Barminco donates Sandvik UG truck to Perth TAFE students
Barminco has donated a Sandvik underground truck to South Metropolitan TAFE in Perth, WA, to help train the next generation of skilled mining and heavy automotive workers.
The refurbished truck, worth about $1.8m new, has lived out its full mine life and will now serve as a training resource for plant mechanic apprentices, trainees and students at the Heavy Vehicle Mechanical Training Centre at the Thornlie campus.
WA Training Minister Simone McGurk thanks Barminco for its generous donation, which will help train up the mining and heavy automotive workforce of the future.
“Providing students with contemporary machinery ensures when they land jobs they’re already equipped with the skills demanded by industry – so they can hit the ground running,” she said.
“The Sandvik underground truck is a welcome addition to South Metropolitan TAFE and complements the State Government’s $25m investment in modern equipment for WA TAFE colleges.
“The mining and resources sector is a vital component of the State’s economy, and this is a fantastic example of how WA TAFE colleges work closely with the mining industry to provide training that leads to real jobs.”
The Heavy Vehicle Mechanical Training Centre is home to current industry equipment that mirrors real-life working environments to equip students with job-ready skills.
The donated underground truck will enable students to learn how to diagnose and repair a full range of mining and civil construction equipment including dump trucks, bulldozers, loaders, graders, drill rigs and heavy plant machinery.
The underground truck will join Barminco’s previous donation of a refurbished ‘Jumbo’ development drill for the Heavy Vehicle Mechanical Training Centre.
In its lifetime, the donated underground truck has carried 29,325 loads, totalling more than 1.4mt while supporting development at Barminco’s Sunrise Dam and Savannah mining operations in WA and its Dugald River site in Queensland.
Barminco is a Perenti Group company – one of South Metropolitan TAFE’s largest employers of apprentices.
More than 90 of the company’s active apprentices include 70 heavy duty mechanical apprentices training in the TAFE’s Certificate III in Mobile Plant Technology and Certificate III in Engineering – Mechanical Trade (Plant Mechanic) qualifications.
