Striker Crushing and Screening founder Craig Pedley spoke to Quarry about how differences between states can influence the industry.
What was the most important lesson the business learnt from 2024?
Following a set plan for innovation that does not need to be based on new technology. Based on operator and maintenance personal feedback, some of the best innovations come from lessons learned in the past and then using those lessons to make product upgrades.
We have also focused heavily on increasing our in-house manufacturing capabilities to ensure we have the resources to be more self-sufficient in our manufacturing processes in Australia and less reliant on external sources.
What do you think is the biggest issue facing the quarrying industry?
Training and knowledge: Over the last decade, the number of experienced quarry workers has decreased. A new generation of quarry operators is emerging, and they will need a lot of knowledge from the old-timers.
Harnessing this knowledge will be critical to the industry’s success over the next couple of decades. Organisations like the Institute of Quarrying Australia (IQA) will and should play a crucial part by setting up initiatives like mentor programs and training programs that focus on taking the knowledge of existing and past operators and passing it on to the new generation.
How is your team helping to solve this problem?
In-house training sessions for our team and creating training programs alongside some of our long-term existing customers.
What innovations from your business are you most excited by?
This is not so much an innovation as a change in direction for our manufacturing going forward. We have set up a dedicated manufacturing facility in Western Australia to supplement what we do in Malaysia and Thailand. This will give us greater flexibility to react faster, reduce turnaround times on spare parts, and reduce lead times for projects and customers.
Do you see the crushing and screening sector changing much in the years to come?
The West Australian market is different to the east coast markets. A lot of what happens in WA is not only based around government roads and infrastructure projects but also around mine site requirements. Things like road base for haul roads and aggregate for stemming all need to be made by “on-site quarries”, and as such, the demand for 24/7 operations requires machines that have a longer life cycle than the traditional 1600 hours a year. We have several quarry customers that operate seven days a week, 24 hours a day, and have taken advantage of the Striker range. I see this increasing as a new “quarry industry”.
The need to increase capacities from existing quarries will also be needed as the West Australian population rises and more sub-divisions are brought online. This has also been the case in Victoria, where the set-up of “satellite quarries” using rock sourced on the housing development site is used to make the road base for the development and, in doing so, is saving development contractors large sums of money not having to purchase from fixed quarries and transport long distances to their sites.
Crushing and screening is a competitive space. How have you created a unique identity within it?
We have created a product range that is flexible in configuration. With our Striker, 90 per cent of the Striker range can be either electric or diesel-hydraulic and can be converted from track to modular plant to suit the client’s needs.
We believe in being different and changing the norm, not just following what the big guys are doing. We feel that most of the innovations from Europe and the USA are based on their needs rather than the needs of Australian customers.
What does your company have planned for 2025?
We are launching several new products after conducting extensive research and development over the past 18 months. These include the new ECOMIX 610, a pugmill-based machine that can be used for soil stabilisation, making cement from bitumen-stabilised road base, and making paste mixes in mining applications.
We will also release the new model track impactor in 2025. This upgraded version of the Striker HQR1112 will now feature an increased crusher capacity, an optional double-deck sizing screen with dual radial stackers, increased power, and increased feed hopper capacities. We will also release the upgraded telescopic stacker range and track stacker range in 2025, so it will be a busy year with lots of further upgrades, research and development.•
For more information, visit strikercrushing.com
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