BHP's Technology Innovation Centre has struck an agreement with Western Australia Iron Ore's South Flank Operations team to launch a Dash Maintainer Tool in a bid to improve safety for maintenance crews and to make processes safer.

The objective of the Dash Maintainer Tool is to reduce the hazards of live work by allowing maintenance and service teams to undertake diagnostic tests at a safe distance - within a radius of 80 metres - from the machine's operating footprint.

The tool connects via phone, laptop or tablet to a network of sensors, such as pressure temperature and vibration, which are permanently fitted to the vehicle or equipment.

The company said diagnostic readings can be delivered to an industrial computer and its own BHP sensor gateway. It said this reduces the time take to detect faults, which in turn shortens service time and enables machinery to resume work faster.

Additionally, it is designed to be scaled and replicated and has been adapted across many different vehicles from a range of original equipment manufacturers.

Furthermore, BHP said it is looking to extend the technology more broadly by working with its equipment manufacturers to integrate it across other operated assets.