Jord International secure BHP innovation opportunity
The project was the inaugural pilot awarded through the previous Supplier Innovation Program challenge process, which BHP launched in June 2020 in partnership with Austmine.
The challenge focussed on safety at BMA and garnered the interest of 235 suppliers across Australia, with 21 providing expressions of interest. Jord was selected as the standout submission from a highly competitive final field of nine mining equipment, technology and services (METS) companies that presented a proposal to BMA.
This open innovation and collaborative challenge process was replicated at other BMA sites in Queensland, along with BHP’s Western Australian Iron Ore (WAIO) and Olympic Dam operations in South Australia.
Jord’s solution eliminated the man and machine interaction with the development of a belt cartridge installer, which is self-contained in a lightweight steel body that allows lifting by the overhead gantry crane. The cartridge will also enable forklifts to transport it while on the ground. This process will remove the operator from the filter area.
BHP group procurement officer James Agar said the process enabled them to crowdsource a broader range of unique and innovative solutions to business challenges. “With filter press belt replacements, it is a time-consuming task with lots of manual handling. While there are processes in place to control the risks around that task, the new solution proposed through this innovation program eliminates the need for maintainers to be in physical contact with the filter press altogether,” Agar says.
Jord International general manager – minerals, Kevin Barber, noted: “The (Supply Innovation Program) process was very open with feedback shared and accepted by both parties. “It was a great opportunity to be engaged in solving a problem that you would otherwise not have been aware of.”
The Supplier Innovation Program built upon the BHP and Austmine strategic partnership, which focussed on bringing people and resources together to maximise value-chain opportunities and further strengthen the competitiveness of the Australian METS and mining sectors. It allowed BHP to crowdsource a broader range of unique and innovative solutions to business problems and representing a significant shift from the tender methods traditionally used to engage suppliers, and making it easier for the METS sector to access project opportunities, access new avenues for collaboration and put forward solutions while retaining intellectual property.
