Teams developed at a diverse range of solutions including robotics, mobile apps and algorithms that could predict future trends based on data provided by both De Beers and Anglo American as well as the support provided by mentors from within the two mining companies. Challenges from De Beers and Anglo American included real-time particle analysis, using sound data to detect the end of a mine and predicting what the future for mining looks like.
“Technology implementation costs time and money – two critical resources that the mining sector currently requires to reinvent itself. The Unearthed Hackathon is the perfect platform to fast-track innovation and short-circuit this process,” said Jeannette McGill, head of technology and innovation, Anglo American.
The winning team - Team Middebosch - consisting of software engineers Pieter Woltzhausen and Albert Swart, developed a clever visualisation of offshore diamond mining analytics for De Beers. Pieter and Albert have been awarded the top prize and will now be taken on stage to the Mining Indaba conference to present their winning solution.
The Runners Up were Team Codeswop, consisting of Tiaan Hendriks, Dean Harber and Regardt Nel who addressed the end of mine sound analysis challenge from De Beers. This team currently works together on software development solutions as a tech startup in Cape Town. The Young Innovator Award went to Team “#MakingWavelets” who also took a novel approach to the end of mine sound analysis challenge from De Beers.
