Dr. Peter Kaiser has been appointed founding executive director of the Sudbury-based Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI).
The appointment was made following a comprehensive, international search by a subcommittee of the CEMI advisory board.
“This is the beginning of a new era in cooperative research and development for the mining sector in Ontario and Canada, bringing industry and academia together in the pursuit of innovation,” said Laurentian University President Dr. Judith Woodsworth.
Dr. Kaiser is an internationally recognized expert in geomechanics research and a Fellow of both the Canadian Academy of Engineers and the Engineering Institute of Canada, which set the highest standards in the country for research in his field. He has been invited to guest lecture on every continent and has conducted collaborative research with Canadian and international universities and institutions.
“Mining is a global business, and to develop an international scope for CEMI, it was critical that the CEMI board select a
world-class mining researcher to lead its start-up. Appointing Dr. Kaiser to this posi-tion achieves this goal,” said Mark Cutifani, Chief Operating Officer of CVRD Inco.
“Dr. Kaiser’s extensive knowledge of the technical issues facing Canada’s mining industry, particularly when mining at depth, and his leadership qualities and international research and development network make him an ideal choice to lead CEMI,” said Mike Romaniuk, Vice President of Operations, Xstrata Nickel.
Dr. Kaiser is a Professor of Mining Engineering and Chair for Rock Mechanics and Ground Control at Laurentian University. He is also President of Laurentian University's Mining Innovation, Rehabilitation and Applied Research Corporation (MIRARCO). He will lead CEMI’s research and technology agenda in key priority areas including deep mining, mine process engineering, environment, exploration and telerobotics and automation.
CEMI is a new mineral sector research corporation in Northern Ontario, led jointly by industry and Laurentian University in collaboration with regional, national and international R&D partners. CEMI’s vision is to become an internationally recognized centre for mining innovation.
