Brunel partners with Rio Tinto to host Family Day for Contractors

About the Bingham Canyon Mine

Founded in 1903, Kennecott’s Bingham Canyon Mine is still the largest man-made, open-pit excavation in the world. The operation is so large, in fact, that it can be seen from space! More than 2,100 employees help to keep the mine operating 24 hours per day and 365 days per year. The mine creates about $10 million in revenue each day, making it one of the most productive mines in the world nearly 120 years since its founding. The main material produced at Bingham Canyon Mine is copper, but silver and gold are produced there as well.

Like Brunel, Rio Tinto and the Kennecott operation are committed to reducing their carbon footprint and producing copper responsibly. For example, in 2019 Kennecott retired its coal-fired power plant in Magna, UT after 75 years of operation. After closing the plant and acquiring renewable energy certificates, Rio Tinto will “remove more than one million tons of carbon dioxide every year from Kennecott’s Wasatch Front operations, reducing its annual carbon footprint by as much as 65%.”

Additionally, Rio Tinto has invested more than $5 billion in “modernization, environmental stewardship and mine-life extension initiatives” since acquiring Kennecott in 1989.

Giving Back to our Contractors

Rio Tinto is a fantastic partner that shares many values with Brunel, and we have had a high number of contractors work on successful assignments with them at Bingham Canyon Mine, so collaborating with them on a contractor appreciation event was a no brainer.

Brunel Family Day saw us host about 180 people (many of our contract bus drivers, who do not usually get to see most of the mine while on the job, and their families) for an exclusive preview of the Rio Tinto Kennecott Visitor Experience along with some great barbecue, swag giveaways, and raffle items.

Brunel is extremely grateful to each of our contractors for all the excellent work they do on behalf of our clients like Rio Tinto. That gratitude flows down from the top of our company, which is why several Brunellers were in attendance for Family Day meeting as many people as possible. Brunellers in attendance included our COO Graeme Maude visiting from Amsterdam, Brunel Americas President Beth Bowen, USA Mining Business Manager Angela Ingram, and several others.

The Kennecott Visitor Experience

The Visitor Experience is now open to the public with tickets available for purchase here. Visitors can get a glimpse inside of the pit mine, see the large 2-story mining trucks in action, stand inside different pieces of mining equipment, and much more.

Thank you to our wonderful partners at Rio Tinto for helping us host such an excellent event for our contractors and their families.