Sandvik CEO hails surface drilling technology
- 16 July 2025
CEO Stefan Widing has described Sandvik’s new AutoMine Surface Fleet solution as an important step in the company’s strategic efforts to grow in surface mining.
The underground mining equipment and technology major introduced AutoMine Surface Fleet in the first half of this year. Widing was speaking on Sandvik’s June quarter and first-half results call.
“We have introduced a new important solution with AutoMine Surface Fleet,” he said.
Sandvik introduced its AutoMine automation system for underground mining equipment in 2004. The company says operators can manage a larger number of Sandvik surface i-series drill rigs from any connected site location with AutoMine Surface Fleet.
“The new solution delivers unprecedented flexibility while reducing downtime and improving productivity during shift changes,” the manufacturer says.
Sandvik Mining surface automation product line manager Severi Eerola said recently the new system was fully compatible with Sandvik’s AutoMine Universal Station, allowing the operation of both boom and rotary drills even in challenging rock and weather conditions.
“This ensures every shift can be run at optimal performance, regardless of the conditions, by providing a fully integrated solution that allows mining operations to run continuously and efficiently, even during blast breaks.”
AutoMine Surface Fleet also leveraged AutoCycle capabilities for continuous rig operation with minimal human intervention, automating processes such as stabilising, precise positioning, collaring, drilling, reliable pipe handling, hole finishing and tramming to the next hole.
“With AutoMine Surface Fleet, operators can manage individual autonomous rigs and oversee the entire bench, providing accurate positioning, automated drilling and obstacle detection for safe and efficient operations,” Eerola said.
Extensive field tests at Boliden AB’s Kevitsa multi-metal openpit mine in northern Finland had demonstrated the technology’s operational benefits.
“The geological conditions at Kevitsa are highly complex, with mixed mineralogy, ductile rock and seasonal challenges such as water and frost, all of which affect equipment performance and drilling capacity,” Boliden Kevitsa’s drilling development manager Juha Ranta said.
“The AutoMine Surface Fleet solution has enabled us to optimise our operations under these demanding conditions. The ability for operators to seamlessly switch to remote control, along with the strong aftermarket support from Sandvik, has been instrumental in maintaining high performance.”
Sandvik is a platinum sponsor of IMARC 2025 at ICC Sydney from October 21-23.
