From 1950, Mining Departments were run at the Faculty of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering of the Silesian University of Technology. Students of these Departments were transferred to the Mining Faculty in the academic year 1951/1952. Since then, the Mining Department of the Silesian University of Technology educated students in the fields of: coal mining, mechanical processing of coal as well as electricity and mining.

In September 1950, the Department of Mine Electrification was established, headed by prof. Tadeusz Zarański (in the years 1962-1964 dean of the Mining Faculty, also vice-rector of the Silesian University of Technology). In 1952, the Department of General Electrical Engineering was transferred from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering to the Department of Mining and was called the Department of General Electrical Engineering A.

In the first stage of the reorganization of the Silesian University of Technology in 1969, the Departments of General Electrical Engineering A and Mine Electrification were combined, and the newly created Department was called the Department of Mining Electrification. Its head was prof. Tadeusz Zarański. After two years, in the second stage of reorganization, the Department of Mining Electrification was renamed the Institute of Mining Electrification and Automation, whose director was prof. Florian Krasucki. The deputy director of the Institute was doc. dr. Eng. Stanisław Frączek.

Simultaneously with the establishment of the Institute, four research and teaching teams were created:

Team of Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering and Electrical Measurements in Mining, headed by doc. dr. Eng. Jerzy Zygmunt,

The Group of Electrical Networks and Devices in Mining, headed by doc. dr hab. Eng. Florian Krasucki, and later Dr. Eng. Piotr Gawor,

Team of Electric Drives and Lower Traction, headed by dr.  Eng. Zygfryd Liberus, and later Dr. Eng. Michał Liberus,

The Mining Automation and Telemechanics Team, headed by doc. dr. Eng. Stanisław Frączek, later dr. Eng. Krystian Kalinowski, and then doc. dr Stanisław Cierpisz.

After the new statute of the Silesian University of Technology entered into force in 1984, research and teaching teams were dissolved, and instead, on October 1, 1984, three departments were established:

Department of Electrical Engineering and Electrical Measurements in Mining (head - doc. Jerzy Zygmunt),

Department of Electric Networks and Drives in Mining (head - prof. Florian Krasucki),

Department of Mining Automation and Teletechnics (head - prof. Stanisław Cierpisz).

A significant trace in the history of the Institute and the Department has been left by teachers, employees of the scientific and research facilities of mining, and outstanding specialists in the field of mining electrical engineering, such as prof. Władysław Gluziński, doc. Eligiusz Matyja, doc. Franciszek Szczucki.

In 1992, the Institute was renamed the Department of Mining Electrification and Automation (the Department was still headed by Prof. F. Krasucki until 1997). From 1997 to 2009, the Chair of Mining Electrification and Automation was prof. Stanisław Cierpisz. In the academic year 1998/99 the name of the specialization was changed from the previous one, ie "Automation and electrification of mines" to "Automation and power-electric in mining". From the academic year 2012/2013, the name of the specialization was changed to "Electrical Engineering and Automation in Mining". From September 1, 2009 to September 30, 2012, the head of the Department was prof. Piotr Gawor. On October 1, 2012, the position of the head of the Department was assumed by dr hab. Eng. Joachim Pielot.

During the existence of the Department (Institute), the number of its employees changed. On average, there were about 30 employees, including 23 academic teachers, 5 engineering and technical employees and 2 administrative employees. Together - during the existence of the Department - over 120 employees worked there.

In 2017, taking into account the ongoing economic changes and changes in the demand for engineering staff, a new field of study with a practical profile, Automation and Industrial IT, was launched, for which the Department became a leading unit. In the same year, the name of the unit was changed to the Department of Electrical Engineering and Industrial Automation.

Deputy Head of the Department (Director of the Institute) were doc. dr. Eng. Stanisław Frączek, doc. dr. Eng. Jerzy Zygmunt and doc. dr. Eng. Roman Pilorz. Since 2015, the deputy is dr hab. Eng. Jarosław Joostberens.