CMPA Guarding Workshop #2

Industry gathers for another successful CMPA Guarding Workshop

Due to popular demand the CMPA Guarding Workshop returned for a second run on Tuesday 6 June in Seymour.

The Seymour Club was visited by a group of approximately 40 industry personnel who missed out on the previous Guarding Workshop held in March. The second Workshop incorporated a site visit to Goulburn Valley Resources for the brainstorming and hazard and risk identification process.

Attendees travelled from as far as Traralgon to arrive at the Seymour Club for a frosty early morning start to the day. Grant Phillips, CMPA Chairperson, welcomed the attendees and was followed by an informative presentation by Bob Duncan of the Department of Primary Industries.

Morning tea precluded a short bus trip out to Goulburn Valley Resources where employees Paul and Wally Gianarelli showed the attendees around their plant providing a brief history and information on the plant’s upgrade which is currently underway.

The attendees broke into their four groups for the hazard and risk identification process focusing on the hazards and risk associated with guarding of:

• Mobile Plant
• Crushing Plant
• Screens
• Conveyors

The mobile and fixed plant equipment available on site was used as a tool or reference to assist attendees in the brainstorming and identification of hazards and risks associated with guarding on extractive industry sites.

After an hour and a half on site attendees boarded the bus for the trip back to the Seymour Club for their well deserved lunch.

The afternoon session began with a presentation by Mike Mathews of the Department of Primary Industries focusing on the results of the DPI’s Guarding Blitz which had recently concluded, incorporating discussion of problem areas and compliance issues.Attendees were then given the opportunity to ask any questions.

The working groups gathered again to compile their results from the brainstorming activities on site. Team leaders presented their most prominent hazards and risks to the group as a whole and indicated possible controls that could be implemented to reduce such hazards and risks.

The information supplied by the teams in their presentations along with their notes from the day were gathered by the Secretariat for compilation.

A slide show presented by Charles Pratt of Associate Sponsor Kinder & Co followed with information relating to available products and services.

Sarah Andrew of the CMPA Secretariat discussed the Certificate II in Extractive Industry Operations Training Package with those present, informing them of the units facilitated by the CMPA and the further units currently under development.

Our sincere appreciation must go to the Associate Members who sponsored the Workshop as without the expert knowledge applied to their team leader positions and their valued financial contributions, such events would be unachievable.

We would therefore like to thank:

• WAM Australia
• PVL Engineering
• Kinder & Co

Thanks must also go to the four team leaders who generously volunteered their knowledge and expertise to guide the groups through the hazard and risk identification process, encouraging all attendees to be involved. These groups leaders ensured that the best possible results were obtained from each of the hazard and risk identification groups.

Special thanks to Mark Thompson – WAM Australia, Peter Van Loon – PVL
Engineering, Charles Pratt – Kinder & Co and Anthony Connor – Komatsu Australia.

Once again Jane Sims from Box Hill Institute of TAFE must be thanked for generously offering her time to MC the event and enthusiastically coordinating all discussions.

On behalf of the CMPA and all attendees of the second successful Guarding Workshop we would like to express our sincere appreciation towards Goulburn Valley Resources for the effort to which their managers and employees, in particular Wally Gianarelli, put into the presentation of their site for the Workshop.

All information and ideas developed on the day have been gathered by the CMPA and will be combined with the information from the first Guarding Workshop to produce an OHS Support Document for industry.

The OHS Support in Quarries—Hazards and Risks associated with Guarding document will be made available industry wide and free of charge to assist Extractive Industry Personnel in providing a safer and healthier workplace for their employees.

Thank you to all those who assisted in the smooth running of the Workshop and thank you also to the attendees whose insight will actively contribute to the health and safety of the industry as a whole.

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