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Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
FEATURE
MINING

                                                                                                                             “     We’re seeing a
                                                                                                                             significant increase in
                                                                                                                             newly created jobs in
                                                                                                                             the past six months
                                                                                                                             compared to last year
                                                                                                                             - Brodie McDougall

                                                                                                                             Brodie McDougall leads
                                                                                                                             Michael Page in WA.
                                                                                                                             Photo: David Henry

Workers hit paydirt, WA is hiring
Resources companies need workers, while the state
has the most job vacancies since 2012.

                                       STORIES of aspirational globetrotters         That month’s unemployment rate          shortage, which had been building
                                       heading to Western Australia during        was 4.8 per cent in WA, the lowest         even before COVID-19.
                                       resources booms are part of the state’s    level since December 2013, seasonally         “[The driver shortage is] a big issue in
                                       economic folklore.                         adjusted.                                  the resources sector,” he said.
                                          Paddy Hannan migrated from Ireland         A series of resources businesses           “Particularly junior miners. Mineral
                                       aged 22 before later discovering what      have warned the lack of workers is         Resources has reported it, we know
                                       became Kalgoorlie’s Golden Mile.           having an impact.                          other junior miners are experiencing it.”
Matt Mckenzie                             During the most recent resources           Fortescue Metals Group highlighted         Beyond resources, agribusiness and
matthew.mckenzie@businessnews.com.au   boom, WA’s population grew by              labour supply and access as a              construction need drivers, while the
                                       538,000 in the decade to March 2014,       big factor in a cost blowout at its        shortage extends to related fields such
                                       according to the Australian Bureau of      Iron Bridge project, while Mineral         as mechanics.
                                       Statistics.                                Resources told markets in April its           A regional infrastructure project, the
                                          Net overseas migration was more         exports were only 85 per cent of           Bunbury Outer Ring Road, serves as an
                                       than 1,000 a week at its peak in 2012.     capacity because of a truck driver         example of the requirements.
                                          But as the industry again readies       shortage.                                     With construction due to commence
                                       for growth in a high-commodity-price          The lack of drivers has caused alarm.   this year, the project will require about
                                       environment, this nascent boom has an         “At the moment I’ve got more            12 million tonnes of filler material to be
                                       additional challenge.                      demand from trucking companies             moved, Mr Dumesny said.
                                          This time, the federal government       for students than I’ve got students,”         “That’s the equivalent to the annual
                                       has hung up the ‘No entry’ sign at         Western Roads Federation chief             grain harvest for just one project,” he
                                       the country’s borders, in response         executive Cam Dumesny told Business        said.
                                       to COVID-19. From WA’s perspective,        News.                                         The driver training will be through a
                                       the state government has adopted a            The federation represents               six-week intensive course.
                                       dynamic policy on interstate movement      businesses in the trucking industry.
                                       in response to outbreaks elsewhere in         In late April, the state government     WA is hiring
                                       Australia.                                 promised $6.1 million for Western             Federal data from the Labour Market
                                          There were 24,151 job vacancies in      Roads and the TAFE system to help          Information portal shows big increases
                                       WA in March, according to (statistically   train 1,000 truck drivers.                 in vacancies in WA.
                                       unadjusted) federal government data,          Mr Dumesny said those numbers
                                       the highest level since October 2012.      would help make a fair dent in the                            Continued on page 27

                                                                                                                                            May 3, 2021 Business News | 25
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
EVENTS

                                                                      News & Networking
Business News in partnership with
Australian Super hosted its first
$uper Women masterclass at
Beaumonde on the Point. Three
expert speakers joined more than
120 guests as a webinar to discuss
the state of play of superannuation
for women. Guests networked over
                                                                   Imogen
a lunchbox style lunch and had the                             Boman, left,
opportunity to speak to consultants                             and Joanne
on site for lessons in financial literacy.                            Jones
                                                                              Rose Read and                                                      Aveen Keating and
Photos: David Henry                                                           Julia Agalaite               Deborah Robertson                     Melanie Bridge

 Kathrin Gerstmayr, left, Jodi Escudier,                                                                         Rebecca Gonzalez, left, Teika Chinnery, and
 Gemma McDonnell-Mossop, and Megan MacNeill          Sharna Meinertz, left, Jo Jones, and Raksha Gorasia         Clare Speed

          NEWS. INSIGHTS. CONNECTIONS.
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                                                                                                            It’s in the blood for
                                                                                                            Chan Cheah

                                                                                                                        FEATURES

                                                                                                            Wineries
                                                                                                            Navigating China’s tariffs

                                                                                                            Mining
                                                                                                            WA is hiring
                                                                                                            Photo: David Henry

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26
 6 | Business News May 3, 2021
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
FEATURE
MINING
From page 25                                                                                   engineers, and engineering managers           “Most sections of the state economy
                                                                                               all rose between 40 and 50 per cent in     are booming.”

Mining jobs                                                                                    the two years to March 2021.
                                                                                                  Openings for forklift drivers, civil
                                                                                                                                             He said the chamber was not
                                                                                                                                          advocating for international borders
                                                                                               engineers, electrical engineers and        to be opened, but rather highlighting
 We're hiring                                                 %                                drillers, miners and shot firers were up   the need for WA to have a pipeline of
 10 big increases in vacancies (Mar 19 to Mar 21)          increase         Vacancies          between 30 per cent and 40 per cent        people heading into entry-level roles,
                                                                                               across that same period.                   such as driller’s offsiders.
 Structural steel construction                                166.3             163               Chamber of Minerals and Energy of          The state government had already
 Geologists & geophysicists                                   102.9             166            Western Australia director of policy       made commitments on training but
                                                                                               and advocacy Rob Carruthers said           building experience in the workforce
 Other mobile plant operators                                  97.5             130            the demand for staff would exceed          was likely to take years.
                                                                                               estimates made last year.                     Interstate workers could be
 Cooks                                                         82.3             214               Modelling had suggested a shortage      recruited, but there was strong
 Truck drivers                                                 78.6             423            of about 10,000 workers in the             demand elsewhere in the country, so
                                                                                               industry, Mr Carruthers said, but it       Mr Carruthers said the state would
 Crane, hoist & lift operators                                 70.3               82           would now likely be many more.             need to promote opportunities for
                                                                                                  “Labour shortages are a                 families to relocate and live here.
 Structural steel & welding trades                             64.4             509
                                                                                               fundamental issue for industry at the         “There’s no short-term silver bullet,”
 Electricians                                                  59.6             527            moment,” he said.                          he said.
                                                                                                  “It’s something we flagged coming          “Irrespective of COVID-19, if the
 Civil engineering draftspersons & technicians                 56.0               39           out of lockdown in 2020; it’s probably     industry and the economy were doing
                                                                                               exceeded those predictions.”               this well, we’d have this challenge
 Sheetmetal trades workers                                     51.7               75
                                                                                                  Following the previous boom, there      anyway.”
                                                    Source: Labour Market Information Portal   was also now a much larger capital            Association of Mining and
                                                                                               base to maintain in resources, Mr          Exploration Companies chief executive
   The number of positions available for      A lack of truck drivers and cooks                Carruthers said.                           Warren Pearce said the labour
geologists and geophysicists doubled        will affect supply chains and mine                    Bigger resources businesses             shortage, and a shortage of drill rigs,
to 166 between March 2019 and March         camp sites, as well as other industries.           were already reporting pressure on         were the biggest problems for the
2021.                                         The numbers bear out increased                   production levels driven by shortages,     industry.
   Demand for structural steel              demand for a range of other                        and border closures had contributed to        But Mr Pearce was positive the
construction workers was even greater,      specialties.                                       that scenario, he said.                    sector was in a good position.
up 166 per cent to 163 openings (see          Vacancies for environmental                         “We’ve got a unique scenario,” Mr
table).                                     scientists, chemicals and materials                Carruthers told Business News.                               Continued on page 28

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                                                                                                                                                        May3,3,2021
                                                                                                                                                        May                  News | PB
                                                                                                                                                                                     27
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
FEATURE
                                                                                                                                                                                   MINING
From page 27

WA mining contracts: Sept 2020-March 2021
 Contractor                                 Proponent                      Site                                          $      Activity                                    Announcement

 GR Engineering                             Calidus Resources              Warrawoona                                    76m    Design, construct processing plant                 Mar
 Engenium                                   BCI Minerals                   Mardie                                       90m*    Earthworks, ponds                                  Mar
 WBHO Infrastructure                        BCI Minerals                   Mardie                                       90m*    Managing construction                              Mar
 MACA                                       Citic Pacific Mining           Sino Iron                                   200m     Hire, maintenance                                  Mar
 MACA                                       Ramelius Resources             Tampia                                        95m    Mining services                                    Mar
 Monadelphous                               Fortescue Metals Group         Solomon, Eliwana                            150m     Crane services                                     Mar
 Macmahon                                   Red 5                          King of the Hills                           650m     Mining contractor                                  Mar
 Macmahon                                   St Barbara                     Gwalia                                      500m     Mining contractor                                  Mar
 SRG Global                                 Fortescue Metals Group         -                                           150m     Maintenance, shutdown                              Mar
 Whittens                                   Fortescue Metals Group         Iron Bridge                                   30m    Concrete handling facility                         Mar
 Georgiou                                   Rio Tinto                      Western Turner Syncline expansion              ND    Non process infrastructure                         Feb
 GR Engineering                             Pantoro                        Norseman                                    57.2m    Design, build processing plant                     Feb
 Macmahon                                   Silver Lake Resources          Deflector                                   220m     Mining                                             Feb
 SRG Global                                 Red 5                          Darlot                                        45m    Engineering, mining                                Feb
 Perenti                                    Gold Fields                    Agnew                                       200m     Mining                                             Feb
 NRW Holdings                               Fortescue Metals Group         Queens Valley                                 80m    Crushing plant, belt                               Jan
 Southern Cross Electrical Engineering      Rio Tinto                      Gudai-Darri                                   65m    Electrical, instrumentation                        Nov
 Decmil                                     Rio Tinto                      Robe Valley                                   30m    Vehicles                                           Nov
 MACA                                       Red 5                          King of the Hills                           129m     EPC, bulk earthworks                               Nov
 MACA                                       Fenix                          Iron Ridge                                  185m     Mining contractor                                  Oct
 RDG                                        Fortescue Metals Group         Solomon hub                                   58m    Design & build central facilities                  Oct
 SRG Global                                 South32                        -                                           100m     Specialist refractory services                     Oct
 Decmil                                     Fortescue Metals Group         Iron Bridge                                   41m    Miscellaneous infrastructure                       Sep
                                                                                                                                * Combined contract value was $90m | Source: Data & Insights, ASX

   “All the problems we’ve got are good       In the current environment, mining is               The jobs on offer were new,                       The border closures added to the
problems to have,” he said.                competing less with the oil and gas sector          additional roles, rather than solely              challenge because WA was reliant
   Nonetheless, the lack of workers        for workers than it is with residential             replacements of workers leaving                   on interstate workers, he said,
would have a flow-on effect in project     construction in Perth, Mr Pearce said,              existing positions.                               but stimulus measures across the
timing and on wages.                       and there were plenty of small mining                  Mechanics and project engineers                country would have meant east coast
   “It’s a pretty obvious concern …        projects coming up.                                 were on the list of in-demand positions,          markets were harder to tap for labour
we’ll see blowouts in projects … costs        In addition to workers, there’s a                Mr McDougall said.                                regardless.
will go up for businesses,” Mr Pearce      shortage of drilling rigs.                             “We’re seeing a significant increase              Blue collar skills had been in
told Business News.                           Labs that process samples also have              in newly created jobs in the past six             shortage for longer, although white
   “Things won’t be able to be done as     substantial delays, which are affecting             months compared to last year,” Mr                 collar roles were following as
quickly, project builds will be slower.”   the ability of small miners to manage               McDougall said.                                   infrastructure projects were rolled out.
   That meant proponents would have        exploration programs and keep rigs on                                                                    Heavy diesel fitters were in short

                                                                                               24,151
to carry construction financing debt       site long enough for lab results to be                                                                supply.
for longer, exposing them to more risk     returned.                                                                                                “These are the roles keeping mining
and higher interest payments.                 “It’s creating delays,” Mr Pearce said.                                                            executives up at night, they can’t
   “That’s the kill point,” Mr Pearce         “There’s just a huge amount                                                                        produce their tonnages,” Mr Kent said.
said.                                      of exploration going on in WA,                                                                           Wages were increasing, in some
   “You never know when the                particularly.                                                                                         cases up 20 per cent on a year ago, and
investment window is going to end …           “[But] it’s hard not to be positive              JOB VACANCIES IN WA                               businesses were moving away from
prices fluctuate.”
   He said the worker shortage was
                                           about what’s happening.”
                                                                                               IN MARCH                                          casual roles to permanent positions to
                                                                                                                                                 give employees security.
more widespread than the previous          War for talent                                                                                           But because of the demand
boom, when the biggest challenges             Recruiting firm Michael Page                       Hays state regional director Western            interstate, WA would need to work to
had been for more specialised roles.       regional director Brodie McDougall said             Australia Chris Kent said a shortage had          position itself as a destination rather
   In that period, demand for              resources businesses had shifted from               been threatening for two to three years.          than relying on paying workers more
construction jobs had been filled          the cost-control focus of recent years to             “The only difference is now all sectors         to attract them west.
with interstate workers, while the         project construction.                               are having shortages … compounding                   “We can’t buy the talent anymore,”
international workforce usually               There was an uptick in demand for                the issue,” Mr Kent told Business News.           Mr Kent said.
filled more specialised roles, such as     trades and for white collar workers, the              “There was an issue before COVID and               On this theme, Michael Page’s
drilling.                                  latter being Michael Page’s focus.                  COVID just multiplied it massively.”              Mr McDougall said employment
28 | Business News May 3, 2021
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
FEATURE
MINING

Mining projects
  Rank    Project Name                                 Owner/Developer                                                Product                     Estimated cost ($)       Status

    1     South Flank                                  BHP                                                            Iron ore                         4.6bn             Ongoing
    2     Iron Bridge                                  Fortescue Metals Group, Formosa Plastics Group, Baosteel       Magnetite                        3.8bn             Ongoing
    3     Gudai-Darri                                  Rio Tinto                                                      Iron ore                         3.5bn             Ongoing
    4     Eliwana                                      Fortescue Metals Group                                         Iron ore                         1.7bn             Ongoing
    5     Kemerton Lithium Plant                       Albemarle Corporation                                          Lithium hydroxide                1.5bn             Ongoing
    6     Kwinana refinery/Mt. Holland mine            Wesfarmers, Covalent Lithium                                   Lithium hydroxide                1.9bn               Likely
    7     Robe Valley                                  Rio Tinto                                                      Iron ore                         1.4bn             Ongoing
    8     Western Turner Syncline Phase 2              Rio Tinto                                                      Iron Ore                            1bn            Ongoing
    9     West Musgrave                                OZ Minerals, Cassini Resources                                 Copper, nickel                    995m              Possible
   10     West Angelas C & D                           Rio Tinto                                                      Iron ore                          850m             Ongoing

candidates were asking questions            An exciting time                                Fortescue, now a major client.                    “It’s getting harder to find skilled
beyond contract terms.                         Contractors who spoke to                        The indigenous-owned maintenance            trades.”
   They wanted to know how well             Business News were optimistic about             business had probably doubled in size             Warrikal will be exploring
projects were funded, mine life, and        opportunities in a booming market.              in the past year to about 600 people, Ms       contracting for oil and gas businesses
have an idea of where a business was           While there were shared concerns             Healy said.                                    as its next growth option.
heading, because they wanted to take        about a tightening labour pool,                    “Fingers and toes crossed, to date we          “We’re growing rapidly, which is
a long-term approach.                       corporate leaders had plans for                 haven’t had a huge amount of trouble           challenging, interesting and wonderful
   Business objectives and growth           expansion into new service lines.               finding people, but we’ll be hitting           all at the same time … we love it, we’re
plans were as important as a roster,           Warrikal chief executive Amanda              that point fairly soon,” Ms Healy told         happy to take up the challenge,” Ms
Mr McDougall said, and workers were         Healy said the business had won a series        Business News.                                 Healy said.
more aware and interested in these          of contracts in the iron ore sector since          “Things are getting tight, no doubt
themes than in the previous boom.           2017, signing its first major contract with     about that.                                                       Continued on page 30

         SPONSORED CONTENT

                                                                                                            Advent       International,    one   E190 aircraft,” said Mr Brennan.
                                                                                                            of the world’s largest global        “In April this year, we welcomed
                                                                                                            private equity investors, ac-        our fifth Q400 to the fleet, and
                                                                                                            quired Cobham plc, and the           we have plans to add additional
                                                                                                            Australian arm of Cobham             Q400s later this year.”
                                                                                                            Aviation Services was region-           Such investment in new
                                                                                                            alised with an Australian ad-        aircraft allows for substantial
                                                                                                            visory board appointed. As           growth capacity and agility in
                                                                                                            the pandemic’s effects began         Cobham’s operations. By in-
                                                                                                            to ripple through the aviation       vesting in high-reliability air-
                                                                                                            industry, Cobham remained            craft which have the capacity
                                                                                                            steadfast in plans to simplify       to land on paved or unpaved
                                                                                                            their business architecture,         runways, Cobham is ready to
                                                                                                            implementing a flat organisa-        broaden its FIFO offering.
                                                                                                            tional structure and decen-              “Cobham will have the low-
                                                                                                            tralised, integrating engineer-      est average fleet age and flight
                                                                                                            ing and back-end support into        operations carbon footprint of
                                                                                                            the company’s two business           FIFO charter providers current-
                                                                                                            units, Regional Services and         ly operating in the 110-seat or
                                                                                                            Special Mission.                     less WA charter market.”
                                                                                                               A more nimble, tightly               By matching their clients’
                                                                                                            aligned team was the result          emphasis on embracing the
   Cobham Q400 on Truscott runway. Photo: James Taylor                                                      with a newly honed focus on          most novel technology with
                                                                                                            customer service.                    reduced       carbon     footprint,
                                                                                                               Dean Brennan, managing            Cobham will be as future ready

  Sky’s the limit for Cobham                                                                                director of Cobham Regional
                                                                                                            Services, is overseeing FIFO,
                                                                                                                                                 as the mine sites it services.
                                                                                                                                                    “We are taking direct action
                                                                                                            freight and charter flight op-       to support our customers by
                                                                                                            erations at this crucial time. An    providing newer, more fuel-ef-
  By Gabi Mills                    this year like no other, the or-      FIFO charter flights in sup-
                                                                                                            investment in bolstering the         ficient aircraft and focussing
     The quiet skies above         ganisation embraced this time         port of Australian mining, oil &   fleet is a key focus, and will po-   on strengthening our ties with
  Australia in 2020 required       and chose to transform, and           gas projects for more than 30      sition Cobham as a key player in     the communities in which we
  all aviation operators to re-    as a result is now well-placed        years, Cobham is no stranger       the charter and FIFO space.          operate,” said Mr Brennan.
  spond – and respond rapid-       to launch a new period of             to operating in a dynamic and         “In 2019 we launched our
  ly. Cobham Aviation Services     growth.                               ever-evolving industry.            fleet renewal program with the
  was no different and during        Having provided dedicated             At the beginning of 2020,        introduction of the Q400 and

                                                                                                                                                          May 3, 2021 Business News | 29
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
SPONSORED CONTENT                                                                        FEATURE
                                                                                                                                                               MINING

The iron(y) of distance
in mining technology

                                           good entertainment and Wi-Fi to at-
                                           tract staff means that connectivity is
                                           a necessity for mining companies of
                                           all sizes.
                                              So how can this be delivered when
                                           the sites are outside traditional mo-
                                           bile coverage, not serviced by NBN™
                                           or fixed networks and potentially         Mader Group’s Justin Nuich is optimistic.
                                           subject to change daily or over time?
Stephen O’Keefe                            The answer lies in understanding
Managing Director                          the project and matching the most
                                                                                    From page 29                                   Cranecorp chief executive Rod White
TBTC Perth South                           commercially appropriate commu-
                                                                                                                                was also bullish.
                                           nications solution with what can be
                                                                                       Mader Group chief executive Justin          “We’re very optimistic about the
                                           made available in the location – and
                                                                                    Nuich said the equipment maintenance        future,” Mr White told Business News.
   The strength of the mining indus-       of course choosing the right partner.
                                                                                    business was exploring moving into             “The business is ahead of where it
try in Western Australia means it is          Telstra Business Technology Cen-
at the forefront of early adoption of
                                                                                    fixed-plant work, in addition to mobile     was this time last year, despite COVID.
                                           tre Perth South specialises in min-
disruptive technology and software                                                  equipment.                                     “There’s a lot of maintenance which
                                           ing technology deployments ranging
when compared to other industries.                                                     There was also an overseas               clients are trying to catch up on, on
                                           from sat phones and mobile broad-
Fortescue has rolled out over 168                                                   expansion drive, with demand in             hold from last year.”
                                           band solutions, solar powered com-
autonomous haulage trucks and a                                                     Africa and potential in North America,         Cranecorp recently announced
                                           munications trailers for drilling and
fleet of Ford Rangers, with autono-                                                 he said.                                    a joint venture with Tutt Bryant to
                                           construction, through to microwave
mous vehicles becoming prevalent                                                       About 1,000 people work for Mader        transition to a different segment of the
on many mine sites whilst legislative      tower builds, camp entertainment
                                                                                    in WA, up by about 300 from two years       crane market, including movement
hurdles prevent the same from hap-         networks including MATV and pro-
                                                                                    ago.                                        of super heavy objects and crawler
pening on public roads.                    duction networks. We can also supply
                                                                                       “If I had another 200 people, they’d     cranes.
   The challenge that is not often         borefield telemetry and environmen-
                                                                                    be at work tomorrow,” Mr Nuich said.           Mr White said his industry found
considered with the above advance-         tal sensors with all costs able to be
                                                                                       “The demand for all our services is      staffing a challenge, particularly
ments is that these solutions re-          ammortised over a desired period on
                                                                                    extremely strong.                           without appropriate state training
quire high bandwidth, low latency          the Telstra bill.
networks delivering dedicated data                                                     “We’re pushing hard to get people        programs.
                                              The value that a technology part-
speeds. In fact, the whole mining                                                   on board.”                                     “Everyone is fishing in the same
                                           ner adds in this space is to provide
process from exploration to drilling,                                                  Mader sought to offer people             pond,” he said.
                                           insights into what your industry and
feasibility, construction and finally                                               career flexibility and options to move         “There’s a large reluctance for
                                           other industries are doing. If you
production are these days largely de-                                               between business lines to attract staff,    many of the interstate people to fly-in,
                                           want to work with a partner that
pendent on business-grade connec-                                                   and had a strong recruitment team, Mr       fly-out.
                                           can support you at every step of
tivity, often in the most isolated parts                                            Nuich added.                                   “Some have moved across.
of our great state of WA.                  the above journey reach out to Tel-
                                                                                       Some maintenance work had been              “Others we [have previously used],
   Tier two and three miners may not       stra Business Technology Centre
                                                                                    pushed back by COVID-19 restrictions,       it’s just not practical to bring them
be using the same advanced tech-           Perth South on 1300 4BUSINESS or
                                                                                    which had led to a backlog across the       across.
nology, but their requirements for re-     info@tbtcperthsouth.com.au for a
                                                                                    industry.                                      “I’m confident we’ll get through it
al-time data and collaboration means       coffee to discuss how we can get
                                                                                       In addition, equipment purchased in      because people want to work for us.
that cloud platforms like InFlight,        solving for your project.
                                                                                    the previous boom was coming up for            “[But] the industry being in [worker]
Office 365 and deposit modelling
software SURPAC are critical to their                                               major refurbishment, Mr Nuich said.         deficit is not a good thing; the pressure it
success and day-to-day operations.                                                     “There’s a lot of fleet that was         puts on the supply chain, value chain.”
This coupled with their communi-                                                    delivered around 2012-15, it’s getting to      He estimated staff levels had
cations requirements to meet strict                                                 the age it requires larger maintenance      doubled from two years ago to about
safety and OHS standards as well as                                                 to be carried out,” he said.                230.

30 || Business
30     Business News
                News May
                     May3,3,2021
                             2021
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
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                                                                                    May 3, 2021 Business News | PB
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
FEATURE
                                                                                                                                                                                                                MINING

                                                      WA’S LARGEST MINING SERVICES COMPANIES
Data & Insights                                       Ranked by total number of staff in WA

        Change                                                                      Year                                 No. of mining     Offices
          from                                                                      est.      Total      No. of mining     contract-       a) WA       % of
 Rank

        previous                                                                     in      staff in     contracting      ing staff:        b)        work
          year         Company name            Senior executive and title           WA         WA         staff: in WA    Interstate     interstate   Mining Services offered

 1                  MACA                      Mr Mike Sutton                                                                               a) 1                Open cut mining services, load and haul, drilling and blasting,
                                             Managing director                   2002       2,850          2,850            150                       90
                                                                                                                                           b) 1                crushing and screening, structural mechanical and piping.

 2                  Byrnecut                  Mr Pat Boniwell                      1987       2,875         2,875           1220                      100      Underground mine development and production and
                                             Managing director                                                                                                associated ancillary services.

 3                  Perenti                   Mr Mark Norwell                      1987       2,815                                                   100      Surface mining, underground mining and support mining
                                             Managing director                                                                                                services.

 4                  NRW Holdings              Mr Jules Pemberton                                                                           a) 1
                                             Managing director                   1994          NFP          NFP             NFP                      NFP      Civil, mining, mining technologies, drill and blast services.
                                                                                                                                           b) 4

 5                  WesTrac                   Mr Jarvas Croome                    1989        2,500                                                     75     Authorised Caterpillar dealer, machinery and construction
                                             Chief executive                                                                                                  equipment, finance, maintenance and resale services.

                    Macmahon                                                                                                               a) 2                Open cut, underground, drilling and blasting, loading and
 6                                            Mr Michael Finnegan                 1964        2,212         1,999            942                      100
                   Holdings                  Managing director                                                                            b) 2
                                                                                                                                                               haulage, crushing and screening, mine management, portal
                                                                                                                                                               establishment, cablebolting, shotcreting.

                                              Mr Glenn Swift                                                                                                   Mining, construction and utility equipment, aftermarket
                                                                                                                                           a) 8                service and parts support, technical support services, contract
 7                  Komatsu                   Regional general manager                        1,000                                                     70
                                              Western Region                                                                               b) 40               maintenance, RTO training, finance, condition monitoring
                                                                                                                                                               services, pre-owned equipment…
                                                                                                                                                               Preventative maintenance, rapid response teams, shutdown
 8                  Mader Group               Mr Justin Nuich                                                                              a) 3                services, field maintenance services, rostered support, drill
           —                                  Chief executive                     2005          990          900             370                        95
                                                                                                                                           b) 3                support teams, Mader Clean Team (mobile plant), fabrication
                                                                                                                                                               and line boring specialists…

                                              Mr Shaun Newberry                                                                                                Full suite of mine services including development, extraction,
 9         —        Thiess                    Executive general manager,          1962          NFP          NFP                                               processing, remediation, asset management and maintenance,
                                              Australia & Pacific                                                                                              enabling services.

 10                 DDH1                      Mr Sybrandt Van Dyk                                                                          a) 3                Drilling services, diamond coring, revise circulation,
                                              Chief executive                     2006          664          664                                      100
                                                                                                                                           b) 1                specialised engineering.

 11                 MLG Oz                    Mr Murray Leahy                     2000          656                                        a) 3        90      Bulk ore haulage and integrated services, crushing and
                                              Managing director                                                                                                screening, aggregate and sand supplies, export logistics.

                                                                                                                                                               A multidisciplined service provider focusing on maintenance &
 12                 Warrikal                  Ms Amanda Healy                      2017         650          650                           a) 3       100
                                             Chief executive
                                                                                                                                                               mechanical services, shutdowns, SMP/Capital works and non
                                                                                                                                                               process infrastructure.

                                                                                                                                                               Breight Group offers access, mechanical and renewables
 13                 Breight Group             Mr Stephen Easterbrook              2007          650                                        a) 4         94     services to the resources industry. Providing this fully
                                             Managing director                                                                                                integrated solution with a single interface approach, this
                                                                                                                                                               ensures seamless execution.
                                                                                                                                                               Develops and produces innovative, safe and sustainable drill
 14                 Epiroc                    Mr Terry Browne                                                                              a) 3                rigs, rock excavation, construction equipment and tools for the
                                              Managing director, WA               2018          615                                        b) 14               mining and infrastructure industries. It also provides services
                                                                                                                                                               and solutions for automation and inter-operability.
                                                                                                                                                               GenusPlus Group is the parent company of four power systems,
 15                 GenusPlus Group           Mr David Riches                                                                              a) 1                communications engineering and construction companies ‚
                                             Chief executive                      2017         500                                        b) 3                ECM, Diamond Underground Services, Powerlines Plus and
                                                                                                                                                               Proton Power.

 16
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152
 All information compiled using surveys, publicly available data and contact with industry sources. Other companies may be eligible for inclusion. If you believe your company is eligible,
 please email: claire.byl@businessnews.com.au                                                                              WND: Would Not Disclose, NFP: Not For Publication, N/A: Not Applicable or Not Available.

32 | Business News May 3, 2021
Mining SPECIAL REPORT - businessnews.com.au - Business News
SPONSORED CONTENT

How the right tools can unlock
collaboration and drive project success
                                                                        Collaboration is crucial to the execution of mining and
                                                                        construction projects so, how can our state’s major industries
                                                                        ensure it’s being done well?

                                                                                                                                    with each section a data point that is
                                                                                                                                    uploaded and filed accordingly.”

                                                                                                                                    Strengthening relationships
                                                                                                                                    with stakeholders
                                                                                                                                      According to HardHat executive con-
                                                                                                                                    sultant Noor Crookshanks, HardHat
                                                                                                                                    doesn’t just benefit internal collabora-
                                                                                                                                    tion across projects, it also allows for
                                                                                                                                    seamless communication with external
  Collaboration is integral to the safe-
                                                                                                                                    stakeholders.
ty and success of major projects within
Western Australia’s mining, mining ser-                                                                                               “From a stakeholder perspective,

vices and construction industries.                                                                                                  people are interested in the whole busi-
  From those at the coalface, to the                                                                                                ness process, whereas historically, prior
people at the processing plant, to the                                                                                              to social media and mass information
transformation and logistics team and                                                                                               sharing across the internet, there was
beyond to external stakeholders; com-                                                                                               less of a demand for transparency,” Mr
munication and collaboration are in-                                                                                                Crookshanks said.
volved across every step of the process.                                                                                              “There is a growing need to provide
  Despite the importance of collabo-                                                                                                more clarity and better-quality infor-
ration on project outcomes, traditional                                                                                             mation to external stakeholders.
communication tools in the resources         Mr Smith said most leaders were           say it sometimes takes them 10 days to
                                           aware of the challenges of project in-      get information they need to progress          “Instead of waiting to upload quar-
and construction industries tend to fo-
                                           formation      management     and   using   with a project.                              terly or annual statements to the ASX
cus on facilitating only a subset of the
                                           channels like email or instant messag-        “HardHat’s      streamlined    process     or your company website with little
collaborative process, rather than of-
                                           ing apps, where communications be-          helps to prevent the double and tri-         knowledge of who is actually reading it,
fering a wholistic solution.
                                           come heavily congested.                     ple handling that currently takes place      HardHat allows an organisation to culti-
  Elements of project management
                                             “It can become near impossible to         using paper-based systems or delayed         vate relationships with its stakeholders
including sharing documentation via
                                           find the information you’re looking         reporting.”                                  and communicate directly to them via a
email, inspection, audits and mainte-
                                           for when needing to review the deci-          Mr Sinclair said the software allowed      digital portal.
nance, incident and injury manage-
                                           sion-making process and determine           managers to oversee the statuses of            “Whether that stakeholder group is a
ment, risk management, training, daily
                                           why you and your team landed where          multiple projects simultaneously and
messaging, sharing financials, report-                                                                                              government body, community group or
                                           you landed.”                                understand where each of its contrac-
ing and stakeholder communications all                                                                                              shareholder, it allows you to create tar-
operate in silos.                          A wholistic solution                        tors were at in terms of timelines and
                                                                                                                                    geted communications to each group
  According to Australian technolo-          Given the powerful impacts of col-        costs.
                                                                                                                                    and measure the response or engage-
gy company HardHat’s chief execu-          laboration on the outcomes of projects        “Having the ability to go back to a
                                                                                                                                    ment,” he said.
tive officer Tim Smith, the traditional    and operations,                             client and report to them clearly on
approach is to make these elements           it makes sense for our state’s leading    spending and time pressures is a great       About HardHat
available to selected individuals and      industries to embrace more wholistic        example of how HardHat’s central               We believe the best businesses run
to communicate them across various         digital tools that overcome the limita-     dashboard system improves communi-           as one. HardHat enables companies to
platforms, causing the collaborative       tions of existing systems.                  cation across a project.”                    manage information from one place so
flow to be disjointed.                       HardHat chief revenue officer David         With        improved   communication       that teams can work safer, faster and
  “It’s typical for each member of a       Sinclair said HardHat was such a tool,      comes superior safety measures, too.         smarter. The HardHat platform powers
project to have their own objectives       designed to foster cultures of strong         Mr Sinclair said the ability to prevent
                                                                                                                                    a connected enterprise by bringing to-
and cultures, especially when contrac-     teamwork and open communication.            double handling and capture and share
                                                                                                                                    gether projects, clients, teams, safety
tors are involved,” Mr Smith said.           It is a modern software solution de-      information in real-time ensured inci-
                                                                                                                                    and compliance all within a solution
  “However, encouraging a culture of       signed to encourage collaboration by        dent reporting was more efficient and
                                                                                                                                    purpose-built for asset & project inten-
collaboration through greater transpar-    improving the sharing of and access         effective.
                                                                                                                                    sive industries.
ency and communication using modern        to information across an organisation’s       “When it comes to incident reporting,
                                                                                                                                      Learn more about how HardHat can
tools can direct competing motives into    various departments and data streams.       HardHat allows for the person on-site to
                                                                                       upload details of the incident instantly     support project collaboration across
one common goal,” he said.                   “HardHat makes project collaboration
  “The sharing of risks as well as re-     easy by centralising relevant informa-      through its mobile application, pushing      your organisation at www.hardhat.com
wards, creating a sense of trust and       tion and providing access to all inter-     out notifications to the relevant people,”
strong relationships between team          ested parties, ensuring projects stay on    he said.
members can improve project delivery       track and within cost,” Mr Sinclair said.     “Through HardHat incident forms can
immensely.”                                  “I’ve spoken with junior miners who       be customised as a digital document

                                                                                                                                                      May 3, 2021 Business News | 33
Mining        SPECIAL REPORT
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