How interoperability is shaping the future of mining

From his early days in the Calgary office to leading operations across North and South America, Warren Carvey, Partnerships Leader at acQuire, has seen the mining industry shift from disconnected spreadsheets and hard-drive backups to highly connected digital ecosystems.

Across that journey, one theme has remained constant: you can only get the most value out of your data when your systems can communicate effectively.

In the latest episode of acQuire Connected, Warren explains why interoperability is more essential than ever and how technology partnerships and APIs are enabling more collaborative, efficient operations.

Interoperability is critical to managing expanding data volumes

When Warren joined acQuire in 2007, many mining organisations thought of data management as an afterthought. Today, the data landscape looks entirely different.

“The types and the volumes of data we’re collecting now is vastly different than it was 20 or even 30 years ago,” Warren reflects. “There’re a lot more sensors and scanning…in the field, in the office, in the lab, in the core shed.”

Modern operations are collecting data at scale, from sensors, scanning equipment, geotechnical teams, environmental monitoring systems and more, each producing data in different formats and stored across multiple platforms.

The opportunity to improve the efficiency and decision-making with this data now being collected is enormous, but so are the risks.

Disconnected systems and inadequate backups can result in data loss or incorrect decisions:

“The big risk is loss of data or making uninformed decisions based on the data,” shares Warren. “We’ve heard stories about people drilling in the wrong spot based on incorrect information in the database… sometimes they’ll tell you some horror stories about what’s tipped them over to going with a commercial solution.”

Warren recalls earlier days when a broken hard drive or a failed backup could spell disaster. “They literally had the data on a hard drive, and the hard drive fell off someone’s desk and broke… it wasn’t backed up anywhere.”

These issues are costly and operationally disruptive, and entirely preventable.

Why interoperability matters now more than ever

With many teams and systems producing data for a single mine operation, interoperability and data flow is now essential.

“The importance of connectivity and interoperability is becoming more important these days because of all the different types and places that data can flow in from,” says Warren.

As data volumes grow, especially from core scanning or hyperspectral imagery, storing everything in one database may not be feasible. Warren shares, “they’re collecting terabytes of data… so what do you do with terabytes of data just in the imagery?”

Modern interoperability isn’t just about importing data; it’s also about linking systems so users can access the right information without overloading core platforms.

Understanding how data moves, whether as a push or pull, read or write, one-way or two-way stream, is the key to building reliable workflows. But many companies still underestimate the complexity and risks.

“Some people say, ‘I can run a SQL script that does this export-import,’ but that’s probably not the best solution.”

Manual exports bypass essential validation rules, leading to poor quality or inconsistent data entering into critical systems.

Technology Partnerships and APIs Enable Seamless Integration

acQuire has a long history of partnering with third-party providers and companies to help companies get the most value from their acQuire solution, such as GIM Suite.

Earlier integrations with GIM Suite used the acQuire Direct API. Today, GIM Suite’s new REST API offers a faster, more flexible way to build modern connections between systems. And it’s not only GIM Suite users benefitting from this. acQuire’s environmental data management solution, EnviroSys, also features an integration extension that utilises REST API capabilities.

“Just in the last little while we’ve released the REST API… it’s a smarter, faster new version… more seamless, quicker indexed data flow,” shares Warren.

Crucially, APIs help preserve data integrity. “Using the REST API, or any API, you keep the business logic in the systems as opposed to exporting out and then potentially importing it into a system,” shares Warren.

This is how mines reduce risk, maintain trust in their data, and support efficient workflows across the operation.

People can also drive connection

Technology isn’t the only thing that keeps data flowing, the people supporting it play a critical role.

Warren highlights how acQuire’s Nova Network helps mines maintain continuity:

A Nova Network Partner was able to step in as a “defacto DBA [database administrator] for a while” after a site suddenly lost their database administrator.

The result? “It was a really good stop-gap measure… and they were able to suggest improvements and enhancements as well.”

For companies, this means stability and resilience during periods of change.

Read the full transcript:

Intro (00:00): Welcome to acQuire Connected, the podcast that is your compass in the world of data across environmental, social, and governance.

Jaimee Nobbs (00:10): Welcome to another episode of acQuire Connected, where we chat to tech experts and thought leaders about tackling their data management challenges. Today I am joined by Warren Carvey. Warren is the Partnerships Leader at acQuire and has been part of the acQuire team for nearly two decades. Over that time, Warren has witnessed incredible change, both in acQuire and across the wider mining industry, particularly the growing need for interoperability across systems and the ability for different technologies and pieces of software to connect and communicate seamlessly. As the Partnerships Leader, Warren is building strong technology collaborations and leading the Nova Network partner program, bringing together accredited information management professionals to deliver high quality services to acQuire’s GIM Suite and EnviroSys customers. In this episode, we chat about how interoperability is shaping the future of mining, from breaking down silos and improving decision-making to enabling real-time collaboration across the digital ecosystem. So let’s get into it. Thank you for joining this episode. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and the work you’re doing now in the partnership space?

Warren Carvey (01:21): Sure. Yeah, I’ve been with acQuire not quite 20 years right now, but I started with acQuire in January of 2007 and had various commercial roles with the company. I was part of the earlier team, so Paul Whelan started the Calgary office just before my joining acQuire, and so I took on a commercial role back then, had various commercial roles over the years. It was neat to see the company and the office and the team grow in North America. And then for a brief period there, I helped manage the commercial team in South America and our Chilean office as well. So that was great to get to see some exposure to the South American market. And then for the previous six years, I was the Operations Manager for North America, so kind of overseeing all parts of the business for North America. And then, yeah, just recently took on the partnership leadership role for North America.

Jaimee Nobbs (02:16): That’s very exciting.

Warren Carvey (02:17): Yeah, it’s a little bit about me.

Jaimee Nobbs (02:19): So, you mentioned you’ve been at acQuire for almost two decades now, and you would’ve seen a lot of change and evolution or perhaps not in the mining industry over that time. From your perspective, how has interoperability changed in the industry over time?

Warren Carvey (02:40): I definitely have seen some change, for sure. I mean, 20 years is quite a while for me. I guess some of the big changes around data volumes, the types and the volumes of data we’re collecting now is vastly different than it was 20 or even 30 years ago. Just think of over time. I think that’s probably with every industry too. You probably see that with social media now as opposed to 20 years ago when it was just starting out. They collect all sorts of data on you and this kind of stuff. Same thing with mining. We’re collecting all sorts of different types of data. There’s a lot more sensors and scanning and that type of thing we can do in the field or in the office, in the lab and the core shed. So yeah, I guess the volumes and types of data are some of the big things I’ve seen change over time. I’ve seen a little bit of change in terms of data management. When I started, data management for some organisations was a bit of an afterthought. I think as time has gone on, as the data types, as the data volumes, as the industry has grown, I think more and more people are realising that it’s all about the data, right? At the end of the day, the data is what you’re making your decision on, it’s the information that you have there. And so I’ve definitely seen a rise in people realising the importance of the data.

Jaimee Nobbs (03:54): With an operation, you’ve got the data flowing through geological databases, mine planning, GIS software, the environmental monitoring stuff as well. If we look at the interoperability between systems and how data flows through it, why is that critical today?

Warren Carvey (04:19): I guess it goes back to my last point, just the different types and volumes of data. So you’re seeing more data and potentially more siloed data. So you might have a piece of scanning equipment over there or you might have sensors over here, and with all of that extra comes more places to store the data. Maybe it’s in an Excel sheet or maybe it’s in a proprietary system. So really, the importance of connectivity and interoperability is becoming more important these days because of all the different types and places that data can flow in from.

Jaimee Nobbs (04:51): And I guess it’s also the places that you can lose data if it’s not connected.

Warren Carvey (04:56): Definitely, yes.

Jaimee Nobbs (04:57): What are some of the biggest risks for companies if they don’t have connected systems, if they’re not keeping up with data management of today with all those different systems?

Warren Carvey (05:08): The big risk is loss of data or making uninformed decisions based on the data. So the information that you’re gleaning from your data can only take you so far if you’ve got siloed bits of data that aren’t making it into your database or if you’ve potentially lost data. I mean, we’ve had customers, it’s been a while, but we’ve had customers over the years call us up and say, our backups weren’t working in our IT departments. We’ve lost some data. Do you have a recent backup of ours? Can we get a copy of our database from you because we’ve lost some data. Years ago, we had a customer ring me up and say, again, do you have a backup of our database? Because, it’s a long time ago but they literally had the data on a hard drive and the hard drive fell off someone’s desk broke and it wasn’t backed up anywhere.

So they were hoping that we had a recent backup copy of their database because it wasn’t backed up and it was on a hard drive that broke. So there are some risks, and we’ve heard stories about people drilling in the wrong spot based on incorrect information in the database that wasn’t necessarily, when I say database, it was in Excel or in another system, and then they rang us up and that comes up in our discovery conversations with them when asking why are you looking at a solution now? That type of stuff. And sometimes they’ll tell you some horror stories about what’s tipped them over to going with a commercial solution as opposed to an in-house solution or an access or Excel-based.

Jaimee Nobbs (06:32): That’s a hard lesson to learn. It’s an expensive lesson to learn as well, I’m sure.

Warren Carvey (06:36): Yeah, some of those stories are from quite a few years ago, but definitely that’s part of the evolution of the industry, right? 20 years ago, people would keep it on a hard drive. Now, I don’t know too many people that would keep their data on just a hard drive and not backed up anywhere else.

Jaimee Nobbs (06:50): No, I think that is another evolution that we’ve seen is people now working in the cloud a little bit more as well. There are a lot of technology changes as well.

Warren Carvey (07:03): For sure. I know a lot of mining companies where you can’t even use the USB ports on your laptops. An external hard drive, that wouldn’t even be an option now because you couldn’t use it, it wouldn’t activate on that laptop. So I guess the data management has evolved over time. Like I said earlier, it’s definitely become more of a concern and more of a focus for people.

Jaimee Nobbs (07:25): And so in theory, it does sound like connecting your systems is pretty straightforward, but I imagine it can be quite complex when you’re looking at different types of data, different frequencies coming in from different places flowing out to different parts of a mine operation. Like you mentioned, there’s data silos, not even the types of data, but probably inconsistent data flows between departments as well. You’ve kind of mentioned some of the barriers, I guess to interoperability, but how do companies actually look at solving something like that?

Warren Carvey (08:01): It’s different approaches for different people, I would say. And it depends on what you’re looking to connect and to what host. I’ve just been in the role for a few months now, so it’s been a big eyeopener for me in terms of the data flow in terms of is it read or write? Is it push or a pull? Is it coming into one system? Is it going back and forth? Is it connected? Now, in some cases, there’s different ways you can do things, but in some cases you’ve got an export out of a system into a CSV Excel type file, and then you import it into another system. So it’s an export-import system. But then by doing that, you lose some of the validation and the business rules that are built into the other third-party system that you’re in, in some cases acQuire’s GIM Suite.

We had an old acQuire Direct API, and now we have a new REST API. So if you can use the API, whether it be the acQuire Direct or REST API, then you’re not bypassing your business logic and validation rules that are built into your database. So that was a big eye opener for me in terms of the data flow. Some people would just, say oh, I can set it up myself. I can run a SQL script that does this export, import, that type of thing. Or I can do automation in GIM Suite, but that’s probably not the best solution in a lot of cases.

Jaimee Nobbs (09:17): So I guess understanding how your data needs to flow, what business logic you need to keep and what’s the fastest and probably safest way to do it as well. Moving data through systems, there is a bit going on in that.

Warren Carvey (09:32): And then, yeah, the different types of connectivity. So you have lots of core scanning examples right now. So they’re collecting terabytes of data…so what do you do with terabytes of data just in the imagery and hyperspectral imaging and things like that? Do you want to store that in your database? That becomes pretty unwieldy of a database if you’ve got a large database and then throw in terabytes of core imagery. So, then maybe look at integrating with that third party system so that maybe you can be in GIM Suite and you still can pull up the core image from that third party system in GIM Suite. There’s that whole integration piece as well to not just pulling data in, but connecting to another system inside of GIM Suite.

Jaimee Nobbs (10:17): That does sound quite complex.

Warren Carvey (10:19): Lots of different options and scenarios out there, and they’re all a little bit unique; a little bit different.

Jaimee Nobbs (10:24): When you look at the different ways to push and pull data and connect it, there is quite a lot to consider for companies that are doing that. You touched on a little bit about some core scanning software as an example, but one of the areas that you are now involved in is the tech partnerships at acQuire. So can you share how the technology partnerships at acQuire, how these integrations create a more connected experience for customers and explain how data can flow more seamlessly across those different systems? You have kind of touched on it, but maybe more now looking at your role.

Warren Carvey (11:09): So we’ve always had some really good tech partnerships over the years. Many years ago, like I said, we have the acQuire Direct API, and we have lots of other third party vendors that have established that. So you can be sitting in a third party modelling software. I won’t name any names, but it could be sitting in one of them, and you can be in their software literally saying from a dropdown in their window, get my data from acQuire. And just in the last little while we’ve released the REST API, and so that’s a smarter, faster new version of the API. And so it’s more of an industry standard these days. So yeah, that’s a good way to connect the databases now. And then it’s just looking at which systems to connect, mapping out those workflows. It read-only, is it read, write, and what makes sense for that particular scenario.

And then getting those partnerships established from a contractual angle and then figuring out the workflow and then exposing the endpoints in the REST API to the other vendor, allowing them to build it and test it, and then we can release it to public. So there’s a lot of work that goes on in these integrations, but I guess at the end of the day, our goal is to continue as we’ve got several other integrations going, continue with these integrations, but using the REST API this time, just to give it a little more modern spin on the API, more, like I said, more seamless, quicker indexed data flow.

Jaimee Nobbs (12:35): And keeping all of those validations as well was something else you mentioned.

Warren Carvey (12:39): For sure. Yeah, so using the REST API,  or any API, you keep the business logic in the systems and as opposed to exporting out and then potentially importing it into a system, you can bypass some of your logic that way.

Jaimee Nobbs (12:56): Yeah, it’s an interesting space. It sounds like a really exciting spot to be in with acQuire growing, with the mining industry growing, and with the different types of data, like you said, different technologies, there’s a lot of opportunity there to collaborate more with different companies.

Warren Carvey (13:15): There is, yeah, for sure. And it’s important. It seems like everyone’s busiest days, but it is sort of becoming more evident as time goes on that with, like I mentioned, with all these systems out there and silos of data, it seems to be, I think a growing focus. Again, a trend that seems to be picking up.

Jaimee Nobbs (13:33): Yeah, it is something that you hear a lot of talk about now in the industry, and I guess as it’s becoming harder to mine, more expensive to mine as well. Making decisions as quickly as possible means that your data needs to be as connected as possible and your teams need to be as connected as possible.

Warren Carvey (13:49): Yeah, better and faster decisions.

Jaimee Nobbs (13:51): Yeah. You’ve mentioned a few technologies there. We’ve touched on cloud platforms, we’ve got perhaps artificial intelligence automation as well, a lot of automation evolving so rapidly. How do you see the future of geological data management actually changing in the mining industry? Or do you see it kind of following the trajectory we’re on at the moment?

Warren Carvey (14:12): Yeah, I think it’s always going to grow and adapt. I guess the big trend these days, I believe is the machine learning, the rise of sensor data and then using all of that data to build your model or to just make better decisions. And like I mentioned, the AI is definitely a buzzword these days.

Jaimee Nobbs (14:32): The AI stuff is really exciting, but like you mentioned, we are collecting more data and more frequently. So having the business logic and those rules in place, do you see that being just as critical into the future as well?

Warren Carvey (14:45): For sure. I mean AI models and AI in general uses, the data has been given. So you’ve probably used AI now and you’ve done a search, you use it to give you some data and you realise that’s not right. So obviously it’s been fed poor data. So for me and for acQuire, I think data is really the building blocks, the foundation of getting everything right after that. So AI, machine learning models, et cetera, will only be as good as the data you’re feeding it. It’s your garbage in, garbage out – that old saying, right? So if you’re putting better quality data into your models, into your AI and things like that, and then you’re gleaning information from those systems, in theory, you’ll have better information with AI and then quicker. So ideally, the whole goal is better information, better decisions ideally and quicker with using the tools we’ve got nowadays and into the future.

Jaimee Nobbs (15:41): And I guess the same can be said for whether we are talking about AI or any technology really, having a way to get that data to the right people, and getting that information to the right people, as quickly as possible means that they can do their job faster, more efficiently, and really drill in the right place as well.

Warren Carvey (15:59): Yeah, efficiency is a big one. I think everybody, as we know nowadays, everybody’s companies are looking, even shareholders are looking for efficiency gains and things like that. So that’s really the focus for a lot of this is how can we be more efficient? How can we get quicker turnarounds and make better decisions?

Jaimee Nobbs (16:18): So I have one last question. As well as the technology partnership side of it, at acQuire, we have the Nova Network program as well, and that focuses a lot on building strong relationships across acQuire’s partner network, between people that know the software consultants that know the software really well, the acQuire software really well and our customers. Can you tell me a little bit about how that program works as well and how it fosters that collaborative space for acquires customers?

Warren Carvey (16:51): Yeah, so we’ve had the Nova Network partner program for a number of years now, and it’s really an accredited partnership program. So we take consultants, put them through our training courses to a certain level so that we can accredit the work they do, and then they’re free to go out and work with our customers, and we’ll warranty the work they do and we’ll support it. And it’s really a good way for our customers to ensure they’re getting the maximum value out of a solution. So in some cases, mining our customers and mining companies can contract a Nova partner directly and help them. We had a case in North America last year where one of the sites in the US lost their DBA. They resigned. And so this mining company just called up a Nova partner and said, can we subcontract you X amount of hours a week just to be our defacto DBA for a while, and until we find somebody to fill that role.

And then a little while later, they hired somebody, brought them on board then. So it was a really good sort of stop gap measure for them. The operations kept flowing. The Nova partner, because of their experience, we had really good feedback because of their expertise in the field. In this case, it was GIM Suite. Because of their expertise in GIM Suite, they were not only able to manage the system for that customer, but they were able to suggest some improvements, enhancements, things like that. So we got really good feedback from that customer on their use of that Nova partner. So it was really a collaborative effort. I mean, the customer could have definitely reached out to acQuire, called us and said, “hey, can you guys help me? I need some help here.” But in this case, they were able to reach out to a Nova partner, so the Nova partner was able to help them, and it really was a win-win for everybody.

Jaimee Nobbs (18:35): That’s really interesting hearing how the Nova Network has been set up to really collaborate with different companies in the mining industry. Now look, I think that’s a really good spot to finish up this episode. Warren, thank you so much for your time on this episode. It’s been great hearing about not only how your role has changed at acQuire, but also how you’re seeing interoperability between systems and that flow of data really change or how it’s changed in your time in the industry, and the different ways that the mining industry can collaborate through all through programs such as the Nova Network. It’s been great to hear all about it. So thank you, Warren.

Warren Carvey (19:20): Yeah, thanks very much.

Jaimee Nobbs (19:21): Thanks for listening to this episode of acQuire Connected. If you enjoyed today’s episode and want to keep up to date on the latest episodes when they drop, please hit subscribe. If you want to support this podcast further, feel free to share this episode with people that you think may enjoy it.

Outro (19:36): Thanks for listening to the acQuire Connected podcast channel. Find us@acquire.com au.