The company stated that it could transform the way miners collaborate, receive and analyse information.

The launch of the MinVu Shift Manager app comes as the mining industry steps up its adoption of mobile technology to increase operational efficiency and collaboration in an inherently dispersed and complex environment.

Richard Mathews, CEO of RPMGlobal, said that making MinVu Shift Manager compatible with mobile would provide real-time data directly in the hands of the decision maker, wherever they are located.

"RPMGlobal has listened closely to our customers and we know that miners are continually looking for ways to leverage digital solutions in order to optimise and streamline the way they work," he said.

"Shift Manager is an integral component of the digital mine and a connected workforce, so it made sense to make this web-based software available in the form of an app to enable planning and supervision form anywhere."

MinVu Shift Manager is a short-term planning and execution solution which RPMGlobal acquired at the end of 2017. It is an industry-built software solution that enables users to collaborate and communicate through a single, integrated plan to drive more effective on-shift decision support.

The new mobile interface merges MinVu and MinVu Shift Manager into one, easy-to-use platform. With the app, different departments and personnel have complete visibility of equipment and equipment status, underpinning the ability to plan intra-shift activities and break through operational silos.

As remote-enabled solutions, both MinVu and MinVu Shift Manager enable remote teams to seamlessly collaborate together across the value chain.

Users will be able to create any Shift Manager task in the app, such as addressing a possible hazard, checking the progress of diggers and schedule maintenance tasks. Importantly, end-users are able to easily collaborate and share information from anywhere, whether they are underground on site or in the corporate headquarters.

RPMGlobal's mobile applications now extend across its established suite of integrated solutions which encompass Mine Scheduling, Simulation, Finance, Maintenance, Operations and Design. They are all available for download from Android Google Play or Apple App Store.

XECUTE — RPMGlobal's short-term scheduling solution — only recently underwent an upgrade of its app.

Along with UI and CAD enhancements, the latest XECUTE release comes equipped with enhanced mobile functionality, thereby supporting the real-time data feeds from Fleet Management Systems.

"You will be able to see on the mobile device, not just what your plan is, but also how you're progressing against that plan in real-time," said Mathews. 

"With the app, mining personnel will be connected to vital information at all times. For example, a mine planner who is on the bus heading to site can log in to the XECUTE app and catch up with what has happened on site overnight before he even arrives for the shift."

According to Mathews, enterprise integration is a key enabler for technology, as is the mobile application stack.

"Mobile compatible software is a key component of the digital mine whereby data is connected from central systems to dispersed mining personnel, therefore amplifying the abilities of key decision makers within a business," he said.

"With RPMGlobal's enterprise approach, we are helping mine sites increase productivity across the value chain. We are giving them the tools to make better decisions thereby creating an insight-driven mining organisation."

Regardless of where the data comes from, RPMGlobal's Enterprise Planning Framework can connect disparate systems and solutions for the purposes of making people more productive and better informed.

"The industry is moving away from desktop applications where you don't have that advanced level of communication or integration and it's exciting being a leader in that space," Mathews concluded.