The two won the commendation at the Safety Innovation Awards, presented at the annual Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Conference held in Terrigal on Sunday night.

The conference, organised by the NSW Minerals Council and the NSW Department of Mineral Resources, attracted delegates from all levels of the mining and quarrying industry workforce as well as suppliers of products and services to the industry.

The awards have been designed to recognise simple but effective solutions to OHS problems.

The award for the miners came as a result of a string of events leading back to an accident in April, which could have been fatal.

Mr Harrison and Mr Cree were working in an opal mine in Lightning Ridge when there was a rock fall and Mr Harrison was injured and had to be flown out for treatment.

From this point on they decided to develop a canopy around the hydraulic excavator that would protect them from rock falls in the future.

Nothing of this kind had been done before.

And there were many challenges to developing this equipment, which had to be flexible enough to go down a three-foot diameter hole, fit in small underground tunnels and go around corners.

The equipment is made of a tubular steel frame covered over the top with expanded mesh.

Mr Harrison said he and his partner never thought they would be winning an award for their innovation.

He said they wouldn't even have entered the awards if the local mines safety officer David Howell hadn't encouraged them.

"I didn't think we had a hope in hell of getting an award, we were just two miners from Lightning Ridge in among a crowd of 400 who were mostly representing big mining companies."

Mr Harrison said it was the first award he had ever won in the industry.

"We were blown away with how well we were accepted at the conference by the big mining companies, it is the best support we've ever received from the rest of the industry.

But Mr Cree said they had entered the awards on behalf of the local miners, because they wanted to represent Lightning Ridge as part of the mining industry.

"We wanted to show everyone that Lightning Ridge miners do have initiative and are proactive in looking after our health and safety," Mr Cree said.

The pair was one of three recipients who received a Highly Commended Award and one of 27 entrants.