A three-day summer school will be organized every year. The summer school has three objectives:
- to enable HQP to identify the challenges facing the mining industry, to develop knowledge and technical skills complementary to their project through concrete examples of application and case studies of new technologies in mining, and to propose solutions ;
- develop professional skills;
- transfer EDI knowledge and skills by applying them in a diversified context.
2023 Summer school
The 2023 Summer School will take place on August 29, 30 and 31, 2023 at Polytechnique Montréal in the J.A. Bombardier Pavilion (#4 on the map) in the atrium and room J-1035.
On the schedule:
day 1: Tuesday, August 29, 2023 - Theme: Supply chain
| 8h30 | Welcome address | Michel Gamache (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 8h45 | Autonomous mining: a new mining era | Alain Beauséjour (MISA) |
| 9h45 | Student 1: Daniel Ley ( .pdf ) | |
| 10h00 | 15-minute break | |
| 10h15 | Discovery of a deposit ( .pdf ) | Li Zhen Cheng (UQAT) |
| 11h15 | Mining operations: from deposit to processing facility | Paul Germain / Millan Herce (Glencore) |
| 12h15 | Lunch | |
| 13h15 | Fundamentals of mineral separation processes ( .pdf ) | Jocelyn Bouchard (U. Laval) |
| 14h15 | Student 2: David-Alexandre Desrosiers ( .pdf ) | |
| 14h30 | 15-minute break | |
| 14h45 | Student 3: Steve Pando Landry ( .pdf ) | |
| 15h00 | Mine waste management ( .pdf ) | Isabelle Demers (UQAT) |
| 14h45 | Student 4: Iman Meziane ( .pdf ) |
Day 2: wednesday, august 30, 2023 - THEME: Managing a digital transition
| 8h30 | Underground communication systems for a connected mine ( .pdf ) | Éric L'Heureux (Ambra) |
| 9h15 | Student 5: Mohamed Chadi Yakoubi and Nour Elkhenin ( .pdf ) | |
| 9h30 | Capturing and enhancing data from mining operations ( .pdf ) | Louis-Pierre Campeau (Newtrax) |
| 10h15 | Étudiant 6: Julien Pons ( .pdf ) | |
| 10h30 | 15-minute break | |
| 10h45 | The foundations of a digital transformation | Fabiano Armellini (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 11h45 | Student 7: Cyril Tang ( .pdf ) | |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 13h00 | Student 8: Yakin Hajlaoui | |
| 13h15 | Digital transformation at the Raglan mine | Millan Herce (Glencore) |
| 14h15 | Student 9: Victor Simon ( .pdf ) | |
| 14h30 | 15-minute break | |
| 14h45 | Automation of a mine (LZ5) ( .pdf ) | Christian Quirion (Agnico Eagle) |
| 15h45 | Student 10: Mostafa Dadkhah Kalateh | |
| 16h00 | Cocktail - Groupe MISA |
Day 3: Thursday, August 31, 2023 - THEME: Human challenges
| 8h30 | Reminder of EDI principles ( .pdf ) | Maria-Gracia Girardi (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 9h00 | First Nations training and employability in mining sector in Quebec and Nunavut ( .pdf ) | Joanie Caron (UQAT) |
| 10h00 | Student 11: Marine Echternach-Jaubert ( .pdf ) | |
| 10h15 | 15-minute break | |
| 10h30 | The Raglan Agreement - an introduction to our community relations (Raglan Mine) | Véronique Décoste (Raglan) |
| 11h30 | Student 12: Thomas Picard-Beaudoin ( .pdf ) | |
| 11h45 | Report on student presentations | François Rivest (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 13h00 | Well-being for workers on remote sites ( .pdf ) | Christophe Victorin (Smile Industry) |
| 14h00 | Logistics for isolated mines | Millan Herce (Glencore) |
| 15h00 | 3-day review | Michel Gamache (Polytechnique Montréal) |
MANY THANKS to Groupe MISA for their financial support:
2024 Summer school
The 2024 Summer School will take place from June 3 to 6, 2024 at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT) in the atrium, conference room C-200 and room D-204.
Zoom link for conferences on June 5 and 6. Click here.
On the schedule:
DAY 1: monday, june 3, 2024 - atelier
| 8h30 | Welcome address | Michel Gamache (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 9h00-10h30 | Student workshop (room D-204) | Andy Dimitri Veilleux (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 10h30-10h45 | 15-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45-12h00 | Student workshop (room D-204) | Andy Dimitri Veilleux (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch (room E110) | |
| 13h00-14h30 | Student workshop (room D-204) | Andy Dimitri Veilleux (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 14h30-14h45 | 15-minute coffee break | |
| 14h45-16h30 | Student workshop (room D-204) | Andy Dimitri Veilleux (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 16h30 | End of the day |
Day 2: Tuesday, June 4, 2024 - Mine visit
GOLDEX mine
| 7h00 | Arrival at Goldex mine | Chantal Beauchamps |
| 7h10 | PPE distribution | |
| 7h30 | Descend underground and visit | |
| 12h00 | A trip to the surface and pizza dinner | |
| 13h00 | Presentation by engineering | |
| 15h00 | End of visit |
LZ5 mine
| 7h30 | Arrival at LZ5 mine (CSD) | Luc Girard |
| 7h30 | PPE distribution | |
| 8h00 | Descend underground and visit | |
| 10h30 | Back to the surface | |
| 11h00 | Visit the automation room | |
| 11h30 | Visit the IOC | |
| 12h00 | Dinner at the Electrum room (concentrator) | |
| 13h00 | Presentation | |
| 13h30 | Concentrator tour | |
| 15h00 | Back to Electrum room and transport to LZ5 | |
| 15h15 | Collecting PPE | |
| 15h30 | Departure |
Day 3: Wednesday, June 5, 2024 - Theme: ore processing / green mining and esg
| 8h25 | Opening of the conference series | Michel Gamache (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 8h30 | Presentation A1: Grinding: capitalizing on existing and future technologies ( .pdf ) | Claude Gagnon (COREM) |
| 9h15 | Student 1: Determination of gold content in ores with a portable laser plasma spectroscopy system and multivariate statistical modelling ( .pdf ) | Sakande, Hamdiat |
| 9h30 | Présentation A2: Ore sorting at Detour Lake | Alexandre Morasse (Agnico Eagle) |
| 10h15 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45 | Student 2: Development of phenomenological models for column flotation and attritors ( .pdf ) | Hergessel de Castro, Roberta |
| 11h00 | Presentation B3: ESG indicators for lithium - Challenges and issues in a context where this mineral is essential for the energy transition ( .pdf ) | Jean-Luc Bugnon/Julien Pons (Sayona) |
| 11h45 | Student 3: Phenomenological simulation of primary graphite flotation and tailings flotation ( .pdf ) | Fersi, Farah |
| 12h00 | Lunch | E110 |
| 13h00 | Presentation B1: Integrating environment and sustainability into design, from mine to anode material | Martine Paradis (Nouveau Monde Graphite) |
| 13h45 | Student 4: Intelligent optimization of microgrids with high penetration of renewable energies in northern Canada (Raglan Mine case study) ( .pdf ) | Joseph Basakayi |
| 14h00 | Presentation B2: Obstacles and incentives to the adoption of innovative technologies in the Quebec mining sector: an update on investor decision-making in an ESG context ( .pdf ) | Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin, Ingrid Peignier, Daniel Kouloukoui (Cirano) |
| 14h45 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 15h15 | Student 5: Stall detection and prevention in CHINOOK axial mining fans ( .pdf ) | Oyong Gbetnkom, Wilfrid |
| 15h30 | Presentation A3: Optimization in Mineral Processing: Digital Twin and Advanced process Control ( .pdf ) | Paresh Kenkare (Andritz) |
| 16h15 | Student 6: Technical and economic analysis of mobile underground equipment | David Lauzon |
| 16h30 | Student 7: Reinforcement learning for optimizing pushback selection and design ( .pdf ) | Parisa Akbari |
| 16h45 | End of the day | |
| 17h00 | Cocktail |
Day 4: Thursday, June 6, 2024 - Theme: autonomous mine / digital mine
| 8h30 | Presentation C1: Connected Mine - Coordination room ( .pdf available on request for students and professors of the program ) | Millan Herce (Glencore) |
| 9h15 | Student 8: Managing health and safety risks associated with the use of autonomous vehicles in mines ( .pdf ) | Dingong Hen Gaston Deferre |
| 9h30 | Presentation C2: User interface for mine monitoring: design principles and evaluation ( .pdf ) | Philippe Doyon-Poulin (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 10h15 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45 | Student 9: Real-time modeling and optimization to mitigate geometallurgical variability in a graphite deposit ( .pdf ) | Santos Araque, Diego Alexander |
| 11h00 | Presentation C3: AI in control centers: Issues and psychological implications for operators ( .pdf ) | Mario Passalacqua (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 11h45 | Student 10: Numerical simulation of the blade life of an axial mining fan ( .pdf ) | Ben Hassen, Mariem |
| 12h00 | Lunch | E110 |
| 13h00 | Presentation D1 and D2: Industrial analytics: challenges and opportunities ( .pdf ) | Camélia Dadouchi et Bruno Agard (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 14h30 | Student 11: Revolutionizing Mining Maintenance: Leveraging Industry 4.0 for Optimal Pumping Operations ( .pdf ) | Mohammadi Aghbash, Aynaz |
| 14h45 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 15h15 | Student 12: Instrumentation and intelligent management of pumping networks ( .pdf ) | Djedidi, Mohaned |
| 15h30 | Presentation D3: Integrating artificial intelligence with automated core scanning to predict geo-environmental parameters | Ehsan Vosoughi (Agnico Eagle) |
| 16h15 | Student 13: Reinforcement learning applied to optimal stope design ( .pdf ) | Santiago Valencia |
| 16h30 | End of the day |
2025 Summer school
The 2025 Summer School will take place from June 9 to 12, 2025 at Université Laval's Optics and Photonics Building in Auditorium 1168.
On the schedule:
Day 1: Monday, June 9, 2025 - Teamwork workshop
Location: Adrien-Pouliot Building, Room 2708
| 8h50 | Welcome address | Jocelyn Bouchard (Université Laval) |
| 9h00 | Student workshop (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Pierre-Antoine Simard (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 10h30 | 15-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45 | Student workshop (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Pierre-Antoine Simard (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 13h00 | Student workshop (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Pierre-Antoine Simard (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 14h30 | 15-minute coffee break | |
| 14h45 | Student workshop (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Pierre-Antoine Simard (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 16h30 | End of the day |
Day 2: Tuesday, June 10, 2025 - Theme: Entrepreneurship and SMEs / COMMUNITY support
Location: Optics and Photonics Building, auditorium 1168
| 8h25 | Opening of the conference series | Jocelyn Bouchard (Université Laval) |
| 8h30 | Presentation A1: Technological innovation, the key to differentiating your company. | Alain Beauséjour (MISA Group) |
| 9h15 | Student 1: Development of a grain distribution system for LIBS analysis | Aymen Jleli (UQAT) |
| 9h30 | Presentation A2: My start in technological entrepreneurship in the mining industry with Jumine | Alex Thivierge (Jumine) |
| 10h15 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45 | Student 2: Data processing of truck climbing in an underground environment | Martin Cuenot (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 11h00 | Presentation A3: Supporting innovative SMEs for smart mining through the Neuromines ecosystem | Éric Richer (Richer & Associés) |
| 11h45 | Student 3: Retrospective analysis of the geotechnical stability of high waste rock piles: Monitoring, data interpretation and numerical modelling. | Zahra Jalalichi (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 13h00 | Presentation B1: Training and integrating First Nations people into mining jobs | Alexandre Hébert and Curtis Bosum (Minopro) |
| 13h45 | Student 4: Development of a Digital Twin for an underground mine ventilation system | Saif Eddine Ben Youssef (UQAT) |
| 14h00 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 14h30 | Presentation B2: Building bridges or digging your own: First Nations and the mining sector | John Mowatt (Nikan Construction) and Marie-Pierre Bousquet (Université de Montréal) |
| 16h00 | End of the day |
Day 3: Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - Theme: autonomous mining / critical mineral resources
Location: Optics and Photonics Building, auditorium 1168
| 8h25 | Opening of the conference series | Jocelyn Bouchard (Université Laval) |
| 8h30 | Presentation C1: Proximity detection, our journey towards eliminating collision risks and the cognitive effects on drivers | Millan Herce (Glencore) |
| 9h15 | Student 5: An approach to optimizing the economic envelope of a Bench and Fill underground mine | Elde Dovel Makele Mabika (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 9h30 | Presentation C2: Data for better operations | Josée Cyr and Sébastien Laflamme (Agnico Eagle) |
| 10h15 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 10h45 | Student 6: Prediction and prevention of premature wear of SAG Mills coatings | Eya Kharrat (UQAT) |
| 11h00 | Presentation C3: Vision of technological innovation | Sonny Melançon (Eldorado Gold Quebec) |
| 11h45 | Student 7: How can we improve the productivity of underground ore transport operations? | Victor Simon (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 13h00 | Presentation D1: An overview of the 2024 Critical Minerals Landscape | Paul Blatter (Agnico Eagle) - online |
| 13h45 | Student 8: Characterization and assessment of the potential for valorization of waste rock from the Lac des Îles graphite mine, Quebec | Mohamed Malik Hassaid (UQAT) |
| 14h00 | 30-minute coffee break | |
| 14h30 | Presentation D2: Social acceptability of mining and industrial projects | Denis Isabel (Nemaska Lithium) |
| 15h15 | Student 9: Development of an IoT architecture for real-time control of pumping networks in mining environments | Tawfik Ajbouni (UQAT) |
| 15h30 | Presentation D3: Critical and strategic minerals in Quebec: a comprehensive and integrated development approach | Jocelyn Douhéret (Ministry of Natural Resources and Forests) |
| 16h15 | Break | |
| 16h30-16h45 | Address | Ian Morissette, Associate Deputy Minister of Mines |
| 17h00 | Cocktail | |
| 20h00 | End of the evening |
Day 4: Thursday, June 12, 2025 - PowerBI workshop / Visit to COREM
Location: Adrien-Pouliot Building, Room 2708, in the morning
| 8h50 | Welcome address | Jocelyn Bouchard (Université Laval) |
| 9h00 | Introduction to PowerBI (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Camélia Dadouchi (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 10h15 | 15-minute coffee break | |
| 10h30 | Introduction to PowerBI (room 2708, Adien-Pouliot Building) | Camélia Dadouchi (Polytechnique Montréal) |
| 12h00 | Lunch | |
| 14h00 | Visit to COREM | |
| 16h30 | Back to Montreal |
Day 5: Friday, June 13, 2025
| 8h30 | Back to Rouyn-Noranda |
