Caterpillar mining machinery bringing the Pilbara to Elizabeth Quay ahead of Resources Technology Showcase 2019 event

Elizabeth Quay is being transformed into a scene from the Pilbara — and the star of the show weighs a whopping 118 tonnes.

The Caterpillar 785 haul truck is the workhorse of WA’s mining industry and now everyday West Australians can get up close to a machine that usually spends its time hauling iron ore from mine sites run by Mineral Resources.

Standing 5.5m high and 7m wide, the truck dwarfs its surroundings.

That’s no mean feat considering the scale of its neighbour — a 745 articulated haul truck connected to a Panther float with a D9 dozer on the back.

RTS2019: See the full program, list of keynote speakers and the experts taking part in panel sessions.

The display is the culmination of months of planning involving mining equipment supplier WesTrac, mining service company Piacentini and Son, Titan Heavy Lift, and events specialists RD Events.

The procession of equipment was brought into the city on Sunday night, with the 785’s 25-tonne tray craned into position on Monday.

The display will remain in place for the next two weeks, giving the likes of East Victoria Park two-year-old Max Williams ample time to see the monstrous scale of the machines driving WA’s resources industry.

The resources sector has proven to be an economic game changer for Western Australia, and we’re excited to see our homegrown technology on display for the whole community.

The display is part of a free-to-the-public technology exhibition that forms an important component of next week’s Resources Technology Showcase 2019 event.

RTS2019 will be held at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre next Wednesday and Thursday.

City of Perth chair commissioner Andrew Hammond, whose support made the Elizabeth Quay activation possible, said RTS2019 would “showcase the industry WA has been built upon”.

“Global mining companies have called Perth home for decades with many headquartered in the city, and each with significant operations throughout WA,” he said.

“The resources sector has proven to be an economic game changer for Western Australia, and we’re excited to see our homegrown technology on display for the whole community.

“Events such as the Resources Technology Showcase are hugely important not only for the sector but also to provide the community a behind-the-scenes look at how our resource industry is evolving.”