The main objective of this thesis was to identify the customer requirements for the future generation underground mass mining loader and provide guidance for the Sandvik product area of Loading & Hauling Management in the allocation of R&D resources. The most important objective of the thesis was to analyse the customer feedback received from two customer workshops held in Australia. The thesis also had a detailed focus on mass mining methods such as Sublevel Caving and Block Caving, and evaluated the Sandvik mass mining LHD offering as well as the main competitors’ equipment offering, The analysis of the mass mining methods indicated that the proportion of ore extracted by underground methods will grow as a proportion of the total produced ore as the near-surface deposits are depleted and mining goes more and more underground. Block caving is particularly seen as the most productive method in super-massive-scale operations. An evaluation and comparison of the Sandvik equipment portfolio showed that Sandvik equipment is currently very competitive against its main competitors, Atlas Copco and Caterpillar. Sandvik has particular advantages in the variety of options offered, and its hydraulic strength when loading at the muckpile is unmatched. An in-depth analysis of the results from the two customer workshops arranged in Australia indicated that customers see most improvement possibilities in the area of equipment maintenance and ergonomics. Specific important future improvements were identified to be a more spacious cabin, proximity detection, hybrid or battery technology, easier self-diagnostics and remote monitoring of equipment health.