After spending over 14 years working in underground mine maintenance and drilling optimization, I’ve accumulated a fair share of hard-earned lessons. I started as a trades assistant fresh out of trade school and eventually led maintenance teams at multiple mine sites. Those years taught me not only how to fix machines, but also how to approach the job to achieve the best results. Now, as the Director of PeakCPM Services, I draw on those lessons daily to help mining clients improve safety, reliability, and cost-efficiency. Here are a few key lessons from the field that I’d like to share – insights that shaped my philosophy and could hopefully benefit others in our industry.
1. Safety Isn’t Just a Priority – It’s a ValueEarly in my career, I learned that it’s not enough to talk about safety; it has to be woven into the fabric of every task. Priorities can change with production pressures, but core values stay constant. Treat safety as a non-negotiable value. In practice, this means never walking past a hazard without addressing it, always taking the time to do a job safely (even if it slows you down), and empowering every crew member to speak up about risks. I was once involved in an incident investigation where a rush to get a conveyor running led to a serious injury – a stark reminder that no deadline justifies endangering lives. From that day, I’ve championed the idea that “we plan the work to make it safe, rather than hoping safety somehow fits in around the work.” In building PeakCPM, we adopted a zero-harm mindset, maintaining strict safety and compliance standards in every project. The result is not only fewer injuries, but a team culture where everyone looks out for each other. When safety is truly a value, productivity actually improves – because a safe mine is an efficient mine in the long run.
2. Do It Right the First Time
If there’s one maintenance mantra I live by, it’s this: “Fix it right, or fix it twice.” Early on, I made the mistake of applying a quick patch to a haul truck’s cooling system to avoid a delay – only for the hose to blow later and cause a much longer downtime. Cutting corners in maintenance or repairs nearly always backfires. The lesson is to maintain high standards and quality of work even if it takes a bit more time upfront. This includes using the correct tools, proper procedures (torquing bolts to spec, for example), and quality replacement parts. Rigorous maintenance and quality control not only prevent repeat failures – they significantly reduce unexpected breakdowns. In my field days, I kept a simple rule with my team: if you open up a piece of equipment, fix everything that’s needed while you’re in there. Don’t leave small issues unresolved. A mine site is no place for “deferred maintenance.” By doing the job properly the first time, we avoided a lot of headaches and midnight call-outs. This principle has saved clients of PeakCPM untold hours of downtime and repair costs, reinforcing for me that thoroughness and pride in workmanship pay off.
3. Training and Knowledge Sharing are Powerful
One person might be an expert mechanic or driller, but one person alone can’t carry a whole operation. Training others and sharing knowledge multiplies the team’s effectiveness. I was fortunate to have seasoned mentors who took me under their wing. For instance, a veteran electrician once walked me through a jumbo drill’s entire electrical system after hours; that crash course meant that months later I could troubleshoot and fix an electrical fault underground in minutes, whereas I’d have been stumped otherwise. That experience cemented for me the importance of upskilling every crew member. Over the years, I made it a point to cross-train our fitters in basic electrical and our electricians in basic mechanics, as well as coaching operators on daily maintenance checks. The result was a more flexible, resilient team. At PeakCPM, we carry this forward by providing on-site training to clients’ crews, transferring our know-how so they can be more self-sufficient. Seeing a young operator or fitter grow in confidence and capability is one of the most rewarding parts of the job. Plus, a well-trained team is safer and faster – they get things right more often and bounce back from issues more quickly. In short, invest time in your people; it’s the best investment you’ll make.
4. The Right Parts Make a Big Difference
Early in my career, I sometimes opted for the cheaper spare part to save money – a decision I often regretted. I vividly recall installing a non-OEM hydraulic pump on a loader to cut costs; it failed within weeks, whereas the genuine part ran flawlessly for years after we replaced it. The lesson: quality parts and consumables pay for themselves. High-quality components last longer and perform better under harsh mining conditions. This reduces both the frequency of repairs and the risk of catastrophic failures. It also means machines run at optimal efficiency (for example, good drill bits maintain fast penetration rates, keeping productivity up). Over 14 years, I came to insist on using the right part for the job – not only in terms of quality, but specification. If a drill rig calls for a certain grade of oil or a specific type of drill bit for hard rock, using exactly that will yield the best results. “Better parts improve your cost per metre,” as I often say, because they contribute to more uptime and output for the same work. This philosophy is a core part of PeakCPM’s service: we advise clients on smarter consumable choices and proper maintenance practices to cut their operating costs without compromising performance. It might not seem as heroic as fixing a major breakdown, but preventing that breakdown by using the right $50 part is the unsung win that keeps a mine on track.
5. Plan Ahead and Be Proactive
In underground mining maintenance, being reactive is a recipe for stress and lost production. I learned (sometimes the hard way) the value of planning and proactive management. This ranges from having a robust maintenance schedule to stocking critical spares in advance, to even planning the layout of your workshop and parts storage for efficiency. One of my proudest turnarounds was at a mine where unplanned equipment downtime was rampant. We implemented a 80/20 planned vs reactive maintenance approach, set up a better inventory of spares, and scheduled brief daily meetings between operations and maintenance to anticipate needs. The change was dramatic – breakdown incidents dropped and our mechanical availability climbed steadily. The broader lesson is foresight: look for what could go wrong and address it before it does. If you notice an engine running a bit hot today, don’t wait for it to overheat tomorrow – investigate and fix it during the next available window. If you have a big drilling campaign coming, plan out the consumables and back-up equipment you might need. I often remind younger colleagues that maintenance isn’t just about wrench turning; it’s about thinking ahead. This proactive mindset extends to safety and training as well. It’s about creating an environment where potential problems are caught and resolved early – the essence of being “led by field experience, driven by results,” as we say at PeakCPM.
Final Thoughts
Fourteen years underground taught me that mines are built as much on people and practices as on ore and machines. By valuing safety, doing quality work, sharing knowledge, using good parts, and planning proactively, we created stronger, more efficient operations time after time. These lessons aren’t revolutionary concepts – they are simple principles, proven through experience. Now, with PeakCPM Services, my mission is to help other mining teams apply these principles to achieve their goals. Whether it’s drilling more metres at lower cost, slashing downtime, or improving safety performance, it boils down to the fundamentals above. In my experience, when you get those fundamentals right, the results will follow. Every challenge in mining can be met with the right combination of experience, training, and a relentless commitment to improvement. And as I continue to learn (because the learning truly never stops in this field), I’m excited to pass on those lessons to the next generation of miners and maintainers, so we all achieve peak performance together.
1. Safety Isn’t Just a Priority – It’s a Value
Early in my career, I learned that it’s not enough to talk about safety; it has to be woven into the fabric of every task. Priorities can change with production pressures, but core values stay constant. Treat safety as a non-negotiable value. In practice, this means never walking past a hazard without addressing it, always taking the time to do a job safely (even if it slows you down), and empowering every crew member to speak up about risks. I was once involved in an incident investigation where a rush to get a conveyor running led to a serious injury – a stark reminder that no deadline justifies endangering lives. From that day, I’ve championed the idea that “we plan the work to make it safe, rather than hoping safety somehow fits in around the work.” In building PeakCPM, we adopted a zero-harm mindset, maintaining strict safety and compliance standards in every project. The result is not only fewer injuries, but a team culture where everyone looks out for each other. When safety is truly a value, productivity actually improves – because a safe mine is an efficient mine in the long run.
2. Do It Right the First Time
If there’s one maintenance mantra I live by, it’s this: “Fix it right, or fix it twice.” Early on, I made the mistake of applying a quick patch to a haul truck’s cooling system to avoid a delay – only for the hose to blow later and cause a much longer downtime. Cutting corners in maintenance or repairs nearly always backfires. The lesson is to maintain high standards and quality of work even if it takes a bit more time upfront. This includes using the correct tools, proper procedures (torquing bolts to spec, for example), and quality replacement parts. Rigorous maintenance and quality control not only prevent repeat failures – they significantly reduce unexpected breakdowns. In my field days, I kept a simple rule with my team: if you open up a piece of equipment, fix everything that’s needed while you’re in there. Don’t leave small issues unresolved. A mine site is no place for “deferred maintenance.” By doing the job properly the first time, we avoided a lot of headaches and midnight call-outs. This principle has saved clients of PeakCPM untold hours of downtime and repair costs, reinforcing for me that thoroughness and pride in workmanship pay off.
3. Training and Knowledge Sharing are Powerful
One person might be an expert mechanic or driller, but one person alone can’t carry a whole operation. Training others and sharing knowledge multiplies the team’s effectiveness. I was fortunate to have seasoned mentors who took me under their wing. For instance, a veteran electrician once walked me through a jumbo drill’s entire electrical system after hours; that crash course meant that months later I could troubleshoot and fix an electrical fault underground in minutes, whereas I’d have been stumped otherwise. That experience cemented for me the importance of upskilling every crew member. Over the years, I made it a point to cross-train our fitters in basic electrical and our electricians in basic mechanics, as well as coaching operators on daily maintenance checks. The result was a more flexible, resilient team. At PeakCPM, we carry this forward by providing on-site training to clients’ crews, transferring our know-how so they can be more self-sufficient. Seeing a young operator or fitter grow in confidence and capability is one of the most rewarding parts of the job. Plus, a well-trained team is safer and faster – they get things right more often and bounce back from issues more quickly. In short, invest time in your people; it’s the best investment you’ll make.
4. The Right Parts Make a Big Difference
Early in my career, I sometimes opted for the cheaper spare part to save money – a decision I often regretted. I vividly recall installing a non-OEM hydraulic pump on a loader to cut costs; it failed within weeks, whereas the genuine part ran flawlessly for years after we replaced it. The lesson: quality parts and consumables pay for themselves. High-quality components last longer and perform better under harsh mining conditions. This reduces both the frequency of repairs and the risk of catastrophic failures. It also means machines run at optimal efficiency (for example, good drill bits maintain fast penetration rates, keeping productivity up). Over 14 years, I came to insist on using the right part for the job – not only in terms of quality, but specification. If a drill rig calls for a certain grade of oil or a specific type of drill bit for hard rock, using exactly that will yield the best results. “Better parts improve your cost per metre,” as I often say, because they contribute to more uptime and output for the same work. This philosophy is a core part of PeakCPM’s service: we advise clients on smarter consumable choices and proper maintenance practices to cut their operating costs without compromising performance. It might not seem as heroic as fixing a major breakdown, but preventing that breakdown by using the right $50 part is the unsung win that keeps a mine on track.
5. Plan Ahead and Be Proactive
In underground mining maintenance, being reactive is a recipe for stress and lost production. I learned (sometimes the hard way) the value of planning and proactive management. This ranges from having a robust maintenance schedule to stocking critical spares in advance, to even planning the layout of your workshop and parts storage for efficiency. One of my proudest turnarounds was at a mine where unplanned equipment downtime was rampant. We implemented a 80/20 planned vs reactive maintenance approach, set up a better inventory of spares, and scheduled brief daily meetings between operations and maintenance to anticipate needs. The change was dramatic – breakdown incidents dropped and our mechanical availability climbed steadily. The broader lesson is foresight: look for what could go wrong and address it before it does. If you notice an engine running a bit hot today, don’t wait for it to overheat tomorrow – investigate and fix it during the next available window. If you have a big drilling campaign coming, plan out the consumables and back-up equipment you might need. I often remind younger colleagues that maintenance isn’t just about wrench turning; it’s about thinking ahead. This proactive mindset extends to safety and training as well. It’s about creating an environment where potential problems are caught and resolved early – the essence of being “led by field experience, driven by results,” as we say at PeakCPM.
Final Thoughts
Fourteen years underground taught me that mines are built as much on people and practices as on ore and machines. By valuing safety, doing quality work, sharing knowledge, using good parts, and planning proactively, we created stronger, more efficient operations time after time. These lessons aren’t revolutionary concepts – they are simple principles, proven through experience. Now, with PeakCPM Services, my mission is to help other mining teams apply these principles to achieve their goals. Whether it’s drilling more metres at lower cost, slashing downtime, or improving safety performance, it boils down to the fundamentals above. In my experience, when you get those fundamentals right, the results will follow. Every challenge in mining can be met with the right combination of experience, training, and a relentless commitment to improvement. And as I continue to learn (because the learning truly never stops in this field), I’m excited to pass on those lessons to the next generation of miners and maintainers, so we all achieve peak performance together.
