EMBODYING THE TIMELESS TRADITION OF THE GOLDFIELDS
EMBODYING THE TIMELESS TRADITION OF THE GOLDFIELDS With a reputation built over 50 years of expertise and integrity, delivering engineering design, construction, and maintenance services to the mineral resources sector, CPC Engineering continues to thrive. We hear more from CEO, Glen Weir Writer: Ed Budds | Project Manager: Thomas Arnold
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ommencing operations from a small office and fabrication workshop in Kambalda, Western Australia (WA) in 1970, CPC Engineering (CPC) has grown impressively into a vertically integrated engineering company that provides design, construction, and maintenance services to the mining, energy, infrastructure, and agriculture industries. The original owners identified a niche within the market for mine and plant maintenance and engineering services in and around Kambalda, particularly for its major client, Western Mining Corporation. In the 1980s and 1990s, CPC gradually expanded its operation to include a machine shop, stainless 2 | APAC Outlook Issue 82
steel fabrication, and a small fleet of mobile cranes, trucks, and light vehicles. In addition to process plant work, CPC patiently expanded into underground maintenance and construction. This side of the business continued to grow until the late 1990s when the company had gained an enviable industry-wide reputation for the design, fabrication, and construction maintenance of mining-related infrastructure projects. “We employ approximately 180 people across our maintenance and operating divisions from offices and workshops located in Port Hedland, Karratha, Kalgoorlie, Esperance, and Albany,” introduces Glen Weir, CEO.
CPC ENGINEERING MINING
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CPC ENGINEERING MINING
“In addition, we employ a further 180 people from our major projects division located in West Perth, which undertakes engineering studies, design, and construction projects,” he sets out. Weir was born in Kalgoorlie, where his father began his career as an underground miner on the Golden Mile, a legendary, highly productive gold-bearing region once known as the ‘richest square mile on Earth’. He brings over 40 years of experience to the minerals resources sector, with expertise spanning all project phases. “There is a special bond between those people who were born, lived, and worked in the Goldfields, and I would say that mining and mineral processing was in my blood,” he recalls fondly.
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JOURNEY OF GROWTH In Australia, the big three mining commodities remain iron ore, copper, and gold. Recently, the industry has seen a dramatic increase in work associated with battery or energy minerals and a near total reduction in work associated with nickel. “The mining and mineral processing industry has always been exciting to work in – the people are larger than life and there is an incredibly diverse range of professions and skillsets required to operate effectively,” Weir assesses. “There have always been new discoveries and the mining industry, in my experience, has always been ready to embrace new technology.” From a CPC perspective, the journey has been one of growth since
Weir joined the company. “We have made our fair share of mistakes along the way, but we now stand at an inflexion point where demand for our services has never been better and is growing,” he affirms. The company regularly carries out strategy sessions and has a clear understanding of what the business looks like in its current state. “Our vision for the near future is clear, and CPC has some serious decisions to make in the next 12 months – the future looks even more exciting than the past,” enthuses Weir.
RESPONSIBLE OPERATIONS Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is central to how CPC operates. “We are committed to fostering a safe, inclusive, and supportive
“THE MINING AND MINERAL PROCESSING I N D U S T R Y H A S A L W AY S B E E N E X C I T I N G T O WORK IN – THE PEOPLE ARE LARGER THAN LIFE A N D T H E R E I S A N I N C R E D I B LY D I V E R S E R A N G E OF PROFESSIONS AND SKILLSETS REQUIRED TO O P E R A T E E F F E C T I V E LY ” – GLEN WEIR, CEO, CPC ENGINEERING
environment for our employees, clients, and the communities in which we work,” Weir asserts. “This includes maintaining a safe and respectful workplace in accordance with the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, whilst promoting diversity across recruitment, development, and leadership.” CPC recognises and respects the rights, interests, and cultural heritage of Indigenous Australians and Traditional Owners, and strives to engage responsibly with communities
connected to its projects. Through local employment, supplier engagement, and community partnerships, the company seeks to deliver lasting social and economic benefits in the regions where it operates. “Supporting employee well-being is also a key priority, with mental health resources and assistance through internal initiatives and external Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) providers, ensuring our people have access to professional support
when needed,” expands Weir. “In addition, we uphold fair labour practices throughout our business and supply chain, maintaining compliance with the Modern Slavery Act 2018 whilst promoting ethical, transparent business conduct.” Moreover, through ongoing stakeholder engagement and responsiveness to community concerns, CPC works to build trust and create positive outcomes for all stakeholders. APAC Outlook Issue 82 | 5
CPC ENGINEERING MINING
SECRETS TO SUCCESS CPC BELIEVES THERE ARE two main factors that differentiate the company from the competition and remain the secrets to its success: • As a private company, CPC is extremely nimble and able to make decisions quickly. It has worked hard to maintain a culture where people are valued and feel like they’re part of a team, not just individuals. As a result, CPC has attracted and retained a team of competent professionals at all levels of the organisation. • Today, CPC remains a vertically integrated company, with a design office in West Perth, a construction division, and an operating division consisting of the five regional workshops. This structure gives CPC access to its clients at all levels and locations and enables the divisions to feed off and support each other. There is no other engineering business in WA that has this capability.
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ENVIRONMENTAL GUARDIANS Parallel to the company’s CSR work, sustainability is integrated into CPC’s approach to project delivery and factors into its firm commitment to operational excellence. “We are committed to minimising our environmental footprint whilst supporting the responsible development of Australia’s natural resources,” Weir tells us. “Through robust environmental management systems, we ensure compliance with all relevant Australian environmental legislation and continuously seek opportunities to improve resource efficiency across our operations.”
Design is compromise. Choose yours carefully.
E
very plant design is a balancing act between the features you want and the budget and schedule you have.
transform our systems, but we can prepare by ensuring we have the data available when we need it.
Once you are in production, the bottlenecks reveal themselves. You can go back and improve on what was deferred, if it makes sense to do so.
Native format engineering deliverables, smart drawings, and metering of energy and raw material inputs, measuring recovery and monitoring plant equipment will simplify digitalisation of the plant and its key systems.
Some compromises are not recoverable, and in today’s world the clearest example is the acquisition of process data.
Before significant equipment packages are awarded, specify open communications protocols, complete tag lists, diagnostics, and internal setpoints.
Today, our data supports faster fault finding, improved reliability, and better production decisions. In the not-toodistant future, it will provide the foundation for the next epoch - AI-driven optimisation, predictive maintenance, and operations.
Get it wrong and the consequences can last beyond the life of the current plant and well into the next.
Capturing a comprehensive dataset costs very little when planned for during the plant design stage. Deficient data acquisition is a lost opportunity, particularly during start up. Retrofitting capability to an operating plant is costly and time-consuming. In our experience, the integration of vendor packages is where today’s plant control systems most often fall short. Too often, valuable diagnostics is locked away in the ‘black box’, and degraded to basic run/alarm status signals. Regardless of how valuable your dataset is to your operations today; it will be worth far more in the future. We can barely imagine artificial intelligence (AI) will
WHO WE ARE WHAT WE DO Process E & I, is a privately owned Western Australian engineering company, based in Perth, specialising in electrical, instrumentation and control (EIC) engineering services. We have successfully delivered projects across Australia and internationally, with experience spanning mining, mineral processing, power infrastructure, materials handling, and associated non-process infrastructure (NPI). Our experience includes Mining projects for Iron Ore, Gold, Nickel, Copper, Lithium Hydroxide, Spodumene, Graphite, Molybdenum, Zinc, Uranium, and Diamonds. We are proud to have partnered with CPC Engineering, directly and indirectly, on multiple projects for over a decade.
Process E & I Pty Ltd, Level 1, 16 Altona Street, West Perth, WA 6005 PO Box 70, West Perth, WA 6872 T +61 8 9344 6030 | www.processei.com.au
CPC ENGINEERING MINING
CPC consistently monitors and reports on environmental performance, enabling it to identify improvements and maintain accountability throughout the business. “We also recognise the importance of biodiversity protection and responsible land stewardship, particularly when working in ecologically sensitive environments, and incorporate environmental safeguards into project planning and execution,” notes Weir. As demand grows for critical minerals and energy storage solutions, the company is proud to support battery-related projects that contribute to Australia’s energy transition. “Our commitment to environmental stewardship, workplace safety, and quality outcomes is further underpinned by our numerous 8 | APAC Outlook Issue 82
“OUR VISION FOR THE NEAR FUTURE IS CLEAR AND CPC HAS SOME SERIOUS DECISIONS TO MAKE IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS – THE FUTURE LOOKS E VEN MORE E XCITING THAN THE PAST” – GLEN WEIR, CEO, CPC ENGINEERING
internationally recognised certifications encompassing environmental management, occupational health and safety management, and quality management.” he emphasises.
DRIVING SOCIAL VALUE One of CPC’s greatest achievements is the founding of First Nation Engineering (FNE), a majority Indigenous-owned engineering company founded by the Carey Group and CPC.
“FNE’s mission is to drive powerful social value and economic improvements for Indigenous people through tangible and long-lasting community programmes across WA,” Weir acclaims. This will be achieved through major and long-term projects with Tier 1 clients. “The initiative has achieved moderate success in the last two years, and it is our goal to mount a major campaign across the mining industry over the next two years
CPC ENGINEERING MINING
Specialised Engineering Services In WA 0474 843 583 info@westde.com.au christian.brekalo@westde.com.au tegan.waller@westde.com.au westdesignandengineering.com.au
West Design & Engineering Pty Ltd brings proven design and engineering expertise to projects across Western Australia, specialising in structural and mechanical piping. Backed by an ISO 9001:2015-certified quality management system, our team delivers reliable, high-standard outcomes on time and on budget. From concept through to completion, we partner with clients to solve complex engineering challenges with precision and care. Based in Kwinana Beach, we’re proud to support industry with practical, qualitydriven solutions.
to increase the company’s profile and deliver on our commitment to Indigenous people,” he informs. Staff are not just important to the company; they are everything. CPC sells a service, not a product, and it could not sell what it considers to be a superior service without good people. “We like to empower our people by pushing down the decision-making process as low as possible. We believe this contributes to a highly motivated and happy workforce,” Weir explains. For example, CPC carries out a strategic review of the business at board level every four years. For the following three years, each business unit down to supervisor level is involved in reviewing the strategy and formulating the business plan for the next financial year. “This creates ownership of the plan at a granular level; meanwhile, other programmes are in place at worker
level to review and optimise processes and procedures at regular intervals,” he details.
STRONG AND LASTING RELATIONSHIPS The demand for CPC’s services has increased dramatically over the last 18 months. “Our collective priority looking ahead is to successfully execute the pipeline of work we currently have on the books. In conjunction with this, the board will consider what the next phase of growth looks like for CPC,” Weir maps out. Moreover, as the company continues to go from strength to strength, partner and supplier relationships will remain critical to its success. “There are always issues and obstacles to overcome in our line of work, so by forming strong and
lasting relationships with our partners, we can work together to achieve a successful outcome,” he outlines. CPC endeavours to reach a place where it is as important to its valued partners as they are to the company. It likewise strives to maintain strong relationships with the communities in which CPC lives and operates. “We started off in a small country town and would not be where we are today without the help of local communities and local people,” concludes Weir.
Tel: 08 9365 0300 cpcengineering@cpceng.com.au
www.cpcengineering.com.au
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Tel: 08 9365 0300 cpcengineering@cpceng.com.au
www.cpcengineering.com.au
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