Liberty Industrial is a leading provider of deconstruction and remediation services that has been successfully operating for eleven years and has been growing steadily over that period. The company has set itself apart by establishing an enviable reputation based on integrity and technical capability.
Operating Australia wide with a significant presence in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia, Liberty Industrial provide complete solutions for large and complex projects, offering a comprehensive range of integrated capabilities including demolition, dismantling, asbestos and hazardous materials removal, industrial cleaning, contaminated land remediation, site rehabilitation, site preparation and civil contracting services.
Clinton and Simon’s demolition expertise and passion to engage with clients has seen the company undertake significant growth and develop a reputation for delivering some of the toughest industrial demolition projects in Australia. Liberty Industrial have established themselves as a leading contractor for industrial demolition projects Australia wide and received recognition of their achievements on multiple occasions at the World Demolition Awards. The company has since diversified into remediation and civil contracting services, an offering that complements their core business extremely well and have recently been recognised for their achievements in this field at the ALGA Annual Industry Excellence Awards.
Liberty Industrial runs a fleet of forty-five excavators, ninety per cent of which are Volvo excavators. Their Volvo machines utilise Liberty’s full range of state-of-the-art attachments across all demolition and remediation projects. These attachments include shears, hammers, pulverisers, magnets, crusher buckets, concrete crackers, grabs, rippers and full suite of buckets.
Being so loyal to the Volvo machines, Liberty Industrial needed to ensure that their operators are proficient with the products which is why they invested in their own Volvo simulator.
“The Volvo Advanced Training Simulator 5.0 provides Liberty Industrial’s Operators with a training experience so realistic it’s comparable to training in a real machine,” says Director Simon Gill.
Inspired by aviation industry simulation training, the simulator allows the operator to immerse themselves in a realistic virtual experience. The simulator features a high definition screen featuring realistic graphics and sounds, and a full motion platform incorporating movement and vibration that mimics the experience of operating a machine in a true-to-life scenario.
Operators navigate simulated demolition, remediation and civil environments, undertaking a range of different virtual excavator operation training exercises such as shearing, sorting, processing, breaking, earth moving, rock handling and high reach demolition training.
The simulator provides Liberty Industrial’s Trainee Operators with a realistic experience, help them to become accustomed to the operating environment and support them in developing and honing their skills before training in real machines. Even Liberty Industrial’s most experienced Plant Operators benefit from simulation training, with the opportunity to perfect certain skills and broaden their skill set by learning more advanced techniques.
The initiative aligns with the Liberty Industrial ethos of leveraging innovative solutions to make the demolition, remediation and civil contracting environment safer and more efficient. It also supports the company’s risk minimisation strategy which involves the removal of personnel from the work face where possible.
The Australian civil contracting industry is already experiencing a skilled labour shortage and the Civil Contractors Federation are predicting further shortfalls in skilled blue-collar roles such as Plant Operators over the coming years as several major infrastructure projects ramp up. Which is why investment in personnel training and development has never been more important.
Simon Gill says, “The simulation-based training provides many advantages, well trained Operators are key to maximising efficiency and productivity on our sites. Putting new operators on simulators before putting them on real machines minimises the risks and costs associated with training in live machines. In addition to reducing the obvious safety risks associated with inexperienced operators training in live plant, it will also free up machinery for project delivery rather than training exercises.”
“It is a crucial step in upskilling our existing operators to safely use our range of high reach excavators”, he says.
In the long run, Simon believes the procurement of the Volvo simulator will also be environmentally friendly and cost effective.
“The simulation training will teach our Operators to use the machine in the most fuel-efficient way, reducing emissions and fuel costs as well,” he says.
Over the years Liberty Industrial and CJD Equipment have formed a strong business relationship built on trust. CJD’s customer service, technical support and spare parts inventory allow them to react quickly to minimise Liberty Industrial’s downtime should any technical issues arise.
A large part of Liberty Industrial’s industry is having equipment fit for use on site. Every project is different and therefore site requirements can vary greatly.
“CJD understand our industry and are always willing to listen. This allows us to work together on solutions to issues encountered when preparing specialised equipment for work on-site. CJD’s network of depots and service centres throughout Australia provides the support we need, when we need it. Even in the remote areas of WA,” says Simon.
Liberty Industrial’s WHS Training Program has been Highly Commended at the National Safety Awards of Excellence. The award is in recognition of Liberty Industrial’s WHS training initiative which included the development and implementation of comprehensive Oxy Cutting and Excavator Operator training packages that provide a formal career pathway in the demolition and remediation industry. A significant commitment of resources and capital has been invested to support the program, including Liberty Industrial’s state-of-the-art Volvo excavator operator simulation technology that travels between Liberty Industrial project sites in a purpose-built trailer unit that has been converted into a mobile training centre.
Other than powerful products and excellent training, in order to be ahead of the game in their industry Simon says, “We challenge the status quo and leverage technology to deliver innovative and resourceful solutions that create value for our clients, project partners and stakeholders.”
This innovative thinking, in conjunction with partnering with the national distributor of Volvo Construction Equipment, CJD Equipment, is sure to see Liberty Industrial continue to be a front-runner in the deconstruction, demolition and remediation industry.
