Ideon Council of Subsurface Experts (ICSE) Unites World Experts in Mining Innovation

The best minds in mining take on the industry’s most meaningful challenges in orebody knowledge, mining operations, and data optimization

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, January 16, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Canadian subsurface intelligence leader Ideon Technologies announces the launch of the Ideon Council of Subsurface Experts (ICSE) to inform a much-needed quantum step forward in technology for the industry. The Council brings together seasoned mining experts from across the mining value chain to tackle the question: If we could achieve perfect knowledge of the subsurface, how would mining change? The pursuit of an answer will help shape Ideon’s ambitious research and product development roadmap – which includes technologies already being commercialized, technologies in development, and new ones yet to be conceived.

One of the greatest challenges facing the mining sector is how to accelerate production and delivery of critical metals in support of the energy transition and global decarbonization – it can take decades to unlock subsurface resources. Beyond permitting, regulatory compliance, and securing social license, the most time-consuming aspect of the process is painstakingly gathering sufficient orebody knowledge to reduce geological uncertainty; to the point where the next phase of investment can be made.

Ideon delivers high-resolution subsurface intelligence that helps the world’s most progressive mining companies identify, map, characterize, and monitor mineral deposits, subsurface voids, and other geologic features. This allows them to save time, optimize productivity and returns, reduce geotechnical risk, and minimize environmental impact across the full mine life cycle – from exploration and resource modeling to mine planning and operations, through to reclamation, aftercare, and even re-mining. Leveraging the hundreds of years of wisdom and experience brought together through this Council, Ideon will support the mining industry in improving the speed and cost of reducing subsurface uncertainty to inform investment and operating decisions.

An influential and broadly networked collective, Council experts will help Ideon address the industry’s most pressing subsurface challenges to deliver high-value solutions to customers. They inform the evolution of Ideon’s REVEAL™ Platform roadmap, which integrates a unique suite of proprietary hardware, software, AI-powered services, and multi-physics fusion techniques to create high-resolution, dynamic Earth models.

Chaired by Alan Bye and guided by Ideon CTO and co-founder Doug Schouten, the inaugural Council brings world-class know-how in geophysics, geology, resource modelling, mining engineering, caving, and intellectual property strategy:

Dr. Alan Bye, PhD
Chair, Ideon Council of Experts
Alan is a co-founder and director of Imvelo Pty Ltd., an Australian company leading a technology-driven transformation of the mining industry. With more than 20 years of experience in operational and strategic mining roles, Alan served as VP, Technology at BHP from 2015-19, responsible for executing major innovation programs, designing future mining operations, establishing strategic partnerships, and implementing digital and extractive technologies across commodity value chains. He also founded the Cooperative Research Centre for Optimizing Resource Extraction (CRC ORE) and held senior operational positions at Anglo American. Alan holds a PhD in mining engineering and a BSc in geology.

Lucy Potter
General Manager, Technical – Minerals, Rio Tinto
Lucy is an accomplished mining executive with more than 20 years working with major and mid-tier public mining and minerals companies. She has deep technical knowledge in mineral exploration and resource estimation for a number of commodities. She co-founded an international technical services team responsible for life-of-mine strategy, capital development projects, and resource replenishment, and is a trusted strategic advisor on technology innovation and oversight of mine digital transformation projects. In her current role, Lucy focuses on assurance for major hazards such as mine waste and process safety. Lucy has completed graduate studies in mining law, finance, and sustainability, as well as undergraduate studies in education and geology.

Albert Chong
Mining Industry Geologist
Albert’s career experience in geology spans more than 35 years, including exploration, development, mining, mineral resource estimation, consulting and mining finance on various metallic mineral deposit types and commodities. While working with Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. for more than a decade, he honed his skills in identifying top-tier mineral exploration/mining projects while actively contributing towards the technical due diligence supporting accretive, precious metal streaming agreements worth more than USD 8B. Albert completed a graduate degree in exploration geoscience and an undergraduate degree in geology.

Dr. Tony Diering, PhD
International Caving Expert
A world-renowned expert in cave mining, Tony is a pioneer of innovative, block and sub-level caving technologies and has spent time working with most of the world’s underground mines. He brings more than 35 years of experience in mining modelling and software, including years with SRK Consulting and Gemcom Software (subsequently Dassault Systemes). Currently with MaxGT Consulting, he is an International Mining Technology Hall of Fame inductee. Tony earned his PhD in mining.

Dr. Arthur Maddever, PhD
Physicist and sensor expert
Arthur spent 30 years at mining major BHP as a research scientist and innovator, developing geo-sensors for exploration and in-mine applications in diverse settings, before branching out as a consultant to the industry in his field. He contributed directly to the development and implementation of several world-first sensors based on gravity gradiometry, electromagnetics, PFTNA (pulsed fast thermal neutron activation), XRTS (x-ray transmission spectroscopy), and XRF (x-ray fluorescence). Arthur earned his PhD in physics.

Lance Follet, JD
Executive Vice-President, Corporate Development & Chief Legal Officer, Westport Fuel Systems
Lance oversees corporate development, legal, government relations, strategy and intellectual property at Westport, and brings an extensive background in market development, intellectual property protection and licensing, mergers and acquisitions, and structuring and negotiating international technology deals in the energy, high-tech, alternative energy, and automotive space. Lance is a registered patent agent and earlier in his career, he practiced patent litigation at a Canadian national law firm and also had a successful career as an acquisition geophysicist based in and and working throughout Southeast Asia. Lance earned his undergraduate degree in geophysics, followed by his Juris Doctor (JD).

Ideon Technologies
ideontechnologies@bambybig.agency
Kim Lawrence
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