The Australian Mining Equip-ment, Technology and Services (Mets) sector contributes 6.4% to the Australian economy and is one of Australia’s largest export sectors, according to a study conducted by Mets sector member association Austmine.

Based on a survey of 860 Mets companies, the study found that the sector generates $90-billion in revenue. The companies, 84% of which are Australian owned, export $27-billion worth of sector-specific goods, with an estimated $15-billion component being generated specifically from Mets-related activity.

Conducted from December 2012 to March 2013, this survey was reportedly the largest study of the sector to date and was “extremely timely”, as it identified the importance of mining-related knowledge, skills, manufacturing and services for the Australian economy and the country’s mining sector, says Austmine deputy chairperson Elizabeth Lewis-Gray.

She adds that the Mets sector, significant in size and scope, has also become a source of innovation, which has been leveraged to create highly sought-after mining solutions.

“Mets companies are situated across Australia, with capital cities and regional and remote locations benefiting from revenue, jobs and exports. Manufacturing and product supply firms comprise 40% of the sector’s total value, rebalancing the Australian economy’s emphasis on services.”

Lewis-Gray further describes the Mets sector as “highly internationalised”, adding that 55% of the companies surveyed and 41% of the exporters have offshore offices or operations. Of those companies not currently exporting, 18% plan to export in the coming years.

“The Mets sector is also relatively young, with 73% of Australian-owned Mets companies being established in the last 30 years. Reflecting on the long innovation cycles in the mining sector, this means there is a crowd of younger Mets companies that have not yet reached their value potential. The best is, perhaps, yet to come,” says Lewis-Gray.

Meanwhile, the survey found that Mets businesses are highly diversified and often work across several mineral resources and phases of the mining life cycle. Many have also transferred their skills to other industries, helping to smooth market fluctuations and mitigate risk.

“Mets companies spent more than $1.6-billion in research and development in the 2012 financial year, with 58% of those companies surveyed contributing to this total. This is a very impressive number and is certainly well above other industry averages, signifying a high level of commitment to inno- vation. Collaboration between mining companies and with other supply companies is equally as high,” notes Lewis-Gray.

She adds that, with many capital projects now being deferred, it is a challenging time for the sector. Therefore, it is critical that Mets and mining companies collaborate aggressively to deliver the productivity gains required to maintain Australia’s competitiveness in the mining sector worldwide.