Triple Award nomination for BSBIRT

Geographe’s BSBIRT named finalist in two major 2026 safety awards

Geographe has been recognised as a finalist in two of Australia’s leading work health and safety award programs for its Ball Stud Bearing Installation and Removal Tool (BSBIRT): the 2026 Australian Mining Prospect Awards (Excellence in Mine Safety, OH&S) and the 2026 Work Health and Safety Excellence Awards (Best Solution to a Work Health and Safety Risk).

This double nomination follows another recent finalist placing in the 2026 Global Resources Innovation Expo (GRX) Awards, in the Exceptional Innovation in Mining category.

Why the BSBIRT stands out

The BSBIRT is a purpose-built hydraulic system designed to safely remove and install steering arm bearings on Caterpillar 785, 789 and 793 haul trucks. It replaces high-risk manual methods with a controlled, single-operator process that removes brute force from the task.

Traditional bearing change-outs often rely on sledgehammers, heating, jacking, liquid nitrogen, or the removal of tie rods and steering cylinders. These techniques expose maintainers to crush, strain, noise and projectile hazards, and can tie up multiple people for hours. The BSBIRT eliminates hammering and hot works, encapsulates the worn bearing during removal to prevent projectiles, and uses a built-in guidance system to ensure perfect alignment during installation.

Field trial results: faster, safer, fewer people

In Western Australian field trials with a Tier 1 miner, the BSBIRT—used alongside Geographe’s award-winning Ball Stud Removal Tool (BSRT)—helped crews maintain all four steering arms in a single 12-hour shift. This reduced what was previously a two-shift job down to just one. Individual bearing change-outs that once took up to six hours were completed in around 15 minutes, delivering major gains in uptime and labour efficiency.

What mine teams are saying

“We introduced the Geographe Ball Stud Removal & Install Tool, which uses a controlled hydraulic process to remove and install ball studs without impact force,” said Brittney Pritchard, Specialist Improvement at BHP. “The tool eliminates the need for sledgehammers, significantly reducing risk while also reducing task duration and enabling the job to be completed by a single maintainer.” 

The BSBIRT can apply up to 10 tonnes of force in confined spaces under the truck and follows a simple, standardised procedure:

• Safe removal
• Precise setting
• Perfect installation

It is manufactured in Australia from forged, heat-treated high-tensile alloy and is supplied with accessories in a waterproof wheeled case for ease of use and storage. 

Award timelines and partners

Winners of the Australian Mining Prospect Awards, in partnership with SEW Eurodrive, will be announced on 16 September at an event at Frasers in Kings Park, Perth. ] Winners of the Work Health and Safety Excellence Awards, in partnership with the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety, will be announced on 27 October at Optus Stadium. 

Learn more or request a demonstration

Mine sites and workshops interested in demonstrations or early access can register via:
www.geographe.com.au/bsbirt

Taken from an original article appearing via Austmine: https://austmine.com.au/Public/News/Articles/2026/Aug/Geographe_BSBIRT.aspx