Behind the Scenes with Bryan

Dr. Pyke was born and raised in Australia and received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Sydney. He then worked for the Commonwealth Department of Works in Canberra on various projects before attending graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley. At Berkeley he conducted original research for his Ph.D. under the guidance of the late Professor Harry Seed and formed a close relationship with Professor Seed with whom he subsequently worked on a number of consulting assignments. Since 1977 Dr Pyke has worked principally as an individual consultant on special problems in geotechnical, earthquake and water resource engineering.

Alex is the Managing Director of First Principles Consulting in Australia. First Principles Consulting specialises in investment outperformance in mid-tier and aspiring mining operations. Their mission is to empower investors and operators to cut through subjective narratives to reveal their hidden asset, increasing production. Alex is the author of a recently published book titled, "Mining for Value, a Blueprint to Eliminate Chaos, Scale Production and Unlock Latent Capacity". You can find the book here: https://www.amazon.com.au/Mining-Value-Blueprint-Eliminate-Production/dp/1998528618

Ian is the founder and CEO of Geotheta Consulting Engineers in South Africa. Ian and I discuss many things, including his successes as a tailings engineer in Africa.

Johan has been involved in geotechnical engineering aspects of projects for the past 30 years. His expertise includes detailed design, monitoring and project management of tailings storage facilities, mine residue stockpiles and waste disposal facilities. He has also fulfilled the role of Engineer of Record for major mining clients on key assets.
In his current role as the VP of Global Tailings Management at Gold Fields, he supports the implementation of leading industry practices for effective and sustainable design, construction, operation, and closure of TSFs across all Gold Fields operations. He also supports and advises on ICMM and other standards and guidelines implementation.

According to Kelly, is the Director of Business Development at ConeTec, an advocate for women in engineering and a Cone Head/CPT Enthusiast. With over 20 years' experience in the geotechnical and environmental engineering industry, she discovered a passion for communicating, teaching, and sharing technology. As a co-author of a concise and practical Guide to Cone Penetration Testing, Guide to In Situ Testing and other technical papers, she endeavors to share her knowledge and expertise.