Posted on January 21, 2013Hard rock quarries have been a critical part of civilisation for thousands of years. People have long used stone and sand to create strong building foundations. Many ancient cities were built on crushed rock from nearby hard rock quarries. Geelong was built more recently, but still on foundations of stone, sand, crushed rock and aggregates.
Today, our buildings, our transport links, our infrastructure and our landscaped green spaces rely on materials extracted from the earth at sites right around the country.
Aggregates have become the most mined material in the world. Crushed rock and aggregates are vital in the production of concrete where they’re mixed with cement, additives and water, in varying combinations to produce concrete suitable for the specific properties of its end-use.
Construction of drains and roads also depends on crushed rock and aggregate. Different grades of product are ideal for different applications, catering to various drainage types, road-building methods and construction specifications.
Materials are tested and graded, usually on site as they are extracted at the hard rock quarries, to ensure product quality and that each type of material is used for its optimum application. Because the bedrock in each area has its own individual geological composition, mined materials can vary remarkably and it is important that experienced and qualified operators grade and manage the products into the market.
Geelong Quarries is an experienced extractor and supplier of crushed rock, bulk aggregates and landscaping rock to customers across the Geelong region including the Surfcoast, Bellarine Peninsula and Golden Plains Shire.