The applications have been opened this week for Challenge, the Mining Lab program that is an initiative from Nexa Resources. This initiative aims to support entrepreneurs in the process of developing technological innovations for the mining and metallurgy industry. The applications are open to companies, startups, scientific and technological institutions that have projects and solutions focused on three categories. Applications can be made up to August 5th on the site https://www.mininglab.com.br/challenge/
Last year, despite all the challenges imposed by the pandemic, the program had 178 solutions as applicants. The Mining Lab Challenge, which is in its 7th edition, aims to develop proposals that are capable of enabling, solving and enhancing the company’s goals and objectives in the mid and long term.
According to Caio Van Deursen, Nexa Resources’ Innovation manager, Mining Lab boosts its innovation ecosystem inside and outside the mining sector. “When we announce our challenges, we point to the future. With new partnerships, we’ll continue to transform our operations in a way that’s aligned to our ESG vision”, he claims.
Check out the eight challenges proposed for the 2021 Mining Lab Challenge:
Productivity and safety
1. Incrustation elimination: In this challenge, the program seeks technologies that significantly reduce or eliminate the incrustation in pipes, which reduce the flow.
2. Underground to surface data transmission: The challenge is to find transformational alternatives that reduce the necessity of communication with the surface or that increase the transmission of data from underground at a low cost.
3. Warning systems in self-rescue zones in Peru: The self-rescue zones are regions that may be affected in the case of accidents with deposits. With this, the program will select technologies that allow the company to communicate efficiently and safely with the population.
4. Increasing the use and physical availability of our mobile equipment fleet: The program seeks technologies capable of increasing the availability of equipment or that ensure the operators are trained up. Moreover, coordinating all of this system dynamically is also part of the challenge. The solutions must be simple to implement and have the minimum infrastructure necessities.
5. Monitoring activities and mapping behavioral gaps regarding safety: The challenge is to find technologies that are capable of monitoring activities and mapping behavioral gaps, producing indicators that assist in action plans or worker awareness.
Using zinc
6. Innovations in reduction and control of corrosion in structures: The program seeks out technologies that our capable of facilitating the conservation of these structures, offering prolonged protection and slowing down the corrosive process. Moreover, the innovations should make it possible to find out and monitor the evolution of the corrosion in such a way that it can be diagnosed and actions can be prioritized.
7. Electronic trash circular economy: In this challenge, Mining Lab seeks out a new vision for mining and refining, having technologies that separate, process and enable new resources. Here, solutions that are integral to Nexa’s production processes are recommended.
Transformational decarbonization of mining and metallurgy
8. Transformational decarbonization: In this question, Mining Lab seeks to go way beyond the electrification of our fleet or the use of biomass. The challenge seeks high-impact systemic solutions that reduce or eliminate emissions or so that these emissions can be completely compensated.
The chosen companies will receive financial investment to undertake the pilots, ongoing coaching from Nexa professionals, access to the facilities and technical information from the units, as well as the opportunity to have Nexa Resources as a client.
About Mining Lab
The Mining Lab program was set up in 2016 and came about from the necessity that Nexa identified to develop solutions for internal processes and connect to the global innovation ecosystem. Today, it is considered one of the main tools for open innovation in Nexa and is made up of diverse programs focused on different workstreams. Over a thousand proposals have been registered and 45 projects have been selected by the company to carry out pilots in order to validate the solutions.
About Nexa
Nexa Resources is one of the largest zinc mining companies in the world, as well as producing copper and lead. It has been operating for over 60 years in the mining and metallurgy segments, with operations based in Brazil and Peru and offices in Luxemburg and the United States, and it supplies its products to every continent around the world. Its employees work, every day, focused on building the mining of the future, being increasingly more sustainable, innovative and having the best safety practices while respecting the people and the environment. Since 2017, its shares have been traded on the New York and Toronto stock markets with its majority shareholder being Votorantim S.A. For more information, access: http://www.nexaresources.com
