Mining 4.0: Digitising the ground operations
As digital transformation accelerates across the Indian industrial space, much of the focus tends to remain at the top of the technology stack—AI-driven forecasting, centralized dashboards, and ERP analytics. However, real, lasting transformation doesn’t start at the enterprise level. It must begin on the ground, where the real operations are taking place. The physical activities of material movement, weighment, quality testing, machinery maintenance, is where the largest gaps are seen. When these activities remain manual, fragmented, and insecure the integrity of the digital ecosystem’s results are compromised. This is where the principles of ISA-95 become crucial, allowing organizations to leverage ground-0 data to get better insight on business level decisions.
Applying ISA-95 to Mining Operations
ISA-95 provides a standardized framework for integrating control systems with enterprise systems. It defines five hierarchical levels of automation, from sensors on the shop floor to ERP systems at the business layer.
| ISA-95 Level | Common Gaps in mining industry |
|---|---|
| Level 0/1 – Overview of Physical Process | Manual entries, lack of traceability, no digital logs of material |
| Level 2 – Monitoring & Control | No integration with ERP; isolated systems |
| Level 3 – Operations Management | Siloed data, offline systems |
| Level 4 – Business Planning | Reliant on delayed or manipulated field data |
Unless every level communicates with the one above and below it, digital transformation remains superficial. Digitising the Mining Value Chain
A truly digitized mining operation must consider each link in the value chain—not just at the enterprise level but across all operational layers.
| Mining Value Chain Stage | Operational Activities | Typical Gaps | Digital Integration Opportunities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exploration & Extraction | -Geological sensing - Drilling & blasting - Equipment telemetry | - Manual data capture - No real-time environmental/production feedback | - Sensor-based data acquisition - Real-time feed into analytics layers |
| Material Handling & Loading | - Shoveling, hauling, dumping - Fleet management | - No integration between equipment & control systems- Delayed visibility | - SCADA + PLC integration with material flow - RFID/GPS tracking of vehicle movement |
| Weighment & Access Control | - Vehicle entry/exit - Manual or semi-automated weighing- Gate security | - Susceptibility to fraud - No link with ERP or stock data- Inaccurate logs | - Unmanned weighbridge - ANPR, RFID, biometric access - Automated, timestamped weighment logs |
| Stockpile & Inventory Control | - Yard/stock movement - Inventory reconciliation | - Inconsistent tracking - No audit trail - Manual updates to ERP | - MES-level dashboards - Automatic quantity updates to ERP |
| Dispatch & Logistics | - Vehicle dispatch planning - Loading & invoicing - Coordination with buyers | - Manual gate passes - Billing errors- No end-to-end visibility | - Rule-based dispatch planning - Real-time ERP sync - Automated documentation generation |
| Reporting & Compliance | - Audit reports - Government compliance logs - Internal MIS reports | - Retrospective data compilation - Missing or tampered logs | - Cloud-based reporting - Auto-generated regulatory compliance data |
In most mining sites, while ERP and analytics are present, the actual execution of tasks at the ground level is disconnected. This results in an information mismatch, delayed insights, and vulnerability to compliance risks and revenue leakage.
What are the leading causes of revenue leakages?
Today, operations teams must contend with more than just production targets. The following imperatives are becoming central to strategic operations:
- Theft and tampering prevention: Secure, traceable, and tamper-proof systems are critical for material movement and weighment.
- Government compliance and auditability: Regulatory authorities now demand accurate, time-stamped, system-generated data.
- Real-time visibility: Decision-making and resource planning depend on live, not retrospective, data from the field.
- Security and access control: Unauthorized movement of vehicles and manpower is not just a security issue, but a data integrity risk.
- Manpower monitoring and accountability: Shift schedules, personnel access, and role-based permissions must be centrally monitored and logged.
These are not optional features- they are core elements of modern, risk-resilient mining infrastructure.
Digital Maturity Begins at the Ground Level
Mining 4.0 is not defined by dashboards or high-level data analytics alone. It is defined by how seamlessly your physical processes, control systems, and enterprise software interact. That means rethinking legacy weighbridges, access gates, and data collection systems—and aligning them to a standards-based architecture such as ISA-95. The real value of ERP, AI, and business intelligence platforms is only unlocked when field data is secure, reliable, and automated.
