A professional who plans and coordinates activities of personnel engaged in extracting minerals, such as coal, ore, or rock, from underground or surface mines, pits, or quarries. Responsibilities include:

• Reviews data, such as maps, survey reports, and geological records, and confers with engineering, maintenance, and supervisory personnel to plan and direct mine development.
• Calculates mining or quarrying operational costs, estimates potential income, and instructs pit supervisor to abandon or open mine sections, pits, or other working areas.
• Studies maps and blueprints to determine location for haulageways, access roads, ventilation shafts, rail tracks, and conveyor systems.
• Studies land contours and rock formations, and specifies locations to install pillars, timbers, and roof bolts, and use of equipment for cutting, drilling, blasting and loading minerals.
• Reads mining laws and safety regulations, and issues directives to workers to ensure adherence to applicable rules and regulations.
• Reviews and consolidates records, such as ore grade, air quality, safety reports, and production records.
• Tours and inspects mine to detect and resolve production, equipment maintenance, safety, atmospheric, and personnel problems.
• Negotiates with workers, union personnel, and other parties to settle grievances.