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South Africa: Rustenburg Platinum Introduces New System
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Business Day (Johannesburg)
8 May 2008
Posted to the web 8 May 2008
Edward West
Johannesburg
AN AUSTRALIAN mine safety and security system adapted for use in SA was introduced at Rustenburg Platinum Mines' Mogalakwena Section on Tuesday to help prevent accidents.
The locally adapted system, first developed by GroundProbe, might also be exported in future, GroundProbe CEO Lyle Bruce said. The system allows real-time monitoring and control of open-cast mines. Bruce said rock falls in open-cast mines occurred "almost every day" globally. Falls were a danger to miners and equipment and lowered productivity.
Bruce said while the new system did not solve the problem of mine wall stability, it did allow for better management decision-making on safety issues and the prevention of accidents.
Engineers from Mogalawena Section, the largest platinum mine in the world, approached Queensland-based GroundProbe last year with the idea of integrating a pit alarm system with safety data generated by GroundProbe's slope stability radar system.
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The slope stability system had been used successfully on the mine in the past five years.
Australian Trade Commission's Greg Hull said Australian expertise was making a big contribution to mining in Africa. Also, Australian mining and resources investments in Africa were estimated at more than $15bn and included mining copper, coal, gold, mineral sands, nickel and uranium.
The pit alarm system automatically responds to data activated by a radar unit capable of picking up deformations in a mine rock wall as small as 0,1mm. "You can actually see the boundaries within which the rocks are moving. We can pick up the exact locations of any potential high-wall failures," GroundProbe chief operating officer David Noon said.
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