In 1909, a consortium of mining engineers and geologists formed the Chino Copper Company at the Santa Rita Mine, where they introduced new mining technology and techniques including the new concept of open-pit mining. Success at Santa Rita depended on steam, coal, and iron, and the arrival of the railroad in 1898 opened a new era for mining by making it possible to move the large tonnage a successful copper mine required. In 1905, John M. Sully, a young M.I.T. graduate, determined that the many small underground mines there sat atop an enormous copper ore body of great potential, and after his systematic and skillful examination of the ore body, he committed himself to finding funding to develop the mine, earning recognition as one of the great engineers of the period. Another contributor was Daniel C. Jackling, whose new method of open-pit mining of large, low-grade copper ore earned recognition across the globe. With funding in place and engineering complete, progress was rapid: the Chino Copper Company was formed, the first steam-shovel began open-pit mining in September 1910, and a processing plant was built in 1911 in nearby Hurley. In time, the Santa Rita Mine became known as one of the four Jackling properties where the techniques of open-pit mining were perfected.