Unique project reaches new depth

It's a pattern that's been repeated hundreds of times over four years during the Ross Shaft rehabilitation project: remove old steel and lacing, clean out decades of debris, add ground control, install new steel and repeat. With every new set of steel, the crews working in the Ross Shaft inch closer to the finish line—the 5,000 Level. 

This week, crews installed set 255, reaching 4,268 feet. The shaft is 5,171 feet deep, leaving just over 900 feet to go. With the current schedule, the project is expected to be completed in September 2017.

"We've had some challenges, but the crews have done a fantastic job,"said George Vandine, Ross Shaft foreman. 

Among the challenges was the stretch of shaft between sets 250 and 256. "That part of the shaft had some bad ground, old lacing and loose debris," Vandine said. "We removed up to a ton of debris with every old set." To compensate for the ground conditions, crews increased the number and length of rock bolts used in ground control. 

In just the past few months, crews reached several milestones. They installed nine new sets in both September and October, which has never been done back-to-back; completed the 4100 Level station; and have less than 1,000 feet to go. 

Vandine is pleased with the progress made on the Ross Shaft rehab project, but he?s even more proud of the quality of the work done by the crews.  

"You know, we've been at this for four years now and the guys have gotten so good at what they do," Vandine said. They're professionals. That's the only way to put it. They've taken on this massive, very complicated project that has a lot of moving parts. They make sure they have the right tools, the right equipment and they do the job the right way."

And they do it safely, carefully planning each shift and looking at potential hazards and how to mitigate them. That?s a big deal, Vandine said, because this is a very unique project. 

"We're doing something that's never been done before on this scale, so we are the experts. We've done this more than anyone else and, over all, we've done it the right way and we?ve done it safely. We?re all really proud of how this project is going."