Australian Society for Bulk Solids Handling Award
The ASBSH and TUNRA Bulk Solids would like to congratulate Craig Wheeler on receiving the ASBSH Award for 2024. Professor Craig Wheeler is Associate Director of the Centre for Bulk Solids (Newcastle Node), a Professor in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Newcastle, Australia and a Senior Consultant at TUNRA Bulk Solids. He worked for 10 years with BHP Billiton in Australia in a variety of engineering positions, including maintenance, production and design. Since joining the University he has worked as a consultant for TUNRA Bulk Solids for over 20 years.
Craig’s research is focused on reducing the energy intensity and environmental impact of ore and mineral transportation globally. His research develops new theoretical approaches to model and optimise belt conveyor and bulk handling systems. This approach is at the forefront of modern plant design and requires highly analytical and computationally intensive techniques.
Professor Wheeler was recently awarded a $1.13 million ARC Mid-Career Industry Fellowship to improve efficiencies in bulk material transportation. The funding will support research that aims to deliver a step change improvement to conveying technology and halve the energy used to handle and transport Australia’s most valuable export commodities. The new technology, known as the Rail-Running Conveyor, merges the benefits of both belt conveying technology and rail to produce a continuous low rolling resistance bulk material transportation system. Advanced models and novel experimental equipment will be developed to model this new innovative system to ensure safe, efficient and reliable design.
