Jacobs Engineering Group, together with MCA Group, received significant industry recognition of its achievements on a project to extend the life of a large crude ore bin for Mt Isa Mines (a Glencore Company) in Queensland, Australia.
Jacobs and MCA received the Steel Excellence in Engineering Projects Award at the Australian Steel Institute’s 2014 Steel Excellence Awards for Queensland, Australia, as well as a Commendation in the Resource Development category at the Engineers Australia 2014 Engineering Excellence Awards for South Australia.
Jacobs, working in conjunction with MCA Group, refurbished Mt Isa Mines’ 60,000t bin built in 1972. Through long-time operation, the interior of the bin had been rendered inaccessible and had been partially filled with consolidated ore built up over many years. The bin did not operate at capacity and spillages occurred.
The integrated, multidisciplinary project team of Jacobs, MCA Group and Mt Isa Mines executed engineering and project management services in Adelaide, South Australia; fabrication in Parkes, New South Wales; and construction at Mt Isa Mines in Queensland.
The project delivered significant improvements to the operational safety and efficiency of the bin. It is estimated that the bin’s lifespan has been increased by at least 10 years, while operational ore transfer capacity has been increased by approximately 300%.
