Mining boom spurs tech revolution at Japanese giant Komatsu

One of the world’s biggest equipment makers wants to hire more staff for its hi-tech Queensland operations as it rides the mining boom with driverless trucks, bulldozers and drones.

Heavy equipment giant Komatsu is on the recruitment drive in Queensland as it rides a mining boom driven by autonomous vehicles, drones and electric power plants.

The Tokyo-based company, which recently celebrated its centenary, opened a $48m distribution and innovation hub in March at its Wacol headquarters and is in the process of hiring 20 apprentices across the state.

The centre services its rapidly expanding fleet of vehicles that can include anything from a $15,000 mini excavator to a giant $15m rope shovel.

Komatsu Australia general manager for business development Todd Connolly said advances in heavy equipment technology was driving productivity across both mining and construction sectors. For example autonomous trucks, which were increasingly being used in Bowen Basin coal mines, were more fuel efficient because they were able to communicate with each other to achieve optimal speed and avoid bottlenecks.

Driverless bulldozers working in tandem with overflying drones meanwhile achieved the most efficient excavation of a building site or mine, reducing both cost and time.

Komatsu will look to increase its 1000-strong work force in Queensland as it meets buoyant demand across both the mining and construction sectors.

Komatsu has seen a 60 per cent growth in machine sales in Queensland over the past year, assembling over 700 units at locations in Brisbane and Mackay.

General manager Todd Connolly at the Komatsu showroom in Wacol. Picture: Tertius Pickard

The company earlier this year hired 50 additional workers at its new 17,500 sq m distribution hub at Wacol - the biggest building the company has ever opened in Australia - to supply parts and equipment across Australasia.

The company also is on a drive to recruit more than 80 apprentices across Australia for its 2023 apprentice intake. In Queensland, 20 positions are available in Brisbane, Rockhampton, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Townsville and Cairns.

Future apprentices in the construction and mining sectors will learn about smart construction, including robotics, electric and driverless vehicles.

“Demand is strong across both mining and construction,” says Mr Connolly as he inspects the interior of the cavernous hub where parts are stacked several stories high.

“The role apprentices are entering today will be a lot different from what it will be in a couple of years,” he said.

He said cloud computing now allowed mechanics and engineers to connect with a machine and determine what needed to be done before they even left their workshop.

“They may establish that a part needed to be replaced or oil levels were low,” said Mr Connolly. “So these days it is not a matter of just turning up with your tools and not knowing what needs to be done.”

Komatsu was founded by businessman Meitaro Takeuchi in 1922 who knew the copper mine he ran could not sustain the economy of his local town once the resource was depleted.

He decided to diversify his business by opening a metal pressing plant before later moving into heavy equipment. The company now has 65,000 employees globally.

Mr Connolly said the company will train more than 10,000 technicians and apprentices over the next decade, exposing them to the latest in technology and safety innovations.

Apprentices Jada Standfield and Joel Wass at Komatsu in Wacol. Picture: Tertius Pickard

He said that despite the increasing sophistication of automated vehicles some things never changed. He said the company’s apprentices were recently involved in restoring a 46-year-old Komatsu excavator found rusting in a paddock.

“It’s called the Wombat and when launched in 1976 it appeared on the cover of the Earthmover magazine,” said Mr Connolly. “It was found in a paddock and had not been running for 16 years – but when they fitted a new battery it started first go.”

Mr Connolly said that after checking the serial number a long servicing Komatsu employee, Trevor Jackson who still works at the company to this day, realised it was the exact machine he has worked on as an apprentice.

Many of the parts needed to restore the Wombat were not available and had to be 3D printed. Komatsu has nearly 7,000 machines operating in Queensland – about 20 per cent of the total Komatsu machine fleet in Australia.

Komatsu is looking to acquire advanced technology as it expand its range of vehicles. Earlier this month it agreed to buy Mine Site Technologies, an Australian software provider for underground mining. Komatsu Australia chief executive Sean Taylor said that over the past 100 years, Komatsu had earned a reputation for using technological innovation.

“As we celebrate Komatsu’s 100th anniversary, and move into our next

century, our vision is to create value through manufacturing and technology innovation,” said Mr Taylor. “This is why we have invested in the hub – to create a place that

demonstrates the amazing technology available today, and illustrates a vision of

tomorrow.”