Richard has been involved in the field of geotechnical engineering, principally for mining and tunneling projects for more than 35 years. He has worked on projects in the UK, Ireland, Australia, Africa, S America and Asia. He joined Snowden’s Brisbane office in 2003, having moved into mining consultancy in 2001 and has worked on a wide range of surface and underground mining projects. After graduating in Civil Engineering in 1976, Richard worked on the excavation and support of major underground power station caverns. Following a return to university in 1979 to gain an MSc in Engineering Geology, he joined the UK Water Research Centre to undertake applied geotechnical research. In 1983 he moved to Ireland and worked as Senior Geotechnical Engineer for Tara Mines until 1996, before moving to Australia as Geotechnical Engineer for Moranbah North Coal Mine. As a consultant Richard has extensive experience of geotechnical investigations and design for studies from scoping to feasibility-level of large open pit and underground mining projects for coal, iron ore, precious metals, base metals, and industrial minerals.