Mining & Resources

**This story originally appeared in the July 2026 edition of AMT Magazine** Australia’s manufacturing sector entered 2026 with signs of renewed momentum, but global disruption and rising operating costs continue to test the industry's resilience. The latest Manufacturing Signals Report from CommBank shows that manufacturing output returned to growth in late 2025 after a difficult period of contraction. However, many businesses are still managing margin pressure driven by higher freight, fuel and input costs, ongoing supply chain disruption and persistent labour shortages. For manufacturers, the current environment is creating a more complex balancing act between maintaining day-to-day operational performance and positioning themselves for future competitiveness. “There are signs of recovery in manufacturing, but it’s far from a straightforward external environment. Businesses are having to manage persistent cost and supply pressures, while also positioning themselves for long-term competitiveness,” Belinda Harris (General Manager Commercial Banking QLD, Commonwealth Bank of Australia). Navigating cost and supply chain pressures Geopolitical tensions and shipping disruptions across key global trade routes have increased pressure on supply chains and inventory management, with CommBank data pointing to 10-to-14-day shipping delays for the sector, which extends lead times and…

**This story originally appeared in the July 2026 edition of AMT Magazine** For Australian manufacturing technology suppliers, mining is not only a customer market. It is a demanding test bed for engineering capability. The sector requires heavy fabrication, precision machining, hydraulics, wear components, automation, robotics, materials handling systems, sensing, control systems, safety technology and increasingly sophisticated digital tools. In many cases, mining has helped Australian manufacturers become world-class by forcing them to solve difficult problems in harsh environments. The scale of the opportunity remains substantial. The Department of Industry’s December 2025 Resources and Energy Quarterly forecast Australia’s resources and energy export earnings at $383 billion in 2025–26 and $374 billion in 2026–27. Export volumes are expected to remain robust and rise close to record levels in 2027, even as some commodity prices soften. Iron ore is expected to remain Australia’s largest resources earner, accounting for about one-quarter…

Gold Fields has awarded a contract to Goldwind to design, manufacture and construct seven wind turbines for its St Ives gold mine, located 80km south of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. The turbines will form a 42MW wind farm as part of Gold Fields’ landmark $296m St Ives Renewable Energy project, which will become one of Western Australia’s largest renewable energy initiatives at an existing mine site. It’s not the number of turbines that’s news, but their gargantuan size. Together, these elements make the project one of the largest to be commissioned at an existing mine site in WA. Mobile batching plants will be deployed to the site in Kambalda to mix the 900m3 volume of concrete and allow for continuous pours at each of the seven turbine bases. The entire renewable system is projected to provide power for 73% of the St Ives site and reduce the mine’s carbon emissions by approximately 50% by 2030. Gold Fields Principal Specialist and Project Director Simon Schmid said the St Ives project was part of Gold Fields’ expanding decarbonisation…

AMW2025 will open on Tuesday 6th May and will roll for four days. All six Pavilions and Zones will be open and active, over 400 exhibitors enthused and ready to show their best manufacturing technology at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. The first day of AMW2025 will be full throttle. REGISTER NOW! To help visitors to the show navigate such a diverse line-up of exhibits, AMW2025 will feature six dedicated Zones covering a range of specialised aspects of the modern manufacturing landscape: Additive Manufacturing Zone Australian Manufacturers Pavilion Machine Tools Manufacturing Solutions Robotics & Automation Weld & Air Solutions Now in its third year, the Future Solutions Speaker Program will also be held at the Australian Manufacturing Week, over three days. The very popular program has a great range of 35+ expert speakers discussing the current trends and issues affecting the manufacturing landscape. With a focus on innovation, join us to hear from industry leaders, explore new technologies and learn from real-world case studies. The Future Solutions Speaker Program at AMW2025 is free to attend and…

Capral has successfully trialled the recycled-content billet supplied by Rio Tinto at Boyne Smelters Limited (BSL), using 50 to 100 tonnes of post-production aluminium scrap from its Bremer Park extrusion plant in Southeast Queensland. The scrap was remelted and cast into billets, resulting in a new product with a minimum of 20% recycled content. This creates a new era of environmentally conscious local aluminium production. Capral is exploring options for incorporating this sustainable material into its product offer. This closed-loop approach not only minimises waste but also reduces carbon intensity of extrusions produced from such billets. This trial has successfully demonstrated the potential of a Made in Australia closed loop aluminium solution, in line with the Australian Government’s Future Made in Australia policy. The entire production process has been done entirely in Australia, from raw materials of bauxite and alumina to primary aluminium production, to Capral’s extrusion process, to Rio Tinto’s remelting of scrap into finished recycled billet product. "Whilst Capral recycles the vast majority of our scrap, it must be sent offshore for processing and typically ends up in…

HVAC systems run almost constantly, leading to an increased risk of belt failure - and a potentially costly ripple effect on sensitive, temperature-controlled facilities. HVAC systems are often exposed to extreme ambient temperatures and environmental conditions, which can strain equipment. Maintaining your facility is already complex without adding in additional maintenance or unexpected part failure. Gates has engineered high-performance belt solutions that can withstand high temperatures, chemicals, and humidity without re-tensioning and at a lower upfront cost than comparable belts.   V-BELTS - TRI-POWER™ & QUAD-POWER™ 4 MOULDED NOTCH V-BELTS V-belts are essential power transmission components in industrial applications worldwide. Excessive belt slippage, stretching, and wear can result in big problems for facilities, with disproportionate resources spent re-tensioning, maintaining, and replacing underperforming belts. Gates offers high-performance v-belts engineered to save energy, minimise maintenance, and have a longer lifespan than competitive belts. Raw edge, moulded notch construction saves up to 3% on energy costs over wrapped belts. Specially designed moulded notches dissipate heat better than standard v-belts and are engineered to increase flexibility for improved energy efficiency. FEATURES: Innovative…

Hydraulic tooling and bolt tensioning specialist, Technofast is adding a new pipe fitting technology to its range as the exclusive distributor for HAELOK® in Australia and New Zealand. Swiss-engineered HAELOK® pipe fittings can be swiftly installed in under a minute, providing a secure metal-to-metal gastight connection without sealing elements and welding, which add time and cost to the process. Proven in service for more than 20 years in major European markets, the durable and efficient HAELOK® fittings apply to a broad range of applications, including power stations, high-pressure hydraulic lines up to 1270 bar for smaller sizes (up to four-inches at 250 bar), oil, gas, and petrochemical refineries (including offshore), navy, marine, and defence, acidic environments, heavy mine sites, steam and biogas lines in sugar mills, and hydrogen piping. “The HAELOK® range is a natural extension of our Technofast range, which is already focused on saving downtime by efficient bolt tensioning technologies applicable to similar industries,” said Technofast Founder and CEO, John Bucknell. A better connection HAELOK® fittings function using an axial crimp. They have a tapered press…

Two Australian manufacturers are leveraging spaceborne particles and hyperspectral imaging to boost the safety and productivity of mining operations both locally and abroad. EQ Resources has commercialised a system to detect and extract tungsten from previously unviable mining waste, supported by a co-investment from the Australian Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC). mDetect has commercialised a system to manage tailings dams in mining better. It sounds like something out of Star Wars, yet cosmic rays and hyperspectral imaging are a central feature in two mining technology projects backed by the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre, with major implications for safety and access to strategically important materials. mDetect is a Swinburne University spinout specialising in astrophysics research into muons, a type of subatomic particle that results from the Earth’s atmosphere being hit by cosmic rays, which fall harmlessly and constantly down on us. They are sometimes described as the heavy cousin of electrons, with their mass helping them pass deep into objects; much further, for example, than ground penetrating radar. The company has commercialised telescopic devices and software in a system that uses…

The urgent global focus on decarbonisation and clean energy is driving the unprecedented emergence of new technologies, creating a new era of demand and development for a wide range of minerals, including copper. Copper continues to have a foundational role in modern society and its diverse applications are integral to the transition to a clean energy future. The International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that the global capacity for renewable energy saw an unprecedented 50% increase in 2023, the fastest growth in two decades. With the acceleration of technological advancements and electrification, copper demand remains strong and resilient. Predictions are that 115% more copper must be mined in the next 30 years than has ever been mined historically. Exploration and discovery are crucial to expand or develop mines and provide the primary copper supply. Despite growing investment in copper exploration, the industry faces various challenges. The discovery rate for all economic deposits globally has halved in the last decade, and the average cost of discovery is…

The mining industry is the backbone of modern civilisation, providing the raw materials essential for everything from buildings and infrastructure to electronics and medicine.  The global coal mining industry has grown by nearly 20% on average for each of the last five years, meaning conveyors are carrying more coal than ever. However, these mining operations often occur in remote and challenging environments where reliable communication is paramount. Coal-carrying conveyor belts can be up to 20km long. If they break and do not immediately stop, cargo can be spilled everywhere and cause a major safety risk. Conveyors usually come equipped with contacts that indicate problems like breakages, but with the extreme distances involved, these can be unreliable. Ian Loudon, international sales manager at remote monitoring specialist Omniflex, explains why new fibre optic modules are game changers in mining applications in terms of reducing downtime and improving safety. Modern mining conveyor belts can extend for tens of kilometres, carrying tonnes of material daily. These mammoth systems are crucial for transporting extracted resources from the mine to processing facilities or stockpiles. Therefore, ensuring efficient…

Electric cars are becoming increasingly common on Australian roads, and industrial players are investigating their use in commercial fleets, with one recent study from the University of Michigan finding electric trucks can reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions by between 13% and 35% Research firm IDTechEx expects electric trucks to become a US$15bn industry. Could the same change transform mining? If so, we're a long way off—a 2022 study said only 1% of industry power came from electricity—but plans are accelerating. Several Australian industry players and their supply chain partners are members of the Electric Mine Consortium, a think tank driven by the mission to accelerate progress towards a fully electrified zero-CO2 and zero-particulates mine. As a spokesperson from automation technology provider Rockwell Automation told us, mine site tools are fertile ground for adopting wide-scale electric power. “Most mines are in places with lots of renewable energy, and many are a long way from the grid and have to run generators,” he said. “It's…

NRW Civil & Mining (NRW) is one of Australia’s leading contractors, able to deliver a complete suite of civil and mining services at numerous locations nationwide. It is part of the NRW Holdings Group, an ASX-listed entity offering diverse contract services to Australia's resources and infrastructure sectors. After securing the mining, train loading, and miscellaneous services contract with Karara Mining Ltd, NRW began reducing GHG emissions at the Karara Iron Ore project, the largest mining operation in the Mid-West Region. With a track record of excellence in managing the environmental implications of mining and civil projects, NRW continues beyond ensuring compliance with legislative mandates. They go beyond partnering with clients to refine best practices and find innovative ways to reduce the carbon footprint of their operations. NRW planned to introduce an intelligent technology solution at Karara, to harness data-driven insights to refine operator behaviours, improve performance, and establish tangible carbon emissions reduction strategies. NRW partnered with MaxMine to achieve these objectives, building on their successful collaboration at the Dalgaranga project. The MaxMine intelligent technology platform is designed to help…