About Us

A Finnish deep-tech company for the mining industry.

Geopyörä combines patented testing technology, AI-driven models and global mining expertise to unlock greater value from ore. Based in Oulu, Finland, we make detailed ore characterisation affordable and scalable—giving customers the intelligence to reduce uncertainty, strengthen investment decisions and improve processing performance.

Our mission

To transform how the mining industry understands and values ore—making orebody intelligence a competitive advantage, from exploration to processing.

Our values

Customer challenges drive us.We develop solutions around the realities our customers face and the results they need.
Challenge convention. Prove the advantage.We combine scientific rigour with practical innovation to deliver better ways of understanding ore.
Progress through partnership.We work closely with customers, laboratories and industry partners to turn knowledge into results.

Team

Our team combines scientific depth with commercial and operational experience across the global mining industry. We bring perspectives from mining companies, technology suppliers and research institutions, connecting technical innovation with customer priorities.

Sarah Hoffman
CEO
Sarah Hoffman leads Geopyörä with a focus on helping customers turn better orebody knowledge into better operational decisions. Her experience across BHP, Sandvik and Epiroc gives her an understanding of mining’s commercial and operational challenges from both the customer and supplier sides. As CEO, her priority is to keep Geopyörä close to its customers—understanding their challenges and ensuring the company’s technology delivers value where it matters.
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Marcos de Paiva Bueno
CTO
Dr Marcos Bueno leads Geopyörä’s technology development, combining scientific rigour with practical mineral processing expertise. With more than 18 years across mining engineering and research, he understands what it takes to turn ore characterisation into useful inputs for circuit design and operational decisions. The developer of the Geopyörä breakage test, Marcos draws on engineering experience at Ausenco, research at the University of Oulu and a PhD from the University of Queensland. As CTO, his focus is on advancing reliable, practical testing technology that addresses the challenges mining customers face.
Ronan Cruz
CFO
Ronan Cruz leads Geopyörä’s financial strategy, bringing the discipline of investment banking and the practical experience of building and scaling businesses. His background spans Deutsche Bank, commodities equity research at Wachovia Securities, and M&A, giving him a strong understanding of investment decisions, business value and growth. As CFO, Ronan combines financial rigour with a hands-on commercial approach, ensuring Geopyörä has the resources and financial foundations to develop its technology, support customers and expand its business.
Igor Elias
VP Value Creation (M2M)
Igor leads value creation at Geopyörä, helping mining companies unlock the value in their ore by bringing fast, affordable ore hardness data to market. He brings more than two decades in comminution and mining technology across Latin America and globally, with senior commercial and product leadership roles at Weir Minerals, Metso Outotec, MIRS, and Scanalyse, giving him a strong grounding in both the technical and commercial sides of the mine-to-mill value chain
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Thiago de Almeida
Lead Data Engineer
With a background in Nuclear Engineering at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, de Almeida has experience in full-stack software development projects, data science, artificial intelligence, nuclear technology and comminution, in addition to being a finalist of the 2019 World Nuclear Olympiad in Vienna, having presented his final project during a conference at the UN office. He is currently working on a research project based on the application of machine learning algorithms to predict Geopyörä's comminution parameters using data from nuclear instrumentation tests, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), unravelling the intricate relationships among material properties, chemical and mineralogical composition, and their collective influence on hardness.
Leonardo Lara
Process Engineer
Leonardo is a Mining Engineer from the University of São Paulo and an MSc student at the University of Oulu. With a focus on comminution and geometallurgy, he provides technical solutions to Geopyörä's clients through data interpretation, the development of geometallurgical models, and assistance with mine-to-mill programs. In parallel, he also works on the research and validation of applications for the Geopyörä test and its models.
Syed Huzaifa Ali
Product Engineer
Syed Huzaifa Ali is a process optimization and operational efficiency specialist, focusing on supply chain management and procurement. A master's student at the University of Oulu and a robotics expert, he serves as the Mechatronics Lead at Xavor. With experience across manufacturing, construction, and engineering, Syed has successfully helped businesses streamline operations, enhance productivity, and reduce costs, while also holding a certification as a Solidworks Professional.
Chathuri Udagama
Business Operations Specialist
Chathuri Udagama brings over nine years of experience in banking operations, financial analysis, risk management, and HR strategy. With a strong foundation in finance and people management, she has consistently driven operational efficiency, strengthened compliance frameworks, and contributed to sustainable revenue growth across organizations. She holds a Master's degree in Business Administration and Economics, specializing in International Business Management, from the University of Oulu, Finland, and a Bachelor's in Business Administration.
Anna Vilppunen
Commercial Coordinator
With a strong background in B2B marketing and business development, Anna possesses extensive experience ranging from hands-on marketing roles to high-level strategic planning. She spent over eight years as a Business Development Manager in the biotechnology industry, focusing on marketing, market research, and the creation of strategies to support both new and existing products. She is driven by a deep interest in understanding markets, identifying ways to create customer value, and collaborating with teams to drive growth.