Webinars
Technical Webinars
Drill & Blast: Fundamentals for Continuous Improvement
About this event
Good drill and blast results can impact almost every downstream mining process resulting in improved production, timely delivery of production targets and increase revenue. However, in the current environment of high turnover and rapidly changing market conditions much of this value is lost through poor blasting.
This session, presented by Senior Mining Engineer Mark Killip, will provide guidance on robust planning systems which, identify blast performance issues, identify required changes and ensure improvements are incorporated into future designs and help enable a process of continuous improvement that is data-driven and consistent in approach. These systems reduce unidentified costs due to reactionary drastic design change, minimize repeated poor blast performance in problematic domains and ensure that good blast results are repeated consistently through the mine life.
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Rehabilitation Series Part 1 - The Requirements of PRCP
About this event
Join MEC for a two-part series lunch and learn webinar about Rehabilitation in mining.
Part 1 of the Rehabilitation series focuses on The Queensland Government’s Progressive Rehabilitation and Closure Plans (PRCP). PRCP have been implemented to improve rehabilitation and financial assurance outcomes. This presentation outlines the drivers for implementing PRCP, the requirements for PRCP planning and scheduling and how MEC can assist with the PRCP challenges.
Presented by Loren Ager – MEC’s Principal of Learning and Development
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Rehabilitation Series Part 2 - The Requirements of PRCP
About this event
Join MEC for a two-part series lunch and learn webinar about Rehabilitation in mining.
Part 2 of the Rehabilitation series focuses on the challenges faced with the design and construction of rehabilitation on mine sites. This presentation outlines effective rehabilitation outcomes through landform optimisation, illustrated using a number of case studies.
Presented by Paul King – MEC’s Senior Mining Consultant
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Geotechnical Mine Closure Considerations: A Case Study from a Large Open Cut Metals Pit
About this event
Join MEC’s WA Manager and Technical Services Manager Erin Sweeney for a webinar on Geotechnical Mine Closure Considerations – a case study from a large open cut metals pit.
Erin is an experienced mining professional who has worked across a broad range of commodities including gold, base metals, iron ore, and coal operations. She currently runs the West Australian Operations for MEC mining, a mining -focused engineering consultancy. Her background lies in geotechnical engineering, designing, modelling and implementing cost-effective, innovative mine solutions in both site-based and in consultative roles. Erin has leveraged these skills into project management and then leadership roles with a focus on adding value, ensuring safe sustainable cash flow and growth through technical influence. Erin has just completed an executive MBA at Melbourne Business School and is using this to leverage her engineering operations experience into executive management.
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Effective application of the sub-level open stope mining methodology
About this event
Join us as we look at the recent geological exploration results across the world; large scale, high grade deposits are becoming increasingly scarce. This has forced exploration campaigns to pivot from defining outcropping surface structures to searching for deposits at depth. The capital intensity and complex geological conditions forces an increased focus on the mining methodology selection and ongoing operational performance of the asset.
Celebrating MEC’s recent expansion into underground hard rock mining services, our next webinar will focus on the effective application of sub-level open stope mining.
MEC’s Principal Mining Engineer Alessandro Dotta will discuss: the geological and geotechnical selection criteria for sub-level open stope mining and variations which may arise from concept plan to reality. In addition to this, he will outline the associated productivity expectations of the mining method and some of the technical challenges which exist during the execution planning process.
We hope you will take away an improved understanding of the fundamentals as well as some of the technical and operational challenges which arise with sub-level open stope mining. Our goal is to help you successfully move your asset lower on the cost curve or from a concept into reality!
We will cover
- Sub-level open stope mining method applications
- Ore type and orebody selection
- Bulk mining method
- Shape and size
- Host-rock and orebody geotechnical strength and structure
- Mining method performance
- Planned and unplanned Dilution
- Targeted Grades
- Productivity
- Cycle times
- Implementation, from concept to reality
- Understanding the in-field ground conditions vs theoretical ground conditions
- Variations in ground support and pillar design
- Drill and Blast challenges
- Flexibility of Mining Sequence
- Technical Challenges
- Optimised Drill and Blast Performance (PF vs Drill Pattern)
- Level Extraction Planning,
- Paste fill process – variable cementation process
- Geotechnical Risks
Panellist
Alessandro Dotta – Principal Mining Engineer/Underground Metals Lead at MEC
MEC’s principal underground mining engineer Alessandro Dotta offers 15 years of experience in the industry. Dotta’s expertise provide support to our clients for underground metals operations and projects to help problem-solve as they adapt in the changing landscape.
He has an arsenal of qualifications and plenty of experience, having worked on underground metals operations widely in Australia and overseas and most recently as principal mining engineer with GEMS, Australia, where he delivered strong results in a wide array of challenging situations.
Highly skilled and armed with a raft of experience across commodities, mining methods and software, his expertises in cross-functional team integrations and optimum safety compliance solidify his effectiveness. Alessandro’s work ethic and practice strongly reflect the way we work at MEC. His experience and problem-solving approach mean that he will complement our already diverse and strong team.
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Leadership Webinars
Influencing change through positive team culture
About this event
Join MEC and industry experts as they discuss how to influence change within your organisation by embedding a positive team culture.
With the recent market fluctuations, the mining industry in Australia has done an incredible job staying operational. But with commodity prices starting to show signs of stability, it is time to start focusing on building a positive working culture and influencing our people to deliver the best operational performance.
This webinar will focus on how to influence change within your organisation by embedding a positive team culture. The goal is to assist you with building a resilient and adaptable workforce that can navigate through the current uncertainty in the mining industry and position themselves to grow as the market improves.
Our expert panelists
Matt Harris – Principal Consultant – CTY Group
Matt is the director and principal consultant for CTY, a company that helps mining operations deliver production targets by unlocking value from the relationship between production and planning teams. During his time as a technical and operational leader within the industry, Matt developed a true understanding of the challenges faced by “each side of the fence”. He came to realize that many of the daily frustrations his teams were encountering were caused by miscommunication or lack of context and were often easily alleviated by embedding a stronger, more collaborative team culture.
Christofer Catania – General Manager – MEC
Chris is a mining engineer with over 14 years’ experience having worked in commodities such as Zinc, Iron Ore, Copper, Gold, Iron Sands and Coal. He has a high level of technical and operational expertise as well as project management and leadership experience in open-cut mining. Chris demonstrates strong skills in short; medium and long term scheduling across a suite of software.
Chris has a track record in operational roles ranging from Mining Engineer to Mine Planning Superintendent in metals and coal, both domestically and internationally. He has recently spent the past two years working for Kaz Mineral’s at their Aktogay Copper Mine in Kazakhstan as the Planning Superintendent. During his time in Kazakhstan Chris managed a large mining engineering team and was responsible for the development of their mine planning systems and the preparation of their reserves statements.
Melanie McCarthy – Professional Mentor – Melanie McCarthy Mentor
Melanie McCarthy is committed to supporting technical people becoming exceptional leaders, in business and life. Trained as an engineer, Melanie worked her way up from operator to executive level in the resources industry over twenty years and is now a professional mentor. She helps technical people get out of their head, learn how to play the game, do what they love, make a difference for others and create exceptional success in their life.
Melanie has operational and executive-level experience in the resource sector with expertise in safe underground mining and processing, stakeholder relationships, leadership development, relationship building and contract negotiations with Chinese customers.
Facilitator
Andrew Dittmann – Manager of Strategy, Brand and Sales – MEC
In his role as Manager – Strategy, Brand and Sales Andrew aims to ensure the MEC brand is recognised as a global industry leader in Mining Engineering Consultancy. Andrew follows industry trends and opportunities to set MEC’s strategic direction, management and governance, and is committed to transforming business culture to make relationships count.
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How to get the change you need by leveraging your culture
About this event
Join MEC and expert guest speakers as they discuss how to get the change you need by leveraging your culture.
A few weeks ago MEC did a webinar on the how to leverage your data to improve your operational performance. The resounding feedback from the audience was that they were struggling with the Change Management and Transformation process. The words resistance, difficult and hopeless was a common narrative.
Today we are speaking to anybody who is having a hard time with their transformation, be it digital, cultural or process related. The stats show that transformation efforts typically have more chance of failure than success, if you are not addressing the people element of the change first and foremost.
As we look at the New Normal thrust upon us by COVID-19 one of the most obvious consequences of the pandemic will be the integration of digital enabled services into almost every aspect of our lives. As the global economy is becoming increasingly uncertain it is more important than ever that we transform our operations and businesses to become more effective and profitable.
MEC has pulled together a panel of experts who truly understand the relationship between transformation and culture. We hope you will take away an understanding of some fundamentals, frameworks and mindsets that need to be in place to put people at the front of change for it to be effective and successful.
Our expert panelists
Vanessa Vershaw – Founder and CEO of Reinvention
Vanessa Vershaw is the founder of Reinvention – a consultancy delivering transformative psychology solutions at work. She works with leaders, teams and organisations to shift mindsets, behaviours and culture to enable rapid evolution, attainment of purposeful, peak performance to thrive. She is focussed on preparing her clients to confidently step into the future and build critical capabilities to evolve and prosper in a disruptive and digital world.
Friska Wirya – Principal Owner of Fresh by Friska
Friska has been a change and transformation expert for nearly a decade, leading change programs impacting up to 23,000 people for the biggest names in mining, engineering and technology.
She headed up change at Newcrest Mining, a mid tier global gold miner on the ASX. Prior to this, Friska was the Global Change Lead for multi-million dollar projects spanning technology, structure and process at engineering giant Worley, and built the digital change consulting practice at Fujitsu.
A lifelong learner, her effectiveness at managing the people-side of change has proven to be a compelling cost mitigation strategy.
Erin Sweeney – Principal Advisor at MEC Advisory
Erin is responsible for spearheading the growth into Western Australia of one of Australia’s leading mining consultancies. Erin manages the day to day of the Western Australian business operations by developing client relationships, and growing the WA team, drawing on her technical expertise to lead projects for clients, and expanding the success of the MEC brand’s capability of offerings in this geographical sector. Erin leverages a career as an experienced mining professional who has worked across a broad range of commodities including gold, base metals, iron ore, and coal operations.
Moderator
Andrew Dittmann – Business Development Manager at MEC
In his role as Business Development Coordinator he aims to ensure the MEC brand is recognised as a global industry leader in Mining Engineering Consultancy. Andrew aligns himself with MEC’s strategic direction, management and governance, and is committed to transforming business culture to make relationships count.
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Making the transition from technical expert to leader
About this event
Join MEC and guest speakers as they share their insights making the transition from technical expert to leader.
Making the transition from technical expert to leader can be daunting. Wondering how to navigate this evolution and understand what foundations you can start building tomorrow to set yourself up for success?
Attendees will gain insights from leaders with a diverse range of industry backgrounds on their personal successes and learnings.
Our expert panelists
John Banning, Principal Consultant, Director and Co-Founder – Business Agility
John is a co-founder of Business Agility consultancy and resource executive focused on outcomes and excellence through the development of high-performance teams with a culture of resilience and integrity. He has a strong corporate mining background with experience that ranges from designing and implementing business strategy and securing investment funding, through to project valuation and feasibility and performance improvement.
John has held executive roles including Managing Director and Executive Director of ASX listed mining companies and has over 20 years’ experience in the mining and construction industries. He has worked with Newcrest, Rio Tinto, Consolidated Tin Mines, Kagara Limited, Xstrata Copper, Metals X, BHP Billiton, Goldfields, Stillwater Mining Company and others covering gold, silver, platinum group metals, copper, zinc, lead, uranium, tin and iron ore commodities.
Gabriela Love, Manager CHPP and Infrastructure – BHP
Gaby is a Top 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining 2018 and an executive mining professional experienced across gold, copper, uranium and coal mining. She is the Plant and Infrastructure Manager at Mt Arthur Coal for BHP. She is leader of operational teams (+250) with multi-million-dollar management responsibilities. Gaby thrives in challenging roles where she can utilise strategic thinking, her experience and stakeholder engagement to deliver business outcomes. She successfully led organisational change through culture change programs coupled with values-based leadership. She has experience in project management, M&A, led Concept and PFS Studies leveraging technology and innovation to add value to the bottom line.
Tanya Pavez, Managing Director & Chief People Officer at Magnetic People
Tanya has 22 years of experience in Human Resource Management across Mining, Resources and Marine. For the past 12 years Tanya has held senior business leadership positions as the Head of HR for several companies and has been a valued member of the Executive Committees with these appointments. She possesses substantial and expert industrial and employee relations experience and successes in many complex negotiations and restructures. Tanya has both national and international experience within operational and corporate environments, including substantial experience working across Australia, PNG, Indonesia and Africa. Tanya has held positions with Hudson Global Resources, Newcrest Mining, Kagara Mining, Leighton Contractors and Engage Marine (Westug). Tanya is now the Managing Director and Chief People Officer of the HR Consulting Company Magnetic People.
Moderator
Erin Sweeney, Technical Services Manager – MEC
Erin is responsible for spearheading the growth into Western Australia of one of Australia’s leading mining consultancies. Erin manages the day to day of the Western Australian business operations by developing client relationships, mentoring and growing the WA team, drawing on her technical expertise to lead projects, and expanding the success of the MEC brand’s capability of offerings in this geographical sector. Erin manages a team of Principal to Graduate Mining Engineers and ensures the success of the P&L for MEC WA.
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Tackling the new normal: BAU resilience concepts for the Mining Industry
About this event
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a spanner in the works for growth in the Australian mining industry. The volatility of the markets has seen stocks plummet and the short to medium term outlook is highly uncertain.
During all this upheaval, the mining industry in Australia has done an incredible job staying operational. But with the Pandemic not concluding any time soon how do adapt to the New Normal and stay profitable, sustainable and safe?
This Webinar, is a timely opportunity to provide mining leaders with a perspective on the evolving situation, future implications for the global mining market and ways the industry can adapt to the changing market conditions.
Our expert panelists
Andrew Glass – Avatar Commodities
Andrew is a proven innovative business leader & builder across a range disciplines, with focus on commodities. Andrew has a diverse career in international commodities for over 25 years. He has been posted in four continents, in a variety of disciplines with a range of trading & financial organisations leading and developing businesses creating sustainable value in varied products and services.
Kristie Young – Director of Resources, Clients & Markets PwC
Kristie began her career as a mining engineer in 1996. Today, she is Director of Resources, Clients & Markets at PwC. She also sits on the board of the Petroleum Club of WA, is a member of CMEWA’s D&I reference group, and is a graduate of the AICD. Kristie is passionate about mining and enjoys working with clients to solve important problems – for the benefit of companies, industry and community.
Rod Bonner – Principal Advisor at MEC Advisory
Rod has over two decades of experience working with clients and contract providers across a diverse range of commodities and operations as well as bulk logistics. Having worked in all parts of the mining chain Rod specializes in long-term and life-of-mine planning; equipment selection; logistics planning and selection, cost estimation; and financial analysis (Studies and mergers and acquisitions). His background includes positions of responsibility in executive leadership, mining engineering, technical services, operations (open pit, underground and logistics) and business analysis for mining companies and contract mining service providers.
Moderator
Erin Sweeney – Technical Services Manager at MEC
Erin is responsible for spearheading the growth into Western Australia of one of Australia’s leading mining consultancies. Erin manages the day to day of the Western Australian business operations by developing client relationships, mentoring and growing the WA team, drawing on her technical expertise to lead projects, and expanding the success of the MEC brand’s capability of offerings in this geographical sector. Erin manages a team of Principal to Graduate Mining Engineers and ensures the success of the P&L for MEC WA.
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Be Prepared: Coal Mining in a Post-Covid World
About this event
This Webinar, focusing on coal in Australia, is a timely opportunity to provide mining leaders with a perspective on the evolving situation.
Aside from the human tragedy created by the coronavirus pandemic, the global economy has been rocked. The volatility of the markets has seen stocks plummet and the short to medium term outlook is highly uncertain.
In the midst of all this upheaval, the mining industry in Australia has done an incredible job staying operational. But it is now time to start preparing for the future.
This Webinar, focusing on coal in Australia, is a timely opportunity to provide mining leaders with a perspective on the evolving situation, future implications for the global coal market and ways the industry can adapt to the changing market conditions.
Our expert panelists
Mark Gresswell – Commodity Insights
Mark has over 20 years’ experience as a resource and energy consultant in Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the United States, including 5 years as a coal market analyst for Rio Tinto and 10 years as a coal market consultant.
Mark’s significant coal market experience includes global market analysis of both coking and thermal coal markets, coal marketing, country studies, pricing forecasts, demand and supply modelling, strategic analysis and asset/market due diligence for asset transactions.
Mark has built and led international consulting teams in the mining sector, and delivered strategic country coal studies on China, India, SE Asia, Indonesia and Canada for international mining, investment and infrastructure clients. He is a regular speaker at international coal market events.
With two decades of experience working with contract miners, mine owners and as a consultant, James specialises in long-term and life-of-mine planning; equipment selection; cost estimation; and financial analysis, including due diligence assessments in support of mergers and acquisitions.
Since re-joining MEC in 2017 as Principal Mining Engineer, James has undertaken a diverse array of Advisory roles, supporting clients as Competent Person for JORC Reserve estimation, conducting project reviews of international coal and metalliferous operations, undertaking Due Diligence in support of a major resource acquisition, and more recently providing strategic support to a Tier-1 mining house through their life-of-mine planning process. James leads the MEC Advisory team from MEC’s Brisbane Office.
Steve Dyson – Deloitte Consulting
Steve heads the Transformation and Operations practice in Queensland for Deloitte and has 25 years’ experience in senior leadership roles.
Over his career Steve has been involved in a number of industry and business transformations across energy and resources, utilities, transport and manufacturing industries and has been involved in a number of award winning transformations.
Steve’s primary experience is in mining operations transformation and spans everything from establishing digital mining techniques and integrated mine planning through to DILO productivity studies and asset efficiency reviews for both high performing assets and distressed or end of life assets.
Steve’s experience spans across Australia, China, Japan, Korea, UK and Europe and USA and he has identified, facilitated and led improvements across a variety of organizations. Within Australia he has worked with a number of Clients including; Rio Tinto, BMA, Vale, Peabody, Anglo Coal, Newcrest, Aurizon and others.
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Panel Discussion Webinars
MEC Industry Breakfast
About this event
Join MEC for breakfast with Professor Ross McAree – Head of the School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering at the University of Queensland.
The University of Queensland (UQ) has a proud tradition of offering world-class teaching and research in mining engineering. UQ is committed to maintaining and developing these programs to serve the future needs of the Australian resource industry in changing technological, environmental and societal contexts. In response to demands from industry and in UQ’s quest for sustainable education programs, they have restructured the way the university delivers mining engineering education to attract a diverse and talented cohort of students and to produce outstanding, industry-ready graduates for the Australian and international resources industry. Professor Ross McAree will outline the proposed structural change to UQ’s delivery of mining engineering which is anticipated to produce enough capable graduates to sustain the sector.
About Professor Ross McAree
Professor Ross McAree is Head of the School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering at the University of Queensland. His research interests are focused on machinery dynamics and control with a current emphasis on mining equipment automation.
Professor McAree led the development and demonstration of the world’s first fully autonomous mining excavator as the outcome of a 10year collaboration with Joy Global Surface Mining (now part of Komatsu) and has collaborated with Caterpillar Inc. to develop and trial the world’s first autonomous bulldozer capable of production dozing using the ‘pivot push’ method. From 2007-2015 Professor McAree held an industry funded (P&H) Chair in Mechanical Engineering and from 2009-2015 he was Vice President for Automation and Automation Program Leader with the Cooperative Research Centre for Mining.
He has attracted in excess of $12M dollars of Category 1-3 and $8.5M of Category 4 funding has contributed to the winning of two CRC bids (CRCMining and CRCMining2) for a total of $35.2M funding. He established the Mechatronic Engineering Plan at UQ in 2002. He has given leadership to his School as Chair of Research Committee (2009-2015) and Teaching and Learning Committee (2015-2017). Significant external service includes serving as Chair for the Australian Academy of Science National Committee on Mechanical Sciences (2001-2006) and as the Australian representative to the International Federation of Mechanism and Machine Theory (2001-continuing), Associate Editor for journal ‘Mechatronics’ (1999-2011) and member of Australian Standards Committees ME-27 and IT-06P. Professor McAree is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE).