Published in June 2008 Australian Longwall Magazine
Through consultation and ingenuity Springvale designed and manufactured its own “Vent Safe” sliding door, which to date has reduced injuries and near misses to zero. The success of the door led the mine to win the People’s Choice Award at the New South Wales Minerals Council OHS Innovations Awards held in May this year.
Back in late 2005 Springvale commissioned a new ventilation shaft, creating increased pressures in new areas of the mine. These pressures led to two injuries and at least seven near misses due to slamming doors. An added risk was people working in these areas often working by themselves, meaning if a disabling injury occurred they could be stuck for some time.
On top of this, there was potential for back and other strains due to the effort required to open the doors; loss of ventilation in the panels; frequently needing to replace door seals; damage to doors caused by allowing them to fly shut with the ventilation; and damage to the stoppings and regulators.
To tackle the problem ideas were put forward by a cross-section of the workforce and a prototype was developed. It was displayed in the workshop for four weeks so people could have their input before risk management fine tuned the principle.
The door developed features an extended lever handle that breaks the high pressure seal, and angled door runners that allow the door to not only open away from the frame, but create a pathway around the perimeter for air to pass and equalise the pressure easily.
The door allowed for one-man operation; safe passage for stretcher bearers; easy break of pressure by use of a levered door opener; and an engineer design for longevity.
“The door has the potential to save lives because an employee could always escape through the door in the case of an underground fire filling the atmosphere with smoke, with the hinge type door one person may not be able to open it and could perish,” Springvale mine manager Terry O’Brien said.
The door also reduced maintenance costs to the stoppings and regulators. The only maintenance required is a couple of pumps of grease to the rollers every six months.
Springvale said the sliding door concept was transportable across the mining industry and could provide the same benefits to other mines as it had done for Springvale.
