It is with sad news that GEOVIA recently learned of the passing of Tony Cram, the founder ECSI and creator of what is now the GEOVIA Minex™ software. An outstanding thinker and innovator, mining would not be where it is today without the contributions of Tony Cram – we thank him for all efforts to advance the mining industry.
Tony Cram passed away peacefully on the 13 November 2014, aged 75. Below is a biography on Tony, provided by his family and close friends, which highlights some of his many achievements.
Tony Cram 1939 – 2014
Anthony Adrian Cram, or “Tony” as he was known, was born on March 20, 1939.
Only 12 years later alongside his father, who was a mineshaft sinking contractor, Tony first went down into an Illawarra coal mine. After this introduction to mining, Tony went into the family business, R.G. Cram and Sons, where he focused on civil engineering and ultimately natural resources development.
Tony went on to study Civil Engineering at the University of NSW, and completed his Master’s Degree there in the early 1960s. Tony was a gifted problem solver, a true innovator who was often years, and many times even decades ahead of his time.
The technological legacy that Tony Cram has left with the world is astonishing and few people, if any, know the full extent of his achievements. Following is a list of some of his accomplishments, compiled from the collective memories of some of those privileged enough to share in Tony’s journey:
1966 – Engineering Computer Services (“ECS”) is formed. Early consulting contracts include:
- Project scheduling, engineering, and finite element analysis of the sails of the Sydney Opera House.
- A land use evaluation system for NCDC used in planning all Canberra suburbs in the 1970s, and satellite cities around Melbourne and Darwin after cyclone Tracey.
- Radio positioning software to site oil platforms in Bass Strait, and ships on New York Harbour.
- Software development of very early traffic control computer programs.
- Awarded a government grant later that year, ECS Research is formed and moves to Mittagong, in the Southern Highlands of NSW.
1969 – Exporting begins after winning a contract from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which in turn applies that work to a study it was undertaking in Saudi Arabia. Under Tony’s guidance ECS Research pioneers the processing of airborne geophysical data for resource exploration, providing state of the art maps to numerous resource based clients.
1973 – The OAPEC oil crisis forces countries to look at cheaper fuels, which triggers a coal mining boom. ECS responds with MINEX software, which is utilized throughout Australia and is ultimately exported around the globe, including to the United States, South Africa, Canada, Japan, India, Indonesia, South America and the Middle East.
1975 – The parent company ECS moves from Sydney to Bowral, also in the Southern Highlands.
1980 – ECS develops a geometry based timeshare system for ships at sea to process geophysical data in Bowral.
1985 – SO2 (sulphur dioxide) emission restrictions came into force and “cleaner” coal was sourced from increased underground mining activity. ECS responds with “MINEX Eclipse” underground coal mining software.
1996 – ECS develops the MINEX Gravel Scheduler for the Penrith Lakes Development Corporation and turns a sand and gravel quarry into the Olympic Rowing & Aquatic Course for the 2000 Olympics.
1997 – Tony decides to retire, and creates a plan to handover the business to ECS staff via a share purchase, and ECS International (ECSI) is born. Tony agrees to stay on and continues to innovate, guide, and mentor for another 5 years.
1998 – ECSI is awarded AustMine’s Emerging Exporter of the Year Award, and the NSW Premier’s Award for Exporter of the Year in the Minerals Industry category.
2002 – (Editor’s Note) – Surpac purchased ECSI and created the Surpac Minex Group. In 2006 the Surpac Minex Group was acquired by Gemcom Software International Inc. In 2012 Gemcom Software was acquired byDassault Systèmes and the GEOVIA brand was created targeting the Natural Resources industry.
2002 – To pursue his love of sailing, Tony, a skilled sailor, moves to the South Coast near Bateman’s Bay. From time to time he consults on various projects, always keen to innovate and solve problems where he can.
An outstanding thinker, innovator, entrepreneur, leader, mentor, friend, and family man, Tony is sorely missed by all who knew and admired him. He was the epitome of how much one person can accomplish while positively influencing and helping others over a lifetime and his legacy will continue to do so for many years to come.
Latest posts by GEOVIA (see all)
- Join the GEOVIA User community - July 13, 2021
- GEMS Software Update - June 21, 2021
- Reducing Impacts on Water - May 25, 2021
