Members Day in Wangaratta

Guarding Workshop, site visit to Glenrowan Quarry and General Meeting.

CMPA Secretariat reports on the successful day recently held in south east Victoria.

The Members day was held on 24 March, 2015, commencing at the Wangaratta Gateway Hotel with a sandwich lunch and a chance to network with fellow members who had travelled from near and far to attend the day.

The Guarding Workshop was sponsored by Kinder & Co. with Sean Kinder providing a brief presentation, this was followed by a well facilitated workshop delivered by David McKelvie of DMcK Management Pty Ltd.

The key objectives of the workshop were to provide participants with:

• An understanding of what could be best practice guarding in the construction materials industry; and
• An understanding of how to apply the CMPA Guarding Guideline in their workplaces

The CMPA Guarding Guideline:

• Aims to support members in meeting the requirements of the Victorian OHS Act 2004;
• Demonstrates a process that can be used to establish and successfully implement plant and equipment Guarding specific to your site requirements;
• Focuses on the Guarding requirements of fixed plant and equipment; and
• Does not cover mobile equipment, site security, nor restricted or other means of access to plant and equipment or operational areas.

A copy of Issue 1, of the Guarding Guidelines, was provided to attendees toward the end of the session which triggered a lot of discussion. Members were quite impressed with the content and the photos and they saw it as a great start to what will be an evolving document for the association and the industry.

The next event of the day was to board two mini buses and travel to Mawson’s Glenrowan Quarry, about 15 minutes south down the highway. More members joined the Guarding group on the buses to tour the site which included viewing the pit. Quarry Managers Trevor Gilbert and Paul Bell provided members with an insight into the operations of the quarry and gave us good practical knowledge on the electrical and safety aspects of the plant. This was good practical expertise following on from the guarding workshop. (An article on the history of the Glenrowan Quarry can be found on page 6.)

“The site visit to Glenrowan was, as I saw it, an impressive example of how a fixed crushing and screening plant can be engineered to be as safe as possible for the operation and to carry out maintenance.”

Members were invited to check out the secondary plant upgrade which included installation of a new electrical system by Floyd Industries. It was then time to get back on the bus to return to The Wangaratta Gateway for the General Meeting. Members were able to grab a quick cup of coffee or tea before the meeting was opened by John Mawson, Member of the CMPA Management Committee, who gave the welcoming address to about 45 attendees. Sponsor, Robert Floyd from Floyd Industries, then spoke about his long term involvement in the quarry industry and in particular, the electrical installation work and partnership with Mawson’s.

Next was the opportunity to be updated on key issues by experts in the field from DEDJTR and Woksafe. Richard Hancock from DEDJTR spoke about the Extractive Resources Demand and Supply project whilst Sean Byrne from Worksafe spoke about Project 233 which focuses on the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders from manual handling, plant operation and maintenance, and slips, trips and falls.

The remaining speakers were Associate Members of CMPA including:

• Ross Kelly from William Adams who spoke about ways of improving safety, reducing maintenance costs and increasing productivity through mobile plant Operator Training;
• Adrian Mason from Ei Engineering provided an informative presentation on the efficient use of excavator buckets to reduce fuel consumption and increase power and speed of your machine;
• Darin Compt from Complete Equipment Solutions provided an insight into the worldwide pricing of crushing equipment over the last five years and what affect they have on equipment values here in Australia today; and
• Laurie Shorten from Flexco provided a brief overview of what one of our newest Associate Members can provide the industry in terms of maximising the performance of your belt conveyor system.

We greatly appreciate their time and efforts in presenting us ways in which we can all improve and grow our businesses.

Hard copies of the presentations were provided to attendees as a refresher and post-meeting discussions were held with the presenters.

A buffet dinner followed and provided a networking opportunity with other members. A total of about fifty CMPA members participated in various aspects of the day. Thanks to all who helped make the day such a success especially the presenters from Worksafe, DEDJTR, Flexco, Ei Engineering, Complete Equipment Solutions and William Adams. Thanks to our sponsors Kinder & Co and Floyd Industries, and to E.B. Mawson and Sons Pty Ltd for allowing us to visit their Glenrowan quarry.

 

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