Mount Isa Mines marks fifty years of continuous National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accreditation in November 2023.
NATA is Australia’s leading accreditation organisation and accredits Mount Isa Mines to perform testing and inspection activities.
Peter Lane, Manager for Isa Surface Operations said Mount Isa Mines’ commitment to NATA accreditation demonstrates our commitment to safety, quality and reliability.
“For the past fifty years, Mount Isa Mines has held an unremitting relationship with NATA and will continue this valuable partnership into the future,” said Peter.
“This milestone is shared with those who have been part of our team through the years, and I congratulate them for keeping the non-destructive testing (NDT) to the highest industry standards.”
“As we look to the future for our industry, the Mount Isa Mines’ NDT and High Voltage department are in a joint venture to perform drone inspections on our sixty-year-old high voltage towers to determine their structural integrity using Ultrasonic Thickness Testing (UTT) equipment, which has been modified for this application.”
With the passage of time, these towers may be showing signs of corrosion, and it’s important to check the steel substate structure. Further than a visual inspection, Mount Isa Mines will carry out thermal imaging of the tower’s critical components.
“This is the first time worldwide that anyone will be undertaking this type of drone testing on HV towers,” said Peter.
“It can be difficult to send a person up the towers to check the steel substrate, and using the drone removes the risk involved of a manual inspection.”
This exciting project is in trial phase and will commence in December 2023.
