Innovation is one thing, but bringing new products and solutions to market is another animal.
Sudbury's Ultra-Deep Mining Network (UDMN) wants to help smooth the road between these two phases. A UDMN panel geared towards this end will take place at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Convention on March 7 in Toronto.
“The trend is we have a lot of innovators who have products that are getting market-ready and they want to close that gap to be able to get to the end-user,” said Shannon Katary, the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation's (CEMI) director of marketing and community relations.
The UDMN is managed by CEMI.
The panel will consist of Dundee Precious Metals president and CEO, Rick Howes; Noront Resources’ senior vice-president of mining and projects, Steve Flewelling; and Glencore Canada's manager of mine technical services at their Timmins Kidd Operations, Zachary Mayer.
“We'll have them talking about what it takes to take an innovation or an idea and actually implement it at a mine site,” said Katary. “The entire Northern Ontario showcase, and whoever is going to PDAC, can ask these giants some pretty fundamental questions and get down to what it is, and what it takes, and what processes you have to go through.”
PDAC attracts more than 23,000 attendees, and the Northern Ontario showcase is the largest pavilion with about 70 businesses.
Katary said many Northern Ontario businesses don't get enough opportunities to connect, and she hopes the panel will help remedy that.
“We all live in the same area but we don't necessarily see each other all the time,” said Katary.
Sudbury MP Paul Lefebvre will be heading south for the event, along with other politicians.
“It's expanded from exploration and investment, and it's become the place to go for networking.”
For more information visit https://www.miningdeep.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/UDMN-Panel-invite-card-2016-1.jpg
