Co-Managed IT in the Mining and Exploration Sector

Nucleus Networks recognizes that every business and industry can have unique needs regarding technology. There are similarities but businesses can vary in size, compliance and regulations, technology complexity and more. Delivering technology solutions in some industries, like mining and exploration, requires a much more tailored and customized approach. 
 
Nucleus Networks has been a trusted partner for many mining organizations, from medium to multisite operations for the past 20 years. For some mining clients we handle all IT-related duties, others standalone vCIO Services and some just their IT Help Desk and related responsibilities.

Even though Nucleus takes a vertical-agnostic approach to Managed IT Services, we have become subject matter experts in technologies and solutions for specific industries. We’ve been recognized on Channel e2e's Top 100 Vertical Market list as an IT leader in the mining sector. We have mining clients across North America with services ranging from traditional Managed IT Services to strategic vCIO Services.” Martin DesRosiers, Nucleus CEO 

Key Challenges 
 
Two key challenges we see repeatedly in the mining industry that demand a co-managed IT approach are: the need for assistance in IT recruitment and fast response time. To deliver on both these needs, we often provide a completely customized co-managed staff augmentation solution. 
 
Co-Managed Staff Augmentation 
 
IT Recruitment: Recruiting and retaining IT personnel is more than difficult than ever. Remote work, greater competition and the ongoing fallout of a post-pandemic economy have resulted in a tight labour making it more challenging for businesses to hire internal IT staff. Many mining companies prefer an in-house IT presence but seek to retain Nucleus for both our expertise in staffing and experienced IT Help Desk. The lack of a long-term career roadmap and opportunity is something that also leads to higher level of turnover when hiring full-time internal IT resources. 

Response Time: Quick response time is always critical. Having Nucleus’ support and even options for dedicated onsite resources, means that companies reap the benefits of a dedicated IT Support Specialist (and extended support team) that becomes very familiar with their IT systems, provides consistent service, and delivers fast and effective onsite and remote support. 

Results 
 
Partnering with Nucleus provides remote and onsite support and delivers increased bandwidth and a fast response time. Want an onsite dedicated resource? We can make it happen. While the number of hours a dedicated resource spends at a client’s office varies from business to business, the end results are the same: 

•  Fast in-person response and extended remote support
• Dedicated technical resource(s) with strong knowledge of client specific technology
• Increased support bandwidth and broader IT support coverage  
• Cohesive and collaborative support experience; integration of external resource into internal IT Team  

Like most mining companies, operations are 24/7 with sites setup all over the world. With employees working in different time zones, they need an IT partner that can provide both onsite IT support throughout the day and coverage after-hours. With this model, other Nucleus support staff are still available to step in outside of the regular onsite hours, in the event of an absence or even as a technical escalation point. 
 
Nucleus provides a variety of Managed IT Services and value-added services to mining and exploration firms, including: 
 

• IT Help Desk Services
• Very-Small-Aperture Terminal (VSAT), microwave and wireless mesh network
• End User Management Services
• Server Management Services
• Enhanced Managed Backup Services
• Managed XDR Security Services
• IT Field Technicians dispatched to global sites
• Technicians certified in mining-applicable software 
  

There’s a lot of moving parts in mining operations that demand specialized IT leadership. Nucleus will work with your team to develop a completely customized IT solution and delivery model that meets the needs of your mining company.  Reach out to us to learn more.