Case study: Minepower drills through to the core

Minepower director Robert Nash has a strong pedigree in the mining industry, with his family involved in the sector for more than 40 years.

And it was with the family business that he started his career, in 1985, as operations manager of Nash Mining.

Mr Nash became general manager in 1990, and drove the company to become the number one mining contractor based in the Kalgoorlie region.

The company’s rapid growth was recognised when it was named the fastest growing business in the state, and the 4th fastest in the country, in the 1994 BRW Fast 100 list.

Mr Nash established Minepower in 2002, with an initial focus on mining consulting, before widening its reach to incorporate contracting work, sourcing machinery and staff for mining projects across the state.

Having completed a small project for Jubilee Mining in 2005, the company’s first major project was a three-year contract for the Crescent Gold Laverton operation, supplying machinery and a team of 50 on-site and 10 off-site workers, worth more than $25 million a year.

Positioning the company for further growth, Mr Nash is currently developing a manufacturing business to run parallel with Minepower, with the aim of supplying internally manufactured machinery to various mining projects by 2007.

Mr Nash said that, during the process of developing the new manufacturing venture, the in-house business planning and development for the core business was neglected.

“The business wasn’t progressing as fast as I would like it to have been,” Mr Nash told WA Business News. 

“We found that we kept pushing it back because we were busy just running the business.

“The risk is that every time you start looking at a new venture, you take your eye off the ball with your current operations.”

The company was also busy working on acquiring $10 million in capital for its new business, including securing government funding.

It was the combination of these two drivers that led Mr Nash to the decision to outsource the business planning and R&D to more experienced professionals.

On the advice of Minepower’s accountant, the Fallon Group was hired to take on the R&D issues and do the legwork required to secure government funding.

From there, Minepower was referred to Engelhard Consulting to do the business planning.

“We did our own business plan 12 months ago, but we found that getting a professional like Engelhard Consulting really helped add value to our model, especially when you’re raising serious amounts of capital,” Mr Nash said.

“The business plan that we put together was good in one aspect, but to access that level of funding we need to have more professional presentation.

“We had our presentation done, we had our design done, it was just a matter of reflecting that in a professional plan.”

Mr Nash said networking was pivotal in finding the right business assistance.

“I think that [networking] is the key part of it – the more people you meet, the easier you find people that can help you out,” he said.

Company turnover by the end of the 2007 calendar year is expected to be close to $20 million.

Mr Nash believes that, with solid business planning and equity acquisition in the hands of experienced experts, the company is positioned to continue growing its core business, while developing a competitive advantage with its manufacturing arm.

 “Even though were growing the contract business, the equipment provided by the manufacturing business will definitely give us a competitive advantage,” he said.