Mining services

Open cut mining

Our team

As one of Australia’s largest open cut mining service contractors, Downer offers an enviable range of capabilities and nine decades of experience. We have worked in a wide range of commodities, including gold, base metals, iron ore and coal, in projects in Australia and overseas.

We pride ourselves on our people and the diverse skills they bring to our projects. Our strong safety and training focus works in parallel with creativity, innovation and hard work to provide optimal solutions to our clients. Our project managers and on-site operations can depend on the full support of our centralised plant management, engineering, training, and health, safety and environment teams, as well as technical and support personnel.

Our open cut capabilities

We have a proven track record in providing:

• Mine engineering, scheduling and planning
• Load and haul operations
• Dozer push operations
• Crusher feed and operation
• Facilities and infrastructure design and operation
• Mine road construction
• Mine site rehabilitation
• Statutory management of operations
• Operation of coal handling and preparation plants

View the Open Cut Mining Capability Statement here:

Open Cut Capability Statement

Plant inventory and management

Our reputation as a leading open cut mining contractor is strongly supported by the size and diversity of our fleet, which includes:

• Hydraulic excavators and shovels from 100- to 800-tonne class
• Off-highway dump trucks from 90- to 300-tonne class
• Ancillary support equipment, including:
• Dozers from D9 to D11
• Graders from 14G to 24M
• Water carts from 17 kilolitre to 130 kilolitre
• Drills capable of 102mm to 311mm holes

Our in-house maintenance support and asset management capabilities optimise our efficiency and overall performance. Underpinning these services are our strong relationships with Original Equipment Manufacturers, which ensure that we have access to the latest equipment and information, driving best-practice maintenance management.

Operator training simulators

Our state-of-the-art operator-training simulators enable us to train operators in the use of a range of heavy equipment. The simulators provide a safe environment in which operators can experience virtual scenarios without the risk of personal injury or damage to equipment.

With several different types of training/assessment options, including emergency response scenarios, correct machine operation and productivity, the simulators provide comprehensive training programs to operators irrespective of skill level.

Tyre management

Otraco is Downer’s tyre management business. Otraco has more than 30 tyre management service contracts in Australia, New Zealand, South America and Southern Africa. Its customers include Rio Tinto, BHP, Anglo American, Evolution Mining, Glencore (South Africa) Debswana, Codelco, BMA Coal, Newcrest, Newmont, Minara Resources and Yancoal.

Operating at the forefront of the industry, Otraco has developed a wide range of information and analysis systems to identify new opportunities and solutions to minimise its customers’ total tyre-related costs. These not only include focusing on direct costs (through extension of tyre life), but also reduction in equipment downtime, and minimisation of overall tyre and rim repair costs. 

Otraco prides itself on being at the cutting edge of tyre management technology with its internet-based tyre management and reporting system, Otracom. In use at more than 60 mines across the world, Otracom tracks and manages tyres and rims from manufacturing to disposal to identify performance trends and reduce tyre-related costs. It enables users to rely upon a centrally maintained management system that delivers consistent reporting from around the world.

At Otraco’s tyre training centre in Western Australia, trainees are able to work on real mining equipment just 30 minutes from the centre of Perth. The centre provides six-week courses for tyre fitters, with graduates attaining a Certificate II in Automotive Mechanical – Tyre Fitting Heavy (which has been customised to incorporate OTR).

Otraco is a Registered Training Organisation, and is commercially independent of any tyre manufacturer, supplier or repairer.

Visit www.otraco.com for more information.