Q&M Jun-Jul 2015

NEW ZEALAND QUARRYING & MINING Volume 12 - No 3 | June - July 2015 | $8.95

Hitachi and the Swap connection J Swap Contractors’ new 90-tonne quarry workhorse excavator

SERPENTINE FASCINATION

The only ‘serp’ quarry in the North Island

OCEANAGOLD MOVES ON WAIHI

The Aussies take over Newmont’s Kiwi gold production INCORPORATING

Aggregate News

AGGREGATE NEWS

Had a bath in your quarry recently?

PRODUCTIVITY | UPTIME | LOW DAILY OPERATING COST

THE FULL K-SERIES LINEUP Conquer your workload with the K-series from John Deere - the most advanced wheel loader on the market. The K-series features advantages such as solid state electronics, highly efficient Quad-CoolTM cooling, and advanced diagnostic monitors. You’ll also benefit from traditional John Deere durability features such as heavy-duty wet sleeve engines, self adjusting wet-disc brakes, four-plate loader frames, and articulation joints with double tapered roller bearings. Plus boom and mainframes so tough you won’t believe the warranty.

It all ads up to an increase in your productivity and uptime - and a lowering of your daily operating costs.

Nothing runs like a Deere To find out how we can configure a John Deere wheel loader to fit your requirements, contact your CablePrice sales representative or visit www.cableprice.co.nz.

081014_JD_K-Series_DPS

QUARRY

INDUSTRIAL

NOTHING RUNS LIKE A DEERE

524K I 544K I 624K I 644K I 724K I 744K I 824K I 844K

LOGGING

CONSTRUCTION

0800 555 456 I www.cableprice.co.nz I sales@cableprice.co.nz

2 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

C O N T E N T S

NEW ZEALAND QUARRYING & MINING Volume 12 - No 3 | June – July 2015 | $8.95

INSIDE

8

UPFRONT

4 Editorial 6-14 News, views, comments, and reports from across the quarrying and mining sectors

FEATURES

18 20 28-35

Remembering – Brian Bartley Quarrying – Serpent rock Mining – Waihi buyout – where Oceana makes its money – open day at Freshford Mine – coal holds out for a better price – explaining backfilling Technology – quiet roading – universal GPS tracking Business culture – 5 ways to lift your communication game – avoid writing like a corporate tosser – Kiwi talk Wheels in the workplace – Mahindra Pik-up 4WD Aggregate News Innovations

18

36-40

42-44

20

45

49-54 55-56

ON THE COVER 16 Hitachi and the Swap connection

AT THE BACK

56

32

Advertisers’ Index

ON THE COVER: Hitachi and J Swap Contractors have a long connection going back at least 55 years and the latest excavator purchase has only made that commercial relationship stronger.

See story page 16

36 Q&M June - July 2015 3

NEW ZEALAND QUARRYING & MINING

Q&M covers news, views and trends from the extractive industries, along with features on projects and people in the industry. www.contrafed.co.nz PUBLISHER

Face to face

Contrafed Publishing Co Ltd Suite 2.1, 93 Dominion Road, Mt Eden 1024 PO Box 112357, Penrose, Auckland 1642 Phone: 09 636 5715 Fax: 09 636 5716 EDITOR

With us humans most habits don’t change, despite the hype as each generation credits itself as being cleverer and better off than those in the past.

Kids are brighter – hey, my six-year-old grandson can search the internet! So what?

When I was that age I could point out the latest jet liner in the family encyclopaedia collection. Didn’t amount to anything (although I did become an aviation writer at one point in my writing career).

We are living longer. No mate, we are just dying slower as modern medicines prolong the inevitable, and ‘longevity’ doesn’t guarantee ‘quality of life’ in one’s dotage. It’s the same illusory obsession with road deaths in this day of safer cars and better first aid – it doesn’t count those wretches permanently maimed through dangerous driving and dangerous road accidents.

The worse crap comes out of the workplace and the development of technology.

Through the power of global communication, we can work anywhere, apparently. This is just nonsense. The business class cabins of the world’s airlines are still full of frequent travellers attending face-to-face meetings; the conference industry continues to grow; office space just keeps multiplying with demand; and a ‘herd instinct’ urges us to go to work at the same time and go home at the same time – it’s called peak hour.

Why? Human beings are human beings and they work best face-to-face.

The availability of online information has never been greater. True, but a shame most of it is crap. Unless you think “10 celebrities who died young” is news?

There’s is a fundamental principle about communication and publishing that applies whether you are chiselling your message into a cave wall or tweeting to your army of admirers – content is king. The publishing medium is not as important as the content of the message.

And this is where so many champions of communication in today’s prolonged blitz of social media and sound bites get the wrong end of the stick – becoming infatuated with the publishing medium and not the message. You often read newspaper articles that name-drop social media sources – especially Facebook and Twitter – as a source of news promoting their competition and their own nemesis. And you don’t need journalistic qualifications to be a celebrated ‘blogger’, just loud opinion – your own.

And what’s with our fascination with mini technology and ‘how much’ you can achieve on a piddly cell phone screen. Even watch a movie! Wow! Meanwhile, the big screen cinema venues are full; computer screens just get bigger; and one buys the biggest TV screen one can afford. That’s called being human – the bigger the vista the better. That’s why we pay more for views.

Working in an age of electronic gadgetry and gimmickry begs the question – how much productivity have we lost communicating with emails and txts instead of cutting to the chase with direct communication?

And let me iterate the order of effective communication: face to face; voice to voice; word to word; and (when it all turns to shit) lawyer to lawyer.

The point I want to make – we are human (or naked apes, to revive an anthropological expression from the 1960s). We evolved as social animals and tribes, and are most happy sharing the immediate company of others; and we are far more productive in the company of others.

So make sure you turn up at the AQA/IoQ conference in Hamilton this year and network face to face.

See you there.

Alan Titchall, Editor 4 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

Alan Titchall DDI: 09 636 5712 Mobile: 027 405 0338 Email: alan@contrafed.co.nz GENERAL MANAGER

Kevin Lawrence DDI: 09 636 5710 Mobile: 021 512 800 Email: kevin@contrafed.co.nz ADVERTISING

Charles Fairbairn DDI: 09 636 5724 Mobile: 021411 890 Email: charles@contrafed.co.nz REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS

Hugh de Lacy, Lindsay Clark, Cameron Officer, and Gavin Riley ADMINISTRATION/SUBSCRIPTIONS

Email: admin@contrafed.co.nz DDI: 09 636 5715 PRODUCTION

Design: Tracey Asher, TMA Design Printing: PMP MAXUM Contributions welcomed.

Please contact the editor before sending them in.

Articles in NZ Quarrying & Mining are copyright and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission of the publisher.

Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the shareholding organisations or the publisher.

The views expressed in the Aggregate News section of NZ Quarrying & Mining may not represent the views of Contrafed Publishing or its shareholding organisations.

VISIT THESE WEBSITES Aggregate & Quarry Association www.quarrying.org.nz Institute of Quarrying (NZ) Inc www.ioqnz.co.nz New Zealand Minerals Industry Association www.straterra.co.nz Extractive Industries Training Organisation www.mito.org.nz Civil Contractors NZ www.civilcontractors.co.nz NZ Ready Mixed Concrete Association www.nzrmca.org.nz Connexis www.connexis.org.nz ISSN 0110-1382

U P F R O N T

Community lessons from Australia Mines Rescue coordinated a spectacular simulated mine emergency

and fundraisers.

as part of the Hunter Coal Festival Community Day in Singleton

“As a result, we have truly brought the industry and community

back in March. This team photographed has also won the last six

together in a deeper appreciation of the contribution of mining to

consecutive Hunter Valley Mines Rescue competitions.

the success and prosperity of the entire Hunter region.

Held over three action-packed weeks, Festival chair Peter Eason

“We had a core team of volunteers managing the Festival

says the inaugural Hunter Coal Festival Community Day achieved its

programme and events, and then were able to tap into a

aim of celebrating the role and contribution of mining to the Hunter

great community network to help us deliver. We could not

region, while involving and engaging the industry and a wide cross-

have achieved this without the generous support of all of

section of the community – from the Upper Hunter to Newcastle.

our tremendous sponsors – an incredible contribution from

“We put on a very ambitious and wide-ranging programme of events, including a trade show, sporting and cultural events,

companies, many of whom are suffering the effects of the mining downturn.”

business and networking lunches and dinners, educational sessions,

Further information: www.huntercoalfestival.com.au

Silica health standards Worksafe New Zealand is consulting on a Workplace Exposure

WES ((Workplace Exposure Standard) value by Toxicology

Standard (WES) for respirable quartz (crystalline silica).

Excellence for Risk Assessment (TERA) in the United States

The agency proposes to adopt an eight hour time weighted average (WES-TWA) of 0.025mg/m3 (measured as respirable fraction).

A review was carried out to recommend a proposed

6 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

(the OEL, or occupational exposure limit, is equivalent to WES).

If you want to have a say then download a feedback form from either WorkSafe or the AQA. Deadline for feedback is August 7.

CoC confusion IoQ NZ says some of its members whose Certificates of Competency were due to expire in the latter part of 2014 may have been given the incorrect advice by their local MITO representative, or may have misunderstood the advice given.

The institute would like to hear from any members whose CoC was due to expire during the later part of 2014 and who were affected by any miscommunication. Names will be treated confidentially in any communication with MITO. Meantime, affected members who did not renew their expiring CoC in 2014 are required to ensure that they have the additional units and meet the requirements outlined in the gazette notice for A and B grade quarry managers (which would include being subject to an oral examination, submit a log book of experience which details the past two years and needs to be signed as a statutory declaration).

Equip2 makes rock processing easier.

Above all Equip2 processing solutions pride themselves on their experience and ability to provide the perfect machine to suit the job at hand, with an extensive supplier network set up, and support bases around New Zealand, Equip2 are able to offer the complete reliable solution, backed with experienced support.

The West Coast beckons The Minerals West Coast Forum will be held 22-23 July at Shantytown in Greymouth. This annual event brings the minerals

Keestrack Destroyer 1011

sector together to focus on the challenges and triumphs of mining in the West Coast environment. The forum provides opportunities to share knowledge and connect with suppliers, government, industry, and colleagues. This year’s forum theme celebrates 150 years of mining on the West Coast and will host a trade exhibition and presentations from industry players including, “Why Mining Heritage Matters,” and “Engaging with Government”.

AustmineNZ will host a business-matching event during miners’ happy hour (22 July) along with the Goldminers’ Association AGM and Women in Mining New Zealand (WIMNZ) panel session. The Minerals West Coast Forum Environment Award will be presented as part of the forum.

Bad boys, bad boys – what you gonna do?

Global drug testing agencies, The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA) and Omega Laboratories, plan to open a new a laboratory in Auckland later this year.

“The last few years have seen tremendous growth in the drug testing industry worldwide,” says TDDA chief Kirk Hardy.

This partnership with Omega Laboratories offers employers in Australasia the benefit of having the fastest turnaround time in the industry in the region.”

The new laboratory is headed by Dr Paul Fitzmaurice and will offer, “state-of-the-art drug testing services, as well as research testing methods to address the ever-increasing diversity of synthetic drugs that are flooding into the community”. Testing will also include an extended pain management panel that includes the majority of opioid medications that have significant abuse and addiction potential, say the companies.

Your perfect solutions Freephone 0800 872 254 Email: sales@equip2.co.nz www.equip2.co.nz

Call us today!

0800 872 254 Q&M June - July 2015 7

U P F R O N T

The Tui Mine remediation project was commended by the judges as a “meticulously planned and executed approach to a multi-year, multimillion-dollar project involving multiple delivery agents, multiple stakeholders, and multiple risk factors”.

Tui Mine project picks up award Waikato Regional Council’s leadership of a multimillion-dollar project

Ghassan Basheer, Waikato Regional Council’s principal technical

to remediate the contaminated Tui Mine on Mount Te Aroha has won

advisor, was responsible for ensuring the objectives and stakeholder

a prestigious national award.

expectations for the project, which was carried out by McConnell

The award winners were announced at an inaugural gala dinner of the New Zealand Society of Local Government Managers

Dowell, were met.

“This project required innovative new approaches to project

(SOLGM) and it is the first time in the 25-year history of the

management and technically complex engineering solutions, and it’s

awards that environmental leadership and sustainability has

an honour to have this work by a number of people and organisations

been recognised.

recognised,” he says.

The Tui Mine remediation project was commended by the judges

“It is an exemplar of a site which was subject to extreme

as a “meticulously planned and executed approach to a multi-year,

environmental contamination and significant environmental, public

multimillion-dollar project involving multiple delivery agents, multiple

health and safety risk, before being successfully remediated.”

stakeholders, and multiple risk factors”.

The collaborative and phased approach to the remediation

The Waikato Regional Council has been involved in the management of the Tui Mine remediation works since June 2007,

provided lessons for others facing legacy issues of this nature, the

when the Ministry for the Environment (MfE) provided funding for

judges say.

the project.

Small but valuable Back in February a small West Coast mining company, Crusader

underground development started in November 2012 and small

Coal, came into public view when it experienced a roof collapse at

amounts of coal were won from the mine over the next 12

its Terrace Mine near Reefton.

months. Crusader estimates about two million tonnes can be

The incident occurred on the weekend when no-one was in the mine, so there were no injuries but WorkSafe NZ did investigate the incident.

taken from the 14-metre-thick seam, giving the mine a 15-year life.

Historically, coal was retrieved by drilling and blasting with

Crusader Coal bought the mine in 2011 from state-owned Solid

explosives, although Solid Energy had changed to hydraulic

Energy, which had mothballed the mine citing high production costs.

mining before mothballing the works in June 2009. Crusader

Terrace Mine is an underground mine working in the No 4 seam

is using the same technique, which uses a high-pressure water

at Reefton. The coal product is a high energy sub-bituminous coal

cannon to shear the coal out of the seam.

widely valued in domestic markets.

Crusader Coal is a small independent underground coal mining

Mine project manager Lambley says it was the only viable way to attack the seam, which has a very steep gradient. The thermal

company formed in 2010 and has four directors with combined

coal would be used in industrial boilers and had a significant

mining experiences in excess of 100 years. All are from Australia

energy content.

and two of them are Kiwi expatriates. One of them, Bernie Lambley,

Crusader sells its coal to state-owned Solid Energy as it does

moved to Reefton to manage the mine. About 10 West Coasters

not have the resources for marketing and Solid Energy has

work at the mine.

agreements with most of the smaller coalminers to supply or

After refurbishing the surface works and infrastructure, 8 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

take coal at different times. By Peter Owens.

FROM THE MOMENT YOU HIT THE GROUND...

GET SMARTER WITH CAT® G.E.T. Selecting the right Ground Engaging Tools (G.E.T.) is critical to achieving the maximum return on your machine investment.

At Gough Cat, we offer many G.E.T. options because every machine and application has its own special needs. G.E.T. protects the expensive parts of your blades, buckets and ripper shanks, resulting in longer life and reducing maintenance costs. G.E.T. also plays a big part in determining how well your machine performs in a specific application.

Cat G.E.T. from Goughs is the only product of its kind engineered with your entire business in mind — built by the recognised industry leader to perform in tandem with your buckets and machines.

Phone your local Goughs Parts & Service Sales Representative to discuss your G.E.T. needs — we’re specialists and experienced in matching the right tools to your application. That’s what we’re built to deliver.

AUCKLAND / NORTHLAND Clint Greer 021 361 454 ROTORUA / BAY OF PLENTY Allen Frost 029 200 1134 EAST CAPE / HAWKES BAY & WAIRARAPA Marina McKenzie 021 847 031 TARANAKI / MANAWATU / WELLINGTON Peter Torrance 029 478 1520

UPPER SOUTH ISLAND Mark Donaldson 021 942 052 CANTERBURY Toby McLaughlin 021 870 559 OTAGO / SOUTHLAND Ben Isbister 021 427 502

Branches Nationwide | Phone Parts 0800 93 39 39 | GoughCat.co.nz/parts

U P F R O N T

Quarry deaths draw fire from labour reps The health and safety reputation of the quarrying industry drew

O’Connell did concede that the industry’s health and safety

allegations from labour representatives that it has been “avoiding”

working group Minex, has been doing good work on drafting

health and safety regulations after two site deaths within a short

guidelines and raising awareness, but claims progress has been

period of time.

too slow.

In April this year a 25-year-old quarry worker, Tane Hill-Ormsby,

Roger Parton, chief executive director of the Aggregate and

was crushed under his 45-tonne truck (widely misquoted in the

Quarry Association, disagrees and says the industry has not

media as a “rock cutter” after Police called it a ‘rock carter’)

placed pressure on the Government to avoid coming under health

rolled at Oropi Quarry in Tauranga.

and safety regulations. Too many aspects of the new mining

The month before, 43-year old Scott Baldwin was killed at Gordons Valley Lime Company, south of Timaru.

Labour representatives point out that while H&S laws for mining were strengthened in 2013 in response to the Royal Commission

regulations simply did not apply to quarrying, he says.

“We have to make sure we get it right, and the association has been working hard with the Government towards that.”

It has been widely reported that in the two years to September

into the Pike River Mine tragedy, the Government opted to work

2014, there were 242 reported injuries in quarries compared to

with the quarry industry to develop specific guidelines, with a

56 in underground mines.

longer-term view to developing regulations.

“After lobbying from industry and assurances that quarries were

Parton says the problem with reporting industry incidents and accidents in general is that it is done on a voluntary basis,

safer than mines, the Government excluded quarries from the

and this needs to change. “Without good data it is difficult to

protections of the new law,” says Council of Trade Unions general

benchmark how the industry compared with other industries or

counsel, Jeff Sissons.

other countries.”

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union’s assistant national secretary, Ged O’Connell, pitched in with a stronger statement claiming the industry has spent the last couple of years

Existing regulations are poorly understood, he adds, particularly by smaller operators.

“We need good regulations, guidelines that are easy to

trying to avoid good health and safety regulations while injuries

understand and enforce, so everyone knows what’s expected of

and deaths continued.

them.”

“They [quarry companies] were alarmed at the requirements

Meanwhile, WorkSafe is still developing new Best Practice

that were going to be put on them so obviously they had

Guidelines that cover quarrying and surface mines. These are

influence with the Government, they got themselves out,” he

currently in draft form and out for consultation with the industry.

reportedly said.

They are expected to be published later this year.

“But I think they need to move quickly and put some proper

Two dedicated WorkSafe inspectors are currently visiting

laws and regulations in place so people stop

quarries and the agency intends to add another two later

dying in their industry.”

this year.

Changes to ACC levies welcomed Key ACC changes planned by the Government have been

while keeping levies as low as possible and stable over time,”

welcomes by business sectors across the board.

it says.

They involve: A new ACC Financial Responsibility and Transparency Amendment Bill; further levy cuts of around $500 million in total (over 2016/17 and 2017/18); and the discontinuation of the Residual Claims Levy.

It has been claimed for some time by the likes of BusinessNZ, through its submission to the annual ACC levy review, that ACC levies rates in the past have been manipulated to meet political considerations rather than set on the insurance-based principles that should drive funding policy.

BusinessNZ says that while the new Bill covering a new ACC levy-setting framework won’t come into effect until at least next

“ACC will also be required to report publicly on the long-term implications of the Government’s levy decisions.”

These are very important steps towards ensuring public confidence in the ACC scheme is maintained, the association adds.

The 2015 budget included more levy cuts of around $500 million over two years from next year.

“The three main accounts (Work, Earners and Motor Vehicle Accounts) are now fully-funded so there is opportunity for significant cuts in levies across the board,” says BusinessNZ. “The Government will aim, over time, for funding policy to be

year, it is clear it will promote greater transparency in future

targeted to something between 100 percent (fully-funding) and

levy-setting.

110 percent (to take account of risk factors). This is in line with

“New binding principles will be introduced to ensure the scheme is adequately funded to withstand economic volatilities,

10 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

BusinessNZ’s recommendations to the 2015/16 ACC levysetting review (August 2014).”

TOTAL FOR MINING

With our extensive range of oil and lubricants we have mining covered. Our products and unrivalled service keeps your business moving. We care about your industry and will work with you to deliver the Total package.

Authorised Distributor

Proud supporters of

To find out more go to www.totaloilsolutions.co.nz or contact us on 0800 868 256.

Think oil, think Total.

U P F R O N T

QuarryNZ 2015 beckons – Forging the future

QuarryNZ 2015 is themed Forging the Path to the Future and the joint

As chairperson of the AQA Technical Committee, Stacy will be

AQA/IoQ conference will be held at Claudelands, Hamilton between

discussing the recent activities of the committee. It has been a busy

July 15 and 17.

year with technical committee members being active in a number of

Registration is now open at www.quarrynz.com.

Every year the conference is an opportunity for quarrying industry representatives to interact and exchange ideas, take the opportunity to hear the experiences of guest speakers and to socialise with old friends and colleagues, and make new contacts.

The conference opens on the Wednesday (15th) evening with the

industry forums and working groups.

As usual a quarry field trip is organised for after lunch, which is always a conference highlight.

The next day, Friday, WorkSafe chief Tony Forster will be on stage at 8am, and MITO chief Janet Lane at 8.20am.

Industry presentations are scheduled through the morning from

traditional Gough Cat Opening Night Dinner, while the stage chat

Iain Simmon (Waterview); Cobus van Vuuren from Higgins Agg; and

starts after breakfast on Thursday (in the exhibition area) at 8.30am

Komatsu.

when Simon Perry officially opens the conference.

The NZTA is on stage at 9am with Robert Brodnax and at 9.40am with Parviz Namjou and after morning tea at 10.30am with Gerhard Van Blerk.

Parviz Namjou, with his PhD in hydrogeology from the University

Cobus, the aggregates manager for Higgins Group, Palmerston North, will be talking on mobile-fixed-hybrid crushing plant and its use to reduce capital and installation cost.

After morning tea on the Friday we will hear from Paul Sutton from the IQA; Rodney Pilbrow; and Ken Slattery. Paul Tidmarsh,

of Auckland, has over 15 years work experience in hydrogeology,

Mr Quarryman himself, will be interviewed on stage at 11.30am

groundwater modelling and assessment of quarry groundwater

before delegates are herded off to the Porter Lunch. That night

effects under his belt. His principal areas of technical expertise are

it’s the Transdiesel Volvo Awards Dinner featuring the MIMICO

in characterization of groundwater flow and chemical transport in

Environmental Awards and the Q&M magazine Editor Award

fractured rocks.

recognising corporate and individual services to the industry.

Stacy Goldsworthy is presenting an AQA technical paper at 11.30am and Les McCracken from MinEx will provide a rundown at 12 noon.

The 44th Annual General Meeting of the Aggregate & Quarry Association will be held on Wednesday (July 15) at 1.30 pm.

The dumping of the Residual Claims Levy The residual claims levy that paid for the costs of pre-1999 work

with road use, and the significant cross-subsidisation of motor

accidents in respect to the Work Account will be discontinued.

cyclists by motorists be urgently addressed, recognising that

Originally, this levy was to be fully funded by 2018/2019.

over the next 3-5 years, current cross-subsidisation will make

“There is absolutely no reason to continue with this levy given that the various accounts are fully-funded (again an issue raised in BusinessNZ’s submission to ACC last year).

“In fact, the continuation of the residual claims levy had implications

necessary a staged levy review process to reflect risk more accurately.

“If, in the opinion of the ACC Board and the Government, there is a sound public policy reason for the continued cross-

in terms of experience-rating of levies (and also for accredited

subsidisation of motorcyclists (although no obvious reason

employers) given that the residual claims levy comment could not be

occurs to BusinessNZ), the nature of this subsidisation be

experience–rated.”

made transparent and the funding come from general

Among recommendation and submission made by BusinessNZ that were not achieved was that consideration be given to introducing

taxation instead. “ “The funding will then clearly show in the government

mechanisms to ensure all road users (whether motorists, truck

accounts, allowing the quality of the expenditure to be judged

drivers, motorcyclists, or cyclists) pay the real costs associated

alongside all other areas of Government expenditure.”

12 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

We’re a

big part of your business

Complete Crushing & Screening Capability MIMICO has an impressive array of crushing and screening talent on hand and available to help you increase the profitability and productivity of your operation.

We have top class industry expertise covering equipment, service, parts and process. Through our relationship with Quarry Machinery and Installation (QMI) we can provide complete engineering support for the quarry industry.

“Delivering on promises is key in this business.”

Garth Taylor, MIMICO’s Crushing & Screening Business Manager.

MIMICO has the people and the brands to ensure we can do what we say we’re going to do. And that let’s you get on with doing what you need to do.

Talk to MIMICO. We are the New Zealand distributors of Metso equipment, parts and service. www.mimico.co.nz Freephone 0800 806 464 | E-mail enquiries@mimico.co.nz | Auckland, Matamata, Christchurch Our brands

U P F R O N T

More calls for RMA reform Current legislation is killing the development of mining in this country unless central government fulfils its promise to modernise the increasingly anachronistic Resource Management Act.

K

ey olicy recommendations in the From Red Tape to Green Gold, the

second in a series of two reports on our minerals sector authored by research fellow Jason Krupp, iterates the problem with the RMA holding back development.

This report follows on from Poverty of Wealth, which was published in December 2014 and is the second in a two-part series on the country’s extensive resource estate and, more importantly, the regulatory barriers that prevent businesses from tapping this mineral wealth.

Krupp sees a significant problem with the current RMA and says it is severely dated. At the time the legislation was drafted (1991), under the care of Geoffrey Palmer, the country had a hazards-based regulatory framework. Palmer, and indeed most politicians of the time, saw this as the best means to promote sustainable management of natural and physical resources. Over the years and in practice the Act is seen as being “effects-based”.

However, “hazards-based” regulation is the process whereby an applicant – such as a mining company – has to identify every potential damage or harm that could occur from a development activity, and then show how it will avoid, remedy or mitigate these effects.

Critics of the hazards approach see it as over-regulation, characterised by reliance on the courts to resolve disputes and inflexible rules, with little consideration given to the costs imposed by red tape. Anyone who has applied for consents through the RMA will be familiar with all of the above.

For this reason, Australia, Canada, parts of Europe and the US have since moved to a risk-based regulatory framework. A framework of this type looks at all the aspects that the hazards approach does but also considers the likelihood of the harm occurring, as well as the severity of the harm.

The risk-based approach is already used in our pharmaceutical sector. Regulators assess the negative side effects of a drug weighted

14 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

against the chance of these effects occurring, as well as the severity of the effects.

The same risk assessment techniques can be used in mining and other markets, such as South Australia, have been using riskbased mining regulation for some time. South Australia is widely considered to have one of the best resource regulatory regimes in Australasia, which has resulted in more projects getting consented, and in a shorter timeframe, than most other Australasian jurisdictions, especially New Zealand. In fact, it is being used as a template for other parts of Australia. On average, it takes six months to obtain a commercial resource consent in South Australia while the average in New Zealand is two years.

South Australia’s track record on the environment and mining is also superior to ours, with the state ranked higher on measures of environmental assessment processes, native vegetation management, biodiversity offsets, noise pollution and fauna management.

Where mining is concerned, the RMA delivers neither the environmental protections that most of us expect from the legislation nor the economic benefits. The practical limits of the RMA’s hazards framework can be seen in the Trans-Tasman Resources and Chatham Rise Phosphates decisions.

In both of those cases, the Environment Protection Authority was effectively forced to decline the undersea mining applications because of the cautionary hazards-based approach to environmental management enshrined in the RMA that was carried over into the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf Act (2012).

Even where the EEZ legislation allows for adaptive management to be used (small scale versions of a project to answer environmental uncertainties), the risks still seem to be too great to take on in light of the precautionary principles, regardless of the likelihood or the consequences of those harms.

See how it works at www.tiny.cc/ultralok

Easier. Safer.

Longer lasting. esco ultralok Advanced hammerless tooth system Increase productivity with esco ultralok. Streamlined tooth profiles use harder and tougher alloy steel than competing systems. ultralok is engineered to dig more efficiently, extend service life and reduce maintenance.

A simple hand tool operates the integrated lock providing greater reliability, improved safety and easier field replacement.

REALSTEEL.CO.NZ 0800 REAL STEEL 0 8 0 0 7 3 2 5 7 8

O N

T H E

C O V E R

THE SWAP CONNECTION Hitachi and J Swap Contractors have a long connection going back at least 55 years and the latest excavator purchase has only made that commercial relationship stronger.

“

T

he biggest and probably best machine we’ve ever bought off CablePrice,” is how David Swap describes J Swap Contractors’ new Hitachi ZX870LCH-3 Series excavator.

And that’s saying something when you consider J Swap has been dealing with CablePrice since the early 1960s.

David says the Waikato contracting firm considered about five different options before choosing the 90 tonne Hitachi ZX870 as a workhorse for its sizeable quarrying operations throughout the North Island.

“When you’re buying a $1 million machine you want to know you are dealing with a company that has the parts and service backup, and if there was a major failure it would be fixed by lunchtime the next day. With already 70 odd Hitachis in the fleet, we know we can rely on CablePrice.”

David and his brother Lewis own the family company J Swap Contractors, which was started by their father Joe in 1934.

They have grown what was a floundering small business servicing the farming sector, to a large company employing around 400 staff, with significant interests in quarrying, civil engineering, stock food, heavy transport, farming and agriculture.

“Dad was a very good worker and loved operating the machinery, but the business was in receivership when I came on board straight out of school in 1959. We had to start over again. I ran things and Dad did the contracting work with our four or five staff and it grew from there,” says David.

The brothers have spent around 50 years working side by side, since Lewis joined the firm in the late 1960s.

These days, J Swap Contractors runs 25 separate entities, which are based mainly in the Waikato and Taranaki.

“We own 10 big quarries where we use a lot

16 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

of Hitachi gear. In the last decade we’ve also got into importing palm kernel for stock feed in a big way and have Hitachi excavators and loaders working in depots all over the North Island and in Christchurch.”

J Swap’s new Hitachi ZX870 arrived at Christmas time and was operating onsite by the middle of January.

“It is an outstanding machine, with so much new technology. It’s way out in front of what we imagined.”

Productivity, durability and reliability are hallmarks of the ZX870-3 Series machines which are particularly well suited to heavy-duty excavation and quarry operations.

David confirms that Hitachi has met its goal of developing a machine that yields high production yet maintains low fuel consumption thanks to new developments in engine and hydraulic systems technology.

“This machine has significantly increased our output compared to the 70 tonne ZX670 Hitachi digger we purchased new six or seven years ago.

This is still an excellent machine, but the new excavator is unbelievable.”

He says the ZX870 removes overburden at the quarry with ease, allowing the firm to “get down to the good stuff” much faster and cheaper.

J Swap’s employee Adrian Lucchesi is the lucky operator in the seat of the new excavator, and he is equally impressed.

“It has raised production quite a bit compared to the previous digger. Load out times are faster and with wider tracks it sits on the dirt very well. It’s also an economical machine, using 40-45 litres of fuel per hour. This is only a litre or two more than the 670 which was 20 tonnes lighter.”

He says comfort is also right up there.

“It has a really comfortable cab, with brilliant air conditioning, great visibility and a good rear-mounted camera to check out the back of the machine.”

The shorter boom on the ZX870 provides more stability for bulk loading out, he says.

“Overall it’s an awesome machine. I can highly recommend it.”

The new ZX870 is one of about 50 or 60 hydraulic Hitachi excavators the firm has bought off CablePrice since the late 1980s.

“Lewis is particularly fond of the Hitachi excavators and we’ve done good business with them over the years.”

“It is an outstanding machine, with so much new technology. It’s way out in front of what we imagined.”

David says the firm values its longstanding relationship with CablePrice that goes right back to 1963 when it purchased an Allis Chalmers bulldozer.

“Although CablePrice is a big corporate company, it is still run like a large family business.

We’ve been dealing with Malcolm Pascoe since we started buying Hitachi machines and have bought a lot of gear off him over the years. It’s a good feeling to do business with people who

operate on a personal level.”

As an “old fashioned” businessman, David appreciates being able to seal a deal with a handshake.

“When I ring CablePrice and say, ‘I want a price’, you know you’re getting their best deal first up. They also offer good after-sales service and parts backup. Our service manager reckons CablePrice has the most personable approach and he can usually get answers the quickest from

their technical team.”

Quality will continue to be one of David and Lewis Swap’s main criteria as they invest in more new machinery.

“It’s important to look at the whole of life cost of a machine as it’s no good buying something cheap then finding at the first service you can’t get a part for it. We’re a big business that buys the best plant. Although it’s not all Hitachi, the brand is definitely right up there at the top.” • Q&M June - July 2015 17

R E M E M B E R I N G

Bryan Bartley

A MAN APART The co-inventor of the Barmac Crusher had old-school attributes that made him a widely liked and admired multi-achiever. BY GAVIN RILEY.

B

Bryan Bartley and his wife Elaine with the Caernarfon Trophy he received in 1989 from the IoQ for his paper, “High Density Autogeneous Crushing”.

18 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

ryan Bartley, who died on March 24 aged 86, will forever be remembered as a civil engineer whose inventive mind helped put New Zealand quarrying on the world map.

His enduring fame rests on his development with fellow engineer Jim Macdonald of the vertical-shaft-impact Barmac Crusher, which revolutionised the sealing-chip business.

But Bryan was much more than a notable inventor.

Distinguished in appearance, principled, courteous, softly spoken, witty and unassuming, he was the very best kind of old-school Kiwi. His strong personal characteristics, interest in people and an inquiring mind enabled him to make his mark in spheres beyond quarrying and in the 2000 New Year Honours he was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to engineering and the community.

Bryan lived all his life in Auckland and was the middle of three sons of the chemist who ran the pharmacy in Manukau Road.

He joined Winstone Aggregates in 1952 as engineer at its Lunn Avenue quarry, then worked in Malaysia from 1961-63, making precast concrete beams for the contractor that built Kuala Lumpur airport, before returning to Winstone as quarries engineer. He was instrumental in Winstone buying what is now its flagship quarry, Hunua.

A turning point in Bryan’s life came in 1970 when he met Jim Macdonald, at that time in charge of Wellington City Council’s Kiwi Point quarry and later city engineer.

Macdonald, New Zealand’s most decorated naval officer in World War II, had invented a prototype rock-crusher, the Macdonald impactor, and over a period of eight years the pair worked on developing the invention, forming Barmac Associates and sharing the patents of what became the famous Barmac Crusher.

“He was a remarkable character,” Bryan was to say much later of Macdonald. “We enjoyed each other’s company and did a lot of what-if-we-did-this or what-if-we-did-that type of thing.”

When Macdonald died in 1982, Bryan carried forward the business of patents, trademarks, licensing, manufacture and distribution of their invention, which was sold in 1993 to what eventually became, through acquisitions, Matamata-based Svedala Barmac.

Bryan held various posts within the Winstone organisation and

“He was always a quiet speaker, patient, methodical, knowledgeable, and an advocate and promoter of best practice. He was a person I could always turn to for confirmation or modification of my ideas.”

was group engineer and general manager, central engineering services, when he retired at the age of 57 in 1985. A founding member of the New Zealand branch of the Institute of Quarrying, he was chairman from 1987-89 and was honoured in the 1991-92 year with the international presidency of the IoQ, which then had 5200 members worldwide and branches in six countries.

One of Bryan’s few surviving contemporaries, Aggregate & Quarry Association life member and former president George Cunningham, got to know Bryan at Winstone in 1967. He regarded Bryan as a mentor initially, then they became firm friends.

“I never heard Bryan say a bad word about anybody,” George said. “He was never foul-mouthed, never swore, and was not given to emotional outbursts. He was always a quiet speaker, patient, methodical, knowledgeable, and an advocate and promoter of best practice. He was a person I could always turn to for confirmation or modification of my ideas.

“He empathised with people at every level. If you talked issues through with Bryan it was done with dignity and was clearly thought through. While Bryan’s role in developing the Barmac Crusher is widely acknowledged, it is my belief that many of his valuable contributions to the ongoing welfare of the quarrying industry over many decades are unrecorded and therefore not so well recognised.”

Bryan’s interests outside quarrying were many. He was a past chairman of Unitec and of the Auckland branch of the Institute of Professional Engineers (Ipenz), a life member and past president of the Auckland Civic Trust, a member of the Auckland Inventors Club (he co-developed and patented a self-feathering yacht propeller) and he was active in the U3A movement, the Probus organisation, and the debate over climate change (he believed mankind was not responsible). He was also involved in his local Presbyterian church and several choirs, and had a lifelong passion for sailing and painting/sketching.

“He basically liked people – and they liked him back,” Bryan’s son Bruce said in his funeral-service eulogy. “His was an inspirational life.”

Bryan Bartley is survived by his wife of 43 years, Elaine, son Bruce, daughters Laura Hayes and Clare Crossen, stepsons Robert and Allan Walton, stepdaughters Jacqueline Stewart and Patricia Chancellor, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Q&M

Bryan Bartley … international president of the Institute of Quarrying in 1991-92.

Q&M June - July 2015 19

Q U A R R Y I N G

Serpent rock The serpentine group of minerals found in serpentine rocks is used as a source of magnesium and decorative stone. ALAN TITCHALL takes a closer look at the only ‘serp’ quarry in the North Island.

20 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

Wairere Serpentine at a glance • Extracting – 120,000 tonnes of serpentine a year.

• Wheeled machines – 30-tonne articulated Volvo and Terex dump trucks, plus 20 tonne Volvo and Hyundai wheeled loaders.

• Tracked machines – 50 tonne 480 Volvo excavator and a D6 Cat Dozer shared between the two Piopio quarry sites.

• Crushing plant – Universal 36 x 24 jaw crusher.

• Plans for expansion – Not for this site as yet, but Rorisons RMD has expanded over to a different site across a boundary river with a new plant extracting Ag lime.

Q&M June - July 2015 21

Q U A R R Y I N G

“Their olive green colour and smooth or scaly appearance is the basis of the name from the Latin serpentinus, meaning ‘serpent rock’. Serpentine comes in many varieties but one thing is certain – animals, including humans, have a fascination with it.”

22 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

A Universal 36 x 24 crusher at the heart of the operation

The serpentine group describes a group of common rockforming hydrous magnesium iron phyllosilicate minerals.

Their olive green colour and smooth or scaly appearance is the basis of the name from the Latin serpentinus, meaning ‘serpent rock’. Serpentine comes in many varieties but one thing is certain – animals, including humans, have a fascination with it.

Mankind has made jewellery and ornamental carvings from the harder (antigorite) serpentine for centuries. Maori carved beautiful objects from local serpentine, which they called tangiwai (tears). In 1965 the State of California designated serpentine (the mineral) as its official ‘state rock’.

When I was photographing a stockpile at the Wairere Serpentine (Serp) quarry in the North Island, a large rabbit stared passively back at me. It was in the middle of the day and in bright sunshine.

“They love to burrow into it,” commented the quarry foreman Jason Phillips. Which was unfortunate for them when the loader got its bucket into the pile.

“In the morning, when we open up, the stockpile is also covered with wild goats. We used to think they were just getting out of the rain, but they are there all weathers.”

I was visiting this unique quarry earlier in the year to cover Porter’s cover feature in the April/May issue of Q&M. This quarry is one of two that Rorisons RMD operates along

Aria Road, just south of the little Waikato settlement of Piopio.

Wairere Serp is the older quarry and has been extracting a rich deposit of serpentine, a source of magnesium for agriculture and farming across the North Island, since the 1940s.

Lime also used to be extracted at the site but this is now spent and the serpentine is blended to different recipes with lime from the other RMD quarry with a Sandvic QE341 scalper.

The Waikato serpentine is soft and crumbles once exposed to the air. When aerial topdressing took off after WW2, it became a practice to add it to superphosphate, as serpentine’s free-running properties, after being crushed, allow it to be sprayed from aircraft.

It has also been added to other fertilisers and applied to magnesium-deficient soils. By 1993, some 4.2 million tonnes of serpentine had been quarried in New Zealand, with the biggest producers at the time being Greenhills near Bluff and Wairere Serpentine at Piopio.

By this century many accessible deposits had been worked out and the development of granulated, free-running superphosphate saw production fall. At some locations, serpentine was found to contain asbestos fibres and quarries were closed for health reasons. Q&M

Q&M June - July 2015 23

Q U A R R Y I N G

“When I was photographing a stockpile at the Wairere Serpentine (Serp) quarry in the North Island, a large rabbit stared passively back at me. It was in the middle of the day and in bright sunshine.”

ASBESTOS

Investing in the wrong mineral...

A dirty word now, asbestos was mined in this country

A mining company tried to blaze a trail with a bulldozer from

extensively and used to manufacture pipes and corrugated

Arawata to this remote claim. To make a path they had to use

roofing from the late 1930s until 1987, even though the health

explosives in the Monkey Puzzle Gorge, and drilled and blasted

risk of inhaling asbestos fibres was exposed back in the 1970s.

enormous boulders. Swamps, forests, and rough ground added

Despite this news, several mining companies spent considerable time and effort exploring the potential of the

to the obstacles.

The motley convoy, which included tractors, sheds on sleds,

asbestos deposits in South Westland’s Red Hills region, where a

and other gear, never reached its destination and returned from

large deposit with good-quality fibre had been found.

the 200-kilometre trip without doing a single day’s prospecting.

Source: teara.govt.nz

24 www.contrafed.co.nz

Best foot forward The tragic death of founder and co-director Ian Simcox in a helicopter accident in March left staff within this close-knit company and the wider community stunned. But in the aftermath of such trauma, Simcox Construction remains determined to continue building on the solid reputation the company enjoys across the top of the South Island and further afield.

Ian’s passing came just days after he had overseen the arrival and implementation of the final piece of a production puzzle that signifies for Simcox Construction an investment in superior crushing and screening technology.

The company has implemented mobile tracked equipment from German manufacturer Kleemann to work across its two quarry operations near Blenheim and, a couple of months down the track, the new equipment is already proving its worth.

“The biggest changes the Kleemann jaw, cone and screen have brought are in terms of greater efficiencies and increased production,” says Simcox Construction’s Antony Clark.

“In fact we’re generating volume so quickly now we’ve had to change the feed excavator in order to keep up; we’ve gone from a 12 tonner to a 23 ton machine.”

Simcox Construction’s three machines – a Mobicat jaw crusher; MCO9 EVO cone crusher; and Mobiscreen MS16D screen – are the

first of their type in New Zealand, representing a big commitment to the brand. But Kleemann’s growing popularity across the Tasman, combined with OEM support through parent company Wirtgen, gave Ian, Antony and colleagues the confidence to invest.

“We looked to Australia and could see – with around 200 units already on the ground over there – we had a level of expertise and experience with Kleemann on our doorstep, as well as an obvious indicator of industry confidence in the product.

“This is probably the single biggest investment in plant we’ve made in the company’s 30-plus year history, so we had to look at every angle before we leapt in. Then once we made the decision to go with Kleemann, we wanted the first of the machines here within a pretty quick timeframe.

“Gary Payne from Wirtgen New Zealand put the wheels in motion and did an outstanding job; we ordered the mobile tracked jaw at Christmas and it was delivered in January. The ability for us to have the first machine on site without major disruptions to our schedules was a game-changer for us; it was a real signal we’d invested in the right gear and the right people.”

Simcox Construction’s crushing foreman Richard Price agrees.

“I’ve been involved in the quarry industry for over 30 years and I’d never actually seen a Kleemann before our machines arrived, but I was

It’s not even halfway through the year, but 2015 has already brought both challenge and change for Blenheim-headquartered Simcox Construction. By Cameron Officer.

sold on them pretty quickly.

“Everything is so much faster and there is far less downtime compared to our old machines. As well as upping the size of the feed excavator, we used to have one front-end loader carting away, but now we require two.

“We’ve just finished crushing a large amount of AP65 and we had no problems what-so-ever. If there’s a jam, the machines are all selfregulating, so not only will they suspend processing automatically; they’ll give you information on-screen as to where the jam has occurred.

“That sort of smart technology is great because it’s protecting the integrity of the machines, which means they should be able to provide us with consistent crushing for a long time,” he says.

The machines went to Pukaka Quarry first – a council-owned site which Simcox Construction operates on contract – before being moved to the company’s own Barracks Quarry.

“The tracked nature of these machines means moving them is a straightforward process. We only have to lift off one belt; otherwise everything folds in for transport easily. Three machines meant three trips with our low loader between the quarries, with minimal fuss.

“The technology the Kleemann equipment utilises is a big step up for us and we’ve adjusted the way we operate accordingly,” Antony concludes.

“It has really given us the ability to produce a superior product at a faster rate, which is a pretty good equation as far as I’m concerned.”

Remembering Ian Simcox Ian Simcox’s untimely passing in March devastated friends, colleagues and business associates alike.

The proud, popular construction identity was as well-known as a caring and compassionate member of his beloved Blenheim community as he was a gifted businessman who, with wife Margaret at his side, grew Simcox Construction from a ‘one truck, one digger’ operation in the late 1970s to become a fixture of Marlborough’s civil construction, infrastructure and earthworks industry, with a team of over 60 staff.

Antony Clark says that the Simcox family will continue their commitment to the high standards Ian and his wife and business partner Margaret have set in place across 31 years in business.

“We will now deliver, so that he would be proud of what we are doing,” he says.

“Ian was feeling very positive about the future and his positivity was always infectious. And needless to say it remains within everyone at Simcox Construction today.”

• Customer supplied article

M I N I N G

28 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

Waihi buyout

good for Kiwi mining In a surprise move OceanaGold looks set to buy out the country’s only other significant gold miner – Newmont Waihi Gold. BY LINDSAY CLARK

W

hile it was known that OceanaGold, whose key asset is the declining Macraes gold mine in Otago, was searching for new acquisitions, Newmont Waihi Gold had appeared to be in a bright new phase, beginning mining this year its Correnso underground mine.

While it is not a major move for owner US-based Newmont Mining Corporation, the second largest gold miner in the world, as Waihi is one of the smallest mines in it’s international portfolio, the Kiwi asset produced 132,000 ounces of gold in 2014 – one of the mines’ most productive years since Newmont has owned Waihi.

Melbourne-based OceanaGold announced it plans to buy the Waihi operation for US$101 million ($132 milllion), plus adjustments. Ownership of Waihi will enable OceanaGold’s total annual gold output to rise from 300,000 ounces to over 400,000 ounces, three quarters of which will be from New Zealand.

The deal is subject to approval by the Overseas Investment Commission and due diligence.

Both parties had agreed to complete due diligence and target execution of a definitive acquisition agreement by mid-May with ownership transfer set at July 1.

The deal is part of a recent trend by larger gold mining companies to divest smaller assets as gold prices have trended downwards – all in an effort to lower costs, cut debt and protect margins. Canadian-based Barrick Gold, the world’s biggest gold miner, recently sold three gold mines in Australia.

OceanaGold has been particularly successful in cutting costs while increasing output. Its increased cashflow has put Oceana in a financial position to be a buyer. The lower gold prices have cut asset valuations of gold mines around the world as much as 70 percent and that has spurred gold companies to boost production and some to acquire new mines.

Q&M June - July 2015 29

M I N I N G

The big Martha open pit mine right in the town of Waihi has only listed reserves of 65,000 ounces remaining.

But it would be surprising if OceanaGold does not investigate establishing an underground mine from the pit bottom to extract the huge amount of gold known to exist below the floor of the pit.

OceanaGold’s low-cost Didipio gold and copper mine in the Philippines, developed in the past few years, has helped to greatly reduced the average costs of the company’s whole operation which covers the Macraes and Reefton mines in the South Island and Didipio.

OceanaGold has also reduced costs in New Zealand; a year ago shedding almost 300 staff and contracting jobs from Macraes and Reefton.

Mick Wilkes, chief executive of OceanaGold says these cost cuts have been helped recently by lower fuel prices for its Macraes mining fleet, plus a more favourable exchange rate.

This translated into a more robust business with even stronger profit margins and higher cashflows.

More than US$160 million in debt has been removed from Oceana’s balance sheet in the past 18 months. This will enable OceanaGold to fund the Waihi purchase from cash and undrawn facilities.

Wilkes says his company had long believed the Waihi mine was a high-quality asset which strategically complements OceanaGold’s existing portfolio.

Being the two dominant gold producers in this country, the two companies are familiar with each others operations and chief executives are frequently keynote speakers together at the AusIMM annual New Zealand mineral conferences.

The attraction of Waihi for OceanaGold will be in the current gold reserves, future gold exploration prospects and Newmont Waihi Gold’s infrastructure, management and staff.

The new Correnso underground mine, which began producing gold and silver ore in January this year, is expected to produce about 500,000 ounces of high-grade gold over the next five to six years, with over three times as much silver. The deposit, which is located deep under the eastern part of the Waihi town, is unusual in that the reef was not mined at all by the old-time 30 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

miners. Correnso was discovered in recent years by Newmont’s exploration team.

The big Martha open pit mine right in the town of Waihi has only listed reserves of 65,000 ounces remaining. But it would be surprising if OceanaGold does not investigate establishing an underground mine from the pit bottom to extract the huge amount of gold known to exist below the floor of the pit.

OceanaGold is currently developing a simailr underground mine under its Didipio openpit mine in the Philippines.

Glen Grindlay, Newmont Waihi Gold’s general manager, told a minerals conference two years ago that his company was keeping an eye on “a massive carrot” of an estimated two million ounces of gold below the Martha pit bottom that is about 250 metres deep. Miners in the historic underground workings between 1880 and mine closure in 1952 worked the Martha reef much deeper – down to 600 metres deep.

“The old Martha workings are still full of water – so it would be a bit of a challenge,” Grindlay concedes.

OceanaGold will also obtain ownership of many other prospecting and exploration permits in the southern Coromandel and Waihi districts including the WKP project. Making adequate investment in exploration to develop future gold resources will be the only way of ensuring Waihi Gold is a good investment for OceanaGold.

The 350 staff and contractors will be taken on directly by the Aussie company.

Chris Baker, chief executive of mining lobby group Straterra, says the consolidation of the two gold miners was very good news for this country because it will increase the merged company’s flexibility in exploration and mine planning and environmental management.

“This could extend the life of gold mining operations potentially by many years.” Q&M

Where Oceana makes its money

O

ceana Gold is experiencing a very good period, driven for some time by its lucrative copper extraction operations at Didipio on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, which is operated in conjunction with the company’s gold extraction operation at the same site. It Didipio operation is acknowledged as one of the lowest cost gold mines anywhere in the world.

Managing director and CEO Mick Wilkes says this is because the gold mine produces high grade gold and has low operating costs. This is because of the low strip ratio and significant copper by-product credits. It’s also a large ore body with dimensions of 150 metres by 100 metres and lends itself to low cost mining.

As the present profitability of Oceana is driven by copper sales Wilkes keeps a close eye on that market. He says that in 2014 the copper price averaged US$3.11/pound and it fell to around US$2.60/pound in January this year. He says this was an all-round surprise to the market because the supply/demand balance is expected to tighten with a lack of supply moving into 2016.

He says his company does not believe that price is logical based on supply demand fundamentals and the copper price has been trending back up again. Wilkes is confident it won’t be long before it’s again over US$3/pound and then move considerably higher with the expected supply shortfall in 2016.

Other positives for the company he adds, have been the fall in the oil price which saved around $15 million a year between New Zealand and Didipio, plus the higher US dollar and lower NZ dollar.

Commenting on the fall in fuel prices Wilkes says a 10 cents per litre fall in the diesel price equates to a $10/ounce fall in New Zealand AISC margin. While a one cent fall in the New Zealand exchange rate equates to a fall in operating costs of $15/ounce for Oceana’s NZ business. Last year the New Zealand exchange

rate averaged US$0.83 and this year US$0.75 – so that means operating costs benefit by $120/ounce plus the savings from the lower diesel price “We’ve also had exploration success both at surface and underground. The underground is higher grade and that exploration will allow it to continue for another year. On surface we’re looking for more resources, albeit low grade, between the pits we’ve mined over the last 24 years. It has a low strip ratio and we believe we can mine the open pits for many more years.

At Macraes, we’ll be mining for three to five years at 150,000 ounces per year from the open pit and underground which is a similar production level to today.”

As previously announced, Reefton will go on care and maintenance at the end of this year. The nature of the ore body means it will be difficult to mine the underground and an extension of the open pit would require a higher gold price.

“Notwithstanding, there is plenty of exploration potential and we will keep the plant in working order,” says Wilkes.

“Blackwater is close by and we conducted a successful scoping study on that last year. We will evaluate different mining options this year to reduce the project risk. It is a project that could be brought into production at a relatively low cost.

“The other growth opportunity in New Zealand is the gold with tungsten by-product project called Round Hill. We may reinvent Macraes as a gold/tungsten project as there are quite significant amounts of tungsten there.

“We’re well advanced on the flow sheet and will be conducting a scoping study shortly. So Macraes could go for an additional 10-12 years after the current plant closes down.

“So that’s exciting and we’re in discussions with several tungsten off-takers. We’re encouraged by those discussions.” Q&M Q&M June - July 2015 31

M I N I N G

Open day at Freshford Mine The Switzers Museum in Waikaia, northern Southland is small but is regarded widely as containing one of the best displays of memorabilia from the gold rushes of the 19th century.

L

ike most similar facilities, the fabric of the museum needs constant attention and a local gold mining company lent a hand towards that cost through an open day at its nearby Freshford Mine back in February. While the committee of the museum took care of security, parking and feeding the visitors, Waikaia Gold carried on a normal day’s operations.

Hundreds of people from all over the south attended the open day as it was the first time this mine had ever been open to the public. Visitors were treated to the sight of a working dredge, heavy machinery and trucks dealing with overburden and even had the chance to pan for gold in a specially erected trough.

Waikaia, or Switzers as it was previously known, has a long history of gold mining but the current operation conducted by Waikaia Gold is by far the most modern and most successful gold mining operation in the south for many years.

Waikaia Gold is a registered company owned largely by three cornerstone investors.

Opened in November 2013, the company has been moving about 240,000 square metres per month of overburden, silts and gravels. Another five million square metres of enriched gravels will be processed through the plant from which gold particles are being extracted.

Waikaia Gold estimates the mine at Freshford has a global resource of 140,000 ounces of gold, of which 110,000 ounces are mineable. At present Waikaia Gold expects to produce 16,00020,000 ounces of gold per year over the next six years.

The mining operation is being deveoped in four stages.

Stages 1 and 2 are moving 4.5 kilometres up the Freshford Flats towards the township of Waikaia, just short of the Dome Burn.

32 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

However, Stage 3 is on the west side of Freshford adjacent to the Garvie Burn (Muddy Creek) and Stage 4 is on the south side of the Waikaia River next to the Waiparu Bridge.

Currently, the plant at Freshford processes about 700,000 square metres annually. An 87-tonne digger feeds it, with every two cubic metre bucket load containing between 1200-2400 milligrams of gold. This works out to about $100 per bucket. The same plant also produces three to five ounces of gold per hour.

At present, this is worth about $1650 per troy ounce.

The company’s sheet piler drives 12-14 metre piles with 105 tonnes of force. At present there are some 3000 sheet piles on the site. These are needed to keep most of the water out of the pit.

A Reefton West Coast company, Rosco Contracting, removes the overburden under contract. This company operates eight 40-50 tonne trucks with a 120-tonne digger and an 86-tonne digger. Usually, about 16 metres of overburden is removed by that method, with the plant processing the remaining four to five metres of gravel to the basement clay.

This operation is currently injecting a considerable amount of cash into the local northern and eastern Southland economies, using between 200,000 and 240,000 litres of diesel every month.

This has to be seen in the context of the money spent in those local economies. About $15 million annually is spent locally through wages, goods and services to the project.

Waikaia Gold also pays all government and local authority taxes and levies, with the Crown deducting one percent of all gold recovered at the mine. At the same time, the landowner receives a monthly royalty and compensation from the company. Q&M

Hundreds of people from all over the south attended the open day as it was the first time this mine had ever been open to the public. Visitors were treated to the sight of a working dredge, heavy machinery and trucks dealing with overburden and even had the chance to pan for gold in a specially erected trough.

Q&M June - July 2015 33

M I N I N G

Coal holds out for a better price The big question coking coal producers are gambling on is – when will the price of coal rise?

A

few years ago it was selling for US$300 a tonne, last year $180 a tonne and recently, $80 a tonne.

The question is a difficult one to answer as coal producers the world over cut their losses and coal is stockpiled around the world.

At home the state-owned enterprise Solid Energy has ditched nearly 900 jobs since it got into the shit back in 2011. Two government bail-outs later it is still retrenching, and about to reduce production at Stockton Mine (which produces only export coal) from 1.4 million tonnes a year to about one million tonnes from July, and reduce jobs from 397 to 246.

Stockton had reportedly lost an average of $2.1 million a month over the last financial year, but locals are relieved that the mine has not been mothballed. Out of the 151 jobs to be slashed at the opencast coal mine north of Westport, 38 roles are already vacant, meaning there will be 113 redundancies.

The other big West Coast coal operator, Bathurst Resources, has also had a difficult time since it entered the Kiwi mining industry in 2010. Its chief executive Hamish Bohannan resigned this year after overseeing the development of an operation on the Denniston Flat near Westport. Bohannan was the driver of this operation which was a mire of red tape for the company. While the company received the necessary consents to mine the area, environmental groups, particularly Forest and Bird, lodged a series of appeals that

34 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

delayed the start of the operation by at least two years.

While Bathurst was planning on mining the Denniston Flat by 2011, it was still frustrated by appeals and then in 2013 the price of premium hard coking coal began to fall all over the world. The company had estimated before it lodged its application for consents that it would be exporting about four million tonnes of this coal when it became operational.

Bohannan is to be replaced by Bathurst’s chief operating officer, Richard Tacon, who joined the company in 2012. It is interesting to note that Bathurst is becoming more operative in western Southland. It has secured a permit to mine an additional 4.2 million tonnes of coal near Nightcaps meaning ongoing work for about 50 employees and providing an economic boost to help keep the town going. The company secured a permit to mine 658 hectares of land about five kilometres from its Takitimu and adjacent Coaldale mines. The site has been identified as having an additional 4.2 million tonnes of coal, but the company was unable to say how much it would actually pull out of the ground.

Bathurst Resources already mines coal at the Takitimu Mine near Nightcaps. However, company spokeswoman, Sam Aarons, said its 50 employees were now set to have work after the coal runs dry at its Takitimu Mine in about two years’ time. “The good thing about this is it gives us a future in the community ... it gives us long-term in the area,” Aarons says. Q&M

Explaining backfilling The original underground Martha Mine worked until 1952 before it was turned into an opencast operation. Unlike today, however, not all the underground workings were backfilled. Underground areas that had been mined were left as large stopes – many getting larger with roof collapses over time.

Such collapses of historic unfilled workings have been so extensive that the surface above them has also given way causing significant subsidence events in Waihi township. One occurred in 1961, another in 1999, then in late 2001 historic underground workings opened up underneath houses in Waihi East. This resulted in the evacuation and eventual demolition or removal of many homes which government department Geological and Nuclear Sciences deemed unsafe to live in.

Today, all mines are backfilled under their consents and the way the mine is operated means that backfilling has to happen to access the next level above. Favona, Moonlight and Trio in Waihi have all been backfilled and Correnso will be too.

Newmont says its mines are worked ‘bottom up’. “We start at the bottom of the ore body and work our way up. As each level of ore is removed it is replaced with waste rock and 50 tonne mining machines drive on the waste (now the ‘ground’) to access the next level. By the time the ore body has been mined out the void has been progressively replaced with compacted waste rock.

“We backfill the stopes, and we also backfill any ‘stacked drives’ [tunnels one on top of the other]. We don’t fill the very last little bit of the stope right at the top, and we don’t fill the deeper five metre-high drives, which we use to access the ore body.”

Grindex Joins The Team Prime Pump are pleased to announce that they are the new authorised New Zealand distributor of Grindex Pumps!

Call Now

0800 482 747

info@primepump.co.nz

www.primepump.co.nz Q&M June - July 2015 35

T E C H N O L O G Y

QUIET ROADING

asphalt pavement JAMES CARELESS reviews the asphalt

methodology employed in the United States that significantly reduces road noise.

36 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

PHOTO CREDIT: ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.

Urban freeway with a rubberised asphalt overlay on Interstate 17 looking south from Pioneer Road in north Phoenix.

C

omplaints about traffic-generated road noise are not new. In fact, the first law regulating road noise was passed in Rome in 44 BC, when Julius Caesar declared that: “no wheeled vehicle whatsoever will be allowed within the precincts of the city, from sunrise until the hour before dusk…

“Those which shall have entered during the night, and are still within the city at dawn, must halt and stand empty until the appointed hour.”

Of course, the issue in Roman times was iron-rimmed horse carriage wheels running over stones. In the 21st century, the issue is car tyres pressing against pavement; both asphalt and concrete.

“This noise is caused by the car tyres forcing out the air between them and the road surface,” says Wayne Jones, the US Asphalt Institute’s senior regional engineer.

“It’s the kind of noise that occurs when you clap your hands together with closed fingers. The air gets forced out quickly

under pressure, generating sound waves as it exits.”

It is possible to reduce the volume of clapping by opening one’s fingers, thus providing the escaping air with more exit pathways. This same logic applies to making roadways quieter: the tightlypacked asphalt that is conventionally laid to provide maximum durability and water resistance is formulated and/or laid out differently, in ways to let air escape more easily between tyres and its surface.

Such noise-reducing solutions are collectively known as “quiet asphalt pavement”. They are being tested and applied on roadways throughout America – with real results.

Quiet asphalt pavement “can help reduce highway noise by as much as seven decibels”, says the Asphalt Pavement Alliance website (http://driveasphalt. org/noise), a partnership made up of the Asphalt Institute, National Asphalt Pavement Association and the State Asphalt Pavement Associations.

“Reducing noise by just three decibels is equivalent to doubling the distance from the source of noise to the listener.”

Quiet asphalt options Quiet asphalt roading and pavement options fall into four general categories.

These are fine-graded surfaces, opengraded friction courses, rubberised asphalt, and stone-matrix asphalt.

Fine-graded surfaces are conventional asphalt mixes that are mostly composed of fine-grained gravel particles, reducing the apparent road noise generated by the expelled air by altering its frequencies.

Open-graded friction courses use mainly coarse aggregate with more open gaps through which air can escape (a factor that increases the exposure to air, causing the binder to harden more quickly).

Rubberised asphalt contain crumbs of recycled tyres that provides some flexing in the road surface as tyres pass over it, allow the air a bit more time to be forced out at lower pressure. Stone-matrix Q&M June - July 2015 37

T E C H N O L O G Y

The Arizona Department of Transportation has used a one-inch layer of rubberised asphalt on top of concrete pavement to help limit tyre noise along Phoenix-area freeways.

asphalt mainly uses coarse aggregate to create a stone skeleton, tied together by asphalt binders and fibres.

Each of these options come with different wear, climate resistance and cost considerations. No one size fits all roads.

The downside to quiet asphalt pavement is the price tag.

Depending on the option chosen, it can cost more to prepare and lay quiet asphalt roads than conventional hot mix asphalt (HMA) and warm mix asphalt (WMA) solutions.

This is why quiet asphalt pavement “tends to be financially justifiable in high-traffic urban areas where road noise is a serious concern”, says Dr Michael Heitzman, assistant director with the National Center for Asphalt Technology.

“But not for rural roads where there is less traffic and fewer people to be disrupted.”

Quiet asphalt in action – three experiences The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) has been using rubberised asphalt (aka Asphalt Rubber Friction Course, or ARFC) for decades, increasing its usage in the 1980s.

But the ADOT did not initially apply ARFC to intentionally reduce urban 38 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

“...thanks to the reduction in road noise and associated complaints, “Public support for the Quiet Roads Program in the Phoenix area has been strong,”

highway noise. Instead, it was merely trying to extend the lifespan of its rural roadways.

“ADOT found that durability, especially crack resistance, and a smooth-riding surface were and still are the key benefits for using rubberised asphalt as a top layer on rural highways,” says ADOT spokesperson Doug Nintzel.

The unexpected noise reduction benefits became apparent in 2000, after a 16-kilometre concrete stretch of Interstate in Phoenix was topped with an inch-thick

layer of rubberised asphalt.

“The resulting reduction in tyre noise, usually in the range of four to six decibels, was noticeable to drivers as well as residents living next to the freeway,” Nintzel says.

“Once another widening project along US60 (Superstition Freeway) in Tempe and Mesa also was completed with a rubberised asphalt surface, more people noticed the lower noise levels.”

Today, more than 320 kilometres of freeways in the metro Phoenix area have been paved with a rubberised asphalt riding surface. And thanks to the reduction in road noise and associated complaints, “Public support for the Quiet Roads Program in the Phoenix area has been strong,” says Nintzel.

“Residents near freeways commented on being able to hold conversations without shouting while enjoying a morning coffee on their backyard patios.

Drivers noted that they were able to turn down their radios.”

ADOT is now working with the Federal Highway Administration to find out how long the noise-reduction benefit of an ARFC overlay can be expected to last in an urban setting.

The Virginia Department of

“We tried GTR binder to see if the noise says Uhlmeyer.

Transportation (VDOT) has been experimenting with quiet road solutions levels generated from the pavement-tyre “On two of the quieter pavement sites, since 2008, when it constructed a interface would be any different than the severe weather and the combination demonstration project on the SR 234 polymer modified binder.” of chains and studded tyres caused the In general, VDOT’s quiet asphalt quieter pavement surface to ravel.”

By-Pass near Manassas, Virginia.

“After that project, VDOT constructed test results “were positive compared to WSDOT has also tried quieter several more demonstration sections in conventional dense graded asphalt”, says pavement options on concrete roadways 2011 and 2012 in the Northern Virginia, Clark. VDOT’s report on its results and using longitudinal tining and the next Richmond and Williamsburg areas,” says recommendations will be issued mid-2015 generation concrete surface texture. The ...for you need the Best ...for when you need Best ...for when when you need the Best by the Virginia state Trenton Clark, director of engineering for consideration noise reduction on the these sections only legislature. with the Virginia Asphalt Association. lasted a brief time after construction with LOADERS The Washington State DepartmentWHEEL of the change These laterARTICULATED sections wereARTICULATED to investigate in noise levels attributed to WHEEL LOADERS ARTICULATED WHEEL LOADERS SMOOTH POWER •• LOADS OF •• OF PUSH • • SMOOTH POWER LOADS its wear the difference in asphalt TRUCKS mixes, asphalt Transportation (WSDOT) has ••done from studded tyres.

SMOOTH POWER LOADS OF• PUSH PUSH DUMP TRUCKS DUMP DUMP TRUCKS •• POWERFUL •• PRODUCTIVE •• PROVEN ••• PROVEN own quiet pavement trials “in response binders and the material thicknesses.

• POWERFUL • PRODUCTIVE POWERFUL PRODUCTIVE PROVEN IN INTTEEtoRR•EEexplore TERESasT The bottom line SSTT INthem CO “Additionally, VDOT sponsored two to public requests CO CONNDDITITIO IONNSSAP YY NDITIONS APPLY APPL PL G noise sections at the NCAT Test Track in 2012 a way of reducing GETonIN urban GEETT IN QQUUIC INroad QUICK Quiet asphalt roadway options can K EX UUhlmeyer, DDES ICK EX significantly reduce road noise, making Jeff WSDOT’s in order to investigate the performance freeways”, says PO EXCL CL CL U U DES ES POSI SITRACK SITRAC ACKK quiet PO for less stressful driving conditions and The pavement of different asphalt binders under pavement engineer. TR accelerated loading and the resulting trials have not gone well, due to the fact happier neighbours.

That said, the extra cost over standard that Washington State allows the use of changing in noise levels,” Clark says.

VDOT’s quiet pavement tests were road-eroding studded snow tyres. Not only HMA/WMA applications means that quiet done using polymer modified binders and have the test roads suffered damage, but asphalt paving is best reserved for those those that did stand up quickly lost their roads where traffic is high, and neighbours ground tyre rubber modified binders. with the ability to complain to officials are “Based on past problems with premature noise-reduction capabilities due to wear.

“The poor performance of quieter plentiful! Q&M ravelling and work done in other states, it was decided to use these binders,” pavements in Washington State can likely • Originally published in Asphalt, the magazine of the TW85 POSI-TRACK RUBBER TW85 WHEELED POSI-TRACK RUBBER TW85 WHEELED WHEELED POSI-TRACK RUBBER Asphalt Institute. says Clark. be attributed to the use of studded tyres,”

HGH GU UO TOT

22..99% % 2.9%

EXCAVATOR EXCAVATOR EXCAVATOR •• AGILE •• • STABLE • • AGILE AGILE •• STABLE STABLE •• MANOEUVRABLE •• • MANOEUVRABLE • MANOEUVRABLE

TRACK LOADERS LOADERS TRACKTRACK LOADERS •• EXCELLENT TRACTION • EXCELLENT EXCELLENT TRACTION ••TRACTION • •• HIGH •• • HIGH PERFORMANCE • HIGH PERFORMANCE PERFORMANCE

TOUGH

...for when you need the Best ARTICULATED

WHEEL LOADERS

• SMOOTH POWER • LOADS OF PUSH • ARTICULATED DUMP TRUCKS 2.9%40 tonne DUMP TRUCKS units

• POWERFUL • PRODUCTIVE • PROVEN •

POWERFUL • PRODUCTIVE • PROVEN INTEREST CONDITION

S AP

available at

GET IN QU PLY $550,000+GST IC EXCLUDESc/wKauto lube, tailgate,

NOW IN NEW ZEALAND TRY ONE FOR YOURSELF

POSITRACK

heated mirrors, extended warranty.

WHEEL LOADERS FOR WHEN YOU NEED WHEN NEED FOR FOR WHEN YOUYOU NEED

New F-Series ROCK SOLID RELIABILITY in stock now ROCK SOLID• Operating RELIABILITY Weight 24.6 tonne PLEASE CALL SMOOTH POWER LOADS OF PUSH

TW85 WHEELED EXCAVATOR • AGILE • STABLE • • MANOEUVRABLE •

POSI-TRACK RUBBER TRACK LOADERS • EXCELLENT TRACTION • • HIGH PERFORMANCE •

• 8 tonne payload • Competitive Pricing conditions apply • Powerful & Productive Pushing & Loading GET IN QUICK At AdvanceQuip, your satisfaction is our •includes Comfort levels Redefined in the new quiet & ergonomic ROPS Cabin Range from 5 to 27 tonne At AdvanceQuip, your•is satisfaction is loaders our mission.

At AdvanceQuip, your satisfaction our mission. mission.

• to Outstanding Fuelyour Economyneeds. with a newWe designwant engine &your hydraulics CASE Construction Equipment, together with the Terex range, places us in the best position satisfy CASEEquipment, Construction Equipment, together with the Terexusrange, us in thetobest position to satisfy your needs.

We wantto your busines CASE Construction together with the Terex range, places in theplaces best• position satisfy your needs.

We want yourbusiness business to Full range of CASE excavators also available • New standards of hydraulic control and speed from the redesigned hydraulics

2.9% Interest

succeed strongly believe that products, knowledge, support and that for your business no one we strongly believe we have the products, knowledge, support andcare team can care forlike your succeedand andwe wesucceed stronglyand believe thatwe wehave havethe thethat products, knowledge, support andteam team thatcan can care forthat your business like nobusiness oneelse. else.like no one el

CONTACT TODAY ADVICE USEXPERT TODAY FOR EXPERT ADVICE CONTACT US USCONTACT TODAY FOR FOR EXPERT ADVICE Free Phone: 0800 4 TEREX (483 739) Free Phone: TEREX (483 739) Free Phone: 0800 4 TEREX0800 (4834739) ROCK SOLID RELIABILITY At AdvanceQuip, your satisfaction is our mission. sales@advancequip.co.nz sales@advancequip.co.nz sales@advancequip.co.nz The CASE Construction together with the Terex ranges place us in the best position to satisfy your needs. We want your business to

succeed and we strongly believe that we have the products, knowledge, support and team that can care for your business like no one else.

AUCKLAND •• CHRISTCHURCH •• GORE AUCKLAND • CHRISTCHURCH AUCKLAND CHRISTCHURCH GORE • GORE

At AdvanceQuip, your satisfaction is our mission.

www.advancequip.co.nz www.advancequip.co.nz CONTACT US TODAY FOR EXPERT ADVICE Free Phone: 0800 4 TEREX (483 739) sales@advancequip.co.nz

AUCKLAND • CHRISTCHURCH • GORE

146661-TS-259-X

CASE Construction Equipment, together with the Terex range, places us in the best position to satisfy your needs. We want your business to succeed and we strongly believe that we have the products, knowledge, support and team that can care for your business like no one else.

GORE • CHRISTCHURCH • AUCKLAND

Q&M June - July 2015 39

DWZ-FP-5146661-TS-259-X DWZ-FP-5146661-TS-259-X

FOR WHEN YOU NEED

T E C H N O L O G Y

Universal GPS tracking In future mining companies will require GPS tracking of all contractors and subcontractors on a site. By ANDREW HINTZ, resources specialist, Navman Wireless.

I

believe the mining and quarrying industry in this country will go the same way as they have in Australia, where they are required to GPS track all vehicles under the Land Transportation Safety Recommended Practice (OGP Report 365).

These guidelines provide advice on ways to reduce, and ultimately eliminate, the number of serious road traffic incidents and fatalities through the implementation of land transport safety elements within a management system. The guidelines require IVMS (in vehicle monitoring systems) to be used at all times.

A similar approach here, I think, will be driven (initially at least), by safety and compliance considerations.

Safety as a key driver On a big mine site there are many occasions where a worker may be working alone and out of sight of others, so technology that can alert site managers in the event of a ‘man down’ incident is very important.

40 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

In 2012 the Australian health and safety legislation was strengthened, and as a result there is a significant duty of care placed on employers, with huge penalties when things go wrong. New Zealand has also moved in this direction with the Health and Safety Reform Bill currently before Parliament, and expected to be passed into law in the second half of 2015.

In both Australia and New Zealand a significant percentage of workplace deaths involve vehicles or machines. In business, plant and vehicles represent the third highest cost behind salaries and rent/power. Given that combination it makes sense to focus on minimising risk and ensuring worker safety.

Employers should be thinking about: where are my employees; how are they driving; are the vehicles well maintained; and are they taking enough breaks?

On a big mine site there are many occasions where a worker may be working

alone and out of sight of others, so technology that can alert site managers in the event of a ‘man down’ incident is very important.

Better business practices The mining industry faces multiple business challenges, such as achieving accurate estimating and bidding, reducing profit erosion, keeping machines running, increasing labour productivity and efficiency, increasing asset utilisation, and ensuring the right equipment is in the right place at the right time. Moving to GPS tracking of every machine on site can go a long way toward alleviating these challenges.

With a GPS fleet tracking system you can trend productivity across the whole site, and extract data that allows you to reduce downtime, reduce cycle times, and distribute equipment between job sites more efficiently. The remote monitoring aspect of the system means you can monitor your equipment and workforce on multiple job sites then access real time data to make instant decisions based on what is happening on site.

There is another compelling benefit of universal tracking on a mining site.

The data extracted from a GPS tracking system provides proof of hours worked and machines used, and this provides a safeguard for both the employer and the subcontractors.

When a subcontractor submits an invoice, they have proof of the hours worked and machines used. It also gives the main contractor peace of mind: that the machine was on the job and worked these hours.

Universal tracking of vehicles, machines and people on mining sites is the way of the future.

Safety of workers will be the main driving force to this change, particularly with the upcoming changes to health and safety legislation.

Improving business practice and efficiency will also be a key consideration in our very competitive mining industry. Q&M

Excellent Flexibility, High Elongation.

LoctitE® Fixmaster Rapid Rubber Repair industry tested. customer Approved.

• High impact and abrasion resistance • Excellent tear strength • Fast cure • High adhesion • Easy to apply on all types of conveyor belts • Reliable and fast repairs to rubber liners • Waterproof For more information, visit www.loctite.co.nz or contact Henkel New Zealand 0800 109 030.

B U S I N E S S

5

C U L T U R E

ways to lift your communication game

Whether you’re new to government communications or a hardened pro past trying to disguise the grumpy lines we see staring back at us in the mirror, here’s five tips for beginners and a little inspiration for experts. By DREW MEHRTENS, senior media and publications advisor, Thames-Coromandel District Council.

Don’t write for 12-year-olds Our audiences aren’t the idiots some people tell us they are. The advice to “write for 12-year-olds” has been handed down through the years but is a useless thing to tell most people. Why? Only a handful of writers can really pull that off. But that’s not the point. Most of the time, that advice is intended to mean ‘write so someone who doesn’t understand our jargon and policies can understand the point’. So why not just say that?

Here’s my version for 2015: never underestimate your audience’s intelligence but never overestimate their familiarity with your subject.

A target market is not an audience When a television show targeting women from 35 to 55 doesn’t pick up enough viewers, it usually gets taken off the air. Just as targeting a demographic doesn’t automatically translate into viewers, our listing target audiences in a communications plan does not automatically translate to converting that wish-list into an audience.

Putting out a sudden burst of marketing when a consultation opens and hoping to get great results can be like expecting to pour a truckload of manure at the base of a tree you haven’t watered for a year and hoping your manure will make the tree burst into fruit.

So here’s my second tip: design 42 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

Write like you’re having a conversation. Have the courage to be the conscience of your organisation. Change culture by inspiring, not by pushing. Lead by showing, not telling. Care. Be gracious.

Celebrate the strengths of others. Help them shine.

communications plans with a phase for attracting an audience. In that phase, give them a reason to part with their email, for example, so you can spend a month building anticipation. Then, when you launch your project, consultation, or whatever, you have an audience ready and waiting to get their hands on your offer, or ready to act.

Communicate fast Use more visual language. Make it so they can get it in seconds. Then, if you’ve interested them, give them a way to find out more.

When you only have written language to work with, tell them a version of the story they will care about first, up front, in about one sentence. Don’t wait until halfway through a press release or a

report to get to the point. Work on it until you nail it. Then give the interested ones more information for when they decide it’s worth reading further.

When you only have verbal language, use metaphors, similes, illustrations and stories to paint pictures. But do it fast.

Pick something familiar to your specific audience that only takes a line to deliver, not a minute to set up.

Keep yourself fuelled As we embark on another year of pouring ourselves out, remember to keep yourself fuelled and inspired. As with a vehicle, keep your comms fluids topped up to prevent gears seizing, running out of gas from exhaustion or being unable to keep wiping the poop from your emotional windscreen.

Remember how to make a difference Write like you’re having a conversation.

Have the courage to be the conscience of your organisation. Change culture by inspiring, not by pushing. Lead by showing, not telling. Care. Be gracious. Celebrate the strengths of others. Help them shine. Pitch the value of your work to your organisation equally as well as you pitch the value of your organisation to others. Remember that your audience is intelligent; it’s just that they don’t have time to wait for you to get to the point. Reach the mind. Touch the heart. Q&M

B U S I N E S S

C U L T U R E

Avoid writing like a corporate tosser It’s an information over-loaded world out there with much of it festering with clichés and comfort words.

Here’s a few words and clichés that will under-impress. From the Q&M editor.

Natural environment: Don’t use this word to sound like a ‘nature’s caring person’ as all environments are ‘natural’ – think about it – we are not aliens; we evolved here. Environs sounds trendier anyway.

Environmentally friendly: Specify the environment – they are not anthropomorphic and certainly don’t go looking for friends. In fact, they can be very unfriendly, as anyone bitten by an angry snake or turned into an iceblock on a mountain can testify.

Clean green image: An export-marketing catchphrase from the 1990s. Reality – our biospheres are probably the most changed on the planet (even the grass and worms are imported) and our environmental regulations are seriously lacking, just ask the poor folks who are trying to clean up our tyre pollution and e-waste.

Local iwi: As in the comfort line, ‘consulted local iwi’. It is impossible to ‘consult’ an entire tribe so not only specify what tribe you are referring to (there are a lot of them) but name the tribe’s representative authority, chief or spokesperson.

New Zealand: Use sparingly to a Kiwi audience – we don’t have to be constantly reminded where we live. Our nearest neighbour is 2000 kilometres away!

Level playing field: Even in sports crazy Kiwi-land most of us know this is as real, or possible, as the tooth fairy.

Risk management: Spit it out – it’s called insurance or common sense.

Window of opportunity: What’s wrong with the door?

Fall, fell and plummet: Leave these words for accident and emergency speak, and never use them to exaggerate percentages below 10 percent. Telling us stats ‘fell’ by 0.5 percent shows you are mathematically challenged. Use decline instead.

Using ‘whilst’ instead of ‘while’. Don’t. It makes you sound like an old fart. For the same reason, don’t use the word ‘indeed’.

Using two spaces after a fullstop also signals you are ‘old school’.

Using ‘last’ instead of ‘past’, as in the ‘past two years’, unless it was a race between years?

Please consider the environment before printing out this email: Makes you sound daft in a country with a huge (sustainable), century-old, exotic forest industry (think export for pulp and paper) – why are you trying to put them out of business?

Q&M June - July 2015 43

B U S I N E S S

C U L T U R E

Lessons in Kiwi speak

G WARNIN LD C TS OU CONTEN MED TO BE DEE Y TURALL BE CUL E IV IT INSENS

An excerpt from Dr Benedict (Benny) Gurkestapel’s best selling book, Talking Kacken in N ’Zulin.

F

resh arrivals to this fair country go through a trying mental exercise interpreting the unique English (Unglush) spoken

by Kiwis.

Up until the First World War, Kiwis and Aussies spoke with the same accent. If you could understand one, you could understand the other. Since then, New Zealand has gone in a different direction of mumbles and non-existent vowels. While both countries speak with a ‘twang’, Australians tend to speak with a higher pitched twing, as in ‘seeex’ for six, while Kiwis speak with a twung, as in ‘sux’ for six (or its homophone ‘sex’). Kiwis also lazily chop the guts out of words and place names, especially ones ending in ‘land’, such as N’Zulin (New Zea-land) and Orklin (Auck-land).

The problem comes from not opening their mouths wide enough at the expense of their vowels. With a semi-closed mouth and lips puckered an ‘o’ appears where there is an ‘i’. ‘Night’ becomes ‘noit’; ‘might’ becomes ‘moit’; Alan and Ellen, bell and bill, and well and will become homophones. Even a simple word such as ‘kid’ (requiring some flexibility of the mouth) is pronounced ‘kud’.

Most ‘a’s are pronounced ‘hard’, with a few exceptions (compared to their Aussie cousins) such as chance, dance, castle, plant and grant. No one pronounces the number eight like a Kiwi can. It is pronounced ‘ate’ or ‘hate’, and you need to snarl that lip and make the ‘a’ as hard as possible.

The hard ‘a’ is unfortunate, because Maori words are mostly pronounced with a soft or long ‘a’ and the reason why so many non-Maori speaking Kiwis painfully mangle the country’s second official language. Maori, pronounced Maa-ori, becomes Marry (or the ‘a’ disappears among those trying too hard to get – Mooree).

You see more and more macrons on top of the ‘a’ in written Maori in an attempt to save the situation, but it makes for an unsightly and confusing mess.

I suspect the original European, upper-crust, colonial authors of written Te Reo were expecting future Kiwi generations to be speaking like them, not like Bill Unglish.

Those authors also made dodgy decisions over the spelling of some Maori words (unless Maori pronunciation, like Kiwi

English, has changed with the times?).

They used an ‘a’, for instance, when it would have better to have used a ‘u’.

An important word like ‘mana’ is actually pronounced ‘mun-nah’ not ‘maa-nah’, to the disconcertment of Maoridom.

Haka is pronounced huck-ah, not hah-car.

And what is it with those confusing ‘g’s as in ngati (naa’ti) and Whangarei (Whaa’na’rei) – forget them.

Meantime, understanding Kiwi Unglush is not just about accent. The choice of words and abbreviations make up a lot of verbal content.

For instance, Kiwis are suspicious of knowledgeable people, and consider it ‘big-headed’ to reveal too many facts in an informal conversation (loose opinions are absolutely fine, and the more bigoted the better). For this reason pearls of wisdom are preceded with a warning such as, “tell-yer-wot”; or “I reckon”; “did-ya-know?; “talk about funny”; or “Hey – that reminds me of”.

In a similar vein, statements are often delivered with an ‘eh’ question (permission) on the end, as in, “it’s hot today eh?”

Abbreviations make up a lot of Kiwi slang. Nek-minit for ‘next minute’ and in-it for ‘isn’t it’? (another precursor to making a statement as in, “in-it a noice day?”).

Lastly Kiwis, to avoid what is perceived as uncomfortable holes of silence in a conversation, have perfected the art of small talk, or talking kacken, as the Germans say, and tend to prattle on about unimportant matters such as yesterday’s weather.

This can drive other cultures, such as Germans, absolutely bonkers.

There are two reasons for this banter.

One, it fills up what Kiwis perceive as an uncomfortable void (enforcing their tourism reputation as being ‘very friendly’); and it is also a useful ploy to suss people out. How one reacts to that banter gives a lot away as a precursor to a more serious conversation, such as a business meeting.

That’s right – Kiwis are not as stupid as they sound, and never, never confuse them with an Australian, because talking ‘strine’ is a completely different subject. Q&M

Technology with Vision

HELLA LED WORK LAMPS When safety and productivity are a priority 0800 4 HELLA (0800 443 552) for your nearest HELLA stockist.

44 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

To view the full range of LED work lamps visit www.hella.co.nz

W H E E L S

I N

T H E

W O R K P L A C E

The futures market There’s a lot to like about Mahindra’s Pik-Up. The fact it certainly isn’t about to blend into a sea of carbon copy utes is a great thing in my book too. BY CAMERON OFFICER.

D

o you know what the priciest classic Land Cruiser to buy on the used market is these days? It’s the 1968-1979 FJ55 four door wagon; the one colloquially known – especially in North America – as “the Moose”.

That nickname has nothing to do with brute strength (although it had plenty of that), but rather its somewhat unconventional looks. If you can’t conjure up the Japanese beast I’m writing about in your head, go and Google it. With its wide wheel arch haunches and inboard headlamps acting like protruding nostrils, it certainly does have a moose-y look about its front end.

It ain’t pretty, but quite frankly I think it’s a pretty great vehicle; about as good as a long-wheelbase Cruiser ever got.

Comparatively, there’s no two ways about it when discussing the Mahindra Pik-Up; the first thing you notice are its looks. That word ‘unconventional’ springs to mind again. Although a bit like the classic Toyota, scratch below the surface and the practical overrides the aesthetic.

A new-ish nameplate to Kiwi worksites, Mahindra (part of the Mahindra Group) boasts an ages-old history of manufacturing in India and in addition to the automotive side of the coin, is actually

46 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

the world’s largest manufacturer of tractors on a global scale.

Their saturation of the tractor market (particularly in emerging economies) means they have long had spare cash for their automotive interests, manufacturing trucks and buses alongside robust light commercial vehicles for several decades now. Their Jeep-esque Thar can’t be road registered in New Zealand, but you can still buy one as an off-road toy or farm hack. And Mahindra New Zealand has recently also introduced their latest addition to the range – the XUV500 seven-seater SUV. But for most of us the sit-up-and-beg styling of the Pik-Up will have been the introduction to the revitalised range on Kiwi roads.

Now, our tester came with a few extras attached, such as the aggressive-looking black alloy wheels, blacked-out grille treatment and tray liner. But every Pik-Up comes with a tow bar already fitted which is a great touch.

There are other optional accessories available, such as floor mats, nudge bars, bull bars and weather shields; the array of choice available says something of the sub-continental powerhouse behind a brand. Judge it as a ‘newcomer’ too loudly at your peril.

Speaking of choice, both double and single cab models are

PHOTOS: CAMERON OFFICER

Mahindra Pik-Up Double Cab 4WD Engine: 2.2-litre four cylinder common rail diesel Transmission: Five-speed manual Power: 88kW Torque: 280Nm Fuel Economy: 9.1L/100km Tow rating: 2500kg (braked) 0-100km/h: N/A Max speed: N/A Price: $30,990 incl. GST

available, with further variations between bare cab-chassis and wellside tray configuration, and both 2WD and 4WD drivetrains.

There’s only the one engine for the Pik-Up range; an mHAWK CRDe 2179cc diesel engine in two states of tune: offering up 89kW and 290Nm of torque in all paw variants like our tester, or a 74kW/258Nm combo in 2WD versions. You can only stir the cogs yourself, with a five-speed manual gearbox being the sole transmission choice.

The engine – the result of a joint venture manufacturing program between Mahindra and Austrian engine maker AVL – is surprisingly refined, offering up a decent wedge of torque from the get-go and plenty of power. Another ratio in the ‘box would be great (and one presumes this might be a next-gen update), but the engine never shows a gruff side.

Speaking of mechanicals, underneath the 4WD Pik-Up, Eaton supplies the diff-lock and the transfer case is BorgWarner, so the bought-in componentry Mahindra specifies on this, their volume seller, shouldn’t give you any pause for thought whatsoever.

Inside the cab, that tall roofline comes into its own, offering fantastic head room for both front and rear seat occupants; probably even allowing team members the ability to simply leave

their hard hats on during short hops across work sites.

Inside there are no signs of this being a cut-price affair.

Everything you’d expect to find is here; powered mirrors, central locking, electric windows, an adjustable steering column, two-stage air conditioning, an MP3- and USB-compatible stereo with audio controls on the steering wheel, fog lamps up front, a 1.1 tonne payload (or 1.2 tonne for the single cab) and braked towing capacity of 2500kg.

So far, so mainstream. In fact there’s really only one area where the Pik-Up suffers against the competition and that’s in terms of its emissions; Euro II and Euro III is the best it gets here (depending on body style) in a world where Euro IV is pretty standard for utes from Isuzu, Toyota, Mazda et al.

But really, for a hardy work truck that’s barely going to blink when the rocks bounce off it, the Pik-Up wins the argument with that grunty engine, decent cabin space (especially the headroom) and – in double cab format – a 1530mm x 1520mm x 550mm wellside tray to take the load.

Maybe the Mahindra doesn’t look a million bucks. But who knows what the general consensus will be on much more important attributes – its character and reputation - in decades to come. Q&M Q&M June - July 2015 47

Rock solid value Top operators know the value of Metso’s mobile crushing and screening plants. Our contracting solutions offer you true mobility, high capacity, quality end products and reliable operation. With Lokotrack, you have the freedom to crush just about any type of feed material – from hard rock to recycling and demolition debris. And every Lokotrack is backed

by Metso’s know-how and distributor support. Simply rock solid.

Our distributor Metso www.metso.com/miningandconstruction For more information contact MIMICO. Phone 0800 806 464, www.mimico.co.nz

New Zealand 0800 806 464

Aggregate News AGGREGATE & QUARRY ASSOCIATION OF NZ

A word from Andrea

W

e are all sad to farewell AQA life member Bryan Bartley, who passed away in March.

For much of his working life Bryan was a traditional Winstone company man, having started when it was a family business. He enjoyed applying his engineering expertise to many everyday issues and was open to contributions from others, particularly if it involved a Barmac crusher that he and Jim Macdonald invented (hence the name).

While he was one of the first quarry professionals to appreciate the need for geologists in the industry he did not so easily accept the value of resource management planners! He will be remembered not only as the innovator who secured the long term future of the company by purchasing Hunua Quarry and for his work developing the Barmac crushers, but also as a real gentleman by those who worked for him when he managed the company’s Central Engineering Services.

Quarries have been in the news recently for the worst possible reasons – fatal accidents (see A bad start to 2015 on page 52). I call on all of our members to meet their responsibilities by ensuring their sites and their staff are fully compliant with health and safety requirements to keep every person on the site safe: workers, visitors and contractors. We can’t pay lip service, we must all walk the talk if we are to keep our workplaces safe. If you know any operators that are not AQA members, please pass the H&S message along to them. We are judged as an industry as a whole, not just as members of the AQA and every quarry, however small, reflects on us all.

It is nearly conference time again and health and safety will be on the agenda with WorkSafe’s Tony Forster and MinEx’s Les

McCracken both presenting. Their information is vital to us all, please make a point of being there to hear them.

The QuarryNZ Conference theme is Forging the Path to the Future.

The industry has formed our structured world for centuries, yet still many people do not understand the vital need for quarries and the materials they produce. It’s extremely unlikely a new material will be manufactured to build our roads, homes, airports and hospitals (to name a few) – and the industry will indeed continue to forge the way ahead.

Another speaker will be Chairperson of the AQA Technical Committee Stacy Goldsworthy, who will discuss the recent activities of the committee. Its members are active in a number of industry forums and working groups, allowing the voice of the AQA to be heard and ensure that the industry’s objectives are at the forefront of discussion. Stacy will review the current groups that are leading change and will answer any concerns or questions.

See www.quarrynz.org.nz for full conference details.

Chief Executive Roger Parton and I will also be available to talk to members at our AGM at 1.30 pm on Wednesday 15 July 2015 at Claudelands, when I will provide my annual report and financial statements.

This is also the time when our Board members are elected. I encourage members to consider nominating candidates for election to the AQA Board, as this provides both parties with benefits: the association and its members gain from experienced guidance, and Board members gain great understanding of the industry from a strategic viewpoint.

Andrea Cave, AQA Chair www.aqa.org.nz June -July 2015 49

AQA Board Chair Andrea Cave, Winstone Aggregates

Deputy Chair Jayden Ellis, Stevensons Construction Materials

Board Members Tony Hunter, Blackhead Quarries Bruce Taylor, Fulton Hogan Mike Higgins, Isaac Construction Brian Roche, Ravensdown

Planning Committee Chair Dan McGregor, Winstone Aggregates Bill Bourke, AQA Dudley Clements, J Swap & Co Geoff England, Winstone Aggregates Jonathan Green, Fulton Hogan Mike Lord, Envirofert Nicky Hogarth, Holcim

Technical Committee Chair Stacy Goldsworthy, Green Vision Recycling Greg Arnold, Road Science Bill Bourke, AQA Jayden Ellis, Stevensons Construction Materials Alan Stevens, Civil Contractors David Morgan, Winstone Aggregates Brett Beatson, Ready Mixed Concrete Association

Aggregate & Quarry Association of NZ PO Box 32 019, Maungaraki, Lower Hutt, 5050 Chief Executive Roger Parton tel 04 568 9123 fax 04 568 2780 email office@aqa.org.nz web www.aqa.org.nz

Anybody had a bath in your quarry recently?

By Bill Bourke, AQA Planning and Technical

T

he title of this article might seem to be a frivolous question at first glance, but in practice it’s a very serious one. I refer to the concept of the ‘Bath Tub Curve’, a concept in safety that is not generally recognised, in my experience, but can be a deadly killer.

So what is it? The principle is that young people starting work, or those joining a new industry for the first time, are vulnerable to accidents – basically through inexperience. In these modern times much emphasis is put on training for new starters, and rightly so. But never the less they are still vulnerable and many companies ally them with an experienced worker to keep an eye on them and show them the ropes.

Then as they progress, their liability to accident rapidly decreases and remains stable for a number of years, until gradually complacency starts to catch up. And the safety stats curve begins its upward climb.

Figure 1 below demonstrates the concept.

Trouble is with the young they think they are bullet proof. I recall one incident where a student holiday worker poured petrol over a collection of scrap wiring flex, in an effort to get at the copper as ‘a bit of an earner’. He was badly burnt. The company was draconian on safety – detailed and lengthy inductions, regular safety briefings, tool box meetings and yet…

In the same industry we were blessed with two outstanding safety videos, provided by our parent company after two accident investigations – one of which was fatal and the other resulting in permanent disability via a broken back. In both cases the employees were very experienced workers.

The fatality involved a dump truck driver of 12 years’ experience, who on the day he was killed ignored every safety protocol and training that he had been given. The other involved a supervisor, who, whilst up on a scaffold, was having an animated discussion with his wife on a cell phone. He fell off. Again, he kicked over every safety rule that he had been a party to – including the use of a mobile phone on site.

The Bath Tub Curve is not a new concept. It has been used by industrial designers for many years particularly in the house hold appliance industry. A new model can sometimes have a number of faults. These are (hopefully) quickly remedied and the appliances go on to give sterling service, until they start to get old and parts begin to wear out, when the stats begin to climb up the other side of the curve.

But there is another example – possibly closer to our own industry in a roundabout sort of way. It occurred in WWII with bomber crews. Author Sir Max Hastings records, in his1979 history Bomber Command: “The first six trips accounted for a disproportionate amount of casualties.

Those who survived that long became statistically slightly more at risk only in mid tour, when they began to think they knew it all, and on their last trips when they had grown tired and stale”. The Bath Tub Curve again – only this time over a much shorter period. A ‘tour’ was 30 operational missions – probably about three or four months if the weather was good, as opposed to 35 years in a job.

And yes Lady Luck played a major part – as it can often do in industry

Accident frequency Accident nt Frequency Frequency Accident nt New starters: Frequency inexperience, vulnerability u Accident nt Vulnerable Frequency Seasoned players: Tim know Time complacency, e it all, staleness Accident nt – now being recorded in modern terms asFrequency a ‘near miss’. But there are a number of principles which seem to contribute to surviving a ‘tour’ be Seasoned players: it 30 missions or 35 years in a job. complacency, know The first is leadership and the formation ofit aaunited team whose ll, staleness principal objective is to work together to ensure everyone Accident nt goes home in one piece or finishes a mission. Again consider Hastings: Frequency “A careful crew could increase their chance of survival 100%.” lnerable The second is attention to detail, checking your machine or static equipment thoroughly, including wearing the right PPE before going on ‘ops’. Good bomber crews polished the perspex of their turrets and canopies personally before a mission and “checked every detail of their own aircraft before takeoff, far more meticulously than routine demanded”. How clean is your windscreen? Got a blind spot that is covered in mud or road film?

The third is concentration on the job at hand, whether it is operating a loader or driving round the site in a ute. The banning of cell phones in the working areas of many sites has, I am sure, reduced the numbers of near misses – if not serious accidents. Careful pilots banned nonoperational chatter on the intercom.

Seasoned players: complacency, know it all, staleness

Figure 1

The fourth is constant vigilance. Accidents can happen very suddenly and without warning. A ‘near miss’ is better than a major injury – or being shot down by a night fighter. The team (and company) can learn from the experience and modify their practices.

One of the key points that seems to come out of all of this is that it is often the ‘old timers’ who can be the most at risk. “Nah you don’t need to do that – I’ve been doing this job for 20 years and never had a problem”. Really? These people may have survived with Lady Luck sitting on their shoulder but they can be poison to new starters getting off on the wrong foot or to the rest of the crew.

It is interesting to read the safety reports that are sent out by our CEO. The number of people in their 40s or 50s who suffer major accidents or fatalities are very sobering. Complacency? I think it is certainly a major contributor, along with staleness.

Unfortunately I have not been able to find statistics in our industry that back up what I have written. Rather it is from observation over many years on a large industrial site and yes, the odd personal near miss I have had when I was not concentrating on what I was doing. But I encourage you to think about the concept as it applies to your site and reflect on how many times you may have put yourself – and others at risk – in the Bath Tub.

Activity report – Technical Committee

T

he AQA Technical Committee has been active in a number of government and industry working groups in recent months.

These groups have been making progress on key issues for AQA members.

Late last year NZTA released NZTA T15:2014 Specification for Repeat Load Triaxial (RLT) Testing for Pavement Materials. This specification will be used to understand the performance of aggregates and provide additional guidance for pavement design.

Network Outcome Contracts and Roads of National Significance are implementing the test as a means of understanding basecourse performance. The specification is available on the NZTA website www.nzta.govt.nz/resources/repeated-load-triaxial-testing-forpavement-materials/index.html and we encourage our members to access this information. While NZTA M/4 Specification for Basecourse is being reviewed by the National Pavements Technical Group (NPTG), an update is dependant on several related work streams that are currently underway.

The NZTA sponsored working group updating NZTA M/6 Specification for Sealing Chip has been progressing at a good pace. A key initiative has been a review of the accuracy of data that is stored in the RAMM database. This review has resulted in changes to the input of information by sealing chip contractors this season. Further work is

still being undertaken by this project with expected completion by mid to late 2015.

The Recycled Aggregate project has selected Nazanin Ardalan as the student to undertake the PhD work stream. Nazanin has been developing good laboratory management skills at the Downer Auckland laboratory. All recycled aggregate suppliers in the Auckland area have committed to providing aggregate to support the project.

With their support the project will be able to accurately quantify the recycled aggregate available in the market and determine applications it is suitable for.

AQA Technical Committee Chair, Stacy Goldsworthy will be speaking at the QuarryNZ Conference in Hamilton this July – see www.quarrynz.org.nz for full details. www.aqa.org.nz June -July 2015 51

A bad start to 2015

by Roger Parton, AQA Chief Executive

Q

There is a grain of truth in this allegation, but not for the reasons given. The Pike River Implementation Team was under enormous political pressure to meet what was an almost unrealistic deadline.

It became apparent early on that the differences between mines (underground and surface) and quarries could not be adequately covered in the draft regulations, due to the seasonal and mobile nature of a number of quarry sites. The sector requested that the quarry industry be included in the first part of the Regulations pertaining to Certificates of Competency and agreed to work with the government to produce appropriate regulations and guidelines to ensure that the quarry sector operated under the same level of health and safety as the mining sector.

incident reporting system for several years. We also proposed that some basic production figures be provided on a quarterly basis.

Again, we are awaiting progress on these issues.

• The AQA, at the suggestion from WorkSafe, has gone through the existing Regulations to see where and how quarries can fit in the existing legislation. The group found about 60-70 percent of the existing Regulations is fit for purpose for the sector, and a marked up version of the document has been provided to WorkSafe. We meet on this matter in mid May. • It is noted that a draft of the Health & Safety in the Workplace (Mining Operations and Quarry Operations) Regulations 2015 has been released for comment and this is an ideal opportunity to make the necessary amendments.

• MinEx has developed a flow chart Am I a Quarry Operator as clarification to those who may not consider themselves to be captured by the Regulations their responsibilities under the legislation. This has been circulated widely in the contracting, forestry, agricultural sectors.

• The quarry sector is represented on several bodies including the Extractives Industry Advisory Group to advise the WorkSafe Board, and the Board of Examiners for Certificates of Competency.

It can be seen from the above that the allegations that the sector has tried to keep out of the new legislation has little substance, in fact the opposite is true. This of course is all administrative and bureaucratic activity. What really counts is health and safety in the workplace.

So what have we done?

Many of you are meeting your health and safety responsibilities, some may not be. The new Act will impose very significant penalties on those who fail to meet their responsibilities.

uarries have had a bad start to the year as far as safety goes, with two fatalities in the past couple of months. While the exact causes will not be identified for several months, it is known that both incidents involved machinery of one sort or another.

The incident statistics, based on the voluntary reporting collated

by MinEx every quarter, has shown consistently that the biggest causes of incidents are vehicles and moving plant.

The Council of Trade Unions has been quick to point the finger at quarries and imply that the sector should have been included in the Health & Safety in Employment (Mining Operations and Quarry Operations) Regulations 2013 and that the sector worked to be removed from coverage under the Regulations when they were being consulted.

• We formed a Quarry Industry Working Group and started to develop appropriate guidelines based on the extensive overseas material that was available. This role was subsumed into a WorkSafe Working Group that has taken over the function. We have been awaiting the final draft for some months.

•A long with MinEx we have met with WorkSafe to provide recommendations regarding incident reporting for the entire quarry sector, based on my experience of operating the MinEx

AQA, in conjunction with MinEx, will continue to promote to its membership, and to the wider quarrying sector, the highest standards of health and safety in the workplace.

It is about you, and all of your staff, going home every night safe and well.

Let us try to ensure that the bad start to 2015 is reversed for the remainder of the year.

Are you a quarry operator?

MinEx has developed a flow-sheet to assist a number of industries to understand their potential obligations under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 and the Health and Safety in Employment (Mining Operations and Quarrying Operations) Regulations 2013.

There are many instances across the country where companies are engaged in activities that fall under the definition of Quarry Operations as defined in the 16 December 2013 amendment to the Act. Those operations that fall under these regulations are subject to a number of codes, guidelines and regulations that companies need to be aware of and to follow.

The industries where confusion is most likely are: • earthmoving whether it be via contractors or a company’s own equipment • road construction • farming.

52 www.aqa.org.nz

The three main issues that all quarry operators need to be aware of are: • you will need to have a person in charge of each quarry site that holds a Certificate of Competency (CoC) issued by the Board of Examiners; • your operation falls under certain sections of the 2013 regulations referred to above; and, • you will need to be aware of and should follow a number of WorkSafe guidelines and approved codes of practice, the most important of which is the WorkSafe good practice guideline entitled: Health and Safety at Surface Mines, Alluvial Mines and Quarries which is expected to be issued this month: June 2015.

To see the full advice go to www.aqa.org.nz/documents/ Am%20I%20a%20Quarry%20Operator.pdf

Quarrying Certificates of Competence

IN

December 2014, WorkSafe New Zealand published new requirements for Mine and Quarry Manager Certificates of Competence (CoCs). The requirements mean Certificate of Competence holders are required to gain additional unit standards by January 1, 2016 in order to be able to apply for a new CoC under the 2013 regulations. This means that you can’t use your current certificate beyond 31 December 2015.

The diagram shows the steps required to update your certificate. You must have completed Step 3 by 31 December 2015 to receive your new certificate issued under the Health and Safety in Employment (Mining Operations and Quarrying Operations) Regulations 2013.

If your certificate was issued with a restriction that explosives cannot be used on site you may also want to complete the unit standards in MITO’s programme 1: Safety Critical Explosives Knowledge.

Please be aware that providers who carry out training and assessment of the CoC unit standards must have NZQA ‘consent to assess’. Consent to assess certifies providers to assess specified unit standards and award credit for them. Providers with consent to assess the CoC unit standards must also meet all the general and industry-specific requirements of the Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR 114).

More information about the training required for the new unit standards, including a schedule of training programmes and fees, is available on MITO’s website www.mito.org.nz

Quarry maps – coming soon The publisher of Inside Resources (www.insideresources. co.nz) will shortly be launching two large wall maps displaying quarry locations in New Zealand; one each for the North and South Islands.

The 1.2m x .85m posters are said to offer a clear, insightful picture of the sector providing information on concrete batching plants, cement import terminals, New Zealand’s geology, largest quarrying operators, aggregate production statistics,

roads of national significance, and over 300 quarries.

The maps will be published and available for order in July.

Copies will be displayed at the QuarryNZ Conference in Hamilton at the AQA and Inside Resources exhibition booth (see www.quarynz.org.nz for details).

For further information, please contact – ross.billingsley@freemanmedia.co.nz

www.aqa.org.nz June -July 2015 53

AQA Planning Committee activity report MARCH-APRIL 2015

T

he Proposed Auckland Unitary Plan (PAUP) continues to dominate the planning sphere as we move closer to the PAUP topics most relevant to the quarrying industry (i.e. quarrying zones and buffers, earthworks, rural subdivision and transport).

Holcim, Fulton Hogan and Winstone Aggregates are joining other major quarry operators in the Auckland Region in a joint approach to ensure quarrying is recognised in the PAUP objectives, and policies and rules, as a vital contributor to the Auckland regional economy. At the hearing stage the quarrying industry will be relying on expert evidence from fields such as geology, quarry engineering, economics and planning in making these arguments.

Committee members have also started preparing for potential reforms to the Resource Management Act 1991, the outcomes of which may significantly change the way quarrying is viewed

and managed in a planning context. While Minister Nick Smith has provided early indications on the content of the reforms, any changes are now potentially jeopardised following Winston Peters’ win in the Northland by-election. Prime Minister John Key has subsequently talked about backing away from part of the reform, indicating National would not get support to drive through reform of the Act’s core principles, defined in sections 6 and 7, after Peters’ victory. The committee is keeping a close watch on these developments.

Finally, committee members have been assessing the current state of play regarding biodiversity offsetting and how it is best applied in a quarrying context. Biodiversity offsetting provides a numerical methodology to quantify indigenous biodiversity losses at impacted sites, and gains provided by proposed mitigation sites. The committee will be seeking advice from experts in the offsetting field so as to provide up-to-date guidance to AQA members.

The Aggregate & Quarry Association appreciates the support of our associate members

Join our united voice!

The Aggregate and Quarry Association achieves workable and sensible outcomes for our industry. We need to speak as one convincing voice, and we want to ensure all quarry operators, regardless of size and location, are aware of all health and safety requirements.

Contact us today: office@aqa.org.nz www.aqa.org.nz 54 www.aqa.org.nz

I N N O V A T I O N S

Big-data analysis for mining Komatsu has a new partnership with General Electric Transportation to provide “big-data” analysis services for mining customers, using “Internet of Things” technology to boost efficiency in mining operations.

The joint venture – Komatsu GE Mining Systems LLC – is developing a new generation of underground mining equipment.

The “Internet of Things” (IoT) refers to a growing global network of physical objects or “things” – including machines – embedded with electronics, software, sensors and connectivity. This enables them to exchange data with manufacturers, operators, other machines and other connected devices.

Komatsu Australia’s managing director Sean Taylor says this latest partnership has been built on the strengths of both companies – and would have significant benefits for Australian and New Zealand mining companies.

“With the current downward pressures on commodity prices, mining companies are looking for innovative ways to reduce their operating and running costs, while optimising productivity and machine performance.

“Over the past 90 years, our approach to engineering has delivered a range of breakthrough technologies and this latest collaboration between Komatsu and GE will bring breakthrough benefits to the mining sector as a whole.”

Komatsu and GE have trialled the concept over the past year at a copper mine in South America.

Under the new partnership, Komatsu will send operational data collected from sensors attached to its mining dump trucks to a

GE data centre in the US, where it will be processed using GE’s big-data analysis capabilities.

Applications for the resulting information include recommending optimal truck routes and positioning, as well as speed and braking requirements based on the terrain and site conditions. Additional control equipment can also be installed to increase fuel efficiency.

“Existing data analysis capabilities already available through Komatsu allow fuel efficiency to be improved by five percent through more efficient truck scheduling and haul road management,” says Taylor.

“There will also be flow-on benefits in terms of optimising production, reducing equipment wear and tear, and maximising machine uptime.”

Software update for FMS platform

Tracked crusher innovation Metso’s Lokotrack LT106, tracked, jaw crusher in action with Pro Crush at a quarry north of Brisbane, Queensland. The latest model is said to be achieving new benchmarks for compact size and agility in the 40-tonne size class. High clearance at both ends, feed hopper sides and a unique hydraulic securing system and radial side conveyor make the unit ready for crushing or transport within minutes.

Hexagon Mining – Operations releases a major update for the Leica Jigsaw fleet management software platform, which enhances operational efficiency and safety.

Product releases with this update include Jasset, J2dragline, and Jsurfaceminer. Jasset allows you to now monitor all your mobile and semi-mobile assets with seamless integration into your existing network. From supervisor vehicles to communications trailers, and even generators, you can now track the location and important operational parameters of these assets through Jmineops.

Q&M June - July 2015 55

I N N O V A T I O N S

Conveyor impact cradles

Upskilling your maintenance team While past trends in preventative maintenance practices have seen significant reliability and cost improvements, the latest research says that many companies are not investing in upskilling due to their reduced maintenance labour force and tight production schedules.

Loctite, a Henkel brand and a world leader in engineering surface technologies, has a cost effective, on-site and in-house maintenance and repair workshop programme.

“Equipment that is maintained poorly can cost companies tens of thousands of dollars,” says Loctite. “For example, a hydraulic leak at one drop/second at $12/litre equates to $18,396 lost per year. Similarly, an air leak of 1mm at 600kPa at 15c/kWh can cost $360 lost per year. And in the competitive economic landscape of today, every dollar counts.”

Henkel has offered a variety of Loctite training in the use of engineering adhesives, sealants and composite repair technologies for more than a decade in New Zealand.

“They can be tailored to meet the needs of any plant/workshop and conducted on-site; providing hands-on training to maximise the efficiency and effectiveness of their maintenance operations, with reviews of common failure causes and prevention methods.

“Attendees have the opportunity to learn the best practices as well as the latest technology in engineering adhesives, sealants and composites.”

Suitable for all levels of personnel in a variety of industries, the two hour, hands-on training and an in-plant follow up will give your workforce the knowledge and tools to save time, improve reliability and equipment safety, says Henkel.

More information: Call 0800 109 030 or email loctite.enquiries@henkel.com.

Martin Engineering is a global innovator in bulk handling technology and offers a family of impact cradles engineered to prevent belt and mainframe damage and spillage of heavy materials.

The Martin Impact Cradles Heavy Duty; Medium Duty; and Light Duty feature a bed of steel angles lined by energy-absorbing impact bars with a top layer of low friction, ultra-high molecular weight plastic. The result is longer lasting conveyor belts and components, with less fugitive material and a safer work area.

“Fine material discharged from a height can have just as much force as a coarse load,” says Product Engineer Daniel Marshall. “Without proper impact absorption and distribution, all of that force is exerted on the belt, essentially crushing it against a rigid surface underneath. The impact beds absorb the energy, so the belt doesn’t have to. It also creates a flat edge for the apron seal, to prevent spillage and fugitive dust.”

All three Martin Impact Cradles feature wing supports, which adjust to match CEMA standard trough angles, as well as a five percent fine-tuning adjustment angle. This allows for the cradle to accommodate the idler profiles of different manufacturers and assure a tight belt seal.

Advertisers Index Advancequip...................................................................... 39

Mimico............................................................................... 13

Cable Price................................................. OFC, IFC, 1, 16, 17

Prime Pump........................................................................ 35

Allied Petroleum................................................................. 34 Connexis............................................................................ 43

Equip2................................................................................. 7 Gough Cat............................................................................ 9 Hella NZ............................................................................. 44 Henkel Locite..................................................................... 41 Metso Minerals................................................................... 48

56 www.contrafed.co.nz Q&M

Porter Equipment................................................................. 2 Real Steel........................................................................... 15 Rocktec.............................................................................. 25 Total Oil............................................................................. 11 Transdiesel........................................................................ 45 West-Trak Equipment.....................................................IBC, 5 Wirtgen NZ....................................................................26, 27

N O W AVA I L A B L E

NEW RANGE OF ITM MINING UNDERCARRIAGE ITM is pleased to appoint West-Trak as NZ distributor and service agent for ITM’s range of Mining Undercarriage components and solutions.

TRUSTED GLOBALLY

SERVICE AND SUPPORT

A trusted global brand for more than 50 years,

West-Trak has complete in-house capabilities

ITM is proven in the world’s toughest mining

to service and support the ITM mining range of

conditions.

undercarriage. This includes the largest 400 tonne track press in NZ, a hydraulic nut runner

“The addition of the ITM Mining range of

and roller bed for bolting up track groups.

undercarriage is a perfect fit for us,” said

On site wear reporting is also part of the

Rick Hayman, General Manager of West-Trak.

West-Trak advantage.

“Our customers now have access to a genuine alternative undercarriage solution for large

Says Hayman, “We are proud of our partnership

mining Bulldozers up to Cat D11 / Komatsu

with ITM. Their focus on delivering top quality

D475 size and Excavators up to 800 tonnes.”

products and services that keep customers productive aligns with our business philosophy in every way. It is a privilege for West-Trak to represent this outstanding range of products and solutions.”

Contact West-Trak today on 0800 654 323 for your ultimate mining undercarriage solution UNDERCARRIAGE SOLUTIONS FOR HEAVY MACHINERY THAT SIMPLY HAS TO WORK

West-Trak

®

P: 0800 654 323

UNRIVALLED STRENGTH AUCKLAND

●

TA U R A N G A

E: sales@west-trak.co.nz

●

WESTPORT

●

F: 03 789 8093

W: www.west-trak.co.nz

CHRISTCHURCH Q&M June - July 2015 57

articulated dump trucks Built for the long run

Bell’s articulated dump trucks excel in productivity and economy thanks to their high power-to-weight ratios and fuel-efficiency. Add comfort to the list, and you have a machine that gives you excellent all-around performance.

210714_Bell_Articulated

Building on the success of the Bell D-Series ADT’s CablePrice is excited to now offer the world class E-series ADT’s in B25E and B30E range. CablePrice

and Bell Equipment continues offering the B40, and B50D to those clients needing some extra muscle for the big jobs.

With the broad range of ADT’s on offer from CablePrice and Bell, we are sure to have the right ADT solution for your business For more information contact CablePrice on 0800 555 456 or visit www.cableprice.co.nz.

Model:

Bell B25E ADT

Bell B30E ADT

Bell B40D ADT

Bell B50D ADT

Gross Power:

205 Kw (275 hp)

240 KW (322 hp)

315 KW (422 hp)

390 KW (523 hp)

Gross Torque:

1,000 Nm (826 lbft)

1,300 Nm (959 lbft)

2,000 Nm (1,473 lbft)

2,200 Nm (1,622 lbft)

Rated Payload:

24,000 kg (52,911 lbs)

28,000 kg (61,729 lbs)

37,000 kg (81,571 lbs)

45,400 kg (100,090 lbs)

0800 555 456 sales@cableprice.co.nz www.cableprice.co.nz