A Henderson based engineering services company has collaborated with one of Australia’s mining giants to spread the cancer message this Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The recent completion of a significant project for BHP Nickel West will culminate in the transportation of a large piece of fabricated equipment from Orontide’s engineering workshop in Henderson to BHP’s site in Leinster.
Painted bright pink to reflect Cancer Council WA’s Pink Ribbon Campaign, the 13 metre, 10 tonne Skip Work Platform will leave Henderson on Thursday 18 October to commence its three-day journey.
In a blaze of pink and covering a distance of almost 1000km by road, the platform is sure to stand out and attract attention to this important cause. The custom designed skip work platform will be used in underground maintenance at Nickel West’s Leinster site and is the culmination of many months work for Orontide.
“This project itself demonstrates what we can do when we work together with our clients. So it made perfect sense to use our working relationship with BHP to make a greater impact within the communities in which we work,” said Orontide CEO Stewart Maddison.
“When we realised that the completion of the manufacturing phase coincided with our annual Safety Week, we knew we had an amazing opportunity to achieve significant reach with our support of women’s cancer awareness and prevention.”
“BHP is very pleased to see this new shaft conveyance travel across Western Australia’s outback to our nickel operations at Leinster. This is a great opportunity to spread the word for breast cancer awareness,” said Nickel West Leinster Project Manager Florian Morris.
Breast cancer remains the most commonly diagnosed cancer among WA women – and the second highest cause of cancer death.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare predicts over 18 000 people in Australia will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year. Of this, 99.2% will be women and 0.8% will be men.
“WA women have a 1 in 10 chance of being diagnosed with breast cancer by the age of 75. In 2014, 249 Western Australian women died from breast cancer,” Cancer Council WA Cancer Smart Manager, Melissa Treby said.
Ms Jolly said many women still believe they can only be affected by breast cancer if there is an existing family history of the disease.
“It’s a common misconception that to develop breast cancer there has to be a running history of it in your family but this isn’t the case,” Ms Treby said.
“Most women who develop breast cancer don’t have a family history. That’s why it’s so important to get to know your body and know what’s normal for you.
