Carborough Downs required that all its longwall operators held nationally recognised competencies.
To achieve this, longwall supplier Inbye Mining Services appointed Mackay-based registered training organisation Techserve to develop a training and assessment package.
The training package used a combination of original equipment manufacturers and Techserve materials and trainers, as well as modifying existing materials to comply with the requirements of the Mining National competencies.
The courses included: apply operational maintenance skills, conduct shearer operations, conduct longwall face equipment operations and operate longwall ancillary equipment.
“Having such a highly trained workforce is anticipated to result in a reduction of lost time, due to both safety and maintenance incidents, and undoubtedly ensures compliance with Coal Mine Safety and Health and occupational health and safety regulations regarding workforce training,” Techserve said.
To minimise impact on the mine’s operation, crews were split and training was tailored to the mine’s seven-day roster.
Skill assessment took place onsite, with the majority of operators now certified and the remainder approaching completion.
Besides the work with Carborough, Techserve tailors courses to individual mines and ensures competencies are met for an electrical engineering manager in both open cut and underground mines.
It specialises in electrical equipment in hazardous areas and high-voltage switching and access training, and is registered to provide training through to diploma and advanced diploma of mine electrical engineering.
