Digital Twins in Mining
Course Overview
This course introduces digital twins through a practical, problem-first lens. A digital twin is a connected virtual representation of a real-world thing (an asset, process, system, or site) that stays synchronised with the real world at a chosen frequency and fidelity. That two-way connection matters: real-world data updates the virtual model, and insights from the virtual model are used to drive decisions and actions back into the real world. Done well, a digital twin helps you understand what’s happening now, what happened before, and what’s likely to happen next, and then use that understanding to create measurable improvement, not “dashboard theatre.”
The course walks through the full end-to-end story: Definitions → Examples → Benefits → Risks → Product → Procurement → Design → Delivery. You’ll learn why twins can be framed as both software (features, integrations, licences) and a process (decision loops, human–machine collaboration, organisational change), and why the best outcomes come from combining both.
A strong theme throughout is running a digital twin program as a product, not a one-off project. Validating the problem, designing for adoption, closing the loop between virtual insight and real-world change, and iterating in delivery cycles so value can be evidenced and compounded over time.
Objectives:
- Be able to explain what a digital twin is
- Be able to give specific examples of digital twins in mining
- Be able to describe the key potential benefits of digital twins
- Be able to describe, diagnose & mitigate the common failure modes for digital twins
- Be able to describe the product lifecycle
- Understand the why and how of problem validation
- Understand design thinking and discovery processes
- Be able to describe the key procurement checks for digital twins
- Be able to describe the fundamental delivery paths for digital twins
- Be able to describe the kinds of support and maintenance required to ensure digital twins remain valuable and viable
- Be able to describe the different kinds of product roadmaps and how they can be used to grow value over time
About the Author
Rob is the CEO and co-founder of Geminum, an Australian based mining technology company that designs and builds digital twins and applied AI for heavy industries globally. Geminum designs and builds solutions for and with mining, manufacturing, recycling and quarrying companies that connect people, assets and work to improve total productivity. Rob is the author of the 2025 book “Designing Digital Twins: A Problem-first Approach to Bridging the Real and Virtual Worlds”, available on Amazon.
Rob is also the CEO of copper explorer and developer Fetch Metals, an Australian explorer developing the White Range Copper Project in North Queensland. He is a mechanical engineer with over 20 years’ experience across the mining and technology industries globally, including substantial operational and major capital projects experience across Australia, Africa, and SE Asia.”
Duration: 6 hours
Category: Mining
Level: Introductory
$199.00