A grinding mill workshop in Kalgoorlie was the first in a series of one-day ore-specific regional workshops the company has planned.

Workshops are scheduled for Mount Isa, the Pilbara, the Hunter Valley and Emerald and will be additional to the company’s timetable of three-day intensive training programs.

David Williams, Customer Service Product Line Manager at FLSmidth, said the goal of the program is to make specialist training more accessible.

“We are looking to engage with the medium to smaller mining operations who generally would not be in a position to have operational staff absent for one of our three-day workshops,” Mr Williams said.

“A one-day workshop, in the local region, gives our customers access to the level of specialised training which they could use to improve their overall operation.”

He said that customising and localising the content quickly established a solid rapport with attendees and encouraged active participation.

“This unique workshop lends itself to bespoke training for operators processing particular ore types,” he said. “The plan now is to take technical training workshops to other regional centres around the country over the next 12 months.”

The Kalgoorlie workshop brought together some 20 operations-level participants from mines within easy driving distance of the city. The content was prepared specifically for the gold industry with a focus on improving grinding mill performance.

Topics for discussion included technology changes within the sector, mill hydraulics and lubrication systems, trunnion bearing alignment and maintenance and mill drive performance.

 “We had electrical supervisors, maintenance supervisors, shift supervisors, mechanical fitters as well as training and safety advisors from mines around Kalgoorlie,” Jack Meegan, FLSmidth’s US-based Global Product Line Manager said.

“A real cross-section of front-line operational people who interacted exceptionally well.”