The tour party consisted of IQA members from five of Australia’s six states – New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia – and included managers of quarry and related operations, consultants to the industry and a mines inspector.
The 17-strong group started the tour in Nottingham on 30 April, touring the Terex Trucks factory in Motherwell, Scotland where delegates were given the opportunity to test drive the TA400 and TR100 models.
They then moved to Ireland where they visited the McCloskey Washing Systems factory in County Tyrone on 5 May to meet its director Sean Loughran and his team.
“The IQA study tour of the McCloskey international European headquarters was a great success,” McCloskey visitor co-ordinator and sales support Suzanne Dynes told Quarry.
{{image2-a:l-w:202}}{{image3-a:l-w:202}}{{image4-a:l-w:202}}“The visitors got the opportunity to view the production lines where McCloskey crushers, screens, stackers and washing systems are assembled and also to discuss the features and benefits of all McCloskey machines with our experienced engineering team.”
The tour also included visits to the Terex Finlay crushing and screening equipment factory and the CDE Global’s high tech sand and aggregates washing equipment factory, also in County Tyrone.
Commenting on the IQA Centenary Tour, tour leader Danny Duke – an IQA member since 1982, former national president from 2001 to 2003, and an honorary fellow of the Institute – told Quarry that considerable interest in a future tour had already been touted.
{{image5-a:l-w:310}}{{image6-a:l-w:310}}“We were given the opportunity to visit four equipment manufacturers’ sites where we were given comprehensive tours and briefings; [we also] did tours of two quite different quarry sites and received an excellent briefing from the IQ head office staff,” Duke said when discussing some of the tour highlights.
“We had a lot of fun and the feedback I got was all positive. Before I could ask if there was there any interest in participating in a future tour I was asked, "Where are we going next time?" Planning is underway.”
The tour party travelled through Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and north Wales from 1 to 11 May, before wrapping up the tour on 12 May.
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