SMW Group is continually looking forward. We invest in cutting-edge technology and equipment, so you get the benefits of innovation, cost savings and productivity gains.
We understand the importance of dedicating time and money into innovation, for our own company and our clients.
SMW Group’s state-of-the-art, industry-leading equipment evidences this. We put our money where our mouth is to support our goal of being “faster, smarter and more efficient.”
Doing this has seen our company grow during some of the mining industry’s toughest years. We’re proud to say our commitment to innovation is rewarded by clients who return to us time and time again and we’ve grown from a small team to more than 500, since we began in 2000.
Sometimes we take on projects that don’t strictly fit into mining, heavy industry or defence. But they always represent a challenge, and a pushing of boundaries – here’s how some of those have turned out.
The client required a new screening and crushing plant for their mining operation in the Pilbara, Western Australia. SMW Group was chosen from a panel of suppliers (including Western Australian companies), and came out on top for service, efficiency and skill.
Servicing the Pilbara from Central Queensland
SMW Group were subcontracted to perform the design and fabrication component of the job, which included an extensive conveyor system and crushing plant for iron ore processing.
From our Parkhurst workshop, SMW Group took on the work to project manage, manufacture in-house and deliver:
SMW Group overcomes distance with innovation
The processing solution, designed as a pilot plant, was entirely manufactured in-house by SMW Group, using our extensive storage space, undercover workshop and team of expert boilermakers.
The plant took 15,000 man-hours to manufacture and assemble, with 70 trailers required to carry the components the 4,500 kilometres from SMW Group to the Western Australian client’s site in the Pilbara.
Given their innovative approach to projects of this nature, SMW Group were able to project manage, fabricate and transport the entire solution from Central Queensland to the Pilbara – more competitively than other suppliers.
A new class of wave generator
SMW Group were engaged as the principal contractor for the Surf Lakes Prototype project in Yeppoon, Queensland. The inventor’s vision is to prove the concept of a totally different design of wave pool, and then market the product across the world. This design allows simultaneous enjoyment of many waves with multiple degrees of difficulty, delighting beginners through to professional surfers.
SMW Group brings ideas to life
This project is an example of SMW’s ability to take innovative, world-class design and turn it into reality through our quality fabrication and project management. For Surf Lakes, SMW Group oversaw:
The prototype project was completed in 2019 and has received worldwide interest. The technology can produce up to 2,400 surfable waves per hour.
What is an amphiroller?
An amphiroller is a screw-propelled vehicle used in mud-farming (managing the waste product from refining bauxite to alumina). They’re not a common sight, so an amphiroller is not something that many companies ever get the chance to work on let alone completely design, engineer and fabricate.
The end-to-end solution emerges
SMW Group’s team of engineers saw the amphiroller as a design and fabrication challenge worth conquering. Known affectionately as ‘The Mud Crawler’, this project came to life entirely in the SMW Group’s Parkhurst workshop – from design to fabrication, the engine build and even on-site blasting and painting.
SMW Group is also able to maintain the machine on site at the client’s facility, further adding to their value proposition.
Advancing amphiroller design
Our in-house design team engineered a completely new prototype that had several advantages to the client, including the ability to float – a significant advantage achieved by SMW Group for the first time ever.
SMW Group carried out all prototyping, testing and alterations before delivering a complete and improved product.
