Tyre solutions company Michelin Better Mining is positioning itself as a strategic partner to help mining operations unlock safer, more productive and more sustainable performance through integrated tyre, data and operational solutions.

The company says mining operations across Africa are under increasing pressure to do more with less.

Rising input costs, constrained capital investment, aging fleets and increasing environmental, social and governance (ESG) expectations are forcing operators to rethink how they optimise productivity while maintaining safety standards, says Michelin.

In this environment, the tyre manufacturer says incremental gains in efficiency are no longer enough, with mines needing smarter, data-driven approaches that enable real-time decision-making and operational resilience.

Michelin Better Mining – anchored on three core pillars: safety, productivity and sustainability – offers a comprehensive approach to mining operations across Africa to deliver measurable outcomes.

Safety focuses on reducing operational risks and preventing incidents before they occur, while productivity centres on enhancing asset performance and uptime across haulage fleets that drive more than 50% of operating costs, says Michelin.

The company’s sustainability approach targets lower environmental impact while supporting long-term value creation through energy-efficient technologies and responsible lifecycle management.

Together, Michelin says, these pillars form a holistic partnership that combines its products, services, data and expertise to solve systemic challenges faced by African mines.

Tyre Monitoring

At the core of its partnership with African operations is the MICHELIN MEMS 4 tyre monitoring system. As the fourth generation of the first tyre monitoring system built specifically for surface mining equipment, MEMS 4 delivers what decision-makers need most – real-time intelligence, says Michelin.

Unlike basic alerts, MEMS 4 – supported by Michelin’s Better Haul Road solution to turn tyres into sensors to measure road undulation and truck cornering severity – continuously tracks tyre temperature, pressure and GPS location, and stores a full history for each tyre.

That history is critical, says Michelin, because tyre wear and failure rarely happen in isolation, with patterns emerging over weeks and months. MEMS 4 makes those patterns visible before they become costly downtime.

“Heat is what kills these tyres,” says Michelin Africa, India and Middle East VP Amaury Vadon, adding that with MEMS 4, miners can see which trucks are running hot and reroute them before a tyre is damaged.

“For African mines running remote 24/7 fleets, that means less downtime and tyres that last longer.”

For African mines managing vast haul networks with aging infrastructure, that data identifies where roads are rough, where trucks corner too hard and where drivers need coaching. Teams can then adjust grading schedules and smooth-out problem sections to lower diesel burn, and result in fewer tyre replacements and safer roads.

Michelin brings improved capabilities to support all three pillars of Better Mining. In terms of safety, Michelin’s solutions include TK Solution, Klinge, in-depth scrap tyre analysis and continuous product innovation designed to reduce operational risks.

For productivity, Michelin’s portfolio includes the X MINE 70/70 tyre launched in 2023 for increased tramming speed and load capacity, customer engineering support teams providing deep local mining expertise, MICHELIN MEMS 4 for real-time tyre monitoring and Better Haul Road for road condition optimisation.

On sustainability, Michelin delivers energy-efficient tyre technologies, end-of-life tyre solutions, and initiatives supporting environmental-impact reduction and social development.

“The strategic value of this partnership becomes clearest at scale,” says Michelin, pointing to big mines, where small efficiency gains can compound across a large fleet. Here, even a 1% to 2% improvement in haulage efficiency, or a 10% extension in tyre life, translates to millions saved a year, the company states.

Using MEMS 4 data keeps operations running on a 24/7 basis with fewer interruptions as a result of providing dispatchers with truck performance visibility, maintenance teams the ability to plan work around production schedules and managers with data that can be combined with Michelin’s expertise to back decisions.

For African operations facing rising costs and ESG pressure, Michelin says Better Mining provides the operational control needed to stay competitive.

“For mines looking to get more from what they already have, it’s not about redesigning the pit; it’s about making smarter decisions with real-time data and shifting maintenance from reactive to predictive. Those small gains per truck add up fast across a fleet,” says Vadon.

Michelin Better Mining delivers that shift by acting as a strategic partner – not a supplier – to bring integrated tyre, data and operational solutions that make African mining safer, more productive and more sustainable.