JANUARY – MARCH 2013

Pictured at Wambo are (from left) Wambo Coal Environment and Community Manager, Troy Favell; Jason Lewin;
NSW Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Citizenship and Communities, Victor Dominello; trainee operator, Josh McGregor;
Ungooroo mentor and trainee coordinator, Stephen Schmidt; and Member for Upper Hunter, George Souris.

Minister hears of mine training success

N ew South Wales Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Victor Dominello,

visited our Wambo project in January to see for himself the
success of our Indigenous operator training program.
Potential candidates were alerted to the opportunity through
a community information session, following which shortlisted
candidates visited the mine for a two-day workshop to understand
The 12-month program, which began in February 2012, is how the traineeship would work.
considered to have been a resounding success, with ten trainees Downer Mining Indigenous Affairs Superintendent, Jason Lewin,
qualifying with a Certificate II in Surface Extraction. said: “The guys were mostly green to the mining industry, and that’s
The intensive training program, run in partnership with our client, why the workshop was held; so they knew what the work was like
Wambo Coal, included an equipment skill (mechanical and/or electric and the commitment it takes.”
haul truck), five theory modules and a first aid certificate, all of which Our thanks to Ungooroo Aboriginal Corporation for providing
were completed on site. mentoring support to the trainees throughout the program.

Role model Rachel

receives big rap

C hristmas Creek’s Rachel Cameron is a stand-out operator for

many reasons. For a start she’s the envy of her peers because
she gets to operate one of the biggest hydraulic excavators in the
world – the Liebherr R9800. And now her achievements have earned
her industry recognition, as she recently made it to the final three out
of 91 entries in the Outstanding Technician/Operator/Tradeswoman
category in the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia
2013 Women in Resources Awards.
Rachel started out in mining when she was just 17, working in
IT at the Century Zinc mine in Queensland. When she was 22, she
decided that she’d rather be where the action was and became an
operator, working for Roche Mining and then MMG. In June 2011, she
rejoined us at our Christmas Creek project in WA.
Rachel loves working in the mining industry. “The mining family
really sticks together and has helped me progress through my career to
where I am now – operating one of the biggest diggers in the world,”
she says.
“We all look out for each other – we are operating such big
machines and we all make sure we get home at the end of our shifts
– back safely to our family and friends.”
Mining is in Rachel’s blood, with her father, two brothers and little
Rachel Cameron with her very proud parents at the
CME Women in Resources Awards breakfast. sister all working on mine sites.
Continued page 2

Mining Matters January – March 2013 1

 From the CEO

We have an Enhancing Workforce Health

n  define exactly how we’re going to
Program that ensures a continuous- deliver our vision: to be the preferred
improvement approach to injury prevention provider of quality mining services
and health management throughout the regions in which we operate.
By the end of the two days, we had decided
For over five years our Health Team
n 
on five key focus areas for the next 12 months
has been working with internationally and beyond. These are:
recognised experts from the Queensland
University of Technology who provide us 1. 
Our people

A
with industry best-practice guidance 2. F it-for-purpose operating systems, efficiency
t Downer Mining, our values are the
guiding principles not only for the way we improvement and operations excellence
Over the past year or so we have been
n 
do business, but also for the way we behave rolling out a series of campaigns on key 3. D
 isciplined implementation of our
towards each other. They make us who we are. health topics, including cardiovascular plant strategy
For this reason they are not something that health, and prostate and breast cancer. The 4. 
Geographical diversity offshore
we would change without giving it a great latest of these, featuring Tina Pascoe’s battle 5. P
 artnerships and alliances with clients
deal of thought. However, we have made a with breast cancer, has just been launched. and suppliers.
very important change, and I’d like to take this You can read more about this on the back
opportunity to explain why. page of this newsletter. We are now working on further developing
Our lead value Safety and the environment these business goals, as well as determining
has now become Zero Harm, and you only My sincere thanks to Tina, Tony Crilly and Darroll timing and the resources required to deliver
have to look at the last two pages of this Kowald, who have all shared their stories on one these objectives and outcomes.
newsletter to understand the reason for this. of these DVDs. I know that it took a lot of courage As you can see, ‘our people’ remains our
Our organisation now places an emphasis on to talk about the extreme health challenges No. 1 priority, as we all recognise that it’s
employee health like never before, and this is an you’ve faced. You are all shining examples of our people who make us such a successful
integral and essential part of our quest for Zero people who have so clearly demonstrated what business. I look forward to your support in
Harm to our people. I feel it would be wrong it is to live the Downer Mining values. implementing this strategy and, equally
not to recognise this in our values. importantly, I welcome your input into how we
ELT sets strategic priorities
If we help you to stay fit and healthy, we can turn these words into actions.
In March, the Executive Leadership Team got
believe we have a much better chance of
together to discuss Downer Mining’s business Regards
keeping you safe. That’s why:
strategy for the next five years. Over the past few
To supplement our three Regional Health
n  months, each of our businesses has held similar
Advisors, we have recently recruited two strategic planning sessions, and our challenge
Mental Health Advisors (who will be profiled as the ELT was to ensure alignment between the David Overall
in the next edition of Mining Matters) businesses’ strategies and goals, and to clearly Chief Executive Officer

Role model Rachel receives big rap

Continued from front page
She considers that there are many opportunities for women in the resources sector, and that it’s the responsibility of those already working in
the industry to show support to the newcomers, just like the support she was given when she first joined.
“I absolutely love when I see young girls getting into the industry and sticking with it. There are so many people that find it hard at the start,
but once you stick with it – get past the honeymoon period and the first big pay cheque – once you get past all of that, the rewards and the life
experience you develop are more than worth it,” she says.
She believes that women make excellent operators, saying that you need to be “pretty calm, pretty relaxed and pretty patient”.
Rachel has been a great ambassador for women in the industry, and has showed how, by playing to her strengths – specifically her ability
to remain calm under pressure, and being friendly and easygoing – she has been able to move up the career ladder to where she is now.
Congratulations Rachel – we are all very proud of you!

2 Mining Matters January – March 2013

 INNOVATION
Now that we are kidney looping our
large dump truck fleets at their 500-hour
service, we have increased rear axle oil
life from 2,000 hours to 6,000 hours on
mechanical-drive trucks and to 4,000
hours on electric-drive trucks. We have
reduced the amount of oil we use and
the amount of waste oil we discard,
resulting in both cost savings and
benefits to the environment. We also
hope to see extended component life
and reduced rebuild costs.
A kidney loop machine connected to a haul truck at Christmas Creek.

Kidney looping the key to longer life

T he Plant team is always looking for new ways to improve reliability, reduce maintenance costs
and extend the component life of equipment at our sites. Contamination control is a key part
of this endeavour – making sure that dirt, metals, chemicals, water and air don’t contaminate
fluids, including oil, in our machines.
Kidney looping is an important part of our contamination control program, helping to maintain
high levels of fluid cleanliness in all machine components. Pretty much like a human kidney,
which filters waste products from the blood, the kidney loop machine filters rear axle oil, removes
contaminants, and then pumps the clean oil back into the vehicle.
Kidney loop machines are usually standalone units, but at Commodore, due to the smaller size of Oil sample before (right) and after (left)
kidney looping.
the fleet, we have installed on-board kidney loop filtration as a more cost-effective option.

A groundbreaking solution
to waste oil disposal

A fter two years of research, Downer

Blasting Services (DBS) is on the
brink of conclusively proving that it’s
DBS teamed up with environmental
technology provider, X-Energy, to find a
way to reprocess the oil on site. Together
both practically and financially feasible they developed a reprocessing unit,
to use waste oil as an alternative to which they placed into production
diesel in blasting products. Here’s the at Boggabri Mine – where the onsite
story so far… blasting trials were to take place. The
unit successfully reprocessed the waste
Step 1: Finding the perfect blend oil and has the capacity to handle the
At DBS’s laboratory at Bajool the total volume from the mine’s workshops.
product was tested to see whether
it performed in a manner expected Step 4: Testing the product in a real
of standard DBS products. The tests mining blast
confirmed that waste oil was effective In November 2012, the product was
at both a 30% blend (30% waste oil, ready for testing. The processed waste
70% diesel) and a 50% blend (50% oil was blended with diesel at both
X-Energy Chief Operating Officer, Adrian Abbott, waste oil, 50% diesel). 30% and 50%, loaded into mobile
pictured with the waste oil processing unit processing units and charged down
at Boggabri. Step 2: Ensuring the blend doesn’t the blast holes. The trials were a
compromise initiation success, with the product performing
Field testing was conducted at a Dalby in line with standard DBS products.
testing facility, where detonators were
stored in samples of waste oil, and Where to from here?
then fired on the range after two and The product will now enter the second
four weeks. These tests confirmed that stage of trials to assess whether the
level of fragmentation produced by
the initiation was not compromised.
a blast is impacted by the use of the
Step 3: Finding a cost-effective way to product. If the product is proved
reprocess waste oil on site effective, DBS will be in a position to
Typically waste oil is reprocessed off offer clients a practical, cost-effective
site at waste management facilities. To and more environmentally friendly
A trial blast at Boggabri using the 30% waste oil blend. reduce reprocessing and transport costs, blasting solution.

Mining Matters January – March 2013 3

 MINING SERVICES
Bajool employees
show their
community spirit

I n January, the DBS team at Bajool pitched

in to help clean up Bajool after ex-tropical
cyclone Oswald left the small township
devastated.
DBS has had a storage and emulsion
manufacturing facility at the Bajool
Government Explosives Reserve since 2003
– the hub from which raw materials are
distributed to DBS’s Queensland operations.
So when unprecedented flash flooding
swept through Bajool, leaving many homes
and properties with extensive damage, the
team didn’t hesitate to help get the local
residents back on their feet.
Removing debris and clearing out
damaged possessions from affected homes,
the team was ready to lend a hand wherever
it was needed.
At one point, there were as many as
50 stranded motorists accommodated in the
nearby Marmoor town hall, so the DBS team
Bajool operators, Don Graham, Chris Brookes, Eddie Wells and Lloyd Barrett helped clear out
damaged possessions from one of Bajool’s impacted homes. supplied them with milk, coffee, toilet paper
and other necessities from its Bajool facility.

DBS join the scrum with new sponsorship

I n March DBS proved it’s a true team player

by signing up to become the naming rights
sponsor of the North Rockhampton Rugby
both the National Rugby League and State of
Origin competitions.
The program has also received the backing
League Academy. and promised assistance from Melbourne Storm
Launching in April 2013, the academy will player, Tim Glasby, and former professional rugby
offer rugby league as a school subject to students league players Alf Songoro, Sid Domic, Matt Sing,
aged 14–17 at North Rockhampton State Bert Tabuai and Lionel Harbin.
High School. Upon completion of the subject, DBS’s General Manager Operations, Duncan
students will obtain their Level 1 Coaching Etwell, said that the sponsorship opportunity
accreditation, sports medicine accreditation and appealed to the business based on its location, its
refereeing qualifications. focus on health and education, and its ability to
But the educational benefits don’t stop there. provide opportunities to Indigenous Australians.
In addition to the normal coaching and gym “With an emulsion-manufacturing facility
sessions, students will also receive lectures on diet nearby in Bajool and a number of our employees
and nutrition, goal setting, time management, living in Rockhampton, this sponsorship will
public speaking, and drugs and alcohol. enable us to build long-lasting relationships with
DBS operator at Goonyella Riverside, the local community,” Duncan said.
John Doyle, has also
come on board as
the Ambassador for
the program. John is
both a former North
Rockhampton
State High
School student
and a former
professional
rugby league
player, who
played in

Pictured with Duncan (second from left) are students, Daniel Goodwin and Justin Asse, and
Rockhampton Rustlers Development Manager and academy organiser, John Harbin.

4 Mining Matters January – March 2013

 Iggy Czajkowski, Karen Hartley and Craig Robinson help Boggabri Sacred Heart Primary School
students maintain their vegetable garden. Students at Boggabri Public School.

Little Green fingers By Summer Steward

T hink back to the days of school bells,

squished sandwiches and spit balls.
The Environment & Sustainability Team
So thankfully Chris Gray of GEMS Pty
Ltd (facilitator for our internal Downer
Environment & Sustainability Awareness
an understanding of how to apply their
literacy and numeracy skills in a real-life
situation.
recently took a trip down memory lane to training) volunteered his time and was Sacred Heart will also be using the
the days of the old schoolyard. instrumental in getting the children produce for their canteen, and have
The team’s annual workshop was involved on the day. commenced a seed-propagation project
hosted by NSW this year and, in keeping The children were first taken through with native seeds provided by the
with tradition, we donated some of our the Take 5 Zero Harm process, identifying Boggabri Coal Environment Department.
time to the local community, volunteering trip hazards, and hat and sunscreen These plants will be used on the school
at the Boggabri Public School and requirements. Groups then quickly grounds or for local community tree-
Boggabri Sacred Heart Primary School. progressed to harvesting tomato seeds, planting projects.
Our team descended on the schools smell testing the herbs (mint was a The Boggabri Environment Team will
in a flurry of shovels, compost and a winner), and helping to plant and water be providing ongoing support to these
can-do attitude. Our mission – which we the garden beds. projects by conducting regular visits and
chose to accept – was to breathe new Boggabri Public School has signed working with the schools to maintain the
life into the schools’ vegetable gardens up for the SmartChef program, using veggie patches.
with the assistance of the students. produce from the school’s vegetable Thanks to Downer Mining and
I don’t know about you but frankly garden. Students in Years 5 and 6 plan Boggabri Coal for banding together and
children can be scary for those of us not and cook healthy, nutritious food for putting up the funds to get these projects
initiated into the world of parenthood. sale at the school canteen, giving them off the ground.

Small gifts, big smiles

By Scott Bell

T ravelling to site we travel through a township called Finalbin.

The residents of this town are the local landowners of the
Ok Tedi mine site. This town receives on average 14,000 mm
(14 metres) of rain per year and is considered one of the wettest
places on earth. Every day, regardless of weather conditions, the
locals will play rugby league and soccer barefooted on rock and
bitumen playing fields. Someone suggested we get them some
footballs, so we arranged to buy some.
When I contacted the local schools board, I was amazed
to find that there were six local schools in the area catering for
approximately 2,750 kids. Some kids walk up to an hour and a
half in the mornings to get to school. The Finalbin school had a
budget of three balls per year, and we supplied them with ten. As
part of their culture, the kids rubbed their palms together to show
us their appreciation.
The next school we visited was Migalsim, located near the Ok
Menga power station. There were approximately 200 kids at the
school, and they only had two old soccer balls. The Papua New
Guinean people are very hands-on, and nearly all the kids wanted
to touch us or place their hands on us at some stage. The kids at
the Wangbin and Tabubil schools were also very appreciative of
the donation. The memory of their smiles will stay with me forever.
All in all we delivered 42 footballs and 44 soccer balls, in
Operational Support PNG, Scott Bell, and HSET Superintendent, Tim Westendorf, addition to 14 others we had previously given to be distributed at
pictured with the Principal, sports teacher and students at Migalsim School. the schools in Tifalmin and Telefomin in the Highlands.

Mining Matters January – March 2013 5

 OPEN-CUT EAST
Meandu
welcomes new
apprentices

O ur Meandu team recently gave

three South Burnett locals,
Michael Marriot, Kiersten Butler and
Steve Eckart, a jump start to a new
career, when they were all offered
apprenticeships at the project.
Michael has just finished Year 12
at school and has also completed
a Certificate II in Plant Processing,
making him a perfect candidate
for a Boilermaker apprenticeship. In
five years’ time, he hopes to be fully
qualified and working in the mines.
He also has ambitions of being
a supervisor.
Kiersten, who is undertaking an
HV Electrician apprenticeship, has
always wanted to be an electrician
at a mine, and chose subjects at
school with this goal in mind. She
hopes to eventually become an
electrical engineer.
Steve joins us as a Diesel Fitter
apprentice. He completed a Light
Vehicle apprenticeship in 1997
and then worked as a diesel fitter
on blast-hole drills. He’s looking
forward to applying his knowledge,
experience and safety values to his
new role.
Meandu’s new apprentices (from left) – Michael Marriot, Kiersten Butler and Steve Eckart.

Kingaroy TAFE students get their hands dirty on real engines

A pprentice diesel fitters studying at

the Southern Queensland Institute of
TAFE’s (SQIT) Kingaroy campus are revved
Meandu Mine Operations Manager, Dave
Waddell, said Downer Mining was pleased to
be able to help SQIT improve its capacity to
“Apprentices are our future tradespeople,
so we’re delighted to donate engines that will
increase their exposure to, and understanding
up to apply their knowledge to real-life train diesel fitter apprentices. of, mine-specific equipment,” he said.
equipment after we gave them two
decommissioned engines in March.
A computer-controlled Caterpillar C12
engine from a pit dewatering pump and a
Caterpillar 3406 engine from a grader were
transported to Kingaroy from Goonyella
Riverside Mine to enable the students to
strip down and rebuild the engines as part
of their automotive mechanical training.
SQIT’s Leading Vocational Teacher –
Diesel Fitting and Light Automotive, Bob
McIntosh, said the donation of the used
engines provided additional training
opportunities for their apprentices.
“It’s a struggle to get resources like this
sort of equipment. To have something that
has the electronics is just great,” Bob said. Pictured in front of the donated Caterpillar C12 engine with Dave Waddell (far left) are
“We appreciate getting end-of-life stuff Bob McIntosh; SQIT Faculty Director – Manufacturing Construction & Technology, Kylie Lee;
and our Regional Training Superintendent, Tina Pascoe.
because it has faults that we can diagnose.”

6 Mining Matters January – March 2013

 Watching the students test out their new laptops (from left) are Ian Walker, Coppabella State School Principal, Shane Wilkie, and Paul Oram.

Coppabella students will be touch typing in no time

S tudents at Coppabella State School will be trading pens and paper for keyboards and computer screens after we donated six new
Dell laptops to the school in February.
The laptops will be used by students in a range of lessons, including maths, spelling and reading comprehension.
Our Contracts Manager at Daunia Mine, Paul Oram, and Technical Services Superintendent, Ian Walker, were thanked by the
school’s captains at a school parade.
“Coppabella is the closest community to the mine, so it‘s great that we could make such a practical contribution toward
the education of the school’s 24 students,” Paul responded.

Be brave and shave!

G utsy and generous… Zoe Anderson, HSE Clerk at

Blackwater Mine, sacrificed her lovely, long tresses to
raise $3,000 for cancer research. Participating in the World’s
Greatest Shave, which raises money for the Leukaemia
Foundation, she promised to shave her head if she raised
over $2,500. With the generosity of her friends, family and
workmates, as well as a $1,000 contribution from Downer
Mining, she well and truly surpassed her target.
Zoe decided to take part in this great cause after a
family member passed away from a melanoma about
18 months ago.
“Instead of giving the foundation money this year, I
thought I would ‘give’ them my hair,” she said.
Regional Mining Superintendent, Neil Kidd, also shaved
his head and coloured his mo’ and Otraco Supervisor, Ryan
Wadwell, waxed his eyebrows, with both of them pooling their
Zoe before and after. contributions towards Zoe’s final amount.
Fantastic effort Zoe – you look great!

Mining Matters January – March 2013 7

 OPEN-CUT WEST
Revamped grad
program launched
By Luke Messer and Pia Cappiello

I n February, 28 of our graduates came together in Brisbane for

the first development module in the revised Graduate Program.
This group comprised members from most disciplines within our
business, spanning projects from across our entire operations.
Underpinning this first module was the focus on our Downer
Mining values, and the critical role they play in individual, team
and organisational success.
Held over four intense days, the sessions enabled graduates
to build a strong identity for their community by sharing
personal experiences, participating in group activities and, most
importantly, learning how our business operates. Key to these
learnings were contributions from Downer Mining Executive

Andrew Scudds (left) accepts the Employer

of the Year award from Polytechnic West’s
Executive Director Engineering and
Resources Sector, Jonathon Maile.

Polytechnic partnership
produces industry-first
training program

A t Downer Mining we’ve discovered that a partnering approach

pays dividends in all facets of our business. Certainly this has
been the case with our relationship with Polytechnic West.
At their awards night in February, Polytechnic West honoured
us with the title of Employer of the Year in the Engineering
and Resources division, thanks largely to our Trade Up-Grade
collaboration to ‘up-skill’ our employees.
The Trade Up-Grade program provides a pathway for
light- or heavy-vehicle mechanics and servicemen to gain a
Certificate III Mobile Plant Mechanic through a credit transfer David Peut and his daughters, Bella (front) and Lylah (right)
and recognised prior learning process. As part of the process, preparing their tasty meal.

Polytechnic West conducts a gap analysis, so that each participant’s

training program can be tailored to specifically address their Tasty tacos take out
outstanding competencies. top prize
In an industry first, we have developed a Certificate II Vehicle
Servicing (Heavy) in conjunction with the polytechnic. This is a
site-based 12-month program incorporating theory and practical
components, which provides our service personnel and trade
C ongratulations to Bella and Lylah Peut for winning first
prize in the Health Calendar Healthy Recipe Cooking
Challenge. They cooked a wonderful, healthy Mexican taco
assistants with a stepping stone towards a Certificate III qualification. feast and will be receiving a $100 Rebel Sport voucher as
Currently, 13 of our 21 apprentices in the West are in the Trade their prize.
Up-Grade program. We have just signed up 12 Certificate II Servicing Their dad is Christmas Creek’s Senior Safety Coordinator,
(Heavy) trainees and will sign up a further nine Trade Up-Grade David Peut, and Bella and Lylah love when he’s home from
participants for our 2013 program. work and they can cook together.
Congratulations to Maintenance Training Superintendent, Oli and Max Chong and Kaitlin Rawson were joint
Andrew Scudds, GM Plant – West, Alex Grechko, HR Manager – West, runners-up, each receiving a $50 Rebel Sport voucher.
Lyndon Joyce, and Plant Asset Manager – West, John MacDonald, on The next Health Calendar challenge is on now
establishing such a great program and partnership. – check out page 11 for details!

8 Mining Matters January – March 2013

 OUR PEOPLE
members, Peter Newman and Peter Kerr,
who both gave inspiring presentations
relating to the history and future of our
organisation. General Manager Engineering
– East, Peter Cory, and Business Innovation
Manager – East, Vikesh Magan, shared their
insights into the world of mining innovation
and how this relates to our company, while
Human Resources Manager – East, Ashley
Brett, taught the group how to lead their
own performance and development.
A definite highlight of the week was the
involvement of past graduates who have
been promoted into senior roles within our
business. Mining Manager Meandu, Dayne
Somers, Environmental Superintendent
South East, Summer Steward, and
Regional Plant Superintendent, Matthew Contribution and went to Cadet Mining throughout the week,” said course facilitator,
Ponomarenko, formed a panel to share their Engineer, Gerry Morales, with Graduate Luke Messer.
experiences and provide advice, while also Mechanical Engineer, David Rooke, and “So many of the group lived our values
getting to answer a curly question or two. Graduate HSE, Stuart Janson, receiving this week, which made for a very tough
This discussion proved to be highly valuable, high commendations. The second award decision, though Gerry and Tim were
with consistent themes coming out across for Professional Conduct was taken out by thoroughly deserving of the awards,” agreed
the three panel members. Namely, always Graduate Mining Engineer, Timoti Hopkins, fellow facilitator, Pia Cappiello.
take your opportunities, familiarise yourself with Graduate Mining Engineer, Heath Through the range of topics covered, the
with those parts of the business that you Fitzimmons, and Graduate Mechanical challenging activities and the input from
know least, and be flexible in your approach. Engineer, Harry Godwin, earning our management team and past graduates,
Two awards were handed out to high commendations. our newest intake of graduates left the
recognise high-performing participants. “It was a really difficult decision with workshop with a newly formed sense
The first award was presented for so many of the participants displaying of community and an abundance of key
Outstanding Communication and tremendous character and team spirit learnings to take back to their workplaces.

Training at Downer Mining goes online

E ver had to pull out of a training session

at the last minute because something
pressing has come up? Or struggled to
your head’s in the right space and work
through the training program at your own
pace. All you need is a computer… and a
“We have developed modules that
specifically suit the business, and we’re also
looking at the purchase of ready-made
pay attention because work matters are bit of peace and quiet! online training solutions for the company,”
distracting you? Well, with our new online According to Organisational she explains.
training centre, this could largely become a Development Advisor, Kelly Gordon, who’s “There are 18 online modules already
thing of the past. managing the online learning project, available. We have just completed the
With a variety of online modules to 2013 is going to be a real growth year for Performance and Development Feedback
choose from, you can pick a time when online training. module to support the employee review
process and next is a SAFEmine GPS module,
for those employees who will be using
SAFEmine on site.”
If you want to check it out, you can visit
the online training centre at
https://downermining.savvecentral.com/.
You will have to request access by
completing the Online Training Request
form DM-TR-F24 on the IMS and sending it
to [email protected]. Ask your
Site Administrator for assistance if you don’t
have Intranet access.
Online modules currently in the Online
Catalogue are:
n Introduction to Downer Mining
n Introduction to IMS
n Introduction to PMP
n Performance and Development Feedback
n Four HSE Induction modules.

Mining Matters January – March 2013 9

 OUR PEOPLE

Keith on site at Sunrise Dam.

Keith’s corker of a half century

I t’s not many operators who can boast over

half a century operating heavy equipment,
but Keith Corker, one of our team at Sunrise
In 1980, he started working in the
mines, starting with Astek Contracting and
then moving to Kanny’s Earthmoving (now
a PowerPoint presentation, with the help of
his son Stephen, to show new operators a
“view from the driver’s seat”.
Dam, is one of them. Over the course of his Macmahon) where he operated the first In Keith’s spare time, he enjoys the fruits of
remarkable career, Keith has clocked up over Caterpillar D11N dozer in Western Australia. his lifetime of hard work – spending time with
80,000 hours on dozers and over 20,000 hours Keith has worked on nine gold mines to his family and travelling around the world.
on a variety of other machines on sites all over date, as well as nickel, iron ore and mineral
Western Australia. What makes this even more sand mines. He has been with us at Sunrise
impressive is that he spent the first 25 years Dam since 2001, where he now mainly drives
of his career operating equipment with no haul trucks.
air conditioning! “Every day earthmoving throws up a new
Seeing as he spent most of his career challenge, and I enjoy tackling a challenge.
operating CAT machines, Keith’s first Safety has come a long way in 50 years, and
employer, longtime friend and mentor, Keith cowboys are no longer tolerated in open-
Hendry, wrote to Caterpillar’s corporate cut mining,” he says of his experiences over
headquarters in America asking them his career.
to recognise his friend’s service record. Keith has also experienced over 50 years of
Caterpillar responded by profiling him in the newer and larger machines, saying that: “The
March 2013 edition of their company-wide bigger the machine, the more comfortable
magazine – TracTion. they get and the more room you have
As well as catapulting Keith onto the path to operate.”
of fame and glory at Caterpillar HQ, Keith “The tyres are large and you don’t feel the
Hendry gave him his first job on a dozer when bumps so much. The CAT 793 is like being in a
he was 16 years old – clearing land in the big waterbed!” he explains.
south west of WA. Soon after, he bought that His extensive experience makes him the
machine and started his own business. After perfect teacher for many of our trainees. In
a few years he sold the dozer, and teamed addition to operating trucks, he trains our
up with some old school mates in the heavy ‘greenies’, and provides advice to the dozer Keith Corker (left) with his first employer
and long-time friend, Keith Hendry.
haulage and dam sinking business. and grader operators. He has even developed

10 Mining Matters January – March 2013

 ZERO HARM

Operations Manager QPAC, Brad Zillman (left), and Regional Health and Safety Superintendent, Derek Muirhead (right),
present Chief Executive Officer CQ Rescue, Mark Shield, with the cheque.

Prize money helps Presenting the cheque to A Miner’s Legacy Co-founder, Rachel Blee are
keep chopper Project Manager – Civil, Daniel Caroly (left), and HSET Superintendent – Civil, Nick Mason (right).

flying and safety

top of mind

R ecently the last of the cheques

from our 2012 HSE Awards prizes
were presented to their worthy
beneficiaries.
After taking out the top prize for
both the Best HSE Performance and
Sustainability categories, members
from the former Norwich Park team
chose to donate their $10,000 winnings
to the Mackay-based RACQ CQ Rescue
helicopter service.
The CQ Rescue helicopter provides
a vital community service to Central
Queensland, a region in which many
of our employees live and a number of
our operations are based. This donation

Kids join in
is therefore a great way to support a
service that supports us when we need
it most.
The Goonyella Riverside Civil
team won the Best HSE performance Tell us how you sTay connecTed wiTh your parenT
for a Short-Term/Small Project, and while They’re away aT work. wriTe us a sTory,
Senior Project Manager – Civil, Tom poem or song or draw a picTure.
Day, suggested they support the
inspirational work of A Miner’s Legacy. geT your enTry in before The end of
This not-for-profit foundation may by emailing us aT
was established to provide support, [email protected]
advice and assistance to families of
mineworkers involved in fatal mine The besT submission will win a $100 rebel sporT
accidents, and the donation will assist voucher, while The Two runners up will each
the foundation in its bid to improve win a $50 rebel sporT voucher.
mine safety and ultimately prevent
mining-related fatalities.

Mining Matters January – March 2013 11

 Breast cancer awareness
takes centre stage

I n 2009 Regional Training Superintendent,

Tina Pascoe, heard the words that every
woman dreads – “you have breast cancer”.
campaign designed to inform our people
about the signs and symptoms of breast
cancer, how to deal with it, and the
Some facts about
As a result of this diagnosis, Tina had importance of early diagnosis. breast cancer
a lumpectomy and underwent a series According to Radiation Oncologist,
1 in 8 women under the age of 85
of radiation treatments to eliminate the Dr Marie Burke, who also features in the
will develop breast cancer.
cancer. However at her two-year check- video, the risk factors of breast cancer
up she discovered it had returned, and can be reduced by leading a healthy life 75% of women who develop breast
she needed surgery and several months with good nutrition, minimising alcohol cancer are over the age of 50.
of chemotherapy. intake, keeping your weight down and
Although breast cancer in men is
This battle with breast cancer has maintaining physical activity.
rare, accounting for less than 1% of
prompted Tina to bravely educate our As a token of our gratitude to Dr Burke
all breast cancers, it can occur.
workforce on the disease by featuring in for giving her time and advice for free, we
our latest health video on breast cancer have made a donation to the Breast and You can significantly increase your
awareness. The video is part of a health Prostate Cancer Foundation of Queensland. risk of getting breast cancer if you:
n Are overweight
n Are taking medication such as
hormone replacement treatment
or the oral contraceptive pill
n Drink three or more glasses of
alcohol a day.
If you are aged 40 or over, sign
up to BreastScreen Australia’s
free breast screening program.
Phone 13 20 50 to make an
appointment today.

Tina (left) launched the video at an afternoon tea held at our Brisbane office on International Women’s Day.
She is pictured with Regional Health Advisor, Natasha Palethorpe, and Dr Marie Burke.

Head Office
SW1/104 Melbourne Street, South Brisbane QLD 4101
PO Box 8221, Woolloongabba QLD 4102
T: +61 7 3026 6666 F: +61 7 3026 6060 E: [email protected]

12 Mining Matters January – March 2013