I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m an optimist. I’m of the belief that, if you want a positive outcome, an optimistic attitude is the bare minimum requirement to see it through. In this industry, and many others with tides like it, it just makes sense to keep that in mind, even if sometimes it sits in…
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At the risk of sounding cliché, this year seems to have flown by. If you are one of the many readers of NAM taking in this column in Las Vegas for MINExpo International 2024, this serves as your reminder that the final quarter of the calendar year starts the week following the show. Time for projects to tie up loose…
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It’s true: There’s no real definition of a “normal day” in mining anymore. Operators now worry about so many more factors than they used to – how to power equipment more efficiently, how to reduce the mine’s footprint, how to save even more money and, of course, how to continue a journey of constant improvement overall. This is all while…
Read MoreIn the very hours I write this column, the American mining community is marking Stand Down to Save Lives, an annual initiative called by federal regulators to bring attention to the need for eliminating safety and health hazards and mine sites. In its May 13 announcement of the May 22 effort MSHA noted that, at that time, 12 fewer miners…
Read MoreAs mining news headlines go, just as in life, you should always look for the positive. Markets will wane, production numbers will drop, but a higher tide is always around the bend in this uber-cyclical industry. Right now, amid an issue that highlights critical minerals, there is a trend of encouraging news for lithium projects. In early April, Surge Battery…
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Having the government’s help with anything involving mining has been difficult if not impossible for, well, much of recent memory. In fact, there have arguably been more attempts to squash the industry than to help it. From the files of “news we did not think we’d hear today” comes a recent announcement that the U.S. Department of Energy will be…
Read MoreThis editor is known for her collection of T-shirts emblazoned with sayings, my favorite being, “I am silently correcting your grammar.” Fitting, amiright? I have another, though, given to me some time ago from a coal company that has their name on the front, and the back reading, “My blood runs black.” I’ve often used that in my personal and…
Read MoreIt’s said that one should look at life through the windshield, not the rearview mirror; the latter is smaller for a reason. It seems apropos to offer that point as we look out over the coming year in mining since it is a new opportunity to work safely and productively as new benchmarks are set for success. In December, a…
Read MoreSupport. A simple concept, but in truth it can be complex. One can support themselves, but it is much easier when there are others around to share support for one another. When that support is for the same main goal…well, that is a win-win. The next time you attend an industry conference, look around. The speaker may be from operations,…
Read MoreThe skills gap has been a long-standing issue in mining. Generational employment has lessened over decades and has left the industry in a competition like never before to gain and retain safe and productive hires. Beyond mining’s front lines, the outlook doesn’t improve. Many industry experts in niche areas – think ventilation, ground control, modeling and planning, processing, and more…
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