Industrial Operations Automation
Sinarmas Mining · IT Project Manager (Graduate Program) · Aug 2018 – Nov 2019
Problem
Coal mining logistics depended on manual processes: barge scheduling updated once per day, weighbridge data consolidated manually across sites over multiple days, and fleet maintenance tracked on spreadsheets.
Approach
Identified the highest-friction manual processes, prioritized by time saved and operational risk, and built automation solutions for each.
The judgment call
I could have started with the most technically interesting problem (CCTV-based safety monitoring). Instead, I started with the most painful one for operators: barge scheduling. The logistics coordinator was making three phone calls every morning to find out when the next barge was arriving. That was the problem that, if solved, would earn me credibility to tackle the rest. Start where the pain is loudest, not where the technology is shiniest.
Outcome
Scheduling updates dropped from one day to under an hour. Cross-site data consolidation dropped from two days to a few hours. Safety monitoring provided early intervention capability that had not existed before.
What I think about differently now
Mining operations have zero tolerance for system downtime. If the automation fails, people stand on a dock waiting for a barge. That taught me to build with failure modes in mind — the same way you carry nutrition and hydration on a long run, even if you think you will not need it. You plan for the worst so you can perform at your best.