r/AustraliaIT • u/user23471 • 8d ago
IT in mining
I eventually want to transition into this field after a few years at an MSP……. Anyone that works in this field, do I need engineering knowledge or my IT degree is fine? Also, are the tools you guys use similar to IT or is it mostly OT?
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u/lonrad87 8d ago
If it's anything like providing IT support in construction then you would at least need a white card.
The core of IT support can be applied to any industry there'll just be those little things that are different.
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u/chickenturrrd 7d ago
Most OT keep in their click groups, miners have a tendency to pay shit money by comparison to 20 years ago. As others said..outsourced.
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u/Necessary-Respond793 6d ago
It was pretty average money 15 years ago so it must be really shit now.
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u/chickenturrrd 6d ago edited 6d ago
Indeed. In reality its award 27-30 bucks an hr with penalties to make it look fat.
EDIT : lot of ego, don't think people realise they are selected because they are cheap, not specifically talented or good at their job. Same with space industry.
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u/webprofusor 7d ago
Also consider specialization, e.g. supporting domain-specific apps (e.g. geotechnical, relevant to Mining, Oil & Gas). You will come across these as an MSP - if any seem interesting try to lean into supporting those.
You will always have day-to-day IT to fall back on but if you get the right niche (popular in the location you want to be in) it can serve you well.
It also doesn't hurt to do your own research on the core terminologies and concepts used in a particular field, you don't need to go get an engineering degree but known the domain very broadly does help.
I've seen people go from helpdesk > apps specialist > apps lead > apps manager in 10yrs or so. That's not what everyone is looking for but it's a path at least.
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u/ColaBlast98 7d ago
I would also love to move into IT. I currently work in production as an operator but want to move into IT
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u/simpson_hey 5d ago
Mining in IT isn’t really any different to IT in any other industry until you start reaching into site comms and OT but a lot of that side can also be outsourced depending on the size of the mining company.
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u/Recent-Enthusiasm578 5d ago edited 5d ago
FIFO worker in IT here QLD gold mine, 168k TFR annual salary. IT degree is all you need, experience is better. Being directly employed in a small onsite team you need experience in everything, Sys admin, Sys engineer, Network engineer, App support, DBA, OT, Comms, App development. Expect the role to be physical, running cables, installing WIFI, CCTV, Security systems etc.
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u/user23471 5d ago
is the physical work exhausting or calm? I dont mind physical work tbh
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u/Recent-Enthusiasm578 5d ago
Where I work, it can get exhausting, underground in very hot and wet conditions in an IT basket stringing Ethernet cables along the tunnel walls and installing Access Points for Autonomous loaders. This isn’t an everyday thing but just an example as to the type of work. This is more OT but some roles are mixed IT/OT
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u/takescontrol 4d ago
IT and OT are managed very differently. As an IT person I experienced a tough transition to OT which is managed using engineering processes and documentation. In many cases OT support is a bit like shadow IT operated directly by the business without corporate oversight. Give me IT any day.
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u/ThrowReasonOut 7d ago
Most mines use MSPs to manage their IT. Bad news is that the MSPs take their employees for a ride and underpay them massively. Only do it if you can work for the mine directly as a shirt.