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Education Training

Money Mining Intelligence By special education contributor Lanita Idrus


DESPITE the impending rubber-stamping of the will do the rest with you. How can one course train 32 new apprentices. Barminco which is
mining tax by the Senate after approval by the improve the ROI of a company by more than committed to industry education, received
Lower House, the mining industry in Australia is 5%? Well Money Mining can case studies two awards recently for its commitment to
truly alive and well if not thriving. It will also con- upon case studies have proven this to be true. training and education while Joy Global-P&H
tinue to survive and traverse the mining tax and Working hand-in-hand with Money Mining is Minepro has started programs to train staff
carbon tax issues for some time to come. Gemcom whose partnership helps Whittle de- on the financial measures and operations that
Australia, and the worlds mining industry, liver an outstanding software program so com- the company undertakes which ensures the
can thank Australian individuals, organiza- panies can review, monitor, evaluate and sales force has a clear understanding of how
tions and institutions for the innovative in- improve their performance. Gemcom is who and why business decisions are made. This
vestments they have made to the industry. mining companies turn to if they want to in- translates to delineating customer needs and
Australians innate inclination for global roam- crease mine productivity. To ensure that their enhancing financial success.
ing has facilitated this transfer of knowledge software yields the results that companies As for ensuring that the mining industry con-
worldwide and is feeding improvements in want, Gemcom offers ongoing training. As re- tinues to have engaging and transformational
the education of the workforce for the mining cent as October 2011, Gemcom announced its leaders in the future, the Australian education
industry globally. support of other education innovations such as system is not short of providing courses to
Such innovative investments and innovations the MEA (Mining Education Australia) Engineer- groom them, including the Mt Eliza Business
generally arise out of experiences and experi- ing Program. MEA is a national education joint School, MGSM (Macquarie Graduate School
ences that shape the way we think. What we venture between four mining education of Management), and the AGSM (Australian
think enables us to design the future we want. providers in Australia Curtin University, Uni- Graduate School of Management in NSW. In
Underpinning all this is our education how we versity of Adelaide, The University of New South fact, almost every state and territory of Aus-
learn, whom or what we learn from and how Wales and The University of Queensland. tralia has a Graduate School of Management
we understand our experiences. Among the most talked about innovative in- where one can simply apply and attend with
It is through education that we shape our vestments the mining industry has made in re- the aim of learning something that will trans-
future leaders and it is no different in our min- cent years are the development of research form them into a leader and provide their com-
ing industry. Leaders in this industry must centres, such as IMER (Institute for Mineral pany (the employer) with a competitive
continue to forge the path ahead in order to and Energy Resources), MCRF (the Mineral advantage in the industry. For an overview of
resolve the skills shortage issue. Characterization Research Facility), CRC Min- these institutions please review our Education
Education in mining has been under-esti- ing and the newly mooted International Mining Directory in this issue.
mated, under-valued and under-funded but for Development Centre. This centre, hailed by If you are located in the Asia Pacific region
not until it is more widely realized and under- Prime Minister Gillard recently in Perth, can be education opportunities in management and
stood that we are fast becoming resource- best described as yet another opportunity for leadership may be found through Australias
less in providing manpower to the industry the transfer of knowledge from Australian ex- Open University programs or through com-
will it become a hot topic again. pertise (from government, academia and in- panies such as Caliden Global, which is
The three prime reasons for people to look at dustry) to the mining industry in more than 30 based in Singapore and professes expertise
education as a solution source are (i) improving developing countries in Africa, the Asia Pacific from world renowned schools such as Whar-
ROIs, (ii) the need for manpower; and (iii) spe- region and Latin America. ton, Stanford and the like.
cific technical challenges within the industry. During a visit to the University of Western Whatever your view on learning, training or
For whatever reason that applies to you or Australia, where the centre will be based, the the recruitment crises in mining, you will agree
your company - it is never too late to invest in Prime Minister espoused: We want to make that action needs to be taken. It is heartening
education for the overall good of oneself but sure resource-rich developing countries use to see the rise in industry supporting education
more importantly for the mining industry. opportunities generated by mining to create initiatives both within industry and with special-
Take Money Mining for example. Now a much needed education and job opportunities ist institutions. It is also good to see govern-
course run by Whittle Consulting, it is the epit- for some of the worlds most vulnerable peo- ment recognition and acknowledgement of the
ome of more than 30 years of research and ple. This new Centre is a partnership between need to invest in education.
dedication to the mining industry resulting in a the University of Western Australias Energy If mining is to support nations then it is pru-
rigorous plan of action to revise and revitalize and Mineral Institute and the University of dent to invest in education. After all, how can
the way we think about what we do, how we Queenslands Sustainable Minerals Institute. mines make money without money mining in-
do it and how wisely we dissipate our com- Some of the mining industrys giants are telligently!
panys funds. Though having a fundamental also supporting education. Take Metso, for Special commentary by Lanita Idrus, M.Ed.St
basis in mathematical algorithms, you need not example, who has partnered with the Univer- (Monash), B.App Sci (education) former senior aca-
be a mathematical genius to do the course. All sity of Queensland to research the effective- demic at University of Melbourne and Australian
you need is an open mind and your experi- ness of grinding solutions for the industry; Catholic University (Melbourne). Post graduate edu-
ences. Whittle Consulting director Gerald Whit- and OK Tedi Mining Co in Papua New Guinea cation specialist. Mentor for Masters and beginning
tle, who is also mentor/leader of this course, which is spending money on education to PhD students.

64 | ASIA Miner | January/February 2012

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