:: JKTech Celebrate Queensland's Smart Awards 2006

JKTech Pty Ltd again has good reason to celebrate the Premier of Queensland's Smart Awards for 2006, giving recognition to minerals technology development at the JK Centre in Brisbane and commercialised through JKTech.

Last year, JKTech's Flotation Optimisation Methodology won the Smart Award for mining and mineral processing. This year the competition was a little tougher, with JKTech up against the state's best small-to-medium manufacturers in the new "manufacturing and mining" category.

The judges focussed on the following criteria:

• The degree and use of innovation by the company.
• How innovation was being used to drive business growth.
• Growth in turnover, profits, employees and the capacity to sustain growth in the future.
• The use of smart business management processes and systems throughout the business.

From a strong field of 17 entrants, JKTech's Mineral Liberation Analysis (MLA) system was chosen as one of the 3 finalists. This is an outstanding result, as the award, which was finally won by Brisbane Display and Shopfitting, attracted entrants ranging from yacht builders to salt chlorinator manufacturers. Several companies from the mining industry supply sector also nominated, including Intellection, Metso Minerals, Monduran, Transcale and the third finalist, Hardchrome.

In recognition of the importance of the JK Centre to the state and to the minerals industry, and to provide further support for the ongoing development of the MLA and other innovative minerals related technologies, Queensland Government has announced that the JK Centre has been awarded funding under the Innovation Building Fund to support the construction of a new Mineral Characterisation Research Facility at the University of Queensland’s experimental mine at Indooroopilly in Brisbane.

Since the first commercial sale of the MLA system in 2000, the number of sites installing MLAs has grown exponentially. MLA now has the dominant share of the high-end mineral analysis market, with installations in 8 countries. Also, JKTech now operates the largest commercial quantitative mineralogy facility in the world from its Brisbane base, via the JKMineralogy business unit, with 7 MLA systems operating around the clock.

There is no question that MLA is leading-edge technology. But just as important to JKTech's customers is the knowledge of the minerals industry that goes into every new MLA installation. JKTech's in-house mineral processing expertise includes process optimisation Consultants who work with the major minerals companies and Laboratory Analysts who carry out a wide range of tests on mineral samples from around the world. Their knowledge together with the mineralogy expertise within the MLA Group, as well as regular feedback from an active MLA User Group, are used to consistently deliver systems that are not just smart, but that help companies operate in smart new ways.

"The MLA is typical of JKTech's approach of creating value through strategic alliances - with customers, with researchers and with hardware partners" said Managing Director Dr Geoff Gault. "I would encourage any company in the minerals industry to talk to us about using the MLA technology plus other innovative solutions from the JK Centre to improve their operations."