The Mining Blog

AIMEX 2007 was held at Sydney’s Olympic Park from 4 September to 7 September 2007. AIMEX is one of the largest mining exhibitions held in the world, and it is certainly Australia’s biggest.

Last time it was held in 2003, over 10,000 unique visitors attended the event. For those people that cannot make it to AIMEX, I will post some pictures on The Mining Blog.

AIMEX is an exhibition of BIG stuff and little stuff.  On the left is a picture of a BIG Atlas Copco Drill - I couldn’t even get the whole mast in the picture.

The mood at this year’s AIMEX is quite different to the one held in 2003.  This year, the general talk by many suppliers is that they wish that they had more resources to supply more of their product and / or service.  The mining boom is evident in the discussions going on in the halls.

At the exhibition, Bucyrus announced that the ‘DBT’ name would be replaced by the Bucyrus name effective 1 January 2008.  On the right is one of the Bucyrus / DBT longwall shields bound for China.

It was also interesting to see the number of new players in the underground mining scene.  One that surprised quite a few people was Valley Longwall International.  This group certainly has come a long way from its humble beginnings, and now incorporates the original Valley Longwall, Specialised Mining Equipment (SME), Specialized Mining Vehicles (SMV), Pit Top Conveyors, Tyton Conveyors, Uni-Rod, Juganaut and NBM.

To coincide with AIMEX, we are offering $50 off our Mining Marketing Consulations.  At $447, you will get some great insights into marketing to the Australian mining industry.  You can ask us just about any question relating to marketing to the Australian Mining Industry and you will get quick, professional advice.

Like our mottos says, we “open the doors to the Australian Mining Industry”.  What are you waiting for?

Get your Mining Marketing Consulation now

Anyway, back to the photos.  On the left is a picture of Joy’s new 2-metre support that was at the entrance to AIMEX.  Yes it is a monster.

Another aspect that I noticed (and quite a few others also mentioned to me) was that there was a noticeable absense of the really BIG open-cut mining equipment.

At AIMEX 2003, there was at least one really big truck.  There was also lots of other equipment being displayed in 2003.  I remember that MMD had a few sizers there.

The general consensus from the people that I spoke to was that companies were flat out keeping up with their orders, so they had no spare equipment to show off.

OK, lastly, I thought I would show a picture of a big bucket - with me in it! Pretty big teeth, huh? On the bucket, that is!

I was told that this bucket weighed about 40 tonnes.

Anyway, that will have to be it for now.  If you have any photos from AIMEX that you would like to share, feel free to send them to us.

In the mean time, don’t forget to get your Mining Marketing Consulation while we have the special offer running.

The Queensland Mining and Engineering Exhibition was opened in Mackay yesterday by the Queensland Deputy Premier, Anna Bligh.

Ms Bligh said that mining is the powerhouse behind Queensland’s current economic success story, with economic growth in Queensland this financial year forecast to be well ahead of the 2.5 percent forecast for the nation.

Ms Bligh said that “a big factor in this has been due to our booming resources sector. The global appetite for our coal and mining is at an all time high and prices are continuing at a high level.”

“Fuelled by massive demand from China, India and an economically resurgent Japan, Queensland’s crude metals, including coal, metalliferous ores, petroleum and other crude minerals, and processed minerals and metals totalled to $24 billion in 2004/05, which is 31 percent of the nation’s total mining exports.”

Ms Bligh said of this $24 billion, $9.5 billion was in coal exports and Queensland is the largest single coal-exporting province in the world, supplying more than 20 percent of the world’s seaborne coal to 34 countries.

“But it’s not all just about the resources we pull out from the ground and export around the world - Queensland is also emerging as a major player in mining services,” she said.

“Queensland has developed world-class equipment and services around mining that deliver process improvement and reduced costs in an industry, which by its very nature, is resource-intensive.

“The Queensland’s market for mining services generates revenue of about $1.1 billion a year in turnover.”

There will be 460 exhibitors at the Exhibition. The last time this event was held in 2004, almost 8,000 people visited the exhibition.

This year, there is also a live webcam at the show.

For those of us that are not able to visit this year, post a comment to let us know your experience at the exhibition. Tell us what you liked or didn’t like.

Calvin Close
miningreference.com - Australia’s Premier Mining Directory