We are now well into 2017 but the extremes of 2016—historically low prices at the beginning of the year and unprecedented rallies near the end—are still fresh in our minds.
Today, it is abundantly clear that the steps we took over the last five years to reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve productivity positioned us well to weather those extremes while also allowing Teck to emerge a stronger company.
The theme for this issue, Continuous Improvement, has been an important driver for many of the cost reduction initiatives and operational improvements that have kept Teck strong during one of the longest and deepest downturns in our industry’s history.
The examples we have chosen to highlight in this issue are just a few of the recent continuous improvement projects that have been brought to life by dedicated people and teams across Teck. “Mine to Mill: A Continuous Improvement Success Story” looks at optimization initiatives, which are ensuring mine and mill are working together as efficiently as possible, while “Amping Up Maintenance” introduces us to cross-operational teams who are helping accelerate the implementation of leading maintenance practices across our operations.
Continuous Improvement is at the heart of “There’s an App for That!”, an innovation at Trail Operations that was inspired by a ski racing app and is helping better manage the cathode cycle at the Zinc Electrolytic Plant.
It also combines with safety in “Road to Safety”, which takes us to Highland Valley Copper and along a new, safer service roadway that is diverting more than 200 vehicle trips a day from the operation’s busy haul roads.
Continuous Improvement is helping us find better ways to safely reduce costs and improve performance to achieve better results across our business. It is also shining a light on the incredible talent and ingenuity of our employees, individuals and teams who know the work best and are finding new ways we can be a safer, more efficient and productive company.
I would like to thank all employees for their tremendous work throughout 2016 and during these first few months of 2017. Your efforts have been and will continue to be critical in keeping Teck well positioned as we move forward through continued market volatility. By maintaining our focus every day on the factors within our control—safety, sustainability, costs, productivity and efficiency—I know we are ready to take advantage of the opportunities and tackle the challenges that will come our way in 2017. Together, we will continue to build a safer, stronger Teck.
