The demonstration will take place February 3 at the Awaba coal mine in New South Wales.

SIMTARS, the research arm of the Queensland Government’s Department of Natural Resources and Mines, has worked on three successive Australian Coal Association Research Program (ACARP) projects related to the vehicle.

SIMTARS said the current phase of building a demonstration vehicle is now ready for the coal mining industry to both review progress and recommend further actions and development.

Add-ons have been developed and fitted to a standard mine vehicle for improving the capability for escape in the event of an underground incident. These include four ultrasonic devices with display, for navigation in zero visibility; an IR methane gas detector and display; and an onboard breathing system.

A further demonstration of the vehicle will be held at Crinum Mine in Central Queensland in February/March 2006. SIMTARS said it also proposed to trial the vehicle at Crinum Mine to beta test the equipment and finalise the design specification and certification of the add-on equipment.

People interested in attending should contact Maree Tanner at SIMTARS by January 31 on +61 7 3810 6302 or maree.tanner@nrm.qld.gov.au