Retirement - Les Sanderson

Former President and colleague Les Sanderson retired recently both from the extractive industry supply chain and the Irish Mining and Quarrying Society council.

His interesting life developed through Agricultural College in the mid ’60’s into land reclamation and on into machinery supply through Blackwood Hodge Ireland Ltd (part of the largest earthmoving equipment companies in the world) and their Pegson crushers and Terex loaders and quarry trucks distributorships. In the mid ’70’s IMQS sponsored a study tour to Truro, Cornwall with visits to Wheal Jane Tin Mines, China Clay Cornwall and Holman Drilling equipment company. At least 7 of the delegates later went on to be Presidents of our society including Les Sanderson, Tony Flannery, Bob Aspin, Ml Layden, Jim Wash, Denis Lavelle, and Tommy Weir. And also 3 Secretaries/Treasurers. Perhaps this was to inspire Les’s passion for the industry. 1972 saw the Turlough hill project in full swing. This was his first intro to the world of massive Terex Earth movers and rock haulers. Avoca Mine was still in production with contractor Dick Fanning using fleets of Terex Haulers and Magerus Deutz 6x6 trucks hauling from the open cast. It was an age of great innovation/ evolution of extractive equipment. So his life became one of introductions and firsts. By 1976 Tara Mines was about to go into production and two of the largest scooptrams in Europe (Eimco 920 LHD) were supplied through him to the mines along with several personnel carriers. Around that time Tracey Enterprises opened their new Quarry in Ballinascorney with their first Pegson skid mounted Jaw crusher. This quarry later became the largest privately owned operation under the ownership of Kilsaran with the largest Metso mobile Jaw and Cone crusher train in Ireland. Cement manufacturing was becoming competitive with Sean Quinn opening two Cement plants both of which were fitted with MMD sizers to handle the crushing of shale and overburden, an entirely new concept, followed by Irish Cement Platin’s new shale intake and later Gypsum Industries open cast intake. Hydraulic Drilling was also a new concept in those days. Gypsum’s Drumgosset mine had hit Anhydride and was unable to drill through it. So Les introduced the first Secoma Hydraulic Rotory Procussive drilling rig to Ireland with special drilll bits imported from South Africa. Later in his career, Whitemountain Aggregates opened their new Cam Quarry to which he supplied the first and largest computerised mobile crusher train in Northern Ireland comprising Metso mobile Primary, Secondary and tertiary crushers and mobile closed circuit screens - all talking to each other electronically. The firsts were not just confined to Extractive equipment. Chicago Bridge and Iron company prepared to build concrete

Heather and Les Sanderson at the IMQS Dinner Dance.

oil production platforms for the north sea in Killala, Co Mayo, to which he negotiated the supply of the biggest Miller concrete batching plant and the largest mobile P & H cranes with the longest strut booms ever to come to Ireland. However, with a change to British government policy, these were redirected to a project in Brazil. Bank of Ireland’s huge (in those days) computer centre in Cabinteely was powered by 2 massive Petbow Dorman engined generators, as were many other industrial and quarry sites e.g. Lackagh Rock, Galway. His membership of IMQS started in 1972, was elected to council around 1985 - 2021, Served 3 terms as president 1996/8 & 2008, Treasurer 2012 - 2018, Elected hon Fellow 1998. And attended 44 of the 47 dinner dances since becoming a member. Co-editor with Tony Killeen of the first IMQS newsletter, “The Extractive Times”, in 1995 which later became the wellrespected IMQS Annual Review. Sean Finlay invited him to join the steering committee of the Institution of Engineers in Ireland Extractive Industries Division in 1994 and he was elected Director ‘til 1999. Les was elected as a member of the “Institute of Quarrying” from 2003 -2010. He served 10 years at Blackwood Ireland as Sales Manager, 20 years as “Product and Used Equipment Manager” at Pat O’Donnell & Co. Ltd., 7 years as Region Ireland Manager with Metso Minerals and 4 years as Services Director of ECS Turbowash Ltd. Asked what the future holds, Les said “ A directorship in the industry would be nice, but in the mean time I’m involved with Tiglin Addiction Centre’s “No Bucks Caffe” supplying hot meals and clothes to the homeless on our city streets”. Les Sanderson - A true gentleman!

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