Steve Durkin, a mining engineer, never wanted to start his own business. In fact, even after developing a prototype for a safer escape-way for underground mining sites, he tried to find someone else to develop it. At the time Steve had been working as an air leg miner and engineer with stints at various Victorian mine sites. After seeking feedback from local gold producer Fosterville, Steve found himself with a choice to make: develop the product himself or go back to his day job.
Of course he took the plunge or else we wouldn’t be here, but what’s even more compelling is how the idea for a ‘Laddertube’ in 2010 was the start of a journey towards becoming a globally-renowned business manufacturing electric vehicles in 2023… all from Bendigo.
Driven to improve safety and sustainability in the mining industry
Safescape is the company Steve started in 2009 after his successful prototype development. The first Laddertube was installed at Fosterville Gold Mine in 2010, and orders from across Australia and then North America saw the company grow significantly within a short period of time. They started to produce other mining safety products too.
Cut to: a decade later and Safescape has become known for its mission to make mines safer, with their products exported to 24 countries across the globe. And Steve, who never wanted to start a business in the first place, decided to expand. He saw that the next logical step towards safer, more sustainable mining, was to explore the advancements being made in Electric Vehicle (EV) technology.
In 2019, he established Bortana, a dual brand to Safescape, to represent the area of business dedicated to EV development for the mining industry.
Why EVs in mining?
The underground mining environment is salty, acidic and wet; it’s not the place for civilian light vehicles even though that’s what is currently and most commonly used. Diesel particulates emitted by diesel engines paired with the confined environments of underground mining are a core safety concern driving the switch to EVs. However, the way this is generally happening is companies are buying “off the shelf” vehicles like Landcruisers and HiLuxes and replacing their engines with EV batteries to create a safer mining vehicle.
The problem then becomes the longevity of the vehicle body. On average, a civilian vehicle lasts 18 months in a mining environment – a shockingly short amount of time for a large amount of waste. Safer, yes; but not sustainable (or cost effective).
That’s where Bortana comes in. The Bortana EV is a safe and sustainable solution to the problem. The vehicle body is designed for the job – sealed and galvanised, corrosion-resistant, capable of handling rough terrain and harsh environments for years to come. Bortana imports the blank vehicle body and chassis from Brazil. Everything else is, and will continue to be, built in Bendigo.
Why Bendigo?
The Safescape, and now also Bortana, team is happily established in Bendigo with no intention of moving. They’re twenty-eight Bendigo based people in 2023, but looking to grow that number as the EV manufacturing process becomes imminent after successful prototype testing.
Marketing Manager from Bortana, Beau McKenna, says there are some challenges that come with operating in the region, but the positives outweigh them significantly. Access to the skilled workforce the company needs to grow is currently the biggest challenge.
“We need everything that comes with building an EV – mechanics, software developers, testing analysts; people with unique skill sets,” says Beau.
He believes that lots of people don’t expect or search for jobs past a certain level regionally, but he hopes that’s changing: “You get below the surface and you realise there are a whole range of globally-recognised businesses doing huge things from Bendigo – it’s not only the Bendigo Bank, Latrobe University and the Hospital. People underestimate what the region has to offer.”
While Bortana does import their vehicle body and chassis from Brazil, other parts of the vehicle are sourced, built or supplied locally. “Lots of people would think they wouldn’t be able to access suppliers regionally and that’s just not the case,” says Beau. “We’ve always found we can get the things we need. We’ve got people five minutes down the road providing parts, which means we know what we’re getting, and we can even work with them on design.”
Bortana appreciates, too, the opportunities it’s able to give to local partners as a global brand; plus the wider effects that help to grow the region in terms of its reputation for innovation.
The lifestyle can’t be overlooked
Better work-life balance is a defining positive for doing business regionally. According to Beau, it’s a “best-of-both-worlds” situation for the staff at Safescape and Bortana who’re still engaged in highly-skilled roles without the commute or cost of city living.
“In Bendigo, you can work for something as substantial as an EV company and still have a regional lifestyle.”
Beau emphasises that Safescape and Bortana are not the sole examples of success. He encourages businesses considering starting up or relocating to the region to attend a business networking event as a way to witness the abundance of interesting ideas and businesses operating in the region: many are operating at a similar scale with global audiences; many defy regional stereotypes and are also operating at the forefront of technological innovation. “There’s so much you don’t realise about the region until you look under the covers.”
To learn more about Safescape and Bortana and their inspiring work and vision, visit them here.
Or, learn more about mining in the Loddon Mallee; or the City of Greater Bendigo. If you have questions about starting-up or moving a business to the Loddon Mallee region, visit our Contact page to connect with expert local support.
