The Soft Rock Solution

Welcome to the new Georgia Blasters Training website, your comprehensive resource for continuing education and expert consulting in explosives. Explore our educational offerings, innovative additives testing, and insightful job presentations led by industry expert Michael Fritz.

About Us

Mick Fritz is a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War and has worked in the explosives industry ever since. His father was in the mining industry and Mick took his college degree and led a prosperous career in his father’s footsteps. His son is also well known in the industry and the Fritz name has influenced many decisions pushing the industry in a forward direction. Mick has worked for nearly every aspect of the explosives industry from prill manufacturers, powder companies, to blasting companies. He has worked his way up to C-Level positions and has been operating his own company ANA OS5 since 2009.

Projects have taken Mick to Korea, India, Canada, and to a borehole in nearly every state. He is a published author and has presented at many major explosives conferences while bringing a positive attitude and vigor to the industry. His diverse background, people skills, encyclopedia of knowledge, and real-world applications are greatly appreciated as a mentor and educator in the field of explosives. ANA OS5 was developed and patented by Mick Fritz to fill in the gap he observed in the field. Blasters needed a product to shoot soft rock to obtain better results.

Evan Thibaud, MS

Explosives Engineer

Evan (T-Bo)’s career began in underground salt in Louisiana and he has worked as the low man on the totem pole shoveling and hauling muck in underground limestone. He has worked alongside drillers & blasters in the lead/zinc belt of Southeast Missouri and open pit metal mining in Nevada.

As an active member of the ISEE, he worked for a multi-national powder company in open pit metallurgical coal mines in Western Canada before becoming a consultant in Labrador’s iron belt, where working temperatures reached -60 degrees C.

Evan moved back home to Tennessee as a product manager for North America regarding initiation systems and packaged products. That role took him to the Arctic Circle, the quarries in southern Florida, and many places in between. After graduating with his Master’s Degree in Explosives Engineering from Missouri Science and Technology, he became a D&B consultant. Evan introduces innovative technologies to improve safe practices and the environmental effects of our industry.

This website is divided into three segments:

Education

Offers the Georgia and Tennessee Continuing Education training schedules and locations, along with the types of MSHA training available by ANA, LLC.

Explosives Additives

Provides the neccessary tests conducted on the use of Oil Shale in explosives.

Explosives Consulting

There are three presentations on the jobs completed by Michael Fritz.

Testimonial

What they say

"Attending the Georgia Blasters Training was a game-changer for our team. The sessions were incredibly informative, and we left feeling much more confident in our skills. Michael Fritz's expertise and real-world insights made all the difference."

"The training provided by Georgia Blasters Training is top-notch. The hands-on approach and detailed explanations helped me understand the complexities of explosives better than any other course I've taken. Highly recommend!"

"The consulting services from Georgia Blasters Training exceeded our expectations. Michael Fritz's presentations on completed projects gave us valuable perspectives and strategies to improve our own operations. It's been an invaluable resource for our company."