Hexagon hails landmark Australian mine system integration
- 23 July 2025
Whitehaven Coal says results of a successful field integration of Hexagon operator alertness and vehicle collision avoidance technologies represent a “significant step forward in operational safety and data-driven learning” for the industry.
“Whitehaven has concluded a successful trial that integrated Hexagon’s OAS and CAS technologies, providing a step forward in vehicle interaction and collision awareness learnings,” the Australian coal mining heavyweight said in a statement to mark Hexagon’s market release of its Operator Alertness System (OAS) 7.5, used in the Whitehaven trial.
Swedish measurement and automation technology leader Hexagon says the Whitehaven field deployment on an entire mine fleet over more than 10,000 cumulative operating hours demonstrated the robustness and efficiency of OAS 7.5. “The integration worked with exceptional processing efficiency – averaging just 5.8 seconds for event videos to be remotely available for review – all with minimal network impact due to advancements in edge-based video data handling,” the company said.
OAS 7.5 builds on Hexagon’s existing OAS, described by the company as an “integrated fatigue and distraction management solution that helps operators of heavy and light vehicles, above and below the surface, to maintain the level of attention necessary for long hours and monotonous tasks”.
The latest iteration integrates operator alertness monitoring with Hexagon’s CAS 10 collision avoidance system to automatically capture and display video of CAS 10 predicted collision events and give safety personnel a “real-time window into critical events and operator performance”.
“OAS 7.5 reaffirms Hexagon’s commitment to delivering industry-leading safety solutions that support customers in achieving their zero-harm goals,” Hexagon’s Mining division executive vice-president, Dave Goddard, said. “We continue to collaborate with partners and mining leaders globally to refine these technologies and set new standards for operational excellence.”
Whitehaven Coal talked about “genuine collaboration” being a foundation of its successful project.
Its work with Hexagon marks another significant mining-sector milestone for the technology company, which recently hailed “transformative results” of its first underground OAS deployment with metals producer MMG at Rosebery in Tasmania.
Again, both parties hailed real collaboration as a vital enabler of not only improved underground operator fatigue management and safety outcomes but also the cultural and process change management steps required to rapidly release benefits of cutting-edge technology at, in this case, a circa-90-year-old mine.
“The OAS system has been so good for us,” Rosebery safety manager Wendy Hodgetts said. “The relationship we’ve had with Hexagon [has] been very open and I think early support was critical to the successful implementation of this engineering control into our workforce and into our trucks.”
The “engineering control” at Rosebery is advanced OAS sensor technology and machine-learning algorithms that actively monitor operators' alertness levels. When signs of distraction, drowsiness or microsleeps are detected operators receive real-time notifications which the mine operator believes providing a crucial layer of protection during demanding 12-hour shifts.
Beyond detecting fatigue events, MMG worked with its supplier to foster a culture of proactive operator fatigue management to improve safety and operations.
Results have been documented in various forums but in the first three months of OAS use at Rosebery, validated operator eye closure events reportedly dropped by 65%. The percentage of moderate or critical events decreased from 40% to 15%, which Hexagon says highlights the role of culture and change management.
The longer-term trend has been even more encouraging. Hexagon says 25% of the 1375 events recorded in the first three months were classified as moderate or critical. In the same three months a year later 10% of 653 recorded events were judged higher severity, representing a 53% overall reduction in events and an 81% drop in severity.
Adjustments to mine crew rotations and break times, new fatigue break facilities, hard-won operator trust in how camera footage and fatigue events were managed and employees generally feeling more supported on fatigue reduction measures are all credited with helping to adjust the safety culture at the mine.
“The deployment of Hexagon OAS is providing valuable data for our operation and making a difference in the safety of MMG’s workers,” Rosebery general manager Steve Scott has said.
“We recognise that with long shifts fatigue can become a hazard and this technology enables us to continually assess and address the fatigue risk of our underground truck operators objectively, in real time.”
Hexagon is a lead sponsor of IMARC 2025 at ICC Sydney from October 21-23.
