Monthly Archives: November 2021

Client Focus

CONSTRUCTION OF THE MEERKAT EXTENSION GETS UNDERWAY

Concor, the leading black-owned construction company, in partnership with OptiPower, is building the foundations and infrastructure for 20 more dishes for the pioneering MeerKAT radio telescope. A precursor to the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) – which will be the world’s largest radio telescope – the MeerKAT project has already allowed astronomers to deliver unprecedented results. 

Its remote location in an arid area about 90 km from the town of Carnarvon is perfect for its purpose, providing a ‘radio controlled ’ backdrop for the mid-frequency array that enables the SKA’s work. According to Concor contracts manager Stephan Venter, the team commenced with the construction works on site in September 2021.

“With the piling rig on site, October saw our first piles drilled and concrete poured,” says Venter. “Soft soil and sandy conditions require that the 20 foundations will be based on piles with a concrete cap; each of these foundations has eight piles of 750 mm diameter and between seven and eleven metres deep.”

He highlights that precision is critical to the foundation construction, particularly the positioning of the bolt cage onto which each antenna pedestal is secured. These have to be accurate within fractions of a millimetre, to avoid any deflection when the dish ‘looks’ millions of light years into space.

“In addition to the accuracy, the foundations must ensure that the antennas are able to resist the force of winds, especially as the dish has a wide surface area,” he says. “There is also no room for any vibration of the dish.”

The 1,7 metre-tall, galvanised bolt cages – constructed to specification locally – are carefully positioned on the blinding of the foundation cap before the rebar armature is assembled, the shuttering is installed and the concrete is poured. After the pour, the top of the bolt cage extends from the foundation for securing the dish pedestal or tower.

Among the specific challenges of this project is the strict requirement to limit any radio frequency interference (RFI) in the vicinity of the MeerKAT telescope array. The highly sensitive radio telescope equipment is designed to detect extremely weak radio signals from astrophysical sources, and can be easily damaged by RFI from vehicle electronics, cellular phones and a wide range of other tools and equipment. Concor’s offices, workshops and laboratory are therefore in Carnarvon, and site personnel must travel each day.

“We have tested and modified all our on-site equipment to comply with the RFI limitations,” he says. “This includes excavators, trucks, graders, compactors, telehandlers, water bowsers, TLBs and our specialised concrete batching truck.”

The Reimer concrete truck is a self-batching unit chosen to do the work of a conventional batching plant, which in this instance was not justified by the relatively small volumes of concrete required. With 19 mm aggregate and crusher dust transported from De Aar, cement from PPC and tested water from local boreholes, concrete can be mixed in the truck on each foundation platform. The 20 smaller, piled foundations each take 60 cubic metres of concrete, while the larger four foundations each consume 144 cubic metres. 

“We are also employing a recycler on this project to prepare the wearing course layer for much of the 40 km of gravel access roads,” says Venter. “This allows us to save water in this dry area, as the recycler introduces water into the layer and then closes it up – keeping the moisture in for longer.”

The machine can cover long, straight sections of road efficiently, preparing the way for the grader to level the surface before final compaction. Concor will also excavate and fill 70 km of trenching, for electrical and data cables to run from the antennae to the Karoo Array Processor Building (KAPB). The project is due for completion by September 2022.

Client Focus

SOUTH AFRICA AT FOREFRONT OF PDS AND CPS TECHNOLOGY EVOLUTION

Proximity detection systems (PDS) or Collision Prevention Systems (CPS) have come a long way in the  last decade, with South Africa‑based Booyco Electronics at the centre of key technological advances. 

“When we were established in 2006, PDS was an exciting technology helping address mining companies’ heightened concern with health and safety – arising from incidents of collisions between vehicles and pedestrians on mines,” says Booyco Electronics CEO Anton Lourens. “Our equipment began as essentially a pedestrian detection system only, but has fast grown into much more powerful solutions for mines.”

PDS offerings have also become more than just a range of disparate product lines from various producers, he says. Rather, the whole field is now increasingly integrated into global efforts to enhance interoperability – in the interests of applying PDS and CPS solutions more effectively on various mobile equipment and trackless mining machines.

“We began by developing a very low frequency (VLF) solution for underground operations, as this technology was based on a magnetic field that could travel through the rock between tunnels or haulages,” he says. “Initially, our CWS500 system – focused on ‘collision warning’ – would simply alert the operator that there was a pedestrian located in a potentially hazardous position, close to the machine.”

As this technology rolled out to the industry, it quickly became clear that customers were looking for more functionality. This led Booyco Electronics to develop the next level of PDS – the CWS800 range that included vehicle-to-vehicle interaction. The company’s first five years saw the rapid evolution of features on the CWS hardware platform, including the addition of global positioning system (GPS) technology to make it applicable in surface mines.

“This also created the basis for us to develop the ground-breaking CWS900 system in 2010, which went beyond being a warning system to actually stopping a vehicle automatically in the event of danger,” he says. 

“This opened the door to developing ‘collision avoidance’ systems, and was a breakthrough in terms of our ability to begin meeting the Level 9 requirements of best practice as formulated by the global Earth Moving Equipment Safety Round Table (EMESRT).”

EMESRT is a global initiative involving major mining companies including Anglo American, BHP, Glencore and Rio Tinto. It engages with key original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in mining to advance the design of equipment to improve safe operability and maintainability. Booyco Electronics has been integrally involved in EMESRT initiatives from as early as 2014.

“South Africa had also been leading the way with safety legislation, which encouraged the take-up of PDS technology in our local mining sector,” says Lourens. “This placed the country’s PDS suppliers in a good position to put equipment into action in the field, and to continuously improve our solutions in response to real-life mining conditions.” 

Working with EMESRT and Minerals Council South Africa, Booyco Electronics was also the first supplier to validate its equipment through the agreed simulation model developed by Vehicle Dynamics Group at the University of Pretoria. This independent verification process was an important step in the PDS and CPS development, creating a quality benchmark against which all the market players could be assessed. 

Progress in technology continued apace, with Booyco Electronics further evolving its hardware platform to new levels of stability and maturity, Lourens says. 

Booyco Electronics’ CXS solution is now software-driven, allowing even more flexibility and adaptability to customer’s specific needs. “This is another step-change for the technology, as we can keep up with fast-changing industry requirements without replacing our equipment,” he says. “The modifications can be made in the software rather than the hardware – and updates can usually be done wirelessly on site.”

Among the company’s over 100 mining customers in South Africa alone, Lourens highlights that each site has its own functional requirements, with some sites having more than one set of parameters. The way of the future, then, is software-based flexibility, so that mines can improve their requirements over time without having to change their installed PDS equipment. 

Building on VLF

Very low frequency (VLF) technology allows for a magnetic field to be created around trackless mining machinery underground, which will detect a pedestrian standing too close and will alert the system. VLF’s long wave-lengths can travel through rock, so can detect a pedestrian even when the operator cannot see them. 

Booyco Electronics developed its first proximity detection systems (PDS) from this technology, creating an electric ‘fence’ around a vehicle. An alarm is triggered when a pedestrian breaks the boundary of this magnetic field.  

The physics of VLF is a well-established area of science and industry; it was an important aspect of submarine development, allowing these craft to communicate while submerged under water.

Client Focus

SUPERVISORY LEADERSHIP HOLDS KEY TO SAFE MINING

While leadership development at the top management levels of the mining sector tends to be well-researched and better resourced, there is a burning need to build the capacity of the industry’s supervisory levels.

This is according to Tony Pretorius – Education, Training and Development (ETD) Executive, Murray & Roberts Cementation, who unpacked what this means in real terms for the mining industry. 

“This is particularly important in the arena of safety, where significant gains can be made if production teams are imbued – through good leadership – with a daily commitment to safe working practices,” Pretorius explains. “It is clear to most forward-thinking businesses today that organisational culture underpins positive results; as importantly, it is also accepted that such a culture must be driven by leadership.”

He says there can, however, be barriers to the effectiveness of leadership. This presents as a kind of ‘permafrost’ at certain levels within an organisation, and the quality of supervisory skills can be vital in preventing this barrier from forming. To help address this, the field of neuroscience has been one of the most exciting themes running through training and development in recent years.

Supervisory training programmes can leverage neuroscience by giving learners a better understanding of how the brain interprets the information it receives. It gives supervisors insight into how this information is ‘translated’ – based on how learners feel and on their level of emotional intelligence. It considers, for instance, the importance of personality types, their respective strengths and weaknesses, and the ways that negative emotions can undermine team performance. 

The next important step, he says, is to consolidate the value of this training into the organisation’s performance management system. This means refining key performance indicators to hold supervisors accountable. Such as approach ensures that new skills are applied and strengthened, rather than lost through lack of use, and can be measured by their impact in the workplace. 

“In many ways, performance management has been the weak link in the chain – although it is critical to changing the way that leaders behave. Only with this kind of change will industry see further improvements in operational safety,” he says. 

The role of senior management is, of course, an integral part of this journey to instil a culture of safety. In addition to the company’s interventions in supervisor development, Murray & Roberts Cementation is also working with the University of Pretoria to gear its top leadership teams for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, including a programme focused on human factors in safety risk.

Pretorius says that the honing of skills by both managers and supervisors has an added benefit: it leads to more fruitful engagement between these two levels, building the organisational culture and the way that key company messages find their way into behaviour patterns. 

“As a company, Murray & Roberts Cementation accepts that we work in a hazardous environment. However, we believe that zero incidents are achievable, as is zero harm. Safety is not just a priority but a value, and our focus is on empowering people to manage risk.”

“In the end, safe production brings gains and efficiencies in time, cost and quality – giving companies a range of bottom-line benefits deriving from smooth operations and from delivering projects according to plan and specification,” Pretorius concludes. 

Client Focus

TRAFO MINI-SUBS & DRY-TYPE TRANSFORMERS TO MOTOR PLANT

An important expansion to South Africa’s automotive industry is benefiting from the installation of 10 dry-type transformers and two mini-substations supplied by Trafo Power Solutions. 

The units, for a motor plant near Pretoria, range from 315 kVA to 4 MVA and were custom designed and manufactured to the exacting requirements of the electrical consultants on the project, according to David Claassen, managing director of Trafo Power Solutions.

“Working closely with our customer to finalise the design specifications, as well as with our manufacturing partner TMC Transformers in Italy, we were able to meet the tight turnaround times,” says Claassen. 

He highlights that each of the transformers were required to meet particular design challenges. With the six 3150 kVA units and the 4 MVA unit, for instance, fault levels had to be kept to a certain predetermined maximum. The design parameters for the two 1600 kVA units had to ensure they could withstand a relatively high harmonic content.

“One of our strengths is being able to collaborate positively with both consultants and contractors in high pressure contracts like this one,” he says. “This allowed us to achieve the required designs within the strict schedules, so the end result would be fit-for-purpose and delivered on time.”

Trafo Power Solutions’ flexible and proactive approach allowed them to deliver fully on the project despite occasional disruptions related to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Claassen notes that the company was able to engage with the customer face-to-face and through virtual platforms, as conditions required. The company also took responsibility for logistical elements of the contract.

“Like the rest of the world, South Africa faces various freight challenges since the outbreak of the pandemic, but our innovative strategies ensured that shipping and customs arrangements were closely managed so we could land the equipment as needed,” he says.

The air-cooled format of the dry-type transformers offers the new motor manufacturing facilities an environmental benefit insofar as there is no risk of oil leaks. The units are also low maintenance and have a high safety rating due to minimal explosion risk. 

Client Focus

HVAC EXPERTS OFFER MINES SMOOTH, RELIABLE OPERATIONS

Specialists in robust, custom-engineered air-conditioning systems, Booyco Engineering is now driving the expansion of its service offering in the mining sector following the proven success of its products in this demanding industry.

The company has been a leader in heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) solutions for decades, supplying extensively to the rail, defence and mining industries. Booyco Engineering managing director Brenton Spies says the expansion of its mining footprint will help mines improve their vehicle uptime while further enhancing health and safety performance. 

“Keeping mine vehicle operators cool in the heat of a mining site is crucial to health, safety and operational efficiency,” says Spies. “Standard air-conditioning systems, however, seldom stand the test of time, leading to unexpected failure and unplanned downtime.”

Among the factors causing early failure are hotter-than-average ambient temperatures, high dust levels, heavy vibrations, shocks from uneven mine haul roads and long operating hours. Grant Miller, Booyco Engineering’s executive director, points to the danger of drivers working in an over-heated cab, should an air-conditioning system fail. 

“This is not only a danger to the health of the driver, but could affect other workers and infrastructure on the mine if the cab conditions cause the vehicle to be driven unsafely,” says Miller. “Fortunately, many countries including South Africa apply regulations to ensure safe working conditions – so an operator could be entitled to cease work if the cab becomes over-heated.”

The result is that a machine could stand idle, waiting for repairs to the air-conditioning unit while costing hundreds of thousands in lost production for the mine. He says there are two aspects to avoiding this risk: installing fit-for-purpose HVAC equipment on mining vehicles; and applying a regular and high quality maintenance schedule. 

“This is where Booyco Engineering has proved itself to our mining customers,” says Miller. “We engineer the HVAC solution to suit the miner or contractor’s application, and we ensure that the equipment is well maintained.”

The company’s design and support capability has been developed over more than 35 years, employing the latest software and specialised tools in its 3,000 m2 Meadowdale facility. Its technical support services allow customers to rely on Booyco Engineering for a planned maintenance programme for their HVAC systems.

“Few mining operations have the skills to conduct this specialised work professionally on a regular basis,” says Spies. “Where the mine is large enough to warrant an on-site technician or team, we can put that in place as part of a maintenance contract to ensure that all HVAC systems continue performing optimally.”

He says the company can also provide regular site visits to conduct inspections and maintenance, and has a roving team available for ad-hoc call outs. Booyco Engineering’s rich heritage in HVAC design and maintenance makes it the ideal partner for mines looking to ensure reliable and uninterrupted operations, he says. 

Client Focus

PERFORMANCE, RELIABILITY FROM GRUNDFOS FIRE PUMPS

Installing fire protection systems in buildings should not be a tick-box exercise in compliance, but should rather be based on quality equipment and systems that meet or exceed global standards.

This is according to Mark Muller, sales engineer commercial building services (CBS) South Africa at Grundfos, who says these are the principles behind its Hydro EN fire pump systems. Muller notes that there is a growing requirement by South African customers for fire systems that align with the European EN 12845 standard. 

“We have seen local markets – as well as regions such as Asia and the Middle East – moving towards this standard,” he says. “This is where the Hydro EN gains one of its key advantages, as consulting engineers, insurers and users can rest assured of its performance and reliability.”

The offering comes in nine different variants including a single-pump, double-pump, diesel, electric, and a combination of diesel and electric power. The motors are sized to be non-overloading, providing the power required by the pump to the corresponding 16 m NPSHr value. 

With Grundfos NKF pumps known for their stable performance curve, the Hydro EN has been designed to meet the needs of both installer and end-user, he says. Among the benefits is its modular set-up and the design criteria, such as using a water heat exchanger to cool the diesel engines, making it easier to design the technical room.

“All our diesel-driven pumps are fully equipped and include a fuel tank for six hours of full-speed operation, as well as a leak tray to prevent any environmental contamination,” he says. “All systems are factory tested in our ISO 9001-certified assembly plant in South Africa, and the test report is always included in the scope of supply.”

As a plug-and-play solution, the Grundfos Hydro EN is offered standard with building management system (BMS) integration through MODBUS. This allows remote monitoring of all the system alarm and controller parameters such as fuel levels, oil pressure and revolutions per minute.

“It is also important for operators to have reliable feedback from the unit to know if, and when, it is running,” he says. “An electrical contactor can give a run signal, but to guard against a fault we provide a double-signal system of a contactor as well as a dedicated pressure switch on the discharge side.”

Muller highlights the convenience of Grundfos as a ‘one stop shop’ for this firefighting solution, as the pumping system comes complete with pump, controls and pipes all designed according to EN12845, as well as the necessary fittings and valves. 

There are also various kits and accessories available, and clear support documentation to facilitate the customer’s daily tasks – from drafting the specification to installing and maintaining the system.

Client Focus

DE BEERS HELPS BUILD STRONGER COMMUNITIES

For decades, De Beers Group has put considerable resources into improving the socio-economic status of communities surrounding its mines and operations with its efforts meeting with considerable success. 

It is now taking its community engagement to the next level with ambitious and measurable goals having been set for the next decade as part of the Building Forever initiative, which has ‘Partnering for Thriving Communities’ as one of its four core pillars.

Building Forever builds on many past successes for De Beers, including a World First HIV/AIDS health programme at its diamond mines in Botswana, launched in 2001. According to Dr Tshepo Sedibe, Health Lead for the De Beers Group, the programme – which includes free anti-retroviral treatment for employees and their ‘dependants’ – has resulted in the mortality rate from AIDS amongst employees reducing from 31 % to just 0,1 %. 

Another outcome is that De Beers in 2019 marked more than 10 years of no babies being born with HIV to HIV-positive mothers. 

De Beers’ experience with AIDS and HIV has also contributed to it making a highly effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic. “When the pandemic started, we rapidly took measures to protect our internal employees and our contractors but it rapidly became apparent that we needed to take our efforts into the communities,” says Nerys John, Head of Social Impact at De Beers. 

“Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and sanitation became of utmost importance in the schools and hospitals in our host communities in order to prevent transmission. As things developed, we then adapted our approach to include the provision of testing, intensive care unit beds, oxygen and isolation centres.”

Given that mines eventually close and that when this happens communities can lose their main source of livelihoods, De Beers places major emphasis on providing community members with skills that will allow them to support themselves after mining operations cease. Nowhere is this more apparent than at De Beers’ Venetia mine in South Africa’s Limpopo Province.

“We have several socio-economic initiatives running in the Venetia area but one of the most significant is the supplier development programme which is designed to promote local procurement,” says Greg Petersen, De Beers Group Manager – Socio-economic Development. 

“We’ve already appointed more than 50 suppliers in terms of the programme. The biggest of these is the bus company we use to transport employees from the Musina and Blouberg areas to the mine. We’ve worked to ensure that communities have a stake in the company and indeed it is now 40 % owned by community members. 

Client Focus

CONCOR RECOGNISED FOR EXCELLENCE AT BEST PROJECTS AGAIN

Concor Construction has been recognised for excellence at the Construction World Best Projects 2021 Awards with two of its projects each receiving an award. 

While both projects entered are quite different, the hallmark of quality construction underpinned both. The Radisson RED hotel in Rosebank, Johannesburg received a Highly Commended in the AfriSam Innovation Award for Sustainable Construction category, while the 300 bed Covid-19 facility at the Jubilee Hospital site north of Pretoria in Hammanskraal received a Special Mention in the Building Contractors category. 

Situated in the vibrant Oxford Parks mixed-use precinct in Rosebank, the contemporary 222 room Radisson RED hotel was designed to meet a minimum 5 Star Green Star Custom Hotel rating. The base build spec was provided by dhk Architects, while the interior design spec was by Source IBA. Concor took the project through to furniture, fitting and equipment (FF&E) stage including beds, chairs, television sets and the physical backbone for Wi-Fi connectivity.

With its architecturally compact design which incorporates functionality on an optimised footprint, the hotel comprises seven levels on top of a ground floor as well as a roof level for plant and services. It is a concrete structure based on conventional and post-tensioned slabs with grids to suit the room sizes. 

Radisson RED is committed to sustainable design and the hotels contains numerous elements underpinning its 5 Star Green Star Custom Hotel rating. This rating recognises that the building demonstrates “South African excellence” and is a step above the Best Practice level. 

The fast-track construction on the Jubilee Hospital project saw it being handed over to the Gauteng Department of Health just five months after work began in November 2020. Selecting alternative building technology enabled Concor to speed up construction without compromising the standards demanded by a world class medical facility. 

Concor used a modular approach in its construction plan, with units completed and put into operation while others were still being constructed. To suit this rapid roll-out, it was crucial wet services and ventilation systems were carefully selected as all mechanical services had to be commissioned on a standalone basis. 

Concor demonstrated its commitment to socio-economic development on both projects with a focus on upskilling small local business at the Radisson RED project and employing more than 230 local unskilled and skilled individuals from Hammanskraal at the Jubilee Hospital Project.