Shotcrete operator training and

certification
Albie Loncaric - Stratacrete
05 de Octubre del 2010
Sprayed concrete nozzle
operator training and
certification

 To achieve a quality shotcrete system

 Alby loncaric Catherine Larive Dr Rusty Morgan
 With special thanks to the ITA Working group 12
 Introduction
 Background
 Why Implement and Maintain a Quality Shotcrete System
 Responsibility
 Benefits of a System
 Training and certification offered within other countries
 Conclusions of certification & training
 Training Program
 Case studies
 Conclusion

3
 Background

 Shotcrete has been in use for over 100 years

 First Dry mix followed by the wet process, robotic
 Huge Advancements in equipment, design and materials
 Currently there are several training and certification schemes that exist
 No one universal standard for the shotcrete process
 Nozzle operator key factor

4
Why Implement and Maintain
a Quality Shotcrete System?

 Standards and specifications for shotcrete design are well advanced and
documented
 When specified Sprayed concrete has an expectation to perform, not only
during trials but in place
 Materials, mix design and equipment are by no means the limiting factor of in
place shotcrete (at this point in time anyway)
 Shotcrete projects and in particular shotcrete application have inconsistent
quality/performance and therefore we can assume the weakest link is hidden in
there some where?

5
To distance ourselves from
this
Responsibility

 All of us here here today have a Moral, Legal and

Safety responsibility to see that our actions in
ground support does NOT put others in harms
way.
Benefits of a system

 A support system that achieves maximum

performance and consistency to give us the best
likely hood of our goal of Zero harm!
 Financial gain, Case History of 10% saving on
applied Shotcrete.
 Industry growth, Estimated savings of
AU$32,500,000AU Per annum. At a cost of
AU$4,000,000AU
Training and Certification
Globally
 North America
 France
 Norway
 Germany
 Brasil
 EFNARC
 Sweden
 Chile
Main characteristics of the
certification programs

 Table 1 Process Type of spraying

 Dry mix Wet mix Manual Robotic
 ACI   
 ASQUAPRO    
 Norway    
 Germany   
 Sweden    
 EFNARC  
 IBRACON  
 Table 2 Level of certification Training
 One level Several levels Prerequisite Separated
 ACI  
 ASQUAPRO  
 Norway  
 Germany  
 Sweden  
 EFNARC  
 IBRACON  
Conclusions of
Certification & Training

 There is a significant gap between the critical impact the nozzle operator has on
the quality of the sprayed concrete and the independent training and
certification that is available.
 This is recognized as a concern by sprayed concrete associations and there is
currently a strong demand and effort to implement training and certification
programs.
 Training is generally left to the shotcrete contractors themselves, most if not all
these contractors run a structured in house training program. However there is
no industry based system.
Conclusions of
Certification & Training

 If the sprayed concrete industry can demonstrate, consistent and quality

placement of shotcrete by certified nozzle operators, designers and project
owners will have increased confidence in using this method of placement.
 This will benefit the spraying industry and will also lead to efficiencies in the
use of sprayed concrete.
 Therefore it is imperative that shotcrete certification be based on quality
training and transparent assessment which is monitored by independent
organizations
Active training program

 The following slides are based on an active training program in Australia

 So far it has been implemented on 4 sites across Australia and New Guinea
 It has five levels, Level one being for new starters to level five where the
participant reaches project management status
Training Program - Content
 Level 1 - trainee shotcrete operator
Description Estim ated Schedul ed
Ti me Compl e ti on
Overview of trainingprogram 2 hours Week 1
QMIT AB generic metalliferrous core induct ion program 10 hours Week 1
QMIT AB generic metalliferrous elect ive induct ion program 5 hours Week 1
Introduction t o shot cret e an
d illustrated glossary 2 hours Week 2
Underground communicat ion 2 hours Week 2
Plan and organise individual work 2 hours Week 2
Hazard identificationand risk assessment 3 hours Week 2
Sit e induct ion 30 hours Week 3
Sit e light vehicle t icket (equipment manual) 10 hours Week 4
Concrete basics, including fibre 3 hours Week 5
Bat ch plant operat or (t heory andquality cont rol) 3 hours Week 6
Sit e agitat or t icket(equipment manual, formal t raining component ) 30 hours Week 7
Shot crete Rig (equipment manual, formal t raining component ) 40 hours Week 8
Maint enance and minor repairs 10 hours Week 9
Consolidation of skills and allowance for scheduling 30 hours Weeks 10,
11 & 12

17
Training Program - Content
 Level 2 - pump operator
Description Estimated Scheduled
Ti me Comple tion
Job safety analysis 3 hours Week 1
Crew communication 3 hours Week 1
Introduction to ground prepa
ration 10 hours Week 2 & 3
Maintenance trouble shooting 10 hours Week 4 & 5
Electrical and hydraulic trouble shooting 10 hours Week 6 & 7
Mix trouble shooting 10 hours Week 8 & 9
Factors affecting mix performance 5 hours Week 10
Fibre balls 2 hours Week 11
Extra water 2 hours Week 12
Oversize aggregate 2 hours Week 13
Admixtures and dosages 5 hours Week 14
Quality implications 5 hours Week 15
Rejection of loads 5 hours Week 16

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 Training Program - Content
Level 3 – nozzle operator
Description Estim ated S chedu l ed
Ti me Compl e ti on
Supplier communicat ion 5 hours Week 1
Sit e specific ground awareness course 10 hours Week 1
Aust ralian St andards in t est ing 10 hours Weeks 3 & 4
Certification t o sp
ray t est panels 30 hours Weeks 5 & 6
Log of fift y t est panels t o required standard 40 hours Weeks 7 t o 11
Underst anding of t ensile strength 5 hours Week 12
Flexural st rengt h 5 hours Week 13
Shear st rengt h 5 hours Week 14
Bond st rengt h 5 hours Week 15
Develop standard operat ing procedures 5 hours Weeks 16 to 19
Senior first aid certificate 15 hours Week 19
Advanced admixtures and dosages 5 hours Week 20
P ractical application of stabilizers 5 hours Week 21
P ractical application of accelerator 5 hours Week 22
P ractical application of water reducer 5 hours Week 23
Calculations of dosage rat es by weight of 10 hours Weeks 24 & 25
cement at ious material
Just ifying rejection of loads 5 hours Week 26
Limits of admixt ure quantities 5 hours Week 27
Consolidation of skills 40 hours Weeks 28 to 36

19
Training Program - Content
 Level 4 - advanced nozzle operator
Description Estimated Scheduled
Ti me Comple tion
Supervisory communication 10 hours Weeks 1 to 4
Leadership and motivation 10 hours Weeks 5 to 8
Introduction to contractmanagement 10 hours Weeks 9 & 10
Supervisor for up to 24 hour, 7 day operation 40 hours Weeks 11 & 12
Parts of Certificate IV Workplace T rainingand Assessment 30 hours Weeks 13 to 24
Consistent procedures(quality control) 15 hours Weeks 25 to 28
Implement and maintain standards on site 10 hours Weeks 29 to 32
Consolidation ofskills 10 hours Weeks 33 to 36

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Training Program - Content

 Level 5 – project manager

Description Estimated Scheduled
Ti me Comple tion
Client communication 10 hours Weeks 1 to 4
Advanced contract administration 10 hours Weeks 1 to 4
Advanced site administrationprocedures 10 hours Weeks 5 to 8
Consistent proceduresacross all sites 10 hours Weeks 9 to 12
Supervisory level in charge of a 24/7 operationwith 4 10 hours Weeks 13 to 16
crews
Hiring procedures 10 hours Weeks 17 to 20
Retrenchment procedures 10 hours Weeks 21 to 24

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 NorthParkes case study 1
Key Points:
•500m high block cave
•8 extraction drives
•142 draw points

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NorthParkes Issues

 Experienced staff moving on to mining crews

 Training was limited to what the operators could pick up in a two week
handover
 Poor practices were being passed on as standard work procedures
 Excessive rework to rectify poor shotcrete
 Shotcrete was not meeting the required specifications

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 Improved Core UCS

SPRAYED

25

20
NO OF EVENTS

15

10

0
30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75
UCS(MPa)

Before training After training

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 Improved Core Results

BATCH-SPRAYED UCS

100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
%

40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 90+
UCS-MPa

sprayed (BT) batched (BT) sprayed(AT) batched(AT)

25
 Improved In-situ Density

In-situ Density

50
40
No of Events

30
20
10
0
2200 2250 2300 2350 2400 2450 2500
Density (kg/m3)

Before Training After Training

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 20 % Improvement in
Accelerator Dosage
ACCELERATOR USAGE

100.0

80.0

60.0
%

40.0

20.0

0.0
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
lt/m3

BEFORE TRAINING AFTER TRAINING

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Round determinate panel

RDP

50.0
40.0
30.0
%

20.0
10.0
0.0
200 250 300 350 400 450 500
J

Before Training After Training

Peak Gold Mine case study 2

 Restarting shotcrete program after months being idle

 Shotcrete operators came back from months in other roles
 Temporary batch plant operated by contractor

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Peak Results

 Increase in UCS from 32.5 to 35 MPa (7.6%)

 A saving in excess of 40 litres per heading in accelerator usage
 There was a improvement in the quality of the shotcrete applied
underground (less rework)
 There was a improvement in the performance of the shotcrete
operator’s by way of reporting and positive participation within the
shotcrete program

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Tools Laser Scanner
Depth Indicator
Conclusions

 Training has a significant and immediate impact on the performance

of a mine’s or shotcrete projects system.
 Monitoring the shotcrete systems performance is an essential element
of, monitoring the effectiveness of training and reducing the cost of
shotcrete.
 Training is an essential step to developing and improving a quality
shotcrete system.

33
More information
WHYAND HOW TO CERTIFY SPRAYED CONCRETE NOZZLE OPERATORS?
Dr C. Larive
CETU (Tunnels Study Centre)
Ministry of Ecology, Energy, Sustainable Development and Townand Country Planning
(Shotcrete forAfrica conference 2009)

 ACI : www.concrete.org
 American Shotcrete Association (ASA): www.shotcrete.org
 ASQUAPRO: www.asquapro.asso.fr ,
 EFNARC : www.efnarc.org
 IBRACON : www.ibracon.com.br

 GERMANY : http://www.verkehrsblatt.de/docs/ars-bau.php
Special Thanks To ICH

 The author would like to thank all the contributors who kindly answered numerous questions:
 Tarcisio Celestino, the Animateur of the ITA WG12 “Shotcrete Use”,
 Antonio Domingues de Figueiredo from Brazil;
 Reidar Kompen, the leader of the Concrete Educational Council,
 Eivind Grøv, the WG 12 tutor, from Norway,
 Marc Jolin from Canada; Janne Lehto,
 Tom Melbye,
 Roland Harbron, from EFNARC,
 Claude Resse and Abdel Mestari, from ASQUAPRO;
 Frank Leisman from STUVA,
 Stéphane Mathieu from IFT,
 Bo Karlsson from Sweden,
 Nader Winkler from Amberg.