Sydney, April 10, 2017 - (NYSE:GE) South32 and GE today announced the signing of a three-year strategic partnership to assist in the development of South32's technology roadmap and activation of the Company's digital transformation.
The partnership, GE's first with an Australian mining company in the digital space, is a step towards playing a much bigger role in the global mining sector. For South32, GE is the ideal partner, having recently undertaken their own digital transformation.
This partnership marks the beginning of an exciting journey. South32, with its diverse mining portfolio spanning 10 operations and five countries, sees a real opportunity for technology and innovation to drive safety and productivity improvements.
Through this partnership South32 will utilize GE's PredixTM platform, which is designed specifically for industry and connects industrial equipment, data analysis and instant insights. The system will enable South32 to make fast, informed decisions, and provides the opportunity to optimize entire operations, rather than individualized assets and equipment.
"Bringing the world of operational technology and information technology together to monitor equipment and systems remotely and predict future behavior is a game changer," Graham Kerr, Chief Executive Officer, South32 said. "It has the potential to identify and solve a problem before it affects operations."
"By partnering with GE, we have an opportunity to transform the way we work," added Ricus Grimbeek, Chief Technology Officer, South32. "If we get this right, the result won't just be an incremental improvement but a new level of efficiency and performance."
For GE, bringing digital transformation to the mining industry is an exciting prospect.
"The future of mining is digital. With data and analytics, we can achieve greater levels of productivity, operational efficiencies, and improve safety," GE Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, Jeff Immelt said. "We look forward to working with South32 to help them optimize their operations and accelerate the digital transformation of the mining industry at large."
"Mines collect terabytes of data today, but do not have the platform or solutions to provide real-time insights to deliver operational productivity." GE Mining CEO Scott Phillips said. "Together, GE Mining and South32 have the opportunity to help solve these challenges in the mining sector. This is a very exciting time to be in mining."
About South32South32 is a globally diversified mining and metals company with high quality operations in Australia, Southern Africa and South America. Our purpose is to make a difference by developing natural resources, improving people's lives now and for generations to come. We are trusted by our owners and partners to realize the potential of their resources. We have a simple strategy to maximize the potential of our operations and shareholder returns by optimizing our existing operations, unlocking their potential and identifying new opportunities to compete for capital. www.south32.net
About GEGE (NYSE: GE) is the world's Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the "GE Store," through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry. www.ge.com