Dust control management specialist Dust-A-Side (DAS) Australia recently signed an affiliate supply agreement, as part of its global framework agreement with diversified major Anglo American, which will see DAS Australia continuing to offer haul road management for 400 000 m2 of permanent haul- and access roads at Anglo’s 11-million ton-a-year Capcoal mine until the end of next year.

DAS Australia GM Neil Hoskin notes that the company started offering its services at Capcoal in 2010, stating that the signing of the new contract is testament to the sterling performance of DAS site manager John Lee and his team.

Meanwhile, DAS recently started a trial project at Australian energy company Origin Energy’s flagship Australia Pacific Liquefied Natural Gas project in Western Queensland. Hoskin notes that this is an exciting milestone for the company and a first-time foray into the oil and gas industry for DAS Australia.

DAS is responsible for stabilising and sealing a 1-km-long section of road shoulders at the project, which were previously 5.3 m wide and resulted in passing vehicles driving onto the unsealed road shoulders and kicking up a significant amount of dust.
The company will be extending the width by 1.5 m on either side, which will successfully reduce dust levels, road maintenance and dust suppression costs.

Business Expansion
In September last year DAS started haul- and access road treatment at ASX-listed miner Hillgrove Resources’ Kanmantoo copper mine using the companies Hydrotac dust-control formulation, which is a more readily available product and offers excellent binding properties.
DAS was awarded the contract off the back of a successful 3-month trial, which now sees the company supplying dust control products, equipment and technical support for over 200 000 m2 of haul and access road at Kanmantoo.

The company also successfully completed a 4-month trial of its Hydrotac formulation at ASX-listed miner Whitehaven Coal’s Maules Creek operation, in New South Wales. During the Greenfield construction phase of the project, DAS supplied dust suppression products, equipment and technical support on about 140 000 m2 of haul- and access road. The trial has resulted in ongoing product and service supply to Maules Creek.

Further, as part of DAS’s commitment to the expansion of its products in Australia the company established a dedicated 350 000 ℓ storage facility in Brisbane, which has significantly improved product availability in the country.

Fit For Business
“Dust-A-Side Australia’s business has grown organically since entering into the market. The company’s growth has been supported through its haul road maintenance offering to its existing customers, as well as the implementation of dust control projects with new customers,” he points out.

Hoskin points out that the high cost of operating in Australia and the difficult market conditions in the mining industry is prompting DAS Australia to “renew its focus on being fit-for-business in the Australian market.

“The company needed viable alternatives to compete with other technologies and suppliers in the market,” Hoskin says, noting that this resulted in DAS Australia’s developing its Hydrotac dust-control formulation.

He points out that Hydrotac, a solution that offers competitive pricing to the Australian market, has proven to be a popular dust-control solution for Australia’s mining and heavy-industry sectors.

The success of Hydrotac has provided DAS with invaluable insight into the requirement of Australia’s mining operations and Hoskin states that DAS will continue to expand its range of temporary dust-control products for use on high-traffic “in-pit” roads.

The company will also consider furthering its capabilities in polymer-based technology, which will result in the development of “best-in-class solutions for access roads and niche applications”, Hoskin asserts, adding that new technologies, coupled with a move into complementary services, will pay dividends in increasing DAS’s market share in Australia.

“DAS is set to evolve its business to meet the needs of the different territories in Australia and the changing market conditions,” he concludes.

Dust-A-Side
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