Geomechanics.io

Blockages in rigid 90° pipework carrying sulphuric-acid-treated mica slurry at Cornish Lithium’s Trelavour hard-rock lithium demonstration plant near St Austell have been resolved by replacing them with flexible Corroline+ hoses from Aflex Hose, part of Watson-Marlow. The PTFE-lined, corrosion-resistant hoses allow smoother routing and reduced sharp bends, cutting slurry build-up and unplanned downtime in the hydrometallurgical circuit. For process and plant engineers, the change points to simpler layouts, fewer fittings and easier maintenance in abrasive, acid leach slurry handling.

A National Precast Concrete Association Australia initiative has created an Australian-first, precast-specific Certificate III pathway for manufacturing workers, with South Australia the first state to adopt it. The qualification targets skills such as mould preparation, reinforcement fixing, concrete mix control and dimensional tolerances for factory-cast elements like bridge beams, culverts and wall panels. By formalising these competencies, producers gain a clearer framework for QA, safer lifting and handling practices, and more consistent compliance with AS 3850 and related precast installation standards.

Bitumen and fuel supply disruptions are prompting the Australian Flexible Pavement Association (AfPA) to coordinate public and private stakeholders to keep road construction and maintenance programmes operating. Australia’s historically narrow, locally tailored bitumen specifications are under review, with AfPA exploring broader performance‑based grades and alternative supply chains to reduce vulnerability to refinery closures and import constraints. Any shift in binder specifications will have direct implications for mix design, pavement performance modelling and quality control on both state highway and local council networks.

VEGA’s radar level and point level instruments are being used by Dutch floor screed manufacturer Quartzline in Dordrecht to continuously monitor raw material stocks in silos and storage vessels. Non-contact radar sensors and point level switches provide real-time data on resin, sand and filler levels, allowing tighter batching control and reducing manual silo checks and over-ordering. For materials and plant engineers, the case shows how robust level measurement in abrasive, dusty bulk environments can stabilise mix quality and cut inventory and production downtime.

Kalamazoo Resources’ initial assays from 16 holes in its 14,000m Mt Olympus resource definition drilling programme at the Ashburton gold project in Western Australia report multiple high‑grade intersections, including several over 10g/t Au, confirming continuity of the existing resource envelope. The results support Kalamazoo’s target of growing Ashburton beyond one million ounces, with mineralisation now traced both down‑dip and along strike from the current Mt Olympus pit shell. For mine planning and geotechnical teams, the data tighten grade distribution models and justify further step‑out drilling to test deeper, potentially underground‑amenable zones.

Rio Tinto and China Baowu have completed industrial-scale hydrogen-based direct reduction trials using Pilbara Blend iron ore in a shaft furnace, showing that the mid-grade (~62% Fe) Western Australian ore can achieve metallisation levels suitable for low-carbon DRI. Tests at Baowu’s Zhanjiang base used hydrogen-rich gas in place of coke-based reductants, validating pellet quality, sticking behaviour and gas utilisation under commercial conditions. The work signals that existing Pilbara ore supply chains could be adapted for hydrogen DRI routes, reducing dependence on high-grade (>67% Fe) ores.

Fortescue has signed new agreements with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) Traditional Owners to expand co-management and Indigenous participation across its iron ore operations in the Pilbara, Western Australia. The PKKP people hold native title over a large portion of Fortescue’s mining and infrastructure footprint, including key pits, haul roads and associated rail and power corridors. The move signals tighter integration of cultural heritage governance into mine planning, approvals and day-to-day operational decision-making on PKKP country.

Western Australia is positioning itself as a gallium processing hub through a Curtin University–Nimy Resources research programme backed by $550,000 from the Minerals Research Institute of Western Australia and co-funding from Nimy and Curtin’s Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Trailblazer. The work targets extraction of gallium as a by-product from existing orebodies, aiming to develop flowsheets that can be retrofitted to current concentrators rather than relying on greenfield plants. For miners and process engineers, the project signals future value-add options for low-concentration gallium streams within established base metal operations.

Mining3 has partnered with project controls software provider InEight to deliver its CATCH4 Program, a multi-year initiative targeting reduced methane and greenhouse gas emissions from underground coal mines. The collaboration will deploy InEight’s integrated planning, cost and risk tools across CATCH4 work packages to manage complex R&D, field trials and technology deployment, giving real-time visibility of schedule, budget and performance. For mine operators and METS partners, tighter digital controls over methane abatement projects should improve execution certainty, data quality and scalability of emissions-reduction technologies.

GMI Construction Group has broken ground on a 282,000 sq ft logistics and manufacturing facility expanding Cummins’ Darlington power systems campus onto a 5.38-hectare site at Ingenium Parc. The building will connect to existing engine manufacturing, assembly and testing operations and includes internal automated storage, ancillary office space and a large service yard with HGV circulation, dock levellers, dedicated lorry parking and more than 230 staff car spaces. Designed to operate either as an integrated extension or standalone unit, the scheme uses multi-facing brickwork, aluminium curtain wall glazing and composite cladding, with new access from Salters Lane and a landscaped biodiversity enhancement zone.

Approval has been granted for 236 new homes at Crescent Salford, designed by Buttress Architects for ECF, the partnership of Homes England, Legal & General and Muse. The residential phase forms part of the wider Crescent Salford regeneration being delivered with Salford City Council and the University of Salford, backed by Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s Good Growth Fund. For civil and geotechnical teams, the scheme signals continued medium‑density urban housing demand on brownfield river‑adjacent land, with associated ground remediation, drainage and utilities coordination requirements.

Work has started on a £13.1m WB Property Group and Citizen scheme to deliver 47 affordable homes on a long-vacant brownfield site on Hagley Road, Edgbaston, comprising 37 flats and 10 rent-to-buy houses. Five flats will be for social rent, supported by the £40m West Midlands Social Housing Accelerator Fund launched by mayor Richard Parker in autumn 2023. The design incorporates living roofs on the apartment blocks, solar panels on townhouses, new tree planting and dedicated pedestrian routes, signalling higher environmental performance expectations for urban infill housing.

Murphy has built a carbon negative car park at its One Murphy Hub in Golborne using a new asphalt mix containing ACLA, a pyrolysed waste-biomass material supplied by Huyton Asphalt in collaboration with Tarmac and Low Carbon Materials. ACLA uses timber offcuts and surplus forestry products treated through pyrolysis to lock in carbon, with each tonne of ACLA permanently removing about 800kg CO₂e; since its March 2024 launch it has already accounted for roughly 820,000kg CO₂e removed. For civil and highways schemes, the project shows carbon-negative surfacing is now deployable at depot and car park scale using existing asphalt supply chains.

WSP has appointed chartered civil and structural engineer Ruth Bailey as deputy chief operating officer for the UK and Ireland, bringing more than 20 years’ international experience across full project lifecycles from design delivery to large-scale operational leadership at AtkinsRéalis. Bailey will focus on “operational excellence” across WSP’s UK & Ireland business, tightening project execution and business operations to better support multidisciplinary delivery teams. For contractors and consultants, the move signals WSP’s intent to systemise high-performance project controls and governance as its regional workload expands.

Addison Hunt has appointed chartered quantity surveyor and project manager Daniel Garfoot as director of its Lincoln office, six months after opening the branch and only weeks after hiring senior quantity surveyor Steve Fleming. The Loughborough and Lincoln-based consultancy now employs 13 staff and is coming off its strongest first quarter on record, with a significant local project pipeline across Lincolnshire and the Midlands. Garfoot, with over 25 years’ experience in the Lincolnshire market, will work alongside directors Chris Hunt and Simon Collin to lead the next phase of regional expansion.

Ramboll’s DESNZ-commissioned study on undergrounding high-voltage transmission lines finds that cable ploughing, horizontal directional drilling and microtunnelling (pipe jacking) can approach the costs of conventional cut-and-cover over 20–50 km routes. Cable ploughing, already used in Wales by Aneurin Thomas Plant with Foeck equipment in sensitive environments, could cut total project costs by 20–40%, with civil works alone reduced by up to 66–72%. The report points to further savings from emerging technologies, including graphene-enhanced conductors and improved converter station design.

Two Komatsu 930E-3 haul trucks at Anglo American’s Los Bronces copper mine in Chile, originally slated for decommissioning, have been converted into 70,000 gallon (265,000 litre) water sprinkler trucks in a joint project with Komatsu Chile and Mega. Claimed as the first such 930E-based water trucks in Chile and globally, the units repurpose the existing 290-tonne class chassis to deliver high-volume dust suppression on haul roads. The conversion extends asset life and avoids procuring dedicated water trucks, with implications for fleet renewal and mine water management strategies.

SANY has commissioned its first SY1250H mining excavator in Europe at the Ugljevik open-pit coal mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, operated by Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske (ERS). The ultra-large excavator is intended for high-volume overburden and coal loading, pairing with 100 t-class haul trucks to support large-scale stripping and shorter mining cycles. For mine planners and maintenance teams, the deployment signals growing OEM competition in Europe’s >100 t excavator class, with implications for fleet standardisation, parts supply, and lifecycle cost benchmarking against established brands.

SANY has shipped 50 SKT145E autonomous pure battery wide body mining trucks to a surface coal operation in Inner Mongolia, pairing them with an in‑house autonomous haulage system rather than a third‑party AHS provider. The SKT145E trucks, already proven in unmanned operation at multiple Chinese coal and aggregate sites, use swappable battery packs and high‑precision positioning for fully driverless haulage on fixed routes. For mine planners and geotechs, the deployment signals continued standardisation around wide body truck haul roads, consistent ramp geometry and controlled dump‑point design to support large‑scale autonomy.

Baffinland Iron Mines has secured immediate access to a $110 million loan and a court-approved extension of creditor protection to 28 August, allowing the Mary River operation on northern Baffin Island to keep mining, shipping and port activities running while it restructures more than $1 billion in debt. The Ontario Superior Court will rule on 30 June whether Baffinland can retain its existing $400 million debtor-in-possession facility from Export Development Canada, which matures in 12 months with a possible six-month extension. A court monitor reports current cash of $21.2 million and a projected cash burn of about $217 million to late August, with an additional supplier charge of up to $100 million aimed at stabilising contractors and critical services.

Sandvik Rock Processing is supplying the first Sandvik CH662 cone crushers to a platinum project in South Africa’s Limpopo province, extending the established CH660 platform with upgraded mechanics and digital control. The CH662 units add higher throughput capacity and improved reliability through redesigned components and condition-monitoring systems, aimed at tighter control of product size and reduced unplanned downtime. For process engineers, the move signals further adoption of sensor-rich, remotely optimisable crushing circuits in Southern African PGM operations.

Caterpillar has signed a strategic agreement with MicroVision to integrate its 3D digital LiDAR sensors into autonomous haulage system (AHS) mining trucks, aiming to improve onboard perception for obstacle recognition and self‑rerouting. The LiDAR will support trucks operating in mixed autonomous and manned fleets, where precise detection of light vehicles, berms and windrows is critical to avoid production‑disrupting stops. For mine planners and automation teams, the move signals continued migration from infrastructure‑dependent guidance (beacons, reflectors) towards vehicle‑centric sensing and decision‑making.

Hampshire County Council has launched its Gen5 Consult – Transport, Highways & Infrastructure Consultancy Framework, establishing a pre-approved panel of suppliers under standardised NEC-based contract terms for road, bridge and drainage projects. The framework is expected to cover multi-year design and advisory commissions for highways maintenance, junction upgrades and active travel schemes across the county’s 5,500km road network. For consultants and contractors, early inclusion on Gen5 streamlines procurement for feasibility, detailed design and construction support, particularly for repeat geotechnical and pavement engineering work.

A coalition of environmental and heritage charities, including the National Trust and RSPB, is urging the UK government to “reset” its pro-development revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework before final decisions this summer. The groups argue that proposed changes to housing delivery tests and presumption in favour of sustainable development could weaken protections for Sites of Special Scientific Interest and conservation areas. For civil and infrastructure schemes, this signals potential shifts in planning risk, environmental assessment scope and mitigation requirements on greenfield and sensitive sites.