Pit & Quarry, February 2019
TRAINING Quarry Academy included a tour of Cemexs Balcones Quarry in Texas manager of stone at Dyno Nobel Its not about price but about costs If you can be efficient with costs thats an important part of the process A lot of learning goes on after the formal sessions are over between the networking and discussions of people in the industry As for the more intimate workshop sessions topics covered include drilling in depth blasting 101 blasting in depth crushing and screening best practices putting the plant together operator efficiency tools and methods for process improvement and UAV unmanned aerial vehicle applications for the quarry industry We try to take every look at the process and improve upon it so youre getting optimum results selling the lowest cost product at the highest quality Heinemann says THE EVENTS EVOLUTION As the industry has evolved over the years so too has the planning that goes into the event Weve adjusted quite a bit over the years Heinemann says Thirteen years ago we didnt talk about drones but today its a pretty big deal As technology advances weve tried to keep up with that Quarry Academy which is hosted every November in San Antonio also addresses key industry issues faced by producers and manufacturers alike To a certain degree this event helps with labor Camodeca says Technology in our industry is here and its moving so fast To keep up on the cutting edge this event is helpful I think from that perspective its going to be important getting people up to speed Quarry Academy is more than just educational lectures and workshop sessions though The event concludes with a visit to Cemexs Balcones Quarry in nearby New Braunfels Texas The visit to the 2400 acre Balcones Quarry provides attendees the opportunity to get a firsthand look at the largest crushed stone producing quarry in the United States According to the United States Geological Survey the Balcones Quarry produces 10 12 million tpy Weve often said anybody that comes to this event and isnt able to take away at least one thing wed refund the cost of the event Heinemann says Weve never had to do that As you listen and watch the presentations theres a lot of very small changes you can make and as long as you can sustain them were talking big big savings We call these value creation moments As both Sandvik and Dyno Nobel look ahead to the 14th installment of Quarry Academy in 2019 planning for the event is already underway The planning starts as were able to compile survey information see where we did well and how we can improve this event Camodeca says Were constantly tweaking this program The biggest thing we took away from 2018 is people still want more engagement Well be adding workshops and exploring how we can get more engagement in the main room during lectures We work really hard to establish the Quarry Academy brand and promote it P Q 76 PIT QUARRY February 2019 pitandquarry com
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