On the Cover: In situations where standard product offerings cannot meet project-specific requirements, Weir Minerals Africa’s Engineer to Order (ETO) process leverages close cooperation between the customer and the OEM’s process, engineering and design teams. ETO ensures that equipment is built to specification and satisfies all project obligations.
In a world where a one-size-fits-all approach has lost relevance in the development of mission-critical assets such as comminution equipment, Weir Minerals Africa has, over the years, adopted an Engineer to Order (ETO) strategy with great success.
Tiisetso Masekwameng, GM for Trio® and Enduron® Comminution Products at Weir Minerals Africa, says that in circumstances where standard models don’t meet project requirements, an ETO project is initiated. She explains that typically with the ETO approach, production information and specifications are constantly moving between the client, the process team and the engineering and design division. Product data, including design specifications and engineering changes, is sent between the teams to ensure that the tailored, end-product meets exact customer and site requirements.
Key plant upgrades pay dividends at OMV Stilfontein
A raft of in-house plant improvements over the past 18 months – anchored by the automation of the secondary crushing circuit, installation of a new pan vibrating feeder and a new fines separator, among other upgrades – have increased production capacity by 30 – 40% at OMV Stilfontein.
Having acquired a controlling interest (70%) in OMV (previously Oranje Mynbou en Vervoer) in 2014, JSE-listed Raubex Group, one of the largest construction and material supply companies in South Africa, has over the years continued to fund internal growth. The investments have helped turn the company from a small family concern into a formidable construction materials supplier.
Since the acquisition by the Raubex Group, OMV has over the years continued to optimise its operations, looking to maintain and increase value by implementing innovative measures to increase productivity and efficiency. During a recent visit to OMV Stilfontein, Modern Quarrying was afforded an exclusive plant tour to witness several plant improvements undertaken over the past 18 months.
Asaph Mathibeng, operations manager at OMV, explains that the several in-house improvements, including an extended conveyor belt and a feed box at the dump; a new pan vibrating feeder; an automated secondary crushing circuit; a new, larger fines separator; and a self-built asset management system, have addressed several bottlenecks previously experienced on site.
Driving health & safety excellence
In pursuit of consistent improvement, every year surface mining industry association, Aspasa, recognises the good performances of those of its members who achieve remarkable results in the association’s stringent ISHE Audits. During 2019, the bar was raised high with more than half of the Aspasa members audited achieving scores of above 90%, confirmation that improvement continues apace among member operations.
Explaining the key drivers behind the success of the health & safety audits in recent years, Marius van Deventer, independent auditor, ISHE Audits at Aspasa, says the objective of the ISHE Audit is two-fold. While it is a compliance audit protocol for legal requirements, own policies, standards, procedures and guidelines, as well as industry-leading practices, it is also an educational process where information is shared during audits on what is going on in the industry, how other operations are implementing required legislation and regulations to ensure high standards in health & safety performance.
“The ISHE Audit protocol is not a checklist or a box-ticking exercise to determine a mine’s compliance to what is required; it is a self-regulating compliance protocol to educate everybody on what is required and how to implement a sustainable system in the quest to achieve Zero Harm,” says Van Deventer.
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