Bees for Development Journal 137 December 2020
a beeswax blend is applied to lubricate bullets as they pass down through the gun barrel. This type of ammunition was used to win 14 out of 18 medals at the London Olympics and is considered the world’s most accurate ammunition.
combined with linseed oil and turpentine to give an excellent wood nourishing and preserving coating. A polishing technique that makes use of pure beeswax is in producing the exceptionally high sheen on military boots. The technique called bulling starts by building up layers of beeswax on the boots, either by applying liquid beeswax or by heating the boots and then rubbing with a solid block of beeswax. Final layers of polish are applied and plenty of rubbing to give the parade standard shine, seen for instance, in the guards outside Buckingham Palace in London.
There is a diverse use in health applications. Creams made from beeswax blends allow the topical application of pharmaceuticals and lip balms protect our lips from cracking and drying. In the dental industry beeswax is often a component in inlay waxes to produce dentures and false teeth. An application in contact lens and intra ocular lens production makes use of the plasticising property of beeswax along with the low melting point. These lenses are cut from small blocks of plastic with a lathe. The block is then shaped on the other side using a wax blend as a temporary adhesive to attach the half-cut lens to the lathe. The finished lens can be removed from the lathe by heating gently to melt the beeswax.
Wax polishes also act as releases in plastic moulding. They can be used to produce a mirror shine on the mould which in turn creates a smooth surface on the plastic once the plastic has set and been released. A final and perhaps the simplest is use as a waterproofing agent in the protection of threads. Small solid blocks of beeswax are used as they can be held in the hand and the threads pulled across them.
Polish
More information British Wax Refining Company Ltd www.britishwax.com The East Africa Wax Company www.eastafricawax.co This article was first published in BBKA News, September 2020
The use of beeswax in polishes is well known. It has good solvent absorption properties and produces polishes with a smooth paste-like feel which makes them easy to apply. Blended with carnauba wax and solvents, the wax produced makes an excellent general polish with a high sheen. Beeswax can be
Caribbean Beekeeping Congress in St Lucia
BEEKEEPING TRAINING POSTERS
Earlier this month the 10th Caribbean Congress was organised by the Association of Caribbean Beekeepers Organisations (ACBO) in St Lucia and wonderfully broadcast to a global audience, free of charge! The Congress was organised in association with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and came from Castries in St Lucia, with support from GEF, SGP and UNDP, and many organisations co-operating to fill the week with interest.
The images used have been designed and pretested by people with hearing impairments in Uganda and are appropriate also for people with limited literacy. The six posters are:
Digital Download PDF
Six training posters designed in collaboration with our partner organisation TUNADO – The Uganda National Apiculture Development Organisation
1. Reasons for beekeeping 2. Establishment of an apiary 3. Making local hives 4. Harvesting honey
Highlights included the announcement of the production of medical grade honey from indigenous herbs and plants, by Dr Valma Jessamy of Grenada; the imminent start of a regional project to identify indigenous pollinators; the launch of a monthly ACBO Newsletter, the first issue of which was released at the start of the Congress; reports of increasing occurrence of hive theft throughout the region, and reduced honey production in some areas - attributable to climate change.
5. Processing honey 6. Processing beeswax These posters are appropriate for beekeepers promoting local styles of hives within the tropics. The posters are free of charge to projects and associations in developing nations (email info@beesfordevelopment.org for information) and can also be purchased through our website store.
Gladstone Solomon, President, Tobago Apicultural Society 9
