TRANSFORMING OPERATIONAL KNOWLEDGE INTO DIGITAL CAPABILITIES IN MINING: THE BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE TRANSFORMATION MODEL

This study proposes the Business Knowledge Transformation Model (BKTM), a conceptual framework explaining how operational knowledge is transformed into executable digital capabilities in mining. The study addresses the fragmentation of expertise, technical documents, business rules, and information flows among mining companies, laboratories, logistics operators, and industrial users. A conceptual research design integrates Business Process Management, Knowledge Management, Digital Transformation, and Requirements Engineering. Six interrelated constructs are organized into a continuous sequence: Business Knowledge, Business Rule Formalization, Process Standardization, Digital Capability, Operational Intelligence, and Organizational Learning. The framework is illustrated by its industrial instantiation in the SIGECAM platform, which supports coal quality management across multiple stakeholders in Brazil. The analysis identifies conceptual correspondence between formalized decision criteria, standardized workflows, digitally supported execution, traceability, and operational learning. The BKTM offers an organizational explanation of digital transformation beyond the adoption of isolated technologies. As the model is illustrated through a single industrial implementation, its theoretical relationships require empirical testing in additional organizations and sectors. The framework provides a reference for knowledge-driven digitalization and continuous process improvement.