By Savannah Hicks
As mines become more technologically advanced the demand for autonomous vehicles is increasing, but this demand need not be met by the financial and environmental burden of purchasing brand new heavy machinery. By retrofitting new technologies onto existing equipment, mining companies can save massive costs while also helping them reach sustainability goals. Hexagon’s partnership with U&M Mineração e Construção S/A to develop an OEM-agnostic autonomous haulage solution (AHS) is bringing autonomous operations to mines without creating the demand to purchase new assets.
“The project we are doing with U&M is extremely disruptive,” said Rodrigo Couto, President – LATAM, Hexagon’s Mining division. “It meets a very large demand for autonomy in mining, which is basically transforming equipment that is already acquired into autonomous equipment without the need to buy a new truck.”
Hexagon Collision Avoidance System (CAS) installed on vehicle
As the largest native open-pit mining contractor in the Americas, U&M is set to bring scalable OEM-agnostic autonomous haulage to mine sites all over the world with Hexagon’s help.
“With our great knowledge of the equipment and Hexagon’s great knowledge of the technology, we can produce an excellent product that will soon be available on the market,” said Sergio Machado, CEO, U&M. “We’re really looking forward to it.”
“As we understand that the future of mining is electric and autonomous, we saw Hexagon’s ability to integrate high-performance software to manage these assets, and this opportunity to integrate our equipment automation project with Hexagon’s project for an autonomous mine,” added Maurício Casara, Commercial and New Technologies Director, U&M.
Exactly how is Hexagon helping to enable autonomous haulage? A stack of our integrated technologies is driving this innovation, including Hexagon Collision Avoidance System (CAS), Hexagon Personal Alert, radar—which integrates perception systems—and the Hexagon Core Box, which brings Hexagon Mission Manager and its dispatch systems.
Watch the video below to hear directly from U&M and Hexagon team members about how this technology is impacting the mining industry and what makes this partnership successful.
Want to dive deeper into this partnership? Check out the video below, which was recorded at our Intelligent Mining Summit in Las Vegas, Nevada in June, 2023. Marcus Mundim, Senior Technical Product Manager – Autonomous, Hexagon’s Mining division, and Maurício Casara discuss how Hexagon and U&M are working together to enable OEM-agnostic autonomous haulage.
Join us in Accra, Ghana, for WAMPEX! On May 28-30, 2025, visit Booth #D23 to learn more about how Hexagon’s solutions are helping mines become safer, more autonomous, more productive, and more profitable.
Throughout 2025 we’ll be blogging about the challenges facing the mining industry. Drawing upon insights from thought leaders in our customer community and from within Hexagon, we’ll share how trusted partnerships and proven technology are addressing those challenges, helping to improve safety and cut costs while balancing the demands of productivity and sustainability.