The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and the China University of Mining and Technology (CUMT) established the Joint International Research Laboratory of China-Africa Mining Geospatial Informatics in November last year at a ceremony in Xuzhou, China, to further the mining research initiatives of the two academic institutions.

The collaboration, under way since January 2013, researches underground communication systems and risk measurement using sensors, risk modelling and harm prediction, with the joint laboratory initiative focusing on accurately locating workers relative to mine risks using underground positioning technology.

“Every day, thousands of mineworkers report for duty and shortly afterwards disappear into the underground workings,” said Wits Mining Institute Professor Fred Cawood at the opening ceremony.

“Once underground, it is difficult to protect them . . . because we do not know what risks they are exposed to or where and when those risks occur. At the end of the shift, they return – and this is the first time we can check that they are all back safely.”

He noted that this was not good enough to achieve the zero-harm objective, asserting that the way to achieve zero harm “is, firstly, to accurately locate workers relative to machines, excavations and other typical mining risks in real time and, secondly, to communicate directly with them should they find themselves in harm’s way”.

CUMT president Professor Shirong Ge added that the institution’s long history of cooperation with Wits and institutions in other African countries, including Mozambique, Togo, Botswana and the Comoros, laid a strong foundation for the initiative, with geospatial technology in China having achieved a leading global position after decades of development.

“Universities like ours have the responsibility to introduce these advanced technologies to the international market. I believe that this new laboratory will contribute to the application of these technologies and promote the economic, social and technological development of Africa and China,” he said.

Also speaking at the ceremony, Ministry of Science and Technology deputy director-general Dr Jing Guffei pledged the Ministry’s support, noting that geospatial informatics technology had been playing an important role in the development of the local economy, especially in mining.

“It is relevant to natural disaster monitoring and evaluation, macro resources environment investigation and the protection of land and resources. This initiative between CUMT and Wits will become a landmark achievement in China-Africa cooperation in science and technology.”

Key themes and activities of the laboratory include geospatial positioning, such as research on China’s BeiDou Global Navigation Satellite System plan and indoor positioning systems, as well as possibly building a BeiDou data analysis centre and monitoring stations in Africa.

Further, the laboratory will research mobile and underground platforms, including position, navigate and time technology, the extension of indoor to underground positioning systems, as well as multisensor positioning and navigation systems.

Digital mining, including ground, environmental and other mine risk monitoring for mine safety, operational efficiency and mineral resources management will also be researched through the laboratory.

It will also develop and apply mining and geospatial software, including the development of risk maps, and will provide education and training, including technology development and application courses, for African countries.

According to Cawood, the work of the joint laboratory will benefit both countries, as they work together on a range of solutions for the many mining challenges and problems in Africa.

“Perhaps our biggest opportunity is in the long term, where we can work on twenty-first-century mining education and skills for African countries to leapfrog our current technology gap in this area,” he said, concluding that this would provide Africa with the means to manufacture, install and maintain technology solutions developed and designed through the joint laboratory.