SURFACE MINING - ROPSI have been involved in the mining and construction industries since 1970 initially as an end user and latterly a service and engineered product supplier.My experience with the design, test, manufacture, installation, inspection and the auditing of Roll Over and Falling Object Protection (ROPS & FOPS) began in the early nineties when the it became mandatory for designated equipment involved in mining to have ROPS / FOPS installed in accordance with Australian Standard AS2294. The standard includes the requirement to include both Service vehicles and Road Watering equipment.The essential element of the production and installation of a structure that meets the requirement laid down in the standard is that a prototype must be subjected to a destructive laboratory test in accordance with ISO standards 3471 & 3449. FEA and other mathematical analysis is not acceptable.It is considered wise to obtain a copy of the appropriate test report if installing an aftermarket structure.The evolution of ROPS/FOPS has been stagnant until recently when I developed a system to increase the strength of the operator station/ vehicle cabin using lightweight composite materials that exceeded the laboratory test requirement. There is a patent pending on the system.Meanwhile I have concentrated on the development of structures appropriate to ECE 29 compliant cab trucks, which allows the structure to be engineered to reflect the inherent strength of the OEM cabin. These have been termed "E" series.UNDERGROUND MINING - FOPSIn addition to the development of bespoke structures to meet individual operational requirements such as replacing the OEM operator station with a open or closed FOPS accommodating one to three personnel.Again to meet the standard the structure, a prototype must have been subjected to the test procedure laid down in the standard.