well. Nanotechnology for
printing – is truly innovative as it alters materials at the
atomic and molecular level.
Water-based Printing:
Many printing technologies use inks made from harmful
chemical substances which creates negative impact on the
printer, wearer and the environment at large. Usage of harsh
chemicals and toxic waste also always keep various
regulatory agencies on vigil. Therefore, there was a dire
need of a technique which can do a fine printing by
minimizing the bad effects on environment at large. The
birth of water-based printing fulfilled that need.
The innovation of water-based printing has started a new
era in printing space which is hugely considered as
environment friendly. In this technology, the ink is not
made of plastic and other damaging petroleum or fossil
fuels; instead ‘water’ here is act as the main solvent and
thus makes it an environment friendly printing technology.
Moreover, what are making this technology scalable and
popular are its other fascinating features famously includes
its fine print quality and affordability over the other
prevailing printing technologies.
Its solvents decrease the time and heat necessary to absorb
the ink film on fabric and instead of just spreading on the
outer layer of the fabric, its ink flow deep into the fabric
and create a much better look and ultimately a much better
end-user experience. Further, water based inks are thinner
and you can actually print with higher precision to give a
good texture as compared to thicker inks like plastisol.
Moreover, the increased softness and flexibility of water-
based prints have the potential to win customers heart every
time when they touch a fabric printed using this technology.
Many leading organization are considering this technology
over plastisol and it is just the matter of time before this
technology becomes an industry standard in the printing
business.
Conductive Ink:
Invention of conductive ink is one the greatest milestones in
the business of printing and it has the potential to change
thefuture of printing business as well.
What’s unique in this technology is its ‘ink’ which contains
conductive materials like silver nanoparticles or conductive
polymers which gives them the ability to conduct
electricity. This conductive (Silver) ink has multiple uses
today including printing RFID tags as used in modern
transit tickets, they can be used to improvise or repair
circuits on printed circuit boards as well. Although, this
technology is in early stage and its mainstream adoption
may probably takes several years but it is a promising
technique which can be effectively used in many different
applications including the creation of interactive posters,
billboards, and other advertising materials.
Interestingly, this technology also holds promise to play
sound just by touching a paper or connect you to your
phone app just by interacting with a poster on the wall that
is linked to the app. Moreover, it has the same capacitive
sensing technology that is present in modern day electronic
devices like tablets, smartphones among others.
38| April 2019|
41.
42. Civil Engineering Software for Haul Access Road Design Optimization
In an Interview with Insights
Success, David Mills, Co-
founder of Softree Technical
Systems, describes the journey of
Softree Technical Systems and about
its contribution to the software
industry. Softree Technical Systems
develops and supports high quality
software tools for engineers working
on corridor based projects such as
roads, pipelines, and railways.
Applications of Softree products have
been utilized by engineers in the civil,
forestry, oil and gas, military,
government and mining industries. Its
engineering team focuses on
developing innovative solutions to
problems its clients face on a day to
day basis. Softree is dedicated to
working with its clients to keeping the
standard of its software to the highest
possible level. It prides itself on
keeping its programs light, fast, and
easy to use.
Below are the highlights of the
interview between David Mills and
Insights Success.
Give a brief overview of your
company, its solutions and services.
Softree is a developer of engineering
software in both civil and natural
resources markets, including forestry
and mining. Softree has been providing
innovative software solutions for
surveying, mapping and civil
engineering for more than 25 years. We
develop software that is innovative and
powerful. We’re always trying to tackle
new large and complex engineering
problems. But leave the complicated
stuff to us. Our software works hard
behind the scenes so that our users can
always enjoy a simple and intuitive
interface.
Softree has three core products:
RoadEng - Softree’s road and site
design software. It is ideal for
applications in resource industries:
forestry, mining, and energy. RoadEng
allows for the geometric design of
ramps, access roads and haul roads
with constant feedback from real-time
window interactivity.
Softree Optimal - Softree Optimal is a
vertical alignment optimization
program that runs as an add-on for
RoadEng, or other civil design
products. Ideal for haul and access
road optimization, it generates the
lowest cost vertical alignment based on
the ground surface, the horizontal
alignment, and the design parameters
and constraints entered by the user. It
will bring down road construction
costs by 10-30% or more.
Terrain Tools – Terrain Tools is a
software toolkit for 3D mapping,
terrain modelling and land
development. Fully geo-referenced, it
reads a variety of formats including
LiDAR, Shape, DWG and images.
Alongside TIN and contour map
creation, it offers a variety of simple
but powerful features available for site
design and grading. Create 3D
surfaces: terracing, channels, ditches,
pads or sub-surface zones.
Describe the ways in which your
mining solutions are focused on
being customer centric.
Our software is designed for the
engineer, not a CAD Tech. Also, by
using it, mining companies are able to
design their access and haul roads
faster, in house, and at a lower cost.
Describe the experiences,
achievements or lessons learnt that
have shaped the journey of your
company.
The core goal of our company is to
develop software tools that are easier
to use.
Other CAD-based civil design software
systems try to do too much. More is no
longer better. I read a survey recently
of CAD-based design users and it
revealed that only a fraction of the
software’s functionality is used. In
many cases, users weren’t even aware
if their software could do a specific
function, much less how to go about
doing it.
Our goal is to avoid that – we often
take functions and features out of the
software if they are not important. Our
software is easy to use, easy to
complete your project.
What are the evident challenges in
the mining industry and what are
your company’s strategies to tackle
these challenges?
Access road and haul roads represent a
significant cost to mining operations.
Designing lower cost roads (in terms of
earthworks) and better roads to reduce
cycle times are important to us.
RoadEng with our optimization add-on
included can do just that!
Our software allows engineers to
design the lowest-cost haul road design
that satisfies their design constraints
standards. Optimization technology
The
10Most Recommended
Service Providers 2019
10
Softree Technical SystemsSoftree Technical Systems
40| April 2019|
43. automates the creation of your vertical alignment and can
bring down construction costs by 10-30% or more.
What is your perception on mining exploration in
relation to climate change?
Access and haul roads, along with the actual mines
themselves, create a lasting mark on our physical landscape.
It is important to us to create tools that allow the engineer to
best determine the location of the roads and to minimize the
earthworks involved in creating them.
Designing an efficient haul road is of critical importance.
Haul roads in both their construction and more so in their
use, are a tremendous cost in mining. The cost and total
emissions from transporting the mined materials can vary
greatly depending on the design of the road.
Where does Softree Technical Systems see itself in the
long run and/or what are its future goals?
Softree is focused on continuing our development of easy to
use engineering software tools and leadership in the area of
corridor optimization. We are nearly to market with the next
level of alignment optimization, horizontal optimization.
And we are very excited!
Client Testimonials
McElhanney discovered “RoadEng” while looking for an
easier way to deliver resource based road designs. Years
ago, we tested the software with immediate success, going
from watching training modules on the weekend to project
delivery without delay in the following weeks.
Since that time, it has quickly become a company-wide
standard tool for the design of linear based projects
including resource roads, construction access, pad design,
pipelines, pedestrian trails, etc. We regularly us it to manage
large LiDAR base plans, conceptual engineering,
earthworks balance, and preparation of final drawings (plan-
profile-cross sections-mass haul). We believe its greatest
strengths are how easy it is to learn and fine-tune design
alignments. The ability to have the plan, profile, cross
section, and mass haul open at the same time provides a
great visual aid for designers which leads to more effective
designs. The addition of “Optimal” provides valued
engineering for large projects based on a wide range of
criteria by automating the process. The Softree team is
friendly and provides great support.”
– Jason Paquette, AScT, Senior Technologist, McElhanney
Consulting Services Ltd
Softree sticks to its word in providing a “Clean Simple
Approach”. As they say “The key to good software is its
ability to deliver power without complexity”. So true! I
highly recommend Softree, and we are proud to be a client.”
– Matt Mahoney Design Engineer Franklin County Public
Works Department, Franklin County, WA
“We really like the ease of use of RoadEng, it lets us try a
variety of alignment options and quickly provides us with
material quantities differences” “The software is relatively
easy to use, with minimal time invested in learning and
maximum time spend on design optimization.”
– Travis Peterson, Canada Projects Limited, Calgary, AB
About the Leader
David Mills, P.Eng is a principal in the company. He does a
little of everything at times, Mostly software design,
development, testing, support and documentation.
“Easy to use
engineering software
solutions.”
—David Mills
P.Eng,Software Engineer Co-founder
|41| April 2019
44. 3D
This Chinese proverb already made sense thousands
of years ago, when a certain wick sucked up oil of a
defined viscosity – and it certainly helped finding
new customers for the seller’s oil. This principle has always
been utilized; think of the razor blade, game console sellers,
mobile phone service providers –or 2D Printer producers
offering the machine even at a loss, knowing the specially
designed cartridge will more than compensate for the poor
hardware deal by selling the modern oil: The ink.
Unfortunately today’s giant chemists like BASF, Covestro,
Evonik and the like believe in the “Open Platform
Initiative” of the new sun in the 3D printing sky, Hewlett
Packard. This is certainly a good deal for HP, as they
already lost reputation during the years they couldn’t
deliver -after having announced their new technology way
before. Realizing their patents and building the machine
became a nightmare, thousands of unplanned man-years
went into this endeavor; and the big players on the chemical
side didn't really know how to access the market that was so
young, undeveloped –and still doesn’t show a clear path as
to what technology will “win”. So the chemists tested the
waters with HP, and it looks as if both sides have found a
winning position.
Why then “unfortunately”?
Because both sides will fail: If you dig into the annual
reports, truth is that the printer sellers make their profit
margin on the oil side –they need to sell consumables in
order to finance RD and machine production. On the other
hand the chemists produce their oil, well adapted to the
machinist’s needs. Should the hardware partner face
economical reality and be forced to achieve margin by
taking the nice consumables business into his own hands,
the chemist will realize how helpful he was –and how
helpless he is now.
And there is even a third loser: The 3D printing r/evolution
is retarded! The machinist only knows his kingdom, he
creates machines. But 3D printing is about chemistry, the
oil is king, for sure! So the chemist should invent the new
technologies, as he defines the ingredients of tomorrow’s
magic substances, enabling incredible properties. Carbon3D
is a good example here, his founder, Joseph Desimone, is a
chemist, the well funded company received over $ 400 mn
and is a unicorn, showing a pre IPO value easily surpassing
$ 1 bn.
So chemistry it is! The next revolutionary printing step
will be brought to life by a chemist’s imagination.
This is why these big players need the courage to add a
hardware leg and start tinkering with prototypes. They
cannot wait for the machinist to tell them what material
they need, neither for customers cozing their wishes. In the
end product producers don’t care about machines,
technologies and chemistry, all they need is affordable
“To sell the oil, give away the lamp!”
WHY
3DPrintingConsumables Producers need to get involved in
PRINTING TECHNOLOGIES?
42| April 2019|
45. material properties for production methods that
need less post processing, like assembly. The
time is in favor of intelligent more complex
design, the chemistry can offer the properties, but
the hardware is lacking speed, reliability and
affordability. That is why 3D printing didn’t
climb up the industrial ladder and injection
molding still isn’t replaceable.
In consequence, hardware is the chemist’s “must
have”, as it is the chemistry that defines the
printing rules, the algorithms, and the speed. It all
starts with the combination of molecules, and the
hardware is the necessary evil the chemist needs
to bring to a working prototype level; a TRL 5
(technology readiness level, 5=technology
demonstrator) would already be sufficient, so the
baton can be passed on to the professional
machinist for optimization of the hardware side.
This is exactly what we do at Geniusthingks.
With a bucket full of 3D Printing inventions we
don’t talk to printer producers, but to chemists at
first. They give all the necessary input to
determine material properties and speeds. We
offer technologies from FDM filament heads
mixing colors and materials, to huge daylight
resin printers, gel pushing robots for prototypes
surpassing 100 m³ of print volume, house
printing robots -and our specialty: drum printers
that will replace these lame ducks of planar
printers, ac/decelerating for every layer.
Printer design will see a paradigm shift in the
coming years, when chemistry allows for faster
layers than today’s machines can offer
mechanically due to their physical limits.
Industrial production needs to come close to
injection molding speeds plus assembly time, so
layer-speeds of 100 m/sec need to be achieved.
This is more than a breakneck speed for the
current producers; with HP offering
7.55sec/layer, claiming to be 10 times faster than
the next fastest machine, their “industrial” future
doesn’t look too bright.
Geniusthingks however has filed several patents
potentially surpassing this requirement and is
looking for partners to realize the prototypes.
Markus Ulrich is the
Founder and CEO of
Geniusthingks. His think
tank offers unconventional
solutions for tough nuts to
crack, mainly in the 3D
printing and smart bullet
weapons-industry. Markus
studied mechanical
engineering, founded and
led an IT-database
company for 13 years and
built machines all his life.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Markus Ulrich
Founder CEO
Geniusthingks
|43| April 2019
Mentor’s Standpoint