Although most attendees were fronting up after the very successful and always popular Caterpillar Gala Dinner the evening before, the auction was well attended.
The function kicked off with the presentation of several awards. From the AIQEF perspective, the most important award was the Alex Northover Award. The finalists were Chris Nixon and Brett Dunstan, with the AIQEF’s outgoing chairman Greg Goodsir presenting the $2500 award to Brett Dunstan.
The other awards presented were the IQA Service Award, the Hyundai Award for best technical paper and an IQA Honorary Fellow presentation. {{image2-A:R-w:300}}
After the awards presentation, brunch was served and the crowd were entertained by magician and comedian Jay Jay who managed to confuse and amaze the group with his sleight of hand.
Then it was on to the main function of the morning, the AIQEF Auction. This year there were 21 donated items on offer, ranging from the offer of a 3D model of the winning bidder’s quarry to jewellery and framed sketches prepared by the partners on the Orica Ladies Day.
The auction was very ably conducted by professional auctioneer Graham Messer who donated his time to ensure the “public sale” went off successfully. In all, the AIQEF raised about $21,000, which will be used to assist the Foundation with funding training initiatives for employees in the extractive industries.
Earlier that morning the AIQEF held its 2014 AGM. At this meeting three long-serving members – Greg Goodsir, John Malempre and Dennis Staley – stood down from the AIQEF Council and Danny Duke was elected as the new chairman.
The AIQEF has enjoyed the devoted service of Greg, John and Dennis for many years. The Foundation, along with the IQA and the industry at large, owe them a debt of gratitude for their time and effort in the management of the Foundation, which has enabled it to make considerable grants to support industry training initiatives.
The AIQEF Council members thank all donors and bidders for their contribution to the Foundation’s fundraising efforts.
Without their support, the AIQEF would be unlikely to continue to provide funding of up to $200,000 per annum for training initiatives as it has done for the past few years.
Peter Mayo is the AIQEF honorary secretary/treasurer.