RUC CEMENTATION MINING SECURES SIGNIFICANT UNDERGROUND MINE DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION
CONTRACT

RUC Cementation Mining has secured a significant three-year (with option for extensions) contract for underground mine development and production, at Dacian Gold Limited’s new Mount Morgans Gold Project near Laverton in Western Australia.

This award represents a major milestone in RUC Cementation Mining’s transformation from mid-level to being recognised as a top-tier mining contractor. The contract was awarded after an extensive competitive bid process.

Dacian Gold recently released a feasibility study for the project and stated that it will spend an estimated AU$220 million on its Mount Morgan Project, which is located approximately 750 kilometres northeast of Perth in Western Australia. The mining lease area is situated in the Laverton gold district that is known to contain some
30 million ounces of gold, making it the second highest endowed gold district in Western Australia.

This is a significant award for RUC Cementation Mining and a material award for the Group’s global Underground Mining platform.

The outlook for metals and minerals is steadily improving and it is expected that the Underground Mining platform will in the short term continue to benefit from new investment in the global mining sector.

THE MURRAY & ROBERTS TRAINING ACADEMY “A QUANTUM LEAP AHEAD OF INDUSTRY TRAINING BEST PRACTICE”

Safety, efficiency and prioritising risk management at the highest level, lies at the heart of continued investments in the Murray & Roberts Training Academy ("MRTA"), located in Bentley Park, Gauteng.

The MRTA is the largest mining contracting training facility in South Africa and offers a diverse range of training services from soft skills essential for personal communication and interaction in the workplace through to occupationally-directed technical skills and safety competence programmes with international recognition.
The academy provides turn-key solutions across a wide field of industries and disciplines including engineering, conventional and trackless mining, shaft sinking and mining services.

The academy carries ISO 9001:2008, 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:1999 certification and is accredited with the Mining Qualifications Authority and is also an approved training provider with the British Safety Council.

Through a unique combination of blended learning which includes e-learning, instructor-led coaching, simulation, virtual reality and mock-up practical training, the training academy provides customised site-specific training to meet the organisational needs of mining companies.

The ultimate goal of any training programme should be to equip the learner with the requisite knowledge, skills and experience required to perform their work safely and proficiently in a productive manner. Drawing from on-site experience has allowed the academy to design and develop values-driven training programmes that
seamlessly combine theory (passive learning) and practice (active learning) in an integrative manner.

Says Tony Pretorius, ETD Executive at the MRTA, “We understand that the mining industry has unique operating environments and specific challenges and our customised services are designed to meet such organisational objectives, trainee learning abilities, budgets, teaching styles and learning platforms.”

The leadership team and employees of the MRTA have years of industry experience and are suitably qualified and accredited to provide training. The instructors draw on practical real life situations to drive home the importance of safety through easy understood and relevant delivery methodologies.

CEMENTATION CANADA – PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST

With its mission statement: “To earn the distinction of being the mining contractor of choice of both clients and employees through excellence in safety, performance beyond all expectations, and building long-term relationships based on a ‘best for project’ philosophy,” Cementation Canada is proud of its core values, one of which is to treat its people well by giving them every opportunity to succeed.

It’s clear that Cementation Canada is doing something right. Just ask their employees. Over the past eight years, the company’s employee engagement rating has consistently been well above 90 percent.

“I want our people to know that everyone contributes to the success of the organisation,” says Roy Slack, President of Cementation Canada. “If someone isn’t contributing, then I first look at management – not the employee. I believe that people want to work hard and do a good job and the exceptions are just that – exceptions. As leaders, it is our job to make sure people are engaged and contributing.”

“Cementation Canada strives to keep its employees engaged by listening first and then acting,” says Penny English, Cementation Canada HR Solutions Manager. “If you note the name of the department, it’s not the HR department – it’s the HR Solutions department and we demonstrate that every day to our employees.” The HR Solutions department has a vision, mission and values statement that align with the corporate vision, mission and values. “We are here to help,” continues Penny, “and our mission is to help employees succeed.”

The HR Solutions department has also developed an in-house Leadership Development Programme. There are numerous learning opportunities across the programme, including mentoring by senior managers and access to self-directed learning modules that cover more than 40 leadership topics. The self-paced modules include
interactive learning activities, video insights and other downloadable tools.

“I enjoy participating in the programme and will let you in on a secret,” says Roy. “I’m probably learning as much or more than the participants. Every time I attend a session or review an assignment, mentor a participant or lead a training session, I am learning as well.” Roy is proud of the company’s culture, where employees are willing to help each other out however possible.

Continues Penny, “We have one of our senior engineers helping a colleagues’ child with physics. The employee has an interest and passion for mentoring others and the student gains enormous benefits from the arrangement. Our employee is thrilled he was able to help out.”

“How we treat people is strongly influenced by how we have been treated in the past – the good and the bad supervisors, colleagues and companies we have worked for,” says Roy. “This is not blind influence or intuition. The way that individuals treat each other and care about each other drives a culture that establishes that as the norm.”

Expansion and growth provide a great opportunity for HR Solutions to work with their human resource partners globally and to look at new and exciting ways to engage employees.

Concludes Roy, “The potential project opportunities for Cementation Canada means more training opportunities for our people in project delivery, a better understanding of the full project life cycle which then enhances the development of our service offering and leads to opportunities for employees on projects in Canada, the US and around the world.”