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Lighting the path for industry and community Pioneers of Fluid Intelligence World-proven shotcrete technology, tailored for Australian conditions Driving safety and profitability Modec connect solution Vansite hire fleet now in WA Explorex Caravans Comfort that makes you forget you’re at work Take control of your blasting process with Protoblast Tailored solutions for challenging environments Hard rock shouldn’t be hard work From fabrication to full-scale construction, Murchison Mining Services delivers exceptional results Tyre Doctor Marc Laboratory solutions Maximise Your Productivity Blue Spec Drilling Pty Ltd The hidden cost of legacy systems Mining maintenance that stands out Access meteorological support for tropical cyclone season Doing it the right way May Drilling SBR Contracting Rapp-it Sydney Rope Supplies Quietaire Australia Truflo Electric Pumps DMC Conveyor Services: Delivering the right people to the right places Orica secures Hydrogen Headstart funding When failure is not an option Suppressing dust using innovative misting systems Aussie Hydrostatic Tester Breakthrough! Driving mine safety and power Keep your crew cool Collaboration more than just a theme at IMARC 2025 ACU-TECH PIPING SYSTEMS Innovative technology The Safeguard Mechanism Engineering solutions for field applications Speed Queen’s stack washer/dryer is mining’s most wanted, why? Partnering for Sustainability EcoQuip solar towers Solar-powered, relocatable boom gates Trusted fencing solutions The Dufty Civil difference Environmental solutions for lasting impact Industrial pipes engineered to perform Alpha’s turnkey solutions for mine sites Critical minerals conference 2025 Steuler expands your horizons FleetCrew drives results Gold, gold, gold The Safeguard Mechanism Rethinking hydration You need tough equipment for tough environments RetroGUARD your workplace The new Flender One industrial gear unit SPM launches a new era in process optimisation Titeline Drilling: Automating the future The Metal Specialists Every weld better than the last Strategy that moves your mine forward Kicking the dust Custom engineered accessibility Rox in the fast lane What we can’t grow or recycle, we must mine How can crypto revolutionise the mining industry? FY26 RISK RADAR Record attendance at PNG Expo Coal hard truth Mining matters Collaboration more than just a theme at IMARC 2025 High Priority Australia’s only copper conference Salt of the earth Securing the global green energy future Exploring digitalisation in mining Australia gets strategic with rare earths Written in the stars A welcome addition The Australian Mining Review August 2025 Edition

Rethinking hydration

The performance shift mining needs

Analysis conducted by the Georgia Institute of Technology involving more than 400 healthy adults found that just 3% hydration loss caused attention to drop by 52%, motor coordination by 40% and executive function by 24%.

These effects are comparable to being over the legal alcohol limit.

In professional sport, every performance detail is measured, from hydration to recovery. But on mine sites, where focus, coordination, reaction time and physical effort are even more critical, hydration is often treated as an afterthought.

That’s something Toni McQuinn, founder of Brisbane-based hydration company Body Armour, is working to change.

“It’s pretty common for operators, or as we call them, industrial athletes, to be handed sugary hydration drinks filled with artificial colours and sweeteners,” McQuinn says.

“These are outdated products designed decades ago that haven’t evolved, but the science has.”

McQuinn, who spent over 15 years working in mining, saw firsthand the health impact that poor hydration and recovery had on workers. That experience led to the creation of Body Armour: clean, science-backed hydration and recovery products formulated for heavy industry, without the harmful additives.

But Body Armour’s mission goes beyond product. Its team partners with safety and health leaders to deliver toolbox talks, educational content explaining the link between hydration, fatigue, recovery and cognitive safety risks.

“Education is key,” McQuinn says.  “When people understand the body from a physiological perspective, their behaviour changes. Most don’t realise mild dehydration can slow reaction time and impair decision-making, just like alcohol, and it builds over time.”

The company’s Hydration+ range is designed to go beyond just hydration, with five essential electrolytes, including calcium and magnesium, nootropics for mental clarity, a vitamin complex and no artificial colours or sweeteners. Body Armour’s sleep blend helps shift workers recover faster between roster changes.

The company’s stance is aligned with international moves to phase out ingredients like Red Dye 40, Brilliant Blue 1 and Yellow 5 and 6, substances banned or restricted across Europe and recently in the U.S.

“These ingredients have zero benefit and known risks,” McQuinn says. “So why are they still allowed on Australian sites?”

“Duty of care isn’t just about PPE,” he adds. “It’s also about what we’re putting in workers bodies.”

As the Australian mining sector positions itself as a global leader in safety and innovation, Body Armour is pushing for a simple, powerful shift: treat workers like athletes and they’ll perform like them.