is not uncommon for the sinking contractor to utilise the production winder to sink with , which is rarely the case here .”
This fact – as well as the somewhat “ unique ” winder safety requirements in Australia – has led to RUC Mining manufacturing its own winders for several of its recent projects : something Henley was keen to highlight as one of the company ’ s unique selling points .
“ We have an in-house team that has been with us for a long period of time , and , as a result of the increasing pipeline of shaft work in Australia , we have established a training academy in Kalgoorlie that has allowed us to develop our own people and resource projects adequately , ensuring we are prepared for the sinking environment in advance ,” he said . “ In more recent times we have also engaged with the likes of EcoHoist and Green Gravity as we search for green solutions to balance the grid in our shaft-focused work .”
Inject all of this into a group like Redpath , which has global expertise in mechanised sinking , and Henley is very bullish about the company ’ s shaft sinking prospects in Australia .
“ It ’ s been a long time coming , but I think it ’ s now a great time to be a sinking contractor in Australia ,” he concluded .
Gaining a competitive edge
Another company making advances in the design of in-house solutions to aide its shaft sinking efforts is DMC Mining Services .
The Canada-based company has expertise with several sinking methodologies which , it says , can be adapted to client needs and requests .
For instance , on the mechanised sinking front , it used the first generation SBR machine at Jansen . Its raisebore division , meanwhile , is engaged with multiple shaft-related projects across North and South America , including with Codelco and KGHM International . This same division can offer single , small diameter raises and multiple level , large diameter scopes , leveraging a fleet that consists of 15 units – with Herrenknecht ’ s Boxhole Backreaming Machine one of its more recent additions .
SHAFT SINKING
Asked whether the company was starting to see a prevalence towards shaft-supported projects in the sector based on the lower emission intensity
Building world-class mines since 1962 .
MINE DEVELOPMENT SHAFT SINKING MASS EXCAVATION PRODUCTION MINING RAISEBORING MECHANIZED RAISE MINING UNDERGROUND CONSTRUCTION MECHANICAL EXCAVATION PRODUCTION DRILLING ENGINEERING & TECHNICAL SERVICES SPECIALTY SERVICES
DMC Mining ’ s work on the Victoria Advanced Exploration shaft will include the sinking of a 6.7-m diameter fully-lined exploration shaft going down to a final depth of 1,860 m redpathmining . com redpathmining com