Hitting the Sweet Spot

Supporting mining clients from start to finish

Australia has long supported the African mining industry. According to the AustraliaAfrica Minerals and Energy Group, there are more than 185 ASX-listed mining and other resource companies operating over 430 projects in 37 African countries.

This amounts to an estimated footprint of more than $40 billion based on current and potential future investment.

“At the moment there is no shortage of opportunities to work,”

says Rod Davies, General Manager of CPC Project Design at Perth-based CPC Engineering, a company supporting a range of mining projects across multiple regions including Australia and Africa.

“Companies are always trying to progress projects and expand plants, although a slowing impact both in Africa and Australia has been the sourcing of financing for such plans. The world is becoming more risk averse, but by February after the Christmas shutdown we tend to see investment picking up and we are starting to see those green shoots again.”

The opportunity for Davies to join CPC, by his own admission, came out of the blue, but it was too good to turn down – the GM headhunted on recommendation from colleagues of his retiring predecessor.

It is an industry he has always held a passion for, stemming from a young age.

“I like big machines and how they do things, to put it simply,” says Davies. “I loved the idea of working

in big processing plants and felt as if it would be like having a giant train set to play with. I actually started out in a metallurgy processing plant, rather than in engineering.”

Sweet spot

CPC’s size and scope of expertise was a key draw for Davies, this being a key differentiator for the firm which has been in operation since setting up in Kambalda, Western Australia, in 1970.

Today the company employs over 350 qualified and skilled personnel split between design and engineering units, a combined team which is able to provide a full suite of services from studies and fabrication through to construction and maintenance.

These services are conducted from offices and workshops located in Perth, Kalgoorlie, Kambalda,

Port Hedland, Ravensthrope and Esperance, perfectly positioned to serve Australian mining clients, many of which are based nearby.

“We’re one of few engineering houses that cover the entire

discipline,” says Davies. “We have metallurgists and process engineers and can start right away with the design of a plant, taking it all the way through to mechanical and electrical phases, the full scope.

“We are also the perfect size for our clients and can react quickly to their requirements and are backed up by reliable systems. I like to call it a sweet spot that we are in – we are not a giant multinational and can move quickly. Our clients can also pick up the phone to our CEO.”

It is also from these Western Australian facilities that CPC supports its clients’ projects based in Africa, the company also ensuring staff are on the ground to oversee the work and provide crucial engineering and design support.

A diverse portfolio

Closer to home, the firm has a number of ongoing projects with clients covering numerous areas of mining and engineering.

Davies cites work with AngloGold Ashanti in WA, where CPC is supporting the study and design stage at the Boston Shaker underground mine supporting infrastructure at the Tropicana site, located nearly 330 kilometres east-northeast of the town of Kalgoorlie. Ground work on this is expected to begin by Q2 of 2019 after final investment decisions are taken.

“We are also on a project with Talison Lithium at its Greenbushes operations south of Perth,” continues Davies. “We have just finished the studies for a second new crushing