Austar, Australia's first longwall top coal caving mine, won the award for its world-first positive pressure chamber which eliminates the risk of spontaneous combustion and combustible gases in underground mines.
The People’s Choice Award, voted by conference delegates, went to Centennial Coal’s Springvale mine with its vent sliding door which has eliminated injuries and near misses caused by high pressure hinged doors.
Centennial Coal’s Mandalong Mine was commended for the development of a magnetic mesh locator which has eliminated common accidents associated with installing roof mesh.
A special acknowledgement was awarded to Xstrata Coal's Beltana Mine for the development of longwall automation in underground mines.
Taking out the overall prize was a simple but ingenious device which removes workers from the risks associated with installing supports during the relocation and storage of heavy equipment.
The self-locking Heavy Equipment Jack, designed by the engineering and maintenance teams at Rio Tinto’s Mount Thorley Warkworth Coal Mine, is a combination jack and support stand which removes the need for workers to be under machines to position supports when moving heavy equipment.
Organisers said the unanimous winner of this year’s award had widespread application to other industries and was designed to remove workers from the risks of standing under a heavy suspended load to put in place support stands, required when using conventional jacks or hydraulic systems to move such loads.
The jack’s inventor, Wayne Nealon, maintenance team leader at Mount Thorley Warkworth Coal Mine, said he was extremely surprised to discover that there was no jack on the market which would allow workers to complete this essential task without standing under a suspended load.
NSW Minerals Council CEO Dr Nikki Williams said the device was an example of the lateral thinking which has driven world changing innovation for centuries.
“In this particular instance it is not possible to remove the existence of hazardous suspended loads. What was possible was to remove the workers from the vicinity of the hazard while still completing the task at hand," Williams said.
“Australia’s mining industry is the safest in the world. It has achieved that record by constantly looking at what it does and how to do it better.
“The beauty of this year’s winner and many, many other inventions from the mining industry is that they not only raise the safety bar, but they have widespread applications to people outside of mining."