When Jeff Moredock first entered the air quality industry, he came with zero experience in mining, engineering or heavy equipment. He was a real estate executive, who was recruited into the family business, Sy-Klone, in 2007.
Now, Moredock is not only the Executive Vice President at Sy-Klone and a driving force behind its innovative solutions for cab air quality, but also the project lead for ISO 23875, an international quality standard that unifies the design, testing, operation and maintenance of air quality control systems for heavy machinery cabs.
How is it that an industry outsider became, in the span of 18 years, an international authority?
For Moredock, the answer lies in a deep calling that has pushed him and his company to invest in years of research resulting in ground breaking technologies which have contributed to their success and influence in the mining industry. What began as an interesting job involving innovative products quickly became something deeper — and more personal.
“I was explaining our cab filtration system at MINExpo in 2008, when someone commented, ‘You’ve invented the cure for cancer,’” Moredock recalls thinking, “What if your product could have that impact on human health?” That single moment rewired his thinking.
‘The world wasn’t ready to hear about better air quality’
Based in Jacksonville, Fla., Sy-Klone delivers proven air quality solutions for the world’s most demanding environments. The company’s technology helps protect operators of heavy equipment from respirable crystalline silica (RCS), a dangerous mineral dust linked to chronic lung diseases like silicosis and black lung, as well as other harmful particulate matter.
But back in 2007, few in the industry saw the necessity of what Sy-Klone was offering.
“The world wasn’t ready to hear about better air quality back then, and customers weren’t demanding it,” Moredock says. “But that did not alter the moral imperative which was driving the mission to improve operator air quality and reduce lower lung disease. I couldn’t unhear what I heard at MINExpo.”
Clean air is a universal value
By 2018, Moredock’s work started to draw global attention. A rash of class action lawsuits in the mining industry, along with a generalized global confusion around air quality, made it clear that the industry desperately needed a more structured approach to operator air quality. Miners and safety professionals were beginning to demand clarity on how to improve air quality at their sites.
This growing concern came to a head when the International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO’s) Technical Committee on Mining (TC-82) tapped Moredock to lead the development of a new international standard — which would become ISO 23875. The standard set clear performance metrics for cab pressurization, CO₂ levels, filter efficiency and air monitoring — all aimed at making mine sites safer for operators.
A like-minded group of industry professionals from ten mining countries completed the international standard in record time, and it gained unanimous support from the countries voting on the standard. It was adopted as a national standard in Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden, and Colombia. The standard is widely referenced in air quality legislation and regulation in mining countries.
“The standard’s popularity showed me something I had long believed: that clean air is a universal value,” Moredock says.
Compassion, not compliance
Moredock’s motivations aren’t to lead the development of an influential piece of policy, but rather to protect everyday workers from avoidable harm. He hopes this human-centered orientation around safety will go global.
“Regulations help, but it’s respect for worker well-being that should drive the push for cleaner air,” he says. “This is why I like to frame the conversation around compassion, rather than just compliance. You wouldn’t give your child a dirty room to sleep in — why give a miner a cab filled with dust?”
Yet much has to change for clean air to become the norm. In his ongoing work with ISO 23875 and Sy-Klone, Moredock is encouraging OEMs to take greater ownership over air quality. His goal? To make ISO 23875-aligned air quality management systems in a cab as expected as a seat belt in a car.
Approaching a tipping point
His work has taken him into mines from Australia to Scandinavia, and Moredock’s mission remains anchored in his passion from the beginning. As attention on clean air continues to grow, Moredock believes mining is at a tipping point.
“On the ground, I’ve seen a clear shift,” he says. “Miners expect and are demanding clean air. And the industry is prepared to act.”
To learn more about Jeff’s work and the evolution toward cleaner cab air, visit sy-klone.com.
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