“My favorite job is drilling; the newer drills are really nice, so that makes life underground much better.

Mining has changed a lot since I first started. We went from hand drills to big hydraulic units, which are about ten times faster. Mining with the old method was a little more interesting because a man always had a partner.

With new technology, you have all this fancy equipment but you are by yourself all day.

Truck drivers and scoop drivers interact with other drivers, but when you are off on your own somewhere, with a McLean bolter or a Jumbo, you see your partner a couple times a shift, and your supervisor and that is about it.

When we were mining old-style, we were beside our partner almost all day. If we were drilling up a drift-round, we were within arms reach of each other. When we were advancing, we were side by side, keeping an eye on each other the whole time that the round was drilled off, and then we did some bolting, and loaded up the ore at the end of the shift. We did everything as a team. It is more isolated now – you have a two-way radio for a partner!

“My position is that of coordinator, so I do not spend all my time training. We have been doing a lot more training at Myra Falls, not just in the underground but over the whole property. We know that training is essential to ensuring that we have the skilled workers for years to come. I am very optimistic about Myra Falls and looking forward to helping this mine become an even better place to work.