Hexagon secures mine safety award at 2025 Mining Technology Excellence Awards

Hexagon, a worldwide leader in precision technology, has been honoured as a category award winner at the 2025 Mining Technology Excellence Awards.

In the mining sector, safety remains a top priority. The industry faces unique challenges such as extended work hours, heavy machinery, and operator fatigue, which demand innovative solutions to safeguard personnel while boosting efficiency. Hexagon has distinguished itself in this field, earning the safety award in the Integrated safety category.

These awards celebrate notable accomplishments and innovations driving progress in mining. Supported by GlobalData’s business intelligence, they recognize companies and individuals shaping the industry's future through transformative changes.

Hexagon received the accolade for creating a comprehensive platform that tackles operator fatigue and elevates mine safety through cutting-edge technology, data insights, and effective change management.

Dave Goddard, executive vice president of mining, said in an interview with Mining Technology: "Like our customers, Hexagon believes that people are a mine’s most important asset. Our safety solutions lead the market, but technology is just one layer of mine safety. Change management and data insights are essential, too. What makes our safety partnerships successful is the shared understanding that even when solutions are integrated, operators must still be engaged and re-engaged in a cycle of continuous improvement.”

Hexagon’s Safety Solutions Hexagon has engineered an integrated platform that combines diverse safety systems, including collision avoidance, operator alertness monitoring, personal protection, and vehicle intervention. This holistic approach provides a sturdy safety framework, protecting both workers and assets.

A key component is its collision avoidance system (CAS), which has the largest global installation base with over 65,000 units deployed across more than 100 open-pit and underground mines. This widespread adoption demonstrates its scalability and effectiveness. CAS offers 360-degree situational awareness using sophisticated sensors to detect potential collisions in real-time — an essential feature in environments where dust, fog, or other factors can impede visibility.

Hexagon’s operator alertness system (OAS) complements CAS by employing machine-learning algorithms to continuously monitor operators’ alertness levels. It analyzes sensor data to identify signs of distraction or drowsiness and issues immediate alerts. This proactive measure plays a crucial role in reducing fatigue-related incidents, which constitute a significant portion of mining accidents. For example, Gold Fields Ghana achieved a 91% drop in fatigue-related incidents after implementing both OAS and CAS at its Tarkwa operation, underscoring the practical benefits of these safety technologies.

Hexagon’s commitment to OEM-agnostic solutions ensures its safety systems can be integrated into diverse fleets and adaptable to various site conditions. This flexibility enables mining companies to maintain uniform safety and productivity standards without being constrained by equipment brands.

Hexagon’s ability to interface with multiple original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) means its systems can be adopted with minimal modifications to existing machinery. This approach promotes a safety-first culture across operations while supporting ongoing technological advancements.

As mining moves toward digitalization and automation, Hexagon continually updates its systems to address emerging challenges, ensuring customers benefit not only from current safety solutions but also from future innovations.

Hexagon’s collaborations with major mining firms showcase the tangible advantages of its safety solutions. At Gold Fields Ghana’s Tarkwa mine, deploying OAS and CAS significantly lowered fatigue-related incidents. The Safety & Occupational Hygiene Manager emphasized that the detailed insights from these tools allowed targeted safety improvements, fostering a stronger safety culture.

Similarly, Codelco’s Chuquicamata mine relies on CAS to enhance operator safety while maintaining high productivity. As one of the largest open-pit copper mines globally, with a workforce of around 10,000 since its inception in 1910, implementing CAS has helped prevent vehicle interactions, ensuring safety does not hinder operational efficiency.

At MMG’s Rosebery mine in Tasmania, OAS has been instrumental in managing operator fatigue in a challenging underground environment. Its tailored application not only monitors fatigue but also supplies valuable data, enabling proactive risk mitigation.

These examples demonstrate Hexagon’s ability to deliver impactful safety solutions that address the mining industry’s critical needs. Through close partnerships and continuous improvements driven by data insights and change management, Hexagon is redefining safety standards in mining operations.

More information is posted on www.Hexagon.com/mining.

Information about the Mining Technology Excellence Awards is posted at www.Mining-Technology.com/excellence-awards/awards/2025-submissions-open/?cf-view