The IQA National Conference will be held in Adelaide. Image: Alizada Studios/stock.adobe.com.
The IQA’s national conference for the quarrying industry is set for Adelaide. Quarry sits down with James Rowe to see what’s in store.
The quarrying industry will descend upon Adelaide later this year as the City of Churches hosts the Institute of Quarrying Australia’s national conference.
The major industry event will take place from October 15-17 at the Adelaide Convention Centre with a jam-packed, three-day calendar prepared for attendees.
With a theme of “Create and Innovate”, the conference will celebrate the best achievements and quarrying’s role in contributing to sustainability and net-zero goals.
Quarry met with James Rowe, the chairperson of the IQA’s National Conference, to discuss the conference and its importance for the sector.
Q: How are you feeling ahead of the IQA Conference in Adelaide later this year?
JR: Excited! The IQA Conference, I feel is the best opportunity we get as an industry to come together. The IQA Conference Committee has pulled together an interesting program featuring technological advancements, regulatory insights, technical presentations, and a social program which I am sure will exceed all other conferences.
Why are these events important for the quarrying industry?
The IQA Conference is a platform for all of us within the Essential Construction Materials Industry to meet, collaborate, learn and understand the latest advancements and trends that are leading and challenging our sector.
Personally, I have been lucky enough to attend several IQA National Conferences over the years. They are a great way to catch up with old friends and meet new friends in the industry while staying on the cutting edge of technology and trends that affect our sector.
Hitachi will host an evening event at the National Wine Centre. Image: ymgerman/stock.adobe.com
Can you talk to us about the theme of this year’s event, innovate and create?
When we met as a National Conference Committee, a few different themes were discussed; however, Innovate and Create was a premier selection. ‘Innovate’ is based upon the sector’s continual learnings regarding advancements in operational applications such as crushing and screening, drill and blast, and the development of innovative and sustainable Heavy Mobile Equipment (HME) together with regulation, rehabilitation, and end-use innovations.
The above examples ‘Create’ opportunities for sharing knowledge as a sector, differing employment opportunities for our up-and-coming quarry people, and discussing challenges that our industry faces from a regulatory perspective.
What can attendees expect to see at the conference this year?
This year, we kick off with a site tour of the historic Boral Stonyfell Quarry. The site hosts Private Mine (SA Tenement) 1, that being it was the first Private Mine to be granted within the state. Most of you would fly into Adelaide overlooking the site. The quarry is iconic as a majority of the raw materials extracted from this quarry in the early days created what is the Adelaide CBD today.
We will undertake a site tour, enjoy lunch, and overlook the awesome views over the CBD of Adelaide. The first evening, we will enjoy the first of three social events with Platinum Partner Hitachi, hosting us at the National Wine Centre. It is a great event and an opportunity to catch up with old friends in a relaxed atmosphere.
On day two, we are grateful to the South Australian Energy and Mining and Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tom Koutsantounis, for giving the Official Opening of the Conference speech together with an industry outlook.
This opening is followed by Claire Madden, one of our Keynote Speakers, delivering an informative presentation relating to the future of work and innovations for attracting people into the workforce. We have several awards to present prior to heading into a Technical Session later in the morning with a blend of presentations on drill and blast (Orica), digital transformation (Eltirus), Kayasand (Concrete Sand Supply) and CJD Equipment.
For the first time, we have a National Regulatory Panel. This is a great platform to hear from our regulators from Queensland, NT, SA, NSW, and Victoria about some of the challenges we face as an industry and the innovations they are taking to streamline our approval processes.
The discussion will also include the interface between extraction and recycling and how this is being managed in each jurisdiction. We then will have our Industry Leaders Panel, which will be well represented with CEOs, COOs, and GMs from the major and independent quarry business leaders collaborating on topics such as technology advancements, sustainability, supply chain optimisation, and addressing challenges as we see them today.
We will then hear from the Institute of Quarrying UK (IQUK) on advancements within the IQUK before Scott Tipping provides us with insight into useful leadership steps. The evening will flow into Platinum Partner Komatsu, showing their blue and white extravaganza at the renowned Adelaide Oval. Komatsu always goes ‘all out’ on social functions, and yet again, it will be a great networking opportunity.
Komatsu will host a social event at Adelaide Oval. Image: Sean Heatley/stock.adobe.com
On day three, we will kick off with Stefan Hajkowicz discussing global megatrends that may have an influence on our sector, followed by the International Presidents Panel. We are lucky to have representatives from the UK, South Africa, NZ, Hong Kong and South Africa in attendance, and this will be a great opportunity to learn what is driving quarrying in their given countries.
Late in the morning, we will have another round of technical sessions followed by innovative presentations by our Platinum Partners in Caterpillar, Komatsu, and Hitachi. We will have an industry legends panel followed by what is promised to be another great Caterpillar Gala Dinner. We know planning is well underway for this finale and are looking forward to seeing delegates’ reactions to what is planned for this evening. After the CAT dinner, if you need more, we even have an after-party at the Strathmore Hotel.
Can you take us through the awards on offer?
Throughout the conference, there are a range of fantastic awards on offer, from operational awards to environmental excellence, safety, community engagement, and leadership. Our sponsors have been very generous with the awards provided, and we encourage any person within the industry to consider applying for the awards for themselves, a colleague, or for what they have achieved as a business at their site.
Caterpillar will host a gala dinner at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Image: Hammad Hassan/Wirestock Creators – stock.adobe.com
Why is Adelaide the host city for the event?
The last IQA National Conference was held in Adelaide in 2015. As a state and on behalf of the SA IQA Branch Committee and the National Conference Committee, we are really excited to showcase South Australia and what we have achieved as an industry over the past nine years since the last conference.
Our social program looks amazing and together with the conference program, we anticipate delegates will head home satisfied with increased technical knowledge and networking opportunities that will present. We also have insight into the Orica Partners Program, which sounds fantastic, so I encourage all delegates to bring their partners along and enjoy what we have on offer.
Q&A with New IQA Chief Executive Officer Jane Schmitt
The quarrying industry is a special sector that largely depends on volunteers to run our branches and sub-branches. I would like to take the opportunity to thank all of our conference committee for your dedication in pulling together an awesome event, along with our IQA staff, who have been instrumental in delivering this conference.
Again, to our sponsors, we thank you for your ongoing support of our industry and the provision of funds to make this conference realise its potential. Lastly, on behalf of the committee, to the companies that invest in their people to attend the IQA National Conference and grow their knowledge, thank you for investing in your people.•
For more information, visit iqa.eventsair.com/2024iqaconference
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