Local presence allows for quick response, single point of contact
Two Sudbury-based mining suppliers – Ionic Engineering and Talos Steel – have joined forces to establish a presence in Chile.
The new company, Ionic Tecnologias, will be based in the country’s capital, Santiago, and represent the interests of both suppliers.
Ionic Engineering is an engineering and manufacturing company specializing in the design and construction of purpose-built equipment for a variety of industrial applications around the world, including copper stripping, anode preparation and specialized robotic handling systems. The company also performs technical and safety audits on automated equipment.
Talos Steel, a member of the Sudbury-based Anmar Group of companies is an industrial fabricator specializing in mining projects.
Both companies have done a considerable amount of work in Chile, but “One of the big needs for Chileans is quick response time,” said Ionic Engineering applications engineering manager Eric Haapamaki. “Another is a local presence. That’s always been a barrier for us despite us having the technical expertise and experience, so this office will really help us to break that barrier to entry.”
Ionic Engineering and Talos Steel have done some work together in Sudbury, but not in Chile.
The joint venture will facilitate “turnkey, single point of contact EPC-style project delivery,” said Haapamaki.
Manufacturing of robotic systems will occur at Ionic Engineering’s plants in Sudbury and Cambridge, Ontario, with Talos Steel providing fabrication services.
“Talos Steel is also able to offer the installation services that we need,” said Haapamaki.
Chile is the jurisdiction of greatest interest to the JV because it represents the lion’s share of copper mining in South America, but there are also has some medium-term goals to pursue business in Peru and Brazil.
“Pairing our industrial know-how with Ionic’s automation experience puts this new venture in a very unique competitive position,” noted Talos Steel vice-president Frank Grossi. “Mining companies from Canada and the Sudbury Basin in particular are very well respected abroad.”
Ionic Tecnologias has hired Pablo Rivas to head up the Santiago-based company. A metallurgical engineer with an MBA, Rivas has experience working for both Codelco and BHP
Billiton.
