Anglo American has brought the inner workings of a modern mine to life in a first-ever 132-photograph curation on Instagram called Instamine.
The images include skilled female operators, road networks and remote-controlled heavy machinery, while the written copy aims to bring knowledge and awareness to the process of extracting metals and minerals.
The split photographs combine to show one-single image so that viewers can scroll down as if they were descending in a mine shaft. Viewed as a whole, Instamine provides a glimpse into the depth and magnitude of an underground mine from the surface. Just one week after its launch, the Anglo American global Instagram community grew by 7%.
Phakamani Lisa, digital media specialist at Anglo American South Africa, says: “Innovation has been critical to ensuring that we find new ways to mine and process natural resources. In this regard, we are continuously evolving the way in which we share mining- related content.
“Instamine is an opportunity to educate the public about how mining is innovating to transform itself. The majority of our followers have never experienced an underground mine, so this also acts an opportunity to shift public perceptions that mining is not what it was decades ago.”
Pranill Ramchander, head of corporate communications at Anglo American South Africa, adds: “Instamine allows viewers the opportunity to experience a mine’s scale, as well as look into how it operates and ‘e-meet’ some of the people that work underground. This execution shows a modern mine in a creative and unexpected way.”