STW - Mar 2019

THE FIRST PRIORITY FOR AUSTRALIA’S MINING INDUSTRY

ISSUE 2 - JAN-MAR 2019

Ready for action Protection for the harshest mining environments

Maintenance

Training

Sustainability

Technology

It’s about having the specialist expertise and relationships to assess your hazards, the range to equip you with the right gear and the training support to ensure you know how to use and maintain it correctly.

Blackwoods has you covered when it comes to safety. No matter what the application, our expertise carries into the specialist risk prevention area with a specific team available to ensure people are safe on mine sites.

When you work with Blackwoods, you’re dealing with an expert team focused on ensuring Australian miners remain safe on-site, everyday.

13 73 23 / blackwoods.com.au

BLACKWOODS KNOWS MINING. Blackwoods is Australia’s largest Safety, Maintenance Repair Operations & Industrial supplier with over 140 years’ experience delivering end-to-end specialist solutions to the mining industry.

Comment Improving safety while achieving business goals WHAT ARE THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS BEING INTRODUCED TO DRIVE BOTH SAFETY AND PRODUCTIVITY IN AUSTRALIAN MINING?

BEN CREAGH

T

here may always be room for improvement when it comes to safety in mining, but it is also important to recognise the progress that has been made.

Australian mining is in the midst of a period of rapid change where innovation is being driven by technology and new strategies to rethink the way we work.

Safety, fortunately, is being prioritised as much as any area of the industry in these pursuits.

The second edition of Safe To Work highlights a number of initiatives and work methods that have been developed or introduced by mining and METS (mining equipment, technology and services) companies.

Many of these initiatives show how the importance of making mining operations more productive and efficient can work hand-in-hand with maintaining a safe working environment.

Look at drones, for example. In the past decade,

VANESSA ZHOU Tel: (03) 9690 8766 Email: vanessa.zhou@primecreative.com.au PUBLISHER CHRISTINE CLANCY EDITOR BEN CREAGH Tel: (03) 9690 8766 Email: ben.creagh@primecreative.com.au JOURNALISTS EWEN HOSIE Tel: (03) 9690 8766 Email: ewen.hosie@primecreative.com.au

CLIENT SUCCESS MANAGER NATASHA SHEKAR Tel: (02) 9439 7227 Email: natasha.shekar@primecreative.com.au SALES MANAGER JONATHAN DUCKETT Tel: (02) 9439 7227 Mob: 0498 091 027 Email: jonathan.duckett@primecreative.com.au

drones have become a common sight on mine operations across the country.

Not only do drones make mines safer by keeping people out of harm’s way, but they have also been developed to provide numerous uses in maintenance and monitoring.

Robotics are rapidly evolving and being introduced at mining operations to provide similar qualities.

Mining equipment has also been a notable developer that has shown productivity and cost protection does not mean safety needs to be sacrificed.

Automation, for instance, also makes mining safer by moving people into remote operations centres away from the dangers of mine sites, all while providing economic benefits.

The gradual move toward electric-powered machinery is increasingly reducing the health and safety issues that come with using diesel.

It is interesting to read about initiatives such as these, and more, in this edition and how they are

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ART DIRECTOR Michelle Weston

SAFETOWORK.COM.AU 3 JAN-MAR 2019

improving safety performance.

Yet, at the same time, there is no significant mention of how they have negatively impacted the modern mining company’s focus on lowering costs or improving productivity.

It all points to a mining industry that is becoming smarter.

Ben Creagh Managing Editor

FRONT COVER A complete personal protection equipment (PPE) package is crucial in the mining industry.

PRIME CREATIVE MEDIA 11-15 Buckhurst St South Melbourne, VIC 3205 Australia www.primecreative.com.au © Copyright Prime Creative Media, 2016 All rights reserved. No part of the publication may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means without the written permission of the ­publisher.

In this issue Features 16 Breathing easy

38 South32 hires in robots

ESS dusts off fugitive dust on conveyor belts

18

56

The Bike platform reaches unfriendly locations at Worsley Alumina

Zero harm at mine sites

Breathesafe points to the right filtration system

40 Virtual reality for training SeePilot aids training with visual information

42 IMARC: toward a safer future Preparing a skilled workforce for tomorrow’s digital age

44 On guard during cyclone season

18 22 Key success to training White Dog International addresses barriers to engagement

24 Putting a stop to drops How worksites can be made safer with practical tools

26 Quenching fire risks at mine sites

FISCA shares the risk factors that lead to a thermal event

28 Sustainability through safety

Safety measures put up by mining giants

56 Unmanned drones

Benefits that transcend hazardous areas

60 Pike River mine disaster

46 Prospect Awards 2018

Takeaway lessons in New Zealand eight years on

Championing safety leaders in the mining industry

64 Combatting mental illness

51 Preventing hearing loss

Government and resources companies take the stigma away

Deafness Australia explains the dangers of noise-induced deafness

66 Scania’s new XT truck

54 Train derailments:

Engineered to protect drivers from harm

a closer look

68 Safety benefits of nitrogen

Where does mining stand through the ages?

Laser cutting and tyre prevention with Pulford Air & Gas

66

Safe mines and projects are the backbone

30 Coal mine reverses national trend

Thiess Mt Owen achieves incredible weight loss through program

33 Gloves that keep cool Safety Mate unveils four technologies that make hands cool and dry

34 Development of

refuge chambers

Strata Worldwide prioritises ease of use during times of emergency

36 Suppressing dust

exposure with foam

Anglo American uses groundbreaking method to reduce exposure

REGULARS

6 NEWS

12 PRODUCTS

SAFETOWORK 4 JAN-MAR 2019

70 EVENTS

News Guideline for safe autonomous equipment in development Autonomous equipment will receive a clear regulation that defines its minimum safety standards in a new guideline being jointly developed by leading companies, including Rio Tinto and Caterpillar.

Under the leadership of the Autonomous Mining Working Group, part of Global Mining Guidelines Group (GMG), the guideline has been in development for more than a year.

It was prompted by a lack of clear guidance and industry alignment that ensures the functional safety of autonomous equipment.

GMG said while original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) were at varying stages of maturity, existing standards were not explicitly developed for automating mining equipment.

“Overall, there is general confusion over which standards to follow,” GMG said in a statement.

The guideline will clarify the definition of functional safety, the accountable parties, as well as the testing and verifying procedures.

BHP hosted a second workshop for the project last year to facilitate sectorwide collaboration. It was attended by

The guideline is scheduled for release this year. Image: Sandvik.

representatives from Fortescue Metals Group, Gold Fields, CITIC Group, Komatsu, Epiroc, Liebherr, Scania and Sandvik.

GMG vice-chair, working groups, Andrew Scott praised the level of maturity in the industry, saying, “GMG acts as a safe environment where true collaboration takes place. This project is a testament to that.

“[The project allows] competing companies to come together under the GMG banner to align the industry and drive a common direction.

“The Functional Safety for Autonomous Mining guideline project is truly a timely activity and will help accelerate support for autonomous systems.”

The guideline is expected to be published in the second half of 2019.

QLD aims to improve safety in the workplace Queensland’s Work Health and Safety Board, the peak advisory board to its government on work health and safety issues, has developed a five-year plan to make the state safer.

The board, made up of representatives from employer associations, trade unions and academia, developed the plan in response to the recommendations of the Best Practice Review into Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.

Industrial Relations Minister Grace Grace commented: “The plan reflects fresh and contemporary thinking, with close consideration to current and emerging global trends and their impact on work health and safety across government, industry, workplaces and community.

“The board has identified four main areas to focus on over the next five years.

“There’ll be emphasis on embracing

SAFETOWORK 6 JAN-MAR 2019

innovation and technology, designing healthy and safe work, fostering a culture of health and safety, and regulating effectively.”

The development of the fiveyear strategic plan is one of 58 recommendations of the Best Practice Review into Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.

Grace said 90 per cent of the recommendations were fully implemented or well advanced.

Cat trucks pass one billion tonnes with no LTIs Caterpillar’s fleet of MineStar Command-enabled autonomous mine trucks has passed the one billion tonnes hauled mark without a single lost time injury (LTI).

“No lost time injuries have been attributed to Cat autonomous haulage,” Caterpillar mining technology product manager Sean McGinnis declared.

“Command for hauling has demonstrated how it enhances safety by eliminating truck operating errors and by reducing the number of people working in the active mining area.”

Cat’s Command for hauling autonomous system has expanded to over 150 machines at six companies spanning Australia and the Americas

Safety has been improved with autonomous technology.

since being launched in 2013.

Part of the wider MineStar Command technology solution, Command for hauling, as the name implies, is designed for mine trucks. Other technology in Cat’s Command range includes Command for dozing and Command for drilling.

Much of Caterpillar’s Command fleet

is made up of Cat 793F trucks capable of carrying 227-tonne payloads.

Other trucks in Cat’s autonomous fleet include the Cat 797F (363-tonne capacity) and Cat 789D (181-tonne capacity).

According to Caterpillar Mining Technology product manager Sean McGinnis, Command for hauling the trucks have travelled more than 35 million kilometres to hit the one-billion tonne milestone.

“The fleet is growing quickly and production continues to climb as mining companies benefit from greater truck productivity, increased truck utilisation, consistent truck operation and reduced costs,” McGinnis added.

News

The crew farewells the truck.

Dual-fuel hybrid truck captures global attention New Hope Group’s New Acland mine in Queensland is proving to be a breeding ground for the latest mining technology, a dual-fuel hybrid truck.

The new system has the ability to convert high horse powered diesel engines from 100 per cent diesel to dual fuel operation using natural gas as the dominant fuel after clocking in more than 6200 hours during a trial.

The project was an industry collaboration with Mine Energy Solutions (MES), which provides the technology, and Hastings Deering that spanned two years.

The hybrid truck significantly reduces the amount of imported diesel used by

substituting it with clean natural gas sourced locally, with lots of its systems being automated including refuelling.

This reduces diesel particulate emissions by more than 80 per cent and greenhouse gases by more than 30 percent.

MES chief executive Cameron Smith said with over 44,000 mine trucks in operation the system could remove 21 million tonnes of greenhouse gases a year.

“Not only did we prove the durability of all the various components, but as we found the weaknesses, we found innovative and practical solutions together with shareholder Intelligas and our partners at

The hybrid truck at the New Acland mine.

SAFETOWORK 8 JAN-MAR 2019

New Acland Coal,” Smith said.

During the trial, the dual-fuel hybrid truck also reported zero lost time injuries, while cutting refuelling times by 75 per cent.

Operators reported no reduction in truck performance when operating in its hybrid mode, and the engine to run more smoothly in many instances.

New Acland general manager David Vink said that when MES first looked for project partners in Queensland there was no one interested.

“But we could see the potential for this technology from the outset,” Vink said.

“Now after nearly 24 months operating on site, clocking more than 6200 hours, we’ve piqued the interest of the big boys and the sceptics.”

The technology has evolved further off the back of data collected as the trial progressed beyond its planned six months (after starting in 2016).

“The success of the trial is evidenced by the fact the idea is being commercialised in central Queensland before being rolled out in other parts of Australia and into North America,” Vink said.

“This is world first technology and we are proud to have been the incubator of it in our own backyard.”

Mining companies fight against domestic violence

Fortescue is playing its part for the mining industry. Image: Fortescue.

The Australian Government and multiple resources companies have taken a stance against domestic violence.

The government, in conjunction with White Ribbon Day, announced a $109 million women’s security package over four years, including funding for legal assistance, expanding the no interest loan scheme and early release of superannuation for victims of domestic

and family violence.

Fortescue Metals Group also rolled out a new family domestic violence leave policy, where affected team members can obtain a 10-day paid leave entitlement.

This can be used for making safety arrangements for themselves and their family members, attending court hearings, and relocation or access police

and counselling services.

Fortescue is in the process of becoming a White Ribbon Australia accredited workplace, following an equal accreditation received by Rio Tinto last year.

White Ribbon ambassador and Fortescue chief operating officer Greg Lilleyman said, “As a business with a majority of male employees, we believe that men have an important role to play alongside women in preventing domestic violence.

“The accreditation process helps facilitate open and honest conversations about what constitutes domestic violence and provides a framework for engaging with our people through surveys, policy reviews and the implementation of training programs.”

News

Activities at the Roy Hill mine in the Pilbara.

How Roy Hill embraces smart mining Roy Hill first started to introduce automation in April 2017. Since then, the mining company has established a fleet of nine autonomous drills that have been retrofitted with the technology.

But according to Roy Hill’s improvement and smart business general manager Christine Eriksen, automation can blur the lines between key performance indicators (KPIs) and responsibilities from one business area to another.

“When you introduce new technology, it can be seen as a magic tool,” the company said in a statement.

“However the new technology can end up causing problems due to the company spending more on the innovation rather than fixing the process, highlighting and developing the workforce and developing the

communication between teams.”

Eriksen said, “That’s why Roy Hill has developed system thinking.”

The system thinking approach works toward a 70 per cent change in management and a 30 per cent change in technology – Roy Hill invested its time, effort and funds in changing the people who work with the technology on the frontline.

This involved communication with people on the ground, encouraging them to have an open mind and to be flexible to change.

It also looks at the interrelationships between people and supply, demand, governance and improvement.

“A system thinking (like Roy Hill’s) has enabled us to understand the relationships between all the maintenance teams,” Eriksen said.

“There were at least seven different

SAFETOWORK 10 JAN-MAR 2019

teams that were involved in delivering support and maintenance to the drills.

Understanding those relations and hand offs was helping to build a sense of collaboration and had a direct impact on the availability on drills.”

In addition, people were encouraged adapt to change quickly, enabled by visualisation techniques that helped supervisors easily see, understand and report to their crew what happened in the last 24 hours and what to expect in the next 24 hours.

As a result, the drills were more productive than expected, and more precise and faster mine planning could be performed.

Eriksen said, “Our drilling and blasting precision is higher. We’ve effectively realised 14 per cent increase with a small reduction in headcount in drilling but no redundancies.”

Anglo American improves safety with drill automation Anglo American has delivered significant safety benefits to the Dawson coal mine in Queensland, following completion of a drill hole using a remote-operated OD14 overburden semi-autonomous drill.

The setup is a first for the company’s metallurgical coal division. Controlled by an operator over four kilometres from the site, the drill allowed for safe and efficient completion of the hole with an overall reduction in shift times.

“We’re always looking for ways to be safer, more productive and more sustainable, and the opportunity at Dawson was attractive because of the ‘can do’ culture of the team,” said Dieter Haage, head of mine modernisation at Anglo American

The drills are a first for Anglo’s metallurgical coal division.

technical & sustainability team.

“Applying technology in this way is how we modernise our approach and the Dawson mine has taken an important first step on this journey.”

The Anglo met coal team received advice from counterparts from the company’s copper business in Chile and Kumba iron ore business in South Africa, which were already familiar with the technology.

The maintenance and engineering team from Dawson and electrical supplier Flanders also got involved in helping upgrade the drill’s onboard computer, sensors and safety technology.

Following successful application, the next step is to automate the drill rod changing process, after which Anglo will look into upgrading other drills in its met coal fleet.

Products 3M RUGGED COMFORT QUICK LATCH HALF FACEPIECE REUSABLE RESPIRATOR PPE specialist 3M’s rugged comfort, quick latch half facepiece reusable respirator 6500 series is designed for dirty, dusty environments.

It uses a quick latch system that makes it easy to remove the soft silicone facepiece without removing the head straps; this can even be done with one hand, which makes things handy when moving in and out of contaminated areas.

The respirator can be used in conjunction with 3M’s Cool Flow valves to make breathing easier in hot and humid environments. In combination with these valves, this half face respirator provides respiratory protection of up to 10 times the United States-certified permissible exposure limit (PEL) and is compliant with Australia and New Zealand Standards (ANZ Standards) OV/AG/P100.

3m.com.au

AMCO NLG TETHER SYSTEM Australian Matting Company Industries (AMCO Industries) has released the Never Let Go (NLG) range of tethering systems and pouches, designed to mitigate the damage of dropped tools and equipment.

The NLG tethering system includes tool tethers, anchors and tool lanyards, which connect the tool to the tether and anchor. The anchor can be a work belt, wrist strap, harness or NLG pouch that the lanyard attaches to in order to help prevent a tool from falling.

Different lanyards are available, including coiled, webbed, retractable and bungee types.

Dropped objects at mine sites can result in injury or death to workers, as well as considerable delays to productivity. From 2010-2014, Safe Work Australia recorded 125 fatalities in Australia related to falling objects and 15,410 serious workers compensation claims in the same period. amco.net.au

HEXAGON HXGN MINEENTERPRISE CAS ANALYTICS Hexagon Mining’s HxGN MineEnterprise CAS Analytics monitors and controls critical risk events by connecting a multitude of data sources via live dashboards, visualising all aspects of the company’s collision avoidance system (CAS).

All mine stakeholders will now be able to access the right data at the right time, gaining unprecedented insight into a wide variety of safety scenarios and performance trends. Based on situational safety data, users can identify and analyse the root causes of failing operational controls.

Seeing safety data at a granular level empowers users of MineEnterprise CAS Analytics to drill down to locate vehicles operating under risk and vehicle types exhibiting higher-than-average numbers of incident events.

The tool’s alarm analysis module used together with situational analysis helps to reveal hazardous locations and operational flaws: dangerously close interactions at dump sites and low visibility at poorly designed intersections, for instance. hexagonmining.com SAFETOWORK 12 JAN-MAR 2019

SCHMERSAL BELT ALIGNMENT SWITCHES Conveyor belts can spring out of their designated track, causing great damage.

Belt alignment switches are used to detect any belt misalignment at an early stage.

Schmersal’s new product line of belt alignment switches detects these misalignments at an early stage, protecting equipment and employees from potential harm.

Schmersal’s switches comprise of three ranges – economy, standard and performance – which are optimally matched to the specific speed of conveyors of all sizes.

Smaller deviations in alignment above 10 degrees trigger a pre-warning while greater deviations, above 25 degrees for example, activate a shut-off. The prewarning gives the maintenance department of a conveyor system owner enough time to prevent unscheduled production shutdowns and use suitable measures to repair malfunctions. control-logic.com.au

OLIVER WB 34 BOOTS Safety footwear manufacturer Oliver Footwear has released the WB 34 series, merging comfort, performance and durability across every style.

Each WB 34 model features specially formulated technologies such as Comfortcushion to absorb impact, Odorban Control Technology to minimise odour for optimum freshness and hygiene, Natureform toe caps with a wide profile and cushion liner to ensure toes are comfortable, and a Gripthane dual density polyurethane sole for superior durability.

As well as offering a six-month manufacturer’s warranty on all footwear, Oliver’s WB 34 range also come with Hydrostop protection, offering a three-year guarantee against the effects of hydrolysis and microbial attack on the sole. oliver.com.au

NIVEK INDUSTRIES TRACKED ELEVATING DEVICE Tracked Elevating Device, commonly known as TED, is the only all-terrain, hydraulic belly plate jack on the market.

With wireless remote controlled, battery powered operation, an 800 kilogram lifting capacity and a range of smart attachments, TED is a safety must for all heavy machinery maintenance workshops, and field servicing and repairs.

With 15 attachments currently available, TED can take the weight out of stand positioning, y-link removal and replacement, cutting edge maintenance, steer cylinders, sound suppression, sumps, tie rods, and a myriad of other heavy awkward maintenance work.

TED’s skid steer tracks and dozer blade enable access to most terrains, with special tracks available for sandy, soft, and even icy conditions.

Don’t risk serious injuries and fatalities from suspended load crush accidents, and strain injuries from manual handling. Send your fitters home safely with the help of a TED. List of attachments: stand locating tool, steer cylinder cradle, track roller carrier, cutting edge tool, double sided cutting edge tool, Cat24MGET tool, slope jig, fork tynes, tyre handler, pivot table, sump tray, extension blocks, counter balance, and belly plate stands. nivekindustries.com.au

SAFETOWORK.COM.AU 13 JAN-MAR 2019

Products FLEXCO URETHANE SKIRTING Flexco has added a new size to its urethane skirting range with the release of its 7.6 metre rolls of skirting last year. The new 15.2 metre skirting gives customers the option of limiting the number of gaps in skirting along a conveyor belt system. Effectively, this restricts the amount of dust that enters the atmosphere and causes safety and environmental hazards on-site.

The skirting system also acts as an effective seal at load points without damaging the top cover of conveyor belts. It can be applied to single direction and reversing belts, old and new belts, vulcanised and mechanically spliced systems and in wet and dry conditions. The urethane skirting is suitable for temperatures ranging from 30 degrees to 82 degrees. flexco.com

EXAIR GEN4 IONISING BAR Exair’s new Gen4 ionizing bar eliminates static electricity 25 per cent better than previous models by eliminating larger static charges, faster. It has improved range and is effective when mounted up to 102 millimetres from a charged surface.

Production speeds, product quality and surface cleanliness can improve dramatically. It eliminates static on plastics, webs, sheet stock and other product surfaces where tearing, jamming or hazardous shocks are a problem.

Gen4 products have undergone independent laboratory tests to certify they meet the rigorous safety, health and environmental standards of the United States, European Union and Canada, which are required to attain the CE and UL marks.

They are also RoHS compliant. New design features include a metal armoured high voltage cable to protect against abrasion and cuts, integrated ground connection and electromagnetic shielding. caasafety.com

DBI-SALA EXOFIT STRATA HARNESS The DBI-SALA ExoFit Strata harness is the first full-body safety harness designed and tested with data-driven, third party research, resulting in a harness that is more comfortable, cooler and lighter to wear.

DBI-SALA ExoFit Strata features a number of solutions-based elements including the Liftech load distribution system, which takes the weight off a worker’s shoulders and redistributes it down to the hips, reducing forces on the shoulders by up to 85 per cent when compared to leading harnesses.

PolarMesh padding is used to keeps users’ backs cooler with greater airflow.

Revolver-style vertical torso adjustment and tri-Lock connectors offer added security around the legs and ensure a perfect fit. An Ez-Link quick SRL adapter helps workers efficiently attach their self-retracting lifeline, reducing the time it takes to connect and disconnect by up to 80 per cent. capitalsafety.com SAFETOWORK 14 JAN-MAR 2019

UVEX X-FIT SAFETY GLASSES The uvex x-fit range of safety glasses comes in a variety of tints and coatings for both the x-fit and x-fit pro styles. The uvex x-fit is a lightweight design, weighing just 23 grams and can be purchased with uvex supravision sapphire or uvex supravision excellence lens coatings.

Supravision sapphire is scratch resistant and dust and water repellent, while supravision excellence is scratch resistant on the outside and anti-fog resistant on the inside.

The uvex x-fit pro emphasises user comfort with a soft, X-shaped nose piece that makes the gasses easy to wear for long periods of time. uvex-safety.com.au

MAXIGUARD HVR 580 VENTED HARD HAT The Maxiguard vented hard hat provides Australian Standards-compliant head protection, being certified to AS/NZS 1801:1997 (occupational protective helmets). It uses a lockable ratchet adjustment — a sliplock variant, the HVS590, is also available — that can be locked and unlocked with a single hand.

The 10 ventilation points on the top of the helmet increase airflow to the head, and the helmet can be easily accessorised with face shields, ear muffs and chin straps.

The helmet also features a replaceable sweatband. Both the HVR 580 and HVS 590 are available in a variety of colours. maxisafe.com.au

TRUE FLEX KNEE PADS This technology allows full rotation of the knee and prevents the slippage problems associated with typical knee pads. An air vent system in the pads allows air to reach the knee.

Two sets of trademarked interchangeable grips are included with the pads, including a stability bar grip strip to improve stability, and the Lo-Pro grip strip, which allows the knees to roll from side to side more easily.

Dual density foam cushions the user’s knee on the inside while maintaining memory against the outer shell. A gel knee pad variant that features a premium gel pad in addition to the inner foal is also available. tsesafety.com

SAFETOWORK.COM.AU 15 JAN-MAR 2019

Materials handling

The key to dust management success DUST MANAGEMENT IS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF EFFECTIVE MINE SITE MAINTENANCE. SAFE TO WORK TALKS TO ESS TRAINING INSTRUCTOR TOM STAHURA TO FIND OUT HOW IT CAN BE KEPT UNDER CONTROL.

M

ine site conveyor belts become a source of dust when bulk material movement creates very fine particles. If the particles are less than 500 microns, they can become airborne and travel vast distances before settling. Most dust is generated at transfer points, discharge points and load zones. Serious concerns arise when the dust becomes airborne and

escapes to surrounding areas.

Contamination resulting from this form of fugitive material can cause environmental hazards that threaten flora and fauna on land over waterways and oceans.

Environmental protection legislation can result in penalties and closures.

Industrial operations such as alluvial iron ore mines (where the iron dust is very fine), mineral sands operations,

coal mines and processing plants all pose a health risk to not only workers, but to townships supporting them.

The fine particles of dust pose serious health risks, including skin, eye and lung irritation. Dust is especially hazardous when inhaled as it can contribute to a range of severe lung diseases including black lung or asbestosis, while some types of dust are also carcinogenic. The risk to

Dust from operating conveyors doesn’t just lead to potential respiratory problems but can also severely reduce visibility.

SAFETOWORK 16 JAN-MAR 2019

“Mine sites should not overlook dust control.” health varies depending on the size and nature of the dust particles.

Dust can also decrease overall visibility around the mine site, creating slip, trip and fall hazards, and impact regional flora and fauna if not adequately controlled. Some materials (coal, phosphates, fertiliser, and cement) produce dust that has a heightened explosive risk when the dust comes in contact with a spark.

Beyond the associated health and safety risks, dust settles on moving machinery, which increases wear and causes longer, more frequent shutdown periods and increased component replacement and maintenance costs.

While it is nearly impossible to stop the creation of all dust, however, it is possible to suppress, contain and collect it.

Engineering Services & Supplies (ESS) has a successful history of designing, manufacturing and installing dust control solutions for industrial operations. These solutions include airflow control systems, belt cleaning spray systems and dust sealing and containment devices that all help to reduce fugitive dust issues.

ESS accounts development manager and training instructor Tom Stahura has over 40 years of experience in the bulk material handling industry. Stahura explains that there are three primary ways to control dust: minimising air velocity around the material, increasing cohesiveness (i.e. stickiness) of the material, and making the dust heavier by increasing the particle size so that it will drop from the air.

ESS’s dust suppression spray system overhead nozzles veneering a conveyor.

ESS applies these principles to its dust control solutions. ESS examines the type of material, the source of fugitive dust and the design of the conveyor (including existing structures and belt accessories) to determine the best method of dust control.

ESS often uses spray systems, sealing systems and belt support systems to control fugitive material.

Spray systems may involve the use of liquid or liquid foams to increase the mass of the dust particles and increase the cohesiveness of the material. This can be sprayed directly onto the material, the belt or the air.

Spraying the material increases the cohesiveness of the material and can help to reduce material fracturing at transfer points. Wetting the belts helps the material to clump and become heavier.

Spray systems can also be sprayed directly on fugitive dust. “Using a fine spray to atomise the moisture in the air will attract more dust particles so that they gather enough mass that they will settle down,” Stahura explains.

SAFETOWORK 17 JAN-MAR 2019

In areas where using water needs to be conserved, ESS spray systems can use foam or other chemicals to act as a surfactant, cutting down on water usage while still having sufficient surface area to remain effective.

The design of the transfer point can increase dust issues. For example, air can hit the skirted area of a conveyor and you can see the cloud extend out from the skirt zone.

ESS examines the design and integrity of a conveyor transfer point and act accordingly to modify the shape of certain sections of the conveyor to achieve better airflow and air control, by installing sealing and support systems.

Dust curtains and dust bags are also installed to slow air movement for improved stability.

Mine sites should not overlook dust control. It offers personal safety, environmental and productivity, which benefits all stakeholders and the environment.

As Stahura concludes, “you want to go to work in a place you can be proud of”.

Respiratory protection

The fight against black lung and all occupational lung disease THERE’S A WAY TO AVOID BEING HARMED BY MINE DUST INCLUDING CRYSTALLINE SILICA ON THE EAST COAST AND ASBESTOS FIBRES ON THE WEST COAST. BREATHESAFE DIRECTOR NICHOLAS JOHNSTONE TELLS SAFE TO WORK ABOUT THE SOLUTION.

W

orkers’ protection against respirable dust particles can and should be likened to one’s experience driving down the streets in a Mercedes Benz or BMW. At least so, according to Breathesafe owner and director Nicholas Johnstone.

“If you go and buy a new luxury car,” says Johnstone, “it’ll come with pollen filters, and pollen filters are actually a low-grade high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters. So when you’re driving around town, you don’t get exposed to pollen, hay fever, DPM (diesel particulate matter) or exhaust smells.

“You sit in your new car and you have some protection from these lowgrade hazardous dusts and exhaust.”

But machine operators are in their cab for 10 to 12 hours a day, and what surrounds them is not low-grade

Inpress TL fresh air HEPA pressuriser installed on a machine.

SAFETOWORK 18 JAN-MAR 2019

hazardous dust and fume but silica, the same material that is killing the stone masons working with artificial stone used in kitchen benchtops.

Black lung – an umbrella term that covers quite a few different illnesses of the lungs including silicosis – is caused by respirable coal dust and respirable silica dust. The lung disease is triggered by the size of the dust particle and the silica contained in it, and may take 20 years to expose itself, Johnstone explains.

But most machines at best use a standard engine grade filter and not a HEPA filter inside the cab, and these standard filters only target larger dust that can damage the engine.

“At the end of the day, you can have an inch of dirt on the floor. But that inch of dirt on the floor isn’t really the dangerous dust,” says Johnstone.

“Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) want to remove the big dust that you can see, but the problem is the small stuff you can’t see.”

According to Johnstone, the current limits for silica are based on outdated standards which are higher than most developed countries.

Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (AFOEM) and Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) recommend timeweighted average of respirable dust exposure to be immediately reduced to 0.05mg/m3, with further research to adopt the 0.025mg/m3 level as per the recommendation of the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH).

“But instead of talking about 0.5mg/m3, we should be talking about 0.025mg/m3,” says Johnstone.

SAFETOWORK 19 JAN-MAR 2019

“In essence, silica dust should be undetectable in the breathing zone.”

Breathesafe’s H13 grade HEPA internal filters can remove more than 99.97 percent of all dust particles bigger than 0.3 micron in diameter – those that can’t be seen by the human eye.

“That means we go from really not doing anything, to being as close as humanly possible to eliminating it completely from the breathing zone,” says Johnstone.

When standard engine grade filters are being used, the unseen respirable dust goes into them only for the operators to be exposed to that same dust again. After all, these standard filters are only capable of capturing the larger dust.

“If you investigate that mg/m3 measurement, then yes, technically the

Respiratory protection reading is below the limit if measured in mg/m3. But in reality, the operators are getting exposed to as much respirable dust as they were years ago,” reveals Johnstone, who has been involved in the management of dust for over 13 years.

“On the other hand, HEPA filters can get the air quality in that cab better than in your office, wherever you’re sitting right now.”

Johnstone, after crossing paths with workers who had recently been diagnosed with silicosis of the lungs in Central Queensland, can see an increase in lung diseases now that new technologies are being introduced to mine sites.

“There’s one thing that computers do not like: dust,” Johnstone says.

“When a computer fails, or a sensitive component keeps on failing because of dust and overheating, mining companies get a very large bill as some parts are over $100,000.

“So workers now have to clean these new sensitive components using brushes and/or compressed air, exposing a group of workers, electricians and trade assistants to extreme amounts of respirable dust that they’ve never been exposed to before.

“Keep in mind that the operator is also sitting in a cab less than four metres away in the same environment.”

Machine operators can keep the cab clean by shutting windows and doors and using a HEPA filter.

SAFETOWORK 20 JAN-MAR 2019

GRASPING CLOSE TO ZERO EXPOSURE

It is not common sense to drive one’s Land Cruiser off road with the windows open.

The same goes for operating a machine in this hazardous environment.

“Whenever I get told there’s dust in the cab, I can have a look into the information from my controller and tell what the issue was,” Johnstone says.

Johnstone finds machine operators running their machine with the window or door open, generating this dust the majority of the time. But in reality, the cab can be kept “spotlessly clean” when drivers keep their windows and doors closed.

Giving almost zero exposure of respirable dust to mine operators is not unattainable, says Johnstone.

He’s confident that many products in the market, including his company’s Inpress TL system, with HEPA filters can deliver this clean, high quality air.

Johnstone puts it simply: “All the mine sites talk about zero harm. Well, zero harm caused by silica can only be achieved by zero exposure to silica.

“The cost of the system is, however, in the next side of the equation. I’d say most [dual HEPA filtration systems with a pressure monitor] can be supplied and installed for as little as $5750 – it’s not a big-ticket item.

“There was a time over five years ago that [HEPA filters] were two to three times the cost they are now, but we have designed and manufactured a product that is so cost-effective it’s scary.”

Ongoing costs using a dual HEPA system with auto cabin pressure control usually work out to be the same cost as using OEM filters. This initial cost is recovered due to a dramatic reduction in air conditioning maintenance cost as soon as HEPA filters are installed.

“A lot of [lung diseases] are being blamed on people smoking, and obviously there were a lot of people in mining smoking once upon a time. But that’s over now – we are close to 10 years into a majority of workers not smoking,” Johnstone points out.

“In the next 10 years or so, there will be workers who have spent over 15 years on mine sites who have never smoked, and if we do not do anything about it, they will start getting sick from occupational lung disease.”

Johnstone says most mine workers move from site to site or even state to state throughout their career. But if they develop an occupational lung disease one day, they may not be covered by workers compensation because they have relocated.

“It’s heartbreaking, to be honest. We’re at the tip of the iceberg now. There are countless discussions and studies going on around the world, and they’re all coming up with the same conclusion all respirable dust is harmful,” admits Johnstone.

“There are people in the industry who seem to be of the opinion that it’s mining, it’s dusty, that’s just the way it is. Well, they are right. It is dusty. But it does not mean anyone needs to be exposed to it.”

KEEP YOUR DUST DOWN Dust emissions constitute a significant operating, environmental and occupational health hazard that is unacceptable to the modern Bulk Materials Handling Industry.

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Training White Dog International trains miners to work safely in confined spaces.

Train to engage WHITE DOG INTERNATIONAL DIRECTOR WESLEY DOBBIN TELLS SAFE TO WORK HOW HE CATERS HIS TRAINING PROGRAMS TO THE INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MINE SITES.

T

echnical and industry knowledge is no longer the only ingredient to a successful trainer – it takes skills to bypass social and cultural differences and instil a culture of prevention for people who are going to be most affected by mine undertakings.

People are, after all, the biggest opportunity to make safety improvements.

Level of education, place of origin and literacy are some differences that a trainer must deal with when it comes to training a diverse set of workers.

In overcoming these challenges, White Dog International (WDI) director Wesley Dobbin, who has spent the past 12 years training mine workers around the world, would discover the best approach to use according to the country he was in.

Starting off in Australia, Dobbin has

spent 22 years in the mining industry.

More than half that time he was supervising workers at mine sites in Tanzania, Ghana, Laos, Saudi Arabia, Mongolia and Papua New Guinea.

“English may not necessarily, and usually isn’t, these workers’ first language. So I have to look at different avenues to ensure the workers receive the most out of their training,” Dobbin says.

“By working with the guys, developing and reviewing their site procedures and observing how they respond to what I show them helps me see what they take on board.”

This is important to engage the workers and allows them to take ownership of safety procedures that are designed for their protection.

Dobbin, for example, makes use of visual aids, provides workers with hands-on practical training and spends

SAFETOWORK 22 JAN-MAR 2019

one-on-one time with struggling workers to help them move along training programs.

The director also shares his real-life experiences to bridge the gap between a trainer and his students and to build relatability with them.

“I’ve found that trying to establish the work culture from the start in new mine sites is really paramount and beneficial, because they start with the right technique and with the right attitude toward safety. This makes training a lot easier,” Dobbin says.

“When you come to an established mine where their work culture has already been set up for years, it’s challenging to unwind that and get the workers into new patterns and up to standard.”

Dobbin says WDI’s training programs can be tailored to target specific problem areas at the mine

site, designed to ensure that workers demonstrate their confidence in the field. The program provides workers with specific goals, field strategies and checklists to go through.

As a registered training organisation (RTO) in Australia, WDI offers comprehensive training programs, including working at heights, conducting basic scaffolding operations, skid steer loader operations, gas test atmospheres, excavator operations and more.

“Ultimately, you have to mould the training to suit the learner,” Dobbin says. “At the start you can use things like literacy and numeracy tests to know where they sit, because a lot of these workers may have not completed high school.

“In developing countries, workers are often sourced from the surrounding villages. That’s why it is beneficial to customise the training packages and make them more practical through hands-on training.”

According to Dobbin, it is imperative to make workers concentrate on the high-risk factors that may cause fatalities, instead of getting bogged down in things like ensuring workers have a pair of safety gloves clipped on the side of their belt, for example. WDI

Wesley Dobbin (left) says keeping workers engaged is important to the success of a training program.

literally designs its training programs to give workers a fresh pair of eyes to see what the real hazards are.

“It’s about taking a step back and looking at the big picture,” Dobbin says. “Because once you’re immersed in the day-to-day tasks, you quite often miss things that may be a real hazard.”

Noting the recent shift of mine sites into digitalisation, the use of integrated software programs and automation systems, Dobbin says there’s always going to be a human factor that needs to be managed.

“People are humans. They make

mistakes. My team and I have seen a lot of accidents throughout our experience in mine sites. We’ve all been around for about 20 yearsplus, so we’ve seen a lot. We’ve seen safety systems change over the years, and we incorporate all these into our training,” Dobbin says.

“This is about real-life situation in a high-risk industry. It’s a dangerous game. And training is about asking the guys about their own experiences, getting through to them and keeping them involved. Training is about the delivery.”

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Working at heights Dropsafe barriers can be used in combination with the company’s netting.

The danger of dropped objects at mine sites THE RISK OF DROPPED OBJECTS IS VERY REAL AT MINE SITES. SAFE TO WORK EXAMINES HOW DROPSAFE IS DEDICATED TO PUTTING A STOP TO DROPS.

D

ropped objects are a major cause of injury at mine sites. Whether it’s loose light fixtures, misplaced equipment, tools, scaffolding equipment, falling debris or one of many other number of potential risks, it is good practice to be cogent of the dangers that dropped objects present in the workplace.

According to Safe Work Australia, falling objects were the second largest workplace killer between 2010-2014, resulting in 125 workplace fatalities and over 15,000 serious compensations claims.

International drop-prevention company Dropsafe has provided safety solutions for dropped objects in major industries for over 20 years.

The company specialises in the manufacture of dropped prevention technology to help mitigate the risk of

objects falling from height and to secure equipment to keep workers safe when in the workplace.

Dropsafe’s primary client base includes the mining, offshore and onshore oil and gas, marine and heavy industrial including power stations, all of which are high-risk industries that pose a significant threat of dropped object risk in the workplace.

Corrosion caused by harsh environments and high-impact vibratory activities like drilling can result in falling fixtures. Human factors are another common cause, such as when workers fail to adequately secure fixtures during inspections or repairs.

According to Dropsafe’s global business development manager Gareth Warne, many accidents can be avoided by ensuring adequate safety measures are implemented at the installation or maintenance phase.

SAFETOWORK 24 JAN-MAR 2019

“Worksites are generally getting safer but companies shouldn’t become complacent,” he says.

“Implementing safety measures to prevent dropped and falling objects saves lives, time and money. It is much more efficient to be proactive and install drop prevention barriers along the inside of open guard railing at height and other dropped prevention measures from the very beginning.”

The Australian Government implemented legislation regarding dropped object impacts in its 2011 Work Health and Safety Regulations, formalising the rules concerning implementing safety measures related to falling objects.

According to these regulations, “A person conducting a business or undertaking at a workplace must manage, in accordance with Part 3.1 [Managing risks to health and safety],

According to Safe Work Australia, falling objects were the second largest workplace killer between 2010-2014.

Dropsafe’s netting is versatile and can accommodate several sizes and shapes.

risks to health and safety associated with an object falling on a person if the falling object is reasonably likely to injure the person.”

Dropsafe’s purpose is to mitigate these safety risks with its product portfolio, which emphasises ease of installation and ease of use.

Dropsafe has experienced success with the manufacture of its new Dropsafe Barrier, which is installed to the inside of open guard railings to prevent objects falling at height through open guard railings, gangways, staircases, scaffolds and elevated work platforms (EWP). The Dropsafe Barrier mitigates these risks to help protect workers in a dynamic working environment.

The barrier system has been third-party tested and witnessed for UV, saline, impact, and Category 5 hurricanes — with sustained winds of 250 kilometres per hour — to ensure its integrity in arduous offshore and onshore conditions when installed along the inside of open guard railing in the workplace.

“The Dropsafe Barrier is a great lightweight alternative to heavy expanded metal and cladding,” says

Warne. “It has a universal attachment system with stainless-steel securing bands that makes them strong and easy to install on the majority of industry standard guard railing setups, making it an excellent solution for a permanent or temporary installation.”

Another way of creating workplace safety is to ensure workers use Dropsafe’s pouches to retain and holster items, such as two-way radios, gas detectors and multimeters.

The dynamic energy of even small objects is massively amplified when dropped from height. A portable two-way radio weighing 200 grams potentially outputs nearly 10 kilograms of force when dropped from a height of 10 metres, for example.

The pouches prevent loose personal equipment from slipping from belts and pockets and causing potential injury or machine interference below.

Likewise, Dropsafe nets hold a similar purpose but are geared more towards overhead site and mobile plant fixtures including lights (flood, strip and strobe), lifelines, clamps, junction boxes, CCTV cameras and speakers.

The nets are simple in design, made from 316 stainless steel and tested to five times the product safe working load.

They are basket-like net structures that are placed over the top of the fixture like a cover (as opposed to being wrapped), while an attached securing cable and carabiner is secured to a structural attachment point, such as

SAFETOWORK 25 JAN-MAR 2019

a walkway guardrail, bar or column retaining the fixture from potentially becoming a dropped object in the workplace.

Dropsafe also manufactures these nets with customisable sizes to meet the need of the fixture or asset at hand.

Dropsafe has been creating customised dropped prevention products for some of the world’s leading oil and gas companies and can do the same within the mining industry too.

The company recommends its netting system over more typical sling-based securing systems, which are generally cheaper but do not fully enclose the fixture, leading to a potential dropped object.

Dropsafe designs its barriers and nets to be used in combination to afford mine site workers complete vertical and horizontal dropped object protection on site.

The other products in the Dropsafe suite include carabiners, shackles, lanyards and securing cables, all of which provide additional security and complement the company’s range of barriers, nets and pouches.

“Dropped objects don’t just cause workers harm,” says Warne. “They can also cause significant financial impacts from lost time and damaged equipment.

“It is great to see more companies take the dangers and consequences of dropped objects seriously, including companies outside of the mining and oil and gas industries.”

Fire safety

Thermal event: FISCA extinguishes fire risk FISCA FIRE INSPECTOR CHRIS HUGHES EXPLAINS SOME OF THE FIRE RISKS THAT MINE SITES ENCOUNTER AND HOW TO PREVENT THEM.

F

ire prevention is no exception when it comes to ensuring that all facets of safety are considered at a mine site.

According to an August 2018 report from the New South Wales Resources Regulator, fire breakouts on mobile plant in the state have risen in the past decade.

Sometimes referred to in industry parlance as ‘thermal events’, 203 fires were reported at mine sites in NSW between September 2014–May 2017, a rate of around six per month.

This average was double that of data collected between 2001–2008, when NSW recorded an average of three fires a month.

Fire Investigation and Safety Compliance Australia (FISCA) manager Chris Hughes has worked extensively on mine site fire audits that comply to exacting Australian Standards, even when working overseas.

“We basically go in and do an exhaustive onsite analysis of all their installed fire equipment,” Hughes tells Safe to Work.

“We’ll look at sprinklers, we’ll look at smoke detectors, we’ll look at extinguishers, hydrant systems, everything that they have installed, and then we do an audit on that in accordance with AS4655, which is the Australian Standard for fire safety audits.”

FISCA’s Morgan Cook (right) stands with an electrical contractor at the Mt Arthur coal facility in the Hunter Valley.

SAFETOWORK 26 JAN-MAR 2019

Led by Hughes and colleague Morgan Cook, fire investigator and FISCA owner, the team counts mine site fire safety among its specialities.

FISCA’s checks include audits, fire safety studies, fire cause and origin analysis, and bushfire assessments.

Some sites use fire suppression teams that miss minor details during inspection that FISCA has been trained to pick up. Having an independent person view the inspection sometimes reveals other issues.

Fixed and mobile plant are particular areas for concern and a primary cause of mine site fires.

When visiting a mine in Mauritania in northwest Africa, FISCA carried out checks on haul trucks, shovels, drills and various other mining vehicles.

The company found a typical problem was that the installed fire suppression systems on the vehicles had their nozzles facing the wrong way.

This was particularly evident around the vehicles’ exhaust systems and turbochargers; sometimes grease and oil leaked into these areas, exacerbating the risk of fire.

“If the fire suppression nozzle is pointed away from those areas, especially if you have oil or grease or anything like that near them, the extinguishing system isn’t going to contain the fire,” Hughes explains.

The other issues commonly include trigger wires not being in the right place, and manual activation buttons not being within easy access for staff.

“Another factor that slows response times is poor visibility. ” FISCA recommended foam extinguishing agents on each side of the Mauritania site’s haul trucks to help protect the vehicles and limit the spread of fire should an incident occur.

These foam-based extinguishing systems not only extinguish the fire but also cool down the equipment for cases where the driver needs to go past the engine to escape. The equipment will be a lot cooler, which lowers burn risks.

“Everything that we look at is to reduce the risk of being injured,” Hughes says. “With severe fires, there’s a risk of explosion that goes along with it, so we’ll look at the extinguishing systems’ ability to mitigate the risk of items that would be included in a fire such as exhaust systems, turbo systems or oils.

“These are all things that we look at as a holistic way to try and limit a thermal event from occurring.”

Another factor that slows response times is poor visibility. Usually, operators of mobile plant are in relatively high positions with a good field of view for working conditions, but it is not necessarily convenient for prompt fire detection.

“Unfortunately if they have a fire or a thermal event happen it’s normally underneath them — without that extinguishing system actually going off there’d be no way to actually

FISCA’s Morgan Cook checks on fire hydrant boosters at Mt Arthur.

know they’ve got a fire going on,” Hughes says.

The type of mine involved can also be a factor. Hard rock mines push equipment hard, leading to higher risks of failure, while coal mines present an increased risk of fire. Underground mines have adapted to these risks by increasingly adopting electric or hybrid vehicles in recent years.

Underground operations generally pose the highest risk due to the issue of fire spreading. Mobile plant fires in

SAFETOWORK 27 JAN-MAR 2019

open pit mines tend to be relegated to the area around the equipment in question, but this isn’t the case underground.

FISCA aims to make sure mine sites are able to pre-empt these risks to limit or even eliminate the risk of such thermal events.

As Hughes explains, “it’s all about trying to make the vehicles themselves fire safe and to provide a safer working space for the operators and less down time for all involved.”

Sustainability

Integrating contractors into a safe mining environment LEADING MINING CEOS DISCUSS THE SAFETY RISKS THAT CAN POTENTIALLY IMPACT THE SUSTAINABILITY OF A MINING OPERATION. SAFE TO WORK WRITES.

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safe mining operation goes a long way towards also making it a sustainable one.

Sustainability was a hot topic at the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) in Melbourne late last year. The event attracted a number of leading chief executive officers to discuss what sustainability means to the modern-day industry.

Each of them raised the importance of establishing safe mines and projects as the backbone of sustainable mining.

A key aspect for each company represented on this panel was how they integrate contractors into their mines and ensure these workers become part of the safety culture.

Newmont Mining CEO Gary Goldberg says the global gold miner treats its employees and contractors in the same way in this regard.

For a company that has 22,000 workers evenly split between its employees and contractors it is the approach Newmont must take, he adds.

Goldberg says it is important that

mining companies continually learn from safety-related incidences, as Newmont did after an April 2018 accident at the Ahafo mine in Ghana that killed six workers belonging to a sub-contractor.

“You look at the lessons we learned from that practice, the supervision, proper supervision – really the ability for anyone in the organisation, contractor or employee, to say ‘stop something isn’t right’ and reinforcing that,” Goldberg says during the IMARC panel session.

“It’s a message I would give every day (and) we have shared the lessons we have learnt from that. There is always something that could have been done differently to avoid that tragedy.”

Goldberg views this process more like a system that all mining companies are working on developing together.

“We are all doing it, it’s a journey, and we are always willing to learn,” he says. “That’s one area where we don’t compete and we share openly what we learned and what we can do to improve as an industry.”

SAFETOWORK 28 JAN-MAR 2019

Newcrest Mining CEO Sandeep Biswas says a safety transformation at the Australian gold miner’s operations has been guided by three pillars: NewSafe, critical control management and process safety management.

The NewSafe initiative focuses on building the company’s safety culture through leadership, coaching and behaviours.

“This is very much about a bottom up behavioural culture piece, which is about all our people, whether they are a contractor or not,” Biswas says. “It’s a way of doing business.”

The behavioural aspect of NewSafe takes Newcrest’s employees and contractors through a process to identify the most important safety behaviours in their area, using an influencing model to form a plan that leads to them.

Newcrest’s second pillar focuses on verifying the critical controls the company has identified at each operation that will prevent fatalities and life-altering injuries.

Process safety management,

Newmont, a Super Pit JV partner, shares a safety culture across its employees and contractors.

an area that is primarily concerned with preventing high-consequence catastrophic events, completes Newcrest’s strategic safety improvement approach.

“Process safety is very much more of an engineering focus,” Biswas says.

“These are the three (pillars). We have done well – our safety performance has turned around. Like everyone else we always have a long way to go.”

Biswas reinforces this fundamental approach to safety that echoes through the mining industry.

“How do we get everybody to be a safety leader? Safety is personal; it is not a process,” he says. “If that’s the one thing we could do that would go a long way to making the industry fatality free.”

South32 CEO Graham Kerr believes it doesn’t matter if the company is using a contractor or its own people, they must all be supervised in the same way.

“We have spent a lot of time and money over the last two years on what we call the capability of our supervisors and team leaders,” Kerr says.

“That very much goes all the way through down to our team leaders, superintendents, managers and all our operations to what we call a capability assessment.”

Kerr says getting the process right is key to establishing the required frontline supervision for both workers and contractors.

Despite a focus on integrating contractors into the South32 culture,

Kerr does not, however, believe it needs to be the key safety focus of a mining company if processes are followed.

“To be honest I would say other issues are more of a concern,” he says.

“I think every mining business today does have more and more contractors probably coming into the business.

“I think one of the key questions we always ask ourselves is why are we using a contractor?”

The panel of CEOs discusses sustainability in mining.

SAFETOWORK 29 JAN-MAR 2019

Workforce management

Thiess Mt Owen team boosts productivity from the inside out IN ALIGNING THE MT OWEN COAL MINE WITH NSW MINERALS COUNCIL ‘RESHAPE’ VISION, ONE TEAM MEMBER SHED 59 KILOGRAMS IN ONE YEAR. VANESSA ZHOU SPEAKS TO THIESS’ KIM NGUYEN AND ETHOS HEALTH’S TRENT WATSON.

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2015 review into health in New South Wales coal mines found that 83.4 per cent per cent of NSW coal mine workers were classified overweight or obese, compared with 63 per cent of the general population.

With the Australian general population gaining an average of 300 grams every year, Thiess team members at the Mt Owen mine in the Hunter Valley region were able

to show that they have reversed the population trend by fourfold – with every individual losing one kilogram of weight every year.

According to Thiess’ Mt Owen mine manager Kim Nguyen, acknowledging the contribution it makes to that national problem is the first step of welcoming a change across the mine site.

The collaboration between Thiess, a member of CIMIC Group,

SAFETOWORK 30 JAN-MAR 2019

at Mt Owen and Ethos Health, has changed hundreds of lives since it was introduced.

“Thiess always had an annual health and wellbeing program prior to the obesity blueprint,” says Nguyen.

“But that [review] gave us a lot more momentum, reason and purpose behind what we do because Thiess as a business prioritises health and safety.

“Putting a priority on health and safety is very, very important, because

“Now that’s something that no population in the world demonstrates,” says Ethos Health chief executive Trent Watson.

Mt Owen has successfully sustained workforce participation and retention rates over the years.

if you don’t get that right, it’s harder – it’s impossible – to do everything else right.”

Thiess’ Mt Owen team began its journey by realigning the team members with the NSW Mineral Councils (NSWMC) obesity blueprint, to lose “one kilo at a time, one miner at a time, one year at a time” three years ago, and it is still running.

One year into the program, 146 Mt Owen team members reported a body weight loss average of one kilogram.

The participation also went from 303 people in the first year to 312 people the year after, representing 82 per cent of the total Mt Owen workforce.

The participants are made up of a diverse range of engineers, mine operators, maintenance, trade assistants through to the senior management team.

But the coal mine did not stop there – Mt Owen now has the ambition to replicate that percentage lost year on year to attain a weight loss of 5 per cent over the course of five years.

STEADY AND SURE The Mt Owen mine manager believes there are two key successes of the Positively Healthy program: the participation and the retention rate.

“There’s no point having a program where you get initial sign-ups, and have people suddenly going back to what they used to do as soon as the program’s finished,” says Nguyen.

“So, the key to its prevention is initial engagement and then continual engagement to keep people on track.”

The Positively Healthy program was not designed to be prescriptive.

Instead, Ethos Health took an agnostic approach with Mt Owen.

“If the team have their own special formulated diet, they could still be part of our program. If the people choose to follow a certain commercial dietary plan, they could do that as well,” Watson explains.

“This way we capture all segregations of people: those want to join in the program but want to do it themselves, those who want to receive help from us, and those who are not categorised as overweight but

Periodic evaluation is key to keeping the workforce motivated.

SAFETOWORK 31 JAN-MAR 2019

want to benefit from our guidance and monitoring.”

Ethos Health has brought in an InBody Composition scan that the team took into their crib room. The technology measures a person’s body fat, muscle mass, visceral fat and mineral content, empowering individuals to identify where their body is at that point of time and receive guidance as required.

Each individual can target specific issues that she or he is having, whether it be smoking, nutrition, alcohol, stress, physical inactivity or blood cholesterol.

Watson says, “It’s dressing up another really important message that can culminate in a weight loss message, because all these modifiable risk factors interrelate, whether that be alcohol and obesity, nutrition and obesity, or physical activity and cardiovascular health.

“It’s about strategically training the workforce and covering all risk factors.”

Nguyen adds, “Throughout the year, we encourage people to adopt healthy lifestyles, whether that be a free gym membership to pursue during pastimes, a nutrition program that provides free nutrition advice, as well as advice on correct sleeping and fatigue management. All those things add to your health and wellbeing.

Workforce management “It’s hard to maintain a healthy weight if you’re not getting enough sleep, for instance. That’s why we’ve targeted not just exercise alone, but also sleep as well as food and nutrition.”

Initially, employees take a scan of themselves to get a baseline health score. But they will return to the InBody scan every six months to keep themselves motivated.

Watson believes ensuring team members can get a follow up and evaluate periodic progress is important to target the real fear that the program wasn’t going to be a success.

“If they just consistently continue with their actions, they’ll turn a good outcome into a great outcome. A good athlete might win one race, but a great athlete wins many races,” says Watson.

COHESIVE TEAMS AT THE CENTRE The success would not have manifest without getting everyone onboard with the program at the onset.

The leadership team created an eight-step guideline in alignment with WHO’s healthy workplace framework

“Health and safety is very, very important, because if you don’t get that right, it’s harder – it’s impossible – to do everything else right.” and sent out a worker safety committee to include a union representation to take a look at the site.

“Like any workplace, the key challenge is engagement. If you can’t engage people, then behavioural changes are not going to occur. If leaders don’t support the message and the method, it’s really hard to sell the program to the workforce,” says Watson.

“They will say, these guys don’t care. But [the Mt Owen] leadership team was entirely on board and entirely supportive right from the start.”

The management team went further by making structural decisions and adjusting the site policy to motivate

InBody scan distinguishes between bone, muscle, water and fat.

SAFETOWORK 32 JAN-MAR 2019

people to be healthier. Workers are presented with healthy diet in place of work-based BBQs. A careful selection goes into the drink machines on site.

To Nguyen, this is reflective of the maturity of not just the mining industry as a whole but also the company he works for.

“I think the focus on people 10 years ago was not as focused on people as it is today. A lot of companies, especially Thiess, have a very mature look on the business,” Nguyen says. “[Thiess] understands that healthy people are the basis of a successful business. That’s why there’s a lot of investment going to the people in our operation.”

Not only did Mt Owen’s leadership team participate in the program, but they’re also actively promoting it. The Mt Owen team, together with Ethos Health, creates a culture where a decision, whether they be nutrition, exercise or health-based issues, is valued within that workforce.

The engagement at all levels sees one man ultimately lose 36.9 kilograms and another lost 59 kilograms.

“We’re so proud about that because what that means is we’re able to help our people make a lifestyle change that ultimately saves their lives. We’re happy we’ve had a big part to play in that lifechanging experience,” Nguyen concludes.

PPE

Keeping hot hands cool, dry and productive MAXIFLEX ULTIMATE HAS GOT WORKER’S HAND COMFORT COVERED. SAFE TO WORK REPORTS.

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orking in Australia often instances of sweaty hands cannot comes with challenging be avoided. environmental However, the MaxiFlex Ultimate conditions. The with the AD-APT cooling technology is prospect of wearing gloves all day in unlike any glove in the market. hot and humid conditions doesn’t hold Roberson explains that: “The much appeal for glove users. combination of AD-APT cooling Safety Mate national sales manager technology and AirTech, which offers Wade Roberson recalls dealing with 360-degree breathability, ensures many companies across Australia the glove is breathable on the which have shared a common issue of coated side as well as on the noncompliance around keeping gloves on coated side, allowing the heat coming in the working environment. from the working hand to pass out “When considering hand injuries of through the glove.” that occur to lack of hand protection, the question that must be asked is why glove users are not wearing gloves at all times. There are several reasons – the most common are lack of comfort and reduced dexterity. Every user has the same complaint,” Roberson says. “It’s sweat and lack of breathability.

“They want a glove that doesn’t lead to clammy hands. They want a glove that breathes and is comfortable to wear all day.”

This is a common occurrence throughout every industry in Australia.

Given that the skin, the largest organ in the body, regulates its temperature ATG MaxiFlex solves the number through perspiration, one complaint among glove wearers.

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The AD-APT cooling technology is activated by the movement of the hands and the increased temperature within the glove, releasing a natural cooling agent onto the hand.

“It works in combination with AirTech, which provides 360-degree breathability to keep hands cool and dry,” says Roberson.

MaxiFlex, as with all ATG gloves, is dermatologically accredited by the Skin Health Alliance, which serves as a guarantee that it is skin-safe.

In addition, ErgoTech technology used in MaxiFlex produces smooth and rounded fingertips, increasing dexterity for the glove user.

The technology mimics the hand at rest, reducing hand fatigue and maximising flexibility and comfort.

“Users can keep the glove on for longer and feel comfortable wearing it because it is ergonomically shaped and matches the hand’s natural shape and form,” Roberson says.

“Comfort will ultimately lead to increased compliance. This in turn will reduce the risk of injury in the workplace and create a safer working environment.”

Refuge chambers

Strata has designed the chambers to be as simple as possible.

Strata Worldwide protects miners with ease of use approach REFUGE CHAMBERS ARE A CRITICAL PART OF ANY UNDERGROUND OPERATION. PAUL MORRISH FROM STRATA WORLDWIDE TALKS SAFE TO WORK THROUGH THE COMPANY’S DEVELOPMENT IN THIS AREA.

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n any mine, safety must be at the top of the agenda. If there is a fire or a release of toxic gases personnel need easy access to clean air, food and water until a rescue operation is under way.

In most mining operations, there is also the potential for irrespirable atmosphere to be generated, due to a fire, outburst of toxic gases, or the concentration of diesel emissions.

Access to breathable air is absolutely crucial in these situations and chances of surviving disasters are significantly increased if workers have a place to find immediate refuge, breathable air and a safe place when escape is not safely possible.

Refuge chambers provide a safe haven to support life, with a supply of breathable air that must be ready for use at all times.

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The Western Australia Government recommends that basic life-support features of a refuge chamber include: reliable and clean compressed air supplies; the capability to totally seal workers from an external irrespirable atmosphere; a cooling system to prevent heat-related disorders over an extended period of use; an effective chemical scrubber system(s) to remove expired contaminants; and reliable

power or battery supplies.

Strata Worldwide is successfully providing all of these elements in its refuge chambers as it strives to promote a higher level of worker safety in mining environments.

In addition to offering emergency refuge chambers in many shapes and sizes, according to mine and application requirements, a key priority for Strata’s product development has been to make them easy to use.

Strata product manager Paul Morrish says the company has taken an ease of use approach with the refuge chamber.

“Knowing that in a period of crisis or emergency people want operations to be as easy and clear as possible, Strata has considered this in all aspects of its emergency refuge chamber design,” Morrish says.

“We know that people are stressed and unsettled in an emergency, so we wanted to make our product as uncomplicated as possible. For example, with the Strata chambers you simply hit a big red button and all the lights come on.”

Strata has global distribution of its product and it is important to ensure that instructions are clear enough to transcend any language barrier.

“We have made all the operations in the chamber as simple as possible, so anyone who needs to operate it can,” Morrish says.

Refuge chambers should be found every 750 metres and there is a requirement for monthly, quarterly and yearly checks.

As the Strata chambers have been designed to function as simply as possible, many of these checks can be done in-house by trained personnel.

“We train people and qualify them to do the quarterly and monthly inspections,” Morrish says.

After a chamber is ordered from Strata a member of the team will provide onsite safety and maintenance training.

“We ensure that all of the operating functionality of the chamber is easy to use, this means we don’t spend hours with onsite training.”

“It takes us 30 minutes to demonstrate and train staff on how the chamber works and then they are on their way.”

According to Morrish, this saves people time and gives them confidence if they need to use the chamber.

Another advanced design feature of Strata’s offering is the battery. As the chamber has to be able to function for 36 hours in the case of a possible power cut, it must have a battery that can power the entire unit.

“The big cost and inconvenience with chambers is often the battery,” Morrish says.

Often design specifications

Strata advises that the chambers should be found every 750 metres.

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put the battery at the back of the chamber, where there is no airflow.

With the Strata product the battery is at the front of the chamber, this allows for a much cooler environment.

In addition, the Strata design has a fully removable battery box. They are bundled in convenient, portable packs to optimise handling and transportation.

According to Morrish, this allows for easy access and any manual handling can be done in a controlled environment.

The battery is stored on a convenient pull-out shelf which enhances access and simplifies maintenance.

Strata Worldwide has invested time and resources to fully understand the needs of the mining industry and has developed a series of emergency refuge chambers that are simple and easy to use in a moment of crisis.

Innovation

Grasstree’s development mechanical coordinator Simon Burnett and the Anglo American team.

Anglo American minimises coal dust exposure with foam A FOAM DUST SUPPRESSION SYSTEM MANAGES TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE WORKERS’ EXPOSURE TO RESPIRABLE COAL DUST WHERE COAL, A CONTINUOUS MINER FLEET AND AN UNDERGROUND ENVIRONMENT ARE INVOLVED. SAFE TO WORK REPORTS.

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orkers at Anglo American’s Grasstree coking coal mine in Queensland benefit from a significantly lower level of dust exposure underground, thanks to an engineering system built in-house.

The purpose-built system reduces worker’s exposure to respirable coal dust by 96 per cent. It led

Anglo American to winning the 2018 Innovation Award at the annual Queensland Mining Industry’s Health and Safety Conference (QMIHSC).

In tackling dust suppression, a continuous miner fleet is integrated with a bio-degradable foam solution, a material that is used for the first time in development mining.

As coal moves through mining

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machinery, the foam will bind to coal particles, suppressing dust exposure underground.

The system effectively reduces operators’ exposure to coal dust, a considerable amount of which is produced when the continuous miner is cutting coal.

While this dust is traditionally removed via a vent tube adjacent to the

miner, a turbulent airflow caused by the rotating cutter head can allow coal dust to migrate to where the operators are standing at the back.

Anglo American’s site senior executive at Grasstree mine Tom Cobcroft says the company has a desire to achieve zero harm.

“Part of that journey from where we are today we have been able to implement some engineering solutions on our continuous miner fleet,” Cobcroft tells Safe To Work.

“And in this particular case it was a collaborative solution that was spearhead by the guys in development and the foaming system for dust control.”

In conjunction with traditional dust mitigation strategies, poly integrated sprays are installed between the operator and the dust source on the non-vent tube side of the continuous miner.

It sprays at an angle of 60 degrees, allowing the dust in-bye side of the poly apron spray to be captured in the air that flows towards the vent tube.

Further, the team has also fitted an enviromist spray system that runs at a high pressure to the miner.

The spray targets respirable dust in the 2.5 to 20 microns range; sprays positioned on the boom of the cutter head in the throat of the miner spray the conveyor, while the ones placed on the tail of the miner spray down on the shuttle car.

But a problem remains even after fitting the two systems. Dust was still being generated when the coal was transferred between the mine conveyor and the shuttle car en route to the vent tube.

These systems represent short-term solutions to reducing dust exposure, but they did not satisfied the team’s ultimate goal – to find a solution that would further reduce dust exposure.

“The problem we have with the coal

dust is all the coals sitting in front of the shovel as it gets loaded out,” Anglo American’s development superintendent Wayne Barnes says.

“It has to come back through over the guys and back to the ventilation system.”

After testing multiple different solutions, the Grasstree development team applied a foam product to the flychain in front and behind the hydraulic tank, where most dust is generated and can be eliminated at its source.

The team then put up a foam rate of 10 litres per minute while the miner is in the bolting system.

Given the foam’s thick consistency, it can slowly run down the chain and onto the shovel. This movement smothers the coal on the chain and the shovel in front of the miner.

But the team found out that this rate can be further increased to 20 litres per minute to keep up with the chain run during the production cycle and deliver additional benefits.

Based on the monitoring data

Bio-degradable foam being applied to the continuous miner.

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collected before and after the foam dust suppression system was installed, the difference was “immediate and significant.”

Development maintenance trade supervisor Gareth White says, “We designed a few prototypes for the foam system, so we could figure out the best way to deliver the system and how the product will react with the coal.

“So once we got some good results with that, we designed a more compact, a more miners-friendly system, which is what we have now.”

As the foam system delivers significant health improvements for the Grasstree underground workers, it reimagines working underground and creates safe zones that isolate workers from dust sources.

The system is being applied to other pieces of Grasstree’s plant underground, in particular the breaker feeder at the belt transfer point.

It is also being implemented at Anglo American’s other underground operations and shared with its industry peers.

Innovation

South32 rolls out remote visual inspection technology A WESTERN AUSTRALIAN ALUMINA OPERATION HAS PROVEN THAT RADICAL CHANGES CAN BE MADE THROUGH ROBOTIC TECHNOLOGY.

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outh32 has introduced a robot, known as the Bike platform, at its Worsley Alumina operation in Western Australia.

The Bike platform has played a part in making sure workers go home well and safe at the end of the day by preventing higher risk tasks that were traditionally done by people working in confined spaces and at heights.

As of November 2018, a total 105 confined space entries and 190 working at height activities, including scaffolding and from ropes, have been prevented by the introduction of remote visual inspection (RVI) technology.

The Bike platform was developed

by General Electric (GE) as a mobile inspection robot. One of its standout attributes is the ability to reach locations with poor human access due to size constraints, temperature, immersion in liquids or other safety reasons.

The technology also has the ability to climb complex structures, passing convex and concave obstacles and performing testing tasks through a 300-millimetre man-way. It is equipped with two integrated navigation cameras that can take pictures for reporting.

South32’s product owner for sensing and robotics Brenton Rowe says, “We kicked off an initiative 18 months ago to bring technology to site to remove

The Worsley Alumina operation has been using RVI since 2017.

people from higher risk working environments. The Bike platform is one part of South32’s RVI technology.”

The Bike platform is joined by drones, remote camera systems and other robotic crawlers on-site.

Worsley Alumina has hundreds of tanks, vessels, piping and major shutdown equipment, where working in confined space environments and at heights is required to perform

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inspections. The Bike platform, with its magnetic wheel and traction systems, is one element of the company’s toolkit to achieve remote inspection capability across all equipment.

“We are constantly on the lookout for new RVI technology that delivers on the objective of improving safety and increasing efficiency,” Rowe says.

In delivering this remote inspection service, South32 has dedicated a

“We kicked off an initiative 18 months ago to bring technology to site to remove people from higher risk working environments. The Bike platform is one part of South32’s RVI technology.”

any barriers for people to see how the initiatives benefit the company.

When asked about future plans, Rowe says South32 is working toward developing remote nondestructive testing capability, by which material wear and cracks can be detected remotely.

“The Bike platform is a small part of our available technology to deliver the outcome of keeping people safe and making work more efficient,” says Rowe.

“It’s about getting the right tools and creating the outcome of being able to do work remotely.”

team to the operation of drones, camera systems and other robotics around the site.

“Our chief remote visual inspection specialist on-site comes from a rope access background,” says Rowe.

CHALLENGES TURN INTO OPPORTUNITIES

The focus lies not on having the biggest and best thing in technology, but to use technology and innovation to improve safety and operational performance.

In the 2018 financial year, South32 reported a 15 per cent improvement in its total recordable injury frequency (TRIF) to 5.12 per million hours worked across its operations, a reduction on the 6.05 per million hours worked in 2017.

“The technology is available. The biggest challenge is getting people on board to come along for the journey,” says Rowe.

“We’ve done that successfully through regular communication across the business, demonstrating the business benefits and celebrating the success of using RVI technology.”

The team showcases its products on a routine basis to demonstrate the value of technology, thereby removing

Drone ‘Elios’, a remote inspection technology, is used at the Worsley Alumina site.

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Technology

The rising popularity of virtual reality over the last five years has led to immersive safety training methods.

Minecraft: How VR is leading a safety revolution NOT JUST FOR GAMING, THE BOOMING VR AND AR TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRIES HOLD A WEALTH OF POTENTIAL FOR MINE SAFETY TRAINING. EWEN HOSIE TALKS WITH SEEPILOT’S JAMES TIBBETT TO FIND OUT MORE.

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ike other booming technologies such as the electric car and unmanned aerial drone, virtual reality (VR) is no longer the clunky pipedream it was in the 1990s.

In the early 2010s, the technology finally started catching up with developers’ ambitions, and thanks to companies like Google, Oculus VR (purchased by Facebook in 2014) and Taiwanese tech giant HTC, VR gear is becoming more affordable, accessible and — crucially — wearable than ever before.

Augmented reality (AR), which involves the use of computer-generated overlays in a real-world environment, is

also taking off. Although the most well known example of AR tech probably remains the Niantic-developed 2016 mobile game Pokémon Go, the mining industry hasn’t failed to take notice of the technology’s practical applications.

For example, one company that has made strides in this area is New South Wales-based Safety Compass, whose mobile-compatible technology of the same name allows workers to view real-time geospatial pop-ups of safety hazards that have been tagged onsite.

According to SeePilot chief executive officer and co-founder James Tibbett, AR is well suited for such onsite applications, while VR tends to be better suited to

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offsite viewing and training programs.

A mining engineer that studied his undergraduate and PHD at the University of New South Wales, Tibbett founded startup SeePilot at the start of 2018. The company enables mine site workers to create 360-degree virtual workplace tours that can be layered with real-time information from co-workers to help improve safety and productivity. SeePilot refers to this process as “collaborative spatial communication”.

“VR really comes into strength when you’re trying to view a workplace from another environment or training externally for a classroom, or having people look at the same space from

anywhere in the world,” says Tibbett.

“At the moment the technology of VR is a bit further ahead in terms of experience and field of view, but AR is catching up and I think there’ll be a bit of a blur between the two sometimes.

“People are starting to use mixed reality, or XR, extended reality, to group some of them together, because there’s a bit of a spectrum.

By using modern gaming-spec VR headsets such as Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, or alternatively, smartphone-based VR headsets such as Google Daydream or Samsung Gear VR, users can become immersed more easily in their safety training than ever before.

The technology currently manifests in two primary ways. The first is gamelike simulations created using computer graphics technology, and the second is footage of real scenarios viewable in three dimensions.

“I was trying to bring together a range of different data sets — a bit of a big data problem — and VR was a potential solution to help integrate all that data, visualise it and play it back in real time,” he says.

“So, kind of like Iron Man in the movies, you can view the data in front of you, spin it round and play it back.”

As it happens, Tibbett’s alma mater is an early pioneer of VR technology as a training tool, having implemented an early iteration of the technology

“The 3D content is really good for training and immersing people into situations that you couldn’t film with a camera or don’t occur very often.” at the turn of the millennium. The intention of the project was to teach students and industry professionals ways to learn about hazards in a highconsequence mining environment without actually exposing them to dangerous environments.

The coal mining industry was the first to get on board around 2005 and the program has continued to expand since, eventually culminating in UNSW’s VR simulator AVIE, which uses a 360-degree, floor-to-ceiling screen that completely encompasses participants for maximum immersion.

The VR environment allows for effective repetition to learn how to deal with a scenario that is otherwise too rare to train for in real life.

It includes training modules for coal gas outbursts, stress-related coalbursts, hazard awareness, selfescape and, as of 2009, a working at heights module, which was originally

Virtual reality systems give miners insights into situations not previously available offsite.

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developed for BHP’s Olympic Dam project.

“The 3D content is really good for training and immersing people into situations that you couldn’t film with a camera or don’t occur very often and also where you want people to experience the consequences of that and have a bit of a cause and effect understanding,” says Tibbett.

“It’s really good for training and you can have group scenarios or individual scenarios.”

Tibbett says that it is becoming increasingly common for mining companies to want in-house simulators rather than seeking out external companies. An early example of this was Rio Tinto, which implemented a 360 VR training simulator at its Northparkes copper-gold operation in NSW before it sold it to China Molybdenum in 2013.

And as accessibility and price has improved (a decent PC with an Oculus Rift setup will currently run users around $1500–$2000 a pop), the fun doesn’t even have to stop at the site.

“People don’t want to have to leave site, and with some of the VR headsets and gaming computers becoming much more accessible, we’re even seeing it go to the homes as well,” Tibbett says.

“We’re visual beings to start with we are taught in a visual way and virtual reality is the perfect solution for that.

“It can present you with so much info that is contextually relevant to your job in a matter of minutes.”

Future of mining

Gaston Carrion, of Accenture, speaks at IMARC.

Technology guides next generation workforces THE 2018 INTERNATIONAL MINING AND RESOURCES CONFERENCE (IMARC) REVEALED WHAT THE INDUSTRY IS DOING TO PREPARE FOR THE WORKFORCES OF TOMORROW. SAFE TO WORK EXPLAINS.

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afety is already one of the key areas that is benefiting from the introduction of new technologies into the industry.

Mining companies have, however, been warned that they must broadly prepare their workforces to meet the demands of tomorrow’s digital age.

Accenture talent and organisation lead Gaston Carrion believes the use of autonomous vehicles and

other advanced technologies could change mining workforces by up to 80 per cent by 2024.

The concept of work is being redefined due to changing workforce demographics and rapid advancements in technology, and the Australian mining industry is no exception, according to Carrion.

He says the future mining workforce will be highly connected, as

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people work in tandem with artificial intelligence (AI) to improve safety, productivity and profitability.

“Based on the current rate of technology adoption, the digital mine is no longer a pipe dream, so it’s crucial that miners review their attraction, development and retention talent approaches,” Carrion says.

“Now more than ever, mining and metals companies need to

look at their future talent needs and establish workforce and technology strategies to ensure they have a robust and appropriately skilled supply of employees.”

Accenture’s recent Reworking the Revolution research further highlights the need for human-machine collaboration and reskilling.

It finds that 66 per cent of Australian workers thought the share of roles requiring collaboration with AI will rise in the next three years, while only 3 per cent of CEOs planned to significantly increase investment in reskilling their workforce during this period.

Carrion identifies three key ways for mining companies to get ahead of the curve to foster this future workforce, which centre on attraction, development and retention.

He says mining will need new skills in the future, from technologists and data scientists, to partnership managers and improvement specialists.

“Miners must reimagine talent attraction in a battle for the best and brightest. New talent pools should be established, both internal and external, with proactive sourcing key,” he says.

“Diversity should also be a priority for miners, and many companies have committed to fostering a more gender balanced workforce. Ultimately, a diverse workforce is more engaged and productive, and will allow miners to navigate industry disruption far more effectively.”

Development will also be vital as a workforce strategy, in terms of reskilling programs, career advancement and organisational culture.

Carrion says reskilling on digital, analytics, process improvement, remote operations and applications of AI is imperative, extending beyond employees and into contractors.

He also details the area of retention and stressed its importance.

Carrion believes retention of

Goldcorp CEO David Garofalo on stage at the Melbourne event.

high performers shouldn’t be an afterthought, and that new leadership can help refresh and empower the existing workforce to embrace innovation quickly.

“It’s clear that the industry is facing a major shift as a result of digitisation, and the challenge will be engaging and preparing the digital worker of tomorrow. Both in the near term and in the coming decades, this will be essential to drive the industry forward and fully embrace new and emerging technologies,” he adds.

Goldcorp’s Borden project in Canada is an example of a mine already capitalising on future possibilities.

Borden is replacing all diesel mobile equipment with electric vehicles to deliver environmental, health and safety, and economic benefits.

The electric mine is expected to deliver a 70 per cent smaller carbon footprint than if conventional technologies are used.

It will also reduce noise pollution, reduce the risk of hydrocarbon spills and fires, and reduce or

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eliminate exhaust fumes.

Goldcorp chief executive officer David Garofalo believes the shift to battery electric vehicles is nearing a tipping point for industry.

He says safety performance and risk reduction is an integral element of the vision.

“Using diesel in an underground operation is a risk inherent in the mining industry,” Garofalo says.

“We manage and mitigate it as other mining companies do, but we know that by removing it we remove a source of heat, fire and emissions from where our workers are and lower the risk profile of our operations.”

In addition to electric vehicles, several other technologies have been incorporated into the mine design.

“Borden is a ‘connected mine’ with real time knowledge of where people, equipment and work is being done at all times. This enhances safety and productivity,” Garofalo continues.

Goldcorp expects to reach production at Borden by the end of 2019.

Environment

One in the eye: Mining’s cyclone peril AUSTRALIA IS HITTING THE HEIGHTS OF CYCLONE SEASON AND IT PAYS TO BE ON GUARD. SAFE TO WORK LOOKS AT HOW MINE SITES CAN BE AFFECTED.

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n the summer of 2007, Cyclone George formed in the Top End of the Northern Territory before tearing a path through Western Australia’s Kimberley coast, eventually reaching a peak at Port Hedland and carrying on into the Pilbara.

One of the worst tropical cyclones in Australian history, the Category 5 ripped through Fortescue Metals Group’s mining camp (which was only designed to withstand up to a Category 2 cyclone), flipping several dongas.

The incident resulted in the deaths of two workers and injured many more.

Fortescue was cleared by the Supreme

Court of Western Australia in 2012, but it brought into stark relief the overwhelming danger and damage that cyclones could cause.

Mine sites in vulnerable areas, such as coastal and inland Queensland and the north coast of Western Australia (the area between the towns of Broome and Exmouth is considered of the most cyclone-prone regions of Australia) have to be aware of the risks.

This is particularly the case in summer; the 2018–19 cyclone season officially commenced last November and will run until the end of April, though tropical cyclones can form at

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any time of year.

According to Neil Bennett, Western Australia media and communication manager at the Bureau of Meteorology, mine sites on both the coast and inland have to prepare not just for the punishing gusts that can reach in excess of 220 kilometres per hour, but another elemental danger as well.

“The wind is the thing everybody looks at and thinks, ‘Oh, that’s really bad,’ but it’s also the water as well,” he explains.

“Flooding is a major issue. These systems, even as they transition as we call it and weaken from tropical cyclone

status to tropical low status, can still produce some very heavy rainfall and that will lead to flooding.”

Bennett suggests that mine sites need to ensure the structural integrity of buildings on site to make sure they are compliant with safety regulations. Sites should also ensure they monitor the warning signs of impending winds and have an evacuation plan in place should a cyclone be on the way.

As cyclones travel inland they weaken and develop into an ex-tropical cyclone (called ‘post-tropical cyclones’ in the United States). These ex-tropical cyclones (or post-tropical cyclones) are generally divided into two types; extratropical cyclones and remnant lows.

Though ex-tropical cyclones are weaker than full cyclones — tropical lows have a maximum wind speed of 34 knots, or about 63 kilometres per hour — they can still be damaging, especially if they result in heavy rainfall.

“We are constantly monitoring the weather and we do use the Bureau of Meteorology’s information, such as their cyclone watch and warning system, to determine the severity of a cyclone, which assists in how we respond,” Anglo American executive head of underground operations, Glen Britton says.

Anglo American’s underground

Cyclone Ita hits Townsville in North Queensland during 2014.

operations make use of surface infrastructure such as coal handling and processing plants (CHPP), gas drainage systems and ventilation equipment that is vulnerable to exposure and needs to be secured.

The company’s coal output suffered in the wake of 2017’s Category 4 cyclone Debbie, which had a significant impact on Queensland’s rail network. This resulted in delays to processing and railing stocks.

BHP faced similar issues related to the rail network, affecting its Bowen Basin operations, while Glencore had to

Queensland’s coal mines are on guard for cyclone activity over the summer months each year.

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temporarily suspend its Collinsville and Newlands mines due to flooding.

Anglo American takes extensive measures during tropical cyclones to make sure its workers remain safe.

During Cyclone Debbie, the company worked closely with its suppliers to ensure sufficient food was available at its camp. The company also opened the camp to employees and their families due to local power supply disruption to local power supplies.

Following the cyclone, the team then worked to restock perishable items and help the community with clean up operations.

“In severe cases, like cyclone Debbie [in 2017], we convened our crisis response team and activated our trigger action response plan,” says Britton.

“The team met regularly to review the situation, assess risks and impacts and adjust our approach as required.

“In that situation we decided to ensure our people were safe so suspended operations early so they didn’t have to travel to work or could travel home to their families if they lived in affected areas.”

This is the type of preparation that is needed once again with cyclone season in full swing.

Prospect Awards

The 2018 Prospect Awards was held at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Image: Photographic Memory.

Recognising the finest achievements in mine safety SAFETY MAY BE A GIVEN FOR MINE WORKERS AND COMPANIES, BUT THE HARD WORK IN THIS AREA SHOULD ALSO BE REWARDED. SAFE TO WORK WRITES.

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he 2018 Australian Mining Prospect Awards highlighted the thought and commitment that is going towards improving safety at both an individual and company level in the mining industry.

Two of the 13 Prospect Awards directly have a safety focus – the Sick Safety Advocacy Award and the Flexco Excellence in Mine Safety, OH&S Award.

Mitchell Services general manager – people and risk Josh Bryant won the Safety Advocacy Award, while Conveyor Manufacturers Australia’s (CMA) development of the Redline underground conveyor system led to it winning the Excellence in Mine Safety, OH&S Award.

Here is a summary of both safety award winners:

CREATING A PROGRESSIVE WORKFORCE

Making safety a priority – successfully ­­­– is no easy task. When Mitchell Services general manager – people and risk Josh Bryant arrived at the contractor from BHP’s Olympic Dam mine in 2016, he was tasked with changing the safety culture of a 120-strong workforce.

A fleeting two-and-a-half years later, this number grew by 180 per cent to 400 people. And what Bryant is proudest of is that “We’re growing so fast, but we kept a really strong line of communication and trust throughout the workforce.

“Everyone knows the chief executive by name, everyone knows the

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operation managers by name. It’s a big company, but it’s run small.”

Bryant and the team at Mitchell Services do safety differently. Instead of viewing people as a problem to control, they regard them as a solution to harness.

His safety culture is driven by engagement and collaboration, earning him the Sick Safety Advocacy Award.

Bryant and his team’s initiative, operation homestretch (also crowned a finalist in Flexco Excellence in Mine Safety, OH&S), has kept workers safe during what is traditionally a high-risk time at year’s end.

“Everyone thinks about Christmas.

Everyone’s missing their family.

There’s end-of-school holidays. Their

minds are not on the job for various reasons,” he says.

“But what operation homestretch was about is, instead of putting up posters and PowerPoint presentations saying ‘Don’t hurt yourself,’ or ‘This guy got injured. Don’t be like him,’ we went around getting a number of people’s ideas and said, ‘Talk to us about your workplaces,’ ‘How can we make it better,’ ‘Give us your ideas.’”

Employees’ suggestions were taken in addition to holding field activities that were focused on work conditions, not workforce behaviours; as well as a series of videos starring the workforce – of which Bryant spent over 80 hours of his personal time composing to create – to instil a sense of community across Australian sites.

This initiative has brought a decrease in recordable injuries and severity, and a shift in employees’

mindset and safety culture.

“Many get really frustrated when minor things go wrong, and then it just becomes a really controlling environment,” Bryant says.

“Whereas if you make your workplace quite progressive, you’re listening to the people and you treat them as individuals and humans – recognise that they’ve all got different needs, they’ve all got different learning capabilities, they all come from different backgrounds – and respect that, it’s almost like trying to make the world a better place.

Bryant says too many times in the mining industry, the culture has to reflect that it’s “rough, tough and manly.” But he invites the industry to approach its attitude toward the sector differently.

“Why can’t it be about looking after each other, being a bit more

Flexco managing director Mark Colbourn (left) and CMA co-founder Ben Smith.

SAFETOWORK 47 JAN-MAR 2019

Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine in Victoria won the top honour.

progressive and understand that a new generation is joining the industry?” he asks.

“Too many times in the mining industry, it’s always got to be rough, tough and manly. We need to change the way that we approach working in

Prospect Awards mining, so it’s not just that rough, tough environment, but one with a culture of care, learning and listening.”

Since Bryant’s time at Mitchell Services, he has instigated mental wellness programs; supervisor coaching; tailored injury management and return-to-work programs; and the embedment of Mitchell Services ‘fatal eight’ to monitor risks specific to drill rigs.

In less than 12 months of Bryant joining the business, the company reduced its overall injury severity by 60 per cent. Its total recordable injury frequency rate has also decreased, the number of lost-time injury cases has halved, and the manager’s initiatives have created a more connected workforce.

“I think safety advocacy isn’t purely about you knowing technical details and you knowing legislation. It isn’t necessarily someone who’s top of the food chain,” says Bryant.

“Safety advocacy is about changes you’ve been able to make in your

CMA co-founder Ben Smith talks about winning the award. Image: Photographic Memory.

workplace that can be transferred to any industry. It’s about making the workplace better for the people who work for us.

“And to be individually recognised at that is really a reward that represents the team that has put together the program and recognition of a business that looks after its people.”

Mitchell Services general manager – people and risk Josh Bryant and Sick managing director David Crossley.

SAFETOWORK 48 JAN-MAR 2019

CONVEYOR MANUFACTURER DELIVERS BREAKTHROUGH

New market entrant Conveyor Manufacturers Australia (CMA) is disrupting the industry by transforming the way mine personnel operate in mine sites.

Currently, most components of a conveyor system require personnel to enter extremely risky areas to assemble and disassemble the system.

Part of the day-to-day operation of underground mines and tunnels requires conveyors to continually be lengthened and shortened.

To do this work, the conveyor must stop, directly impacting productivity.

Conveyors are also built hand by hand, piece by piece, involving a significant amount of manual handling – lifting, carrying, twisting, bending and shoving. Over time, productivity increases mean these components have also become heavier, increasing the strain endured by personnel.

According to business development director Ben Smith, mining processes tend to revolve around equipment.

Therefore, as that equipment has not fundamentally changed in a long time, potential productivity and

safety benefits that can be attained from revised processes have not been realised – until now.

“I’m not a conveyor engineer – I’m a mining engineer. So, to me, it’s all about process,” Smith says. “Why do we let our equipment dictate our processes and the way we work? Why not design our work to be more ideal, and then support that with equipment that meets the desired outcome?”

Workers’ wellbeing was the driver behind CMA’s Redline underground conveyor system, which led to it winning the Flexco Excellence in Mine Safety, OH&S Award.

Smith recalls wanting to make a change, so that when workforce personnel retire, they stay healthy and could play with their grandchildren.

“It’s not so much the catastrophic injuries, but the ones that you face day in, day out, over a 30-40 year career that impede you later in life,” he says.

“I remember watching people do the same hard work every day for years on end, and it took its toll – on knees, ankles, and shoulders, with resulting surgeries, rehab, and sometimes, forced retirement. It just wasn’t good enough.”

With this in mind, CMA embarked on delivering conveyor solutions that are aimed at improving users’ health, safety and wellbeing, and at creating a step-change in productivity and industry performance.

“We started with the problem first and let that drive the solution. So often a new thing is designed and made in search of a problem to solve,” Smith says.

The Redline underground conveyor system all but completely eliminates manual handling of conveyor structure – namely lifting, carrying, twisting, bending and shoving – from conveyor construction, retraction and maintenance.

Redline is a modular conveyor system which is hung from an overhead monorail

system and is propelled by a hydraulic traction unit. The conveyor extends and retracts from a dedicated installation and recovery centre away from the congested working or face area.

Key advantages include the ability to install the final conveyor from the getgo, eliminating the current practice of developing roadways on narrow belting and later having to completely replace it with a high-duty conveyor; and, the ability to be pre-fitted with monitoring, lighting, communications and other associated cabling and safety systems.

Redline’s purpose-built wardrobes also provide the ability for it to be transported to the next area without manually loading or unloading trailers and carriers.

From a productivity perspective, the underground conveyor can now be lengthened, shortened and maintained

without having to stop. This directly impacts an operation’s bottom line.

Now, there is almost no need to have down-time as part of the normal process cycle – an enormous improvement in availability and overall productivity.

“One day I asked the question, what is the biggest issue we have in our industry at its most fundamental level?

What is the biggest thing we want to get more of? Time,” Smith says.

“Time really is the only thing we can’t get more of. We can buy more equipment, we can hire more labour, but we can’t get more time. Once it’s gone, it’s gone.”

Redline impacts and delivers significant benefits to many areas, from longwall and pillar extraction in coal mines, underground roadway development, single entry driveage, to civil tunnelling.

The other Prospect Awards, which also recognise safety, include: Australian Mine of the Year (sponsored by Australian Mining) Fosterville gold mine, Victoria, Kirkland Lake Gold

Coal Mine of the Year (sponsored by SEW Eurodrive) Moranbah North coal mine, Queensland, Anglo American

Lifetime Achievement Award (sponsored by Liebherr) Andrew Forrest, chairman, Fortescue Metals Group

Excellence in Environmental Management (sponsored by Metso) Rio Tinto

Community Interaction (sponsored by Safe to Work) Roy Hill Community Foundation, Roy Hill

Mine Manager of the Year (sponsored by CRC Industries) Elsabe Muller, Jimblebar mine general manager, BHP

Contract Miner of the Year (sponsored by Epiroc) Wolff Mining

Minerals Processing of the Year (sponsored by Rockwell Automation) Moranbah North CHPP, Queensland, Anglo American

Contribution to Mining (sponsored by BGC Contracting) Maria Joyce, general manager, MEC Mining

Innovative Mining Solution (sponsored by Austmine) Blast Movement Monitoring System, Blast Movement Technologies

Hard Rock Mine of the Year (sponsored by Epiroc) Fosterville gold mine, Victoria, Kirkland Lake Gold

SAFETOWORK 49 JAN-MAR 2019

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Hearing loss

Fading away: The danger of mine site deafness NOISE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS (NIHL) IS A REAL RISK FOR MINE WORKERS. DEAFNESS AUSTRALIA CHAIRMAN PAUL O’HALLORAN TALKS EWEN HOSIE THROUGH THE DANGERS.

M

ine sites can be noisy places. In fact, mining is often cited as one of the noisiest jobs, ranking alongside the likes of construction workers, rock musicians, airport ground staff and race car drivers.

Mine workers tend to adjust to these environments over time, but just because they get used to it doesn’t mean their hearing can’t become damaged.

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is one of the most common causes of deafness; statistics from Safe Work

Australia state that around 4700 claims are made for NIHL each year and between 28-32 per cent of working Australians are likely to be exposed to loud noise at work.

Regular exposure to noise levels above 85 decibels (dB) is cited as high risk according to government safety regulations. This hearing loss can be sudden — due, say, to an extremely loud noise such as an explosion or bang in the 130db or above range — or gradual, with hearing worsening over a long period of time.

If signs of hearing loss occur, it is important to see a doctor as soon as possible.

SAFETOWORK 51 JAN-MAR 2019

Gradual hearing loss is caused by damage to hair cell nerves in the inner ear and outer ear (cochlea). These hair cells can die or become damaged by exposure to loud noise, causing temporary or permanent damage to hearing. This is sometimes called cochlear damage.

According to Paul O’Halloran, an NIHL expert and chairman of Deafness Foundation Australia, it is important that mine workers take special care to avoid this from happening.

“With constant noise you can affect

Hearing loss Hearing protection should be up to date and up to the task at hand.

the hair cells in the inner ear which have a key role in picking up the vibrations and turning them into electric nerve signals,” he says.

“Those little hair cells get overloaded, get fatigued and then you get cell death in the worst cases. If outer hair cells get damaged like that they will gradually lose the ability to hear soft sounds as well.”

O’Halloran explains that gradual noise and sudden noise can both be problematic and if workers feel they may have hearing loss, even if it only lasts temporarily, they should get it checked out.

He compares gradual hearing loss to a dripping tap that slowly fills a bucker over time. It is not easily perceptible at the time that the bucket is filling up and only becomes noticeable once sufficient time has passed.

“The question is how much noise over time reaches the ear,” he says.

“You basically find if you’re having to raise your voice when you’re one metre

away from someone you probably have a risky situation that’s noisy enough to do some damage. And of course mining has a whole lot of impact noises and continuous noise from machinery and repair work.”

An effective way to monitor whether or not an environment may be conducive to NIHL is to download decibel meter apps, which are available on both Android and iPhone and are generally free. It is also worth ensuring that PPE such as hearing protection is up to date and in compliance with all necessary regulations, and that warning signs onsite are adhered to.

“If the signs say don’t go through this area when the noise is operating, don’t go through that area when the noise is operating. If they say hearing protection has to be worn when operating this piece of equipment, I’d say wear the hearing protection,” O’Hallaran says.

“It’s very important that there’s a cooperative approach with the

SAFETOWORK 52 JAN-MAR 2019

management of the mining companies and we have to make sure they have the primary responsibility to make sure workers aren’t getting exposed to risk.”

In Australia, workers in loud environments such as mines are entitled to pre-employment hearing tests and regular repeat hearing tests thereafter so they can effectively monitor potential issues.

A temporary or permanent feeling of dullness or ringing in the ears (tinnitus) are warning signs that should be checked out by a doctor as soon as they arise.

“It’s very easy to overlook because you’ll often find that the rate of onset of the hearing loss has effects that are very gradual over time and sadly when people get the hearing loss they think they’ve lost it so there’s nothing they can do about it,” explains O’Halloran.

“Neither of those things are true because you’ve always got more hearing to lose. You never stop losing it if you’re in a dangerous situation.”

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Infrastructure

Off the rails in iron ore TWO HIGH-PROFILE TRAIN DERAILMENTS FROM BHP AND MINERAL RESOURCES HIT THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN IRON ORE INDUSTRY LAST NOVEMBER. BUT IS THERE A CAUSE FOR CONCERN?

N

ovember 2018 marked a month for high-profile rail failures in the Western Australian mining industry.

On November 5, a BHP iron ore freight train headed for Port Hedland in Western Australia travelled driverless for 92 kilometres after the driver got off to carry out an inspection.

The train, which was comprised of four locomotives and 268 wagons, picked up speed to around 110 kilometres an hour without the driver at the controls.

Faced with a difficult decision as the train hurtled towards Port Hedland, BHP engineers took the move to

deliberately derail the train just outside Turner’s Siding, about 120 kilometres south of the port.

According to BHP WA Iron Ore asset president Edgar Basto, the emergency air brake for the entire train was not engaged as required by the relevant operating procedure.

“In addition, the electric braking system that initially stopped the train automatically released after one hour while the driver was still outside. Due to integration failure of the backup braking system, it was not able to deploy successfully,” Basto said.

It was BHP’s fourth derailment since 2015.

BHP has experienced four freight train derailments since 2015.

SAFETOWORK 54 JAN-MAR 2019

No one was hurt in the incident, except for BHP’s wallet; one anonymous source interviewed in the media pegged the financial cost at upwards of $55 million a day for the company.

Less than a week later, a second derailment occurred in Western Australia. A train travelling to Mineral Resources’ Koolyanobbing iron ore mine in the Yilgarn region saw about 30 of its wagons derail.

According to MinRes, the derailment may have been caused by displacement of ballast under the track after heavy rainfall and flash flooding the day before the incident.

Unlike the BHP derailment, which spilled millions of tonnes of ore, the MinRes train was on the return from the Port of Esperance, having already delivered 7488 tonnes of fines across 106 wagons.

MinRes stated that no one was injured and its locomotives came out unscathed, but there was damage to some of the derailed wagons.

Having two high-profile freight derailments occur in such a short space of time is unusual, and has brought into sharp relief the importance of freight safety.

Historically, however, railway travel in Western Australia is almost boringly safe.

In fact, fatalities from train derailments are extremely low in Australia generally; sadly, the vast majority of train-related deaths in the country are caused by suicide ortrespass.

There have been just three recorded rail fatalities in the state since the

There were 30 recorded freight train derailments in Australia from 2016–2017.

In Western Australia, most historical deaths in railwayrelated incidents are actually those of railway employees.

1990s, two in 1996 and one in 2015.

This is in part attributable to Western Australia’s sparse public train network when compared with Victoria and New South Wales.

In Western Australia, most historical deaths in railway-related incidents are actually those of railway employees; roughly 370 have died in work-related incidents since 1879, according to research by Rail Heritage WA. While this statistic is unfortunate in isolation, it is a fairly low number overall over the course of nearly 140 years.

The Western Australian death toll over the last century is in line with some of the worst single incidents in other countries. It is less than twothirds of the number, for example, of the 575 who died in the Ufa train disaster in Russia (then the Soviet Union) in 1989.

It is also roughly 60 per cent greater than the estimated 228 people who died in Britain’s worst rail accident, the 1915 Quintinshill disaster in Scotland.

For point of comparison, Australia’s

SAFETOWORK 55 JAN-MAR 2019

worst recorded historical rail disaster was the 1977 Granville disaster in Sydney, where 83 people were killed.

According to the latest Annual Safety Report published by the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR), there were 89 railway-related fatalities in Australia from 2016–2017, 73 of which were suspected suicides and nine were caused by trespassing.

There were also 38 derailments, 30 of which involved freight trains and eight passenger trains.

Of the seven fatalities that were not the cause of suicide or trespass, four were due to trains colliding with road vehicles at railway crossings and the other three occurred on trains or at train stations but had little to do with the trains themselves.

Of the 30 freight derailments reported throughout the year, not one injury was reported.

Those concerned at the prospect of errant freight trains causing damage to people in light of November’s drama should probably rest easy.

Drones

Guardian angels: How drones make mining safer DRONE TECHNOLOGY IS BECOMING AN INCREASINGLY COMMON SIGHT AT MINES. SAFE TO WORK TALKS TO THREE COMPANIES WORKING IN THE SPACE TO DISCOVER HOW THEY HELP MAKE MINING SAFER.

U

nmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are shaking up mine sites across the country and abroad. More commonly known as drones, these devices have successfully carved a niche over the last few years in the mining world for their advanced mapping and inspection applications.

This includes tasks such as stockpile reports, drill and blast planning, compliance, regulatory reporting and inspection of roofs, silos and large fixed and mobile plant equipment.

These abilities undoubtedly result in cost benefits for miners who take advantage of the accuracy afforded by the drones’ measurements.

However, the ease of access drones have to unstable or potentially hazardous areas also brings with it a profusion of possible safety benefits.

“The primary safety benefit by using drones is to simply keep people away from hazards and dangerous working environments,” explains Andrew Chapman, NSW operations director at drone specialist Australian UAV (AUAV).

AUAV was founded in 2013 with the aim of becoming “the leading drone data service company in the country,” according to Chapman.

Now boasting offices across Australia, the company’s mining clientele includes the likes of Downer, Glencore and Rio Tinto. Chapman says using drones at mine sites delivers several safety benefits.

Airobotics’ Optimus 1 UAV sits atop the Airbase.

“It is no longer necessary to have people anywhere near danger if you only need to view, inspect or measure things,” Chapman continues.

“Obviously by removing the surveyor from walking through an active mine area we are not only reducing but entirely avoiding the possibility of them being harmed by mobile plant and machinery, drilling and explosives, dangerous chemicals, flyrock and other hazards.”

And since drones tend to be fairly compact and manoeuvrable, they are used not only in the free air of the open pit, but in tight underground environments as well.

Startup company Emesent, a drone-focused spin out of Data 61, the technology arm of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research

SAFETOWORK 56 JAN-MAR 2019

Organisation (CSIRO), specialises in drones for underground environments.

The company raised $3.5 million in November 2018 to commercialise its first product Hovermap, a LiDAR-equipped drone autonomy and mapping payload used for collecting data in dangerous underground environments, such as 3D scans of mine stopes.

Emesent chief executive officer and co-founder Stefan Hrabar says the technology dates back over 10 years to his time at CSIRO researching drone robotics and 3D LiDAR-based localisation and mapping.

“There are definitely elevated areas where you want to have a bird’s eye view,” he says.

“Then for underground there are areas where the unsupported ground

might be unstable and you just don’t want to send people into those areas, so having a drone that can go in and capture data — whether it’s capturing images or generating LiDAR maps like we do — keeps people out of those areas.”

Hovermap provides a direct safety benefit by keeping miners out of dangerous locations, but it also provides indirect benefits.

Data collected by the system provide mining operations with an improved understanding of geological structures in the rock, including breaks or other weaknesses in the strata that could be identified as no-go areas.

This concept extends to areas where people have become trapped; as Hrabar explains, “sending in a drone for search and rescue is definitely a good usecase”.

Interestingly, drones that fly underground are not subject to the same aviation regulations as drones in the open air.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), the body that monitors flight

safety in Australia, has yet to confirm to Emesent whether or not underground environments fall under its jurisdiction.

“There aren’t any specific CASA requirements for underground,” Hrabar says.

“There are obviously very strict regulations already in place for underground mining. Mines have their own HSE policies that make sure people are kept away from dangerous machinery and that all of those policies apply when using a drone underground.”

The first company to receive beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) certification from an aviation body for a fully autonomous UAV was Israeli company Airobotics, which achieved

this milestone from the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel (CAAI) in 2017.

Airobotics’ UAV Optimus 1 distinguishes itself from rival drones by allowing for autonomous take-off and landing via a remote storage unit called Airbase, thereby eliminating remote pilots from the process entirely.

The company has received over $140 million in investor funding since June 2016. It opened its first Australian office in Perth in late 2017 and expanded to the United States in September 2018.

Airobotics believes that by eliminating pilots entirely from the equation, safety is improved as it removes human factors.

“Our system has a higher safety

“It is no longer necessary to have people anywhere near danger if you only need to view, inspect or measure things.”

Fixed-wing drones are capable of surveying hundreds of hectares per flight. Credit: AUAV.

SAFETOWORK 57 JAN-MAR 2019

Drones level than a manually operated drone concept,” explains Airobotics VP marketing Efrat Fenigson.

“A person flying a drone is not considered to be the safest thing in the world. And the reason I can say that with confidence is that we were certified by the CAAI based on that safety level.

“We were accredited by them to fly without a human pilot and they mentioned that we are safer than the normal concept of flying with a person; the safety level for the system itself is very high.”

AUAV also has similar ‘out-ofthe-box’ drone technology in place, Chapman says, but due to current Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) regulations a human is still required to oversee the drone’s activity.

“CASA is certainly trying, but they are a government agency with limited resources at their disposal,” he says.

“The regulations are conservative and slow-moving in order to protect the manned aviation world — pilots, passengers and the people below — and so are years behind what could be safely done with the current technology.”

Emesent co-founders Stefan Hrabar and Farid Kendoul

Like Airobotics, Chapman also thinks the lion’s share of drone work will be fully automated in future, which is why AUAV is focused more on getting the best possible data rather than fancy flying skills.

Emesent’s Hovermap in an underground mine.

SAFETOWORK 58 JAN-MAR 2019

“All our mapping work and a large proportion of our inspection work is already fully automated in terms of the drone’s flight,” he says.

“Drones can fly themselves on mapping runs in a much more accurate manner than a human pilot ever could, and having them fly themselves also allows our crews to work on higher-level problems.”

These three companies are each contributing to the burgeoning UAV space in their own unique ways and helping to shape the potential future of the industry’s still nascent potential for safer mining.

Mining drones have come a long way in the past few years and the technology is becoming increasingly accessible and affordable for miners.

As regulation evolves to meet the pace of the technology there is no doubt the mining industry will continue to see more of them in future.

2019

AUSTRALIAN MINING PROSPECT AWARDS

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Opinion

These memorials at Pike River show the 29 miners involved in the disaster will never be forgotten.

Listen and learn: eight years after the Pike 29 A LOOK BACK AT THE PIKE RIVER DISASTER IN NEW ZEALAND AND WHAT THE INDUSTRY HAS LEARNED IN THE EIGHT YEARS SINCE THE TRAGEDY.

F

or the families and friends of the 29 miners who died when a methane gas explosion tore through the underground Pike River coal mine on the northwest coast of New Zealand’s South Island, four words from Stewart Bell, who headed the Royal Commission into the disaster, would still haunt them. “This disaster,” he wrote, “was avoidable.”

More than eight years after the tragedy on November 19 2010, the

Pike 29 remain entombed within the mine, a heart-wrenching reminder of how a cascade of poor safety decisions can lead to a country’s worst modern mining accident.

Of the 31 men working that day, two staggered free, covered in soot and dust. Those who remained included a once golden-haired 17-year-old boy who celebrated his birthday the day before the explosion and was celebrating his first day on the job

SAFETOWORK 60 JAN-MAR 2019

at Pike River, and other men whose faces bore witness to the rigours of working underground.

Now, the Pike River Recovery Agency, set up in early 2018 as a stand-alone department of the New Zealand Government, expects that a manned re-entry to the mine and subsequent recovery operations could be completed by mid-2019.

The agency aims to gather evidence “with an eye to preventing future

mining tragedies and promoting accountability for the tragedy, give the Pike River families and victims overdue closure and peace of mind, and recover remains where possible”.

The Minister Responsible for the Pike River Re-entry, Andrew Little, notes simply that the operation is “an act of justice … no one should go to work and not come home”.

DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN In the eyes of many of those involved with the Pike River mine, the chances that one day a worker would not come home were high. “Pike River was a difficult mine to operate,” Bell wrote in his summation of the Royal Commission findings.

“The topography, highly faulted geology, high methane levels, poor gas monitoring and ongoing financial constraints led to the fact that the mine never operated on a sustainable basis and lurched from one problem to the next.”

Bell also found that while the commission tried to find “areas where Pike River had met normal standards,

“The topography, highly faulted geology, high methane levels, poor gas monitoring and ongoing financial constraints led to the fact that the mine never operated on a sustainable basis and lurched from one problem to the next.” they were unable to do so” thanks to an inexperienced workforce and a changing management.

“In the words of several witnesses this mine was a disaster waiting to happen,” Bell notes.

“And with 21 high-methane events reported but not acted upon in the month before the disaster, an

A memorial set up at the Pike River site to remember the miners years after the incident.

SAFETOWORK 61 JAN-MAR 2019

explosion was inevitable and 29 men paid the ultimate price.”

IMPLICATIONS FOR ALL INDUSTRIES Paul Hunt is chief inspector, extractives, for WorkSafe New Zealand. He says Pike River represents a key juncture in health and safety.

“New Zealand has been significantly changed by the Pike River Royal Commission Report. The tragic loss of 29 men was impossible for any level of New Zealand society to accept as being an unavoidable accident,” he says.

“The commission delivered a comprehensive report which did not shy away from the general attitude to health and safety in New Zealand, the requirement for responsibility for safety at all levels in an organisation, that we need well-resourced and focused regulators, the need for better regulations, benefits and necessity of worker engagement as well as the specific requirements for the mining sector.”

The Pike River Royal Commission made 16 recommendations, many

Opinion

The underground mine has remained closed over the eight years since.

with detailed sub-recommendations.

According to Hunt, all of the recommendations have been implemented.

“They are not all specific to mining, but they addressed issues such as directors’ responsibilities, the need for worker participation and the need for a focused, standalone health and safety regulator,” he says.

STANDARDS SHAKE-UP New mining regulations have been introduced, and these are based on the Australian model, which, Hunt says, is risk-based and focused on the concept of principal hazards and how to manage them.

“These immediately placed requirements on mining operators regarding mandatory processes to treat any principal hazards and specified the competency requirements for sites,” Hunt says.

“As a result, a board of examiners was established and about 1000 certificates of competence have been issued, ranging from supervisor to site senior executives, with specified

competencies, experience and oral examinations required.

“There has also been comprehensive codes of practices and guidance material developed and implemented. They preceded the new NZ Health and Safety at Work Act but sit very well under the new act which also introduced the management of risk to all workplaces.”

Hunt believes these new standards and legislative requirements will spread well beyond the extractive sector.

“Mining may have been initially the most affected but time may well show that the effects on other significant industries in New Zealand are even more profound,” he says. “For instance, agriculture and forestry are both larger industries than mining in New Zealand.”

LISTEN TO WORKERS Investigative journalist Rebecca Macfie, who wrote Tragedy at Pike River: How and why 29 men died (Awa Press, 2013), conducted more than 100 interviews with key people in

SAFETOWORK 62 JAN-MAR 2019

the course of researching her book.

Macfie believes that the lead-up to the disaster has elements that resonate with businesses in all sectors.

“There were hundreds of incident reports from workers about broken equipment and things that had gone wrong that had not even been looked at,” Macfie says.

“Every person who comes to you with information about safety is a whistle-blower and deserves to be listened to respectfully.

“Prioritising worker engagement and participation is not only a legal requirement, it’s a cost-effective way for small business owners to keep people healthy and safe.

“You can’t always afford to bring in external consultants and you know that your workers are your best resource.

Please listen to them. We owe it to the Pike 29, we owe it to our workers, and we owe it to ourselves.”

TAKEAWAY LESSONS Safety Culture’s lessons that companies can learn from Pike River: If you manage a business: • be alert, be curious and be sensitive to what is happening around you • create an environment of trust and good faith in which workers feel they can say what’s going on • really listen and don’t just rely on a process • encourage feedback from everyone in the workplace on health and safety matters.

If your business has a board of directors, Safety Culture suggests: • keep eyes and ears open to every source of information • have members with diverse skills, including technical skills – they must be able to ask the right questions • maintain a healthy distance from management.

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2019 | JAN-MAR | ISSUE 02

Published quarterly, the magazine includes interviews with prominent industry figures, and profiles on people and companies innovating and developing a safer industry.

Safe To Work will provide the industry with news and features about the latest achievements, equipment, technologies and products benefitting safety. Safe To Work is Australia’s leading source for safety in mining.

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Workforce management

Industry addresses mental health stigma THE RISE IN MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES CALLS FOR COLLABORATIVE ACTION FROM THE GOVERNMENT, INDUSTRY BODIES AND MINE SITES ACROSS AUSTRALIA.

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he health and wellbeing of individuals forms the social and economic fabric of communities, and every sector has a role to play in supporting people in this area, according to the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA).

Nearly one in three (32 per cent) young Australians (aged 12 to 25) reported high to very high levels of psychological distress in 2018 – a figure that has tripled since the last decade, says the National Youth Mental Health Foundation headspace.

“People working in the minerals industry are drawn from the broader Australian community,” an MCA report on mental health and wellbeing states.

“And based on Australian figures, an estimated average of between 8000 to 10,000 employees experienced

common mental illnesses like anxiety, depression or substance use disorders over a 12-month period in the NSW minerals industry.”

People from all levels of employment – from managerial and professional to machinery operation – are also affected equally.

The Morrison Government has allocated $125 million into a mental health research program that will prioritise the health issue in children and young people, as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

An extra $338.1 million will also be invested in suicide prevention and programs for older Australians.

“Mental illness is the leading cause of both disability and premature death in Australia,” says Federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt. “Almost one

SAFETOWORK 64 JAN-MAR 2019

in two Australians aged over 16 will experience a mental health condition at some point in their lives. Sadly, one in five Australians affected

Both management and team members play a role in developing a safe working environment.

by mental illness do not seek help because of stigma.”

When left unaddressed, mental health problems can cause accidental injury in the workplace. They affect the morale and culture of the workplace, and influence the fabrics of their families and communities.

To combat these issues, the mining industry is delivering a variety of programs to promote employees’ mental health and wellbeing.

Glencore’s Clermont and Liddell mines in Queensland and New South Wales, Peabody’s Moorevale mine in Queensland and MMG’s Dugald River mine in Queensland are four of 15 mine sites that have joined MATES in Mining’s training for suicide prevention this year.

Delivered across New South Wales, Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, the training instructs workers on how to lend aid to work mates.

Likewise, BHP has gone from combatting stigma around mental illness and raising its workers’ awareness of the condition, to building their capacity and confidence in recognising and supporting colleagues who are affected by mental health issues.

In 2012, Rio Tinto Iron Ore also introduced a similar workplace initiative

“Almost one in two Australians aged over 16 will experience a mental health condition at some point in their lives.” called the peer support program. Taurai Gusha, a mobile mining equipment fitter at Rio Tinto’s Yandicoogina iron ore mine, says, “In our industry, we have so many people working away from their loved ones. Sometimes it can be pretty hard for people when they’re lonely, working long hours and they may have things going on at home.”

Alcohol consumption, substance use and financial management are the other challenges faced by employees in the minerals industry.

From a leadership-level, “[Workplace strategies] should include a demonstrated commitment by leaders, executives and managers, and be supported by clear communication and effective mental health policies,” says the MCA. Organisational commitment may be actualised with the introduction of

mental health KPIs to organisational performance reporting, and the allocation of resources to support mental health programs in the workplace.

The ‘Investing to Save’ report by KPMG and Mental Health Australia further shows that investment in workplace initiatives can save the nation more than $4.5 billion.

Workplace initiatives also have direct benefits on reducing absenteeism and improving productivity, its positive effects to be felt on recruitment, retention and staff wellbeing.

An estimated $4.7 billion was invested by the federal government on mental health last year. Coupled with state and territory government funding, the figure will reach around $9 billion per year – equivalent to $1 million investment in mental health per hour every day.

Mining companies provide workers with training to assist troubled colleagues.

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Mining equipment

Scania mining truck set up for safety WHAT DOES SCANIA’S NEW XT TRUCK RANGE OFFER THE MINING INDUSTRY WHEN IT COMES TO SAFETY? SAFE TO WORK FINDS OUT. The trucks have been developed in response to the demands of Scania’s mining partners.

S

cania is not holding back when it comes to the new XT machine, calling it the safest mining and construction truck on the market.

The XT has been designed to deliver a robust range of solutions for a variety of mining and construction applications.

It can be configured exactly to an operator’s requirement, using one of three available cab sizes – adding to general performance and safety.

Scania allows customers to define

what features they need and to select them from a long list of fully engineered solutions, whether it is for a mining application or for bulk materials haulage.

The XT features a number of pertinent safety features and the equipment needed to provide what Scania believes is the greatest level of safety to protect drivers from harm, unnecessary downtime and inconvenience.

Many of these features are drawn

SAFETOWORK 66 JAN-MAR 2019

from the mining machine’s well-known on-highway siblings.

The Scania XT comes with side curtain rollover airbags as standard to provide driver and passenger protection in the event of a crash or rollover.

Scania is the only truck maker to offer this potentially life-saving feature, and it is standard across the Australian range.

The manufacturer offers a number of safety support systems built-in to assist the driver, including the Lane Departure

Warning system, which automatically detects and warns if the driver is about to cross the lane markings, and the helps prevent with the vehicle in front.

A driver support system also monitors driving style and rates drivers on their efficiency and safety performance.

To prove the truck is ready for Australia’s toughest environments, Scania has equipped the XT with a unique protruding steel front bumper, headlamp protection grilles, front underbumper skid-plate, 40-tonne towing point in the centre of the bumper, and robust door mirror housings, as well as an elevated ride-height and all-steel parabolic leaf spring suspension.

Scania Australia general manager – national mining and resources Rob Taylor says the safety measures taken on the XT truck reflect the direction mining companies are moving in.

“The good thing about the mining houses is that safety is number one.

From day one we’ve had retarders in the trucks. We’ve always had the airbags in the steering wheel,” Taylor tells Safe To Work.

“When the curtain side airbag came in we made that standard. It’s about people coming in to mine sites and then going home at night.”

“The new truck range also has improved visibility, which was a focus for the company.”

The wellbeing of drivers in the truck’s cab has also been prioritised on the XT range. In Australia, the Scania XT can be specified in P, G and R-series Day Cab version.

The XT can be ordered with allsteel leaf spring suspension all round, complete with bogie drives designed to cope with rough and unmade road conditions.

Scania roomier cabs feature improved visibility thanks to relocated mirrors and slimmer A-pillar design and placement.

The driver’s seat is also moved closer to the door and windscreen, adding greater control.

Visibility on-site is vitally important for accurate placement of the vehicle when reversing, loading or off-loading, as well as to avoid workers and uneven surfaces that could destabilise the vehicle.

Scania fits advanced emergency braking systems, as well as anti-lock brakes and an electronic brake system,

The XT range has been designed to provide comfort in a multitude of mining conditions.

SAFETOWORK 67 JAN-MAR 2019

to provide instantaneous brake response with immediate application and release in direct proportion to pedal pressure.

An electronic stability system monitors key stability parameters and automatically triggers appropriate controls to maintain vehicle stability.

Scania head of mining Björn Winblad says the whole environment of the truck has been designed for driver comfort.

“It is made for long haulage. When you almost live and work in the cab it has to be comfortable to manoeuvre it,” Winblad says. “The new truck range also has improved visibility, which was a focus for the company.”

The manufacturer offers training and coaching to give drivers the opportunity to maintain top performance and for increased operational safety.

In terms of specifications, Scania focused on mixing a balance of payload capacity, reliability, fuel efficiency and maximising uptime.

The XT, like the on-highway range, comes with a full array of power and drivetrain choices. can be equipped with any of the new generation engines in five-cylinder nine-litre, six-cylinder 13-litre engines, or even the Scania V8 16.4-litre configurations and capacities, available with Euro 5 or Euro 6 SCR after-treatment as the customer desires.

Scania’s launch of the XT range has been in response to the growth of business the company has attracted in recent years in the mining and resources sector in Australia.

The company believes the arrival of the XT has it well placed to service existing and new customers in mining.

Product showcase

Compressed air for safe and accurate mining applications PULFORD AIR AND GAS TELLS SAFE TO WORK ABOUT WHAT IS CAUSING THE RISE IN DEMAND FOR THE NITROPLUS RANGE IN MINING AND OTHER INDUSTRIES IN AUSTRALIA.

A

s the creation and development of infrastructure takes centre stage, the mining and construction industries are expected to witness significant growth in the next few years.

This is exciting news for Australia in particular, where mining and resources have been relatively stagnant up until two years ago.

For the compressed air industry, this will translate into a drastic

increase in demand, according to Pulford Air and Gas. Tom Fyfe, Pulford Air and Gas managing director and ELGi Australia president, says there has been “an increase in demand for their Nitroplus range in applications such as limestone quarries, iron ore mining, coal mining, pigging and solar panel installation” to meet industry demands.

This relates to at least two areas of mining – the cutting of steel and the use in tyres on mining vehicles.

There is expected to be an increase in demand for compressed air at mine sites.

SAFETOWORK 68 JAN-MAR 2019

SAFE AND ACCURATE LASER CUTTING

Stainless steel is a common find in the mining industry. Not only is it easily fabricated, inexpensive and light compared to other materials of a similar strength it is also corrosion resistant, durable and easy to clean.

It is used in a wide variety of application, including boilers, pumps, heat exchangers, pipes and structural components, among others.

The smooth hard surface is

Pulford’s products help keep personnel working on truck tyres safe.

good for wet environments too, according to Pulford.

It is no secret that machinery in the mining industry need to be tough to withstand hard environments and intense mechanical standards, but equally important is the safety of these products.

Nitrogen is safe to use in mining applications. Nitrogen is non-flammable. Nitrogen is also non-reactive in general, so it doesn’t support the combustion of othermaterials.

In addition to the safety aspect, mining companies can look forward to precision.

Using nitrogen for laser cutting enhances the quality of the cut on the material being used.

From mild steel to stainless steel, nitrogen prevents oxidation of the cut surface. This allows for better application of paint and surface coating to the end of the cut steel.

Nitrogen is also better for cutting aluminium and zinc-coated galvanised sheets as its reduces dross.

Using Pulford Air and Gas on site nitrogen generation technology reduces the total cost of laser cutting with nitrogen.

It delivers no delivery fees for the mining user, as well as no running out of gas in the middle of an important job.

According Pulford Air and Gas, the

Tyres on trucks, cranes and other heavy vehicles may catch fire under a range of circumstances, and even explode. on-site generation of nitrogen also provides better manufacturing cost control for the user.

PREVENTING TYRE FIRES

Another area of mining that Pulford is seeing a noticeable increase in sales of the Nitroplus range is for use in heavy vehicle tyres.

Pulford Air and Gas offers this unique product and it is the only one of its kind in Australia. Nitroplus is used in tyres on mining vehicles to reduce the risk of tyre fires.

Tyres on trucks, cranes and other heavy vehicles may catch fire under a range of circumstances, and even explode.

A lesser known danger arises when the combustion takes place inside the tyre, with no external signs.

Whenever excess heat is developed it can initiate a process within the tyre that can cause a build-up of flammable gases and pressure within the tyre, which

SAFETOWORK 69 JAN-MAR 2019

may ultimately rupture or explode.

Enormous amounts of gas can be released by a tyre explosion, often leading to significant equipment damage, serious injuries or fatalities.

Pulford Air and Gas was recently acquired by international air compressor company, ELGi Equipments. Pulford is now able to offer mining companies an even wider range of products within a quicker turnaround time under the ELGi ownership.

ELGi, which offers more than 400 compressed air systems for mission critical applications, wants to become a leading player in the global air compressor industry by 2027.

The strategic acquisition of F.R. Pulford & Son, along with subsidiary Advanced Air Compressors, in July was a significant step for ELGi to expand its footprint in Australia and in this region.

Pulford has been a distributor of industrial compressors in Australia for almost 100 years.

Events CONFERENCES, SEMINARS & WORKSHOPS EVENT SUBMISSIONS CAN BE EMAILED TO EDITOR@SAFETOWORK.COM.AU

MINING INDABA 2019, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA, FEBRUARY 4–7 Celebrating its 25th anniversary in February 2019 is Investing in African Mining Indaba, “where the world connects with African mining”. Designed to encourage the growth of African countries as important mining hubs, the event will see mining companies, investors, government officials and stakeholders from around the globe descend on Cape Town to network and attend presentations. The President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, is announced as a keynote speaker this year to discuss his plans to bring more mining to Ghana. The event will also include a battery metals day, sustainability day and investment pavilion.

• miningindaba.com

PDAC, TORONTO, CANADA, MARCH 3–6 Billed as the world’s premier mineral exploration and mining convention, the fourday Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) will include over 1000 exhibitors, 3500 investors and over 25,000 attendees from 135 countries. It has been running in Canada since 1932. Registration is now open for the 2019 convention, which includes myriad technical sessions, networking opportunities and short courses, as well as the PDAC 2019 Awards event (nominations for this are now closed).

• pdac.ca

ALTA 2019, PERTH, MAY 18–25 Now in its 24th year, ALTA 2019 shines a practical focus on technology and project development within the metallurgical sector. The event includes five international conferences over a one-week period, including day sessions devoted to in-situ recovery (ISR), lithium processing and fit-forpurpose leaching systems (Gold-PM). The ISR sessions are organised in partnership with CSIRO Minerals, while the Gold-PM session is presented in partnership with Curtin Gold. Also available for attendees during the week are three short courses.

• altamet.com.au

AUSTMINE 2019: MINING INNOVATION: THE NEXT HORIZON, BRISBANE, MAY 21-23 Austmine is taking its biennial conference to Brisbane in 2019. The event will continue to feature the best in innovation from around the world. Over the course of three days there will be workshops, presentations, case studies, networking and Austmine’s mining industry awards. The comprehensive program features a high calibre selection of international and Australian speakers, paired with first-class and innovative content. The exhibition will present a stellar display of technology, services and solutions that can be discussed in a face-toface environment.

• austmineconference.com.au

SAFETOWORK 70 JAN-MAR 2019

QUEENSLAND MINING INDUSTRY HEALTH & SAFETY CONFERENCE, GOLD COAST, AUGUST 18–21 The annual Queensland Mining Industry Health and Safety Conference is hosted jointly by the Queensland Government, Queensland Resources Council, and mining unions (CFMEU and AWU). The three-day conference continues to be one of the largest health and safety conferences in the southern hemisphere.

It is designed to provide Queensland mining and resources companies with valuable information on critical issues that may impact on the sector. The gathering also celebrates and promotes the ingenuity of home-grown safety practice through state-wide innovation and health awards. The event will start with a luncheon on Sunday August 18 and conclude with the conference dinner on Wednesday August 21.

• qldminingsafety.org.au

MINE VENTIALTION CONFERENCE 2019, PERTH, AUGUST 26–28 Ventilation controls are one of the core risk activities in mines. Significant developments in practice and research in recent years have helped ensure we maintain and improve levels of safety within our underground mining sector. The Australian Mine Ventilation Conference 2019 calls on expertise to present these developments, explore achievements and build a better industry.

• minevent.ausimm.com

NE THE FIRST PRIORITY FOR AUSTRALIA’S MINING INDUSTRY

2019 | JAN-MAR | ISSUE 02

Ready for action Protection for the harshest mining environments

SAFETOWORK.COM.AU

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ISSUE 2 - JAN/MAR 2019

Training

Sustainability

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Throughout the cycles of the mining industry there is one constant for everyone involved in the industry – safety. A safe workplace is critical to the continued success of your business.

Launched in 2018, Safe To Work provides a high-quality, multi-platform publication for the Australian mining sector, with safety as its key focus.

Safe To Work’s promotional features deliver a forum for organisations to showcase the role each aspect of safety plays in helping the industry achieve the industry’s No. 1 priority.

TO BOOK IN SAFE TO WORK CONTACT JONATHAN DUCKETT NOW JONATHAN.DUCKETT@PRIMECREATIVE.COM.AU | 0498 091 027

A FIRE WILL BRING YOUR MINE TO A STOP IN NO TIME FLAT! With over 50 years of collective experience in the fire industry having provided some of the world’s biggest mines with comprehensive and detailed Fire Safety Audits and Fire Safety Studies, Fire Investigation & Safety Compliance Australia (FISCA) has the expertise to ensure your mining operation is as safe and efficient as it can be when it comes to the threat of fire.

FISCA specialises in providing the best in both Fire Safety Audits and Fire Safety Studies ensuring that whatever your operation your legislative requirements, including adherence to relevant global standards and guidelines, are being met and that your emergency management plans are current, relevant and working for you.

Don’t let fire dictate your mine’s profitability, downtime or end production !

Visit www.fisca.com.au e-mail investigate@fisca.com.au Call 0427 22 33 88