After months of development work and consultation with MICROMINE’s global client base, Micromine 2018 was released in March this year and includes a range of exciting new features and enhancements to help improve the mine planning process.
Micromine 2018 is the market leading exploration and mine design solution offering integrated tools to provide users with an in-depth understanding of their project. New features to Micromine 2018 include Block Model extents, Search Ellipsoid tool, Variogram Maps and Charts, changes to the File Editor and new string smoothing methods to the Strings function.
Perhaps the most significant change to the Micromine product in this release has been the implementation of a new licensing platform. In recent years, not only has there been significant advances in technology, there has also been major changes in the way we work, particularly in the mining industry. The modern workplace environment of mining companies includes remote workspaces, global job sharing and flexible work hours. It’s important that the Micromine solution changes with the needs of the everchanging market.
Chief Technology Officer Ivan Zelina commented “we have spent a lot of time consulting with our clients to further understand their needs when it comes to software licensing. The new Micromine licensing platform provides more options, increases utilisation and allows for quick and easy access to the solution.”
The new Micromine 2018 licensing platform works with or without a dongle and includes the ability to pool network licences and borrow a network licence without the need for a dongle or persistent network connection (temporarily). This means far greater flexibility for Micromine users. There are two types of licensing options available for Micromine clients, individual and network licensing.
Individual Licences are appropriate for a standard Single User Licence and give Micromine users uninterrupted usage. The licence is assigned to an individual person or device, ensuring Micromine is on hand whenever it’s needed. This option is available as a Single User Dongle or Node-lock (no-dongle) and is ideal for clients that require quick, anywhere access to Micromine. The licence allows the user to run multiple instances of Micromine on a single machine.
Network Licensing allows more of the team to benefit from Micromine. A network-based system allows a group of registered users to borrow a licence from the company’s module pool. Users can share licences and run Micromine on multiple computers on the same network, which provides great flexibility.
The network licensing option also allows users to borrow licences from a module pool, which is an exciting new feature of the new licensing platform.
“License borrowing means that you can use Micromine, for a limited time, with a Network License without a network connection to the license server. This can be convenient if you want to travel with a laptop for a limited time-period and still want to be able to run the software” adds Zelina.
As well as restructuring the way in which users access their licence, MICROMINE has also changed the way clients are able to pay for their licence, introducing a number of different payment options including Pay As You Use (PAYU), Subscription Licensing; access Micromine on a subscription basis, Lease Licensing; purchase a licence for a defined period and Education Licensing; flexible options for education institutions.
Zelina noted “The new licensing project was all about increasing flexibility for our clients, so it was important we provided different options. Micromine clients can now choose the most appropriate payment method based on their needs. Whether it’s increasing options across different departments, maximising utilisation, encouraging company-wide use for sharing or providing quick and easy access to Micromine, Micromine 2018 has licence type to suit the customer’s needs and requirements”.
Micromine annual licence members have access to ongoing technical support and advice as well as an extensive training program which ensures clients realise the full potential of their software investment. Annual Licence users also have the unique opportunity to contribute to the ongoing development of MICROMINE’s software products.
To find out more about MICROMINE’s licensing options please visit our website.