Unlocking Geological Insights: Data Mosaic’s Journey Towards Scalability
Data Mosaic is an advanced software solution designed for exploration and mining, offering rapid and reliable interpretation of drill hole data. As the flagship application of the CSIRO Minerals team’s Exploration Toolkit, Data Mosaic provides a user-friendly interface for applying sophisticated mathematical and machine learning methods, transforming numerical drill hole data into valuable geological insights.
Although now servicing over 200 users, the journey to this innovative solution wasn’t without its hurdles. Early on, scalability was a pressing concern as the team struggled with the cost implications of maintaining computing power around the clock. This challenge spurred the team to seek a transformative solution that would lay the foundation for the development of Data Mosaic.
The heavyweight nature of Data Mosaic’s software was at the core of their early challenges. Although powerful, its unique context means customer usage is often sporadic. The platform needed a large virtual instance waiting in the cloud, even during extended periods of inactivity, making it challenging to justify the continuous allocation of cloud resources.
The challenge further intensified due to the diverse nature of Data Mosaic’s projects. Ranging from intensive research and development to employing advanced machine learning or other projects requiring significant computational power, finding a balance for both peak and idle times while maintaining cost-effectiveness posed a complex dilemma.
Sharing infrastructure, particularly within an organisation like CSIRO, is a big value add. It enables much more and provides a real economy of scale.
Sam Bradley
Data Mosaic, Developer
CSIRO Exploration Toolkit, Project Lead
EASI emerged as the strategic solution, allowing Data Mosaic to initiate a cost-effective setup during periods of software inactivity. The significant breakthrough was EASI’s ability to seamlessly scale up when confronted with a surge in user activity, all while keeping costs reasonable. This flexibility proved invaluable, especially for an application deeply involved in experimental research and various geoscientific projects.
The seamless scaling and uninterrupted service have made Data Mosaic a go-to solution for geological interpretation.
Sam Bradley
The team leveraged EASI’s infrastructure-as-code approach, finding it to be highly repeatable and efficient. This allowed them to share solutions developed within the EASI environment across teams, expediting the development cycle. The seamless integration of Data Mosaic into EASI’s Kubernetes environment and AWS cloud services further simplified the process, showcasing the platform’s well-documented standards and open technologies.
EASI’s infrastructure-as-code approach allowed us to share solutions efficiently, speeding up our development cycle and enabling us to focus on innovation.
Sam Bradley
The Minerals team were able to establish a standard deployment pattern for their apps, providing a clear roadmap for cloud infrastructure adjustments and reducing the need for extensive planning. With a solid infrastructure foundation, the team streamlined the deployment of new apps and improved overall efficiency. This shared and standardised approach not only simplified their day-to-day workflow but also enabled the team to run a variety of data services on their cloud, fostering autonomy and replicability.
The shared infrastructure not only simplified our workflow but also fostered collaboration within our team.
Sam Bradley
The power of EASI’s infrastructure and the repeatability of systems empowered the Minerals team to confidently commercialise Data Mosaic. Adopting EASI transformed the team’s operational landscape, enabling them to build, deploy, and commercialise innovative solutions with greater ease.
Data Mosaic now services over 200 users. EASI helped Data Mosaic deliver a user-friendly environment, contributing to a broader and more diverse user base, empowering professionals in the exploration and mining sector to derive valuable insights from drill hole data.
Zero reported outages
One of the critical metrics showcasing the success of the integration is the remarkable uptime achieved by Data Mosaic under the EASI infrastructure. The platform has demonstrated consistent and uninterrupted service, with zero reported outages across nine releases. This outstanding reliability has helped users have confidence, ensuring they can access the platform whenever needed, enhancing the overall user experience and increasing user satisfaction.
The power of EASI’s infrastructure and the repeatability of systems empowered the Minerals team to commercialise Data Mosaic with confidence. Adopting EASI transformed the team’s operational landscape, enabling them to build, deploy, and commercialise innovative solutions with ease.
Ready to transform your geological workflows? Discover the scalability, reliability, and collaborative benefits of EASI – schedule a demo or delve into the world of scalable and efficient data analysis through our other case studies.