Senior Mining Surveyor

Ikwezi Mining (Pty) Ltd; Komatipoort; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

Ikwezi Mining (Pty) Ltd. is seeking a seasoned Mine Surveyor to lead high-precision GPS, drone, and total station surveys for mining operations and civil works.

You will maintain survey control networks, stockpile surveys, and support photogrammetry workflows, ensuring compliance with regulatory and safety standards. You will provide survey inputs for short- to long-term mine planning, assist in pit and haul-road design, set out blast patterns, and monitor slopes.

Qualifications

• National Diploma or Degree in Mine Surveying, Geomatics, or related field.
• Government Mine Surveyor Certificate (advantage or required, depending on operation).
• Minimum 5–8 years’ mining surveying experience, ideally in open pit or underground mines.
• Experience with drones/UAVs for mining applications.
• Valid SACNASP, IMSSA, or PLATO registration (advantage).
• Valid driver’s licence.

Responsibilities

• Conduct high-precision GPS, Drone and total station surveys for mining, engineering, and surface infrastructure.
• Perform daily, weekly, and monthly production surveys to support mining operations.
• Maintain and update mine survey control networks and benchmark systems.
• Perform stockpile surveys using GPS, drone photogrammetry, and total station.
• Generate volumetric calculations and produce accurate daily, weekly and monthly mining and stock reports.
• Conduct inventory reconciliations between survey volumes, plant figures, and dispatch data.
• Ensure compliance with audit requirements for stock reporting.
• Plan and execute drone flights for photogrammetry and mapping.
• Process imagery into orthomosaics, DTM/DSM, and point clouds.
• Integrate drone data into mine planning and geotechnical analysis.
• Ensure drone operations comply with regulatory procedures (CAA/SACAA, etc.).
• Provide survey inputs for short-, medium-, and long-term mine planning.
• Assist planning engineers with pit designs, dump designs, haul roads, and excavation limits.
• Set out and verify blast patterns, ore boundaries, cut lines, and excavation limits.
• Monitor pit walls, slopes, and stability using survey data.
• Conduct surveys for civil construction, such as haul roads, stormwater structures, foundations, platforms, pipelines, and plant expansions.
• Provide setting-out for contractors and verify as-built data.
• Maintain accurate as-built documentation for project completion.
• Produce rehabilitation survey plans and track progress of rehab areas.
• Support environmental compliance by providing accurate survey data for land disturbance, topsoil management, and closure planning.
• Monitor and report on rehabilitated landform stability and drainage compliance.
• Prepare survey reports, maps, plans, section drawings, and 3D models.
• Ensure compliance with mine standards, legal survey specifications, and health & safety rules.
• Maintain digital and hard-copy survey records in accordance with regulatory requirements.
• Supervise and mentor junior surveyors and survey assistants.

Skills

GPS/GNSS/Total station

Photogrammetry & drone processing

Team leadership

Analytical skills

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Mentoring

Education

Diploma/degree in Mine Surveying or Geomatics

Mine Surveyor certificate (advantage)

Tools

Pix4D

Agisoft

Surpac

Vulcan

MinePlan

Datamine

AutoCAD/Civil 3D

Job description

Key Responsibilities:

1. Surveying & Data Acquisition

• Conduct high-precision GPS, Drone and total station surveys for mining, engineering, and surface infrastructure.
• Perform daily, weekly, and monthly production surveys to support mining operations.
• Maintain and update mine survey control networks and benchmark systems.

2. Stockpile Surveys, Volumes & Reconciliation

• Perform stockpile surveys using GPS, drone photogrammetry, and total station.
• Generate volumetric calculations and produce accurate daily, weekly and monthly mining and stock reports.
• Conduct inventory reconciliations between survey volumes, plant figures, and dispatch data.
• Ensure compliance with audit requirements for stock reporting.

3. Photogrammetry & Remote Sensing

• Plan and execute drone flights for photogrammetry and mapping.
• Process imagery into orthomosaics, DTM/DSM, and point clouds.
• Integrate drone data into mine planning and geotechnical analysis.
• Ensure drone operations comply with regulatory procedures (CAA/SACAA, etc.).

4. Mine Planning & Design Support

• Provide survey inputs for short-, medium-, and long-term mine planning.
• Assist planning engineers with pit designs, dump designs, haul roads, and excavation limits.
• Set out and verify blast patterns, ore boundaries, cut lines, and excavation limits.
• Monitor pit walls, slopes, and stability using survey data.

5. Civil Engineering Survey Work

• Conduct surveys for civil construction, such as haul roads, stormwater structures, foundations, platforms, pipelines, and plant expansions.
• Provide setting-out for contractors and verify as-built data.
• Maintain accurate as-built documentation for project completion.

6. Environmental & Rehabilitation Planning

• Produce rehabilitation survey plans and track progress of rehab areas.
• Support environmental compliance by providing accurate survey data for land disturbance, topsoil management, and closure planning.
• Monitor and report on rehabilitated landform stability and drainage compliance.

7. Reporting & Compliance

• Prepare survey reports, maps, plans, section drawings, and 3D models.
• Ensure compliance with mine standards, legal survey specifications, and health & safety rules.
• Maintain digital and hard-copy survey records in accordance with regulatory requirements.
• Supervise and mentor junior surveyors and survey assistants.

Minimum Requirements:

• National Diploma or Degree in Mine Surveying, Geomatics, or related field.
• Government Mine Surveyor Certificate (advantage or required, depending on operation).
• Minimum 5–8 years’ mining surveying experience, ideally in open pit or underground mines.
• Experience with drones/UAVs for mining applications.
• Valid SACNASP, IMSSA, or PLATO registration (advantage).
• Valid driver’s licence.

Skills and Competencies:

• Advanced GPS, GNSS, and total station proficiency.
• Strong knowledge of photogrammetry and drone survey processing (Pix4D, Agisoft, etc.).
• Proficient in mining software: Surpac, Vulcan, MinePlan, Datamine, or similar.
• High competence in AutoCAD/Civil 3D or equivalent.
• Excellent analytical, reporting, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong communication and ability to work cross-functionally with mining, geology, engineering, and environmental teams.
• Ability to lead and mentor survey teams.

Key Deliverables/ KPIs:

• Accurate and timely weekly & monthly survey volumes and stock reports.
• Zero survey-related errors affecting production or compliance.
• Updated survey control networks and mine plans.
• Quality drone maps and photogrammetry outputs delivered on schedule.
• Effective support for mine planning and engineering.
• Compliance with legal survey requirements and safety standards.
• On-time rehabilitation survey updates and environmental reporting.