The Department of Civil Engineering at Frederick University organized an educational visit to the Skouriotissa mine on Thursday, 7th of May. The area has a long history of copper mining from ancient times and is the oldest copper mine in Europe.

The mine is managed by SXEW Hellenic Cyprum Ltd and operates under strict environmental conditions producing clean copper quantities of excellent quality.
The students were given a warm welcome at the company offices by Mrs. Elena Xyda and then a presentation was delivered by the company director Mr. Kyriakos Xydas about the history of the mine and also the relevance of the construction industry to mining activities. A presentation was also given by Mrs. Alexandra Papakonstantinou, the Health & Safety Officer, focusing on the activities and the environmentally friendly, hydrometallurgy method used currently at the mine.

Following the briefing information, the students were transported to the mine location and observed the material recovered and stacked on-site, and also the mine lakes from the top viewing area. Operations Manager, Mr. Giorgos Manos, explained in more detail the techniques and sequence used for extracting clean copper, including the processing and production plant in the area.
Engineering students were strongly interested in the topic of the mining activities at Skouriotissa mine, both regarding the history of the site and also the current innovative activities. There were also several questions by the students leading to additional information and knowledge transfer. Participation in the visit proved to be a valuable experience, as it brought together various topics in Civil Engineering, including production of raw materials and aggregates, geology and soil mechanics, environmental management.

Educational field trips are a very important component of the Civil Engineering degree at Frederick University and are frequently organized by the Department. Their purpose is to provide students with direct exposure to major works or infrastructure projects, enabling them to understand the complex nature of the Civil Engineering profession.