The Kellogg Innovation Network (KIN) at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management is to partner with Brazil’s Fundacao Dom Cabral (FDC) to host a select group of high-level officers and direct reports from around the world for a collaborative exploration of challenges facing the mining industry. The first exploration of its kind targeting mining enterprises, the KIN Expedition will take place in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, from April 17-19, 2012, with an optional half-day tour of Samarco on April 20, 2012. “Our goal is to act as a catalyst for the creation of a new level of collaboration around some big issues that if addressed will unlock enormous value for this industry.
“The case for innovation in the mining industry has never been more compelling. We are in the midst of the only mining super cycle since World War II. While the mining industry currently produces record profits, leading players must discover how to create sustainable value,” said Peter Bryant, KIN Expedition Co Chair.
Appropriately, “The Mining Company of the Future” became the overarching theme of the KIN Expedition. During the expedition, leading executives from mining companies, solution providers, and researchers from around the globe will participate in providing insights and best practices for addressing issues of the resources industry and together serve as a catalyst for change.
“In recent years, mining companies have struggled to expand production and meet the surging demand caused by China, India and other emerging markets,” explained Bryant. “Sustainable success will require important transformations in mining companies’ operating systems, such as rapid and accurate characterization of ore bodies, faster development of mines and speed of extraction, improved recovery rates and mine planning as well as increased use of automation and remote operations.”
Since its inception in 2003, KIN has focused on issues that have a significant impact on global prosperity and industries where they see a need for a step up in innovation. At an annual KIN Global Summit, while sharing ideas during the resources panel, the idea of the mining expedition came about. The KIN chose to examine the resource industry because of its vital contribution to development throughout the world. In many developing countries, single mining projects are a major component of their GDP. In addition, when compared to the pace of innovation at other industries such as the automotive or mobile phone technology, innovation in the mining industry has been historically slow.
“Our goal is to act as a catalyst for the creation of a new level of collaboration around some big issues that if addressed will unlock enormous value for this industry,” said Robert C. Wolcott, Founder and Executive Director of the Kellogg Innovation Network.
KIN anticipates that the expedition result in a collective communiqué for public release by the Expedition members summarizing key insights and action plans. This expedition builds on KIN’s mission to build ongoing special interest groups, in this case for leading members of the mining industry, to champion innovation agendas.
Expedition attendance is limited to senior innovation leaders and/or C-level executives of global and emerging corporations in the resource sector. Sponsorships for the KIN Expedition have been secured from the CEOs of Anglo Gold Ashanti, BP Castrol and the President of Caterpillar Global Mining, each of whom will be attending.
