Stronger collaboration, localisation and know-how adoption are wanted to assist South Africa construct a extra aggressive mining gear manufacturing sector, mining gear producers’ cluster the South African Mining Tools Producers (MEMSA) highlighted at its Thoughts Shift Convention 2026, held on the IDC Convention Centre, in Sandton, on Could 21.
The convention brings collectively role-players from the mining and manufacturing industries, academia, youth and labour organisations, authorities and the abilities sector to construct a shared understanding of mining of the longer term.
Delivering the welcome tackle, MEMSA chairperson Matimba Mahange famous that the cluster’s tenth anniversary got here at a time when South Africa wanted to maneuver past consuming know-how and in the direction of growing, proudly owning and exporting it.
“MEMSA was established to strengthen South Africa’s mining gear manufacturing business via collaboration, localisation, innovation and industrial development,” he said.
Mahange added that South Africa had already demonstrated robust mining and engineering functionality via deep-level mining, however wanted to take a extra deliberate strategy to industrial readiness.
He emphasised that firms, establishments and sectors might now not innovate in isolation, as the way forward for mining could be constructed via linked ecosystems, shared information and collective management.
That message formed a lot of the primary day’s discussions, as audio system linked South Africa’s mining competitiveness to its means to undertake AI and different applied sciences in ways in which enhance security, assist native manufacturing, strengthen worth chains and put together employees for altering roles.
Through the first panel dialogue, titled ‘Mining the Future: Is Africa Prepared for the AI Revolution Underground?’, digital transformation and know-how firm Smartops Options CEO Mahene Patrice Benzane framed AI adoption as a broader mining problem, somewhat than a technology-only problem.
He defined that AI raised questions on security, jobs, coverage and competitiveness, significantly as mines turned extra automated, data-driven and depending on real-time decision-making.
The panel additionally warned that AI adoption couldn’t be separated from the sector’s readiness to make use of it responsibly.
Mining analysis organisation Mandela Mining Precinct government director Julie Courtnage cautioned that South African mining was not but prepared for AI at full scale. She acknowledged although that no mining jurisdiction might but be described as absolutely AI-native.
“Globally, mining continues to be between superior experimentation, selective piloting and scaling, whereas South Africa stays earlier on the AI maturity curve and continues to face gaps in infrastructure, expertise and governance.
“AI governance is due to this fact essential,” she confused.
That governance problem was linked intently to security, with audio system arguing that AI’s worth would rely on whether or not it might assist mines act earlier and extra successfully.
Mine Well being and Security Council analysis and centre of excellence supervisor Fleckson Magweregwede identified that AI might assist the mining sector transfer from reactive well being and security administration to predictive and proactive threat administration.
He famous that AI might help mines in figuring out high-risk areas earlier than incidents occurred, however cautioned that know-how shouldn’t be adopted on a whim.
As a substitute, every know-how must be backed by a transparent worth proposition and a sensible understanding of the issue it was meant to unravel, he emphasised.
Whereas security was one of many clearest areas for AI use, audio system additionally pointed to the know-how’s position in enhancing useful resource discovery and operational competitiveness.
Coal analysis affiliation Coaltech CEO Avhurengwi Nenegovhela said that AI might considerably scale back the time required for geological modelling and useful resource estimation work.
“Management wants to grasp AI as a aggressive instrument, significantly the place it might assist the business ask new questions of present geological info and enhance the velocity of decision-making,” he argued.
The deal with competitiveness continued in the course of the second panel dialogue, titled ‘Good Mines, Stronger Worth Chains’, the place audio system moved past AI readiness to think about the broader programs wanted to assist good mining and localisation.
Mining enterprise improvement organisation Lepharo CEO Zenzo Nkomo noticed that good know-how was now not an idea for the longer term, however had already develop into the norm in fashionable industrial environments.
This shift, audio system famous, would have an effect on not solely mine operations, but additionally the producers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) anticipated to produce gear, elements and companies into more and more digitised mining worth chains.
Diversified mining firm Seriti Sources CEO and FutureCoal chairperson Mike Teke defined that laws might assist innovation when session was correctly carried out and when applied sciences aligned with enterprise technique and worker wants.
The panel additionally thought of how know-how convergence might enhance mining efficiency.
Scientific analysis organisation the Council for Scientific and Industrial Analysis (CSIR) mining cluster government supervisor Bongi Ntsoelengoe highlighted the position of automation, sensors, digital twins and decision-support instruments in enhancing productiveness and security.
Nonetheless, mining analysis centre African Analysis Centre for Ore System Science director Professor Glen Nwaila cautioned that know-how and AI alone wouldn’t remedy mining’s challenges with out functionality improvement.
This want for functionality prolonged past mining firms, as audio system additionally linked future competitiveness to communities and SMEs.
Consulting firm Siyakha Consulting CEO Dionne Kerr Malherbe confused that mining communities wanted to be built-in into future worth chains, somewhat than remaining depending on mining operations.
For SMEs looking for to take part in these worth chains, mental property legislation agency Spoor & Fisher patent lawyer and companion Louw Steyn defined that correct IP safety and enforcement methods had been wanted from the outset, significantly when firms showcased applied sciences domestically or internationally.
The query of how innovation could possibly be paid for, and whether or not it might assist profitability, was explored in the course of the third panel dialogue, titled ‘Innovation or Margin? Making Sustainability Pay in Mining’.
Growth finance establishment ECIC head of enterprise improvement Portia Dube framed the dialogue round whether or not innovation might strengthen the underside line in a capital-intensive business going through fixed price stress.
Know-how firm CrystalForge MD Ahmed Kader argued that innovation and margin didn’t must work in opposition to one another, offered applied sciences had been applied in ways in which revered engineering first rules.
He stated the enterprise case remained central to proving whether or not a know-how would create worth in a particular operation.
Skilled affiliation Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy president Gary Lane equally cautioned that mining firms wanted to maintain investing in innovation for long-term sustainability and margin safety, even during times of short-term finances stress.
He warned that poor enterprise instances and weak understanding of worth streams might end in firms spending closely on AI or different applied sciences with out producing the anticipated returns.
The ultimate session of the day, a CSIR fireplace chat titled ‘Innovation is just not a recreation for one’, returned to the collaboration theme raised in Mahange’s opening tackle, with audio system specializing in expertise, commercialisation and the hyperlink between analysis and business adoption.
Business physique Minerals Council South Africa senior coverage analyst Brian Ncube remarked that innovation required stakeholders throughout the mining ecosystem to work collectively to extend worth.
