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COMMENT

RENEWING MINING’S FOCUS ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES BEN CREAGH

Ben.Creagh@primecreative.com.au

DESPITE THE DISTRACTIONS OF 2020, MINING COMPANIES HAVE BEEN PROGRESSING THEIR AMBITIONS TO ESTABLISH A MORE SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INDUSTRY.

I

t almost seems like an eternity since environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) dominated discussion in the mining industry.

While immediate priorities have shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, notable work has continued to help mining realise the sustainability and societal impact that it is capable of.

Much of the ESG spotlight still shines on climate change and how mining companies can reduce their carbon footprint.

In this issue, we review the increasing drive of mining companies to power their operations using renewable energy to help satisfy this need.

Companies often highlight how important what they mine is to the development of the renewables sector – renewables can’t happen without a lot of copper, for example.

Despite this link, mining companies haven’t been as quick to include renewables as part of their energy strategies.

This, however, seems to be changing. For one, renewable energy projects, such as for solar and wind, have become cheaper.

Additionally, the demands of socially focussed investors now make renewable energy projects a good business decision.

As a result, we are seeing miners in all commodity sectors introducing solar, wind and other renewables into their energy mix.

Some have already achieved this with resounding success and have aspirations to take their projects further.

Mining equipment, technology and services (METS) companies shouldn’t underestimate their role in ESG either – it has also become a pre-requisite for their business success.

They too can manufacture their mining products and deliver services using low carbon energy.

How they socially integrate into the mining supply chain is also an emerging factor.

BHP, for example, reinforced its commitment to socially responsible partnerships in the area of human rights with the launch of the BHP Ethical Supply Chain program in June.

In response to increasing expectations on miners to address human rights risks, BHP is increasing the level of transparency in its supply chain.

METS companies wanting to partner with BHP must now make this a key consideration in how they do business.

While ESG may have been pushed into the background and off the business pages in recent months, this is surely temporary.

And more than ever, the ESG narrative in the mining industry has a positive spin.

In this edition, we include a special feature on the drill and blast sector, with focus on initiatives being introduced by mining equipment, technology and services (METS) companies.

Australian Mining puts the spotlight on copper and interviews two companies with ambitions to develop the next major project in South Australia.

We look at renewable energy and how it is being used to power Australian mine sites.

The edition also explores how the supply chain in mining has changed and its role beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

And as usual, we review the latest mining equipment and technologies in our products section.

Ben Creagh Managing Editor

Cover image: Gold Fields.

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FRONT COVER

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IN THIS ISSUE 30

42 51 MINING SERVICES

Exnovo saves valuable space on-site Safer and greener thanks to transformers

53 MEASUREMENT & MONITORING

The Internet of Things bandwagon VEGA Australia goes beyond extracting information

54 MANUFACTURING

The birth of Motion Asia Pacific Inenco Group preserves global competitiveness

53 12 COMMODITY SPOTLIGHT

Copper in South Australia Mining companies target the next major mine development

14 FUTURE OF MINING

Renewable transition takes shape Gold Fields, OZ Minerals realise green strategies

19 WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

Indigenous miners embrace opportunities Western Labour Hire, IronMerge open doors for Indigenous workers

22 MINING SERVICES

Ports and the supply chain Exporting Australian minerals to the world

30 MAINTENANCE

Tradespeople of the future Macmahon wants candidates for Mining Maintenance Masters program

32 DRILL & BLAST

Technology drives success Drill & blast companies fire up innovation

42 MINING EQUIPMENT

Australia a growth market BELAZ Australia keeps apace with largest OEMs

44 WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

Golden mining opportunities Alcoa and Gold Industry Group give workers a go

46 MATERIALS HANDLING

A small piece in a large puzzle Flexco tungsten tips key to belt cleaning

47 INDUSTRY COMMENT

Support for emerging enterprises Austmine establishes METS export hubs

48 EXPLORATION

A path to production Middle Island rides on high gold prices

50 COMMUNICATIONS

Vocus connects Minjar Gold Delivering strong connectivity in remote WA

AUSTRALIANMINING

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56 TECHNOLOGY

An effective alternative

CSIRO technology uncovers hidden deposits

57 WOMEN IN INDUSTRY

The 2020 finalists revealed Exceptional female leaders make a mark

58 PROSPECT AWARDS

Nominate for the 2020 event Who is the brightest and best in mining?

60 EVENT SPOTLIGHT

The show(s) must go on Make a beeline for QME, AusIMM conferences

62 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

Dewatering hoses and machine engines Products from Crusader Hose, Allightsykes

REGULARS 3 COMMENT 7 NEWS 64 PRODUCTS 66 EVENTS

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NEWS

THE LATEST MINING AND SAFETY NEWS AUSTRALIAN MINING PRESENTS THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE BOARDROOM TO THE MINE AND EVERYWHERE IN BETWEEN. VISIT WWW.AUSTRALIANMINING.COM.AU TO KEEP UP TO DATE WITH WHAT IS HAPPENING. METSO OUTOTEC MERGER SETS UP FUTURE EXPANSION Metso has officially merged its minerals business with Outotec to form a new company which aims to become an industry leader across the minerals, aggregates, metals refining and recycling industries.

The newly-formed Metso Outotec will fuse and enhance the two companies’ offerings, covering sustainable technology, solutions and services for minerals processing and other areas.

“Our aim with this merger is to reach much higher – really reach out so that we can clearly say that we are a Tier 1 company when it comes to financial performance but also other things,” Metso Outotec president and chief executive officer Pekka Vauramo said during a media briefing.

Before becoming Metso Outotec, Metso’s mineral business offered dry minerals processing, crushing, screening and milling equipment, along with pyro technology and tailings management systems, while Outotec developed wet processing technology to the industry, including flotation, hydrometallurgy and filtration.

Finalised on July 1, the merger brings together the two Finnish companies, which had €4.186 billion ($6.8 billion) in combined sales in 2019, with that number now expected to grow even higher.

The two companies had 61 per cent of their combined sales attributed to the mining industry last year, followed by aggregates (26 per cent) and metals and recycling (13 per cent).

Vauramo hopes that the merger can grow Metso Outotec’s market presence in the Asia Pacific region, which includes Australia.

“Asia Pacific is really the emerging supply base for many of our products,” he said.

In 2019, Asia Pacific contributed to 23 per cent of Outotec and Metso’s mineral business’ combined sales.

The merger covers six business areas, including minerals,

aggregates, metals recycling, services and consumables.

Metso Outotec will also provide a full offering “from ore to metal” for minerals processing, which involves equipment and full plant solutions.

The company is focussing on more sustainable processing practices to save costs and encourage sustainability in areas such as reducing water usage, which has remained a key focus for the new merger.

“With the combined process capabilities that we will have, we can take a more holistic view on the whole process, separating maybe the invaluable over from valuable parts earlier in the process, which means there’s less energy used downstream in the process,” Vauramo said.

Based in Finland, Metso Outotec has 15,000 employees operating in 50 countries across the globe, with some workers expected to change positions and location.

“Both companies have been operating almost globally in all countries where there’s relevant

business for the companies and that’s why our presence is very wide,” Vauramo said.

“This means many opportunities: new job opportunities, many people will find themselves in new roles – some people in new countries and these are all good and exciting opportunities for our people.”

Metso Outotec plans to become an industry leader “in many terms” with the company already having a strong foothold on research and development (R&D).

“Our investment in R&D when it comes to annual basis is approximately €100 million and that is more than anyone else does in this industry,” Vauramo said.

A big focus on global megatrends such as urbanisation, climate change, digitalisation and scarcity of natural resources will be addressed by the company.

“We live in a changing world and we live also in exceptional times right now, and we have learned many things in these exceptional times,” Vauramo said.

“But the changing world means

METSO’S PROCESSING CAPABILITIES WILL BE BOLSTERED ALONGSIDE OUTOTEC.

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AUSTRALIAN MINING GETS THE LATEST NEWS EVERY DAY, PROVIDING MINING PROFESSIONALS WITH UP-TOTHE-MINUTE INFORMATION ON SAFETY, NEWS AND TECHNOLOGY FOR THE AUSTRALIAN MINING AND RESOURCES INDUSTRY.

that we all need to look critically at our own operations, and so do we as a new company and so do our customers with how they operate.

“We will be also seeking with different kinds of partnerships with our suppliers. We want to jointly develop our offerings and I’m sure that there’s so much experience and competence amongst our suppliers.

“Naturally, we work as one going forward.”

NEWS

BMA TO INVEST $100M IN DAUNIA AUTOMATION BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) is set to introduce 34 autonomous trucks at the Daunia coal mine in Central Queensland through a $100 million investment.

The first Caterpillar autonomous trucks will start work from February next year, with the full rollout expected to be complete by the end of 2021.

BMA asset president James Palmer said the move would result in $35 million in contract awards for at least 10 regional and Indigenous businesses.

Queensland’s auto electrical and mechanical services provider, NB Industries will complete the light vehicle fleet conversion, and Brisbanebased radio communication experts, Radlink Communications will install wireless communication hardware across the Daunia mine.

The rollout will also create 150 additional project roles for BMA employees and contractors, on top of 56 new permanent roles on site.

“We have engaged with our workforce at Daunia over the previous 18 months on the possible rollout of autonomous haulage,” Palmer said.

“Our people have told us that they are eager for new job opportunities and skills. That is why we are confident this is the right decision for Daunia.

“There will be no job losses as a result of this decision, and anyone who currently works with us, be it an employee or labour hire worker, will be given the opportunity to continue to do so.”

Hastings Deering chief executive Dean Mehmet said the Daunia contract was also a huge boost to its local central Queensland business.

“We will need 30 additional people to support the work that is required to convert the trucks and ancillary mining fleet into autonomous vehicles at Daunia,” he said.

“It’s exciting work, to build on that allows us to grow and develop local talent to deliver technology solutions into the resources sector.”

BMA will deliver around 30,000 hours of training, spanning from general awareness to extensive training for equipment operators, to interaction with the autonomous haul trucks in preparation of Daunia’s autonomous transition.

“We understand this decision represents some change,” Palmer said. “But it also offers a unique opportunity for people to gain new, highly valued skills that will create additional opportunities for growth

into the future.

“It will further increase safety and performance and help the mine remain competitive over the long-term.”

BHP announced plans last year to introduce up to 500 additional autonomous trucks at its iron ore and coal operations in Australia.

These ambitions equated to a 10fold increase of BHP’s fleet at the Jimblebar iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

BMA introduced autonomous haulage at its first site, the Goonyella Riverside coal mine this year.

The operation has been undergoing a staged conversion to a fleet of up to 86 Komatsu trucks over two years.

BMA had spent nearly half of its proposed $8.2 million investment in the Goonyella Riverside project by mid-June.

FORTESCUE CONTRACT TRIGGERS JOHN HOLLAND RECRUITMENT DRIVE John Holland has recruited hundreds of workers on the back of winning major new contracts in Western Australia, including a $130 million deal with Fortescue Metals Group.

The engineering contractor was awarded a contract by Fortescue to construct 143 kilometres of heavy haul track on the Eliwana mine and rail project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.

John Holland’s contract is a design and construction extension to the existing signalling and train control systems and a traffic capacity extension to the communication infrastructure for Eliwana.

The track construction works will

connect the new Eliwana rail line to the existing Fortescue Hamersley line to Port Hedland. The engagement will see John Holland manage a newly-upgraded rail welding facility in Port Hedland, as well as the design, construct and integration of the signalling and train control systems.

The company’s integrated track and signalling rail project solution in WA will create jobs in Port Hedland and Perth in areas such as welding, track design, construction, civil and electrical engineering.

John Holland operations manager Rob Hennessy said the company was a major employer in the Australian rail and

construction industries and would create significant employment opportunities in the West Australian market at a time when it was most needed.

“This is a great indication of the strength of our business in WA,” Hennessy said. “We will always focus on local talent first – especially in regional areas such as in the Pilbara, where most of these jobs have been created.

“These roles will require rail worker competencies and some apprenticeships, which will provide an opportunity for handson learning and mentoring with some of the industry’s most

CONSTRUCTION OF THE RAILWAY FOR THE FORTESCUE PROJECT.

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experienced operators.”

John Holland employs more than 5000 people across its construction, tunnelling, rail and building projects in Australia.

The company has strengthened its rail, engineering and construction capacity after it acquired RCR O’Donnell Griffin’s rail business, saving 400 jobs in the process.

Fortescue is developing the Eliwana iron ore mine and associated infrastructure with an investment of $1.27 billion.

The project will sustain output from Forescue’s existing deposits, with first production at the site expected in December 2020.

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NEWS

DOWNER PURCHASES AUSTRALIA’S FIRST KOMATSU 830E-5 TRUCKS Downer has taken delivery of five next-generation Komatsu 830E-5 dump trucks, the first fleet to be sold in Australia.

The 830E-5 model has a 230-tonne capacity and is described as one of the most technologically advanced 240-US ton class trucks Komatsu has manufactured.

It incorporates new engine and drive system features to deliver improved performance, intelligent parasitic load engine control, up to 80 per cent lower particulate matter emissions and better fuel efficiency.

Downer general plant manager Ryan Kirkwood said the purchase of the fleet of 830E-5s was the result of the company’s long-standing operational relationship and history with Komatsu.

“It was an obvious decision to transition to the new 830E-5 for a key project in Western Australia,” Kirkwood said.

“For a number of years, we have successfully operated large fleets of Komatsu 830Es and 930Es, both internally and for clients.

“Considering our long-standing relationship with Komatsu and the trucks we already have in operation, the new 830E-5s provide synergies in operator training, as well as the ergonomic benefits that come with a new design.”

Downer’s decision to purchase the first 830E-5s was prompted by the trucks’ reliability, low maintenance, extended service hours, long-term mechanical availability and extended life frame of more than 80,000 hours.

Komatsu national product manager – mining Jason Arthur said the new 830E-5 models featured proven improvements in operator

ONE OF THE FIVE KOMATSU 830E-5 TRUCKS ACCEPTED BY DOWNER.

safety and comfort, increased speed on gradient through horsepower variations and higher payload capacity.

“The 830E-5 model also has significantly increased parts commonality with our larger 930E-5 model, allowing for reduced stocking

levels on sites running both models,” Arthur said.

“Incorporating the latest technology engine and drive system, the 830E-5 provides significantly lower noise levels and reduced fuel consumption as part of our drive to achieve lower-energy mining

operations.

“It’s also a highly flexible platform, offering future technology expansion capabilities, including machine autonomy and trolley-assist options that provide alternatives to diesel fuel and reduce scope one emissions.”

NQ MINERALS BRING BEACONSFIELD BACK TO LIFE The Beaconsfield gold mine in Tasmania has officially been revived after NQ Minerals finalised its acquisition of the site.

NQ Minerals signed a staged acquisition agreement in February to purchase the historic site for $2 million, with the company receiving approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board for the deal in mid June.

The mine was previously operated by BCD Resources before it was decommissioned in 2012. It has not been active since.

Three million ounces of gold

were produced at Beaconsfield between 1887 and 2012, with grades of 15 grams per tonne.

NQ Minerals chairman David Lenigas said the mine would undergo asset refurbishment and planning for an underground decline.

“We are delighted to have acquired the Beaconsfield gold mine and we are looking forward to bringing it back into production as soon as we are able,” Lenigas said.

“The mine has a long and rich history in Northern Tasmania and we understand the importance of

AUSTRALIANMINING

this heritage to all Tasmanians.”

Lenigas said local employment at the site was on the cards, with the company estimating that 250 direct or indirect positions would be offered at the site.

“Since the tragic rockfall in 2006, the mine has been in care and maintenance, bringing with it a loss of local jobs and economic activity in Beaconsfield and surrounding towns and we envisage jobs to the local community will be a priority for NQ Minerals,” he said.

After acquiring Beaconsfield’s

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mine and processing plant, NQ Minerals plans to refurbish the site’s processing facility to recover gold from the old tailings dams.

The company stated there were about 67,000 ounces of gold in one of the tailings dams and expected the first pour to be completed by the end of 2020 or the start of 2021.

“We don’t underestimate the challenges ahead, but there is a great pool of local talent in the area familiar with Beaconsfield that will assist us with this task ahead.”

Lenigas said.

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COMMODITY SPOTLIGHT

THE CROSSROADS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA’S COPPER INDUSTRY

SOUTH AUSTRALIA HAS A RICH HISTORY OF COPPER MINING, DATING BACK TO THE 1840S WHEN CORNISH MINERS AND THEIR FAMILIES POURED INTO HUBS SUCH AS BURRA, KAPUNDA AND MOONTA TO PARTAKE IN THE COPPER BOOM. SALOMAE HASELGROVE INVESTIGATES WHAT’S AHEAD.

I

n the second chapter of Genesis, the Pishon River flowed from the Garden of Eden and through the land of Havilah, which translates to “the land of good gold” and has become the namesake for explorer Havilah Resources.

With this positive omen promising a land of good gold, Havilah is also set up on a land of prospective copper, known as the Curnamona Craton in north eastern South Australia near Broken Hill.

The Curnamona Craton hosts copper-gold deposits of a different style to the famous iron oxide copper-gold deposits on the Gawler Craton like Olympic Dam and Prominent Hill.

It is closer in geology to the copper deposits found in African nations such as Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which also host cobalt.

As Havilah Resources technical director Chris Giles explains, the company’s flagship Kalkaroo copper deposit in the Curnamona Craton is in an ideal position to capitalise on South

Australia’s strong history of unearthing the copper deposits of the future.

“The Kalkaroo project is a large copper resource with over a million tonnes of copper and three million ounces of gold, and huge exploration upside at both ends and the wider surrounding area,” Giles tells Australian Mining.

“In the western part of South Australia, in the Gawler Craton, we hear a lot about big, iron stone hosted deposits, while out where we are the mineralisation has very strong analogies to those very large deposits in Africa, where cobalt is also produced.

“There is a lot of upside in the Curnamona Carton area and there are numerous prospects with great coppergold drilling intercepts with a very high potential to find more.”

With South Australia’s track record of copper mining and a supportive government, Giles believes the state is a fantastic environment to explore for and develop new copper mines.

The state government has highlighted a strong future in copper AUSTRALIANMINING

mining as a key priority during the next decade, launching the South Australian copper strategy, which aims to boost production to one million tonnes per year by 2030.

To support this, the state government is awarding accelerated discovery initiative (ADI) grants, which in the first round, successful applicants will receive funding of just under $3 million funding to progress South Australian-based exploration programs, including copper.

Why South Australia? Giles cites having highly prospective projects on home soil as an enormous advantage, which has become particularly relevant during the coronavirus pandemic.

“Geologists enjoy working in exotic places like South America or central Africa but when you have a situation like what we have faced with COVID-19, people are unable to go back to somewhere like Brazil to manage a project,” Giles explains.

“Having your projects in Australia, particular in your own state is proving to be a huge advantage and in the case of Havilah, we have been able to keep

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drilling throughout the pandemic, as we were naturally self-isolated being out in the outback, which was a huge advantage.”

Giles expects that executives of mining companies may re-evaluate their risk matrix of overseas projects due to the impact of coronavirus in South America or the sovereign risk of central African operations.

He says that deposits in the Curnamona Craton bring together the best of both worlds, the geological prospectivity of central Africa with the safety of operating in Australia.

With copper prices changing dramatically, including a sharp increase since March, and the base metal being an essential element in the renewable energy industry, Giles says the untested tenements waiting to be explored around South Australia will help cement the industry’s importance in Australia.

“For us with the Kalkaroo project, the area is also associated with cobalt and rare earths as well as gold,” he says.

“Cobalt is a vital ingredient in lithium-ion batteries, and we have

COMMODITY SPOTLIGHT

HAVILAH RESOURCES’ KALKAROO PROJECT.

the largest cobalt resource in South Australia, so that this could be produced as a by-product of copper is a huge advantage.

“This positions Havilah well to take advantage of future green industries, with copper being key to the revolution in renewable energy and electric vehicles (EVs) that is sweeping the world.”

Giles describes this as a “turning point” for the commodity, with it still being used in traditional industries such as construction, but also in these modern age industries.

“Renewable energy and the EV revolution is all unstoppable because of climate change and all of this uses abundant copper, pointing to a rapidly increasing demand for

HAVILAH RESOURCES TECHNICAL DIRECTOR DR CHRIS GILES.

copper,” Giles says.

“The outlook for copper on that basis is pretty bullish and I’d be very surprised if copper doesn’t stay above $US6000 ($8620) for quite a while until supply and demand evens out.”

Havilah Resources is still in its early stages, seeking the capital support of a larger investor, but with all this in mind, Giles is confident for the company’s future in South Australia.

“We’re not quite the Garden of Eden yet, but it’s a work in progress,” he says.

Minotaur Exploration is a company that knows the rewards of unearthing a significant future copper deposit, being responsible for discovering Prominent Hill in 2001.

This shot Minotaur Exploration into fame as an industry name, winning an Explorer of the Year gong for this momentous find and giving it enormous credibility as an Australian explorer.

In the years since the Prominent Hill discovery, Minotaur Exploration has been working on projects in both South Australia and Queensland, including the Peake and Denison project, and the Jericho, Breena Plains and Eloise joint ventures to find another big base metal deposit.

Minotaur exploration manager Glen Little says these discoveries are often a “once in a decade” phenomenon for copper, which is less frequent than some other commodities, but the prize is worth it.

“South Australia is very prospective, but it can be an incredibly difficult place to explore as everything is undercover,” Little tells Australian Mining.

“What you need is to find the right group of copper-focussed people that are willing to work together with copper as their principal commodity focus.”

Little says the challenges of exploring in South Australia become a little less daunting with the state government’s support.

Minotaur Exploration has secured one of the ADI grants for the Peake and Denison projects, allowing it to complete further exploration at the tenements, which are prospective for copper mineralisation.

Little says copper exploration competes against other commodities for funding, like gold, which is very attractive at present.

“The instant gratification of early success for investing in gold is really attractive for shareholders,” Little says.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA HAS A PROSPECTIVE FUTURE AHEAD IN COPPER.

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“Competing against record-high gold prices can be a struggle for small copper companies, but copper investment is generally with a view of longer-term success.

“With everybody talking about copper and its role in new industries like renewable energy and electric vehicles, the reality is the world is going to need more copper than anything else going ahead.”

With copper being an essential ingredient for future industries, the support of the South Australian Government and a backyard full of prospects with the potential of Olympic Dam or Prominent Hill, the base metal continues to cement itself as part of the state’s history, now and into the future.

“There have been enormous discoveries like Olympic Dam in the 1970s then it wasn’t until 2001 Prominent Hill was discovered then Carrapateena in 2005,” Little says.

“There is a fairly long time between drinks, but the prize can be incredible.

Everyone wants to find another Olympic Dam or Carrapateena because the prize is so spectacular, if you manage to have a win in copper, it can be a big one.”

The importance of copper as an essential part of South Australia’s future was highlighted at the Copper to the World conference in June.

South Australian Minister for Energy and Mining Dan van Holst Pellekaan says by combining the mining and renewable energy sectors, the state can lead the world by ensuring the supply of copper becomes significantly less carbon and water intensive.

“The first round of ADI offers were awarded to 14 dynamic projects, sharing a total of $3 million in confounded grants to test for new styles of copper, open new spaces, sophisticated ways to look for mineralisation and better drilling and movement of heat in basement rock pointing to orebodies,” he says “Copper is the essential element to South Australia’s mining future, as we aim to increase South Australia’s energy from renewable sources to 85 per cent five years from now.” AM

FUTURE OF MINING

A NATURAL CHOICE FOR POWERING MINING’S FUTURE GOLD FIELDS AND OZ MINERALS ARE TWO COMPANIES SPEARHEADING THE MINING SECTOR’S MOVE TO RENEWABLE ENERGY. VANESSA ZHOU SPEAKS WITH EXECUTIVES FROM BOTH COMPANIES ABOUT THEIR AMBITIONS.

GOLD FIELDS IS SET TO CUT AROUND 9500 TONNES OF CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS A YEAR AT THE GRANNY SMITH MINE.

T

he COVID-19 pandemic didn’t slow construction of Australia’s largest hybrid renewable energy microgrid. South African miner Gold Fields and its energy partner Energy Developments (EDL) were in the midst of commissioning a wind farm at the Agnew gold mine in Western Australia when the pandemic hit.

Five wind turbines (see cover), each soaring 110 metres high, were in line for commissioning. They form a key part of the Agnew hybrid renewable energy project, the first in Australia to use wind generation at a mine site.

The wind turbines will contribute to the production of 18 megawatts of power, alongside a 25-kilometre gas pipeline, a 16-megawatt gas plant to underpin demand, a 13-megawatt battery unit generating four megawatt of power an hour, and a four-megawatt solar plant made up of 10,000 panels.

Despite requiring specialists to fly in from all over Australia for the commissioning, and the trucking of components more than 600 kilometres from Geraldton to the Goldfields site, the team overcame COVID-19 challenges to deliver the project a

month ahead of schedule.

“We just had to be agile in the way we finish it. Thanks to the incredible team that we have at EDL, we made it happen,” EDL chief executive James Harman tells Australian Mining.

Now the wind turbines have become part of an impressive sight on the drive around the Agnew operation, according to Gold Fields executive vice president: Australasia, Stuart Mathews.

No gas or emissions are coming out of the massive power stations anymore, either.

“The Agnew mine feels like it has been brought to a brand new, state-ofthe-art operation. People from all other sites want to work on the site now,” Mathews says, laughing.

“In our company, climate change is something that we have to manage. We believe we have to manage it because our people believe in it and want us to be doing something to contribute towards its change.”

Harman says that wind energy is the key to delivering in excess of 70 per cent renewable penetration at Agnew.

Gold Fields is set to save around 40,700 tonnes a year of carbon dioxide emissions from this year. The renewable energy will cater for more AUSTRALIANMINING

than half of Agnew’s energy needs and will do so more reliably than its old power supply connected through wire.

The end of a power agreement provided Gold Fields with a “perfect opportunity” for the project. The business case was strengthened by a promising strategic outlook for the Agnew mine.

Over the past five years, Gold Fields has committed around $100 million to exploration at the Agnew mine. Mathews says the company has been “seriously rewarded” by this investment.

Compelling as the Agnew prospects were, Gold Fields decided to invest in a new accommodation camp for all of the mine’s workers as well. They no longer have to live in a regional town anymore and are near the operation instead.

“We have good visibility that our mine is going to grow beyond its present reserve, so that gave a sense of confidence to our board of management to approve this hybrid power solution, as well as a brand new camp,” Mathews says.

“These are worth $150 million of commitment alone. We’ve been in Australia for almost 20 years and our

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view is we will be here for another 20.

We’re not here for the short term.”

Gold Fields’ tenements at Agnew span across more than 600 square kilometres. Its 2018 mineral reserves stood at 560,000 ounces, before the company expanded the operation by spending $25 million in exploration the following year.

Mathews says the company wouldn’t have been able to meet the power demand of Agnew with its growth ambitions.

“The existing infrastructure around Agnew is old and needed a major capital injection to renew it. So this presented us with the opportunity to go alone and stand on our own two feet as far as long-term power supply goes, to secure the future of the Agnew mine,” Mathews says.

“Our operating expenditure on energy alone (was) around 15 per cent. That’s a big cost. Our mines are regionally located so it is sensible to come up with a standalone solution rather than running a big electric power hundreds of kilometres away

at a great cost.

“You can do something at your site that makes some sense. You can add on to it too.”

Gold Fields has chosen a modular power design at its Western Australian mines, including at the Granny Smith operation. This allows the company to bolt-on additional things such as wind turbines, solar and energy storage as technology improves.

The maintenance is also described as very simple, with the entire plant run by two people on-site, who can also work remotely.

At the Granny Smith mine, Gold Fields has chosen Aggreko to build an eight-megawatt solar farm and in-house modular two-megawatt lithium-ion battery unit.

This arrangement is expected to slash 9500 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and the mine’s fuel consumption by 10-13 per cent.

“Our people are incredibly proud of the fact that we’ve taken a leap of faith and are doing something completely different to power our mine sites,” Mathews says.

Gold Fields will not stop there. It also plans to shift to electric vehicles in the next five to 10 years and wean itself off a diesel reliance, using gas as a key transition fuel to get there.

“We’re very, very impressed with Gold Fields’ approach to partnership and sustainability,” the chief executive of EDL, which has been supplying power to remote mine sites and communities for 30 years, says.

“They call themselves a sustainable

miner and I really believe that they are. They took a leap of faith and cut the wire that connected them to their old power supply. It was a big call on their part because they’d had that for some time.

“We operate in five territories – the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and Greece – but what we’ve achieved at Agnew is a highlight for EDL. To reliably deliver 70 per cent of renewable energy to meet the mine’s power requirements is game changing.”

As the mining sector looks to reduce its carbon footprint, Harman has witnessed an upsurge in projects aimed at replacing diesel use in vehicles.

The producer of renewable and clean gas is working with multiple mining companies to replace diesel with cleaner, renewable LNG. The Western Australian Government is also supporting an EDL pilot project that is testing the feasibility of powering remote mine sites with hydrogen.

“Importantly, it’s green hydrogen that is produced by renewable energy,” Harman says.

“We’re in a time of transition and all the big companies are doing the right thing in reducing and committing to lower carbon emissions.

“But one of the challenges is to get senior management to focus on a smaller project to help them green up a mine site.”

OZ Minerals appears to have overcome this problem as it moves towards incorporating renewable energy at both the Carrapateena and

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Merv Pidherney, Pidherney’s owner

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FUTURE OF MINING

A PROMISING FUTURE AT THE AGNEW MINE IS NOW SUPPORTED BY THE RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS.

West Musgrave operations in South Australia and Western Australia, respectively.

“Our largest, Carrapateena and Prominent Hill operations are connected to the South Australian electricity grid, which is estimated to comprise 50 per cent renewable energy,” OZ Minerals managing director and chief executive Andrew Cole says.

A trial installation at Carrapateena is planned to produce a 250-kilowatt

hybrid energy solution, consisting of solar, wind, battery storage, connected to existing diesel generators and a smart grid controller for data access and tracking.

Similar to the problem Gold Fields encounters at Agnew, infrastructure in South Australia’s regional areas does not support OZ Minerals’ current activities and future expansion plans.

Renewable energy has also become the answer to the historical challenge of obtaining affordable power at the

West Musgrave nickel-copper joint venture with Cassini Resources.

“We believe, supported by the views of potential renewable energy suppliers, that 70–80 per cent of the power needs for West Musgrave can be supplied by renewable sources, supplemented by battery storage and diesel or trucked gas-fired generation,” Cole says.

OZ Minerals, which has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050, is also investigating a gas

pipeline as its secondary option at West Musgrave.

The company plans to reduce its footprint further by adopting vertical roller mills as a grinding mill solution.

It also opts for a flotation flowsheet that achieves metal recovery at a much coarser grind size than what was previously considered in the design.

“This lower power usage has resulted in a reduction in operating costs, while the use of dry grinding from the vertical roller mills has also resulted in an improvement in nickel recovery,” Cole says.

Soluna Australia, Northern Minerals’ partner at the Browns Range renewable project in Western Australia and 50per cent owned by Lithium Australia, reinforces the importance of batteries as part of mining’s energy mix.

“Batteries will always be an important component of a renewable project. Storing the excess energy just makes sense,” Soluna general manager Kieron D’Arcy says.

“Batteries can be deployed elsewhere if necessary or can be recycled at the end of life.”

D’Arcy believes that no matter what role someone plays in society, most people will want a cleaner, greener plant.

“Nobody wants to destroy the earth. Mine operators have the same viewpoint in this regard,” he adds.

“Taking on renewable projects is them doing the right thing for the planet and an economic decision. If one has a mine life of at least five years, they should be looking at renewable energy from an economic point of view.” AM

GOLD FIELDS’ SOLAR PLANT AT THE GRANNY SMITH MINE IN WA IS MADE UP OF 20,000 SOLAR PANELS.

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WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

OPENING DOORS FOR AUSTRALIA’S INDIGENOUS MINERS AS AUSTRALIA’S MINING INDUSTRY FORTIFIES ITSELF AS THE BACKBONE OF THE NATION’S ECONOMY, MAJOR RESOURCES COMPANIES AND ABORIGINAL-OWNED CONTRACTORS LOOK TO STRENGTHEN THE PRESENCE OF INDIGENOUS WORKERS IN THE INDUSTRY. NICKOLAS ZAKHARIA WRITES.

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ustralia’s mining workforce is made up of almost 250,000 workers that are scattered across the country.

It’s a telling sign that mining is heading in the right direction, with employment levels rising by more than 10 per cent in the past five years.

With business surging, many mining companies are taking more responsibility in supporting local employment of Indigenous people.

According to the Australian Government’s Closing the Gap Report 2020, the Indigenous employment rate was at 49 per cent in 2018. The areas most affected were classed as remote or very remote locations, which are primarily where mining operations take place.

To tackle these figures, Aboriginal-owned mining companies, including IronMerge and Western Labour Hire are working with communities to kickstart the careers of local Indigenous people.

Merging jobs with local communities

IronMerge, a Supply Nation Aboriginal-owned mining and civil works service company, aims to provide services that improve the economic and employment standing of local Aboriginal communities in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The company prides itself on being a Nyamal family business and offers direct employment for Nyamal people in the Pilbara.

Its fundamentals are based on the key principle of reconciliation, with IronMerge striving to enhance Australia’s Indigenous workforce in

the mining industry and beyond.

IronMerge is proactively helping to provide a better and more prosperous future for Australia’s Indigenous communities – and this comes directly from its leadership team, which has strong local community ties.

“We’re early in the journey but our vision is crystal clear. IronMerge is a Nyamal family business, and we are determined to generate ongoing employment opportunities in the Nyamal region by rigorously assessing our clients’ needs and obligations, securing great people into our business, and ensuring we continue to refine our value proposition,” IronMerge general manager of operations Brendan Milburn tells Australian Mining.

“The closer we align to our customers, the better placed we are to continue creating opportunities.

“Employment opportunities need to be created for Nyamal, other Indigenous peoples and non-Indigenous people if we are to realise our mission and to balance a diverse workforce.”

IronMerge is growing its industry presence, being hired by NRW Holdings for its $70 million contract with Fortescue Metals Group’s (FMG) Iron Bridge magnetite joint venture project in Western Australia.

Fortescue has also progressed its Billion Opportunities Aboriginal procurement, having contributed upwards of $2.5 billion in contracts for Aboriginal businesses and joint ventures since it began in 2011.

“FMG and NRW have both created opportunity for IronMerge that has enabled us to mobilise our first workers to site, including Indigenous female employees. We’re on an exciting yet sustainable growth AUSTRALIANMINING

IRONMERGE CHAIRMAN IAN TAYLOR.

trajectory due directly to FMG’s and NRW’s support,” Milburn concludes.

IronMerge has also been working on expanding its expertise through an acquisition of Local Contracting Alliance (LCA), which helped link Indigenous mining businesses together through networking events.

LCA co-founder Matthew Shier, who is now a non-executive director on IronMerge’s board, tells Australian Mining of his drive to build up Indigenous-owned mining businesses and employment continues today.

“The LCA became a respected forum for identifying emerging Indigenous businesses and was well supported by Reconciliation WA and Supply Nation, along with sponsorship from a number of resources companies,” Shier says.

“After five years, the LCA had outgrown us: running it voluntarily in addition to juggling our individual careers and family responsibilities, we felt it was the right time to move forward into a new chapter.

“The big learning here is that collaboration opportunities are multiplied when great people, great ideas, and great conversations intersect in a welcoming and

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energetic environment. It’s been really rewarding to transfer the LCA’s authenticity across to the IronMerge mission, as the business scales up its footprint.”

The zeal behind a local mission

Western Labour Hire is looking to make a change within the industry.

The Aboriginal-owned contractor provides open labour hire service across the mining and construction sectors in conjunction with providing employment opportunities to Indigenous people across Australia.

Founded by Adrian Connolly and his wife Dionne, Western Labour Hire provides employment and training with a focus on getting Indigenous people into work.

Since starting as a local welding business in Cloncurry, Queensland more than 10 years ago, Western Labour Hire has built up a strong list of partnerships with local companies, communities, Traditional Owners and global mining contractors.

“In the communities that we lived and worked in, we noticed that there was a high unemployment rate for indigenous people,” Connolly tells Australian Mining.

WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

WESTERN LABOUR HIRE ACTIVELY ENCOURAGES THE EMPLOYMENT OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE.

“A lot of opportunities for training but not a lot for employment. So, we just wanted to make a little change in the best way that we could with the opportunities that we had.

“It’s the passion – the passion from myself and my wife. We live and breathe it every day.”

Connolly hopes to increase the employment rate of Indigenous Australians. In his view, many have TAFE qualifications but there are no jobs available due to a number of individual factors.

“Indigenous people in Australia are the most trained people in the nation,” he says.

“When the government brought in funded training, especially more incentives for indigenous people it’s just training but no job at the end of it. That’s the problem.”

Western Labour Hire aims to create pathways for Indigenous people to enter the mining industry – and for Connolly, getting successful outcomes is more important than a “tick and flick” hiring practice.

“It’s not about pushing numbers for us and getting funding, it’s about having those successful outcomes for us and seeing someone’s life go from being non-ambitious to owning their home and spending their money wisely within a couple of years,” Connolly says.

“With our skills and background, we’ve provided people who haven’t worked in the mining industry before with a pathway into (the sector) and I suppose it’s led to a

career for some people.”

The difficult circumstances and environments some Indigenous people face is an area Connolly and his company actively works on improving through community engagement.

“A lot of Indigenous people have barriers to overcome and we give

them the wrap-around support required to give them the best start possible,” he says.

“You’ve got two or three generations of people living in the same household that have never worked so it’s about making those changes.

“We get in there and we do the best we can to give them support

that’s needed.”

With years of experience working alongside Indigenous communities, and actively partaking in cultural awareness programs, Connolly says there’s plenty of room for improvement.

“From my experience, you sit around the table with the executives at a higher end senior management level and they’re all for it,” he says.

“But it does not get pushed down the chain of command enough.

“There’s a lot of work to be done in most places and from what I’ve seen a lot of work to be done when it comes to cultural awareness.

“If you’re putting some entry level Indigenous employees into a work site, you need to know that their non-Indigenous co-workers are on board with the programs running and what everyone is trying to achieve.

“When they’re not on board, there can be some negative views that are put out there and that does happen.

They need to be fully on board and receptive of it and understand what everyone is trying to achieve and then I think there’ll be a big difference.”

At the end of the day, Connolly is happy he’s helping make a positive impact on peoples’ lives.

“It is important for the industry to show real commitment when it comes to Indigenous employment from our point of view. We just do the best we can to make a difference,” he concludes. AM WESTERN LABOUR HIRE AIMS TO PROVIDE TRAINING THAT TRANSLATES INTO JOBS.

AUSTRALIANMINING

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MINING SERVICES

HOW MINING COMPANIES CAN BUILD MORE RESILIENT SUPPLY CHAINS WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OUTBREAK CATCHING MULTIPLE COMPANIES AND ENTIRE INDUSTRIES OFF GUARD, IT MIGHT BE TIME FOR MINING COMPANIES TO RE-ASSESS THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN RISKS AND BUILD MORE RESILIENCE. TARA HAMID WRITES.

S

upply chain disruptions of the magnitude created by the COVID-19 pandemic are causing the industry to reassess its strengths and weaknesses to be better prepared for potential ripple effects.

To put into perspective the scale of supply chain disruptions, the World Economic Forum reported in May that week-on-week trade in China, the United States and Europe halved because of the crisis.

In the same month, data from Tradeshift, a global platform for supply chain management, indicated that trade had flatlined in every region affected by the lockdown.

The side effects of these lower global trade levels could particularly impact mining companies that rely heavily on inbound trade for their critical spares and equipment, according to Paul Mitchell, EY global mining and metals leader.

Addressing participants during a

webcast on ‘How global mining and metals companies can lead through the COVID-19 crisis’ in April, the expert suggests that mining companies should act now to shore up existing supply chain structures, while considering how to build future resilience.

“Supply chains, both from an inbound and an outbound perspective, are something that everyone (who talks to us) is concerned about,” Mitchell explains during the webcast.

“These concerns seem to be more for the mid-term. When I talk to the clients, they say: at the moment we are okay. We have supply to do our operations, but our worry is that that would change in the future. They are worried about their critical spare running out and this impacting their operations.”

Mitchell’s advice to mining companies looking to build more resilient supply chains is to begin with an end-to-end supply chain risk assessment to prepare for global

AUSTMINE CHIEF EXECUTIVE CHRISTINE GIBBS STEWART.

trade implications in their business.

“The first step is to review what is most critical to your operations. Find that single point of failure across the site that will really impact your operations,” he continues.

Mitchell also advises that mining companies identify their supply

chain gaps and look at alternative options to supply their critical inbound products.

“Assessments of how much inventory will be required on-site should take into account anticipated disruption due to ongoing complexity around movement and transport. Considering alternative suppliers can ensure that a backup plan is in place,” he says.

While major Australian miners that own and control their own railway and port facilities will be better placed to manage visibility across their supply chains, there are a number of measures that smaller companies can adopt to mitigate the risks, according to Mitchell.

Steel Mains, an Australian manufacturer of mild steel pipe systems for water and wastewater transfer, is one supplier that knows first-hand about the risks that mines relying solely on foreign imports face.

“Apart from the lower quality products and increased maintenance STEEL MAINS SUPPLIES CUSTOMDESIGNED STEEL PIPES AND FITTINGS TO A WIDE RANGE OF INDUSTRIES.

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MINING SERVICES

A CARGO SHIP BERTH AT FREMANTLE PORT IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

portable hand hygiene station to provide better hygiene solutions to remote mines.

Other Austmine members, Pulse Mining Systems and Mideco, have joined forces to introduce Bat Booth 2.0 – an employee temperature checking booth that helps mining companies protect their workers from viral infections and heat stress.

Higher visibility across supply chain

costs over the life of the assets, companies that are heavily focussed on the imported products are currently at an increased delivery risk due to disruptions in the global supply chain. This will negatively impact all capital expenditure, retrofit and maintenance projects,” says Amir Vahdani, Steel Mains’ regional sales manager for Western Australia and South Australia and mining business development manager.

“As an Australian-owned company with two strategically located manufacturing hubs in Western Australia and Victoria, Steel Mains is perfectly positioned to support the Australian mining industry. For over a century we have been partnering with mining companies that have a longer-term view on their assets.

They have realised that the use of the Steel Mains’ products lower their total cost of ownership – including capital expenditure, installation and operational costs.”

For the past 125 years, the company has been supplying fully protected and custom-designed steel pipes and fittings that support a wide range of industries, including the mining sector.

According to Vahdani, the support extended by the relevant government authorities has been instrumental to the company’s ability to continue its production uninterrupted.

“Fortunately, our fully Australian supply chain was not impacted under COVID-19 restrictions as our service was categorised as an essential service for the water industry.

Uninterrupted production with local labours from Australian raw materials

maximises the benefits for our economy through job security whilst the highest quality solutions are offered to end users,” he says.

What will supply chains look like in the future?

Going forward and once the crisis eventually eases, mining companies might consider implementing major shifts across their supply chains to ensure greater resilience.

Mitchell anticipates these to include a greater adoption of cloudbased network systems to provide better visibility to all stakeholders in real time. He also expects 3D and additive printing to gain more traction to manufacture essential components on-site.

Finding alternative and broader sources of supply to reduce reliance on a small number of vendors, as well as considering collaboration on supply chain hubs are other trends that Mitchell anticipates to shape the future of mining and metals supply chains.

“Over the last 20 years, we’ve talked about consolidating suppliers and controlling the number of suppliers that you’ve got. It’s still an effective business strategy. Is there an alternate supplier if something happens to your current one? Is this the time to consider collaborations with other producers?” Mitchell says during the EY webcast.

“If you are a copper producer for example, should you be talking to other copper producers about perhaps sharing some of your critical spares? A big advantage of that is it will have a big benefit in terms of your working capital because you won’t be needed to hold additional AUSTRALIANMINING

spares that you’ve identified yourself.”

Mitchell, however, points out that looking for alternative sources of supply should not come at the cost of jeopardising the mines’ relationships with their existing suppliers.

“Even as alternative sources are considered, companies must maintain good relationships with current suppliers that are critical stakeholders in the business,” he says.

Closer collaboration with suppliers

Austmine chief executive, Christine Gibbs Stewart, says some Austmine member companies have already stepped up collaboration with their clients to help them get through the crisis.

“During this time, the need for innovation and adopting new technologies (across the mines) has accelerated,” she tells Australian Mining.

“From implementing more automation and remote-working technologies to finding ways to better track the workforce on the site, mines are looking for ways to keep their workforce out of harm’s way.

“Some of our member companies have been opening up their space so that mining companies can work from that space. Others have accelerated the roll-out of critical technologies, using their existing knowhow and infrastructure.”

As an example, Enware, an Austmine member company, has ramped up its introduction of No Touch sensor tapware solutions and introduced Wheelie Clean – a

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Investment in technologies that offer visibility across the inbound and outbound supply chains is another key aspect for miners to anticipate and mitigate disruptions.

Motorola Solutions, also an Austmine member, has demonstrated a good example of this by helping client, Rio Tinto Aluminium, deploy a back-up communications solution for its Integrated Operations Centre (IOC) in Brisbane within just five days.

The system enables continued critical communications between mines during an emergency by enabling the IOC to continue providing 24/7 monitoring of all safety, production and quality aspects at remote Rio Tinto mine sites.

“We provide a variety of solutions to increase visibility and performance across our customers’ supply chains,” says Martin Chappell, general manager for energy, resources and industrial sectors for Motorola Solutions Australia and New Zealand.

“Among them are missioncritical voice networks that mining organisations depend on for clear communication from mine to port across some of Australia’s longest private rail networks. This helps mining organisations to deliver iron ore loads and other cargo on time, while increasing efficiency across their entire operations.”

Gibbs Stewart says more transparency between governments and METS companies will enable companies to better respond to the sector’s requirements in the future.

“The (national COVID-19) protocols that were put in place early on ensured that the mining industry was as a whole better placed than many other industries to be able to remain operational during the crisis,” Gibbs Stewart says.

“Going forward, we expect clear and consistent communication from the federal and state governments so that our member companies can understand where they stand in terms of travel restrictions and export limitations so that they can plan accordingly.” AM

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MINING SERVICES

DEEP DIVING INTO THE END OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN THE AUSTRALIAN MINING SECTOR IS LARGELY SUCCESSFUL DUE TO ITS TIES TO GLOBAL EXPORT MARKETS, SOMETHING THAT WOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE HELP OF LOCAL MINING PORTS.

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ustralia might have some of the most prospective supplies of natural resources on Earth – but there’s no hiding from the fact that the country is surrounded by water.

This makes our mining ports vital to the strength of Australia’s economy and the foreign countries, which demand our rich supply of resources.

More than 90 per cent of the world’s exports come from seaborne freight.

Australia’s exports industry has not faltered during the onset of a recession, with the Australian Government’s Resources and Energy Quarterly for June 2020 revealing export numbers

are still increasing.

The resource and energy sectors have earned $293 billion in the 201920 financial year, a figure fuelled by an increasing demand for iron ore and resilient commodities such as coal.

Regardless of fears that this growth may slow down, the resources industry remains in good stead to continue bolstering the nation’s economy.

Iron ore meets the world

Western Australia makes up more than half of both Australia’s mining exports and mining investment.

With such a large amount of our resources being shipped from the west, Pilbara Ports Authority (PPA) oversees some of the state’s major mining ports,

including the Port of Port Hedland, Port of Dampier and the Port of Ashburton.

Established as a Western Australian Government Trading Enterprise in 2014, PPA is an integral part of the country’s resources sector.

“Pilbara Ports Authority plays a key role in the state and national supply chain, facilitating 80 per cent of Australia’s seaborne iron ore exports through the ports of Dampier and Port Hedland,” Pilbara Ports Authority chief executive officer Roger Johnston tells Australian Mining.

“The ports of Dampier and Port Hedland are the world’s largest bulk export ports and are ideally located to meet the increasing demands

PORT HEDLAND HELPS CONNECT RESOURCES FROM THE PILBARA REGION TO THE REST OF THE WORLD.

AUSTRALIANMINING

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of imports and exports of rapidly developing economies, particularly in the Asia Pacific region.”

For the 2019-20 financial year, PPA achieved a total annual throughput of 717.2 million tonnes.

Johnston says PPA has also been hard at work to push its ports into the future, along with proposing a number of greenfield ports.

“While efficient, Pilbara Ports Authority has also sought to be innovative, and has invested in world-leading projects and maritime technologies to maximise port efficiency and safety,” Johnston says.

“These have allowed for the management of larger vessels, increasing vessel draft and increasing

MINING SERVICES

GLADSTONE PORTS CORPORATION OPERATES PORTS AND FACILITIES ACROSS CENTRAL QUEENSLAND.

loaded capacity on vessels, while reducing risk.”

This includes a world-first dynamic port capacity model that increased the shipping capacity at Port Hedland last year.

The Port of Port Hedland represents huge economic value for Western Australia, injecting $54.7 billion into the state’s economy in 2018-19.

“For the Pilbara, it is the gateway to the world,” Port Hedland Industries Council chief executive officer Kirsty Danby tells Australian Mining.

“If the Port Hedland Port Supply Chain was an industry sector in Western Australia, it would outstrip all other sectors apart from mining.

“The Port of Port Hedland has grown to become the world’s largest bulk export terminal, handling over 511 million tonnes of trade and 6147 vessel movements in 2018-19.

“It handles primarily iron ore (99 per cent), but also manganese, salt, lithium and copper concentrate.”

The Pilbara port is a vital economic driver for major iron ore miners such as Fortescue Metals Group, BHP, Roy Hill and Atlas Iron, along with other commodities such as salt from Rio Tinto.

“Australia – in particular the Pilbara – now dominates the world iron ore market, with WA the largest iron ore supplier in the world, accounting for 37 per cent of global supply in 2019,” Danby says.

“The Port of Port Hedland is recognised as one of the most important pieces of economic infrastructure in the nation.”

Shipping Queensland ‘s coal supply

Over the past 10 years, coal has maintained its status as a leading exported resource in Australia.

Queensland is Australia’s largest supplier of coal, with the governmentowned Gladstone Ports Corporation (GPC) acting as a lifeblood in the state for coal exports.

“The Port of Gladstone plays an integral part in the supply chain as Australia’s premier multi-commodity port,” Gladstone Ports Corporation acting chief executive officer Craig Walker tells Australian Mining.

GPC manages, develops and operates port facilities across the Central Queensland region, with its ports in Gladstone, Rockhampton and Bundaberg continuing to enhance the region’s prosperity, jobs and trade.

Its priority port, the Port of Gladstone, is Queensland’s largest multi-commodity port and provides throughput of more than 100 million tonnes per annum.

“The Port of Gladstone exports metallurgical coal, which is used for steelmaking, providing the entire contribution of steel to the world,” Walker says.

“Over 70 per cent of the coal exports are metallurgical coal with the remainder being thermal coal, which is used to fuel the boilers of power stations in countries such as Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Israel.”

The port is made up of the RG Tanna Coal Terminal (RGTCT) and Wiggins Island Coal Export Terminal (WICET), which makes it the fourth AUSTRALIANMINING

largest coal exporter globally.

“In the 2018-19 financial year, the Port of Gladstone had a total throughput of 124.02 million tonnes – a record number for the port,” Walker says “GPC’s unique dual operating model with port and coal terminals broadens its scope and capabilities as a multi commodity port, with imports and exports valued in the vicinity of $40 billion in the 2018-19 financial year.

“RGTCT receives coal from 19 mines within the southern Bowen Basin from two rail supply chains known as the Blackwater and Moura systems.”

Walker says GPC has collaborative and collegiate supply chain arrangements to ensure the efficient and prudent operations and service.

“It is critical that the ports are developed in a systematic and sustainable manner to facilitate the continued growth of trade and planning is a vital part of that process,” he says.

Growing South Australia’s exports opportunities

Flinders Ports is South Australia’s largest port operator, working across seven commercial ports.

“Mining is one of the major industry sectors we work with, reflecting its importance to the state. A significant portion of exports handled through our ports are mined commodities,” Flinders Ports general manager group development Andrew Pellizzari tells Australian Mining.

“Indeed, over the next five years we would also expect this figure to increase with South Australia having set ambitious goals for growth in mining production.”

The private port operator also offers a number of integrated supply

chain solutions to the state’s mining companies, which help both smaller and larger companies.

“In addition to port operations, we deliver integrated supply chain solutions to several of the state’s mining companies, including bulk handling, rail to wharf transport and storage,” Pellizzari says.

“It’s this integrated approach that our mining partners find most valuable, enabling them to work with one supply chain partner from mine-to-export.

“An integrated supply chain approach also reduces costs and can allow miners to better plan for, and mitigate, any knock-on effects of volatile commodities markets in their supply chain processes.”

For Pellizzari, advancements in technology have also contributed to its operation, applying a datacentric approach to its container allocation and management at its Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal.

“Our group leadership team also continually assesses new technology solutions and our 50-year masterplan, which will be completed this year, will also look at the long-term potential of a range of technologies, ranging from AI, automation and blockchain,” he says.

“As a group Flinders Port Holdings has already invested significant capital expenditure over the past 15 years to expand and improve our port facilities to accommodate export growth and will continue to invest to ensure South Australia remains connected to the world.

“The state has set ambitious targets for international exports of energy and mining commodities starting at $8 billion in 2025 and $13 billion by 2030.

Flinders Port Holdings is committed to ensuring the state infrastructure can support this level of export growth.” AM

FLINDERS PORTS OPERATES SEVEN COMMERCIAL PORTS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

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MAINTENANCE

MACMAHON PROVIDES FULL MINING SERVICES AT THE TROPICANA GOLD PROJECT IN WA FOR ANGLO GOLD ASHANTI AND IGO.

BECOMING MAINTENANCE MASTERS UNDER MACMAHON’S WING WORKPLACE FLEXIBILITY IS INCREASINGLY ATTRACTIVE TO THE NEXT GENERATION OF WORKERS. MACMAHON IS DEVELOPING MAINTENANCE CREWS WITH THE DESIRE TO GO FROM SITE TO SITE THROUGH ITS MINING MAINTENANCE MASTERS PROGRAM.

T

he competition for maintenance specialists is high.

Mining companies have to not only compete with their industry peers for skilled crews, but also externally with construction, engineering and electrical firms.

With maintenance an area that remains essential despite the onset of automation, the appetite for recruiting the right talent is not yet extinguished.

Mining services company Macmahon Holdings has set a strategy to stay ahead of the competition by surveying the market to find out the barriers it faces in attracting the leading candidates.

“One thing we found from our research was that there was a large group of young tradesmen who want to be able to move from site to site,” Macmahon general manager Mark

Hatfield tells Australian Mining.

“They’re not very interested in the benefits that come with full-time jobs. They’re at an age where they’re young, fit and capable to deliver – they want to earn higher, casual fees instead of becoming permanent employees.”

Macmahon launched the Mining Maintenance Masters (MMM) program as a platform that provides this opportunity.

The program enables maintenance crews to go from site to site across Macmahon’s Western Australian portfolio, but they are still treated like a valued employee.

The broad range of work offered starts from supporting Macmahon’s base workshops, through to onsite operations where employees perform a variety of maintenance work including breakdown work and specialty jobs, and assisting mining companies in start-up operations.

AUSTRALIANMINING

The MMM program will target up to 70 people, who will rotate through Macmahon’s Western Australian projects. Macmahon plans to raise the capacity up to 90 maintenance masters within 18 months to support its entire Australian operations.

“Once they gain experience across the Macmahon portfolio, they get to know our people and soon discover they love working for the company.

This opens up the opportunity for them to become a permanent employee on a site that ultimately suits them,” Hatfield says.

“If they want to earn casual rates, we’re happy to accommodate that until the time comes and they want to become permanent. This group will help support the peak requirements that every site goes through.”

Macmahon provides an enviable portfolio of sites for any young tradesperson to begin their career.

With four workshops across Australia,

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AUGUST 2020

the company delivers services at BHP’s Olympic Dam operation in South Australia, BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA)’s Peak Downs and Saraji coal mines in Queensland; Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine in Victoria; and Newmont’s Tanami gold mine in the Northern Territory.

In Western Australia, Macmahon is contracted at the Tropicana joint venture between AngloGold Ashanti and IGO, Newcrest Mining’s Telfer mine and Dacian Gold’s Mt Morgans operation.

The MMM team has the opportunity to work on Macmahon’s national fleet of 500 pieces of equipment across its mobile plant portfolio.

“We’ve just taken a large delivery of Liebherr R 9800 excavators for the Byerwen coal mine in Queensland,” Hatfield says.

“They themselves have three, and

MAINTENANCE

the operator QCoal just received 16 Hitachi EH5000s. These haul trucks will be operating at Byerwen alongside 20 Cat 793 dump trucks and five Cat D10 dozers, plus other ancillary equipment.”

Macmahon is committed to developing its people, growing them through their apprenticeship program as an avenue for skills development and raising them to be future leaders in the business.

Hatfield says the MMM program is improving the attractiveness of the company as a place to work and gives workers the ability to grow their career. This ambition is propped up

by Macmahon’s technical training department, which trains employees on all the basic equipment that the company runs.

The department is responsible for technology improvements so the company can deliver value through technology and realise its vision to be an advanced mining contractor of the future.

“One thing that Macmahon looks for in its potential recruits, however, is a focus and appreciation for working safely on site. If they have that, then we can help them to develop any skills shortage they may have through our technical training department. As long as they’ve got the right attitude, we can be sure we’ll be successful in training them,” Hatfield concludes. AM

MACMAHON HEAVY DUTY MECHANIC SERVICING FIELD FLEET AT THE TROPICANA GOLD MINE.

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AUGUST 2020

DRILL & BLAST

IMPECCABLE APPROACH TO DRILL AND BLAST OPERATIONS HUMMINGBIRD ELECTRONICS IS A MASTER OF INSTRUMENTATION WHEN ACCURACY IS NEEDED, COMMITTING NO SLIP UPS OR BAD ANGLES WHEN INCLINOMETERS ARE USED FOR DRILL AND BLAST ACTIVITIES. AUSTRALIAN MINING WRITES.

M

any components work together to achieve the full, intended goal of a drill and blast operation.

With unwavering precision key to the impact of drill and blast activities, the sales of Hummingbird inclinometers are “going through the roof”.

This momentum is indiscriminate to the slowdown of activity fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hummingbird’s industrial range of inclinometers and angle detection are applicable to mining activities.

Australian made in the Hummingbird design facility in New South Wales and produced at its Adelaide advanced electronics manufacturing facility, the inclinometers help ensure that a drill rig has been positioned correctly.

They were first designed for heavy machinery working on slopes and uneven surfaces, without the intention of being used in a drill and blast operation.

Their practicality has extended

to drill and blast operations, thanks to a proven ability to data log pitch, roll, GPS location, speed and time to internal memory off the back of an incline sensor. Its display can be positioned at an optional angle for operator visibility, while allowing for accurate angle measurement.

The inclinometers have evolved from a black and grey display to today’s full-colour version, with icons of machinery such as an excavator or dozer providing greater personalisation.

Operators can also place a sensor on the drill mast and another on the body to display both angles at the same time. This is particularly relevant when an operator needs to be on absolute flat ground and drill on a slope.

The ball bubble, too, helps operators get to a level platform by adjusting the ball to the middle.

Operators will hear warnings when reaching a critical angle, as well as having the knowledge that they are drilling at the most precise angle required.

“If they drill into the ground at

WITH MINING AN ESSENTIAL ACTIVITY DURING COVID-19, SALES OF HUMMINGBIRD INCLINOMETERS HAVE BEEN STRONG.

AUSTRALIANMINING

HUMMINGBIRD HMDS8000 DUAL AXIS INCLINOMETER.

horrible angles, the blast might not go as planned. That is how critical our inclinometers are to a drill and blast operation,” Hummingbird mining and industrial sales manager Scott Montgomery tells Australian Mining.

“A majority of drill operators are pretty good at what they do today, but the inclinometer gives that extra level of efficiency.”

The inclinometer is further applicable to a drill shaft. It helps ensure all forward, back, left and right angles are 100 per cent correct so an operator can drill in a perfectly vertical or horizontal position.

GPS speed detection and display are complemented with an accelerometer that can identify machine vibration as part of detection whether a slow moving machinery is on or moving in a drill and blast operation.

“Hundreds of mine sites are using our inclinometers, not only for their drill rigs but also for their trucks, dozers, excavators – there’s a wide application for this product,” Montgomery says.

“The inclinometers are getting a lot of take up in many places. Our sales are going through the roof and we’re combatting COVID-19 supply issues with the increasing demand.”

The versatile inclinometers can apply to any mining equipment that operates on a slope and therefore

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attracts a safety hazard. Combined with Hummingbird’s audio alert system, it can emit warnings in a human voice instead of a standard buzzer in the cabin.

In the event an alert is made, that time is data logged with a GPS location, time and date stamp.

This information becomes critical to a safety analysis, post-accident investigation or upon developing the mine site.

“The number of accidental rollovers that have happened on mine sites are identified as a critical area of safety for any machinery,” Montgomery, who has 30 years’ experience in the electrical industry, says.

“We work very hard to make sure that this device, as well as many of our other devices protect the operator as well as the machinery.”

Hummingbird has proven its ability to keep up with the sector’s increasing move to autonomous mining by custom designing its outputs to meet customer needs.

Technology and occupational health and safety have increasingly become a focus during Montgomery’s extensive career.

“Everyone is looking for improved efficiency, reliability and machinery and worker protection. Devices such as inclinometers bring all of those together,” he concludes. AM

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DRILL & BLAST

CREATING A HIGH-PRESSURE BOOSTER FOR AUSTRALIAN ENVIRONMENTS ALREADY A WELL-KNOWN FORCE IN THE MINING SECTOR, ATLAS COPCO HAS LAUNCHED THE INNOVATIVE HURRICANE B741 COMPACT BOOSTER, WHICH PROMISES CLASS-LEADING PERFORMANCE IN A MUCH SMALLER FOOTPRINT.

W

hen introducing a new piece of mining equipment to the Australian market, it’s important that the machinery is designed to match the tough conditions and specific demands of the industry.

Offering a more robust and rugged product doesn’t always mean it has to be larger and more burdensome.

Atlas Copco’s Hurricane B7-41 Compact Booster takes everything customers praised about the full size B7-41 and shrinks it down to something much more compatible for sites with limited space, while maintaining the same high performance.

The Hurricane B7-41 Compact Booster is a single-stage air/nitrogen compressor for drilling applications, featuring Atlas’ high standards of usability, efficiency and reliability.

Atlas Copco’s innovative approach to booster design allows every inch of space to be used to its full potential, resulting in a smaller and lighter package that still packs the same punch as its larger Hurricane Booster counterparts.

Equipped with a unique Atlas Copco designed pumper block, the Hurricane B7-41 features increases to the pressure ratio of air and nitrogen by around factor 2.7 and 2.9 per compression stage.

It includes a Caterpillar C 7.1 diesel engine with Tier 3 emissions and fuel standards to save costs during operation.

The Hurricane B7-41 Compact Booster is designed for use in a wide array of mining applications, including exploration, blasthole drilling, water well drilling, geothermal drilling and

ATLAS COPCO’S HURRICANE B7-41 COMPACT BOOSTER.

seismic surveying – while also lending itself to other industries such as oil and gas exploration and offshore drilling.

Atlas Copco’s west coast business development manager Greg Jones says the company’s local team has worked closely with global production to bring the new B7-41 Compact Booster to the Australian market.

“We’ve worked really closely with the Belgian design and development team in the last 18 months to help deliver a product that really fits the Australian customers’ requirements,” he tells Australian Mining.

“With the compact booster, the research and development that’s gone in will be critical for us to retain our market-leading position in high flow and high-pressure air.

“The technology involved is second to none and having personally visited Antwerp in late February and witnessed the machine under construction, it’s great to be in a position where we are now a couple of months away from introducing it to Australia. It’s been good to be involved in the development, and with a record level of interest in the new product locally we are really excited to see it on the ground here.”

Feedback from Atlas Copco’s Australian clients has been a major consideration in the development AUSTRALIANMINING

and plan to bring the equipment to local shores.

“The research and development has not only centred around the best in class performance and features, reliability is absolutely critical and was a major driver in the product development. Having this equipment run first time every time and keep running is critical to our customers, especially in the more remote areas that this gear often operated in,” Jones says.

“It can handle ambient temperatures of 50 degrees – so there won’t be any issues across the whole of Australia where higher ambient temperatures can be a performance reducing factor for some equipment. The new Compact B7 Booster won’t have any problem working in the toughest Australian environments.

“It is critical that, even in the harshest of environments, the reliability of a product is on point. In this industry, time literally is money, so maximum uptime and productivity is critical to our customers.”

Atlas Copco’s east coast business development manager Daniel Zec says to further improve the overall reliability of the unit, Atlas Copco has introduced the Smart Air XC4004 compressor controller for the Hurricane B7-41 Compact Booster to enhance

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preventative maintenance capabilities.

The XC4004 controller has the ability to monitor and shut off other components if it detects a failing component on the unit.

“It’s the technology and reliability that’s going to make a huge difference,” Zec says.

Atlas Copco business line manager John Fitzpatrick says the company’s current line of compression boosters build off the DNA of their previous product line, providing an easier upgrade path for pre-existing drill rigs.

“It comes back to the Hurricane B74/1000 of old. The previous machine really set the standard with its compact design and everyone built their rigs to the compact version’s standards,” he says.

“When Hurricane, an Atlas Copco company, closed its doors in the US, we quickly moved production to our air competence centre in Antwerp, Belgium and set about improving what was already the undoubted leader of the pack. The full-size version has in the interim filled a gap and has been fine if people were building new rigs to new design standards. But for replacements or pre-existing designs, a full-sized version doesn’t fit the required footprint.”

The Hurricane B7-41 Compact Booster is expected to hit the Australian market in September. AM

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DRILL & BLAST

AUTOMATE WITH A HUMAN TOUCH MINING OPERATIONS CAN REAP HUGE BENEFITS FROM AUTOMATING THEIR DRILL AND BLAST OPERATIONS, BUT DRILLEDGE SAYS WORKFORCES MUST HAVE THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF EXPERTISE TO TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF THE TECHNOLOGY. AUSTRALIAN MINING WRITES.

K

eeping a mining operation running safely is paramount to its success, and as automated solutions grow in popularity it’s important to know what you’re doing.

Despite the plug-and-play mentality surrounding many automated mining solutions, some workforces do not harbour an adequate skillset to take full advantage of these advanced industrial technologies.

This can bog down the efficiency and productivity of an operation, a significant consideration of any automation project.

Drilledge has been offering a range of drill and blast services and solutions to the mining industry for more than 20 years. Originally founded in Australia, Drilledge relaunched as a Singapore-based company last year and has now expanded globally.

With years of experience associated with automated drilling technology, Drilledge has remained ahead of the curb with its understanding of the advancements that the mining industry has witnessed.

From its knowledge of the latest developments, Drilledge flags a lack of understanding of the complexities related to implementing autonomous solutions as a key challenge to overcome.

“We’ve seen firsthand where

DRILLEDGE PROVIDES AN EXTENSIVE SELECTION OF DRILL AND BLAST SERVICES AND SOLUTIONS TO THE MINING INDUSTRY.

companies have been trying to automate drills for years and they’re still going around in circles – they’re throwing money at it because they haven’t really addressed each stage of the process properly,” Drilledge director Andrew Crothers tells Australian Mining.

“Because we look at an entire operation during the assessment phase, we quickly understand if there are inefficiencies that need to be addressed to enable automation to proceed. If the operation is inefficient before you automate it, automation by itself is not going to improve the efficiency.”

As owners of Drilledge, Crothers and his co-director Shane Wegner aim to improve mining’s automation landscape so customers can use autonomous drill and blast technology to its full potential.

With a combined experience in mining’s drill and blast sector that spans more than 50 years, Drilledge advises Tier 1 miners, OEMs and juniors.

“We were focussed on automation prior to the (COVID-19) pandemic,” Crothers says. “We’ve had experience with drilling automation since the conceptual stages through our involvement with OEMs and projects that have successfully deployed automated drilling capabilities.”

“A combination of senior management commitment, a AUSTRALIANMINING

dedicated team and employee training are three major aspects that mining companies should aim to improve when introducing automation.

“One of the things that we found is that a lot of the people coming out of the trade schools don’t really have the right skills to move into an automated environment.

“So, one of the gaps that we find we have a lot of value is when we take people and we upskill them above and beyond what we’re getting in technical schools or trade schools.

“The key is people, in terms of getting up to speed with how the DRILLEDGE HAS MORE THAN 20 YEARS OF INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE.

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equipment works, maintaining the equipment, managing all of the planning that goes into blast hole patterns and managing the actual automation.”

Drilledge aims to improve these areas through its broad range of offerings, some of which include automation site readiness, automation training, base machine training and maintenance services.

The Drilledge Master Driller Certification program looks at how people can improve necessary skills to enable them to move to automation.

“The master driller package is based around people optimising their efficiency,” Crothers says.

“It’s not just giving them the base skills to do something. It provides a roadmap and a pathway for continuous improvement to become certified to increasing levels of proficiency.

Crothers says companies often assume that introducing automation is going to be an easy process, but it’s actually quite a complex project for them.

“That’s what we’ve discovered – companies think, ‘we’ll just throw some automated kit on our drill and it will work’,” he says.

“I think that people all want to embrace automation, but developing the skillsets and the knowledge currently makes it a slow process for many companies.

“That’s where we come in and will assist in every direction there. We’ve got that roadmap for success.” AM

DRILL & BLAST

BLASTING QUALITY BOOSTED BY TECHNOLOGY AND DATA

BME IS RESPONSIBLE FOR 7350 AXXIS ELECTRONIC DETONATORS THAT WERE FIRED IN A SINGLE PATTERN 1.7 KILOMETRES LONG.

BME HAS DEVELOPED A DETONATOR SYSTEM THAT SET THE WORLD’S PREVIOUS RECORD BLAST IN A COAL MINE IN AUSTRALIA. THE COMPANY IS NOW INTRODUCING COMPLEMENTARY TECHNOLOGIES THAT HELP CONTRIBUTE TO A SEAMLESS BLASTING OPERATION.

T

echnological innovation and data integration are driving blast accuracy and quality, as explosive companies constantly improve the way that blasting processes are planned, executed, monitored and automated.

According to BME Australia Asia general manager Brad Bulow, the South Africa-based global blasting leader is poised to broaden its application of explosive products, manufacturing and application equipment, electronic consumables and cutting-edge software in Australia’s mining sector. It is also actively integrating its blast design, blast recording and blast delivery systems.

Conducted in collaboration with partners in total mine design software systems, the company’s data integration initiatives will allow for easier interrogation of blast results, guiding the drilling and blasting process to consistently produce quality blasts, says Bulow.

Over decades of innovation, BME has developed a range of blasting tools which address mines’ requirements from the blast design stage through to blast operations and monitoring.

He highlights the AXXIS electronic detonation system as one of BME’s

key innovations, which is now used extensively in mining countries worldwide, including Australia.

“For blast initiation, the design hole firing times can be downloaded from our BLASTMAP blast planning software into BME’s AXXIS Logger for electronic detonator programming,” Bulow says. “When the blast has been conducted, data from the AXXIS Logger can be used to effectively compare as-designed versus as-fired initiation information.”

The AXXIS system has held the world record for largest number of electronic detonators fired in a single event twice in Australia. The most recent of these blasts was at a central Queensland coal mine when 7350 AXXIS electronic detonators were fired in a single pattern 1.7 kilometres long. The logging, testing and firing process was completed in two days with zero errors.

Among the more recent tools developed by BME is the Blasting Guide application for Android mobile devices, a valuable resource for quickly calculating blast designs. This free mobile app, available for download from the Google Play Store, replaces traditional paper booklets carried and referenced by in-field users.

It includes a blast design calculator,

quick calculators and prediction calculators. Other app features include surface blast design rules of thumb, environmental guidelines, a table of common rock properties and a BME contact directory per country.

The app runs both metric and imperial unit measurements, making it useful across the globe.

The company’s powerful BLASTMAP software tool is used to specify explosive hole loads and assign hole firing times. The latest version of this popular software includes a new design tool to heat-map initiation burden relief times.

“Burden relief times are important factors in rock fragmentation and displacement for blast designers to achieve their specific blast outcome, they need to understand and manage burden relief times. BLASTMAP, therefore, provides invaluable support in doing so,” BME’s global manager for Blasting Science, D. Scott Scovira says.

This tool can also estimate blast fragmentation outcomes, based on standard geo-mechanical rock

A BLAST AT A QUEENSLAND COAL MINE USING AXXIS DETONATORS.

AUSTRALIANMINING

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properties specific to any given blast design.

“With data from in-field fragmentation distribution measurements, the fragmentation distribution prediction tool can be calibrated to site-specific conditions and results,” Scovira says.

BME’s tools ensure that mines can achieve optimal rock fragmentation distribution, a key performance indicator of blast performance. This also allows mines to achieve the best possible outcome for their total mining cost.

Accurate fragmentation assessment tools are also vital to understand specific site conditions and to optimise initiation designs and loading of blast explosives. In addition, blasters must be sure that their designed blast is being translated accurately into the actual fired blast.

On the blasting operations side, BME’s tools include the XPLOLOG data recorder, which can capture data on the BLASTMAP designed hole charge. XPLOLOG can be used by blasters on the bench to capture as drilled hole depths and compare these to the design depths.

XPLOLOG also provides a realtime dashboard of block preparation progress to the blast management team. Reports are available for download for post-blast analysis and reporting.

“XPLOLOG can also be used by the bulk explosives truck operators to target the as designed bulk explosive hole loads and stemming columns, and capture the actual loads placed,” Scovira explains. AM

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DRILL & BLAST

NATIONAL GROUP, THROUGH WOLFF MINING, IS WELL KNOWN FOR ITS RANGE OF AUTOMATED DRILL SOLUTIONS.

NATIONAL GROUP EDGES CLOSER TO FULLY AUTONOMOUS DRILLING THE NATIONAL GROUP COMPRISES OF LEADING COMPANIES IN THE MINING, RESOURCES, TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS INDUSTRIES. THROUGH WOLFF MINING, THE NATIONAL GROUP HAS EXPANDED ITS RANGE OF SEMI-AUTONOMOUS EQUIPMENT, WITH PLANS TO IMPLEMENT FULLY AUTONOMOUS DRILLS IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

W

olff Mining, part of the National Group is well known for its range of automated and innovative solutions, such as largescale satellite bulk dozer push and semi-autonomous blast hole drilling.

The company has worked closely with Caterpillar in order to implement and optimise semi-autonomous tractor system (SATS) technology, in a world-first application into a mining production environment.

The collaboration with Caterpillar on Cat Command for Dozing and optimisation of satellite technology for large-scale bulk dozer push operations has given a single operator the ability to control up to four dozers at one time, putting Australian mining companies one step closer to fully autonomous mining operations in the future.

The development and implementation of fully autonomous drills is next on the horizon. National Group managing director Mark Ackroyd is excited for the future and plans to embrace this key technological

advancement.

“We are known for the dry hire of mining equipment and drills are no exception” Ackroyd tells Australian Mining.

“With Wolff Mining’s drilling services, we are building a firstclass business through low hour rigs, experienced operators and supervisors.

“Like Wolff Mining’s work on Cat Command for Dozing, drill technology is currently being developed and optimised.

“In the near future, we will have a range of Cat fully autonomous drills available to our clients. Acquiring a range of these fully autonomous drills is a future goal for the company, but for the moment, we are currently pleased with our work in the autonomous space.”

National Group predominantly offers Caterpillar drills, with the OEM leading the way in innovation with its next plans being to release these fully autonomous drills to the market.

At present, the Cat semi-autonomous drills allow operators to automate the drilling function itself, but manual input is still required to set the drill AUSTRALIANMINING

NATIONAL GROUP PLANS TO BRING FULLY AUTONOMOUS DRILLING TO AUSTRALIAN MINING IN THE COMING YEARS.

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DRILL & BLAST

NATIONAL GROUP HAS A RANGE OF CATERPILLAR DRILLS FOR DRY HIRE.

for the next hole after completing the drilling of the first.

Although fully autonomous drilling is still in the future for the Australian market, National Group, with Wolff Mining, remains focussed on its current role of supplying the industry with heavy mining equipment, including blast hole drills and drilling services, to prepare drill holes for subsequent blasting.

As is the case with the hire of heavy earthmoving equipment it supplies, National Group, through National Plant & Equipment offers dry hire of drill rigs, with Wolff Mining offering wet hire of drills, blast-hole drilling and contract mining services.

“Like most of the heavy earthmoving equipment we supply, we intend to supply the highest quality new and used drills, along with superior service that exceeds market average drilled metres per rig at a competitive price,” Ackroyd says.

Hastings Deering product manager – rotary blast hole drills Adam Davis says Caterpillar will release a range of fully autonomous drills with the ability for one operator to control up to three drills, much like the semi-autonomous tractor system technology works for dozers.

“An operator will be able to perform non-line of sight operations from a control room, with the added ability for multi-pass operations,” Davis says.

“Each of the three drills can also be set to unique drill patterns, enabling one operator to automate the drilling of multiple holes and patterns at the same time, all at the push of a button.”

Fully autonomous drill technology

has been in full development and has come a long way, with this technology to be available to mining companies in the near future.”

Caterpillar drills available for hire through National Group include the Caterpillar 6420 B and C models, which have a mast range of up to 12 metres and the ability to drill holes from 229-310 millimetres, vertical depth of 74.6 metres and providing typical drill rig metres of around 25,000-30,000 metres per month.

Another model available through National Plant & Equipment is the MD6420C, which can be boosted to a higher level of automation with Cat MineStar Terrain for remote, realtime monitoring of drilling activity

and blast planning.

Cat MineStar Terrain guides the operator through the job to improve their accuracy of drilling depth and hole placement, while providing feedback of the geology of the area being drilled.

“We offer a key point of difference, namely low-hour drills, which have all been purchased new and maintained per original equipment manufacturer (OEM) requirements to achieve market-leading availability and utilisation,” Ackroyd says.

“The National Group also has one of the lowest drill operator turnover rates in the Australian mining industry at less than 5 per cent, which is well below average.”

The company consistently delivers monthly drilled metres, regularly exceeding its clients’ monthly targets, according to Ackroyd.

National Group offers Caterpillar drills due to their long life and low total ownership costs, which gives the company’s clients easy maintenance and more uptime on the job, leading to safer and more comfortable drilling.

Some of the advanced features of the Cat drills available for hire through National Group and Wolff Mining include improved fuel efficiency, electro-hydraulic controls for increased operator safety and computercontrolled drilling.

Cat drills are also autonomousready, through integration with mine management systems, communication networks and safety systems.

National Group provides drill hire and full-service contract drilling Australia-wide, largely in key Australian mining regions in the Pilbara in northern Western Australia and the Bowen Basin, Queensland.

This includes a new contract to deliver a range of drills to one of National Group’s Tier 1 clients in Western Australia, with plans for further growth in the Australian and international drill market.

“We operate Australia-wide, predominantly servicing clients based in the Bowen Basin and Pilbara (and) we plan to expand our presence nationally and internationally in the near future, with our expansive range of semi-autonomous and fully autonomous drills,” Ackroyd says.

“In the future, we are looking to leverage Cat’s automation technology into the drill fleet, very similar to how Wolff Mining has applied the SATS technology to our dozers, with one operator controlling multiple drills.” AM

WITH CAT’S SEMI-AUTOMATED DRILLS, ONE PERSON CAN OPERATE FOUR DRILLS.

AUSTRALIANMINING

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MINING EQUIPMENT

BELAZ DUMP TRUCKS READY TO ROLL OUT TO AUSTRALIAN MINES BELAZ AUSTRALIA HAS BEEN APPOINTED AS THE OFFICIAL DISTRIBUTOR FOR BELAZ DUMP TRUCKS IN AUSTRALIA. AUSTRALIAN MINING LOOKS AT WHAT THE COMPANY HAS ON OFFER.

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ELAZ, the Belarusbased manufacturer of haulage and earthmoving equipment, with a 70year history, recently announced BELAZ Australia as its first authorised dealer in the country.

BELAZ Australia national sales manager, Shane Dinsdale says BELAZ Australia will provide direct factory support to its mining clients in the regions the truck fleets are implemented, with its head office based in Perth.

“BELAZ Australia understands the value in supporting its products in Australia and ensuring product availability for our customers. This commitment will be strengthened with the investment in after-sale support, centralised distribution centres including spare parts warehousing, local service personnel and training centres to further support our customers,” he tells Australian Mining.

Dinsdale says BELAZ Australia has a range of dump trucks ready to roll out across Australian mine sites, ranging in payload capacity from 90 to 450 tonnes.

“BELAZ’s Australian fleet features AC electric drives from General Electric and European-quality componentry. All BELAZ trucks are compliant with the required ISO and Australian Standard requirements.

BELAZ also offers a range of customisation options, including the option to equip the trucks with either MTU or Cummins engines,” he adds.

Globally, BELAZ has successfully introduced several innovative haulage solutions in recent years, which Dinsdale says are now also available to Australian miners through BELAZ Australia.

“These include developing the world’s biggest twin engine electric-drive mining dump truck with 450-tonne payload capacity.

The innovation has continued with BELAZ developing a zero emission all-battery electric drive EV 90-tonne 7558E dump truck,” he says.

Since 2012, BELAZ has partnered with Zyfra Robotics – part of Zyfra, a Finnish AI and IIoT-based solutions company – to develop autonomous

THE BELAZ 75311 DUMP TRUCK HAS A PAYLOAD CAPACITY OF 220 TONNES.

haulage solutions for the mining industry.

Based on this partnership, a fleet of 136-tonne BELAZ 7513R autonomous dump trucks have been operating at the Abakansky site of SUEK-Khakassia’s Chernogorsky open pit coal mine in Russia since 2019, resulting in a reported 20 per cent increase in the mine’s haulage productivity.

Apart from the 7513R autonomous dump trucks, BELAZ has also introduced semi-autonomous wheel loaders on the project, providing the ability to operate the loader and several autonomous dump trucks through a single operator.

Following its successful global experiences in providing autonomous haulage solutions, BELAZ now intends to collaborate with Australian companies to offer similar solutions.

Dinsdale says BELAZ Australia provides cost-effective and customisable autonomous haulage AUSTRALIANMINING

solution for mining surface operations.

“Cost is currently the biggest barrier for miners when they consider implementing autonomous haulage systems,” Dinsdale says.

“BELAZ is offering the same level of autonomy and similar componentry as other autonomous dump truck providers, but at reduced upfront and operational costs. BELAZ also offers flexible financing solutions through its partner leasing company, which is Finmining,” he adds.

Integration with existing fleet management systems is another key advantage of BELAZ’s autonomous haulage solutions, according to Dinsdale.

“BELAZ autonomous dump trucks can seamlessly integrate and communicate with existing management systems. This enables the mines to use their existing hardware and software technologies

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with minimal additional investment,” he says.

“BELAZ is actively expanding into new global markets, including Europe, South Africa, India and Indonesia. In Australia, we bring our best quality and technologies to the market and we can provide our customers with any 90-tonne to 450-tonne class of dump truck for their mine site,” Dinsdale says.

He encourages mining companies to have a conversation with the BELAZ team in Australia to initiate a feasibility study on their mine site and learn about the best haulage solutions available for their projects.

“Through this assessment, BELAZ experts look at the mines’ haulage route, the duty cycles of the mine and the existing loading equipment. This in turn helps us and our potential clients to determine how the BELAZ dump truck fleet can help improve their operation,” he concludes. AM

THE MINING INDUSTRY HAS MOVED TO A NEW PHASE FOLLOWING THE MINING BOOM, ONE WHERE PRODUCTIVITY, INNOVATION AND SAFETY HAVE EMERGED AS ITS KEY PRIORITIES DRILL & BLAST MINING SERVICES VOLUME 112/7 | AUGUST 2020

COPPER SPOTLIGHT

A RENEWED FOCUS

MINING’S ENERGY MIX IS CHANGING

Established in 1908, Australian Mining continues to lead and inform the Australian mining industry of the latest innovations in mining technology and equipment.

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WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

SECURING THE FUTURE WORKFORCE OF AUSTRALIAN MINING

IMAGE CREDIT: GOLD FIELDS.

HOW ARE MINING’S JOB PROSPECTS SHAPING UP IN THE FACE OF AN ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN? VANESSA ZHOU EXPLORES THE OPPORTUNITIES WITH ALCOA, GOLD INDUSTRY GROUP AND AUSTRALIA’S MINERALS COUNCILS.

THE GOLD FIELDS TEAM AT THE ST IVES OPERATION IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

apprenticeship program is bigger than Alcoa. It supports industry more broadly,” Alcoa director human resources and employee relations Matthew Gleeson says.

The impact of COVID-19 hasn’t stopped the continuity of Alcoa’s 2020 apprenticeship program.

Despite a few changes in response to COVID-19 restrictions, the apprentices have been undertaking their first-year training.

“Some have been completing virtual learning with the technical and further education (TAFE) colleges,” Gleeson continues.

“At any point in time, creating training and development opportunities for employees is important for long-term business success. Not only does it support operational performance, but it has the added advantage of enhancing employee retention and job satisfaction, which provides immeasurable benefit to the business.”

The Australian Government has also chosen the mining industry for a skills organisation pilot. Through the initiative, the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) has taken steps to AUSTRALIANMINING

accelerate 1000 new apprenticeships to fulfil skills and training needs across Australia.

“The Mining Skills Organisation Pilot is part of the Australian Government’s skills package, Delivering Skills for Today and Tomorrow, which will help train highly skilled and qualified workers, including in regional areas, to meet

the needs of businesses,” MCA chief executive Tania Constable says.

“The pilot will help prepare industry and learners for large-scale skills shifts by delivering new ways of learning, which are responsive to a changing world, technology shifts and future global demand.”

Each apprentice will be paired with a mining employer upfront and receive IMAGE CREDIT: NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES.

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he mining industry is positioning itself to brush aside fears that a skills shortage will slow its future growth.

Mining companies aren’t managing this challenge alone, with governments and industry bodies also playing their part.

Alcoa is a major company with a history of training generations of skilled tradespeople. The company has trained more than 1600 tradespeople through its apprentice program over the past 55 years.

It now has 101 apprentices working at its Western Australian operations and another 10 in Portland, Victoria.

If the apprentices follow their predecessors, they wil have an opportunity to secure roles at Alcoa’s bauxite mines and alumina refineries in the Perth and Peel regions, or at the Portland aluminium smelter.

Most of these apprentices were drawn from local communities, and they are trained to be mechanical fitters, fabricators/welders, heavy duty plant mechanics and industrial electrical instrumentation technicians.

“In this sense, the impact of our

THE KUNDANA GOLD MINE IN EASTERN GOLDFIELDS, WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

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WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

“That illustrates just how important the gold industry is to the whole of Australia. And Gold Jobs fits in very well with what we do at GIG: to tell a story about Australian gold and help educate the broader Australian public about the value the gold sector brings to the economy.”

Hayes says the online jobs site is about more than advertising positions, ranging from entry-level opportunities through to management roles. It also tells its audience about the gold sector and the skill sets required for those roles.

This comes from the sector’s own existing workforce, who talk about their daily work in pre-recorded videos.

Gold Jobs visitors can range from existing gold sector employees and teachers to students, whether they are of school age and want to familiarise themselves with the gold industry, or university students looking for the right career.

“I’m not aware of any other company who does this. Other recruitment portals advertise lots of job vacancies, but none profile the hiring company the way we do. We’re not only trying to find people to work in the industry, but also those who will fit in with the company culture,” Hayes says.

“It’s a challenge when people have to leave their families behind during a four-week roster. It doesn’t appeal to everybody.

“But mining companies have tried to make fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) as seamless and painless as possible. That’s not a challenge that’s only unique to the gold mining industry, but also to nickel, iron ore, copper and oil and gas.”

According to Hayes, mining companies have done a good job in

handling these situations carefully and provided mental health initiatives on site.

“They’ve spent a lot of time making the effort and it shows,” he adds.

As for GIG, the team had been working on the concept behind Gold Jobs for over a year by the time it launched in May. Hayes believes there is no perfect time to launch an initiative, but during COVID-19 was as good a time as any. Within just over a month, 87 roles were advertised across the Australian gold sector.

“We’re certain we’ll see more coming on as the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted and as Australia is opening up again, allowing the flow of people within different states,” Hayes says.

“The fact that the gold industry is employing and not laying people off is great news for Australia, at a time when so many others have lost their jobs.”

NSW Minerals Council chief executive Steve Galilee acknowledges that COVID-19 has clearly had a big economic impact, with the state’s sector also being affected.

“While gold prices are strong, lower prices for coal in particular are creating some challenges. So far there has only been a limited employment impact overall, and the industry is seeking to support as many jobs as possible,” he says.

But Galilee believes that the longterm future for the mining sector is positive. He is convinced that strong fundamentals remain intact despite COVID-19. AM

IMAGE CREDIT: SWICK MINING SERVICES.

accelerated education and training linked to the job. The pilot welcomes people who are at various points in their career to join the mining industry.

They will be able to develop skill sets and qualifications linked to technology adoption in the modern mining sector, including automation and data analytics, which are also transferrable to the mining equipment, technology and services (METS) and allied sectors.

Not forgetting to emphasise safety as a core principle in the pilot, Constable says the program will embed a culture of respect that is core to the minerals industry and include mental health as part of the program.

“Investing in our people, skills and innovation means we can continue to be a global leader in mining competitiveness and deliver fulfilling careers for people in highly paid, highly skilled jobs,” Constable says.

Launched in May, the pilot will operate for two years as a joint collaboration between the Australian mining industry and the Australian Government.

Meanwhile, Gold Industry Group (GIG) has launched an online hub of employment opportunities and career pathways known as Gold Jobs. It acts as a platform that brings all jobs in the sector together into one place.

GIG chairman and the Perth Mint chief executive Richard Hayes says the gold sector plays a big role in Australia’s economy.

“In 2018-19, the Perth Mint was the third largest exporter in Australia behind Rio Tinto and BHP. Our exports exceeded those of Fortescue Metals Group and Woodside Energy by value,” he says.

A SURFACE REVERSE CIRCULATION (RC) WORKER WITH SWICK MINING SERVICES.

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MATERIALS HANDLING

FLEXCO TUNGSTEN TIPS SMALL PART OF LARGER CONVEYOR PUZZLE TUNGSTEN CARBIDE TIPS USED IN CONVEYOR BELT CLEANING SYSTEMS ARE ONE OF THE BEST MATERIALS TO CREATE A LONGTERM CLEANING OPTION FOR CONVEYORS. FLEXCO EXPLAINS HOW TO FIND THE PERFECT BALANCE BETWEEN DURABILITY AND USABILITY WHEN MANUFACTURING ITS TUNGSTEN CARBIDE TIPS FOR HARD ROCK MINES.

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ungsten carbide tips are one of the smallest and most inexpensive parts of a mine conveyor but removing them from the process can cause huge problems down the track.

Flexco introduced its tungsten carbide tips for cleaning conveyor belts more than 30 years ago and as managing director Mark Colbourn explains, the company has been working constantly to develop them further since.

He says the tips continue to clean to the best of their ability, while Flexco aspires to develop stronger models that last longer and keep up with market demands.

“The job of these tungsten carbide tips is to clean the belt and over the years we have worked to find the best formulation of low wearing tungsten that profiles into the belt to clean it best,” Colbourn tells Australian Mining.

“Over time, mines have increased tonnages and moved up to bigger and faster belts. As a supplier we need to keep up with this, with the research and development we put into every single part of our belt cleaners to help our customers get their belts to last longer and perform efficiently.”

Flexco has perfected the fine art of

FLEXCO’S TUNGSTEN CARBIDE TIPS ARE AN EFFECTIVE MATERIAL FOR CLEANING CONVEYOR BELT SYSTEMS.

getting the right thickness of tungsten.

If the tips are too thin, they wear out quicker, but if they are too thick then the cleaning efficiency decreases.

“Conveyor belts look flat, but they actually have a jagged edge, so you need the tungsten to be flexible enough that it profiles into the belt,” Colbourn explains.

Extending belt life is particularly important in iron ore and other hard rock operations due to the harsh nature of the processing.

Iron ore and other hard rock commodities are far more abrasive on conveyor belts than coal, which means more wear and tear to the conveyor belt, so finding a long-term solution is vital to an efficient operation.

With the Australian iron ore industry looking to grow its production by 10 to 20 per cent in the next decade, Colbourn says positioning Flexco to continue servicing the industry with its products is the company’s top priority.

“The thing with mining operations is that most are 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” Colbourn says.

“If iron ore operations lose an hour or two to maintenance, that is time they can never get back and it can quickly add up to millions of dollars in lost productivity.”

Flexco’s long-lasting tungsten AUSTRALIANMINING

carbide tips help reduce unscheduled maintenance shutdowns necessary to replace cleaner parts, which can save about an hour for each cleaner on the belt when replacing existing tips.

With productivity as a key goal, Flexco has been purchasing the same tungsten carbide for more than three decades.

While there are less expensive alternatives out there, Colbourn says the company will never compromise on the quality of its product.

“Our focus is to ensure we can help our clients to clean their belts at the highest possible efficiency while continuing to develop tips that can help belts to last longer,” he says. “There is no trade off on keeping efficiency at an absolute maximum.”

If there is something more important to Flexco as a company than delivering operational efficiency, it is safety.

Flexco’s tungsten carbide tips not only guard the conveyor belts from extensive damage, but also the people working on mine sites, removing

IF IRON ORE OPERATIONS LOSE AN HOUR OR TWO TO MAINTENANCE, THAT IS TIME THEY CAN NEVER GET BACK AND IT CAN QUICKLY ADD UP TO MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN LOST PRODUCTIVITY.”

them from frequent shutdowns and maintenance exercises.

“The longer equipment lasts and longer between maintenance, the less people there are walking around the site and the better it is for safety,” Colbourn says.

“Safer operations for people often end up being more productive. Safety and productivity in mining often go hand in hand.” AM

FLEXCO STRIVES TO FIND THE BEST FORMULA FOR A DURABLE TUNGSTEN CARBIDE SOLUTION.

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INDUSTRY COMMENT

METS EXPORT HUBS TO DRIVE REGIONAL ECONOMIC GROWTH AUSTMINE DISCUSSES HOW THE INDUSTRY BODY WILL DEVELOP EXPORT HUBS TO GUIDE THE MINING EQUIPMENT, TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SECTOR’S EXPANSION ACROSS AUSTRALIA.

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his year has been a challenging and uncertain time for Australian businesses, particularly in regional areas.

Beginning with the dual disasters of horrific bushfires and devastating drought, the global COVID-19 pandemic brought a new wave of challenges that are unprecedented in our times.

As we continue the recovery from these crises, governments, associations, industry bodies and other stakeholders are working hard to support the re-emergence and future growth of businesses around the country.

Austmine, the leading industry body for the Australian mining equipment, technology and services (METS) sector, is focussing on supporting small to mid-sized enterprises (SMEs) to engage with global customers and supply chains with the launch of METS Export Hubs in Western Australia and Victoria.

The aim of this initiative is to accelerate export market entry of METS companies through capability development and linkages with international growth opportunities.

The Hubs’ services will be rolled out across three stages to build a solid platform from which export outcomes can be generated, beginning with connecting SMEs into each of the Hubs, and progressing to focus on capability development and links with international opportunities.

The Hubs are being funded under the Australian Government’s Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Export Hubs initiative. They are also being established in partnership with the Victorian Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions, and the Western Australian (WA) Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation, which are both contributing funding.

Austmine chief executive Christine Gibbs Stewart says, “Australian METS are leaders in mining innovation and technology on a global scale, and our Hubs will be critical in helping a diverse range of SMEs share their capabilities, expertise and

AUSTMINE HAS ESTABLISHED METS EXPORT HUBS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA AND VICTORIA TO CONNECT SMES TO GLOBAL MARKETS.

unique solutions with the world.

“The Hubs will strengthen the competitive positioning of the sector and create export-focussed METS companies through building capabilities to address the needs of customers, facilitating knowledge sharing within a strong METS cohort and providing the skills needed to export.

“While it might seem that a focus on exporting at a time like this doesn’t make sense, in fact, it does. Given the planning needed, preparing now for when countries emerge from the crisis means that we will be ready.”

WA to lead digital mining

WA has emerged as a global leader in digital mining by leveraging a diverse local industry of start-up hubs, innovation centres, major customers and entrepreneurial SMEs. These businesses now have the opportunity to take their digital solutions global and bring regional firms with them.

“Our WA METS Digital Mining Export Hub will build a strong digital mining state-wide network to strengthen the skills of regional SMEs and make sure they are up to speed with their own digital capability development and understand customer requirements in AUSTRALIANMINING

this regard,” Gibbs Stewart says.

It will operate across five regions of mining expertise in Bunbury, Kalgoorlie, Newman, Karratha and Port Hedland. The network will include companies based in Perth to leverage the reputation and expertise of WA as the leader in digital mining solutions.

Emerging mining innovation leader

Victoria is rarely viewed as a key contributor to mining in Australia, but for the METS sector that is far from the truth.

Born from a rich history of gold prospecting and a unique operating environment amid local communities, Victorian METS lead the world in areas such as advanced manufacturing, minerals processing, drilling and community engagement.

Gibbs Stewart remarks, “The Victorian METS sector doesn’t often receive the kudos they deserve from their involvement in advancing sustainable and safe mining.

Leveraging Victoria’s strength in advanced manufacturing, the Hub recognises this leadership on a global scale.”

The Victorian Hub will operate across five regions of mining expertise in Ballarat, Bendigo, Stawell, the La

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Trobe Valley and Geelong. The Hub will link these regions to support and resources in metropolitan centres and international nodes.

Emerging from disruption

Austmine is working closely with state and federal government partners on this project to ensure SMEs can access critical support to develop export capabilities and create a platform for sustainable business growth.

Following an uncertain and disruptive time for Australian exporters, the METS Export Hubs will be critical in getting Australian businesses moving again.

Gibbs Stewart says, “The Australian METS sector exports over $15 billion annually of products and services to every corner of the globe, which is more than beef, wheat and wine exports combined.

“We have seen the export business of a number of METS companies severely impacted during this unprecedented health crisis. Offering a central platform and support network to access resources, opportunities and export knowledge will help businesses get back on track.” AM If you would like to find out more about Austmine’s Export Hubs and their other offerings and initiatives, please visit www.austmine.com.au/news.

EXPLORATION

MIDDLE ISLAND PREPARES TO TRANSITION FROM JUNIOR TO PRODUCER GOLD PRICES HAVE BEEN HOVERING AT SEVEN-YEAR HIGHS IN 2020 AS INVESTORS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ITS SAFE HAVEN STATUS. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR MIDDLE ISLAND RESOURCES? AUSTRALIAN MINING FINDS OUT.

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estern Australianbased explorer Middle Island Resources is coming off a busy first half of 2020 as it progresses the Sandstone gold project in the East Murchison mineral field.

Since April, Middle Island has unearthed the McClaren, McIntyre, Old Town Well, Plum Pudding and Ridge deposits during extensive reverse circulation drilling.

The company’s impressive results include four metres at 99.5 grams per tonne at Ridge, 24 metres at 1.66 grams per tonne at McIntyre and three metres at 3.72 grams per tonne at Plum Pudding.

Middle Island‘s exploration success is part of a 17,500-metre drilling campaign that it scheduled for the first half of the year.

The drilling focussed on discovering new open pit mineral resources to contribute to a prefeasibility study.

These results set up Middle Island’s strategy of becoming a gold producer, which as a junior, can be a challenging step to take.

Middle Island Resources managing director Rick Yeates says the journey to becoming a gold producer can be difficult, but the path ahead is well laid out by previous companies in the same position and is currently boosted by high prices.

“There is certainty in the Australian gold space with the Australian dollar gold prices having been so strong,” Yeates tells Australian Mining.

“It’s certainly looking very positive still, being exposed to an Australian gold price as opposed to United States prices is an advantage.

“In Australia, we are also blessed to have a path cut in our space by very successful mid-tier gold producers, which gives us a solid model to follow.”

Middle Island knows the advantages of producing gold in Australia after starting life as a company in West Africa.

Despite taking advantage of opportunities in West African nations, Middle Island shifted focus to Australia after facing sovereign and security challenges.

In addition to the pricing opportunities Australia offers, Yeates notes the reduced travel time to visit

MIDDLE ISLAND IS SEARCHING FOR GOLD AT THE END OF THE SANDSTONE RAINBOW.

projects that helps Middle Island make the most of complete ownership of the Sandstone project.

“Australia is as good a place as any to be,” he says. “To be able to drive for eight hours to visit your site instead of sitting on a plane for 36 to 40 hours is a pleasant change.”

The Sandstone project also has the convenience of existing infrastructure on site, such as a 6000-tonne-per-annum processing plant, which is currently on care

MIDDLE ISLAND IS AIMING FOR PRODUCTION IN 2021.

AUSTRALIANMINING

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and maintenance as part of a prefeasibility study.

There is also a permanent tailings storage facility with a live permit and a water obstruction licence for 650,000 cubes per annum to power the processing plant.

Other existing infrastructure includes a power station, fuel tanks, mine offices, warehouses and workshops, which are in serviceable order. In the Sandstone township, there is also an accommodation camp

EXPLORATION

DRILLING AT NIGHT AT SANDSTONE.

for a workforce of 100 people.

With Sandstone all but ready to go, the next step is refurbishment work to some infrastructure, mobilising contracts and pre-production mining, which are all on the cards in 2020.

“The required pre-production mining will take about the same length of time as the refurbishment of the plant,” Yeates explains. “So, we are looking to complete these tasks concurrently.

The project’s feasibility is looking promising for Middle Island, with the company testing 14 targets in 2020, including at the McClaren, McIntyre, Old Town Well and Plum Pudding deposits.

Demonstrating these positives to investors and the wider market is essential in being a successful junior company, Yeates explains.

“One of the issues is the junior equity markets have been very challenging for about five years,” he says.

“There is certainly a limitation for junior companies being able to raise the capital and one of the other challenges is there is some nervousness about projects like this, where junior companies are recommissioning or commissioning projects.

“This is a risk we are conscious of and are doing everything we possibly can to mitigate. There is plenty of exploration potential within the project and the fact we’ve already had success, it is looking very positive for us.”

While Middle Island has already experienced tangible results, the company’s eyes are always looking ahead to the next opportunity, even the potential of building a processing

hub at the site.

“We’re keen to crawl before we walk and are very happy with the plant we’ve got for now to get us on the road,” Yeates says. “But there is further opportunity to consolidate the broader district around Sandstone and become a processing hub.

“We’ve got the only processing plant for 150 kilometres and have identified up to approximately 1.8 million ounces in 13 to 15 deposits within that radius.

“Should we be successful there is every possibility to become a district hub and extend our production profile further.”

While this ideal future for Middle Island would position it to capitalise on its Western Australian assets, the company’s future is not limited to the west.

Middle Island has also acquired a copper-gold project in the Northern Territory, comprising 10 exploration licenses that provide it with opportunities for future partnerships.

“The new project in the Northern Territory is the second arrow to our quiver,” Yeates says.

“This copper-gold project is chasing Tier 1 targets similar in composition to Olympic Dam, Carrapateena and Prominent Hill.

“This has been identified from collaborative government research and we’ve got some very prospective ground and geology beneath the Georgina Basin between Tennant Creek and Mt Isa.” With an exciting portfolio of opportunities and clear goals, Middle Island looks on track to reach production in the 2021 calendar year, notwithstanding delays because of the coronavirus pandemic.

AUSTRALIANMINING

Yeates says the company expects to be in a position to make a decision on recommissioning in the middle of 2020.

“If refurbishing, mobilisation and pre-production goes to plan, we DRILLING ACTIVITIES AT SANDSTONE IN FEBRUARY.

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could be in early production in 2021.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic we are operating fine, being regarded as an essential service and if you’re going to be isolated, it may as well be at a place like Sandstone,” he concludes. AM

COMMUNICATIONS

REMOTE WA MINE ENJOYS HIGH-SPEED INTERNET WITH VOCUS SOLUTION A VOCUS NETWORK CONNECTIVITY SOLUTION HAS HELPED BOOST COVERAGE AND SPEED AT MINJAR GOLD’S REMOTE SOUTHERN CROSS MINE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

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hen Minjar Gold was looking for a way to improve network coverage and connectivity speeds across its remotely located Southern Cross operation in Western Australia, the company exhausted almost every option before finding the Vocus solution.

The Minjar operation is centered around Marvel Loch, approximately 400 kilometres east of Perth and nearly 40 kilometres away from the Southern Cross township.

This meant the site had no access to the National Broadband Network (NBN) and relied on a limited-speed telecommunication network through a local service provider.

“We wanted to ensure that our employees had consistent and reliable internet access to be able to remain connected with their loved ones while working on the site, as well as to provide them with better entertainment options such as ondemand video streaming,” says Sean Kocis, Minjar Gold’s senior network and systems engineer.

The remoteness of the mine, however, made connectivity at the level that Minjar expected to achieve highly challenging, as the team found out in its research.

“We went through every possible connectivity solution, from microwave

ANDREW WILDBLOOD, VOCUS CHIEF EXECUTIVE – ENTERPRISE AND GOVERNMENT.

technology to fibre connectivity, satellite internet access, 3G and 4G network. Each of these either had certain limitations for our project or was too costly,” Kocis says.

After a comprehensive search, Kocis says they finally found a solution that met the mine’s requirements.

“We chose to work with Vocus because their solution was not just cost effective, but also could support our goals going forward,” he says.

“While the wellbeing of our staff was the key motivator for us in this project, we were also looking to be able to implement more automation and remote fleet monitoring in the future and the Vocus solution could deliver that.”

As a specialist in fibre and network solutions, Vocus has years of experience providing high-speed broadband connectivity to remote sites across Australia, including to mines and gas fields.

The Vocus team’s solution for Minjar Gold consisted of working with its partner company GoldNet to implement a microwave technology solution to connect the mine through line-of-sight wireless telecommunication to the nearest town of Southern Cross.

In the town, high-speed broadband connectivity relies on nearly 400 kilometres of Vocus fibre running underground to Perth.

As Vocus chief executive for AUSTRALIANMINING

enterprise and government, Andrew Wildblood explains, the solution was the most economically viable for Minjar Gold.

“If we were to rely only on fibre connectivity, it effectively meant carrying out heavy engineering work to bury kilometres of fibre in difficult terrain between Southern Cross to Marvel Loch,” Wildblood says.

“While our engineering team is absolutely capable of doing that, it would not have been the most costeffective solution for our client.”

Through weeks of planning and feasibility studies, the Vocus engineering team delivered a private network to Minjar that offered over 10 times improvement on their previous connectivity speed, boosting it from about 40 megabits-per-second (Mbps) to nearly 500 Mbps.

Kocis says the benefits of the successful project delivery are multi-faceted.

“It’s hard to put into words the positive impact that this project has had, not just for our own employees, but also for the greater community of the town’s farmers and local businesses that are offered access to our private internet network,” Kocis says.

“It makes us proud to see that our employees and the town’s residents are now able to enjoy on-demand TV, FaceTime with their families or order their required equipment for their farms online.”

Part of Vocus’ success owes to the strategic partnership it has with FixedIP Wireless partners, according to Wildblood.

“We have a national fibre network that spans 30,000 kilometres of remote and difficult terrain, both in the northwest and eastern shores of the country, as well across the Northern Territory from Darwin to Adelaide,” Wildblood says.

“Through our strategic partnership with other providers, our network is further expanded across Australia, New Zealand and into Asia Pacific.”

With mines often working hard to find the right employees, Wildblood believes the improved connectivity on the mine is definitely an advantage when it comes to Minjar retaining its workforce.

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From his own experience at Minjar Gold, Kocis concurs with Wildblood.

“Our staff tells us they actually look forward to coming back to the site as the internet speed here is now better than at their own homes. We’ve also seen improved productivity among the team as we remain better connected through video-conferencing,” he concludes. AM

WORK BEING CONDUCTED ON ONE OF THE TELECOMMUNICATION TOWERS NEAR THE MINJAR MINE SITE.

MINING SERVICES

EXNOVO DELIVERS SAFER AND GREENER TRANSFORMERS THE TRANSFORMER IS THE BACKBONE THAT KEEPS OPERATIONS RUNNING. CONVENTIONAL MINING TRANSFORMERS CONTAINING MINERAL OIL HAVE TRADITIONALLY BEEN HARDY, BUT RECENT TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT HAS PROVEN A HIGHER SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT. AUSTRALIAN MINING SPEAKS WITH EXNOVO ABOUT SAFER AND GREENER TRANSFORMERS.

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AHORS’ Green, Safe, Maintenance free or GSM transformers have passed all performance tests with regards to site safety, while saving valuable space on-site.

The GSM transformers are Factory Mutual (FM) Approved, passing vigorous scientific research and testing to ensure the product meets the highest safety protocol.

As the name suggests, CAHORS’ GSM transformers are more sustainable than their traditional counterparts, using ester fluid, making for safer sites and less maintenance, costing mining companies less in unplanned downtime.

Exnovo distributes CAHORS products in Australia and positions itself between the company and the client to understand industry needs and recommend the best solution for operations.

As Exnovo managing director David Ong explains, the company has indepth understanding of CAHORS’ products, the FM Approved standards and how they apply to Australian transformer standards.

“Our role in this partnership is to understand and recommend the right product for every scenario so we can create a solution that is both economic and fit for purpose,” Ong tells Australian Mining.

Total cost of risk

According to a presentation by FM Global, over the last 10 years the total loss is over $US900 million ($1.29 billion) due to issues with transformers, with this equating to an annual average loss cost of more than $US90 million.

Transitioning to GSM transformers can greatly reduce insurance costs. In a case study by FM Global, the total estimated loss due to transformer fire, was lowered from $US200 million to $US100,000 by replacing an existing transformer with FM Approved equipment.

Lowering the risk of transformer fires on mine sites not only vastly improves safety and productivity, but also capital, as it can take weeks if not months to replace one transformer if damaged, according to Ong.

Benefit of reduced clearance

FM Approved transformers have been tested against high energy faults that cause potential explosive and fire incidents, which means that the transformer unit can be placed next to a building or switch room with distance requirements of only 0.9 metres.

Without this certification, a 1200-litre oil-filled transformer must be placed 7.5 metres away from any combustible surfaces building, meaning operations with limited space benefit more from FM Approved transformers as they have a smaller footprint.

CAHORS GREEN, SAFE, MAINTENANCE-FREE TRANSFORMERS ARE ALL FACTORY MUTUAL APPROVED.

AUSTRALIANMINING

EXNOVO BRINGS A LOCAL AUSTRALIAN PERSPECTIVE TO FRENCH-BASED TRANSFORMER MANUFACTURER CAHORS.

The other advantage of using FM Approved transformers is that there are no special construction or fire protection requirements required when installing them, meaning less civil works and a smaller environmental footprint.

FM Approval testing and certification

Having been tested against the harshest of conditions, CAHORS’ GSM transformers provide one of the safest solutions on the market.

“Every type of these transformers is tested against strict criteria and placed into fault event for destructive testing,” Ong explains.

“There are certain criteria they must pass, such as must selfextinguish in case of a failure and the tank body cannot deform after an fault event.

“In one of the criteria, the test evaluates the pressure withstand capability of the transformer.

Conventional transformers withstand only 20 kilopascals whereas FM Approved transformer tanks must withstand 105 kilopascals.”

Rapid pressure relief is the most important factor of avoiding transformer explosion. Rapid pressure relief requirements for conventional transformers are 22 standard cubic feet per minute, while FM Approved transformers are 700 standard cubic feet per minute, for a 1500kVA transformer.

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Transformer fluids and the environment

The fluid in a transformer serves two main purpose. Firstly, it is an insulator of electricity between live parts. Secondly, it conducts the heat away from the cores and windings to the radiator fans “The natural ester fluid is not classified as a hydrocarbon (oil),” Ong says. “It is biodegradable and carbon neutral, produced from soybean oil.

The natural ester fluid is environmentally friendly, with 98 per cent of its body biodegrading within 28 days and the remaining 2 per cent within two months, unlike the traditional mineral oil which has a breakdown rate of around 10 per cent in its entire lifetime.

As there are only a few companies making FM Approved natural ester fluid, it can be more expensive option than conventional oils, but according to Ong, it is worth it.

“There is a huge shift into natural ester fluids,” he says. “Despite the fact they have slightly higher initial costs they are much more environmentally friendly compared with mineral oils.

“Mineral oil has a flash point of 160, whereas natural ester fluids have a flash point of 315.”

With the benefits of FM Approved transformers ranging from capital, environmental, performance and lowering risk, Exnovo is bringing a local Australian perspective to the French CAHORS transformers. AM

, D E E N U T. O Y E R R E ER N. V E F O T N A O H IS H W D IT RC A N I E F ES TH

RELY ON AUSTRALIA’S MANUFACTURING, MINING AND INDUSTRIAL HUB 70,000 monthly users can’t be wrong. Find what you’re looking for with over 12,000 business listings and 8,000 specific product listings. Access relevant information and resources, empowering you to make a qualified purchase decision. You can always rely on your industry hub.

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MHD Supply Chain Solutions

MEASUREMENT & MONITORING

IOT CONNECTS INSTRUMENTS, PLANTS AND DEVICES.

DOMINATING THE MEASUREMENT SPACE WITH IOT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN CRITICAL MEASUREMENTS ARE COMBINED WITH THE INDUSTRIAL INTERNET OF THINGS? VEGA AUSTRALIA PROVIDES THE ANSWER.

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nstrumentation specialist VEGA Australia is standing on the strength of its expertise and expanded a capability to extract critical information.

The three areas that VEGA is involved in are level, pressure and density measurement.

Now the company is not only producing information in each of those areas through its sensors, it has also ventured out to the business of ensuring that information falls on the hands of decision makers working remotely from mine sites.

VEGA Australia managing director John Leadbetter says there are a number of mining companies that don’t have access to all of the on-site information that they’re monitoring.

By joining the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance, VEGA has gained access to a platform that can deliver measuring results to decision makers as they are saved on and downloadable from the cloud.

This places results at their fingertips. Decision makers can monitor the condition of a plant, a site or an inventory right on their mobile phone or desktop computer.

“A number of industries have this sort of inventory system available, keeping client operations and production going by ensuring their product supply are up to date and useable,” Leadbetter says.

“These days, everything is done through the Internet. So we came up with an interfacing system that allows them to get information from a remote site.”

A major mining company in Australia, for example, is looking at having information around its inventory and throughput right at its head office to monitor

site performance.

A complex operation such as Dampier Salt in Western Australia also runs a number of salt plants with water level and content that need monitoring.

With communication off the back of Industry 4.0, decision makers in the head office can see through the remote plants and have insight on what’s happening in that operation in real time. This remote monitoring becomes ever more vital given the travel restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.

But Leadbetter says it is not enough to only have and make use of the information. Companies also need to have instruments that are reliable in taking these measurements.

“The advantage of having IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) communication, of course, goes back to the instrument that is doing the measurement and providing the information,” Leadbetter says.

“Two parts that make up IIoT’s effectiveness are the central communication hub, and secondly, and perhaps more importantly, the reliability of the unit that is producing the information.

“Mining companies need to make sure their instruments can handle a variety of applications under different and extreme conditions.

“Ultimately, the primary role of our business is to make instrumentations for companies. But moving into the 21st century, it’s no longer just about the information but how users get the information.”

Despite advancing technologies, the IoT platform retains a userfriendly quality. Users can easily draw all the information that has been uploaded from the instrumentations

AUSTRALIANMINING

from the cloud.

They are also pampered for choice, with either a hosted or non-hosted system to opt for. The first option gives VEGA the responsibility to host and maintain the IoT system and to keep communication running smoothly.

This ability comes on the back of VEGA’s dedicated IT business units in Australia and around the world.

These teams deal with companies and address their specific needs.

“It’s something that you grow into.

The world changes so you have to come up with different ideas. We’re now using the world’s advanced technology to achieve company objectives,” Leadbetter says.

“We listen to customers, find out what their needs are and customise our solutions to those needs. Not every site wants it, but others do.

VEGA PROVIDES INFORMATION RELATING TO LEVEL, PRESSURE AND DENSITY MEASUREMENT.

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You’re working in partnership with a customer to improve their business.

“Ultimately, companies have to work hand in hand to improve their bottom line and throughput. They have commitments and tonnage amounts to fulfil to their customers. By helping their operation run efficiently, you’re helping companies meet their obligations to customers as well.”

VEGA backs its communication offering with 24/7 support, a global hotline that can give technical assistance whenever a problem arises.

They can gain access to a company’s system remotely with their permission, find the issue and fix it. This support will be delivered in the English language despite VEGA being a German company.

“We don’t just sell the components.

We sell the whole solution,” Leadbetter concludes. AM

MANUFACTURING

SUPPLYING THE NEXT GENERATION OF MANUFACTURING THE INENCO GROUP OF BUSINESSES ARE NOW MOTION ASIA PACIFIC. AUSTRALIAN MINING FINDS OUT HOW THIS EMPOWERS AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURERS BY TAPPING INTO A GLOBAL NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE.

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very day for the past 60 years, manufacturers around Australia and New Zealand have visited one of over 100 Motion Asia Pacific locations, formerly known collectively as Inenco.

These store-fronts and branches, spread across every Australian state and the Northern Territory have become a fixture for the manufacturing industry, whether it be a BSC, CBC, Hardy Spicer, Specialty Fasteners or any of the other businesses owned by Inenco.

Such has been their longevity and brand presence; each business has continued to stand alone while under the Inenco ownership umbrella.

However, since 2019 when Genuine Parts Company, owner of United States industrial distribution brand Motion Industries, bought Inenco, work has been under way to combine these businesses under the Motion Asia Pacific brand.

Motion Asia Pacific chief executive Roger Jowett says this will directly benefit each customer who may not have been aware of all the individual parts of Inenco.

“We are still somewhat dysfunctional in that we’ll have two, three, or four salespeople visit the same customer. We’ll do great things, but we’ll produce four invoices. For us it’s the first step in pulling things together,” Jowett says.

By bringing together the distinct businesses under the one Motion Asia Pacific name, customers will find it easier to source a huge range of parts and products.

“We’re helping to reduce transactional costs and increase access to a deeper range of offerings.

Reducing suppliers is a strategic aim for many industrial businesses as they want to have an uncluttered supply chain. You don’t want thousands of different suppliers, some of whom they might spend not a lot of money with,” Jowett says.

The efficiencies go beyond the physical objects supplied and will enable each of the Motion Asia Pacific businesses to improve how they work together.

In addition to the bearings, seals, or power transmission products the company can supply, the wealth of knowledge built up within the business

can be brought to bear on a solution.

“For example, when we supply a Hardy Spicer hydraulic hose with fittings it is tailored to the application,” Jowett says. “Often a poorly-installed part can lead to ongoing problems, so that advisory service that wraps around the product, those are the things we work hard on.”

The people providing this service, the application engineers, may have an additional logo on their sleeve, but the experience will remain.

“We’ve got some of the best people who are very knowledgeable about specific applications,” Jowett says. “They’re not just selling you something in a box, they’re helping you find an alternative and ensure that it’s configured correctly and part of a solution comprising belts, cogs, pulleys, chains and bearings.”

Soon Jowett sees Motion Asia Pacific as creating go-to destinations in each location it serves, combining products, technology and knowledge.

“The people in those businesses who have been working with us for 10, 20 to 30 years, they have such a depth of knowledge and experience and in some instances know how the assets

ROGER JOWETT JOINED AS CEO IN 2014.

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operate in the customer’s premises better than the person in charge because they have lived with it from day one of installation,” Jowett says.

Backed by #1

Partnering with Motion Asia Pacific allows for local manufacturing businesses to tap into a global database of expertise in industrial products.

Known throughout North America as a leading supplier, Motion Industries brings formidable know-how to the Australian market.

The company has annual sales in excess of $US6.5 billion ($9.3 billion) and is enabling Motion Asia Pacific to provide the same level of training and support to its staff around Australia.

“Our employees already knew Motion Industries from the US,” Jowett says. “They go on to YouTube and download their videos and now we can package up all of that for training.”

The company’s size also enables Motion Asia Pacific to scale-up local operations.

“We’re adopting our own version of their operating system covering all of our descriptions and copying what they’d already built in terms of that collateral in the database,” Jowett says.

There are also opportunities to save transport costs and increase procurement, but what Jowett sees as most important is the approach Motion has taken to digitally connect with the customer, what he calls an omnichannel approach. This combines the existing face-to-face contact and the expertise that is only available when a supplier can be hands-on with a customer, with a seamless online offering covering sales, associated collateral such as brochures and videos, and customer analytics.

Backing this up is the experience of operating in the most sophisticated logistics supply market in the world, Jowett adds.

“There is the ability to get any product, anywhere overnight. You might need this in Alaska, and I’ve got it in Florida, and I’ll get it to you tomorrow. It is mind-blowing capability,” he says.

To achieve this in Australia, one also has to overcome a highly dispersed population across a huge continent.

MANUFACTURING

ROGER JOWETT AT A COMPANY WAREHOUSE.

Motion Asia Pacific will take the best ideas from the North American market and apply them here.

“We don’t want to be touching the product too many times, we just want to glide it to you,” Jowett says.

“Of course, when you can see how it works in North America you bring ideas about how to make us a little bit smarter and faster.”

Supplying the manufacturing renaissance

Embedding the change from Inenco to Motion Asia Pacific has come at a time where the manufacturing sector in Australia has undergone a wholescale re-evaluation in the eyes of the wider population.

No longer bemoaning the death of Australian manufacturing, now the exhortation is to buy local, and not just when it comes to food and drink.

Having seen changes in industrial composition occur in other countries in the region where Motion Asia Pacific has businesses, including New Zealand, Indonesia and Southeast Asia, Jowett highlights that our neighbours provide an indication of where manufacturing might be headed.

“We have a very strong business in New Zealand called SAECOWilson and we have watched as New Zealand deindustrialised over 20 years ago when car manufacturing ceased,” Jowett says. “What we’ve seen over the years is that manufacturing has

blossomed, with some incentives from government and a really good engineering capability, and now there are some world-class manufacturing operations in New Zealand.”

Jowett describes the manufacturing landscape in New Zealand as akin to a start-up ecosystem, with manufacturers able to experiment with short runs of products to a smaller market while leveraging global best-practice.

Here, Motion Asia Pacific can be the conduit between their suppliers who are located in the industrial powerhouses of Asia, Europe and North America, and the businesses in Australia and New Zealand.

“It’s more these nimble, value-add manufacturers and that leads to more specialist engineering applications, with a heavy dose of design,” Jowett says.

Being linked to markets in North America also allows Motion Asia Pacific to bring the latest innovations to the local market as they come online.

“One of the things that we’re quite excited about is how our Motion colleagues in America have been investing in spare parts for robotics, and asking themselves as a traditional industrial parts distributor, ‘How are we going to be relevant in 10 years when we know our customers are changing faster than us in terms of their manufacturing techniques?’” Jowett says.

AUSTRALIANMINING

Continuing a focus on being the local advisor to customers, Motion Asia Pacific will be looking at how they can bring these new products to customers.

“We serve everything from the local repair shop that’s fixing trailers through to the big miners, and all the food and aggregates and agriculture in-between, so we’re quite flexible at working out the appropriate stocking programs,” Jowett says.

Investing in local capability

Just as much as the new wave of manufacturing will be assisted by the newest products and technology, Jowett also knows that it is the people who put these devices together who are the lifeblood of Australian manufacturing. For this reason, Motion Asia Pacific is continuing to do its part to train the next generation of manufacturers.

“For the past four years we have had a regular intake of mechanical engineering graduates in their last year. They’ve done 14 weeks of work placement and we’ve retained a fair number of them once they graduate and they become the application engineers,” Jowett says.

The program has had success with diversifying the industrial workforce, including women and those from regional backgrounds. This is important, Jowett notes, to ensure that the businesses that Australian manufacturers have relied upon for 60

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years will be around for the next 60.

“It’s critical to understand how some people look at the same problem a different way and come up with maybe the same solution or a different one. It keeps us relevant. The world out there is diverse and it’s very important for a traditional business to drive harder and harder in that direction,” Jowett says.

Motion Asia Pacific is also ensuring that its own workforce will stick around and developing their skills to handle the next generation of manufacturing.

“Our business is made up of people who were fitters, mechanics, drivers, warehouse workers. They join us and they progress through our organisation, we invest in them, and they can get qualified all the way to leadership with MBA sponsorship,” Jowett says.

These programs will be extended and developed further, as graduates are able to tap into the knowledge found in Motion Industries in North America.

“We’ve already had some of our younger people doing internships on software and marketing projects in the USA with Motion Industries and you can see their eyes light up,” Jowett says.

He notes that the logos and familiar faces that Australian manufacturers are used to won’t disappear, and will instead be Motion Asia Pacific’s crown jewels, backed up by a global commitment to bring the best parts and expertise in the world to Australia. AM

TECHNOLOGY

QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY PROVIDES SOLACE FOR EXPLORERS MORE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES ARE BEING DEVELOPED TO UNLOCK AUSTRALIA’S HIDDEN DEPOSITS. AUSTRALIAN MINING SPEAKS WITH CSIRO ABOUT A POPULAR TECHNOLOGY THAT IS OPENING UP POSSIBILITIES.

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ineral exploration is a key driver that keeps Australia’s mining sector vibrant.

The Australian Government injected $125 million into the expansion of Geoscience Australia’s exploration program in June, on top of a $100.5 million commitment in 2017.

Queensland also provided a $10 million funding boost for exploration, in addition to bringing forward its $2.8 million budget to the 2020-2021 financial year.

Similar government support has taken place across Western Australia, Victoria and Tasmania, with all states deferring payments and fees to strengthen the mineral exploration sector. It has received the utmost focus from governments in response to the impact of the coronavirus.

Without strong activity in the exploration sector, no discoveries are made and no new projects can be developed.

This commitment from governments is testament to the amount of hidden minerals that are yet to be found in Australia.

No minerals are considered too obscure and no orebodies too deep to discourage the flow of investment into exploration.

Australian Government agency CSIRO has gained ground in

developing quantum technologies to increase mineral exploration in a productive manner.

Though the exploration aid has been in the market for more than a decade, it is only scratching the surface as there are development challenges that are yet to be overcome through industry partnerships.

CSIRO states that the emerging quantum technology sector could support 16,000 jobs and annually create more than $4 billion in revenue by 2040.

The technology it has developed, known as LANDTEM, has been used by Glencore, Legend Mining, Mincor Resources, Western Areas and Aeris Resources.

BHP, former owner of the Cannington silver mine in Queensland, also used an early LANDTEM field trial on site to provide better delineation of the orebody lodes, accelerating mine development by 18 months.

Since then, LANDTEM has located billions of dollars’ worth of mineral ore discoveries across the globe.

“LANDTEM has been responsible for the discovery of ore deposits valued at more than $6 billion globally, returning over $4 billion to Australia, with mining consultancies acknowledging LANDTEM as the most sensitive tool for exploration on the market,” CSIRO chief scientist

LANDTEM REQUIRES LESS DATA POSTPROCESSING OVER OTHER METHODS.

AUSTRALIANMINING

LANDTEM USES LIQUID NITROGEN RATHER THAN LIQUID HELIUM CRYOGENICS.

Cathy Foley tells Australian Mining.

Aside from being used across Australia, LANDTEM is also popular in Canada’s exploration sector.

LANDTEM applies highly sensitive sensors that are capable of detecting magnetic fields. They are 100 millionth of the size of earth’s magnetic fields.

This makes them ideal for detecting and distinguishing deeply buried, highly conducting orebodies, including nickel sulphide, gold and silver ores.

It differentiates the target ore from other material, even for ores buried deep underground.

Russell Mortimer, consulting geophysicist with exploration consultancy Southern Geoscience, agrees with Foley, declaring LANDTEM as the most sensitive tool for exploration on the market.

“The power of this system is that it can detect targets of interest directly at very deep levels that we otherwise would have had no idea about,” Mortimer says.

The development of LANDTEM, which has been in the market for more than 10 years, was result of research undertaken with industry partners after the discovery of a high temperature superconductor in 1987.

Foley says after seeing the first results of CSIRO’s preliminary magnetic sensors, BHP suggested

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the technology would help with its exploration programs. The agency then turned its attention to developing superconducting magnetic sensors for application in mineral exploration.

“There hasn’t been a major mineral orebody discovery for some time,” Foley says.

“Orebodies will most likely be deeper or in more complex geological situations. These magnetic sensors can differentiate the different geological formations present and can see deeper, down to one kilometre in some cases.”

With LANDTEM allowing for more targeted exploration, mining and exploration companies can realise cost savings through decreased risk in projects and the use of fewer resources to achieve discoveries.

“Clients have indicated that operational exploration costs have been reduced by as much as 30 per cent through the use of LANDTEM,” Foley says.

Another encouraging thing about LANDTEM is its accessibility. The technology is commercially accessible via Perth-based HPEM and Canada’s Crone Geophysics, an instrumentation supplier for mineral exploration and mine development.

These partners are helping move the ambitions of explorers closer to a reality. AM

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

WOMEN IN INDUSTRY FINALISTS THE 2020 WOMEN IN INDUSTRY FINALISTS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED, RECOGNISING THE SUCCESS OF WOMEN IN THE RESOURCES INDUSTRY AND SHINING A LIGHT ON THEIR ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THESE TYPICALLY MALE DOMINATED FIELDS.

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he 2020 Women in Industry event has received a record number of nominations, with 27 per cent more than last year and a record number of businesses and organisations being involved.

There are seven nominees in the Excellence in Mining category: iVolve Industrial Technology’s Kim Parascos, MMG mine closure project advisor Rose Lindner, Caterpillar automation specialist Jacqueline Madsen, CRC ORE general manager – commercialisation Clytie Dangar, and Weir Minerals Australia regional managing director Asia Pacific region Terese Withington.

Parascos is nominated for her efforts in commercialising products focussed on improving efficiencies in mining, Madsen for being a strong advocate for workplace safety in mental health, and Dangar for her solid support of the Austmine Women in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM): Mining, Equipment, Technology and Services (METS) Career Pathway Program BHP also has double representation, with A&I development underground specialist Carlie Hayward and head of HSE business partnership Sarah Withell. Hayward’s nomination is in recognition of her work with BHP’s Inclusion and Diversity Council, introducing a women’s range of personal protective equipment, female toilets and upgraded changing rooms.

Withell, a former winner of the Exceptional Woman in New South Wales Mining title has been recognised for her commitment to diversity in the workforce, her team having 40 per cent female representation, 30 per cent female leaders and 8 per cent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation.

Withington is also in contention for the Safety Advocacy award, for her efforts in pioneering the Weir Technical Centre in Melbourne, helping customers find safe transport, storage and disposal for tailings waste.

Lindner is another double nominee, also up for the Rising Star of the Year category, for her dedication to learning and community involvement, running the University of Tasmania Alumni Network to engage remote workers with their peers from other mines.

Winners will be announced in late August. AM

THE 2020 FINALISTS ARE: Social Leader of the Year •A lanna Vial, automation engineer, BlueScope • Elizabeth Taylor, director, RedR International • Jane Tiller, genetic counsellor, Monash University • Jackie Lewis-Gray, graduate engineer, BAE Systems Australia •G emma Murphy, senior manager – customer experience, QBE Insurance • Althea Papinczak, director and chief executive officer, Women in Design and Construction • Sarah McSwiney, composite technology manager, Boeing Aerostructures Australia Atlas Copco Rising Star of the Year • Rose Lindner, mine closure project advisor, MMG • Louise Azzopardi, heavy vehicle and plant mechanic trainer and assessor, WesTrac • Nima Sherpa, principle global technology strategy, BHP •K ate Stanbury, environmental scientist, Stantec Australia • Alicia Heskett, turnaround engineer, Shell Australia • Keren Reynolds, systems engineering lead/hardware engineering team lead, BAE Systems Australia • Vera Milutinovic, marketing and communications manager, Inenco • Helen Vu, graduate engineer, BOC • Kate Robertson, senior geophysicist, Geological Survey of South Australia • Noriko Wood, materials engineer, Fulton Hogan Business Development Success of the Year • Jackie Thew, owner, Abrasive Media Supplies • Sonia Turner, mining client specialist, Scope Systems • Rachael Ashfield, marketing manager, ifm • Stefanie Frawley, director – portfolio management/occupier services, Colliers International • Caroline Murray, senior estimator – projects, APS Industrial •M arika Logan, area manager, Elgas

AUSTRALIANMINING

Industry Advocacy Award • Shay Chalmers, owner and director, Strategic Engineering • Joy Marrocco, digital employee experience manager, AGL • H ayley Jarick, chief executive officer, Supply Chain Sustainability School • Rose Read, chief executive officer, National Waste and Recycling Industry Council •S onja Malcolm, senior manager – capability and development, Sydney Metro •E lizabeth Molyneux, general manager, AGL Energy • Jodie Sainsbury, founder, Kickass Women • J acquelene Brotherton, chair, Transport Women Australia BOC Ltd Safety Advocacy Award • Lyndal Denny, chief executive officer, Women in Trucking Australia • Natalia Trewin, HSE manager, WesTrac • Anastasia Denigan, safety and sustainability specialist, Cement Australia •N oelani Reardon, program manager, Transport for New South Wales • Maddy Holloway, health and safety specialist, CITIC Pacific Mining • Tracey MacDonald, site safety health and environment coordinator, BAE Systems Australia • Nadine Yousef, associate director, Sydney Trains • Terese Withington, regional managing director APAC, Weir Minerals Australia Mentor of the Year •K ylie Jones, production development manager – liquids and packaging, Diageo Australia •C lytie Dangar, general manager – commercialisation, CRC ORE • Dayle Stevens, chief data officer, AGL Energy • Marie Varrasso, head of supply chain operations, Officeworks Excellence in Mining • Kim Parascos, chief executive officer, iVolve Industrial Technology • Rose Lindner, mine closure project advisor, MMG

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• J acqueline Madsen, automation application specialist, Caterpillar • Carlie Hayward, specialist A&I development underground, BHP • Sarah Withell, head of HSE business partnership, BHP •C lytie Dangar, general manager – commercialisation, CRC ORE • Terese Withington, regional managing director APAC, Weir Minerals Australia Excellence in Manufacturing • J osie Costanzo, general manager, Brickworks Building Products • Marina Melik, senior manager, Boeing Aerostructures Australia • Rebecca Parnell, technical and new product development manager, Artisan Food Company • Samantha McDonald, process improvement officer, Bluescope • Rochelle Avinu, business system leader, Leica Biosystems BAE Systems Australia Excellence in Engineering • J o Withford, project engineer/ contract manager, Transport for New South Wales • Elizabeth Taylor, director, RedR International • M andy Petrides, product manager Bosch Australia • Lesley DeGaris, manager engineering, Boeing Aerostructures Australia • L idija Dumbaloska, professional head of electrical engineering, Sydney Trains • Jane MacMaster, chief engineer, Engineers Australia Excellence in Transport • Danelle Kempton, owner and managing director, Dananni Haulage • Lyndal Denny, chief executive officer, Women in Trucking Australia • Melissa Strong, manager – safety, people and culture, Lindsay Australia • Camilla Drover, acting head of commercial, performance and strategy, Transport for New South Wales • J ane Gillespie, senior consultant, Arup • A gnes Leeson, regional scheduler, Elgas

PROSPECT AWARDS

SEW-EURODRIVE IS SPONSORING THE COAL MINE OF THE YEAR AWARD.

SEW-EURODRIVE ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PROSPECT AWARDS COAL FROM AUSTRALIAN MINES POWERS THE LIVES OF MILLIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY EACH DAY, AND SEW-EURODRIVE IS PLEDGING ITS SUPPORT ACROSS ALL FACETS OF THE NATION’S COAL INDUSTRY.

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ith Australian Mining’s Prospect Awards just a couple of months away in October, many of the industry’s elite innovators are finalising their submissions for this year’s show.

Despite setbacks this year due to COVID-19, Australia’s mining industry hasn’t stopped – and the 2020 Prospect Awards will be commending its standout contributors.

Long-time award sponsor SEWEurodrive has returned in 2020 to sponsor the Coal Mine of the Year Award, which recognises a site that sets the standard for the rest of the industry to follow.

SEW-Eurodrive is a German company that offers a wide range of motors, gear units, automation technology and more for multiple industries across the globe. It has been a proud sponsor of the Coal Mine of the Year Award since 2013.

In 2019, Glencore’s Mangoola coal handling preparation plant in New South Wales was recognised as Coal Mine of the Year at the Prospect Awards.

“SEW-Eurodrive takes great pride in sponsoring the Coal Mine of the Year Award,” SEW-Eurodrive national service manager for industrial gearboxes Daniele Dallari tells Australian Mining.

“This award acknowledges the nominees who demonstrated the highest level of productivity, efficiency and safety.”

For Dallari, the awards provide an opportunity to showcase the capabilities of the industry.

He says the company regards

the Prospect Awards as a key event to celebrate the workers and the innovators that strive every day for the success of the Australian mining industry.

“The awards have also raised awareness to the general public on the importance that the resources industry plays on the Australian economy and people’s livelihoods. That’s why we think it’s important,” Dallari says.

“I participated in the 2015 Prospect Awards where it was Anglo American’s Moranbah North mine that won. It was an award for the progress made in improving their operations in terms of productivity and safety.”

While SEW-Eurodrive provides gearboxes and electric motors for a variety of industries, such as food & beverage, logistic and agriculture, mining remains its primary focus in Australia.

“We are a key supplier to many industries providing gearboxes and electric motors for a range of applications from conveyors, pumps, mixers and much more,” Dallari says. “The main applications that we would supply for mining.”

With the industry shifting focus towards more technologically advanced, automated solutions at its mine sites, SEW-Eurodrive is staying ahead of the curve.

The company continues to introduce innovative products, such as the MOVI-C modular automation system, which combines software or hardware into a single package.

Dallari says new technologies are also being welcomed by Australia’s coal industry and the mining industry at large.

“Technology has changed the AUSTRALIANMINING

way coal mines operate and no doubt it will continue to do so in the future,” he explains.

“There is a big focus on predictive maintenance to increase reliability and efficiency in the mining sector.

And at SEW-Eurodrive we believe the best way to improve reliability and efficiency is by providing a quality product equipped with stateof-the-art gear technology that abides by the strictest quality standards.”

SEW-Eurodrive also works alongside mine operators to understand what the industry is demanding and how their needs are changing.

“The mines are asking for assurance that the unit is fit for purpose and ready for reliable operations and the ones that have been working with us and using our full load test capabilities are certainly starting to specify Load Testing as a requirement for their jobs,” Dallari says.

SEW-EURODRIVE OFFERS A RANGE OF TECHNOLOGIES FOR MINING.

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Through the company’s 89 years of operations, SEW-Eurodrive’s commitment to German quality and design has remained, as it expands its operation to local assembly and service centres.

Multiple SEW-Eurodrive local branches are located across Australia to ensure faster delivery of major components.

“We offer German quality and design and we support it locally with the widest stockholding of drives and components in Australia and a nationwide network of assembly and service local branches,” Dallari says.

“We understand that time is money so many units are delivered in a matter of weeks or sometimes days to support Australian industry at large.” AM The 2020 Australian Mining Prospect Awards will be held on October 8 in Brisbane. Nominate at prospectawards. com.au/nominate/

PROSPECT AWARDS

GET YOUR 2020 PROSPECT AWARD NOMINATIONS IN NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2020 AUSTRALIAN MINING PROSPECT AWARDS, WHICH CELEBRATE THE BEST OF THE BEST IN AUSTRALIA’S MINING INDUSTRY ARE NOW OPEN.

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arking 17 years of the premier event for the Australian mining industry, the Prospect Awards aim to recognise and reward excellence in performance across all aspects of the industry, from operations to support for the local environment within mining communities.

The categories with awards up for grabs in 2020 are the Indigenous Engagement Award, Excellence in ifm Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) Application, Epiroc Contract Miner of the Year, Contribution to Mining, Epiroc Hard Rock Mine of the Year, SEW-Eurodrive Coal Mine of the Year, Metso Excellence in Environmental Management, Schenck Process Excellence in Mine Safety Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S), CDE Minerals Processing of the Year, Austmine Innovative Mining Solution, CRC Mine Manager of the Year, Flexco Safety Advocate Award, Liebherr Lifetime Achievement Award and of course, the coveted National Group Australian Mine of the Year.

The Australian Mine of the Year will be chosen from finalists in the Hard Rock Mine of the Year and Coal Mine of the Year categories, while the Lifetime Achievement Award recognises an individual who has dedicated their entire career to the industry and does not take nominations.

The other 12 categories are open for nominations and will recognise

AUSTRALIAN MINING IS PLEASED TO WELCOME BACK ITS RETURNING SPONSORS FOR THE 2020 PROSPECT AWARDS.

companies and individuals for their efforts for initiatives undertaken within the past 12 months. They will demonstrate how the nominee goes above and beyond to create shared value and/or contribution to the Australian mining industry.

For the 2020 Prospect Awards, Australian Mining is proud to introduce two new award categories – the Indigenous Engagement Award and Excellence in IIoT Application – to recognise the companies and individuals excelling in the area of Indigenous employment and engagement and in applying the IoT into mining operations for added value.

Looking back at 2019, Glencore’s Mangoola CHPP (coal handling preparation plant) was named Australian Mine of the Year,

IN 2019, THE PROSPECT AWARDS EVENT WAS HELD IN BRISBANE FOR THE FIRST TIME.

AUSTRALIANMINING

while EMR Capital executive chairman Owen Hegarty took out the highest individual honour, the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Mangoola CHPP came away with a hat-trick, taking out not only Australian Mine of the Year, but also Excellence in Mine Safety OH&S award and Coal Mine of the Year.

This meant Mangoola pipped New Century Resources’ Hard Rock Mine of the Year winner, the Century zinc mine for the top honour, but New Century didn’t go away empty handed, snagging the Community Interaction award for the WaanyiDowner joint venture.

Mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto came away with an award apiece, with BHP Olympic Dam’s general mine manager Paul Cuthbert being named Mine Manager of the Year, while Rio Tinto’s Cape Lambert Turtle Management Program won the Excellence in Environmental Management category.

It wasn’t just about the big guns though, with Mitchell Services winning Contract Miner of the Year, MMD scooping up the Minerals Processing of the Year gong and OZ Minerals and Unearthed’s Explorer Challenge recognised as the best Innovative Mining Solution.

The night took an emotional turn when the late John Emerson, board member of MinEx CRC was named as the winner of the Contribution to Mining award, which was accepted on

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his behalf by his nephew Steve Skull.

This year, Australian Mining is delighted to welcome back National Group, Liebherr, Flexco, Epiroc, Metso, CDE Global, Austmine, SEW Eurodrive and CRC Industries on board as returning sponsors to the event, and welcome aboard new sponsor IFM, which will support the Excellence in IIoT category.

These sponsors, along with guests are set to return to the sunshine state capital Brisbane (COVID-19 permitting) for the Prospect Awards for the second time, highlighting and recognising Queensland’s significant contribution to the mining industry.

Australian Mining invites those within the industry to nominate, save the date, as the industry comes together on October 8 to celebrate another year of excellence in Australia’s mining and mineral processing industry.

Nominations are open at https:// prospectawards.com.au/home/ and Australian Mining encourages you to put forward nominations for organisations, departments and individuals in the industry that are going above and beyond in their roles to support a strong resources sector in Australia. AM The 2020 Australian Mining Prospect Awards will be held in Brisbane on Thursday, October 8. Nominations for all award categories close on Friday, September 4.

EVENT SPOTLIGHT QME HAS BEEN A LANDMARK EVENT IN MACKAY FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS.

QME RETURNS TO MACKAY IN SEPTEMBER QUEENSLAND MINING AND ENGINEERING EXPO IS CONTINUING A 25-YEAR-PLUS TRADITION THAT EVEN COVID-19 CAN’T STOP. THIS YEAR, QME IS RETURNING TO SHOWCASE THE BEST AND LATEST OF THE MINING SECTOR.

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or more than 25 years, the Queensland Mining & Engineering Expo (QME) has been at the heart of the mining sector in Mackay.

As Queensland returns to work following the COVID-19 shutdown, this landmark exhibition will once again be held and be one of the first major exhibitions to be conducted in Australia.

Traditionally held in late July, QME 2020 has moved dates back two months and will now be staged from September 22–24, with registrations now open.

QME is excited and proud to play its part in providing a much-needed boost to the local community and support the mining industry to kickstart the economy post COVID-19.

Reed Exhibitions has been working with key government departments and partners to put together a comprehensive health and safety plan to make sure the wellbeing of exhibitors, attendees and staff is held at the utmost priority during this event.

QME has a remarkable history with Mackay and the entire region. Held every two years since 1994, QME will feature more than 200 suppliers.

It will also feature a free-to-attend seminar series that will give visitors the opportunity to hear from industry professionals, who will address the current needs of the industry and facilitate discussion and solutions for a path forward.

Key industry leaders that have already confirmed their participation to speak at the seminar series include Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane; METS Ignited chief executive

Adrian Beer; Greater Whitsunday Alliance chief executive Kylie Porter and Adani Mining Australia chief executive Lucas Dow. QME Exhibition director Brandon Ward acknowledges the importance of the event to the local region and also to the state following a tough first half of 2020.

“Mackay is the heartbeat of the Queensland mining industry, which is why QME has been so important to the region for more than 25 years. As sentiment improves and the mining industry leads the economic revival, an event such as QME becomes even more important,” Ward says.

“As business owners and managers, we face the importance of safety measures every day, though this time we look for your support and diligence to support the enhanced safety measures in place.

“QME will be back in Mackay and create the space for connections to be made again and discussions to be had on how vital mining is to our recovery.”

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane says QME is terrific at showcasing the work of the resources industry and the talented people who work across a diverse range of commodities.

“Our sector is playing a critical role in the COVID-19 recovery and QME will build on this work and ensure our sector continues to be a key driver of both Queensland and Australia’s economies,” Macfarlane says.

Mackay Regional Council mayor Greg Williamson says this year’s QME will be a little different to previous years due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“Even though QME might look AUSTRALIANMINING

different this year, the exhibition still promises to bring big ideas, the latest technological innovations and it will create a much-needed buzz in our community,” Williamson says.

“The mining equipment technology and services (METS) sector is one of the key drivers of the Mackay region’s economy and we’re keen to help kickstart the local economy following the impacts of COVID-19.

“Council has been working closely with the Queensland Government and Resource Industry Network (RIN) to open the new Resources Centre of Excellence to the global mining community.

“This new world-class facility will provide training opportunities for the industry and is an investment in job creation for the METS sector and the Mackay region. It will ensure we have a skilled workforce to take up job

QME WILL FEATURE MORE THAN 200 SUPPLIERS AS PART OF ITS EXHIBITION.

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opportunities and it allows the Mackay region to be one of the world’s best in innovation, training and research.

“QME is a signature event on Mackay’s calendar and one that council is proud to support.”

QME is also a partner of the Bowen Basin Mining Club’s Queensland Mining Awards, which recognise achievements across the state’s mining sector. The awards will be held at the Mackay Entertainment and Convention Centre on September 23.

Attendance to QME is free for both the exhibition and seminar series, but everyone attending must register to gain entry. AM For an overview on the QME Seminar Series, including session topics and speakers, plus a complete list of current exhibitors, visit the QME website: qmeeexpo.com.au

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

MINESAFE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE GOES ONLINE THE MINESAFE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2020 (MINESAFE 2020) IS SET TO BE THE SAFEST MINESAFE EVENT TO DATE, AS IT MOVES ONLINE FOR THE FIRST TIME DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.

MINESAFE 2020 CONFERENCE CHAIR ANDREW CHAPLYN.

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osted by the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), the September 22-23 event could not be timelier, as health and safety and “the new normal” are hot topics across all industries.

Mining has continued to operate as normally as possible during the pandemic despite travel restrictions and social distancing regulations.

Minesafe 2020 will also feature Western Australia’s new industrial manslaughter legislation and risk management and promote a zero-harm workplace safety culture at all levels of mining businesses.

Director of mines safety at the Western Australian Department of Mines, Industry, Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) and Minesafe 2020 conference chair Andrew Chaplyn says coming together to improve safety and health outcomes is critical to the mining industry’s future.

“To make a positive difference, industry must learn from its past,” Chaplyn tells Australian Mining.

“Unfortunately, in some parts of the resources industry, we have failed to do so.

“Attending Minesafe 2020 is an opportunity to support each other and have conversations about our journey to achieving best practice.”

With the Work Health and Safety Bill 2019 passed by the Western

Australian legislative assembly in February and expected to pass in the spring session of parliament in coming months, achieving best practice has become even more important.

“Hazards are present in the mining industry and controlling them to ensure safe production is vital,” Chaplyn says.

“The regulatory landscape is changing across the nation and we all need to be aware of our responsibilities in the roles we have, whether it be the company director, chief operating officer, regulator, manager, supervisor or workers.”

Technology will be at the forefront of discussion, with a focus on the importance of combining innovation with human interaction and intelligence to build reliable safety procedures.

Chaplyn says future industry leaders will have an opportunity to share their knowledge with the current leaders of conventional mining, combining these skillsets to build futuristic solutions.

“Embracing change and adopting new technology is occurring faster than ever before in this fourth industrial revolution, so we need to

understand the support networks to achieve these outcomes in the safest manner,” he says.

“We will need to have those frank conversations around realistic expectations as we continue to innovate and adopt new technology.

“The young minds are the future and they will benefit from sharing ideas with those experienced practitioners across the mining industry.”

Mental health and positive workplace culture are two more important topics that will be discussed at the conference.

Centre for Transformative Work Design director professor Sharon Parker will weigh in on work-related mental health, while Mitchell Services general manager people and risk Josh Bryant will present a case study, The Implementation of Safety Differently/Safety II. Being online, attendees can participate in question and answer sessions, share their knowledge and network all from the comfort of their home or office, without having to worry about compromising their safety due to coronavirus.

The technical presentations will also be available to view on-demand for at least six months after the event.

This year’s keynote speakers include Chaplyn, Parker and Bryant as well as the Western Australian Minister for Mines and Petroleum; Energy; Industrial Relations Bill Johnston, Rio Tinto iron ore chief executive officer Chris Salisbury, New South Wales Resources Regulator Chief Inspector of Mines Garvin Burns and Clyde & Co managing partner – Australia Michael Tooma.

AusIMM looks forward to welcoming the mining industry to attend, learn and participate at Minesafe 2020, despite not being able to welcome guests in a face-to-face environment.

Chaplyn is looking forward to discussing a large range of topics with all attendees, particularly in improving risk management to contribute to a safer industry.

“Risk management is fundamental to controlling hazards and managing all aspects of a mining operation, so improving our collective understanding and application will support a safer mining industry,” he concludes. AM

THE MINESAFE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE WILL BE HELD ONLINE ON SEPTEMBER 22-23.

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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

WHEN ONLY GENUINE WILL DO, ALLIGHTSYKES DELIVERS PERKINS ENGINES HAVE BEEN POWERING MACHINERY USED IN THE MINING, CONSTRUCTION, AGRICULTURE AND UTILITIES INDUSTRIES SINCE 1932. WITH ALLIGHTSYKES AS THE COMPANY’S AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR SINCE 2007, PERKINS HAS A STRONG PRESENCE IN MINING OPERATIONS DOWN UNDER.

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ith engine capacity ranging from 0.5 litres to 61 litres in electric power, Perkins offers one of the widest ranges from a single supplier, improving reliability and performance in harsh environments, such as mine sites.

Having recently expanded its industrial engine offering in Australia to 18 litres, as opposed to the previous range of 0.7 litres to 7.1 litres, Perkins has evolved to change the way mining operators power their businesses.

The industrial engine range now has power ranging from 8.2kW all the way through to 597kW. Allightsykes product line manager for engines, David Whincup, describes the updated engines as a “game changer” for the Australian industrial engine market, with many hours of testing put into guaranteeing the safety of the engines in conditions tougher than the average highway.

Whincup says the power of

Perkins engines, backed up by the Australian reach of Allightsykes, is a winning combination for introducing engines that can withstand the harsh environments of mining operations.

“Allightsykes supplies Perkins engines into both the Australian original equipment manufacturers market and the aftermarket as repower engines to bring new life into old equipment,” Whincup tells Australian Mining.

“To complement this, Allightsykes have access to the full Perkins range of spare parts and are able to provide service throughout Australia with our network of branches and dealers.

“Offering both mechanical and fully electronic engines, build specification can be tailored for customers’ specific needs and applications.”

With this versatility, to change the engines for each individual industry and organisation within those industries, Perkins’ latest engines are flexible, high performing, fuel efficient and durable.

Perkins’ goal is to be a company with

ALLIGHTSKYKES DISTRIBUTES PERKINS ENGINES TO THE AUSTRALIAN MARKET.

AUSTRALIANMINING

global reach but also local presence, which is why Allightsykes’ role in the Australian market is so important to the United Kingdom-headquartered company.

Allightsykes’ role for Perkins in the Australian market is also in the installation and maintenance space, with a team of engineers based across its branches to service the country’s maintenance and repair needs.

Perkins has also made monitoring its engines’ service and maintenance history easier and more convenient than ever with the launch of the Perkins My Engine App. This allows operators a way to check the engine’s service and operating manuals, all from their mobile phone or tablet.

“With the Perkins My Engine App, you can simply enter the engine’s serial number into the app and have access to all of the service manuals for that engine, along with a parts book all at your fingertips on your device” Whincup explains.

“It’s a really handy tool to have, with a full service history and service reminders, operators can keep track of what needs replacing at the next service and send the information straight to their local dealer.”

With a full record of maintenance needs available in the pockets of operators, Allightsykes and Perkins are helping mine managers save on costs due to unplanned maintenance downtime, which can quickly add up to huge losses.

Perkins engines aren’t only helping mining operators save in the space of less unscheduled maintenance, but also with the cost of the engines themselves.

As Whincup explains, Perkins engines offer lower installation costs and fuel consumption to provide reduced engine operational costs across the lifetime of the machine.

“Specifically designed for the needs of off-highway machines, Perkins engines are supported by a global product support network to minimise downtime,” he says.

“Perkins has a service life commitment of eight to 12 years following the last engine leaving the production line, depending on

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THE PERKINS MY ENGINE APP ON A SMARTPHONE.

application, and will continue to offer parts for older engines if it is commercially viable.

“Components are predominantly from original suppliers or produced to original drawings, to ensure fit first time, quality and durability. All genuine Perkins parts have a minimum 12-month warranty,” Whincup says.

“Apart from their outstanding durability and reliability, they have been designed to provide a lower cost installation and incorporate features to minimise servicing costs.”

“In the unlikely event that you experience a problem, your local distributor or dealer will be able to provide all of the information you require, with the support of the Perkins helpdesk if necessary – who can liaise directly with the customer should the need arise."

Allightsykes is proud to offer comprehensive local access and support to the complete range of Perkins Engines and Perkins genuine parts across Australia. AM

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

MORE PRESSURE THAN FIBREGLASS PIPE CRUSADER HOSE HAS SUCCESSFULLY DEVELOPED ULTRA-HIGH PRESSURE HOSE FOR THE PURPOSE OF MINE DEWATERING THAT IS CAPABLE OF GOING INTO DEEPER DEPTHS. INTRODUCING THE FLEXIBORE 300 SERIES HOSE.

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rusader Hose is an innovative Australian manufacturer of layflat hose, flexible rising main and mine dewatering hose.

The Melbourne-based company has continued to develop advanced solutions for ground water pumping over its 35-year history.

A recent breakthrough by the research and development team has been the development of ultra-highpressure hose for the extraction of bore water. The six-inch Flexibore 300 series hose is the highest pressure layflat hose in the world for mine dewatering, which boasts a burst pressure of 90 bar or 900 metres.

The iron ore mines in the Pilbara region of Western Australia are a leading powerhouse for the Australian economy. These mines are at the cutting edge of best practice in efficiency and safety.

Australian mining engineering is highly rated across the world due

to its skilled processing and ore extraction techniques.

“In some of the larger open cut iron ore mines, they have been working for over 30 years, non-stop, removing ore out of the pit. Some of the larger mines are longer than 25 kilometres, so you can imagine the experience gained plus size of hole in the ground,” Crusader Hose managing director Francois Steverlynck says In order to extract the ore in a dry state, the open cut mine needs to keep the water table lowered. This is typically achieved by pumping groundwater out from in-pit bores.

These are the bores that are inside the open cut mine, as opposed to around the perimeter. Due to the constantly changing topography inside the pit, as the mine extends and deepens, these in-pit bores need to be moved and relocated.

Flexible rising mains have been the system of choice for in-pit bores due to the simplicity with which the submersible pumps can be

retrieved and installed.

The typical installation method uses a roller, crane or mechanised spool, as the riser pipe is one continuous length.

As the need to extract the ore from deeper depths inside the pit has evolved, so has the importance of lowering the water table below the pit base. As the water table goes deeper down, the end result is a need for higher pressure pumps and higherpressure riser pipes.

Until recently, only fibreglass riser pipe had the pressure rating for this application, as Australian-made Flexibore and Well hose, an imported hose from the United Kingdom, both reached their safe operational pressure limits.

Fibreglass, however, is not the ideal solution as it is bulky, expensive and cumbersome to install. Therefore, discussions were initiated with dewatering supervisors of the large Western Australian mines for the need of a higher pressure Flexibore hose.

The engineers at Crusader Hose

DEWATERING USING LAYFLAT HOSE AT A LARGE IRON ORE MINE. AUSTRALIANMINING

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FLEXIBORE 300 SERIES HOSE REACHES A BURST PRESSURE OF 90 BAR.

rose to the challenge of developing a world-first product, and in June this year successfully trialled a six-inch Flexibore, which bursts at 90 bar.

Groundwater can now be safely pumped from 360 metres below, or at higher pressures.

The tensile load reached was 25 tons (22.6 tonnes), which represents the pump plus water weight that can be safely suspended from the Flexibore hose.

“This is a pioneering achievement in the history of our company,” Steverlynck continues.

“This Australian development will hopefully be keenly adopted by mining companies and enable them to keep at the forefront of productivity and continuous improvement.” AM

PRODUCTS

IFM EFECTOR SENSOR HELPS GUARD MACHINERY ifm’s O3M sensor is a 3D sensor that improves the overall functionality and safety around mobile machinery and plants.

Users can install the smart sensor on loaders, mining machinery, automated guided vehicles (AGV) or other vehicles and machinery.

Thanks to the sensor’s automatic object detection feature, it can emit a warning or interact with the control system to apply vehicle brakes.

This makes the O3M sensor highly useful as collision warning and avoidance.

The sensor is also capable of overcoming challenges around visibility, proving itself especially useful where there are difficult ambient light situations such as sunlight, or materials with reflective characteristics.

The O3M sensor is designed for use in outdoor environments where there is high shock, vibration and environmental resistance.

• ifm.com

SANDVIK FINDS CAUSE OF TOOL FAILURE WITH MOBILE APP Sandvik Rock Tools has launched a new digital solution called My Rock Tools – Analyze, available for all its customers.

It is a mobile application designed to conduct the root cause of a failure and/or discard reason of a rock tool. This helps to prevent reoccurrence of failure and improve future performance.

Users will receive an invitation from Sandvik to log in, download the app (which is available for both iOS and Android), provide key product information, take photos of their worn out rock tool and send them back to Sandvik.

Head of digital solutions in the rock tools division at Sandvik Mining and Rock Technology, Charles Macfadyen, said My Rock Tools – Analyze could ultimately increase productivity and profitability.

“A big part of Sandvik’s DNA is continuous improvement in close collaboration with our customers, and My Rock Tools Analyze does precisely that, in a user friendly, fast and remote way,” he said.

• rocktechnology.sandvik

HIGMILL GRINDS WITH MINIMUM FOOTPRINT

NIVEK INDUSTRIES’ TED PROTECTS FITTERS

Outotec, which merged with Metso on July 1, has introduced the Outotec HIGmill plant (HMP). The new release tackles safety issues that come with equipment installation.

The HMP is a standalone, modular solution for fine grinding that helps speed up return on investment and minimise plant footprints.

It includes a vertical HIGmill unit and Outotec PSI R500i particle size analyser for online process monitoring and feedback.

The HIGmill unit provides process flexibility by adjusting the speed to match the energy input for the required product particle size.

Outotec product manager Riddhika Jain said, “The HMP combines Outotec’s leading fine grinding technology with faster installation and compact footprint while maintaining safety standards.

“This stand-alone modular solution comes in easily installable preassembled sections to speed up returns on investment.”

Tracked Elevating Device, commonly known as TED, is the only allterrain, hydraulic belly plate jack on the market.

TED is self-propelled and remote-controlled, designed to take the weight out of the belly plate removal and replacement, while removing fitters from the crush zone.

TED can be used in tight spaces under machinery to remove and replace belly guards, and other heavy components. With the constantly growing array of attachments available for TED, the need for personnel to push, pull, or carry heavy loads in tight awkward situations in the workshop and the field, is greatly decreased.

Its attachments include jib attachment, track roller carrier, Rhino stand locating tool, steer cylinder cradle, front belly plate cradle, strut spindle cap tool, cutting edge tool, double sided GET, CAT 24M GET, corner cutting edge tool, slope jig, low profile pivot table, pivot table, steer idler attachment, sump tray and more.

• Outotec.com

• nivekindustries.com.au

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PRODUCTS

CRUSHING AND SCREENING DESIGN PLANNER

STRATA UPGRADES EMERGENCY REFUGE CHAMBER

My Plant Planner from Metso is a drag and drop 3D crushing and screening plant configurator that enables users to design more productive and efficient plants through real-time insights.

The design and simulation tool is based on proprietary Metso software VPS and Bruno. Users can design and simulate the ideal crushing and screening unit in the same tool in 3D. The configurator makes it easy to predict general power consumption of the system and see the footprint of the circuit.

Users can pick and choose different types of crushers, screens and conveyors to get the perfect balance for the circuit and easily identify bottlenecks to understand where extra capacity is needed.

Important factors, such as capacity, load, and power draw, are updated in real-time as the circuit is designed and the parameters updated.

Metso merged with Outotec on July 1.

Strata Worldwide has released a newly-designed emergency refuge chamber (ERC), the Strata ERCX. It is a steel-sided, walk-in refuge chamber for use in underground metal/ non-metal mines, tunneling operations and chemical plants.

The new design provides greater flexibility for custom configurations and elevates occupant safety and comfort.

“We have learned valuable lessons from our experiences and through customer input. It was our primary goal to develop a product that would meet the preferences of our customers, and at the same time be easily tailored to meet local and industry-based regulations,” Strata general manager of emergency refuge chambers – Americas, David Maust, said.

The ERCX is available in four standard sizes – eight-, 12-, 20- and 26-person – and has select base configurations.

Time duration selections include 24, 36, 48 and 96 hours of breathable air and battery back-up on-board supplies.

• metso.com

• strataworldwide.com

BEND-TECH PROTECTS HITACHI EXCAVATORS

EPIROC UNVEILS DIAMEC SMART 6M DRILLING RIG

The Hitachi EX3600 cylinder protection system is designed to minimise damage and downtime that occurs to the hydraulic rams during operations.

It provides a complete cover of the ram with no excess weight or operative restriction, deflecting rocks and debris from the expensive cylinders.

The rock deflection is extremely robust and flexible, and the system is easy to install.

Bend-tech has off-the-shelf stocks of the EX3600 cylinder protection system ready for despatch, providing users with a cost-effective solution to maintenance, $50,000 in parts and fitment cylinder replacement costs, and up to $1.5 million in lost production per day during downtime.

A protection system is also available for EX5600.

Epiroc has combined the drilling capacity of the Diamec Smart 6 and mobility and sturdiness of the Boomer S2 rig carrier to create the Diamec Smart 6M. The second-generation underground core drilling rig with a mobile carrier suits the demands of underground operations, with the carrier purpose-built with an extremely stable yet flexible boom. Operators are not required to lower the drilling unit to the ground, minimising exposure to mud and dirt.

The drilling capacity of the Diamec Smart 6M also equals that of the Diamec Smart 6, meaning that the deep hole version is rated for 1080 metres hole depth. For drilling vertically up the number is 575 metres.

Epiroc offers options to go along the Diamec Smart 6M, including Tier 3 and Tier 4 final/stage V engine, rear-view camera, LED spotlights and fire suppression.

• bendtechgroup.com.au

• epiroc.com

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EVENTS

CONFERENCES, SEMINARS & WORKSHOPS EVENT SUBMISSIONS CAN BE EMAILED TO EDITOR@AUSTRALIANMINING.COM.AU Women in Industry Awards, Melbourne, August 13

expanding lithium industry.

• lithium.ausimm.com

The Women in Industry Awards acknowledge the exceptional women who have achieved success through their invaluable leadership, innovation and commitment to their sector.

The awards recognise and reward the achievements and aim to raise the profile of women working within the resources, engineering, manufacturing, process control and commercial road transport industries, while promoting and encouraging excellence.

Australian Mining, PACE, Manufacturers’ Monthly, MHD Supply Chain Solutions, Prime Mover, Trailer, Waste Management Review, Rail Express, Roads & Infrastructure Australia and Australian Bulk Handling Review have partnered to bring the event to life.

• womeninindustry.com.au

Minesafe International Digital Conference 2020, Online, September 22-23

Lithium and Battery Metals Digital Conference 2020, Online August 18-19, August 25-26 AusIMM’s Lithium and Battery Metals Digital Conference provides detailed coverage of both lithium and other battery metals in the expanding market.

Delivered virtually by AusIMM and Murdoch University, the conference gives attendees the opportunity to hear from influential keynote speakers on the future of the lithium and battery metals industry, development trends of lithium extraction, the impact of COVID-19 on global commodities and more. The conference also opens doors for networking opportunities with global industry leaders on the latest research, developments and innovative technologies relating to the

AusIMM‘s Minesafe International Digital Conference will be delivered as a completely new digital experience.

Held 100 per cent online, government regulators, health and safety practitioners and other resource industry professionals will come together to share the achievements and challenges within their operations and showcase new workplace safety innovations. Setting the benchmark for industry best practice, the conference will cover current and emerging health issues, legislation and regulations, policies and strategies, risk management and critical controls, as well as highlight effective leadership strategies and psychosocial management that promotes a zero-harm workplace safety culture. This conference will also include live and on demand presentations from industry experts, live question and answer sessions, panel discussions and networking opportunities.

• minesafe.ausimm.com Queensland Mining and Engineering Exhibition, Mackay, September 22-24 Having been staged for more than 25 years, the Queensland Mining and Engineering Exhibition (QME) is recognised as the largest mining expo in the Sunshine State.

Held in Mackay, the gateway to the Bowen Basin region, the event is right on the doorstep of some of the country’s largest coal mines.

QME will feature over 250 suppliers showcasing leading products and

AUSTRALIANMINING

solutions and host a free-to-attend seminar series that will provide a unique opportunity to hear from industry professionals who will address the current needs of the industry.

Sessions will cover mine management and maintenance, health and safety, coal processing strategies and automation, future skills, policy outlook, engineering excellence and more.

QME will be held from September 22 to 24 at the Mackay Showground. The event was delayed from July due to COVID-19.

• queenslandminingexpo.com.au

Australian Mining Prospect Awards 2020, Brisbane, October 8 The Australian mining industry’s biggest awards celebration returns to the Sunshine State for the second straight year. Since 2004, the Australian Mining Prospect Awards have been the only national awards program to stop, take a look at what the mining industry is doing, and reward those who are excelling and going above and beyond, recognising and rewarding innovation. That trend is set to continue this year, with 14 awards on offer for mining’s highest achievers, including two new awards. Visit the Australian Mining Prospect Awards website for information about nominating for the 2020 awards.

• prospectawards.com.au Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum, Kalgoorlie, October 12-14 This annual conference brings mining and exploration companies, brokers, bankers, investors, financiers and mining services companies together in Australia’s unofficial gold mining capital, Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.

The event, which has been moved from

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AUGUST 2020

August to October following the impact of the coronavirus, combines presentations by listed companies with a large display area, housing a range of exhibitors from within the sector.

Diggers and Dealers also features a world-class entertainment program, including a keynote address from a worldclass speaker, Oxford University professor, Ian Goldin.

Previous keynote speakers have included former Prime Minister John Howard and British economist and public servant Mervyn King.

It is also possible to visit sites within the Kalgoorlie-Goldfields region during the conference by contacting companies directly.

• diggersndealers.com.au IMARC, Melbourne, October 27-29 The seventh International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) + Expo will connect over 7000 decision makers, mining leaders, policy makers, technical experts, innovators and educators from over 100 countries to Melbourne.

The conference will give plenty of opportunities for learning, deal making and unparalleled networking, while also facilitating exhibitions and workshops (the latter of which will be taking place on October 26).

As the largest mining conference in Australia, the IMARC program will cover the entire mining supply chain and explore numerous topics such as exploration, plant and processing, social licence, workforce attraction and retention and mine optimisation.

More than 400 global mining companies participated in IMARC 2019, setting off a strong momentum for the 2020 conference.

• imarcmelbourne.com

We are proud to announce the renaming of the Inenco Group.

We are now Motion Asia Pacific, part of the Motion Industries Global Family.

This marks a significant milestone in our 66 years of rich history of operation.

Our trusted and celebrated industrial brands remain the same.

Our purpose remains the same: keeping our customer’s plant and equipment operating efficiently and sustainably.

Supporting industry, our world-class committed teams with their collective industry knowledge and application expertise, span over 180 branches, workshops and service centres across Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia.

To learn more visit us at motionasiapac.com

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