About K3 Northmine

As part of a joint venture partnership, Waiward was awarded the installation of the structural and mechanical components inside the North Headframe. Additionally, they supported their JV partner by ferrying, rigging and hoisting all underground steel through the collar floor (top of shaft) and send it down to underground footprint.

Waiward Scope of Work

Waiward completed the supplying and installing of 3,221 Tons of structural steel comprised of, but stickbuilt, and several PAU’s (Pre- Assembled Units). Further, to meet the strict requirements of site installation, Waiward ensured field fit up by pre-assembling several of the larger components at our fabrication facility before shipping to the site. This included:

• Remove/Demolish head frame sinking steel
  • Modify existing steel to accept permanent structure and mechanical components
• Install Apron Feeder Conveyance system
• Supply and install Surge Bin Modules
• Supply and install Dumpfloor modules
• Supply and install discharge chute
• Supply and install guide tower steel
• Supply and install skip guides
• Supply, hoist/lower and install underground steel
• Assist with commissioning activities

Creating Solutions

Working around/above/within the shaft created a very vertical footprint that presented unique challenges. In order to execute establish concurrent work fronts a bulkhead had to be established and maintained, effectively separately the “above ground” and “underground” works. Towards the end of the project, there was a planned period of time where this bulkhead needed to
be removed to allow for the installation/alignment of the guide system, which inhibited any (near shaft) work from occurring underground. Waiward saw opportunity to establish a safety partition at an alternative location.

Through a collaborative assessment ensuring things like structural integrity, mine ventilation, work access was all considered and satisfied, Waiward designed, fabricated and installed this temp bulkhead which re-established the projects ability to execute work at both fronts concurrently, ultimately saving the project 2 weeks of schedule.

Exceptional Performance

Due to the nature of this particular project, there was a requirement to work with multiple stake holder both above and below ground. It was crucial that all contractors involved established and maintained an very open and working relationships to ensure the success of the project. Further, as there were so many moving parts, the level of scheduling needed to be extremely granular, often times breaking the tasks down to half hour increments.

Therefore, it was prudent that our reporting and schedule accountability was measured by the hour, on a 24 hour basis. Although strenuous, this allowed precise visibility on project execution, timing and associated costs.