TURNER MINING
but meeting its employees ’ needs to ensure they are in good stead for the future . This is achieved primarily by the company ’ s efforts to keep its workers out of harm ’ s way , with safety a vital consideration for all members of staff .
A company-wide strategic approach to safety is therefore required , as Turner himself explains .
“ Safety is one of our core values . To me , safety is a living , breathing culture . You ’ re either building a culture of safety or you ’ re killing a culture of safety ,” says Turner .
“ We talk about it all the time . We just had another successful MSHA visit with zero citations and they visit every site twice a year .
“ I believe as a contractor we ’ ve got to become better than the mine owner or the mine operator . If we ’ re not , they probably shouldn ’ t even hire us . So , we ’ re building a world-class safety programme .”
This really echoes the firm ’ s duty to not only support its staff , but also bring this mindset to its customers ’ sites . Understanding how to ensure its own safety criteria is met makes Turner Mining Group a suitable partner to bring into the fold and uphold on-site safety , or even help its partners to analyse and improve mining practices .
From an operational standpoint , Turner is also aware that technology will have an increasing presence on site with communication being a crucial part of safety , but also the adoption of autonomy in the future .
“ I think semi-autonomous equipment is here . I think fully - autonomous equipment , at least in the huge mines , is there . But it ’ s going to be a while before it reaches scale at all mines ,” says Turner .
This is an area of development that will require expertise to deliver more autonomy , which is where the company relies on its partners , OEMs Caterpillar and Volvo , and dealers like Komatsu and Core Machinery , ( formerly known as Road Machinery ), to provide the equipment and technology capabilities to add value to its service as a subcontractor .
“ I think remote-operated equipment in unsafe areas is making a huge impact ,” Turner explains .
“ I don ’ t think it ’ s any one thing , though . I don ’ t think autonomy is going to make operations safe on its own , because you ’ re still going to have humans on site .”
This culture led Turner Mining Group to some great opportunities over the years , primarily working with established organisations in mining and developing
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