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Mining & Minerals
Open Pit Mining
Capital-intensive extraction and processing programs where safety, regulation, and supply chain complexity define execution.
Freeport-McMoRan
BHP
Rio Tinto
Newmont
Inside this journey
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Pre-Discovery
Align the room on outcomes, decision process, and constraints before deeper discovery.
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Stakeholder Alignment
Confirm decision roles (GM, Project Director, VP Ops), approval timelines, budget constraints, and what ‘good’ looks like for each stakeholder.
Alignment Questions
Starting the Conversation: What’s Top of Mind Right Now?
- Quick snapshot: what is the single outcome you most want a contract miner to deliver in the next 12 months?
- Which of these best describes why you’re exploring an external contract mining partner today?
- Tell us briefly about your current production target (tonnes/month or annual), and whether that target is firm or aspirational.
- Who on your side will own day-to-day delivery and who will be the final approver for a contract mining engagement?
- What timeline are you working to for selecting a partner and mobilizing equipment?
- How would you rate your current confidence in hitting your production and safety targets with existing resources?
- What’s one recent example that shows why you’re having this conversation now (operational failure, budget gap, new pit, regulatory change, etc.)?
Are You Settling for “Good Enough” or Running Something Fragile?
- When you look at the last 6 months, what recurring issue most consistently undermined your monthly tonnage?
- How have mechanical-availability shortfalls historically translated into commercial or operational pain for you (missed shipments, processing bottlenecks, contractual penalties)? Give a specific story if possible.
- What safety concerns—beyond headline LTIFR/TRIFR numbers—keep you awake at night about sharing the pit with a contractor?
- Which of these cost pressures is most likely to cause you to pause or renegotiate a contract?
- How often have unexpected ground or weather conditions caused you to change plan mid-campaign, and how long did the average adjustment take?
- Describe one moment in recent operations when you felt the current approach was holding you back rather than enabling outcomes.
- If nothing changed in the next 12 months, what is the most likely negative outcome you foresee?
Who’s Really Pulling the Levers? Aligning Decision Power and Incentives
- Are the people signing the contract the same people who will manage day-to-day performance—and if not, how does that split typically create friction?
- Which stakeholders must be explicitly satisfied for a contract to move from proposal to award?
- What does ‘good’ look like for each of the core stakeholders (GM, Project Director, VP Ops) — one sentence per role if possible.
- Where do decisions typically get delayed—technical acceptance, budget approval, safety sign-off, or commercial legal review?
- Who has veto authority over scope changes, and how have past vetoes affected mobilization or performance?
- How does the procurement or finance team judge value—strictly by $/t, by life-of-mine cost, or by other metrics (risk transfer, availability guarantees)?
When the Ground Betrays You: Failure Modes That Risk Delivery
- Which failure mode feels most likely to derail your next campaign if not mitigated upfront?
- Tell us about the last time a ground or fragment-size surprise cascaded into lost throughput—what happened and how long until recovery?
- Which geological or site constraints are non-negotiable for you (e.g., clay seams, high water table, hard cap rock, environmental buffers)?
- How do you currently detect and manage early signs of a failing drill-blast or grade-control program (KPIs, tech tools, sampling cadence)?
- What contingency plans exist today for major failure modes (spare parts caches, surge crews, alternate processing sequencing)?
- How would a contractor best demonstrate readiness to handle the top 1–2 failure modes you’ve identified?
Imagine a Production Month That Runs Like Clockwork
- If everything went perfectly for one month, what three KPI outcomes would make you say the contract is working?
- What safety performance targets feel meaningful and realistic for you to see from day one of a mobilization (LTIFR/TRIFR or other leading indicators)?
- How quickly do you need to see performance ramp to baseline—30 days, 60 days, 90 days, or longer?
- What operational handoffs with owner-managed teams must be flawless for you (grade-control sampling, crusher feed, stockpile reconciliation, blending)?
- Describe the minimum acceptance criteria for the first tonne delivered under contract (mechanical availability, sample results, safety sign-offs).
- If we offered a short pilot or phased mobilization, what would success look like at the pilot milestone so you could scale with confidence?
What Would Make You Say ‘Yes’ Tomorrow?
- What single commercial term (guarantee, price structure, penalty, or incentive) would most reduce your perceived risk of contracting out this scope?
- How important is transfer of risk vs cost savings—do you prioritize budget certainty, upside sharing, or safety-first commitments?
- What governance cadence would make you comfortable—weekly ops reviews, monthly KPI deep-dives, or a hybrid?
- When it comes to escalation, who needs a clear, predefined pathway to resolve disagreements fast?
- Would a mechanical-availability guarantee tied to staged payments make you more likely to proceed? If yes, what minimum % availability feels acceptable?
- Are there contract clauses that have blocked you in the past (mobilization windows, liabilities, community commitments)? Please list and explain.
Practical Next Steps: What Would Make a Partnership Work Day One?
- Who should be the primary contacts on day one for operations, safety, and commercial matters?
- What site visits, data sets, or technical documents do we need to evaluate risk properly (pit survey, recent blast reports, maintenance logs, reliability data)?
- How do you prefer we demonstrate competency—case studies, references from similar geology/commodities, onsite capability demos, or a short pilot?
- What internal approvals or documentation will you need from us to move from discovery to commercial discussions (insurance limits, safety management plan, technical methodology)?
- Realistically, what is the earliest date you could commit to a site visit or pilot kickoff?
- Finally, what would success look like from the first 90 days if we moved forward together—one paragraph describing outcomes and feelings?
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Current State Mapping
Document owner-operated baselines, existing fleet condition, maintenance practices, geology constraints, and failure modes that risk delivery.
Current State
Start Where You Stand
- Briefly, what single production baseline should we anchor this conversation to (tonnes/day, monthly tonnes, or another metric)?
- Which of these best describes your current production target vs actual?
- Who on your team owns the production baseline day-to-day?
- How would you describe the emotional impact of current production performance on leadership—confidence, concern, alarm, or something else?
- If you can, share one recent example where the baseline number masked a deeper problem (brief description).
Where the Wheels Really Grind — Fleet Reality
- If your most critical haul truck or shovel was out for two weeks, what would happen to your weekly tonnes and which bottleneck would surface first?
- Which equipment categories are owner-operated today and which are contracted (select all that apply)?
- What is the average age or meter-hours of your primary production fleet?
- How would you rate current mechanical availability against your internal expectation?
- Describe one recurrent equipment issue that regularly reduces fleet output and how you currently mitigate it.
When Machines Break — Failure Modes We Live With
- Which single failure mode would you say causes the most unplanned downtime and why?
- Select the failure modes you experience regularly (pick all that apply).
- What's your average mean time to repair (MTTR) for major failures?
- Do you have root-cause analyses for recurrent failures and are they acted on with capital or process change?
- When a critical failure happens, what are the typical hidden costs you incur (choose all that apply)?
The Ground Isn’t Neutral — Geology & Site Constraints
- What geological or ground conditions have caused the largest schedule slips or cost overruns in the past 24 months?
- Which of these geology-related constraints affect daily operations (select all that apply)?
- How often does ground condition variability force you to change mining method, blasting design, or equipment selection?
- Tell us about the last time ground conditions forced a major change—what happened and how long did recovery take?
- Do you have contingency designs or alternate work plans ready for different ground scenarios?
Maintenance: Ritual or Results?
- Is maintenance here primarily preventing failure or reacting to it—and how confident are you in that answer?
- Which maintenance systems do you actively use?
- What’s the typical spare-parts lead time for long-lead components that matter most?
- How do you prioritize parts and service spend when the budget is tight?
- Describe one change in your maintenance approach you think would deliver the biggest uplift in availability.
Interfaces That Make or Break Delivery
- Where do owner–contractor handoffs trip you up most often—planning, grade control, processing, or something else?
- Which interfaces are formally documented with roles and acceptance criteria?
- How frequently do you run joint owner–contractor production meetings and who attends?
- Give a short example of a recent handoff failure and the downstream impact it caused.
- What would make handoffs frictionless—better data, clearer roles, incentives, or something else?
Data You Actually Trust (and What You Don’t)
- Which single metric on your dashboard do you implicitly trust least—and why would that be a risk if relied on?
- What core systems produce your operational data (select all that apply)?
- How often are production, availability, and safety numbers reconciled between teams?
- Where are your biggest data blind spots (e.g., tyre consumption, in-pit loading counts, blast fragmentation)?
- Would you be willing to share site telemetry for a short audit to validate baselines?
If Things Go Sideways — Scenarios That Break Contracts
- Which single scenario would most likely escalate to a commercial dispute if not handled quickly?
- Select the risks you judge as most likely in the next 12 months (pick all that apply).
- What contractual or governance mechanisms do you currently use to manage these risks?
- When an unexpected event occurs, how quickly can your team mobilize a recovery plan?
- Tell us about the last event that required rapid escalation—what worked and what failed?
Decisions, Timelines, and Invisible Constraints
- What invisible rule or approval step most often slows decisions that would improve availability or production?
- Typical approval timeline to change a maintenance strategy, source a major part, or reallocate fleet?
- Which stakeholder groups must sign off on tactical site changes (select all that apply)?
- Is there a contingency or risk budget you can draw on for rapid fixes, and who controls it?
- How would you describe your organisation’s appetite for short-term trade-offs (more cost for faster recovery) vs long-term capex solutions?
Quick Wins and Next Maps
- If we could help reduce one measurable pain in the next 60 days, what should it be?
- Which of these immediate interventions would you be most open to (select top two)?
- How ready are you to support a short site visit or remote telemetry review in the next 2–4 weeks?
- Who should we talk to next on your team to validate what we’ve heard (name, role, and best contact method)?
- Is there anything else about your current state—sensitive constraints, recent failures, or hidden strengths—we should know before proposing next steps?
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Customer Discovery
Clarify production targets, safety thresholds (LTIFR/TRIFR), cost-per-tonne expectations, mobilization windows, and key operational constraints.
Discovery Questions
Starting Point — Tell Us Why We're Here
- What is the primary reason you’re exploring contract mining for this site right now?
- Which stage best describes the project today?
- What production target do you expect the contractor to help you hit? (state units and period — e.g., 120 kt/day)
- Today, roughly how much of the required fleet / capacity is owner-operated vs needs to be supplied by a contractor?
- Who on your team will be most impacted day-to-day by a contractor entering site? (list roles and names if possible)
If You Had to Call This Project ‘Broken’, What Would You Blame?
- What single production or operational issue would you point to as the project’s biggest blocker today?
- Can you give two concrete examples or metrics that show the impact of that issue (dates, variance to plan, downtime hours, $ impact)?
- How long has this specific issue been happening?
- When it happens, what usually compounds the problem—what else goes wrong?
- What have you tried internally or with previous contractors to fix it, and what was the result?
How Safe Do You Feel About Hitting Those Numbers?
- What LTIFR and TRIFR targets does your leadership expect for any contractor on site?
- What are your current site LTIFR and TRIFR figures (last 12 months)?
- Which parts of the operation create the biggest safety interface risks between owner teams and contractors?
- Tell us about any recent safety incidents or near-misses involving external contractors and the lessons learned.
- How would you rank safety performance relative to cost when awarding this contract?
Money Talks — What Cost-Per-Tonne Will Make This Work?
- What is your target cost-per-tonne (unit rate) for the scope you expect to contract?
- What is your current owner-operated cost-per-tonne baseline to compare against?
- Which commercial models are you most open to considering?
- How much cost volatility from fuel and consumables can the project tolerate before re-opening commercial terms?
- Are there internal budget approvals or capital ceilings that would prevent you accepting certain pricing structures? If so, explain.
What Could Stop Us From Mobilizing On Time?
- If we told you we could meet your preferred start date, what would make you skeptical?
- What is your desired mobilization window (earliest start to latest acceptable start)?
- Which logistical constraints are non-negotiable for mobilization (pick all that apply)?
- What lead times have you experienced for critical approvals or long-lead items on this project?
- How many weeks of ramp-up (from first production to steady-state performance) do you expect is realistic?
The Ground Truth — Where the Earth Might Bite Back
- What are the dominant ground and geology types we’ll be working in (e.g., saprolite, weathered ore, fresh rock, laterite)?
- Which geotechnical or ground risks have surprised you in the past at this site or similar deposits?
- What are your current expectations for fragmentation and downstream impact (e.g., P80 target, crusher throughput issues)?
- Have you experienced ground-related stoppages that materially affected delivery? Tell us what happened and how you resolved it.
- How do you currently monitor and escalate ground condition changes—are there templates or governance we must align to?
Who Holds the Keys — How Decisions Really Get Made Here
- If this contract were to be awarded, who are the decision-makers that must sign off (roles and their priorities)?
- What’s the typical approval timeline from initial proposal to contract signature at your company?
- Which evaluation criteria will carry the most weight in your selection process?
- Are there mandatory contractual clauses or guarantees (e.g., mechanical availability %, minimum fleet age, bonding) that would be deal-breakers if absent?
- Who inside your organization will manage day-to-day governance of a contractor (role/title), and how do they prefer to interact (weekly Ops meeting, daily production huddle, dashboard)?
What Would Success Look Like — Tell Us the Story You Want to Read
- Name the top three measurable outcomes that would make you say this engagement exceeded expectations.
- When should we expect to be able to measure those outcomes (timeline to KPIs being meaningful)?
- What governance, reporting, and learning-capture practices would make you comfortable that the contractor will iterate and improve over time?
- Would you consider a short pilot or staged mobilization to de-risk full-scale mobilization? If yes, what would an acceptable pilot scope look like?
- What unresolved fears would you like us to address before you’d call this a success?
What Would Make You Comfortable Moving Forward — The Final Hurdle
- If everything else checked out, what would have to be true for you to sign a contract today?
- What documents, assessments, or site interactions do you need from a bidder before you can move to commercial negotiation?
- Who needs to be present from your side for a decisive commercial discussion (roles/names) and what timing works best?
- What would be an acceptable short-term mitigation if we hit an early mechanical availability shortfall?
- Is there anything else you haven’t told us that would materially change how we should design a proposal for you?
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Solution Experience
Walk through outcome delivery in the customer’s context, using scenarios for mobilization, ramp-up, safety interfaces, and unexpected ground or weather events.
Experience Meetings
- Solution Experience Kickoff — Confirm Current State & Consequence
- Mobilization & Ramp-Up Scenario Walkthrough — Proof of Future State
- Operational Resilience Workshop — Unexpected Ground & Weather Response
- Final Validation & Customer Confirmation — Future State Acceptance
- Schedule the Solution Scope meeting with objectives to translate validated future-state items into contract modules and KPIs.
- List validation checkpoint artifacts (reports, telemetry samples, first-tonne acceptance criteria) for customer sign-off.
- Produce measurable expectations for production recovery timelines following each event type.
- Failure Modes Recap
- Validate that predefined response playbooks reduce average downtime and limit KPI degradation.
- Confirm clear escalation paths and decision gates with named owners and SLAs.
- Agree the engineering mitigations and resource pre-staging required for rapid recovery.
- Create event playbooks for the simulated scenarios including step-by-step responses and named owners.
- Assign escalation owners and record their decision SLAs for inclusion in the contract governance section.
- Run a short scenario-based KPI model showing expected downtime and recovery days to share with stakeholders.
- Identify and requisition any pre-staged spares or engineering resources required to meet the recovery timelines.
- Recap: Current State, Consequence, Future State
- Obtain explicit verbal confirmation from the customer that the defined future state matches their operational goal.
- Agree and document the acceptance criteria and KPI baselines that will be used for contract acceptance.
- Identify any remaining open risks and assign owners with remediation timelines before moving to Solution Scope.
- Secure agreement on the immediate next step: schedule and objectives for the Solution Scope meeting.
- Capture the signed future-state statement and distribute to all stakeholders as the authoritative acceptance of outcomes.
- Finalize and circulate the KPI baseline document and acceptance gate checklist for inclusion in the Solution Scope package.
- Log open risks with owners and remediation deadlines and track them into the next meeting.
- Introductions & Objective
- Produce and verbally confirm a single-sentence current-state description that everyone accepts.
- Agree quantified consequences in operational and financial terms for failing to close the gap.
- Select the precise scenarios to be used in the Solution Experience and list required inputs.
- Establish decision authorities and deadlines relevant to mobilization and ramp-up timelines.
- Document the agreed one-sentence current-state statement and circulate to attendees.
- Produce a short consequence summary quantifying cost, schedule, safety, and reputational impacts.
- Finalize scenario list and collect required data (site maps, baseline availabilities, weather windows) prior to the next meeting.
- List decision gate owners and their approval timelines for the solution experience run.
- Scenario Recap & Success Criteria
- Prove a mobilization plan that meets the customer's mobilization window and removes the current schedule risk.
- Demonstrate that proposed fleet deployment and maintenance approach attains required mechanical availability.
- Align safety interface responsibilities and monitoring approach for ramp-up to preserve TRIFR/LTIFR targets.
- Agree measurable validation checkpoints the customer will use to accept ramp-up progress.
- Deliver a mobilization Gantt with critical-path milestones and owners tied to the customer's dates.
- Provide a parts & fuel provisioning list and maintenance cadence to support target mechanical availability.
- Draft safety interface SOPs and KPIs for ramp-up handovers and monitoring.
- One-Sentence Current State
- Tabletop: Severe Weather Event
- Mobilization Timeline & Critical Path
- Proof Points from Scenarios
- Tabletop: Unexpected Ground Condition
- Quantify Consequence
- Stakeholder Validation Roundtable
- Fleet Deployment & Mechanical Availability Proof
- Decision Gates & Escalation Paths
- Finalize Acceptance Criteria & KPI Baselines
- Stakeholder Roles, Timelines & Decision Gates
- Ramp-Up Sequence and Production Simulation
- Open Risks, Mitigations & Next Steps
- KPI Impact Modeling & Recovery Plans
- Scenario Selection & Pre-work Review
- Safety Interface & Handover Points
- Contingency Triggers & Escalation
- Confirm Success Criteria for Experience
- Validation Checkpoints
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Solution Scope
Define contract modules (fleet counts, drill-and-blast, grade control, mine planning), responsibilities, KPIs, and acceptance criteria.
Scope Configuration
- Deploy ultra-class haul trucks for production hauling
- Operate hydraulic excavators for overburden removal
- Execute rotary blasthole drilling and hole charging
- Perform controlled blasting with vibration monitoring
- Operate shovel-truck cycles for ore extraction
- Provide grade-control sampling and in-field assaying
- Operate in-pit dewatering and water management
- Conduct haul road construction and maintenance
- Deliver site-based heavy-equipment maintenance and repairs
- Supply fuel, lubricants, and heavy consumables
- Deploy trained equipment operators and site supervisors
- Operate ore stockpiling and ROM handling services
- Operate on-site explosives magazines and handling
- Implement dust suppression and environmental controls
- Provide emergency response and medical services on-site
Scope Questions
Deploy ultra-class haul trucks for production hauling
- Do you require contractor-supplied ultra-class haul trucks for production hauling?
- What is the target average production (tonnes per day) to be moved by contractor haulage?
- How many trucks (or truck-equivalents) do you estimate are required?
- What mechanical availability target should the contractor guarantee for the truck fleet?
- Are there specific haul-road slope, gradient or axle-load constraints we should know about?
Operate hydraulic excavators for overburden removal
- Should the contractor provide hydraulic excavators for overburden removal?
- What bench height(s) and typical bucket size(s) are expected on site?
- What is the expected monthly loose-cubic-meter (LCM) or tonne volume for overburden removal?
- Are there geology or material abrasiveness concerns that affect bucket/undercarriage wear?
- Do you require operator competency levels, training records, or site-specific induction programs for excavator crews?
Execute rotary blasthole drilling and hole charging
- Should the contractor supply rotary blasthole drilling and hole charging services?
- What hole diameter(s) and target linear metres per month are required?
- Are there existing drill patterns, collaring tolerances, or blasthole accuracy targets we must follow?
- Do on-site magazines and explosives handling exist, or must the contractor manage explosives logistics and storage?
- What environmental or groundwater constraints affect hole charging (e.g., water table, wet holes)?
Perform controlled blasting with vibration monitoring
- Do you require controlled blasting carried out by the contractor with vibration and airblast monitoring?
- What regulatory or owner PPV/airblast limits must blasting comply with?
- Are there nearby receptors (communities, infrastructure, processing plants) that require pre-blast surveys or additional controls?
- How many vibration monitoring points and reporting frequency are required after each blast?
- Do you require blast modelling, fragmentation analysis and post-blast reporting as part of acceptance criteria?
Operate shovel-truck cycles for ore extraction
- Will the contractor be responsible for integrated shovel-truck cycles for ore extraction?
- What is the target ore tonnes-per-day (tpd) the shovel-truck fleet must deliver to the processing plant or stockpile?
- Are there grade-control handover points or interfaces the contractor must coordinate (e.g., in-field assaying, dig plans)?
- What ramp-up timeline is required from mobilization to nameplate production (weeks/months)?
- What acceptance KPIs will be used for shovel-truck performance (e.g., tonnes per operating hour, cycle time, payload consistency)?
Provide grade-control sampling and in-field assaying
- Do you require contractor-provided grade-control sampling and in-field assaying?
- What sample density and spacing are required for grade control (e.g., samples per bench, per 1000 tonnes)?
- What turnaround time is required for in-field assay results to support production decisions?
- Should the contractor provide QA/QC (blanks, standards, duplicates) and chain-of-custody documentation?
- Do assay methods need to integrate with owner's grade-control software or data systems?
Operate in-pit dewatering and water management
- Is in-pit dewatering and water management required from the contractor?
- What average or peak pumping capacity (m3/hr) is expected to manage pit water?
- Are there discharge limits, treatment requirements or disposal routes (evaporation ponds, discharge to creek, reuse)?
- Are seasonal/monsoonal groundwater inflows or perched water expected that affect dewatering design?
- Should the contractor provide monitoring, reporting and contingency plans for water management (e.g., seepage control, emergency pumping)?
Conduct haul road construction and maintenance
- Do you require contractor-delivered haul road construction and ongoing maintenance?
- What class of haul road is required (surface type and width) to support ultra-class trucks?
- What maintenance frequency and target road condition metrics do you expect (e.g., rut depth, roughness)?
- Are drainage works, culverts and erosion control included in scope or provided by owner?
- Do haul roads need dust control or settling ponds integrated with environmental controls?
Deliver site-based heavy-equipment maintenance and repairs
- Should the contractor provide on-site heavy-equipment maintenance and repair facilities?
- What is the expected MTBF/availability target and maximum allowable downtime per machine per month?
- What critical spare parts must be stocked on-site (e.g., transmissions, tires, engines)?
- Do you require planned maintenance scheduling, digital CMMS integration and automated reporting?
- What skill levels and certifications are required for mechanics and workshop supervisors?
Supply fuel, lubricants, and heavy consumables
- Do you want the contractor to supply fuel, lubricants and heavy consumables as part of the contract?
- What is the estimated monthly fuel consumption or do you prefer a supplier to estimate after site survey?
- Are there specific fuel/lube quality specifications, testing or vendor approvals required?
- Do you require on-site bulk storage, fuel management controls and reconciliation reporting?
- How should consumables be billed (e.g., cost-pass-through, fixed price per tonne, inventory-managed)?
Deploy trained equipment operators and site supervisors
- Will contractor-supplied operators and supervisors be required to meet specific certification or experience levels?
- What is the anticipated number of operators, supervisors and support staff required at peak operations?
- Is a local-hire preference required, or are fly-in/fly-out crews acceptable?
- Do you require contractor-led training programs, competency assessments and retention guarantees?
- Are site inductions, language requirements, and medical/fitness-for-duty standards defined for staff?
Operate ore stockpiling and ROM handling services
- Do you require contractor responsibility for ore stockpiling, ROM handling and reclaiming?
- What stockpile capacity and segregation/blending targets are required (tonnes or pad area)?
- What reclaim method is preferred (dozers, front-end loaders, conveyors) and are conveyors available?
- Are sampling, segregation rules and blending recipes required to meet feed quality targets?
- Do environmental controls (runoff management, dust suppression) apply to stockpile areas and who is responsible?
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Mutual Commit
Finalize commercial terms, mechanical availability guarantees, SLAs, governance cadence, and escalation paths.
Agreement Modules
- Statement of Work (SOW)
- Master Services Agreement (MSA)
- Commercial Terms & Pricing Schedule
- Mechanical Availability Guarantee
- Service Level Agreement (SLA) & KPIs
- Performance Incentives & Penalties
- Governance & Reporting Cadence
- Escalation Path & Dispute Resolution
- Mobilization & Demobilization Plan
- Spare Parts, Fuel & Logistics Agreement
- Insurance, Bonds & Performance Security
- Health, Safety & Environmental Handover
- Workforce, Housing & Labour Management Terms
- Change Order & Variation Procedure
- Acceptance Criteria & First-Tonne Acceptance
- Confidentiality & Data Sharing Annex
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Deployment
Operationalize rollout with readiness checks, enablement, and outcome validation.
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Pre-Deployment Readiness
Confirm mobilization plan, spare-parts and fuel logistics, workforce housing, safety handover, and interfaces with owner-managed processing and grade control.
Readiness Questions
Opening the Conversation: Your Big Picture
- Which role are you representing in this discussion?
- In one sentence, what is the single biggest outcome you need a contract miner to deliver for this project?
- Which commodity and deposit type best describes this opportunity?
- Which commercial/engagement model are you most likely to pursue?
- What single metric would make you say the contractor succeeded at the end of the first 12 months?
Are We Underestimating the Real Pressure?
- If you had to point to the immediate consequence of missing this month’s production by 10%, what would it be?
- What is your current steady-state production target (choose the range closest to your plan)?
- How much single-month shortfall can you tolerate before it triggers executive escalation or contractual penalties?
- Tell us about a recent month where production fell short — what happened, and what root cause surprised you most?
- How predictable is your month-to-month production versus plan?
Safety Beyond the Spreadsheet
- Imagine a contractor’s TRIFR spikes above your current number — what would that signal to you about their leadership and fit with your site?
- What are your current safety targets (select closest for LTIFR / TRIFR)?
- Which elements of a contractor’s safety program matter most to you? (pick up to 4)
- How do you want safety handover and daily risk briefings to work between owner and contractor crews?
- How long have safety concerns related to external contractors been present on your site, and how have they affected trust?
Cost-per-Tonne: Where Trade-offs Hide
- If higher throughput meant slightly higher cost-per-tonne, where would you draw the line between acceptable trade and an unacceptable cost increase?
- What is your current target cost-per-tonne (select closest range)?
- Versus owner-operated benchmarks, where do you expect contractors to be competitive or accept a premium?
- Which cost drivers worry you most for escalation during contract life? (select all that apply)
- How would you like cost escalation to be managed in contract terms (fixed escalation index, shared risk, periodic renegotiation)?
The Clock Is a Real Person: Mobilization Windows & Pain
- What happens inside your organization if a contractor misses the mobilization window by 30 days?
- What is your target mobilization date or window for arrival on site?
- Which of the following are binding constraints on your mobilization plan? (choose all that apply)
- Describe the shortest realistic mobilization you would accept and what must be in place to make that feasible (housing, spares, key accreditations).
- Who inside your organization will own mobilization day-to-day and who signs off on readiness?
Ground Truth: Geology, Water, and Surprise Events
- How confident are you that the current geological and geotechnical model will not produce disruptive surprises during early production?
- Which subsurface or geologic risks concern you most for contractor-delivered works? (select up to 4)
- Have you experienced a ground-related delay previously that materially affected production? Tell us what happened and how the team responded.
- How would you like a contractor to surface and escalate unexpected ground or weather events?
- What geotechnical or hydrogeological data sets will you make available to a shortlisted contractor before mobilization?
Interfaces That Make or Break Delivery
- Which single handoff between owner and contractor worries you most when thinking about day-to-day delivery?
- What responsibilities do you expect the contractor to own without daily owner intervention? (select all that apply)
- What data and system integrations are required for seamless handoffs (choose all that apply)?
- Who will be the single point of authority for day-shift operational decisions, and is that person empowered to re-sequence work with the contractor?
- Describe a previous interface failure (owner-contractor) and one change that would have prevented it.
If This Partnership Delivers, What Changes for You?
- If the contractor delivered every promise for 12 months, what three things would look materially different on site?
- Which KPIs would you use to evaluate success at 30, 90, and 365 days? (select up to 6)
- How frequently would you expect governance reviews in the first year (and who should attend)?
- If you could lock in one lasting operational improvement from a contractor, what would it be?
- Emotionally, what would success enable you to do differently in your role or for the business?
Decision Drivers & Next Steps
- What is the single most important decision criterion that would make you award this contract tomorrow?
- What is your procurement / approval timeline for selecting a contractor?
- Who are the final approvers and what budget constraints should bidders be aware of?
- Which commercial constructs would you prefer to see in proposals? (pick up to 4)
- If we proposed a short, low-risk pilot to prove capability, how willing would you be to consider it?
- Who should our team speak with next to unblock technical due diligence (name/role/contact)?
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Deployment Enablement
Schedule and coordinate fleet deployment, onboarding, integration tests, safety inductions, and initial production sequencing with clear owners.
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Validation Checklist
Verify acceptance criteria: mechanical availability, KPI baselines, grade-control handoffs, safety drills, and first-tonne acceptance tests.
Validation Questions
Tell Us About Your Operation — what should we know first?
- Which role are you representing in this conversation?
- Which site or asset are we discussing (name/location)?
- Primary commodity and dominant geology at the operation?
- Which contract model are you most likely considering for this work?
- What timeframe are you targeting to make a decision or mobilize?
If You Had to Pin the Problem on One Thing, What Would It Be?
- What's the single failing you most want fixed in the next 6 months?
- How does that failing show up in daily operations—give a short recent example?
- How long has this been affecting your production, safety or cost targets?
- Which KPIs feel most impacted by this issue?
- Has this issue already forced trade-offs (e.g., lower production, increased overtime, delaying maintenance)? Describe.
Are You Comfortable With the Numbers You're Reporting Right Now?
- If we projected your current KPI trends forward, would they meet your board or shareholder expectations?
- What is your current typical monthly production target (t/month)?
- Please state your actual average realized cost-per-tonne (USD/t) or a range if exact is sensitive.
- If you can, enter the exact metric(s) you track for cost and production (e.g., $/t: __ ; target t/day: __ ).
- What LTIFR and TRIFR targets are set for this site (or what band would be acceptable)?
- What mechanical availability do you currently measure and what contractual availability would be acceptable?
Where Do You See Hidden Risks We Might Be Underestimating?
- Which assumptions about ground conditions, weather windows, or supply chains are driving your current plan—and which worry you most?
- Describe a recent surprise from ground or weather that materially affected production.
- How reliable are fuel, consumables and spare-parts deliveries to site?
- Which owner-contractor interfaces create the most friction on your site?
- How quickly can you tolerate a drop in availability before downstream production or contracts are at risk?
Imagine the First 90 Days Went Perfectly—What Changed?
- What would a successful mobilization look and feel like on Day 30?
- What non-negotiable acceptance criteria must be met for first-tonne acceptance?
- Who on your side must sign off for first-tonne acceptance and commissioning?
- What ramp-up cadence do you expect (e.g., % of target by Day 30 / 60 / 90)?
- What would success feel like to the frontline crew and to the executive team respectively?
Trade-offs: What Would You Sacrifice to Get There Faster?
- Would you trade a modest cost premium for stronger availability guarantees, or prioritize lower cost with more operational risk?
- Roughly what premium (USD/t or % of contract) would make availability guarantees acceptable?
- Which contract mechanisms have you used before that aligned incentives well (examples: availability SLAs, gain-share, fixed mobilization, day-rates)?
- Which KPIs would you be comfortable tying to commercial incentives or penalties?
- What timeline or review cadence would you expect before any penalty/incentive kicks in?
Decision Drivers — who signs, when, and what’s the deadline?
- Who are the decision-makers and what is each person's primary concern (GM, VP Ops, Project Director, Finance, Safety)?
- What is your formal approval timeline and any immovable external deadlines (permits, funding, plant outages)?
- Are there budget limitations we should know about (capital vs operating budget constraints or approval thresholds)?
- What evidence or proof points would shorten your evaluation (e.g., reference sites, maintenance logs, safety record, pilot)?
- Would a time-bound pilot or performance-based trial be acceptable to accelerate decision-making?
What Would Keep This Relationship Healthy After Start?
- If you had to name one thing that guarantees a smooth owner-contractor relationship over the first year, what would it be?
- What governance cadence do you prefer for operational oversight and escalation?
- What escalation paths and response times are realistic for your site (hours/days)?
- How would you like performance reported (frequency and format) to keep executives informed but not overloaded?
- Are there cultural or behavioral signals that would make you feel the contractor is truly 'one team' with you? Give an example.
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Success
Review outcomes against agreed KPIs, capture operational learnings, and maintain a shared channel for issues and continuous improvement.
Success Reviews
- KPI Performance Review
- Operational Lessons Learned Workshop
- Continuous Improvement Planning & Prioritization
- Shared Channel & Escalation Protocol Setup
- Executive Outcomes Review & Contractual Alignment
Issues & Enhancements
- Publish the escalation matrix and notification templates to the channel and attach to contract governance pack.
- Update affected SOPs and distribute for verification to frontline supervisors within 14 days.
- Schedule competency training sessions for identified crew groups and set completion targets.
- Assign a documentation owner to maintain the lessons-log and track closure of actions.
- Backlog Review & Impact Summary
- Produce a prioritized improvement roadmap with owners and timelines.
- Agree on measurable success criteria for each pilot to validate impact.
- Commit required resources and governance cadence to execute pilots.
- Launch top 3 pilots with assigned owners, baseline metrics and 6-week review dates.
- Procure any critical spares or tools required for pilots and confirm delivery dates.
- Set up a weekly one-page status update template and distribution list for pilots.
- Channel Options & Agreement
- Establish a single shared communications channel with access and admin owners.
- Agree an escalation matrix with SLA response times for each issue severity.
- Validate the channel and escalation path with a short simulation.
- Create the shared channel, set permissions and add primary admins within 2 business days.
- Opening & Objectives
- Schedule quarterly escalation drills and record results for continuous improvement.
- Onboard frontline supervisors and key contractor leads to the channel and confirm contact list.
- Executive Summary & Purpose
- Secure executive alignment on contract health and financial exposures.
- Obtain clear decision on renewal, scale-up, or scope changes where applicable.
- Agree executive-level owners and timeline for any approved remedial investments.
- Commercial lead to prepare decision memo and proposed contract amendment terms within 5 business days.
- Finance to deliver a detailed cost reconciliation and forecast supporting executive decision within 7 days.
- Operations exec to commit to investment plan or resource reallocation and publish timelines.
- Schedule next executive checkpoint and circulate required pre-reads one week in advance.
- Confirm true performance against every contractual KPI and surface any breaches.
- Assign containment and corrective action owners with delivery dates.
- Agree on data sources and dashboard updates to keep KPI visibility current.
- Owner to publish updated KPI dashboard with root-cause tags within 48 hours.
- Maintenance lead to produce corrective maintenance plan for top 3 availability drivers within 5 working days.
- Safety manager to issue incident follow-up reports and improvement actions within 3 working days.
- Commercial lead to quantify cost/tonne impact for finance reconciliation by next review.
- Pre-work Review & Evidence Check
- Create a prioritized list of corrective measures tied to root causes.
- Assign owners, deadlines and measurable success criteria for each corrective measure.
- Ensure all learnings are documented in a shared repository and linked to SOPs.
- Draft and publish three corrective action charters (cause, fix, KPI) within 7 days.
- Performance vs Contract KPIs
- Select Top 3 Deviations/Incidents
- KPI Dashboard Review
- Issue Taxonomy & Severity Levels
- Prioritization Workshop (ICE/RICE scoring)
- Define Pilot Scope & Success Criteria
- Structured Root-Cause Analysis (Fishbone/5-Whys)
- Financial Impact & Reconciliation
- Safety Performance Deep-Dive
- RACI & Escalation Paths
- Notification Templates & Reporting Cadence
- Mechanical Availability & Maintenance Events
- Resource Allocation & Timeline Commitments
- Define Countermeasures & Process Changes
- Safety & Compliance Posture
- Access, Onboarding & Permissions
- Production & Cost Variance Analysis
- SLA Breaches, Remedies & Commercial Remedies
- Knowledge Capture & Documentation Plan
- Monitoring & Feedback Loop
- Strategic Decisions & Mutual Commitments