Mining & Resources Security | Hunter Valley, New South Wales

Client: Dartbrook Mine

Industry: Mining Site Underground Coal

Location: Dartbrook Mine, Stair Street, Kayuga NSW 2333, Upper Hunter Valley

Site: Underground mine portals, CHPP, coal stockpiles, rail loop, train-loading facilities, administration, workshops, water and power infrastructure

Services: Static Guards, Gatehouse Control, Mobile Patrols, CCTV, Contractor & Visitor Management, Incident Response

Dartbrook Mine is an underground coal mining operation located near Kayuga in the Upper Hunter Valley, NSW. The operation produces high-quality thermal coal for domestic and international markets, supported by extensive established infrastructure: underground mining facilities, a Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHPP), coal stockpiles, a rail loop, train-loading facilities, water and power infrastructure, administrative offices, and workshops. The site connects directly to the Hunter Valley coal transport network via rail.

Dartbrook is committed to safe, responsible operations and places strong emphasis on health and safety, environmental management, risk management, and stakeholder engagement. Australia Security Forces was engaged to deliver a comprehensive, ongoing security program across the full site protecting the mine’s people, assets, and operational infrastructure around the clock.

Dartbrook Mine operates across one of the most complex security environments in Australia Security Forces’ portfolio. The site spans multiple distinct operational zones underground mine portals, surface processing facilities, rail and loading infrastructure, and administrative areas each with its own access requirements, risk profile, and security considerations.

The mine’s own documentation identifies security fencing, secured gates, security personnel, boundary patrols, and motion-activated cameras as essential measures for preventing unauthorized access and trespassing. For a working coal mine, the consequences of security failures extend beyond financial loss unauthorized access near underground portals, rail infrastructure, or processing plant creates immediate life-safety risks.

The principal security challenges identified across the Dartbrook site include:

• Unauthorized access and trespassing: multiple access points across a large and complex boundary
• Theft of expensive machinery, tools, fuel, electrical equipment, and spare parts
• Perimeter security across the West Site, East Site, CHPP, rail loop, and associated surface infrastructure
• Gatehouse and access control managing employees, contractors, suppliers, delivery vehicles, and visitors
• Vandalism and property damage to remote industrial infrastructure
• Coal stockpile and CHPP processing area security
• Rail and train-loading infrastructure unauthorized access creating both security and safety risks
• After-hours vulnerability during nights, weekends, and shutdown periods
• Contractor and visitor management across a high-traffic industrial site
• Rapid incident response trespassing, theft, suspicious vehicles, access breaches

Australia Security Forces deployed licensed security officers to Dartbrook Mine to deliver a comprehensive, layered security program covering every major risk area across the site. The scope of services includes:

Gatehouse & Access Control

Licensed guards manage all entry and exit points verifying employee credentials, checking contractor authorizations, maintaining visitor records, and monitoring vehicle movements. Access to restricted operational areas, including underground mine portals and the CHPP, is controlled and documented at all times.

24/7 Static Guarding

A continuous static guard presence maintains visible security across the site during all hours including nights, weekends, and reduced-activity shutdown periods when the risk of theft, trespassing, and vandalism is highest.

Perimeter & Mobile Patrols

Scheduled and randomized mobile patrols cover the full site perimeter including boundary fence-lines, the West and East Sites, CHPP, coal stockpiles, rail loop, and train-loading facilities. Patrols identify and report breaches, damage, and suspicious activity before incidents escalate.

CCTV Monitoring & Incident Response

Guards monitor CCTV systems across the site, maintaining visual coverage of operational areas between physical patrols. When incidents occur, officers secure affected areas, notify site management, and coordinate with emergency services as required. Detailed incident reports are produced for every event.

Contractor & Visitor Management

With a constant flow of contractors, suppliers, and visitors to a working mine site, controlled access is critical for both security and workplace safety compliance. Our guards verify credentials, maintain access records, and apply escort procedures in restricted zones where required.

Deploying security at a working coal mine requires thorough site familiarization and a clear understanding of mining health and safety requirements before a single shift commences. Australia Security Forces conducted a comprehensive site assessment of the Dartbrook operation covering the underground portal access points, surface infrastructure layout, CHPP and stockpile areas, rail infrastructure, and all administrative and workshop facilities.
Guard duties, patrol routes, access control procedures, and incident reporting protocols were established in alignment with Dartbrook’s own operational and safety requirements. Security officers are integrated into the site’s daily operations working within the mine’s health and safety framework and communicating directly with site management as required.
The engagement is ongoing and permanent, with the security program adapting to the evolving operational schedule of the mine across production periods, maintenance shutdowns, and reduced-activity phases.

Australia Security Forces maintains a continuous, professional security presence across Dartbrook Mine covering gatehouse operations, perimeter patrols, CCTV monitoring, contractor management, and 24/7 static guarding across all site areas. Licensed guards operate within the mine’s safety framework, providing Dartbrook management with a reliable and accountable security operation across one of NSW’s most complex industrial environments.

Dartbrook Mine operates with a comprehensive, layered security program that addresses every major risk identified across the site from underground portal access to rail infrastructure perimeter security. The permanent, ongoing nature of the engagement reflects the confidence Dartbrook management places in Australia Security Forces to protect a significant long-term mining asset in the Upper Hunter Valley.
For mining companies, resource operators, large industrial facilities, and infrastructure owners managing complex sites in regional NSW, this engagement demonstrates what professional, site-integrated security looks like when it is built for the specific demands of the environment not adapted from a generic template.

Security for Mining, Resources & Industrial Sites in NSW

Australia Security Forces provides licensed security guards for mining operations, industrial facilities, and large-scale infrastructure sites across New South Wales tailored to the specific safety and operational requirements of your environment.

📞 Call Now for a FREE security assessment | 🌐 www.australiasecurityforces.com.au