South Africa: COVID-19 SA – AMCU Judgment and the Effect On all Mines

South Africa: COVID-19 SA – AMCU Judgment and the Effect On all Mines

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How the Coronavirus Pandemic Has Disrupted the Global Mining Industry

Some have called the COVID-19 crisis a black swan event. It has had an extreme impact and the world was unprepared for what has transpired, even though, in hindsight, it was not unexpected. The mining industry has also been caught up in the turmoil. While previous global economic downturns hold clues as to what will happen next, there are several aspects to this crisis without similarities to the other economic collapses that have affected the mining industry. A mining downturn like no other Mining industry downturns are usually due to…

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The strongest link is local: Africa must support African supply chains to unlock sustained economic growth

 The current Covid19-related economic challenges both locally and throughout the Africa starkly highlight the need for pan-African companies and governments to support African supply chains, and in so doing, to boost economic activity on the continent. This can be achieved by procuring the production of goods and services for infrastructure and industrial projects via the mechanism of ‘Team Africa’, which is a concept in which local suppliers and manufacturers collaboratively supply mining, industrial, power generation and other sector projects. “Covid-19 provides further impetus for Africa to support its own supply…

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Getting to the core: faster drilling and reduced fuel costs with Rand-Air’s new DrillAir compressors

In a first for Rand-Air, the company has acquired Atlas Copco DrillAir Y1260 variable high pressure (21 to 35 bar) compressors. This new technology – from the world’s leading manufacturer of drilling equipment – has been scientifically designed around pressure and flow for a wide range of high-capacity drilling applications. These two new units are ideally suited for applications such as mineral exploration drilling, geothermal drilling, construction and blast hole drilling; as well as for services such as aerated drilling and the drilling of wells. “At Rand-Air, we constantly strive…

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Whether portable diesel or stationery electric, for every application Rand-Air has a compressor to blow you away

In its 46 years of operation, Rand-Air has built up an enviable reputation in the mining industry for the quality of its compressors and the excellence of its service. The company supplies either portable diesel compressors or stationary electric compressors, each of which have particular applications. All Rand-Air compressors use screw compression elements to produce compressed air. “In mining, industry and manufacturing, compressed air is frequently absolutely essential,” explains Rand-Air Fleet Manager Craig Swart. In the extraction of minerals from the ground, the first action that is taken is exploration…

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New Rand-Air GM to build further on the company’s firm foundation

Since its inception in 1973, Rand-Air has been driven by a simple yet highly effective operational ethos – to exceed customer expectations at all times. The company has underpinned this with a fleet of top-quality equipment and unmatched customer service levels; and prospered to such a degree that, in a synergistic move in 1998, leading international equipment manufacturer and supplier Atlas Copco acquired Rand-Air. Throughout his 33 year tenure, previous Rand-Air General Manager Louwrens Erasmus maintained and developed the company’s dynamic growth and development trajectory very successfully. However, in December…

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The advantages of a rubber lined pump for wet sand applications

Mark Doyle, Global Product Manager for Linatex® Rubber, looks at the process of pumping fine aggregates and explains why rubber is the most suitable wear material for this application. The construction aggregate industry transports slurry in various forms, from fine sand to coarse aggregate. Fine particle sand can be extremely abrasive and often rapidly wear down a slurry pump. The properties of coarse aggregates that can affect the performance of the pump are size, shape and surface texture, and gradation of particle sizes, with fine materials developing excessive friction in…

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Rand-Air’s portable LED lighting units: placing mines in a favourable light

With the enormous investment placed in large open-pit mines, the pressure is on these operations to produce. Inevitably, this dictates that they work around the clock. However, working at night does present some very real potential safety hazards which are not present during the hours of daylight. This is according to Craig Swart, Fleet Manager at Rand-Air, the leading local provider of compressed air and power to the mines, as well as to many other industry sectors. “The most serious potential hazard in an open-pit mine – even during daylight…

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NitraLife and Bystronic: partners in further advancing cutting-edge steel processing

NitraLife, South Africa’s pioneering nitrogen generator manufacturer and supplier, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a partnership with the leading Swiss steel processing solutions manufacturer Bystronic, whereby the Swiss company will market NitraLife’s NitraCut generators. A pioneer in the field, NitraLife has been manufacturing and marketing nitrogen generators – primarily for the tyre inflation market – since 1996. In 2016, following a request from the owner of a local fabrication business, NitraLife developed the NitraCut generator to supply gas to the fabricator’s fibre laser. The new generator…

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RTS Africa Technologies principal H2Scan opens new Environmental Conditioning Laboratory to further ‘refine’ hydrogen detection in gas process streams

Hydrocarbon fuels are essential for our daily existence. However, extracting usable fuels from crude oil is a complex process in which hydrogen plays a cardinal role, as the correct levels of hydrogen in a refinery process stream largely determine the quality of the final product. “At RTS Africa Technologies, we have been distributing H2Scan hydrogen detection and analysis products for the past decade. In particular, H2Scan’s Hy-Optima range of products have numerous applications in South Africa’s oil refineries,” says Ian Fraser, MD of RTS Africa Group, a Tshwane-based company specialising…

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