Caterpillar Inc. has acquired Skycatch Inc., a provider of spatial data capture, processing and analysis solutions for the mining industry, further enhancing its capabilities following the recent acquisition of RPMGlobal. The acquisition expands Caterpillar's portfolio of data-driven mining technology solutions that help customers optimize material movement.

"Acquiring Skycatch aligns with our strategy to solve our customers' toughest challenges," said Denise Johnson, group president, Caterpillar Resource Industries. "By integrating near-real-time, high-resolution spatial data into both RPM and MineStar solutions, we can help customers improve mine site performance by enhancing safety, productivity and predictability across their operations using both staffed and autonomous fleets."

Skycatch's technology captures high-frequency, high-precision, large-scale spatial data and pairs it with a suite of AI capabilities that identify, measure and interact with the data to deliver improved operational performance. This gives mining customers a more up-to-date view of their operations, improving the speed, accuracy and precision of decision-making, according to the company.

"Skycatch's ability to process large volumes of spatial data at dramatically improved speeds opens up a fundamentally different way of operating," said Richard Mathews, CEO of RPMGlobal. "With a near real-time spatial view of the operation, miners can adjust plans as conditions change, improve alignment between planning and execution, and deliver more predictable outcomes."

By generating a near-real-time digital twin of the mining site and integrating it directly into existing software solutions, customers can incorporate accurate, current data into their planning and execution workflows. The result is improved decision-making, reduced delays and greater confidence in daily operations, according to the company.

"We're incredibly proud of what Skycatch has built over the past decade and excited for this next chapter with Caterpillar," said Christian Sanz, Skycatch founder and CEO. "This next step strengthens our ability to support our customers while increasing the value we can deliver."

For more information, visit caterpillar.com, rpmglobal.com and skycatch.com.

This story also appears on Aggregate Equipment Guide.