Plant Equipment and Hire July 2017 | Page 11

The Southern African Movable Asset Register (SAMAR) has announced its plans that will allow mines, contractors, manufacturers, importers, builders, banks, insurers, as well as the public to control title and ownership of all movable assets, including yellow metal and other movable assets used during operations. In Africa, many yellow metal assets are crudely marked and registered to businesses. SAMAR creates the most recent reliable record of an asset and yellow metal by updating records in real time as changes are made by various system participants. This allows businesses to effectively manage and control the financing of assets and yellow metal not on eNaTIS throughout their lifecycle, greatly reducing fraud, theft, double discounting, or incorrect depiction for value and insurance purposes. Mineral processing specialists MBE Minerals SA is upgrading its investment in separation technology at Mintek, the Johannesburg-based research and development institution it has partnered with since 1986. According to Gregory Niekerk, business development manager at MBE Minerals, one of the factors behind the investment has been the recent growth in smaller minerals and metals projects that relate to the energy, food security, base metals, and dump reclamation minerals sectors. The scope of the investment by MBE Minerals is substantial, with the Jones WHIMS procured by Mintek in 1986 being refurbished by the company at its own cost. Durban-based reliability solutions specialists WearCheck recently bought out Transformer Chemistry Services (TCS), adding an established transformer analysis and maintenance division to the company’s condition monitoring portfolio. WearCheck has now added the transformer tests done by TCS to its existing transformer oil analysis programme, increasing the number of available fluid and non-fluid tests. WearCheck’s Africa-wide network, combined with TCS’s expertise and a general growth in the number of transformers across the continent, leave the company poised to provide large-scale, widespread, and comprehensive transformer reliability services. Barloworld Equipment celebrates landmark 90-year partnership with Caterpillar physical infrastructure that builds the power of South Africa and the continent more widely in the global economy,” says Chris Monge of Caterpillar. “Celebrating nine decades of our close partnership with Barloworld Equipment is a wonderful landmark in our journey of shared values and purpose.” Leeka believes that Barloworld Equipment is distinguished by its credibility, which is soundly based on its longstanding heritage. This is delivered through its forward- looking mission, which seeks out innovative solutions so that the company’s staff can provide exceptional customer performance. “Barloworld Equipment has always been about seeing the opportunities in supplying what people and South African businesses need. The wealth of expertise accrued through our longstanding partnership with Cat is passed on through several joint training projects, such as Technicians for Africa, which aims to address the continent’s shortage of technicians,” says Leeka. Disadvantaged would-be technicians are given the opportunity The Barloworld Group has been quoted on the JSE of studying for a for 75 years, and Barloworld Equipment is today one qualification as Cat of the 20 South African companies in the Dow Jones Certified Technician Sustainability Emerging Markets Index. Barloworld Equipment is celebrating a major milestone this year: 90 years since Charles ‘Punch’ Barlow founded the enduring relationship between the company and Caterpillar in 1927, putting both companies on the South African map after winning a bet that a Caterpillar tractor would out plough a span of oxen. “Much of our success is due to the partnership between Barloworld Equipment and Caterpillar, which has grown from strength to strength over the nine decades since Punch Barlow introduced the brand to South Africa,” says Barloworld Equipment Southern Africa CEO, Emmy Leeka. “Both of us are now global brands and Barloworld Equipment is very proud to be one of the world’s leading Caterpillar dealers.” “We take great pride in helping to enable the development of the through a free online course. Barloworld Equipment also trains almost 1 000 people a month at its technical academy in Isando. It was the first South African earthmoving equipment company to receive accreditation from the Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) for its operator training, ensuring its learners achieve a nationally recognised qualification. “This project exemplifies our belief in sustainable excellence through teamwork, founded on safety, reliability, and integrity,” says Leeka. “We see ourselves as a leading corporate citizen and our driving principles of social, environmental, and economic stability are reflected in our social responsibility programmes. This is an investment in our future, our communities, and our country.” Barloworld Equipment has also adopted a 40/20 strategy, which aims to boost the company’s women representation to 40% by 2020. The strategy is being rolled out through various initiatives, such as the Women in Leadership Development Programme (WLDP) and the Graduate Development Programme. “We believe in the power of partnerships to transform the landscape, whether physically, socioeconomically, or politically,” says Leeka. The latest equipment for the mining and minerals-processing industry, manufactured by Johannesburg-based MIP Process Technologies , has been designed to comply with the pending 2018 South African emissions-control regulation of 30mg/m 3 of particulates. The OEM manufactures equipment ranging from attrition scrubbers to clarifiers and thickeners, linear screens, flocculant plants, mixers, and agitators. “Not only do we design all of our equipment to comply with the latest standards and regulations, but we also offer smaller companies a continuous plan to improve their dust-extraction emissions,” says managing director Philip Hoff. MIP Process Technologies is currently manufacturing linear screens and a clarifier for an Australian customer in Panama at its factory in Springs, Gauteng. In South Africa, it is building three thickeners for a major platinum producer in Marikana. Other local projects include a range of flocculant and reagent plants for various customers. IROCK Crushers ’ new TS-518 mobile tracked screening plant is a compact, heavy-duty, mobile finishing screen with a high output. The screener’s hydraulically powered components, including conveyors, allow operators to position the machine for production in just 10 minutes. The screening plant has a 9m 3 hopper and 96kW CAT diesel engine, and is available in double- or triple-deck models, allowing sorting of up to three or four sizes, respectively. The screen media on each deck can also be changed out for full control over end- product size. Producers can sort and stockpile up to three different materials at once with the unit’s tail conveyor and two side conveyors. Australia’s HMA Group plans to establish a manufacturing facility to produce wear-solution products to service the metalliferous and coal sectors in sub-Saharan Africa, revealed HMA Group Australasia managing director Tony Rogers on a recent visit as part of the launch of HMA South Africa. The HMA Group has been appointed as sole international distributor, including South Africa, of local wear-solutions specialist Uretech. The HMA Group’s own broad product range will also be made available in Africa for the first time. The HMA Group manufactures, services, and sells a range of capital plant equipment to diverse industries. The materials handling, wear solutions, instrumentation, and geotechnical divisions of the group will be introduced into the local market, piggybacking on Uretech’s representation in the African mining industry. JULY 2017 9