Reliability centred maintenance turns breakdowns into breakthroughs at Ashton Coal proving maintenance is more than cost it is opportunity

When Barry McKay walked into Ashton Coal and saw machines cutting stone instead of coal, he knew something had to change. The engineering manager, with more than four decades of industry experience, was confronted with equipment that was literally shaking itself apart. Instead of treating maintenance as a never-ending cost, he reframed it as an opportunity—and the results would capture the attention of any mining professional facing the daily grind of availability versus cost.

Barry, engineering manager at Ashton Coal for Yancoal, shared his story at the Mechanical Engineering Safety Seminar (MESS 2025) in Sydney. His presentation, “My Career and Industry Insights”, covered his 44-year career, from starting as a fitter in an underground coal mine to leading asset management across both underground and open-cut operations. But it was his candid account of how reliability centred maintenance (RCM) reshaped Ashton’s performance that offered the most compelling lessons for today’s practitioners.

From fitter to engineering manager

Barry began his career without formal experience in mining equipment and no shift engineer or leading hand to guide him. What made the difference was mentoring.

“I was fortunate to be paired with an experienced fitter named Owen, who had 20 years in the industry,” Barry recalled. “Every day, he’d walk me through what he found and what he left behind. That mentoring accelerated my career in a way I could never have achieved alone.”

Over the years, Barry’s career spanned key milestones: pioneering the cut-flit system, redesigning underground dewatering and service water systems, overseeing conveyor installations, leading infrastructure upgrades, and managing both underground and open-cut maintenance teams. Each move reinforced a belief in continuous improvement, listening carefully to colleagues at all levels, and adapting to the unique culture of each site.

A tough operating context at Ashton

By the time Barry arrived at Ashton, the mine’s yield was hovering between 44 and 46 percent. That meant cutting through stone as well as coal—a punishing environment for continuous miners and longwall equipment. The result was abnormal vibration, accelerated wear, severe cracking, and massive overhaul bills.

“Typical overhauls were costing $400,000 per machine,” Barry said. “On top of that, cutter drum repairs alone were running at another $400,000. It wasn’t sustainable—we had to do something different.”

The “something different” was applying RCM principles to Ashton’s equipment fleet. Rather than accept high costs and frequent breakdowns, Barry and his team set out to identify opportunities to extend overhaul intervals, reduce downtime, and redesign equipment to suit the geology.

Rock cutting drums: collaboration and results

Central to the transformation was a partnership with Komatsu Pennsylvania to redesign rock cutting drums. Barry worked closely with colleague Brad Radnage and Komatsu engineers for six months to re-engineer the drums.

“We changed the pick lacing, increased the hardness of internal bores, used tougher key materials, and improved the hydraulic lockouts,” Barry explained.

The results were measurable:

• 30 percent reduction in pick and drum overhaul costs per tonne over five years.

• 9.7 percent reduction over eight years.

• Overhaul frequency for some machines extended from annual to biennial.

• Annual savings of around $43,000 from reduced pick replacement time.

“Those numbers speak for themselves,” Barry said. “We didn’t achieve higher cutting rates at the expense of reliability. We improved both.”

Extending the philosophy

The RCM philosophy didn’t stop at cutter drums. Barry and his team introduced structured maintenance schedules, comprehensive root cause analysis, and engineering enhancements tailored to Ashton’s unique operating context.

“We surrounded ourselves with competent people and never stopped looking for opportunities,” he said. “That discipline—applying RCM, sticking to schedules, responding to issues systematically—saw our engineering availability climb year on year.”

For longwall operations, the team introduced dual water sprays for cooling, reduced the number of picks, and implemented a detailed pick-holder monitoring system. They are now on version eight of their redesigned drums—an illustration of continuous improvement in action.

Engineering availability figures tell the story:

• Longwall equipment availability increased from 70 percent to 87 percent, despite a 54 percent increase in maintenance spend.

• Development equipment availability rose from 80 percent to 92 percent, even as costs decreased.

“The investment paid off by creating more opportunities for the equipment to do what it’s supposed to—cut coal,” Barry said.

Rethinking the role of maintenance

One of Barry’s strongest messages was cultural, not technical. Too often, he argued, executives see maintenance purely as a cost centre. When coal prices fall, the instinct is to cut spending on asset management. Barry believes this mindset is outdated and counterproductive.

“Maintenance is not just a cost—it’s a creator of business opportunities,” he said. “When we invest in reliability, availability rises, costs stabilise, and the business gets stronger. Cutting maintenance is the quickest way to undermine future performance.”

This insight resonated with many in the room. In an industry still driven by commodity cycles, the temptation to slash budgets remains strong. Barry’s case study at Ashton shows why that short-term thinking can be self-defeating.

Leadership lessons

Alongside the technical detail, Barry shared reflections on leadership developed over decades. Key themes included:

• Mentoring matters: “Every new role needs a mentor. It’s the quickest way to transfer decades of experience.”

• Adapt to site culture: “Each mine is different. You can’t manage a new site the same way you managed the last one.”

• Operate in context: “Our role as mechanical engineering managers is to focus on safety, compliance, production, maintenance and projects. We can’t afford to be dragged down into every breakdown. We need to stay at the right level.”

• Energy and honesty: “If you turn up with poor energy, your team will reflect it. Be clear, honest, and encouraging.”

Barry also emphasised the importance of a “no-blame culture.” He saw firsthand how empowering workers to tell the truth without fear of reprisal led to better insights and safer operations.

The data challenge

Looking forward, Barry sees data as both a challenge and an opportunity. At Ashton, enormous amounts of operational information are captured daily—but much of it is underutilised.

“We’ve got all this data coming out, but we don’t use it properly,” he said. “Decision-making is still too subjective, and that’s not good enough for the 21st century. We need systems that connect data directly to business outcomes.”

This call reflects a wider shift across the mining sector, where automation, digital integration, and predictive analytics are becoming essential. Barry’s perspective—grounded in practical, hard-won experience—underscores the urgency of making data meaningful, not just abundant.

Global insights

Barry also drew on international exposure. Visits to China left him convinced that Australian underground mining technology is falling behind.

“In Shandong province, I saw a 30-metre face set up on a steel plate to simulate slope and grade,” he said. “That level of preparation is something we could learn from. In many ways, the Chinese have moved ahead of us.”

He also recommended that asset managers attend multi-industry conferences such as the Maintenance Productivity Improvement (MPI) program, where lessons from other asset-intensive sectors can broaden perspectives.

Never stop pursuing excellence

Barry closed his talk with a reminder that excellence is a continual pursuit, not a destination.

“Our role is to deliver fit-for-purpose equipment through the right acquisition and maintenance strategies,” he said. “We need competent people who keep developing, safe work practices that are practical, and leadership that inspires. Above all, we can’t stop looking for opportunities to improve.”

For mining professionals and practitioners, Barry’s story is a case study in turning adversity into opportunity. Faced with machines breaking down under impossible conditions, he applied a disciplined approach, engaged suppliers in redesign, and treated maintenance as a lever for business success. The outcome was higher reliability, lower costs, and a culture of continuous improvement.

It’s a lesson worth heeding as the industry wrestles with cost pressures, digital transformation, and the next generation of workforce challenges.