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Crane
Mine-to-Port is published for the employees, the retirees and the partners of IOC.
Winter 2005
In this edition,
you’ll find tips on
health and safety
standards.
Message from the President
Dear Colleagues:
year it has been!
2005 is coming to an end and what a great
g
ever - thanks to your hard work and stron
ations, we achieved one of our best years
e.
As we celebrated our first 50 years of oper
futur
our
e
big changes at IOC that are important to secur
support. We also managed to make some
start to the year, we’ve reduced LTIs
ent in safety performance. After a difficult
First, I would like to mention our improvem
best safety year yet. There are more
in the second half and are on track to our
from 17 in the first six months to 4 so far
e your suggestions are logged and
s
on “Take 5” and Safety Day workshop wher
focus
ed
renew
a
on,
going
ns
actio
inter
safety
ce is an obvious one. In October we
ased efforts and our improved performan
implemented. The link between these incre
and pellet plant.
uction records in the mine, concentrator
had 0 LTIs and at the same time broke prod
al pellet production – and we
27 we surpassed the previous record for annu
Speaking of production records, on November
port – that we are achieving such
gh all of our efforts - from the mine to the
still have more than a month to go! It’s throu
employee engagement
the
improvement ideas you have either through
results. I encourage all of you to share any
wal team.
programs or by passing them on to the Rene
ment and Values, and we couldn’t have
mind when we revised IOC’s Mission State
This is the sort of performance we had in
cipated in providing feedback:
done it without you - 20% of employees parti
Securing Our Future Together
stry.
of iron ore products to the global steel indu
lier
supp
l
as a successfu
and consideration to all; Pursue
basis to achieve our mission: Show respect
daily
a
on
by
live
must
us
of
each
that
s
We also developed value
socially & environmentally responsible;
Foster effective teamwork & leadership; Act
ce;
rman
perfo
on
s
Focu
;
safety
&
h
healt
excellence in
Be an employer of choice.
to
Work which focuses on working as a team
rolling out a program called The Way We
are
we
her,
toget
ram.
fits
prog
this
the
all
lete
how
d
comp
rstan
will
To help people unde
sessions, and everyone at IOC
already participated enthusiastically in these
deliver top performance. Many of you have
contract with Wabush Mines to haul their
our railway. This year we signed a long-term
ding
regar
s
ment
unce
the
anno
t
recen
two
You may have seen
and allows us to work together to improve
long-term certainty to both Wabush and IOC
des
provi
h
to Tshiuetin
ce
whic
servi
ay,
railw
nger
our
passe
and
along
te
line
concentra
Schefferville railway
also reached an agreement to handover our
First
only
the
is
TRT
as
nt
veme
achie
ark
efficiency of our railway operations. We’ve
landm
Naskapi Nations. This represents a
and
Innu
the
by
d
owne
any
comp
a
),
ore.
Rail Transportation (TRT
on our core business: hauling iron
a railway, and this now allows us to focus
Nations organization in the world to operate
in good
that your electric Christmas decorations are
place: During the holidays, please ensure
.
drive
and
drink
Remember that safety is not just for the work
don’t
ly,
rtant
tree watered to avoid dryness. And, most impo
working condition and keep your Christmas
ing together we will continue to prosper.
challenges and opportunities but by work
I am sure that 2006 will bring its share of
y and Safe Holiday!
you and your family my best wishes for a Happ
I would like to take this opportunity to wish
Sincerely,
Terence F. Bowles
President and CEO
2 Winter 2005
Environment, Health and Safety
IOC’s Best-Trained Brigade!
Firefighter training for the members of
the IOC/QNS&L Emergency Brigade is
now provided jointly with training for
Sept-Îles municipal firefighters.
Although the Emergency Brigade has all of the
necessary equipment to fight forest fires, IOC
uses mainly municipal firefighting equipment
to put out fires that break out on its site. The
new approach allows the members of the
Emergency Brigade to familiarize themselves
with the municipal equipment and profit from
the experience of the Sept-Îles Fire
Department.
275 hours of training
The 12 members of the Emergency Brigade
have set themselves the goal of achieving
Level 1 certification, which corresponds to
275 hours of training over a four-year period
(i.e., about 70 hours a year). The training
covers both theory and practice, and is held
on weekends and/or weekday evenings at the
Sept-Îles municipal fire station. This requires
a major personal commitment by the people
who have agreed to rise to the challenge. Hats
off to all of them!
Once they achieve Level 1 certification,
members of the Emergency Brigade who want
additional training can take more advanced
and spe-cialized courses. Jean-Guy Lévesque,
a repairman-operator at the locomotive shop,
Carl Poirier, Team Leader; Stéphane Houde, Electrical Engineer; Sylvain Lavoie, IT Analyst;
Jean-Guy Lévesque, Maintainer Operator; Kevin Lavoie, Maintainer Operator; Roger
Lévesque, Analyst - Material Control; Patrick Gwilliam, Superintendent; Marc-André
Lamontagne, Maintainer Operator; Rémi St-Jean, Planner; Gilles Lévesque, Maintainer
Operator. Absentees: Adriano Catino and Dave Castilloux.
and Adriano Catino, a railcar shop planner,
have signed up for HAZMAT (hazardous
material) training. Some of their co-workers
may have seen them in October combating a
simulated spill of hazardous, toxic products
at the main shop entrance.
Additional training
In addition to training in firefighting, first aid
and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR),
the Emergency Brigade team members are
learning about lifesaving in confined and elevated work areas. Eight of them have already
taken four days of training in these areas at
the Notre-Dame-de-Foy campus in Québec
City, and the other four will follow their lead
in the spring of 2006.
Management and Emergency Brigade members have devoted extensive efforts over the
past year to upgrade training and enhance
the safety of our employees, equipment and
facilities. The coming months will be crucial
in terms of ongoing training and the acquisition of new equipment. You will also be provided with more information, and the
Emergency Brigade members will have an
increasingly high profile during training and
evacuation exercises and team practices.
Members of the IOC brigade as well as the Town fire department during a simulation of a
hazardous material spill at IOC.
fety systems
: General sa
Standard A1
ties are theenting
three activi
ev
The followingeffective system for prection
basis of an eanliness/tidiness insp ogram
cl
incidents: anagement, Take 5 pr
rounds by m Interactions.
and Safety
Winter 2005
3
Environment, Health and Safety
Safety Workshops 2005
Listed below are the top suggestions for both Personal
Improvement and Business Improvements from each area as
a result of the May 2005 Safety Workshops.
The selected Top suggestions resulted from discussion by the
JOSHE committee.
PRODUCT MANUFACTURING
Personal Improvements:
1. Slow down, use sense. Take 5 – Take care of buddy.
2. Personal commitment not to walk by a tripping hazard. Pick it up yourself, or rope off and report to Team Leader
or appropriate personnel.
3. Report all hazards that you cannot fix.
Business Improvements
1. More focus and training on effective utilization of existing safety programs.
2. Better management of safety issues; time to resolve and the action tracking to completion.
3. Increase hazard recognition & control capabilities by all employees. This will improve employee risk tolerance
and behaviors.
MINE
Personal Improvements:
1. Make sure I understand clearly all radio communications
and ask caller to repeat message if I’m not sure.
2. Identify and correct substandard behavior and conditions as
they arise.
3. Question people that may not be working in the safest way.
Business Improvements
1. Improve visibility of trailing cables (i.e. Orange jackets
4160 cables)
2. Easier access to SOPs for jobs.
3. More effective process for tracking and providing feedback on
safety issues.
ADMINISTRATION / CENTRAL SERVICES, SHOPS
& ENGINEERING
Personal Improvements:
1. Research ways and means of transporting equipment around
the project – more safely than we do today.
2. Identify and correct substandard behavior and conditions
as they arise.
3. Educate others on safe working practices, follow-up
on safety issues and refuse to perform unsafe acts.
Business Improvements
1. Develop lifting SOPs
2. Standards compliance – more IOC involvement (Safety talks, toolbox meetings, SMATs, SFs, Ras
3. Provide sufficient and appropriate training (i.e. Safety training, specialized training, apprenticeship programs for trades…)
4 Winter 2005
Environment, Health and Safety
Household Hazardous Waste Day
in Labrador City
The IOC Environment Department sponsored the 2005 Labrador City
Household Hazardous Waste Collection
Day on 8 October. This initiative provided
residents community with a safe and convenient way to dispose their household hazardous waste products, and they turned out in
droves to do just that.
A temporary collection centre was established
at the Labrador City Arena parking lot and
through the course of the day, approximately
40 drums of hazardous waste were collected.
The majority of the waste (65%) was composed of paint and related products while
other materials brought to the collection
centre included waste oil, gasoline, car
batteries, propane tanks, cleaners and
solvents.
According to Jody Clark, Environment
Manager, the program was a great success
with people of all ages dropping by to get rid
of their waste. We received lots of feedback
from the public on the excellent service this
program provided, with many people
commenting this should be an annual event.
We have discussed this with the town and
plan to make it an annual event to coincide
with the Municipal Clean-up Week.
Special thanks to Garry Greene and Sonya
Flynn who volunteered their time and energy
to make this program a success.
One little boy made two visits pulling his
little blue wagon full of paint cans.
agement
: Change man e we have to
Standard A2
caus
e change? Bes do not become
Why managth
ge
an
ch
have
at
make sure accidents. This is why we
anges.
sources of detail and evaluate ch
to analyze,
Sept-Iles Engineering Team Celebrates
Four Years with No Accidents!
On September 28, the Sept-Îles
Engineering team celebrated an important event: four years with zero accidents for all of the projects under its
direction. This achievement was no
fluke. It shows the determination and commitment to safety of all of the members
of the department who contributed to this
admirable performance.
everyone understands that safety is our individual responsibility. If we always did the jobs
assigned to us safely, it would be possible to
reach the target of zero accidents.”
Engineering Manager Louis Gravel wishes to
thank everyone who contributed to this
success through their safe participation in
project deployment.
Keys to success:
• active presence on worksites in order to
promote preventive efforts in the areas of
health, safety and the environment;
• investment of the necessary time in
planning, organizing and following up
activities and projects;
• immediate action to address health and
safety discrepancies.
The Engineering team is fully aware that safety
is everybody’s business and that working
safely is important. In the words of Chief
engineer Simon Dallaire, “We are working
together to change the culture, so that
Alain Michaud, Sr Electrical Engineer; Bernard Coulombe, Sr Electrical Engineer; Simon
Dallaire, Chief Engineer; Louis Gravel, Engineering Manager; Caroline Marceau, Civil
Engineer; Marc Lévesque, Draftman; José Riopel, Chief Engineer; Monia Marcoux, Assistant;
Pierre Dubé, Chief Engineer; Luc Masse, Sr Mechanical Engineer; Marc Brochu, Electrical
Engineer. Absentees : Martin Thiboutot, Jean-François Létourneau, Éric Porlier, Stéphane
Houde, Sébastien Lebel, Mario Boudreau, Éric Tremblay, Louis Villeneuve and Bruno Yockell.
Winter 2005
5
Product Manufacturing
Service Alignment A Winning Combination
The 2005 production year for Product
Manufacturing will be seen as a ‘Year of
Records’ because of the many substantive production records that were
achieved. These records are noteworthy but
often veil other successes further driven by
Teamwork and innovation that compliment
progress, in terms of improved safety,
throughput capacity, and unit costs.
Service Alignment
What is it and, importantly, how does it contribute to organizational effectiveness, performance and plant output?
The Challenge
The Carol Pellet Plant has six indurating furnaces that fire the iron ore pellets produced
at IOC. A basic modular 1950’s design pro-
Pellet Plant indurators were being starved of
greenball feed during filter/balling module
services. A plant maintenance team was
formed to review the opportunity of safely
aligning module services with each indurator
service minimizing this loss to throughput
capacity. Sounds simple! However in reality, it
would mean an extraordinary level of planning, sharing of employees & their skills and
flexibility between areas and plants,
mobilizing of parts and tools necessary to
complete assigned tasks in a diligent and safe
manner from isolation to start up. Project
management techniques, standard jobs, risk
assessments, improved isolation through
‘Isolation Kits’, pre-service clean up were all
key in assessing the potential of integration
of plant services in a safe and efficient
manner. The potential organizational result,
results of service alignment have been
witnessed in the effort, flexibility and hard
work that plant employees have shown.
Record filter barrel removal times have seen
four units removed before 8 AM having commenced filter cleanup, isolation and removal
activities at 4 AM! These determined efforts
from planning to execution have paid off
resulting in some 54k tonnes of additional
fired pellets being produced for sale after six
months of service alignment. The focus of
plant resources during service alignment has
the additional benefit of freeing up our work
force on subsequent days to improve plant
infrastructure and complete needed project
work. These efforts will improve our plant
with the over-arching goal of fewer upset
conditions and thus more consistent plant
output.
“Outstanding performance is a result of
that vital link between planning and
performance through innovation. Service
alignment is one of those success stories
and goes to prove once again that truly
involved people can accomplish any thing,”
Tayfun Eldem,
General Manager - Product Manufacturing
duces the greenball feed using 26 filterballing modules, which include some 156
conveyors, 26 vertical filters weighing
approximately 3.5 tons each, along with a
multitude of other equipment. Historically
many of these modules were serviced outside
the indurator furnace service day. An average
12 hour filter/balling module service, completed outside the indurator service, resulted
in the loss of some 85 tonnes of greenball
feed per hour for the respective furnace.
Moreover, filter barrels were removed and
replaced based on a 13 week cycle due to
filter bag deterioration, each potentially
resulting in a further 4 hours of module
downtime.
The Innovation
With the historical service structure for
Filter/Balling, it was clear that the Carol
6 Winter 2005
in tonnage terms, was evaluated to be of an
additional 90k tonnes per annum. A completed work plan with time lines including job
packages was developed, summarized and
submitted to senior management thus receiving high-level endorsement and support.
The plan was put into action some six
months ago.
The Results
Since the idea’s inception, the Pellet Plant
Operations & Maintenance Teams have completed 27 aligned services, avoiding some 54
Filter/Balling services outside the indurator
services. Filter barrels are now changed
every 6-week cycle rather than the previous
13-week cycle. Service alignment has greatly
reduced the 4-hour per change losses while
the shorter cycles have enhanced filter cloth
performance. Perhaps the most impressive
Next Steps
Opportunities to build on the service alignment concept will be reviewed throughout
Product Manufacturing to determine where
this model or an adapted area specific model
be put into action. Maintenance planning
activities need to be further streamlined and
integrated with equipment condition monitoring along with downtime monitoring with
a focus on solutions to many of the
reoccurring issues that result in lapses in
plant output. A strong focus on continuous
improvement is important to having a transformative effect on the way we work and the
potential for future innovation. Finding better
and safe solutions to complete our work
while improving plant output is important in
secu-ring our long-term future here at IOC.
Service alignment is one such case. Well
done to the Pellet Plant Operations &
Maintenance Teams for their contributions
through service alignment.
Product Delivery
Moving Forward with the Sept-Iles North
Project
Two months ago, the Sept-Îles North project became a
reality. Four “multi” teams, the transport team as well as
the locomotive engineers now occupy the Mile 9 facilities.
To date, 30% to 35% of the objectives have been achieved, and it will
take approximately another four months of implementation training to
optimize operations at the Sept-Îles North facilities.
Since a new workplace always brings changes, here is a first look
at some of them:
In the meantime, every effort is being made to ensure the success of
Sept-Îles North. For example, the members of the multi teams are
receiving various kinds of very interesting training:
• Companionship training on the mechanical and electrical
pre-inspection of cars and locomotives
• Training on the lowering and raising of trains
(Sept-Îles North dumper and yard Sept-Îles junction) by four
UTU employees (Percy Shuglo, Jean Grondin, Ken Eldridge and
Steve Ward)
• Training on the pre-inspection of locomotives provided by Jacques
Rioux, Technical Advisor, Shops.
CHANGES – OPERATIONS
Mixed trains
140 IOC cars + 70 Wabush cars = 210 cars
Train Cycle Time
Every 48 hours, 1 train travels the Lab. City – S-I – Lab.
5 of the 7 trains are mixed
OBJECTIVE
Improve operational efficiency
CHANGES – HUMAN RESOURCES
Locomotive engineers
Take control of their trains at the Sept-Îles North facilities
“Multi” teams
More minor repairs to make
Shuttling trains back and forth between S-I and- S-I-N
OBJECTIVES
Reduce train cycle times
Increase the availability of enginemen
FACILITIES
1 administrative building including:
- 3 checkrooms
- a kitchen and dining room
- a transport office
1 technical building including:
- a sanding system
- a sanding reservoir
- an oil tank
1 tool storage building
The first mixed trains went into service on November 11, 2005.
Although this was just a short time ago, Alain Vaillancourt, Team
Leader at Sept-Îles North, thinks that everything is going well. “Every
new project brings new challenges and major changes, and change
sometimes makes people fearful or uncertain. So you have to give
them time to adapt to their new environment.” “We’ve been here for
two months now and things are already starting to improve,” say
Shirley Bourque Brassard and the other members of her multi team,
Marcel Marticotte, Steve Bergeron and Carl Deraps.
Mixed trains
Ian Leblanc, Team
Leader with Patrick
Brisson, Shirley Bo
Brassard and Marce
urquel Marticotte, memb
ers of a multi team
Jacques Rioux, Tech
and
nical Advisor (in the
middle).
Standard A3: Contractor manageme
nt
All contractors active on the site have
to
be qualified in the area of health
safety. Someone from the company and
is
assigned to each contract, no matter
how
small. A worksite orientation session has
be held before any new contract gets to
under way.
Winter 2005
7
Human Resources
Update from the Co-op and Grad
Development Programs
IOC have recently revived the Co-op
Program as well as the Graduate
Development Program. This is the key
in reestablishing IOC’s presence on
University campus and increasing the
number of students that we hire into these
programs.
The purpose of the Co-op Program is to provide university students with an opportunity
to gain hands-on experience in an Industrial
Environment. It also allows them to apply
some of the skills they have learned in school
and to put their newly learned skills to use in
the workplace. The goal of the program is to
provide the graduates exposure to different
business areas and to have them grow to
become leaders in the organization.
In September of this year Labrador City and
Sept-Îles operations had teams that traveled
to various universities attending career fairs
and conducting information sessions in an
attempt to put IOC back on the map. All of
the graduate and co-op material have
received a new professional look. Our new
booth was well received at campuses across
the country.
At each University the team participated
either in a career fair, as guest lecturers or
Employer Information Sessions.
Teams traveled to :
• Queens University in Kingston (ON)
• Waterloo University (ON)
• Dalhousie University in Halifax (NS)
• Memorial University in St. John’s (NL)
• École Polytechnique in Montreal (QC)
• Sherbrooke University (QC)
• École de technologie supérieure in
Montreal (QC)
Company and encouraging students to
pursue opportunities in the trades training,
employee of the future, co-op and graduate
development programs.
The team has been busy shifting gears to help
make IOC an Employer of Choice. There
are more plans coming up to help secure
our future resources.
Should you require additional information on
either of these programs please contact
Jacqui Winter.
Recently, a team also attended a Career Fair
at Menihek High School in Labrador City
where they were busy promoting the
The Workforce of Tomorrow !
edures
: Lockout proc
suring
Standard C1
aimed at enhazare
ar
es
ur
ed
or
oc
gy
pr
t
er
ou
en
Lock
any form of
ployee
zero risk fromnce. Only a trained emure can
dous substa assigned to the procedut sheet
specifically of a lockout. The locko been
take care that the lockout has d that
has to show a second employee anout.
checked bytest has been carried
a start-up
On November 17, 2005, IOC took part in the
first Salon Action Emploi in Sept-Îles. It was a
great success and was held at the Cégep de
Sept-Îles and organized by the Chamber of
Commerce and other partners (including
the Centre de concertation, the Carrefour
jeunesse emploi de Duplessis and the
Université du Québec à Chicoutimi centre in
Sept-Îles). Carole Bossé, Joëlle Gagné and
Sharon Béliveau met with approximately 500
people seeking jobs and/or more information about the Company.
Their role mainly involved encouraging
people to submit their resumés via the IOC
Web site, answering questions and promoting
employment opportunities in various fields
and areas of activity. According to Joëlle
Gagné, human resources administrator, “it is
very interesting to see that there is still a sizeable qualified local workforce with a keen
interest in IOC .”
8 Winter 2005
Carole Bossé, HR Advisor and Joëlle Gagné, HR Jr Administrator answering questions.
Organizational Effectiveness
Apprenticeship Training in Labrador City
In preparation for Securing our Future, IOC has begun
Apprenticeship Training.
Apprenticeship is an industry-based program involving an agreement
between a person who wants to learn a set of occupational skills, an
apprentice, and an employer who needs a skilled worker. It is a
proven training system that combines at-the-job practical learning
with technical training to produce a qualified and certified
journeyperson.
The selection process for apprentices began in early 2005. All
Mechanical Millwright Apprentices were selected internally from
graduates of the former Maintenance Operator Program and EOF
Program. Electrical Apprentices were selected from candidates that
applied both internally and externally.
practical to do so. IOC recognizes the contribution of it’s apprentices
and as such will endeavor to make their experience with the
apprenticeship program as rewarding as possible.
We are excited to have this opportunity at IOC again and we are
planning to utilize it to its fullest. We know we have the best people,
we need the best people and we will develop the best people.
We believe training our people
is another positive step in
helping us to Secure our
Future.
Currently we have a total of 15 apprentices working within their
trades: 6 Millwright and 9 Electrical, while others have been selected
and will be moved to Maintenance Occupation as soon as it is
Standard C2
: Electrical sa
fety
Preventive m
planned and aintenance rounds ha
vals along gr carried out at regulave to be
cal equipmenounded circuits for al r interl electrit.
There is a
ving unuseddetailed procedure for
to follow in cables. It describes th remoe st
der to safely
(Procedure or
remove a caeps
C2-11).
ble
Safety Interactions
IOC has retained the services of Herb Tessier of Dupont Canada to
lead coaching sessions on Safety Interactions. Mr. Tessier was here in
September for the Terminus and Transportation sectors. It was his
second visit, following his stint here in April for the Shops sector.
Dupont Canada has one of the country’s lowest rates of compensated
accidents. This achievement may be explained by its application of a
safety interdependence strategy, whereby all employees work together
to avoid accidents.
The coaching sessions focused above all on identifying hazards during
work in progress, in order to eliminate risks of injuries. It should be
pointed out that all of the incidents at our facility could have been
avoided if people had done a “Take 5” to identify and control hazards.
The photo shows employees from the Terminus and Transportation
sectors and the Environment, Health and Safety department.
Pierre Blackburn, ESH Superintendent; Eddy McKinnon, ESH Advisor; René Roy, Team Leader; Bruno Leblanc, Team Leader; Éric
Thibeault, Team Leader; Marcel Leboulaire, Team Leader; Stéphane Houde, Electrical Engineer; Ghislain Boivert, Team Leader; Michel
Brazeau, ESH Administrator and Herb Tessier from Dupont Canada.
Winter 2005
9
50 Years Special Edition
In February 2005, two groups of volunteers in Labrador City and in
Sept-Îles from various organizations came together to discuss the
notable milestone of IOC and the communities.
The celebrations were held during a two week period for all age
groups within the Community.
A first glimpse of the IOC family album was also unveiled in oversized
format, both in Labrador City and Sept-Îles.
e also
Train rides wer or
ad
offered in Labr s.
le
pt
City and Se -I
10 Winter 2005
Official ceremonies took place in both cities, such as a conference
given by Terry Bowles to their respective Chambers of Commerce, as
well as a civic reception organized by Mayor Graham Letto and Mayor
Ghislain Lévesque. A sculpture representing the world, showing the
four important cities for IOC, was presented as a sign of appreciation.
Eight pages and a text describing the project were produced on signs
and set up in a park.
50 Years Special Edition
In Labrador City
For the children, we held two Terry Reilly shows at the Arts and
Culture Centre where we saw a total of 563 people in attendance.
These shows were for children between the ages of 3 and 9.
All that was requested was a donation to the Labrador West Food
Bank. While in attendance the children received beautiful teddy
bears.
We also held an Iron City Duathlon for people aged 7 and up. There
were two separate categories Juniors age 7 though 12 and Seniors age
13 and up. Some people participated alone while other chose to form
groups and make it a team event. In total we had 110 people
participate and many happy supporters and fans.
The SOAR (Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees) group
helped us organize a dinner for retired employees featuring guest
speaker H.E. "Buzz" Neal. Buzz was Director of Research for the Iron
Ore Company of Canada from 1955-1962, and Supervisor of
Exploration and Development from 1950 to 1955. There were a total
of 150 people who attended the dinner.
H.E. « Buzz » Neal
Winter 2005
11
50 Years Special Edition
In Sept-Îles
IOC took part in the “Vieux Quai en Fête” event to present a grandscale performance on July 16. Some former Star Académie participants, including Marie-Mai, Annie Villeneuve, Véronique Claveau, Dave
Bourgeois and Martin Giroux, were part of the line-up. This first part
of the show drew a great croud, young and old alike.
12 Winter 2005
“La Bottine Souriante”, the band that played the second part of the
show, played to a whole different crowd, many of whom got up and
danced to the lively beat.
New at IOC
All Kinds of Signs at IOC!
During the past month, signs have been
popping up all over IOC. First, there is the
sign welcoming employees ans visitors. Then
other signs are supporting monthly ESH
campaign. The latter have been set up along
roads that are used frequently by employees.
The Engineering departments in Labrador
City and Sept-Îles have made a huge contribution to these projects, from design through
to installation. These two projects represent
over a hundred hours work. The
Communications Team would therefore like
to thank, specifically, Michael Greene,
Engineer at Labrador City, as well as Caroline
Marceau, Engineer, and Louis Gravel,
Engineering Manager at Sept-Îles, for their
excellent work.
Installation of the Labrador City sign will be
set up soon.
Expanding the
Quality Auditor
Team
“IOC’s product is in demand around the
world for its quality. It is important
that we maintain our reputation as a
quality supplier with all of our customers. To do this, we must ensure that our
quality management systems are continuously
improved. The internal audit process and the
hard work by our internal auditors are fundamental to sustaining IOC’s registration to
ISO 9001:2000,” Mike Shannon, Vice
President of Operations and Engineering.
In October 2005, IOC added 12 new auditors
to its existing internal ISO 9001:2000 team
for a total of 22 auditors from across the
organisation. “They will function as auditorsin-training for two consecutive audits after
Standa
operationrd C3: Vehicles and
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al
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which, they will be considered qualified IOC
internal auditors. With the new auditors
come new perspectives and visions from
which to draw on to continuously improve
the Quality Management System (QMS),”
comments Kyla Valdron Clark, Quality System
Senior Engineer.
As part of the audit process, they offer an
enhancement to the existing knowledge base
and a new level of expertise within the
auditing team, but on a daily basis, their
overall contribution to the ISO 9001:2000
system will be considerable. They will facilitate awareness of ISO 9001:2000 standards
and re-enforce IOC’s commitment to its QMS
across the organisation; enabling individual
departments to understand what their roles
and responsibilities are towards the QMS and
the importance of continually improving.
IOC is pursuing other initiatives to further
improve the QMS and the function of the
Internal Auditor within the system such as:
incorporate union members into the auditing
process, increase the number of internal
auditors to include an auditor from every
department, and exploring an auditor
exchange program between IOC and other
Rio Tinto Business Units.
Winter 2005
13
Communications
www.ironore.ca – A Winning Site!
Online since the beginning of the year,
the new IOC Web site, www.ironore.ca,
was honoured with an Award of
Excellence during the distribution of the
APEX 2005 Awards. For the past 17 years,
Springfield’s Communication Concepts, the
very same organization that publishes the
monthly “Writing That Works: The Business
Communications Report,” has been distributing these awards annually to North
American communications professionals.
“We’re very proud to have won an award in
the “Improved Web and Intranet Site”
category,” said Amy Bruce, Communications
Administrator who had been assigned the
task of revitali-zing the Company’s Web site.
“In fact, we can say that this was a true team
effort that required a great deal of thought
from every member of the Communications
team, especially to include some interesting
new additions.”
Prestigious recognition
Projects are selected on the basis of editorial
content, graphic design and, in more general
terms, the ability to achieve excellence in
communications. The IOC site was
competing with more than 565 other
candidates.
Clearly user-friendly, the new IOC site wisely
makes use of the key elements that ensure a
quality Web site, for example, contrasting
colours for the background and the text, as
well as pictures and fonts large enough to
view and read easily.
“We wanted a functional site that users can
browse easily,” explains Amy. “And, with the
help of Marc-André Paradis, Manager of
Sept-Îles’s Map Design firm, we succeeded in
achieving this.” Starting with the Welcome
page, cyber surfers can move through the
site easily using a menu bar that provides
access to various options: The Company,
Communications and Community Relations,
Environment, Safety and Health, or Human
Resources.
Obviously bilingual, the IOC site now
provides extensive coverage of news from
both Labrador City and Sept-Îles.
14 Winter 2005
General Services
Crane Crew –
“Changing the Way We Work”
In August of 2005 a group of
employees representing various levels
of union and management met with the
purpose of determining the face of
crane maintenance and reliability for
the Labrador City property.
The discussions hinged on 3 fundamental
topics.
• Company & Union co-operation,
• Doing things differently
• Contribution and participation of those in
attendance.
The group was challenged with developing a
program that would allow the crane crew to
work “Safer – Better – Cheaper”, while
providing more reliable equipment and
removing the inefficiencies of past practices.
The meeting involved discussions around
equipment schedules, appropriate equipment
inspection sheets, manpower requirements,
defining the scope of work, co-ordinating the
work with the areas and aligning the program to the C6 and CSA Crane Maintenance
standard.
Many decisions
Many of the items discussed and agreed on
during the session have now been
implemented. This included new vehicles for
the crew to assist them in responding to
service calls in a timely manner and included
a service truck that is being equipped with
spare parts and tools required to perform
repairs. Monthly and annual inspection
sheets were developed for each individual
crane.
Based on the low numbers of after hour’s
breakdown calls the group has been very
successful in improving equipment reliability
across the site. Additional responsibilities in
the form of Elevator and Manlift maintenance
have been added to the group, as a direct
result of the demonstrated ability to work
co-operatively and rise to the challenge.
Thanks go out to the participants in the
original meetings and ongoing development
of the crews activities including: John
Hughes, General Manager - Maintenance &
Engineering; Catherine Taplin,
Superintendent - Performance Support; Bill
Leaman, Superintendent - Central Services;
Henry Hillier Superintendent - Central
Services; Alan Wallace, Technical Advisor;
Shawn Patey, Contract Administrator/Planner
and Allan Jennings, Team Leader. 5795 was
represented by Don Dinn and ContractingOut Chair : Arnold Beck, Blair Kean, Wade
Pevie, Wayne Strickland, Abel Mouland, Gary
Stryde and George Thistle.
Shawn Patey, Planner - Central Services; Arnold Beck, Maintainer Operator - Building
Maintenance; George Thistle, Maintainer Operator - Building Maintenance; Glen Benson,
Maintainer Operator - Building Maintenance and Eugene Drove, Team Leader - Central
Services
Employee Assistance Program published in a book
Congratulations to Debbie Samson on putting IOC’s Employee
Assistance Program on the MAP. Recently it has been published in
Wellness and Work: Employee Assistance Programming in
Canada, by Dr. Rick Csiernik. A chapter in the book, entitled The
Challenge of Rural EAP: The Iron Ore Company of Canada,
outlines the unique implementation and development of the
Employee Assistance Program at IOC’s operation in Labrador City.
Once again congratulations and thanks for all your hard work.
Winter 2005
15
Congratulations
25 Years of Service
John Barnes
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Jacques Béchard
Maintainer Operator
Mechanical 2
Terminal
Micheline Breault-Lebrun
Administrator
Human Resources
Gerard Brenton
Maintainer Operator
Mechanical 2
Primary Ore
Pamela Bullen
Jr. Administrator
Human Resources
Richard Caouette
Advisor
ESH
Bernard Dumont
Analyst Sr
IT
Richard Freeborn
Maintainer Operator
Mechanical 2
Vehicle Shop
Allan Gale
Maintainer Operator
Mechanical 2
Product Delivery
Gary Greene
Administrator
Environment
Whycliff Kean
Operator Maintainer
Pellet Plant
Roger Levasseur
Maintainer Operator
Mechanical 1
Garage
John Noel
Maintainer Operator
Electrical 1
Concentrator
Terence O'Leary
Stationary Engineer
Heating Steam and Air
Plant
Georges-André Paquet
Operator Maintainer
Station & Yard
Renée Perreault
Integrated Systems
Advisor
Financial Control
16 Winter 2005
Congratulations
25 Years of Service
Ross Pike
Team Leader
Station & Yard
Alec Reid
Maintainer Operator
Electrical 1
Mine Maintenance
Gilles Vaillancourt
Rail Traffic Controller
Train Dispatching
Alain Vallée
Engineman
Hauling
25 Year Party
Ceremonies was held in Labrador City and Sept-Îles
on October 21 and 22 to celebrate 28 employees with 25 years of service.
Winter 2005
17
Continuous Improvements
Securing Our Future Together
You may not have heard much about the Renewal Program
for a while and might just be wondering how it is going.
Well, it is alive and well, and you may even be contributing ideas or
participating in improvement projects without even knowing it. Some
of the projects implemented in 2005 include the hot seat change in
the mine, increasing power draw in the concentrator AG mills, pellet
plant maintenance alignment and North-Sept-Iles facility on the
railway.
$50 Millions savings
Since we started the Renewal program back in 2002 we have saved
$50m in operating costs and implemented improvement initiatives
that have helped increase concentrate and pellet production. These
improvements have helped us to offset some of the price increases we
are seeing (eg diesel), and to make IOC more competitive to secure
our future. These results are a great success and we should all be
very proud of our efforts – the ideas and the energy to implement
came from all of our employees in every area of the business.
One of the reasons that you have not heard so much about Renewal
for a while is that it is no longer a big project with lots of people –
instead it has become part of the business, part of the way we do
things on a daily basis. You may have seen pamphlets requesting your
Continuous Improvement ideas in various parts of the business. This
is a program that will be rolled out to all operating areas (it is currently in place in Primary Ore and Central Services) to capture
improvement ideas from everyone and put them through a process
where they can be evaluated and implemented to improve IOC.
Bob Burton, Superintendent - Projects; Matt Simpson, General
Manager - Operations Planning and Continuous Improvement;
Danny Cao, Senior Advisor - Graduate Development; Andrew Wildy,
Manager - Business Evaluation; Timothy Gibson, Senior Advisor Continuous Improvement and Edward Krats, Senior Operator
Maintainer.
Expert team members
To support the Renewal process across the business, Matt Simpson
(GM Operations Planning and Continuous Improvement) and
Andrew Wildy (Manager Business Evaluation) manage the overall
program, and we have continuous improvement experts (called
SACIs) across the business whose role is to help to identify, evaluate
and implement improvement ideas. The SACI’s in each area are:
• Primary Ore – Tim Gibson (x8415), Ed Krats (x8264)
• Product Manufacturing – Bob Burton (x8464)
• Product Delivery – Judith Leclerc (x7406)
• Maintenance/Central Services – Danny Cao (x8611)
• Procurement – Nancy Gagnon (x7520)
The SACIs are there to help you implement your improvement ideas.
What is ahead for Renewal?
We are now half-way to achieving our target of $100M savings and
have helped deliver big increases in both concentrate and pellet production. As part of the planning process for 2006 each area’s
management team has selected a list of improvement projects for
implementation having a total target savings of $17M and production
improvement of at least 400 kT concentrate. In going through this
process, we realized that we need to look for new ideas to get the rest
of the savings we need to reach our $100M cost savings and 18Mtpa
concentrate production targets. So early in the New Year, we will be
running workshops in each area of the business to generate new
ideas. However, please do not wait for these workshops, at any time
please pass on any good ideas you have to improve IOC either to your
Team Leader, Superintendent or SACI, or by filling in a Continuous
Improvement form if they are available in your area.
You may have seen posters requesting your Continuous
Improvement ideas in various parts of the business.
18 Winter 2005
We know our people are our best resources to help us achieve our
target cost savings and production goals. We’ve seen great strides
thus far and want to continue to build upon this momentum. This is
what Continuous Improvement is all about. It is by implementing
improvements today that we strengthen the company for the future
and ensure that IOC will continue to prosper when prices and
markets are not as strong as today.
Welcome to Our New Colleagues
Van Alexopoulos
Manager
Financial Services
Martin Dufour
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Car Shop
Allister Letto
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Stephen Perry
Electrical Engineer Jr
Strategic Planning & Implementation
Robyn Ayles
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Marc Flight
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
William Letto
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Dion Philpott
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Concentrator
Reginald Baker
Stationary Engineer
Heating Steam & Air Plants
Daniel Fortin
Team Leader
Terminal
Francis Lévesque
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Terminal
Jamie Pinksen
Planner
Building Maintenance
Gino Barriault
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Luis Fossi
Engineer Chief
Engineering
Joëlle Lévesque
Process Controller
Quality
Robert Reader
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Simon Bellavance
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Communications & Signals
Edward Gallant
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Concentrator
Renee Lucas
Superintendent - Technical Services
Quality
Francis Richard
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Robert Blais
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Timothy Gibson
Technical Advisor Sr
Primary Ore
Daniel Macdonald
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Michael Rowcliffe
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
MM Garage
Florent Brisson
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Michael Gilderdale
Superintendent
Strategic Planning & Implementation
Dean MacISaac
Analyst Business Jr
Financial Services
Dennis Sansome
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Stephen Bursey
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
James Gillingham
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Pellet Plant
Damian Matthiews
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Kent Shea
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Concentrator
Butt Gail
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Steve Hébert
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Carlo McKenzie
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Mary(Elaine) Smith
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Mark Byrne
Technologist
Process Engineering
Adam Higdon
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Christian Montigny
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Emmanuel Strang
Analyst Business Sr
Financial Services
Jun (Danny) Cao
Graduate Development
Strategic Planning & Implementation
Ken Holloway
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Pellet Plant
Peter Mooney
Operator Maintainer
MM Field
Lori Strangemore
Administrator jr
Environment ESH
Karl Charest
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Shawn Holwell
Technologist
Primary Ore
Paul Morin
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Loco Shop / Transport
Woodrow Sturge
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Fernando Cornejo
Graduate Development
Process Engineering
Roberto Iregui
Manager
Sales & Marketing
Christopher Morris
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Engineering
Jeannot Talbot
Team Leader Sr
Handling Maintenance
Gaétan Côté
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Terminal
Sylvain Jean
Team Leader
Terminal
Brad Noel
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Mario Venne
Team Leader
Primary Ore
Giovanni Cucchiara
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Allan (Ted) Jennings
Team Leader
Building Maintenance
Guillaume Noël
Maintainer Operator Mechanical 2
Terminal
Curtis Wellman
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
John Cumby
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Pellet Plant
Corey Keating
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Marco Noël
Operator Maintainer
Dumping & Loading
Gordon Williams
Superintendent - Maintenance
Primary Ore
Stéphane Cyr
Analyst IT Jr
IT Services
Kelly Laing
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Eric Parsons
Operator Maintainer
Primary Ore
Kara Dawe
Security Officer
Security
Therry Landry
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Gino Deschênes
Senior Operator Maintainer
Maintenance of Way
Patrick Lauzière
Advisor
Environment ESH
Jason Doyle
Maintainer Operator Electrical 1
Équipement mobile
Sébastien Lebel
Mechanical Engineer
Engineering
In the last edition of Mine-to-Port "Keeping It Cooler Saves
Energy" was accompanied with a photo, second from the left
is Wayne Hawkins Maintainer Operator (Electrician)
not Charlie O'Keefe Team Leader.
Winter 2005
19
Product Manufacturing
Second Housekeeping
Award
Congratulations are extended to the Concentrator’s Old Spiral Plant Team
on winning the GM’s Quarterly Housekeeping Award in Product
Manufacturing. The combined effort of all employees contributed to this
display of exemplary housekeeping. Congratulations and Well Done!
Special mention goes out to the Filtering & Balling Team for the
remarkable progress they have made in recent weeks.
The next GM’s quarterly Housekeeping Award will be presented in early
2006, let’s continue with the focus on housekeeping and keep up the
healthy competition.
The team who produced the IOC Family Album. Guylaine Ouellet, GO.com; Trina
Thompson, Consultant; Michel Filion, Director of Communications; Amy Bruce and
Natalie Rouleau, Communications Administrators and Symphonie Nadeau, Assistant.
high places
t be
C4: Work in
Standard
ffolding mus
ms and scars, railings and
or
tf
a
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oo
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with full fls to be unobstructed
equipped Ac
cess ha
accessible.
skirtings. ty exits have to becompetent
and safeained person who is an elevating
Only a tr ied may operate must wear a
kers
and qualif
basket. Wor
platform orrness at all times.
safety ha
Standard C5: Confined spaces
An excellent prevention program for work in
confined spaces has to include:
• Identification of confined spaces
(classification, indication, etc.);
• A procedure for safely entering and
working in confined spaces;
• Training for employees who enter confined
spaces and for their supervisor;
• Preventive maintenance of equipment
(detection devices, winches, harnesses,
etc.).
Your Mine-to-Port is now issued on recyclable glossy paper containing at least
10% of post-consumer fibre and colour photos at no additional cost. We hope
it will be to your liking.
: Lifting
Standard C6 employees are now
our
of
r
be
accessories. ned
m
nu
A
inspect lifting
trai
certified to our personnel are also elling
Almost all ofation of overhead trav
tional
in safe opermember that a preopera
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cranes. Re all lifting equipment ha
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inspection of
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carried out
In Memoriam
We extend our deepest
sympathy to the families of
Roger Chamberland passed away June 28, 2005
Thomas MacNeil passed away June 28, 2005
John Castilloux passed away July 4, 2005
Antonio Bragaglia passed away July 10, 2005
Léo Lavoie passed away July 23, 2005
Lloyd Curlew passed away August 7, 2005
Stanley Dasilva passed away August 8, 2005
Patrick Chiasson passed away August 17, 2005
Douglas Brett passed away August 19, 2005
John Fennessey passed away August 20, 2005
Jean-Paul Desplanches
passed away August 31, 2005
Jacques Gagnon passed away September 2, 2005
Salvatore Marras passed away September 4, 2005
Paul Robitaille passed away September 14, 2005
Georges Jean passed away September 16, 2005
Frank Porter passed away September 15, 2005
Réal Ouellet passed away September 22, 2005
Ghislain Raymond passed away October 10, 2005
Michael A. Bolger passed away October 13, 2005
Georges Clark passed away October 13, 2005
Philip Preziosi passed away October 13, 2005
Léon Bérubé passed away October 20, 2005
Jean-Marc Dion passed away October 21, 2005
Gilles Poirier passed away November 23, 2005
Guiseppe Didominicantoni
passed away November 29, 2005
Marcel Théberge passed away December 2, 2005
Produced by the Communications Department
www.ironore.ca • [email protected]
Tel.: (418) 968-7655 / Editing: Map Design
The team:
Amy Bruce, communications, [email protected]
Rowena Pinsent, pellet plant, [email protected]
Paula Coish, central services, [email protected]
Patsy Ralph, communications, [email protected]
Sean Hiscock, concentrator, [email protected]
Martin Rioux, product delivery, [email protected]
Éric Labrie, maintenance of way, [email protected]
Natalie Rouleau, communications, [email protected]
Connie Lane, mine, [email protected]
Shelagh Thomson, mine shops, [email protected]
Hugues Lapierre, dock terminal, [email protected]
Lynda Wilson-Hare, health & safety, [email protected]
Caroline Marceau, engineering, [email protected]
Nancy Gagnon, Continuous Improvement, [email protected]
Robin Ouellet, locoshop, [email protected]
Publications Mail:
Account # 1006379 • Agreement # 40005861
Iron Ore Company of Canada, 1 Retty Street,
Sept-Iles (Quebec) G4R 3C7