Innovation and R&D Projects and Activities
The ever changing commodity market is constantly generating new challenges to exploration and mining service and technology companies worldwide. Current market conditions have triggered a quest for more cost-reducing exploration and mining technologies and services. DMT, as a leader and driver in the mining technology sector, is actively continuously developing innovative and robust solutions for the commodity market.
DMT is leading and contributing to numerous international innovation projects, including projects funded by the European Union (e.g. Research Fund for Coal and Steel RFCS, EIT Raw Materials, Horizon 2020) and the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF). We concentrate our innovation activities on the company’s core competences, for instance, sensor-supported monitoring of mining operations, automation of exploration, mining and extraction processes, reactivation and/or remediation of abandoned mine sites, and assessment and certification of mineral resources and ore reserves. DMT also supports education projects and capacity building in the mining sector by supporting and contributing to Masters and Doctoral thesis projects and other training initiatives.
EIT RawMaterials
One important pillar of our innovation strategy is currently DMT GmbH & Co. KG’s core membership in the EU-funded EIT RawMaterials. This novel collaboration of stakeholders from industry and academia from various fields of application right across the raw materials value chain is the world’s largest and strongest consortium in the raw materials sector. Initiated by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, the consortium of over 100 companies, universities and research institutes strives to boost competitiveness, growth and attractiveness of the European raw materials sector through innovative strength and guided entrepreneurship, as well as delivering increased economic, environmental and social sustainability to European society. DMT, as a core member of this initiative, is active in the strategic target areas of exploration, mining, processing and metallurgy of raw materials from primary and secondary sources, but also in the fields of energy, cokemaking technology, infrastructure and safety.
German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
The German government invests heavily in the action areas of education, research and innovation, not only to secure a strong future for the people and economy of Germany, but also to find solutions to global problems and strategies for sustainable growth. DMT has been involved in numerous geotechnical projects supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.
Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS)
The Research Fund for Coal and Steel is a program of the European Commission, which invests over €50 million every year in innovation projects to enhance the safety, efficiency and competitive edge of the EU coal and steel industries. In recent years DMT has contributed to over 20 RFCS projects on topics such as underground coal gasification, management of mine water and a coal weathering study to improve coke properties and protect coke oven operation.
Horizon 2020
Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever. Its goal is to ensure Europe produces world-class science, removes barriers to innovation and makes it easier for the public and private sectors to work together in delivering innovation. DMT is proud to be part of the the BIOMOre project, which brings together expertise from seven countries and 21 partners at the forefront of innovation in raw materials supply.
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
The European Regional Development Fund is the European Union's main instrument for regional development and aims to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the EU by combating inequalities between the various regions. A focus of the ERDF is on the strengthening of competitiveness and innovation and the need to ensure sustainable development.
DMT leads or contributes to the following innovation projects:
Project | Description | Funded by | Duration | DMT contact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
OREVAL | OREVal a European Network for Advanced Mineral Characterization and Ore Valuation | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2018 | Norbert Benecke |
iMine | European Demonstration and Test Facilities | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2018 | Norbert Benecke |
LayTerm | Layman courses for the Transfer of Expertise on Raw Materials | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2017 | Knut Hirsch |
RMProSchool | EIT RawMaterials High Level Professional School | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2018 | Knut Hirsch |
iDeepMon | Intelligent Deep Mine Shaft Laser Scanning and Monitoring | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2016 – 30.06.2019 | Norbert Benecke |
iRIS | Intelligent Risk Identification System for safer Mines | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2016 – 31.03.2018 | Christoph Möller |
MineService | Public Mineral Intelligence System to support Authorities (on national, regional or local level) in the decision-making Process and to facilitate Industry to enter into new Markets | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2016 – 31.03.2018 | Bernd Teigler |
Arctic Hub 2 | Arctic Network Hub | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Norbert Benecke |
CERA | Development of Certification Schemes for the origin of Critical Raw Materials | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2020 | Andreas Hucke |
Gateway 2 | Gateway to developing economies | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Philip Mittelstädt |
MULSEDRO | Multi Sensor Drones for geological Mapping | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Sönke Rapp |
RE-ACTIVATE | Developing superior technical Infrastructure throughout EIT RawMaterials Community to foster Technologies and Methodologies for Re-activation of former Mine Sites | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Michael Haschke |
RockVader | Smart Hard Rock Mining System | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Norbert Gomolla |
STINGS | Monitoring of Tailings via on-site and remote Technologies | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2020 | Karsten Zimmermann |
STORM | Industrial Symbiosis for the Sustainable Management of Raw Materials | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2020 | Knut Hirsch |
VISUAL 3D | 3D/4D Geological Modelling | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2017 – 31.12.2019 | Florian Lowicki |
raPHOSafe | Classification and Sorting of Radium-rich Phosphogypsum Tailings | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2018 | Jörg Feinhals |
HUBGREECE | EIT RawMaterials Hub Greece. A Hub for the Greek Raw Materials Sector | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2019 | Norbert Benecke |
SO4Control | Scale-up of Solution for Mining Water Sulfate Control with Side-product Recovery | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.03.2020 | Christoph Klinger |
ANCORELOG | ANCORELOG - Analytical Core Logging System | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2020 | Carlos Pina Garcia |
MaMMa | Maintained Mine & Machine | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2020 | Norbert Gomolla |
REEBAUX | Prospects of REE recovery from bauxite and bauxite residue in the ESEE region | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2020 | Bernd Teigler / Florian Lowicki |
SIT4ME | Seismic Imaging Techniques for Mineral Exploration | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 31.12.2020 | Boris Dombrowski / Dirk Orlowsky |
Closurematic | Management Tool for Continuous Mine Closure - Closurematic | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 01.01.2021 | Philip Mittelstädt |
UNDROMEDA | Underground Robotic System for Monitoring, Evaluation and Detection Applications | EIT Raw Materials | 01.01.2018 – 30.06.2021 | Karsten Zimmermann |
EC-Geo-Sustain | European MSc in Geomatics for Sustainable Mineral Resource Management | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2018 – 31.03.2020 | Norbert Benecke |
RESEERVE | Mineral potential of the ESEE region | EIT Raw Materials | 01.04.2018 – 31.03.2021 | Bernd Teigler / Florian Lowicki |
COAL2GAS | Enhanced Coal Exploitation through Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) in European Lignite Mines | RFCS | 01.07.2014 – 30.06.2017 | Stephan Peters |
BINGO | Bulk Density and Internal Gas Pressure in Coke Ovens | RFCS | 01.07.2015 – 30.06.2018 | Drazen Gajic |
MERIDA | Management of Environmental Risks During and After Mine Closure | RFCS | 01.07.2015 – 30.06.2019 | Karsten Zimmermann |
STAMS | Long-term Stability Assessment and Monitoring of flooded Shafts | RFCS | 01.07.2015 – 30.06.2018 | Klaus Siever |
PRASS III | Productivity and safety of shield support | RFCS | 01.07.2017 – 30.06.2020 | Ulrich Langosh |
ESTIVAL | ESTImation of coal VALue-in-use in terms of CSR under different carbonization conditions | RFCS | 01.07.2017 – 30.06.2020 | Drazen Gajic |
ROCD | Reducing risks from Occupational exposure to Coal Dust | RFCS | 01.07.2017 – 30.06.2020 | Rainer Rellecke |
INDIRES | INDIRES: Information Driven Incident Response | RFCS | 01.07.2017 – 30.06.2020 | Klaus Siever |
BioMOre | New Mining Concept for Extracting Metals from Deep Ore Deposits using Biotechnology | HORIZON 2020 | 01.01.2015 – 31.01.2018 | Knut Hirsch |
GW RUHR II (Mine Water Ruhr) | Development of innovative and efficient Concepts for climate-friendly Energy Supply in the Ruhr area through the use of Heat from Mine Water; surveying and modelling Subproject as part of the technical Analysis. | BMBF | 01.03.2016 – 28.02.2019 | Tobias Friedrich |
UPSW II | Feasibility of the subsequent Utilisation of Coal Mine Prosper-Haniel in Bottrop as an Underground Pumped-storage Power Plant; Testing of technical Feasibility and Option Assessment | BMBF | 01.07.2016 – 31.12.2017 | Tobias Friedrich |
Geosmart | Simulation based integrated risk analysis for deep underground projects | BMBF | 01.07.2017 – 30.06.2020 | Michael Eckart |
| MISS | Reduction of the interference effect of wind turbines on seismological measuring stations | ERDF | 01.05.2018 – 30.04.2021 | Simon Kremers |