Published on January 13, 2022
THE BRIEF
First Quantum Minerals Ltd (FQML) is a top 10 global copper-producing company. FQML produces copper in the form of concentrate, cathode, and anode, and have inventories of nickel, gold, and cobalt. From its beginnings as a small group of highly skilled professionals, FQML has achieved unprecedented entrepreneurial growth to operate long-life mines in several countries, employing 20,000 people worldwide.
FQML asked LOA to conduct a strategic review and overhaul of FQML’s global mobile maintenance operations. These divisions service and repair the heavy mobile equipment and vehicles used to extract and transport the mineral assets in and around their opencast pits. FQML’s goal was to achieve a transformational, up-skilling mobile maintenance strategy for existing operations that captures global benchmarking, planned maintenance standards, development & training, culture, behaviours, skills, competencies, investment, and leadership buy-in.
THE SOLUTION
Elaine Plested said “this project focussed on developing a holistic strategy that would, over 4 years, increase scheduled maintenance and reliability so that at any one time the operation has an optimal level of fleet availability. This would ultimately increase production and reduce costs. However, with each of our large sites operating with different challenges such as varying ore grade, fleet lifespan and location/cultural differences, a one size fits all strategy would not be effective.”
THE RESULT
LOA designed, created and delivered the strategy based on FQML’s working teams, which was then presented to the Board for approval and subsequently approved.
In the past, various upskilling projects have been run, with limited success. The strategy this time needed to be more broadly focussed, taking into account career paths, resource planning, asset plans and processes, on-site training facilities, education/apprenticeships and trade schools as well as the communication and motivation of our people…
Laws of Attraction played a critical role in developing this strategy, using his industry expertise and communication skills to build successful relationships with the working teams at each site. Gathering all the information required to enable the creation of the final strategy document which was successfully presented to the project sponsors and COO for sign off. The Board subsequently approved the investment case.
The project is now in the implementation phase and will have a significant impact on how the business operates in the future.
Elaine Plested, First Quantum Minerals.