Ben is a mechanical engineer with over 18 years of experience in the mineral processing industry. He is responsible for the majority of engineering work conducted for studies and projects in Vancouver, this includes ensuring proper staffing, driving quality improvement initiatives, and facilitating off-project reviews. He manages a team of 70 engineers and designers.
Ben’s expertise includes preliminary and detailed engineering design of a wide range of equipment, including pumps and piping systems, conveyor systems, compressors, agitators, thickeners, grinding mills, filter presses and other mechanical equipment. His experience also extends to financial analysis, optimized designs, construction planning, construction supervision and commissioning.
Ben’s career began in Australia, where he worked on site-based nickel, gold, and aluminium projects. Since joining Ausenco in Vancouver in 2011, Ben has worked on numerous key projects, including the Goldstrike Resin-in-Leach project where he was Lead Mechanical Engineer, followed by roles in Utah and Nevada for fabrication oversight and commissioning. He worked on the Moose River Project as Senior Mechanical Engineer and Area Engineer for the carbon-in-leach, cyanide detox and tails pumping areas and then for the Quebrada Balance Phase 2 (QB2) project as the Lead Engineer/Owner’s Engineer for the desalination plant. Most recently, Ben was the Lead Mechanical and Piping Engineer, ultimately taking on responsibility as the Engineering Manager, for the Las Chispas lump-sum project in northern Mexico.
Ben co-authored the paper Technical Considerations During Early Engineering and Maximizing Desalination Plant Availability, presented at the 2018 ALADYR International Congress on Desalination and Water Reuse in Chile.
Ben completed his Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Hons.) and his Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting & Corporate Finance at the University of Western Australia. He is registered with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (EGBC).
Country experience:
- Australia
- Chile
- Canada
- Mexico
- United States