Founded in 1921 and publicly traded since 1925, Newmont ( www.newmont.com ) is one of the largest gold companies in the world. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, the company has approximately 24,000 employees and contractors, with the majority working at Newmont's core operations in the United States, Australia, Ghana, Peru and Suriname. Newmont is the only gold company listed in the S&P 500 index and in 2007 became the first gold company selected to be part of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. Newmont's industry leading performance is reflected through high standards in environmental management, health and safety for its employees and creating value and opportunity for host communities and shareholders.

About this role

What will you be responsible for?

• The Drill and Blast Specialist (Specialist) directly collaborates with the Senior Director Geotechnical and Hydrogeology, Resource Evaluation & Mine Planning, Technical Services, and provides support to operations, projects and M&A targets.
• The Specialist will work with the existing global mine sites and stage gate projects to establish the drill and blast systems and procedures, as needed, so that the relevant data is collected, properly stored and analyzed.
• The Specialist will work in the development of the analysis tools needed to support the operations as well as facilitating technology and knowledge transfer to the mining operations

In this role you will

Here is a snapshot of what your day to day will look like:

• We maintain a high focus on safety by monitoring implementation of field practices at all Newmont Goldcorp sites. Comparison of monitoring results to standards or established appropriate practice.
• We work with operating sites and a panel of industry authorities to determine and set drilling and blasting standards, systems, and processes for each site or Investment System project.
• We collect industry standard processes and sharing these with mine sites where this could be applicable. Monitoring trends and industry to anticipate future opportunities and risks, facilitate technology and knowledge transfer between operations.
• We settle and develop systems to monitor key metrics impacted by drill and blast.
• We review available rock characterization data (compressive strength, block size, density, fracture frequency, RQD, Young's Modulus, Poisson's Ratio, geotechnical structures, etc.) for each domain and support the development of drill and blast criteria for operations and projects in consultation with site and project teams.
• We face on-site fixing of drill and blast activities.
• We supply engineering support to existing mine sites on an impromptu pull fashion.
• We lead key critical initiatives, focused on delivering measurable improvements to projects and operations.
• We establish the effects of fragmentation in downstream processes (mill throughput) and understanding the impacts of pattern/shot design on total drill and blasting costs.
• We assist in figuring out mine design parameters, such as level spacing, bench heights, void and slot creation, that both optimize the mine and overall production performance.
• We actively engage with sites in optimizing underground stope performance to minimize overbreak, underbreak and dilution to improve stope reconciliation across all underground sites.
• We assist underground mines in improving development drill and blast performance.
• We understand burden/spacing relationships and their applications in which to optimize total pattern design, explosives and fragmentation with respect to ground conditions.
• We undertake regular and as required field visits to assess current status and the accuracy of designs, adjusting plans and instructions accordingly.
• We perform fragmentation simulations to evaluate design conformance with plant feed specifications (with calculated oversize component if applicable).
• We propose/validate drill selection criteria, mode and drill specification.
• We analyze and develop drilling and blasting final wall designs for the main rock domains to achieve the proposed design IRAs.
• We ensure that Explosives Management, Blasting Management, and Blast Fume Management Plans are updated with changes in relevant legislation, results of optimization studies and outcomes from blasting related incidents and audit reports.
• We ensure the Blast Design Standard is optimized in a continuous improvement fashion so that drill and blast outputs are aligned as closely as practicable with the requirements of the mining operations, processing operations, geology, geotechnical, environmental and technical services departments.
• We lead Drill and Blast Community of Practice within the organization.
• We coach and support mine site engineering and operational personnel.

The above duties and responsibilities are representative of the nature and level of work assigned and are not necessarily all-inclusive.

Your training, skills & experience checklist

Here is what we would need to see from you!

• In excess of 10 years of experience in Drilling and Blasting operations.
• B.Sc. Mining/Geotechnical, Geological Engineering, or Civil Engineering.

Good knowledge of:

• Validated technical experience in drill & blasting practices, preferably within varied environments both in surface and underground situations.
• The latest technology in explosives and blasting procedures
• Handling environmental conditions including vibration, fume, dust and noise for neighboring towns and properties.
• Risk assessment techniques.
• The interaction between blasting and final wall control

Basic knowledge of:

• Mine planning and valuation.
• Open pit mining.
• Underground mining.
• Geological modeling.
• Geotechnical modeling.
• Permitting and operational regulations.

Desired experience includes:

• Overseas work experience in 1st, 2nd and 3rd world countries.
• Start-up experience with drill and blast programs.
• Experience in Project Evaluation at the Feasibility to ongoing operations stages.
• Well networked into industry specialists and consultants.
• Familiarity with business systems and standard office application software.
• Ability to build and maintain strong communications network with peers, Project Managers, Mine Managers, Chief Engineers, and JV partner representatives.
• Strong problem solving and 3D visualization skills.
• Strong technical writing, group presentation, and interpersonal skills including cultural sensitivity

Working conditions & location

Where you will be located!

• While the preferred location for this position is the Head office in Denver, Colorado, qualified candidates in proximity to one of our regional offices or operations are encouraged to apply.
• Performance of the work requires travel (30-50% of work time) to domestic and international operations. Travel can be at a moment's notice to overseas or domestic locations, including Newmont and Non-Newmont locations and Greenfield areas.
  

The salary range offered for this role is $104,550 to 129,150. The salary range is tied to the Colorado market for jobs performed in Colorado. The salary offer to the successful candidate will be based on job-related education, training, and/or experience. The salary offer will not be based on a candidate's salary history at other jobs, and by law, Newmont will not seek information about salary history, and candidates should not share such information with Newmont.

This role will be eligible for participation in a discretionary annual bonus program, pursuant to which an employee may be awarded a percentage of their salary based on the company's performance and their own individual performance.

Newmont offers a competitive and inclusive benefits package to support physical, mental, financial and emotional wellbeing. This role will be eligible for the following benefits: Medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision insurance; flexible spending accounts; health savings accounts; life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance; short and long-term disability; 401(k) program with company match; pension; financial planning; employee assistance program (EAP); adoption assistance; dependent scholarship program; tuition reimbursement; paid holidays and paid time off; paid family leave; matching gifts; and discounts on home, auto and pet insurance. All bonuses and benefits are subject to the applicable eligibility and program/plan terms and may be modified or terminated at Newmont's sole discretion.

Consistent with Newmont's values of safety and responsibility, we believe that COVID-19 vaccination is a critical tool to fight this pandemic and protect the health and safety of Newmont's workforce and the communities in which we work and live.With the wide availability of vaccines in the United States, if you are offered this position, you will have to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccine prior to being hired. This requirement will be subject to an exemption process, as required by law. Newmont may update its vaccination policies/requirements at any time in its sole discretion.

Nearest Major Market: Denver