Kzn industrial & business news issue 104 a m 2017 by The Media & Events Company

ISSN NO: 1562 -5702

April / May 2017 R20.90 (incl. VAT)

Titanium plant to lift KZN economy

R4-billion titanium dioxide pigment production plant to be built at the Richards Bay industrial development zone (IDZ) will not only be a significant shot in the arm for the province’s economy, it will also prove a major win for sustainability in South Africa. The plant, a technology partnership between Nyanza Light Metals and Avertana of New Zealand, will utilise waste steel slag that Evraz Highveld Steel and Vanadium has been stockpiling at its Witbank operations - about 45 million tonnes. This adds up to about 200 years of project life and marks one of the most significant enterprises yet to make use of discarded waste material, transforming it into a highdemand finished product. South Africa consumes around 35,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of titanium pigment, mainly in paint manufacturing. The Nyanza project

will produce 50,000 tpa of titanium dioxide pigment, which it will sell locally and export to the rest of Africa and the Middle East. The agreement follows a successful pre-feasibility study coupled with piloting studies conducted between 2015 and 2017 by Nyanza and its technical partners. Nyanza Light Metals is jointly owned by Johannesburg-based Arkein International and Mauritius-based DBF Capital. About 550 permanent jobs and 1,200 indirect jobs are anticipated when the plant is fully operational, with 800 being created during construction. Building of the plant is expected to start in 2018, with production scheduled to begin in 2020. The project will bring new technology to South Africa and help the government’s industrialisation programme and efforts to add value to the South African mining and mineral

processing value chain. Avertana, which has developed a proprietary process to extract titanium from the waste steel slag, refines titanium as well as other industrial minerals and chemicals from steel waste, with a lower carbon footprint than existing processes and with minimal residual waste. “The overall manufacturing process is novel and unique and will be a world first,” said Donovan Chimhandamba, CEO of Nyanza. “This is largely because conventional processes use purer feed stocks such as rutile and ilmenite, which have titanium content ranging from 50% to 96% while Nyanza’s feed stock has a TiO2 content of 32% or less. The focus of the feasibility studies has been to develop a unique process and demonstrate that we could use this waste steel slag and produce a world-class grade pigment.”

Titanium dioxide pigment is the most widely used white pigment in the world, accounting for about 70% of the pigment market. Due to its unique opacifying and whitening capabilities, it is used in everything from paints and coatings, cosmetics, and foods to papers and plastics. Global annual demand for titanium dioxide pigment is estimated at about six million tonnes, equating to approximately $15 billion, with the paints and coatings sector accounting for more than 57% of demand. Titanium dioxide pigment prices in 2011 reached heights of $4,300 per tonne. Successful implementation is expected to bring several benefits for the country including import substitution to the value of more than $60 million per year, export of value-added product in excess $90 million per year, access to manu-

At the launch of Sumitomo Rubber SA's Dunlop Enterprise Development Programme are from left, Sandile Sithole, Felicity Sithole, Riaz Haffejee, CEO of Sumitomo Rubber SA, and Themba Thabede

Inside

Auto industry under the spotlight at Durban show - page 3

Transport, Distribution & Warehousing - page 7

Automation & Robotics - page 14

continued on page two

Boost for township tyre traders S UMITOMO Rubber SA (Pty) Ltd has launched the Dunlop Enterprise Development Programme to empower township entrepreneurs through employment creation, skills transfer and training. The programme was officially unveiled at the 2017 National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers of South Africa (NAACAM) show, held in Durban recently, as a transformational catalyst to create and grow township tyre traders. Riaz Haffejee, CEO of Sumitomo Rubber SA, said the company took a stance in 2012 to pursue this programme and saw the role that they could play in economic inclusion by working with government to accelerate transformation, thus helping to

Issue no. 104

alleviate the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality. Dunlop branded containers are transformed into tyre fitment centres and provide opportunities for unemployed youth and women to be trained and mentored in tyre sales and repair. “By fostering greater entrepreneurial activity in townships and informal areas, the Dunlop Enterprise Development Programme encourages self-employment and stimulates job creation.” Haffejee said the company had noticed there were many informal tyre businesses in the townships operating at the roadside and some were operated out of containers. However, such businesses had little access to reputable tyre manufaccontinued on page two

Petrochemicals page 15

Water & Effluent Management - page 18 Company & Product News page 21

April / May 2017

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KZN Industrial & Business News

New Free State SEZ aims to cut Durban port congestion P RESIDENT Jacob Zuma recently launchd the Maluti-A-Phofung Special Economic Zone (MAPSEZ), in Harrismith, Free State, as part of government’s Special Economic Zone Programme, which is aimed at accelerating economic growth and development in designated regions of the country. The SEZ comprises 1038 hectares land envisaged to accelerate economic growth and development in the region, as part of the Government’s programme of radical socio economic change. According to a statement from the presidency, “The Maluti-A-Phofung Special Economic Zone functions as a back-of-port

operation to ease congestion at the Durban port and provides South African customs functions and facilities for imported goods and export goods, including goods moving north into Southern African countries”. The MAPSEZ also provides road and rail logistics and handling facilities for the Gauteng–Durban port corridor and link it to the Bloemfontein–Cape Town corridor. The main industries the MAPSEZ serves are agriculture, agriprocessing, automotive and logistics, which includes container terminal and car terminal facilities. The Industrial Policy Action driven by the Department of Trade and Industry has identified strategic special economic zones

across the country to enhance industrialisation, attract foreign direct investment as well as create employment. Companies operating within Special Economic Zones are incentivised in line with the SEZ Act of 2014 and are eligible for 15% corporate tax for ten years, building allowance tax relief, employment tax relief for low level earning employees and the 12i tax allowance for development of greenfield operations. The MAPSEZ will integrate emerging enterprises into various industry value chains to create opportunities for entrepreneurs and employment for local people. Enquiry no: 1

Richards Bay titanium plant facturing technology predominantly owned by Americans and Europeans;, and reprocessing of material that had been classified as waste to generate high value products. KwaZulu-Natal Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs MEC Sihle Zikalala said the plant was a “strategic” investment that would help to ensure that the province remained the national leader in the production of chemicals. Zikalala said work on the plant, in which the department of trade and industry had invested R17 million for feasibility studies and a further R900 million as an investment allowance, would begin late next year, and production was scheduled to start in 2019. He said 20% of an estimated R300 million construction spend in Phase 1F would go to local small, medium and micro enterprises, in line with the industrial development IDZ’s statutory requirements.

continued from page one

Enquiry no: 2

SMC Pneumatics (South Africa) Pty Ltd

Township tyre traders turers although there was a market for professional tyre services. Meanwhile, secondhand tyres and even re-grooved tyres were in high demand. “As a responsible corporate citizen, we saw it as our role to make safe and high quality products available to this market and took the gap.” He said the Dunlop Enterprise Development Programme was the first of its kind in the tyre market, and has been a key focus area in Dunlop’s distribution channel growth strategy. “With the support of a widely recognised brand, the container programme has already enjoyed exponential growth and success in the tyre market,” he said, adding that the Dunlop Enterprise Development Programme was initiated to develop micro-entrepreneurs trading within or serving marginalized communities. The programme also provides branding, tyre training, mentorship and marketing support to container owners and their staff. “The informal economy is not disconnected from the first or formal economy, but functions according to different entrepreneurial rules. We have acknowledged this, and can demonstrate that through proper skills transfer and training, township tyre traders can run profitable and sustainable enterprises that offer stable self-employment and sustainable livelihoods,” Haffejee said. Since inception, 83 Dunlop container tyre outlets have been established in townships throughout South Africa, 17 of which are based in KwaZulu-Natal. To date, more than R50 million worth of tyres have been sold from Enquiry no: 3 township container outlets. continued from page one

Bonsai – the Japanese art of growing trees in containers, requires a delicate balance of respect, effort and ingenuity This balance plays an essential role in bonsai aesthetics. The isosceles triangle, with its unequal sides, provides asymmetry and is used in overall design to achieve sabi, or deliberate imperfection. Interpreted as a more natural sense of balance, sabi is highly valued in Japanese culture because it provides movement within the composition, symbolising a continuation of life.

P O Box 1322 Wandsbeck 3631 Tel: (031) 266 7511 Fax: (031) 266 7514 Email: editorial@mediaevents.co.za www.mediaevents.co.za

At SMC Pneumatics, we manifest this balance. Our superior quality products, unmatched support, local manufacturing and extensive global supply chain synchronise to attain an exquisite balance

Managing Director: Janet Coom Editor: Alan Cooper Email: editorial@mediaevents.co.za Sales & Marketing Manager: Cheryl Murphy Email: cheryl@mediaevents.co.za

between pliancy and stability, which helps our customers’ business to thrive. With 400 sales offices expertly balanced across 83 countries on five continents and a local staff

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complement nationwide, SMC is always close to our customers. Through the art of listening and truly understanding, SMC responds by designing custom products that match unique needs.

Any news items, press releases, articles and photographs relating to business and industry in KwaZulu-Natal are welcome. All contributions will be considered for publication.

Disclaimer: The editor and management of KZN Industrial & Business News make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this publication. However, no warranty is made and no responsibility will be borne by the editor or management of consequences of any actions based on information published. The views and opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the editor and/or management.

+27 11 100 5866 or sales@smcpneumatics.co.za

SMCRaisesTheBar Worldwide leading experts in pneumatics and industrial automation Join the conversation

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2016/10/11 02:48:56 PM

April / May 2017

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KZN Industrial & Business News

Auto industry strategy shift under spotlight at Durban show

tor. National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers of South Africa (NAACAM) President Dave Coffey said the stated acceptance by industry role-players of the need to increase local content in manufactured vehicles from its current level of 38.5% to 60% was significant. Automotive Masterplan lead Dr Justin Barnes said the achievement of a 60% level of localisation would make a significant impact on the South African economy, including the creation of 49 000 new jobs and an additional R68 billion in GDP. Barnes said the Automotive Masterplan and associated policy levers, which would replace the Automotive Production Development Plan in 2020, was at an “advanced stage of development” and that more concrete details would be shared over the coming weeks. Speaking at the show, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies reaffirmed government’s “significant support” for the automotive sector and said learnings which informed the policy “were not based on countries that have abandoned support of the auto sector”. “I was really pleased to see a vast array of component suppliers at the show, showing the depth and breadth of the supply chain, including black industrialists, a number of whom have entered the space with support from OEMs and large Tier Ones.” Davies said any beneficiary of future

automotive policies would need to demon- National Association of Automotive Component and Alllied strate contribution to Manufacturers of South Africa (NAACAM) President Dave Coffey, Volkswagen SA MD Thomas Schaefer, Mayor black-supplier development and localisation Zandile Gumede and NAACAM Executive Director Renai Moothilal which was “central to dealing with stubbornly high unemployment levels”. the value chain, is not negotiable. There Toyota SA President and National is a renewed sense of urgency and move Association of Automotive Manufacturers to action, in this regard, which is signifiof South Africa (NAAMSA) representa- cant.’’ Coffey said. “It is not business as tive, Andrew Kirby, said he was “encour- usual”. aged that we have gained alignment in “Given the fact that approximately trithe overall picture of the masterplan and ple the number of jobs are created in the acceptance of its key targets for the component manufacturing than vehicle sector”. assembly, there is commitment across the NUMSA Secretary General Irvin Jim board to deepen levels of local content. said the industry faced “serious challeng- This responsibility falls as much with Tier es and business and social movements 1 component manufacturers as it does and had to develop the agenda to address with OEMs.’’ these together. Otherwise we will have no NAACAM Executive Director Renai one else to blame”. Moothilal reinforced the networking and Reflecting on feedback from 13 con- profiling value of the event. ference sessions attended by up to 500 “This really was a showcase of the full automotive executives and policy makers, spectrum of the SA automotive manuCoffey said so much was learned and facturing value chain. From the OEM while there are always different positions, localisation focussed stands, to the multiplatforms such as these help sector par- tude of tier one manufacturers, the black ticipants find each other. owned suppliers, tyre manufacturers, ser“Members of the South African automo- vice providers to the sector, and even a tive sector value chain, are clear that the joint catalytic converter industry stand, key long term outcomes of sector growth, the show and exhibition just reinforced increased localisation and transforma- what collaborative action in this sector will tion are inextricably linked. The NAACAM bring,” Moothilal said. Show entrenched that view. On that score, This was a view supported by SATMC I am delighted with that as an outcome of director, Nobuzwe Mangcu, who welthe show.” comed the closer relationship between “All South African automotive role-play- the tyre manufacturing community and ers understand that transformation and NAACAM. Enquiry no: 4 the inclusion of black-owned suppliers in

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HE KwaZulu-Natal Industrial Technology Exhibition (KITE), to be held at the Durban Exhibition Centre from 26 to 28 July 2017, will focus on assisting companies to find the right manufacturing technology and industrial products and services. That’s according to Charlene Hefer, Portfolio Director at Specialised Exhibitions. “With a history that spans 36 years, KITE has established itself as the go-to event for industrial companies seeking out equipment and services that will enhance both their productivity and the bottom line,” she said. “KITE exhibitors are characterised by product and service excellence and the ability to match solutions to specific customer needs. We are on track to have a capacity exhibition and the diversity of offerings will appeal to a wide and demanding market.” Hefer said careful consideration is given to the variety and quality of exhibitor technology and services to ensure that visitors are presented with a wide range of suitable offerings. This year’s event is no exception and visitors can interact with exhibitors ranging from providers of electronic components, packaging and plastics machinery, heavy machinery; hygiene products and services; industrial equipment and components; IT and telecommunications manufacturing

equipment; materials handling; monitoring, process control and sensors; security equipment; workwear and protective equipment; plant and facility equipment; safety equipment and machinery; tools; and industrial services. Adding further impetus to its comprehensive offerings, this year’s event includes the addition of the Propak Africa Pavilion. Leveraging the success of the Propak Cape and Propak Africa events, the KITE-based Propak Pavilion will offer visitors premium packaging, plastics, printing and labelling solutions. As well as an extensive range of the province’s leading products and services, KITE includes a number of value-added visitor attractions including the free-to-attend SAIMechE Seminar Theatre, the MESA (Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association) special interest group and the Lifting Equipment Association of South Africa (LEEASA) conference. With over 110 exhibitors projected for KITE 2017, visitors will be spoiled for choice. “We have an amazing array of products and services lined up for visitors. Exhibitors from a number of market sectors will be on hand to interact with visitors and devise productivity-driven solutions. Some of the products on display include speciality lubricants, adhesives and sealants,” said Enquiry no: 5 Hefer.

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2016/05/19 11:54 AM

April / May 2017

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4 FROM THE DESK OF: Pumi Motsoahae Chief Executive Officer Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone

ONSIDERED the fastest growing secondary city in South Africa, Richards Bay looks set to receive a much-needed boost in the form of foreign direct investment RBIDZ to date having signed investments worth a whopping R11.9 billion representing different key sectors of the economy which include chemicals, renewable energy, pipe manufacturing and kraft paper to name just, a few is balanced to take the Richards Bay economic landscape to greater heights. Significantly, the RBIDZ celebrated yet another major milestone on 11 April when it hosted international and national delegates to a signing ceremony of a R4.5-billion investment partnership between Nyanza Light Metals and New Zealand investor Avertana Limited, which will be bringing proprietary technology into the manufacturing stream of titanium dioxide. MEC for Economic Development, Tourism

KZN Industrial & Business News

Driving economic transformation

and Environmental Affairs, Sihle Zikalala, and New Zealand High Commissioner, His Excellency Mike Burrell, presided over the event and expressed their support and commitment towards this massive project that is certain to drive the economic transformation and be the motor force to create employment opportunities and transfer of skills to the local people. MEC Zikalala pointed out that chemical manufacturing growth is very slow in South Africa, making it very challenging to explore, yet the country is very rich in natural resources. He applauded Nyanza Light Metals for taking the route of exploration and conceptualising on the technical and economic viability of producing titanium dioxide pigment from waste slags. Nyanza Light Metals will be located in RBIDZ Phase 1F estate, located in Alton, and will manufacture a titanium dioxide agent that is used in various products like toothpaste, paint and other food products as a colorant. This investment is expected to create 2500 direct jobs as it moves from construction to production. The civil and electrical works have

commenced whereas the plant construction is expected to commence in 2018 with full production set to kick off in 2020. Whilst it is widely accepted that progress is being made in speeding up socio-economic development, there is an urgent need to fasttrack the entry of previously disadvantaged communities into the mainstream economy for the betterment of the wealth distribution. It is for these reasons that RBIDZ hosted the 3rd Annual SMME Engagement Seminar on the 29th March at KwaHlanganani Hall in Esikhaleni Township with the aim of unpacking the RBIDZ investment pipeline and identifying potential business opportunities for the emerging contractors. The seminar should be viewed within the context of translating the political freedom into economic freedom for the majority of ordinary members of society. Ordinary people continue to testify that following the introduction of this programme, they have been given access to economic opportunities. During the seminar which was attended by more than 200 representatives of SMMES,

Outsourcing may offer route out of job devastation in steel, engineering sectors

taff outsourcing is a controversial topic, but for a specialist in the field it presents a solution to many of South Africa’s stressed sector, particularly the steel and engineering industries. The metals and engineering sector constitutes 28% of total manufacturing in South Africa. According to the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation, approximately 19,000 jobs were lost in the first nine months of 2016, that is an 8.7% increase over the 16,000 jobs lost in the sector during the same period the year before. Arnoux Maré, Managing Director of Innovative Staffing Solutions, says the loss of these skilled jobs is a shame given the gross skill shortage in the country. He believes the reason for this anomaly is the fact that people handling the retrenchments are steel experts rather than people experts. “The business of people should be left to people experts – staff outsourcing companies such as ourselves who have the capacity to shift employees between clients where the need is greatest at any moment in time, thereby retaining valuable skills within the industry’s system,” says Maré. He gives the example of the transport sec-

tor, where Innovative Staffing Solutions is today one of the biggest employers. “During our six years of providing staff outsourcing to our clients, we have never had to retrench employees. In fact, every month we hire a hundred or more skilled drivers to add to our pool. The same can be achieved in the steel and engineering sector. It is scandalous that companies are being so ‘wasteful’ with the skilled resources available in this country. Greater efficiencies can be achieved by outsourcing their staffing needs to people professionals. They have a duty to their employees as much as to their shareholders.” Businesses today have low levels of confidence and are ill inclined to invest in capital projects or in people. The biggest time consuming activity in a business is staff, Maré says that by outsourcing their staffing needs, businesses free themselves up to focus on their core business functions and relieve themselves of one of their main causes of poor confidence. “We are still employing hundreds of people, which best reflects our own continued confidence in the economy of this country. If companies outsource what is often their biggest

headache, the risk associated with any new investment in steel and engineering is massively reduced. Our confidence is unabated because we have wide networks throughout industry and the experience to move staff from site to site. “Skills in the steel and engineering sectors are in short supply, but companies are too short-staffed to take the time to properly vet new recruits. We already have the template to sift the good and qualified candidates from the bad. Our activities in the transport sector show that flexibility in staffing creates more jobs. Companies usually resist employing more staff when they fear they cannot easily get rid of them. We relieve companies of this anxiety,” says Maré. Companies often suspect that outsourcing their staffing needs is the quickest route to labour unrest, but Maré points out that Innovative Staffing Solutions has not had a single incident of labour unrest in its six years. “Our employees are not temporary. They are permanently employed by us, even if they are contracted out to various sites and they know this. They also get significantly better employee benefits from us than they would from a smaller company. We are experts in human resources and labour relations and typically have higher levels of loyalty than other comEnquiry no: 6 panies.”

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engineering and manufacturing capabilities, the group is able to offer a range of standard off-the-shelf products as well as end-to-end energy solutions. An in-depth understanding of the requirements for HVAC applications, access to quality product solutions and years of experience have ensured that the Zest WEG Group service offering is fit-for purpose. From single product installations to individually customised solutions, which are application specific, the latest technology is used to ensure optimum performance and reliability without

compromising on energy efficiency. WEG products are engineered to facilitate a safe and reliable plant environment with operational stability and the highest possible production levels as an objective. Reduced maintenance and ease of serviceability assist in lowering the total cost of ownership for operations. Supporting customers is key and the Zest WEG Group operates a strategically situated network of branches and distributors across the continent. This ensures the highest levels of technical support as well as easy access to product and parts.

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Depot licences for port terminals

LL Transnet Port Terminals’ [TPT’s] A Multi-Purpose Terminals [MPTs] have been granted new depot licenses by the

South African Revenue Services for the packing and unpacking of containers for all commodities. This comes at an opportune time for TPT as the Transnet-owned Operating Division, a state-owned company, seeks to grow its revenue stream on the face of depreciating commodity volumes worldwide. This means that TPT is now a port terminal with a legal depot license for the packing and unpacking of containers, agri, mineral and mining bulk products. According to General Manager for New Business Development Brenda Magqwaka, this is cause for celebration as it means that TPT can efficiently facilitate the needs of new and existing customers by adding value to their commodity supply chain. “TPT will offer a consolidated solution to our customers offering them a cost effective one-stop value add service,” said Magqwaka. Magqwaka said TPT’s offering is a welcome intervention not just for junior miners but also for well- established businesses. TPT’s National Customer Service Centre are geared to support customers who wish to take full advantage of the services on offer. The new services are available in all seven of TPT’s multi-purpose terminals, Durban Point, Durban Maydon Wharf, East London, Richards Bay, Port Elizabeth, Cape Enquiry no: 7 Town and Saldanha.

Chemical SETA without a CEO

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as RBIDZ we emphasized the importance of implementing the programmes focusing on economic transformation and plans that would ensure that companies that are investing in the Zone partner with emerging SMMEs and co-operatives. Critically, considering the fact that RBIDZ is strategically located along the port, we are encouraging the business sector and SMMEs to explore opportunities in the maritime sector. There are opportunities in a variety of maritime sub sectors such as aquiculture, oil and gas as well as shipbuilding, shipping and port transshipment. It is becoming abundantly clear that maritime sector has the potential of becoming an engine for sustainable economic growth for many years to come. As RBIDZ, we want to facilitate skills development and transfer for the benefit of our people to ensure growth towards the country’s Gross Domestic Products (GDP) and eradication of the high rate of unemployment, lack of skills and inequality.

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2016/12/02 9:35 AM

THE Minister of Higher Education and Training (DHET), Blade Nzimande, has revealed that the Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (CHIETA), has been without a Chief Executive Officer for the past six years. This was in response to a Democratic Alliance (DA) parliamentary question. MP Hlomela Bucwa MP, a DA Member of the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training, said the party would write to Nzimande to enquire why the appointment of a new CEO had taken so long to fill and to demand that the vacancy is filled urgently. “According to their website ‘CHIETA contributes to sustainable development through facilitating the provision of skills for growth in the chemical industries sector’,” Bucwa said. “However, in the absence of a CEO to provide clear direction and leadership, the CHIETA will, before long, follow the trajectory of the Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSSETA), the Safety and Security Services Sector Education and Training Authority (SASSETA), and the Wholesale and Retail Sector Education and Training Authority (W&RSETA), which are all currently under administration following serious allegations of corruption. “The DA has long held that, although SETA’s play an important role in providing much-needed skills, in recent years it has become a financial drain in the public sector, with millions wasted on irregular and fruitless Enquiry no: 8 expenditure.”

April / May 2017

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KZN Industrial & Business News

Speedy turnaround for KZN tank maker

Crane giants join forces

ties in the service business which is already a John MacDonald (Service, Sales and Marketing stronghold of the comManager of Konecranes), John Haarhoff (Managing pany in Southern Africa. Director of Demag) and Knut Stewen (Konecranes’ Konecranes has a long Managing Director Southern African Countries and history of conducting rouVice President Head of Region Africa) tine service inspections, repairs and refurbishOLLOWING the finalisation of ment of Demag cranes,” Konecranes’ worldwide acqui- the company said in a statement. sition of Terex MHPS - which In South Africa the merger also in effect is Demag Cranes, Hoists, extends to the Wolff Cranes brand Material Handling and Ports Solutions which was acquired by Demag in the - the two global crane brands will be late 1980’s. In terms of the port matesharing their considerable combined rial segment, it includes handling techknowledge and technology. nology with a broad range of manual, One of the priorities, according to semi-automated solutions under the Konecranes, is to become a substan- Gottwald and Noell brands. tial force in the lifting business in subKnut Stewen, Konecranes’ Saharan Africa. Managing Director Southern African “The acquisition will improve Countries and Vice President Head of Konecranes’ position as a focused Region Africa, said, “We are extremely global leader in the industrial lifting and proud to combine forces with Demag. port solutions market. Konecranes will We want to provide a home for Demag achieve substantial growth opportuni- and Port Solutions, from which these

ITH climate change threatening our water supply around the world, finding the right water storage solution is paramount to all industrial strategy; whether in town planning, commercial construction, mining, or even in existing commercial setups. The CEO of WaterAid in Canada, Nicole Hurtubise, recently said in a statement, “Extreme weather events resulting from climate change can mean more storm surges, flooding, droughts and contaminated water sources. They can wipe out fragile infrastructure, dry up rivers, ponds and springs, and contribute to the spread of waterborne diseases, making it more and more difficult to provide clean water to those who need it.” This is the risk Pinetown-based SBS offers to mitigate for a growing list of industrial, commercial and public sector customers across South Africa and the African continent. “When we started SBS Tanks almost 20 years ago, we saw the need in this country, and wanted to be part of a sustainable solution,” said Managing Director Delayne Gray. “As the years have progressed, we have engineered a unique and world class Zincalume panel

tank that can be constructed in as fast as four weeks, and can store anything from 30,000 litres to 3.1 million litres of liquid, be it potable water or even certain chemical compounds.” He said this swift turnaround allows his company to speedily fill major gaps in communities that have been impacted by spoiled water, or even fast-growing communities where the installation of a traditional concrete reservoir will just take too long. SBS Tanks displayed this record lead time recently when they completed the installation of 16 100,000 litre potable water tanks in the Joe Gqabi District in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Having started the project in October 2016, all 16 tanks were completed in December, allowing the local communities access to clean, potable water without the risk of running out during highdemand periods. “It’s projects like these that make SBS Tanks such a significant player in the water storage industry, not only in sub-Saharan Africa, but indeed the rest of the continent as well. As a proudly ISO 9001:2008 accredited company, SBS Tanks truly are industry leaders in liquid storage in South Africa,” Gray said. Enquiry no: 9

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businesses can grow and become stronger as part of our joint organization.The acquisition makes it possible for us to realize a long list of synergies between our two companies. We will be one technology company, ready to create the next generation of lifting”. This was echoed by John Haarhoff, Managing Director of Demag MHPS (Pty) Ltd. “We strongly believe that in the long term, the sharing of combined technology will allow the two businesses to develop solutions that will further improve the productivity and safety of the Demag, Wolff and Konecranes. We aim together to excel at providing the services our customers require,” Haarhoff said. In a first joint team effort, the Demag/ Konecranes team signed a three-year service and maintenance contract for Arcellor Mittal Saldanha Steel Mill which will require a supervisor and four technical teams on site. Enquiry no: 10

Private sector can assist in reducing first year drop-out rate

here needs to be a much closer T relationship between the private sector and universities in order to

drastically reduce the horrific first year student dropout rate of between 15% and 25%. That’s according to Dewald Lindeque, CEO of Moyo Business Advisory (MBA), who said his company teamed up with the University of Pretoria about seven years ago in order to provide mentorship programmes to students in the business and IT sector with “outstanding” results. “While bursaries are obviously hugely important for university fees, accommodation and for the purchase

of books, we found that the real key to success was the early integration of students into our workforce so that we could mentor them in every aspect of the broad range of services we deliver in information technology and business consulting.” There are also financial spinoffs: First year interns could earn as much as R16 000 a month with considerable increases as they progressed through their curriculum. Dr Andre Van Zyl, who is the director of the Academic Development Centre at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) said research done by the Council of Higher Education (CHE) tracking students over a period of five years found

that of those students who passed first year, only between 50% and 60% graduated. He said it was imperative that there be closer cooperation between the corporate sector and universities to look at the issue of mentoring and bursaries. “However much the state may want to fund higher education, there simply is not enough money to go around. I believe it would be very much in the interest of corporates to become more closely involved if for no other reason but to produce the kind of graduates that will help them grow their businesses.”

Enquiry no: 11

April / May 2017

news

KZN Industrial & Business News

Upgrade for big Maritzburg mall

HE co-owners of Liberty Midlands Mall in Pietermaritzburg, Liberty Two Degrees and Liberty Group Limited, recently announced plans to increase their investment in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands with a highly anticipated expansion of the mall. Alex Phakathi, Chief Operating Officer, Liberty Two Degrees said: “The new phase is attracting exciting new brands and speciality stores that are currently not available in the market, as well as providing some of our existing retailers the ability to expand. We consider Pietermaritzburg a stable economic environment with good growth prospects”. Amelia Beattie, Chief Executive Officer, Liberty Two Degrees emphasised that this investment falls within the Liberty Two Degrees strategy of investing in retail environments in response to customer needs and wants. She said the expansion would strengthen Liberty Midlands Mall’s position in the Pietermaritzburg and KwaZulu-Natal Midlands by providing additional retail offerings, further increasing the mall’s appeal to locals and visitors alike. The mall currently boasts a gross lettable area of 56,000m². On completion of Phase 3, the size of the centre will increase to an impressive 78,000m², answering to the

demand for space in this esteemed mall. It opened its doors in 2003 as the area’s largest shopping mall and swiftly became a preferred retail destination in the KwaZuluNatal Midlands. Being a celebrated multiuse property, the mall has experienced high demand for space from both local and international retailers. Construction on Midlands Mall Phase 3 began in November 2016 and the development is anticipated to be completed by early 2018. Some of the tenants secured for the extension include Planet Fitness, Checkers and Coricraft. Liberty Midlands Mall is co-owned by the Liberty Group Limited and Liberty Two Degrees. The mall is part of the stable of property assets including some of South Africa’s leading retail property assets such as the Sandton City Complex, Nelson Mandela Square, Eastgate Shopping Centre and a 25% stake in Melrose Arch. The property management is undertaken by JHI Retail, part of Cushman & Wakefield Excellerate, one of Africa’s leading trusted providers of fully integrated, self-delivered property related solutions and services companies. Enquiry no: 12

Managing government infrastructure spend

N estimated R875.70 billion has been committed to a number of ambitious government infrastructure projects for the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) until 2019/2020), according to the figures given in the national budget and publicly available information on projects and their budgets. According to Herman Berry, a member of the Building and Property Economics Committee of the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors (ASAQS) and Executive: Program, Cost, Consultancy (Africa) at AECOM, quantity surveyors, rather than engineers, are best positioned to keep public infrastructure spend on track. “Despite the bulk of the infrastructure spend actually being managed by engineers, the priority now must be to ensure that the projects are delivered on time and on budget—and greater involvement by professional quantity surveyors is the best way to do that.” Berry said the spend is spread across the key sectors of education (R50.1 billion), energy (R234.5 billion), health (R35.6 billion), human Settlements (R102.5 billion), transport and logistics (R327.5 billion) and water and sanitation (R125.3 billion). He added that infrastructure spend in education, health and human settlements is primarily contracted through the Department of Public Works and the costs are traditionally managed by quantity surveyors. By contrast, projects in the other sectors are largely under the cost control of engineers. These projects account for 83% of the projected spend in this budget (R726 billion). “It is perhaps worth mentioning that the energy and transport sectors, where quantity surveyors have no formal control over project costing and accounting, have seen some of the most spectacular cost overruns in recent years.

“Engineers are judged by the quality and aesthetics of their designs and thus, quite rightly, those are their main priorities. Cost is, however, a primary consideration for the quantity surveyor, who produces a Bill of Quantities from the engineer’s design. The Bill of Quantities remains the baseline for the project and all payments, and the foundation for the final account, which the quantity surveyor must draw up and be able to justify.” The ASAQS has previously called for all government projects worth R10 million or more to have a quantity surveyor made responsible for the overall project and, particularly, the final accounts in an attempt to stem corruption. But, said Berry, while corruption may be the cause of some cost overruns on big projects, there are many other factors at play. The real point is that a quantity surveyor has the professional know-how and commitment to scope the project costs and quantities properly, and then ensure that it remains within scope.

Enquiry no: 13

Engineering for safety

HE petrochemical, mining and manufacturing industries are constantly under pressure to deliver a safe working environment. This responsibility does not only relate to personal, occupational safety measures to protect employees against unusual hazardous situations but also calls on industry to have an in-depth understanding of how harmful exposure can be limited. Process safety incidents, such as loss of containment scenarios, can often lead to catastrophic events with far-reaching human, environmental and monetary consequences. With the right expertise and safety engineering design approach, however, it is possible to lower the probability that these incidents will occur. The realm of process safety is diverse in application. The approach may be slightly adjusted for each lifecycle stage or industry, but the principle behind a multilayer protection approach to stop propagation of a process hazard can be applied quite broadly. This article is not an attempt to cover the large field of Process Safety Engineering but aims to highlight some preventative measures that industry or business can take to ensure the right protection layers are in place. The majority of these tools also emphasise that to achieve true freedom from unacceptable risk, safety is seen as a culture and

lifecycle, and not as a once off purchase or installation. Existing plants often associate state-of-theart safety measures with high cost, or consider their applications impractical. Safety measures in a traditional prescriptive standard are often based on a typical requirement for that application. Where applications are similar across the industry and have not evolved significantly with time, a prescriptive standard serves as the summary of years of experience and a case study on that application. The automation industry, however, is starting to migrate these legacy standards to functional standards. A functional standard looks at each application and client in context and aims to address the risk in relation to its impact and complexity. This approach can potentially lead to cost savings. Proconics works with clients to develop specific personalised solutions that are compatible with existing systems, maintenance strategies and availability of local support; this is because it has the specific competency and expertise in dealing with legacy systems and complex brown-field integrations thus marrying optimisation and compliance requirements with a reduced impact on existing operations. Van der Walt is Principal Engineer: Control and Instrumentation at Proconics Enquiry no: 14

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

Super jumbo cargo plane makes its biggest ever delivery to Durban

UBE Cargo Terminal recently witnessed its second landing of an Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft, as part of the delivery of 80 tons of highly specialised spools which form part of the main furnace at a local oil refinery. The components ranged from four to 16 meters in length, one to three metres in width and two to four metres in height. Due to the oversized nature, weight and value of the cargo, Sebenza Forwarding and Shipping, the company contracted to deliver this essential equipment for the refinery, felt that it necessary to charter a giant Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft. Justin Naidoo, Airfreight Controller for Sebenza said, “Due to the enormity of this cargo, not to mention the monetary value of the shipment, extreme care had to be taken in ensuring that the transportation and disembarkation from the aircraft, as well as loading onto the specialized low bed trucks, was carried out with the utmost precision and precaution”. “The need for specialized cranes, rigging crews and equipment that best suited the low bed trucks needed to accommodate this cargo really demanded the input of personnel

with years of experience, as well as planning down to the tiniest detail needless to say, this was all done successfully.” The landing rights were secured a few weeks prior to the Antonov’s arrival as the cargo was sourced from Germany. The aircraft took twoand-a-half days to reach Durban’s

Durban factory inferno raises importance of fire-detection systems

HUGE fire in Durban at the end of March, believed to be one of the largest factory fires ever in the Southern Hemisphere, has raised concerns about fire prevention and risk management at large industrial estates. According to ASP Fire CEO Michael van Niekerk, large warehouses must have a suitable automatic fire-detection system installed. This is critical in order to alert occupants of a fire as quickly as possible, especially given the large size of such warehouses, so they have sufficient time to evacuate the premises. “This will allow on-site first respondents to tackle a fire before it grows out of control,” Van Niekerk said. At the blaze in Durban, 400 firefighters battled for 15 hours to get the inferno under control. Fire-hose reels and fire extinguishers are essential elements of a first respondent capability to suppress a fire successfully before it grows too large in order to be able control. Van Niekerk said, an appropriate fire-suppression system such as automatic sprinklers will control a fire, provided that the product stored in the protected area does not exceed the fire load that the sprinkler system was designed to control. Large industrial warehouse estates, and those used by logistics companies in particular, are at risk when they do not own the goods stored in their buildings. Clients do not always declare the fire risks associated with hazardous goods, as they are either unaware of the hazard, or are trying to avoid paying a premium for the handling and storage of hazardous goods. “The net result is that the actual fire load or fire hazard of the goods stored in the building far

exceeds the designed fire load of the building in terms of its construction, and the fire detection, fire suppression, and life-safety systems. “It is also difficult to manage access in and out of a very large warehouse site. Buildings that cover many thousands of square metres are not necessarily staffed to a level that allows for a fire to be detected and suppressed rapidly.” He said a fire protection specialist like ASP Fire is able to conduct a fire-risk assessment to determine whether the actual fire load within a building exceeds the installed fire-protection system design. In terms of regulations, fire protection in a warehouse environment stems mainly from SANS 10400-T: Application of the National Building Regulations Act, Fire Protection; SANS 10287: Automatic Sprinkler Installations for Firefighting Purposes; SANS 10139: Fire Detection and Alarm Systems for Buildings (System Design, Installation and Servicing); SANS 10228: The Identification and Classification of Dangerous Goods for Transport; and SANS10263-0: Warehousing of Dangerous Goods. Local municipal emergency service or fire brigade by-laws are also applicable. Van Niekerk stressed that the main lesson to be learnt from the recent Durban inferno was prevention is better than cure. Enquiry no: 16

King Shaka International Airport, leaving Leipzig Airport on 27 March 2017, with two rest and refuelling stops in Cairo and Mombasa. “The necessary motivation for the need to bring in this type of aircraft was key to having this permit (landing rights) issued. Needless to say, Dube TradePort provided sufficient

motivation to have this expedited accordingly and receiving a flight of this nature was welcomed by King Shaka International Airport,” said Naidoo. An Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft has the carrying capacity between 120 and 150 tons - the biggest series heavy lifter in the world. It is a military spec aircraft that is built specifically for the transportation of heavy and oversized cargo, which even includes other aircraft and industrial equipment. In 2013 Dube Cargo Terminal saw an Antonov An-124 airlift a 54-ton acid cooler for a mine in New Caledonia. “This second landing of this aircraft certainly positions Dube Cargo Terminal as a world-class facility capable of handling heavy lifts,” said terminal Manager Ricardo Isaac. “Dube Cargo Terminal has invested in a specialised outsized cargo handling facility which is equipped with hoists, mobile cranes and conveyor systems to handle bulky or outsized shipments such as large pipes, outsized machinery, motor vehicles, large animals and 20-foot ocean containers,” he said. “The infrastructure to handle outsized cargo allows us to be flex-

ible in enabling more specialised charter flights as well as growing cargo throughput by facilitating sea to air connections via the increased cargo capacity from the air services that already fly directly to Durban. By doing so, we are confident that we will continue to stimulate more growth in the local market. In the last 12 months we have seen a steady growth in excess of 20% in cargo throughput.” Aubrey Veeran, Director of Sebenza Forwarding and Shipping added, “We have chartered smaller aircrafts in the past but nothing like the Antonov An-124. This is a milestone and we are very excited to be a part of this project. We believe there is certainly lots of potential to have charter flights come in to King Shaka International Airport. “We have an airport that is able to handle major aircraft and the fact that we have received an Antonov An-124 is really major. Durban has more than enough potential and capacity to see and successfully handle many more freighter charters in the years to come. It was a fantastic experience being part of a project of this magnitude,” Veeran said. Enquiry no: 15

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

Top brands get along Famously A

FRICA’S largest branded food service franchisor, JSE-listed Famous Brands continues its relationship with Goscor Lift Truck Company - also a famous brand in South Africa - with the recent delivery of yet another well-known brand, Crown and Doosan materials handling equipment (MHE), for its new warehouse in Longmeadow, Edenvale, east of Johannesburg. Gavin Welsh, Famous Brands logistics executive for the Gauteng region’s Centre of Excellence said the company reduced the primary activity at their Midrand facility and ring-fenced it at the new Longmeadow warehouse. Famous Brands recently took delivery of 10 units for the new facility including two Doosan BR16JW Reach Trucks, one Crown SC6040 1.8 threewheel Electric Counter-Balance forklift, one Crown WT3020 2.0 Ride-on Powered Pallet Truck and six Crown PTH-50 Pallet Jacks.

Welsh said it was not only Goscor’s product that impressed them. “Their willingness to be part of the preparation of the facility’s MHE, their general conduct during the sale and the quality of their after sales service all match the quality of the product.” He added that the Goscor team’s advice about which would be the best equipment for the new warehouse was invaluable as was their involvement in the design and construction of the battery room, which is so crucial to the efficiency of the entire operation. “We expect that the new facility will handle a throughput in the region of 500 pallets per day delivering to six depots: Cape Town, Bloemfontein, Midrand, Nelspruit, Pinetown, and Port Elizabeth. It is a 24-hour operation and to facilitate this Goscor has supplied additional batteries to ensure uptime around the clock,” Welsh said. Goscor sales manager Ronald Ryan said Famous Brand’s logistics

Business unusual for supply chain conference

Famous Brands with the recent delivery of Crown and Doosan materials handling equipment for its new warehouse management and its operation is as professional as anything anywhere. “Working with Gavin is a privilege and the teamwork between the two companies is an example of how productive the client/supplier relationship can be.”

Enquiry no: 17

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focus on ‘business unusual’ for the upcoming 39th Annual SAPICS Conference and Exhibition for Supply Chain Professionals will equip delegates to meet challenges linked to factors such as poor infrastructure and political uncertainty, according to SAPICS president Mungo Park. “The impact of these issues, together with the skills shortage crisis, emphasise the need for supply chain management to be recognized in the boardroom,” said Park. “There is often the misconception that supply chain management is only procurement; this conference and exhibition will help reinforce awareness about the complexity of this profession in its entirety, and build the skills to take the economy forward.” The event will highlight the potential for exponential technologies to transform supply chain management, incorporating innovations like digitisation, 3-D printing, driverless vehicles and the effective management of information overload. A “world-class” line-up of speakers has been confirmed for the annual event, which is hosted by SAPICS and managed by Upavon Conferences Management. These include leading futurist, author and business transformation expert Sean Culey, who will be delivering his globally renowned presentation: ‘Supply Chain 3.0 – how to survive in disruptive times’. In his presentation, Culey will prepare participants to gear their businesses for a new wave of disruptive technology and to embrace a new era of creative destruction and exhilarating innovation which is already upon us. The event will feature speakers from Egypt, South Africa, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands – while showcasing the experience of innovative groups like Nando’s, McCain Foods SA, Dis-Chem and

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SABMiller. The conference will also provide the platform to share the results of Barloworld’s annual supply chain foresight survey the industry standard qualitative research study into South Africa’s supply chains. “As a professional knowledgebased association that enables individuals and organisations to improve business performance, the SAPICS conference and exhibition is a vital forum for the sharing and adaptation of cutting-edge ideas and technologies,” said Park. Greg Schlegel – founder of the Supply Chain Risk Management Consortium – returns to the SAPICS stage talking ‘Supply Chain Risk and Resiliency’. As a supply chain executive for over 30 years with several Fortune 100 companies, Schlegel warns that supply chain risk is increasing, not decreasing. With globalisation expanding at a remarkable rate over the last 20 years, supply chains have moved into areas where they’ve never operated. As a result, uncertainty, complexity and risk have grown exponentially. Delegates wanting to get a deeper understanding of how to mitigate supply chain risk can also attend two workshops throughout the conference. Delegates attending all three sessions will be awarded a Supply Chain Risk and Resiliency Certificate from Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. Other contributions include Dr Dino Petrarolo, who will be discussing ‘The impact of operational excellence on the looming transformation in manufacturing,’ which explores the impact of smarter robots, 3-D printing, big data, machine-to-machine communication and mobility with specific focus on the transformation in manufacturing. Speaking on ‘The Emergence of the Strategic Supply Chain Leader’ will be Dr Steven A Enquiry no: 18 Melnyk.

New door helps stack the deck in your favour

Bloemfontein Cape 051 448Town 5516 021 959 8800 Cape Town Durban 021 959 8800 031 716 6300 Durban East London 031 716 6300 043 731 1147

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

Mpumalanga Upington 013 758 1334 054 332 6464 Pietermaritzburg Trichardt 081 732 9350 / 017732 6387051 0104 081

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OLD with the promise of bridging the gap between form and function, the Butzbach stacking door range is available from Stab-a-Load, the sole distributors of the highlyregarded German brand in SubSaharan Africa. The twin-walled, translucent stacking panel door is popular for its translucent effect, which allows for up to 78% light transmission. It also claims to offer superior resistance. “Burglar-proof and impact resistant, the fiberglass elements are designed to protect what’s yours; be it from the weather, or extreme force,” a statement from the company said in a statement. One of the key design features of the Butzbach stacking door is keeping all of the important functional components sheltered from interference. The result is a compact track-and-stack system that steers away from loose components such as protruding hinges, suspension cables, strapping, shearing edges and springs found in conventional doors. “Due to this innovative design,

Butzbach Stacking Doors are made to be incredibly compact. Ceiling equipment, ventilation units, lighting fixtures or existing fixtures have little or no influence on the compact design of the track and stacking cassette, which is neatly situated behind the lintel. With the minimal space requirement, Butzbach Stacking Doors are the perfect fit for both industrial and domestic applications,” the company said. With the current emphasis on energy saving, more businesses and homes are under pressure to minimize wasteful energy expenditure. “Coupling the need for less artificial light with excellent thermal insulation values by way of twin-walled fiberglass and an all-round seal, Butzbach Stacking Doors ensure minimal energy-loss through air leakage or internal temperature fluctuations.” Safety is also addressed with features like TÜV certified Anti-Drop Protection, AntiLift Protection, Anti-Jamming Protection and Access Protection. Enquiry no: 19

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

New reach stackers for logistics company T HE EIE Group’s Port Handling Equipment division, has handed over two Konecranes reach stackers to the privately-owned South African container transport and Logistics provider, Yellow Jersey Logistics, on a longterm rental contract with maintenance agreement. The 45 ton capacity reach stackers, at the top end of the Konecranes’ range, were ordered for application in loading/offloading and storage of 20 ft (6.1 m) and 40 ft (12.2 m) laden and empty containers at the company’s Roodekop, Johannesburg container yard. “In line with EIE’s commitment to building partnerships for life, the contract is a continuation of a business association with Yellow Jersey Logistics, who had previously used two units supplied by EIE on a rent-to-own contract,” EIE said in a statement. At the end 2016 EIE traded in the old machines, replacing them with the two new units. The SMV 4530 TBE5 reach stackers are

equipped with powerful, low-emission engines that comply with environmental regulations and standards while reducing fuel consumption. Modern and durable lifting spreaders provide top-lift with 300-degree rotation, while smart load-sensing hydraulics adapt the lifting power to the weight of the load. The cabin has been designed for comfort and safety and to boost driver productivity, providing excellent visibility in all directions. The heavy-duty box-type chassis is the strongest on the market, with excellent stability provided by the wide, strong drive axle and long wheelbase. Maintenance-free brakes with continuous oil cooling provide full braking power in every situation. “While this was a very competitive tender process, EIE’s good working relationship with Yellow Jersey Logistics positioned us well,” said Craig Golden, EIE Group Product Manager for the Konecranes range. “The client remained loyal as their past relationship with

our management and the aftersales team satisfied them that we can provide the required support. “In addition, as we have serviced Yellow Jersey Logistics for the past five years, we have a good understanding of their requirements and their commitment to high standards. The latter is evident in their world class container yard, which greatly assists in keeping the machines running with minimal downtime.” Yellow Jersey Logistics owns and operates 70 vehicles that predominantly service container traffic on the Gauteng – Durban route.

The Roodekop container depot operates 24 hours a day seven days a week to ensure optimal productivity and turnaround times for the fleet. As such, reliability backed by 24-hour service and support is essential for their operation. Enquiry no: 20

RELIABLE

New mobile solution manages yards and vehicles

CONSTRUCTION

PARTNERS M

ANAGING and tracking the flow of trucks, visitors and goods entering or exiting a warehouse premises is critical to efficient management of your yard and vehicles. MakeMeMobile’s Gate Management Solution expedites the inspection and load verification process of your fleet before and after trips. It also increases efficiency, productivity and minimises security risks by scheduling times and allocating yard doors to specific vehicles. Kallie van den Berg, Director at MakeMeMobile said, “Our team of experts customises our solution to suit a company’s specific needs and workflows. The solution can either be deployed on a customer’s premises on their servers or is accessible via our M3 Cloud offering. T he latter provides a company with a scalable solution with increased efficiencies and reduced deployment time and capital expenditure on IT infrastructure.” MakeMeMobile’s Gate Management Solution, part of their comprehensive suite of Inventory Control and Tracking Solutions, provides increased security, optimised and efficient yard flow and a real-time overview of vehicles provided by easy-to-read dashboard. “Our Gate Management Solution enables better management of operations and results in enhanced productivity as errors can be immediately identified and rectified before they incur costs,” said Van den Berg. Gate Management Solution enables companies to manage their yard more efficiently as it verifies information by scanning a vehicle licence disk and the driver’s licence using a mobile handheld device. It also efficiently manages a company’s yard by scheduling visits and instructing each driver to proceed to the allocated place. Collections or shipments can be validated to ensure that the correct product or shipment leaves the facility and with the comprehensive dashboards and reporting, operations are fully controlled and managed in real-time. “By linking our Weighbridge Solution to the Gate Management Solution, we are able to verify the correct quantity of goods entering or leaving a company’s premises.” Gate Management Solution also provides the facility for vehicles to go through certain checks to ensure roadworthiness. “This prevents unnecessary road accidents, which can result in loss and damage of goods and injury to drivers,” said Van den Berg. Enquiry no: 21

From R269 000 Tippers

8.140 FD 4x2 3.5m3

15.180 FD 4x2 6m3

16.240 FD 4x2 6m3

28.280 FD 6x4 10m3

FAW tippers can handle the toughest of environments with ease – dust, stones and uneven terrain, challenging entry/exit slopes. Supporting FAW’s uptime promise is a host of aftersales back-up services, and maintenance and parts supply through a wide dealer network.

(excluding VAT) 8.140 FD chassis cab, T&Cs apply.

35.340 FD 8x4 15m3

Mixers

33.330 FC 6x4 6m3

35.340 FC 8x4 8m3

FAW provides purpose-ﬁt mixer trucks that can conquer the rigors of any building site. There are few mixers to match FAW strength and long-lasting working capability. FAW mixer models are easy to drive and offer exceptional durability because of a strong chassis frame, the robust materials and quality standards applied in the manufacture of the truck, the drivetrain and the mixer body. E&OE

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TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

Opening doors for 27 years

AXIFLEX has been a specialist supplier of a comprehensive range of door and dock loading solutions to the Southern African industry for 27 years. Alongside the well-known in-house brands, the company also boasts sole distribution rights to leading international brands, Crawford, Albany and Megadoor under the Assa Abloy Entrance Systems banner. Established in 1990 as Janssen Products cc. by Frans Janssen, the company manufactured, supplied and installed Maxiflex PVC strip curtains, protection screens and impact doors from humble premises in Meadowbrook on Johannesburg’s East Rand. Maxiflex soon become a popular brand and the company started trading as Maxiflex Door Systems. The acquisition of sole distributorships and consequent product expansions led to steady growth and the company relocated to larger self-built premises in Spartan, Johannesburg, in 1996. It was not long before more space was needed to accommodate the ever-expanding operation and growing staff complement and, choosing to remain in the industrial hub of Spartan, Maxiflex moved to their current facility which houses a 2000 m² warehouse and office space, as well as a fully equipped showroom. The company employs a total of 75 staff members and the Johannesburg head office is supported by branches in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London and Durban. Keeping it in the family, Bram Janssen took over the reins from his father as Managing Director in 2010.

“We are proud of the fact that we supply more than products, we supply complete solutions,” said Bram. “With customer satisfaction our top priority, we understand their requirements. We are fully aware that our products are utilised in critical areas and understand just how critical it is that our door solutions are cost effective, solid, tough, resilient and reliable in order to deliver low operating expenses and extended operational life irrespective of how stringent the conditions.” Available in a variety of colours and formats including rolls, strips and flat or rounded-edge strips, the PVC range is ideally suited for sealing doorways and creating partitions in industrial and commercial buildings. Bram said Maxiflex leads the market in door solutions for dispatch and receiving loading bays, warehouses, distribution centres, factory entrances and partitioning, shopping centres, with the Crawford range of industrial sectional overhead doors and loading dock equipment. The high performance of Albany high-speed doors ensures smooth material flow, keeps a constant room temperature and reduces energy costs. The Megadoor range, specifically manufactured for very large entrances typically found in mining workshops, aircraft hangars and shipyards, are designed and engineered to operate reliably in rough tough environments. All imported doors meet all operational and safety requirements in the European Directives and the standards issued by the European Standardization Committee, CEN. Enquiry no: 22

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

Truck maker explores new horizons

EW Horizons Metal CC, is a tight-knit operation focussed on cost-efficiency and on-time delivery of its products to the medical community. The medium-sized enterprise based in Briardene, KwaZuluNatal (KZN) specialises in manufacturing hospital furniture, such as medical trollies, carts, gurneys or other wheeled stretchers, almost all types of metal medical equipment required for a clinically sterile environment. “We work mainly with stainless steel or aluminium, and easy-toclean padded top equipment, such as examination tables for clinics and doctors’ rooms. Our items are highly specified in respect of dimensions, materials used and quality standards. We have over 400 line items which we manufacture ourselves with our staff of 30 people,” said Sagren Naidoo, a partner in the family-owned business. "As a wholesaler to clinics and hospitals and retailer to doctors and specialists we also have to manage the logistics from our production plant to the end-user or consignee. “Of course, one of our cost challenges is the input price of buying materials such as stainless steel. So

it remains imperative for us to control our costs throughout our whole supply chain, from material procurement, manufacturing, packing and distribution,” said Naidoo.

New Horizons Metals do most their own distribution, only contracting out to third-party courier or break-bulk services were delivery logistics and costs are warranted or at preferred cost ratios. “We are running the FAW 15.180FL for our delivery to points which are in far-flung, rural areas and which are either out of reach of normal courier services or where costs indicate a saving in using our own vehicles.

“One advantage of using the FAW 15.180FL is certainly the driver comfort with our choice of the semi-sleeper cab, well-sprung air-suspended seat, adjustable steering column and air-conditioning system – all together resulting in good driving comfort. A comfortable driver is a better driver. We’re seeing cost-effective driving with low fuel consumption, low wear and tear and good vehicle condition all round, with the FAW.” Further adding to driver safety, the FAW 15.180FL is equipped standard with ABS with automatic slack adjusting brakes. According to FAW Vehicle Manufacturers SA, the 15.180FL is aggregated to a gross combination mass of 24 tonne. With a GVM of 15 tonne the vehicle provides a healthy 8 tonne payload depending on the body configuration. “What is naturally important is the back-up and aftersales support we enjoy from the team at FAW’s regional centre in KZN, providing us with excellent standards of service and original parts supply guaranteed.” New Horizons Metals are using the FAW15.180FL with a modified fuel tank, enlarged to cover a longer delivEnquiry no: 23 ery range.

French logistics company’s SA growth beats expectations

HEN it first established its network in South Africa five years ago, ID Logistics South Africa - part of the global French contract logistics company - did not foresee how quickly it would gain traction in the country. After establishing and managing a network for Danone throughout the country, the company expanded its offering to the perishables and selective ambient environments in the last years. According to Managing Director Etienne Guillard, ID’s successful SA expansion hinged on several key strategies. These included establishing a strong management team, as well as ensuring that their facilities met world class quality standards with the recognised certifications required to operate in this space. “We completed our management team and have also added contract management to ensure customer integration. Our executive committee is

now fully established. We managed to develop several action plans for the forthcoming year. To date we have managed 75 cost saving projects concurrently over the past 24 months for our customers,” said Guillard. On acquiring new business, Friedel Spies, the business development director said, “It has taken a lot of hard work coupled with understanding the needs of our potential and existing clients, and providing them with solutions that drive efficiencies and reduce costs against a backdrop of tough economic challenges, competitive nature of the market, coupled with volume pressure.” In less than 48 months the business has signed 13 new customers within the current network. Some of the clients acquired since 2016 include Okin, Mayo, Henties, Nestle, Woodys Brands and Sir Juice. The latter two are the most recent contracts and operate in the meat processing and beverages markets respectively.

Over and above signing new clients, ID Logistics also managed to have three of its sites – Boksburg, Durban and Port Elizabeth – fully certified. The certification allows the company to ensure the correct management of activities, share good management practices of the business, ensure the continuity of activities, as well as enrolling in a continuous improvement process. The South African subsidiary now boasts a fully operational national footprint, including regional distribution centres and an extensive secondary distribution network, together with managing the factory warehouse in Boksburg. “We have a local project team and specialists with skills to manage and develop fresh distribution, and coupled with our global expertise, we are able to offer end-to-end logistics services for warehousing, primary transportation and secondary distribution,” Enquiry no: 24 said Spies.

Optical distance sensors – where wires won’t cut it

IKO, represented locally by S Instrotech, is offering its range of optical distance sensors; the LT5000;

LA60 and LA170, whose technical specifications, like linearity and resolution, are comparable with those of wire-actuated transducers. This is why Siko has decided to integrate these new sensors into their existing LinearLine product range. As technology and handling of the optical distance sensors are different from the wire-actuated transducers, Siko says it forsees the possibilities of using the new sensors for applications where the wire-actuated transducer can only be used with difficulty or possibly not at all. Although the measuring principle is

optical and the casing made of plastic, the standard values regarding environmental conditions are more than acceptable with a IP67 protection class and an operating temperature of -20°C to +60°C. Applications include: • Measuring distances for which Siko’s SG5 with 600mm wire is too large; • Position measuring – eg. for storage/warehouse applications - where wire-actuated transducers cannot be used due to mechanical wear resulting from continuous operation, and • For applications where wire-actuated transducers, so far, are only used as a compromise solution, as

wire is too difficult to guide. Siko’s LT5000, for large distances, is a laser-based measuring system with transit time technique. This means that a position value can be captured on almost any reflective surface, up to a maximum distance of up to 5000mm. Siko’s LT5000 is compact in size for measuring distances of up to 5.000 mm, easy to commission and handle and can claim IP67 / IP69K protection class. The LT5000 works in a standard temperature range of between -40°C and +60°C and has a output of 4..20 mA or 0 – 10 VDC. Accessories and various Enquiry no: 25 options are available.

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

Cranes for new paper-roll shipping store

erex MHPS is supplying two new Demag cranes to Mpact South Africa for a new paper-roll shipping store at its Felixton paper mill in KwaZulu-Natal. This represents the first-ever order for Demag technology for a paper-roll

store in Africa. Mpact South Africa has made the investment to ensure that paper rolls are stored carefully and retrieved in time. This forms part of a general upgrade to produce lighter-weight packaging papers and meet changing

customer demands, while improving energy efficiency. The production capacity of its corrugated base papers will increase to 215 000 tonnes a year. “The automated shipping store with the two cranes accommodates the entire output of the paper mill. Investment in the state-of-the-art paper machine technology will boost the quality of our finished goods stocks, as well as efficiency and competitiveness,” Mpact Felixton paper mill manager Brian Smith said. Installation of the cranes is due to commence in August 2017. “We are delighted with the confidence placed in us by Mpact. The scope of this project involves our automated Demag process cranes. This is the first-ever order for cranes for a paperroll store in Africa,” said Lutz Dowy, Vice President Sales & Service for the EMEAR region at Terex MHPS. The capacity of the new store is 14 200 tonnes, at a fill capacity of 80%. The paper-roll store receives and despatches product on a 24/7 basis.

Pink packaging slashes package loss

SOUTH Africa-based selflubricated polymer bearings and bushings manufacturer, Vesconite Bearings, is tickled pink that lost packages are becoming a thing of the past. This is following the introduction three years ago of shocking pink packaging colours for all its outbound shipments. Chairperson Dr Jean-Patrick Leger had found that parcels were frequently lost after hand-over from the courier company to the airlines. “It was unbelievable: sometimes shipments weighing tons would just disappear, only to be found months later in an airport warehouse thousands of miles away from the original routing,” he said. Parcels in nondescript brown packaging were typically found later, but after considerable frustration felt by irate customers as well as Vesconite Bearings staff, Leger added. With the introduction of bright pink packaging, with diagonally-worded text with website and telephone details, as well as a bullet-point invitation to contact the company for fitting and machining instructions and technical information, lost packaging

has become a rare occurrence. Leger notes that he was advised to choose packaging that stood out from the crowd, and considered pink, since this was a favourite colour of his late mother. Several people tried to dissuade him of this colour choice, largely

because it is strongly associated with women, who have traditionally not been a large market for the company. However, the deeper pink hues of the Vesconite Bearings packaging seem to have resonated well with its clientele, perhaps because analysts now suggest that fuchsias and magentas, as well as other deeper pinks, are considered vibrant and youthful, and are also associated with a sense of confidence. Other brands have followed suit, most notably T-Mobile, which has also chosen a similar colour for its brand to help it stand out among other mobile communication providers while adding life and energy. Vesconite Bearings ships rods, tubes, plates as well as finished items globally, and its packaging comes in various sizes, with a liner, corrugated medium, another liner, another corrugated medium and then a final liner of pink. “It feels as if my late mother is watching over each package and ensuring that it does not get lost,” Enquiry no: 27 said Leger.

Tough traffic door resists impacts - beautifully

TANDING up to high-impact traffic, while providing effective insulation and remaining attractive, is the reason for the popularity of the heavy-duty Apex SR 9000 traffic door, the company says.

Designed and manufactured locally byApex Strip Curtains & Doors, theApex SR 9000 doors are also highly stable, something the company credits to its patented honeycomb framework and flexible urethane foam insulation. In addition, the high-density urethane core ensures good sound-proofing qualities, and renders it lightweight in relation to its strength. To absorb impacts from carts, forklifts, golf carts, pallet jacks, trolleys or man-riding vehicles, the door is fitted with high bumpers. This also reduces stress on hardware and mount assemblies. Bull-nosed perimeter edges on the door panels have at least an 8mm radius, which helps prevent excessive wear on the edges. Much of the door’s visual appeal comes from its rugged 3mm ABS

outer facing, which is available in a range of colours. Despite its good looks the surface resists attack from various substances including acid, petroleum products, salt solutions and animal fats. “It will simply not chip dent, peel, pit or corrode,” says the company, adding that it can retain its physical properties in temperatures as low as minus 40degC. Apex Strip Curtains & Doors manufactures all its products in accordance with international standards, using materials that comply with stringent hygiene and safety criteria. This includes ensuring that the urethane core in the door’s hollow shell does not contain carbon-fibre reinforced carbon (CFRC), a substance that is difficult to recycle. Enquiry no: 28

The two identical Demag cranes supplied are equipped with vacuum lifting devices to provide for fast, gentle storage and retrieval of the unwrapped paper rolls. Material can be stacked up to a maximum height of 15.1 m. The cranes are designed to transport up to 63 rolls an hour. Up to 650 tonnes of paper has to be loaded in the new paperroll store every day. The paper rolls, configured to meet individual customer specifications, measure 500 mm to 2 500 mm in width,

and weigh 370 kg to 3 300 kg. The paper-roll store covers a total area of over 2 700 m2. During periods of no loading, paper rolls are aggregated according to scheduled deliveries and staged for retrieval. Thanks to the accuracy of the cranes and the ‘smart’ Warehouse Management System (WMS), the available storage space is utilised optimally. Enquiry no: 26

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

Africa’s largest, tallest scissor lift

OSCOR Access Rental has launching the continent’s largest scissor lift, boasting the highest working height and biggest deck of any comparable machine. The HL-275 D27 from Holland Lift of The Netherlands was officially unveiled at Goscor Access Rental’s Montague Gardens facility in Cape Town recently, where IDS will be one of the first customers in South Africa to deploy the new machine. IDS provides a one-stop solution for affordable commercial and cold storage design, manufacture, and installation. The mega scissor lift has a 6.15m by 2.50m deck measuring 8.25 by 2.50m when extended fully. Until now, the biggest machine available in South Africa had a 5.55m by 2.50m deck measuring 7.55 by 2.50m when extended fully. In addition, the Holland Lift machine features a wheel base that is 60cm longer. It is also capable of lifting a ton up to its full working height of 27.5m, said Goscor Access Rental General Manager Nici Verster. He said that the Holland Lift unit first crossed

their radar in 2013 when they visited Bauma, Germany, the premier construction equipment exhibition in the world. The access rental company immediately put plans in motion to introduce this Rolls Royce of scissor lifts locally. “The South African market will definitely benefit from the application of this machine, especially when you consider major projects underway at the moment such as the Kusile and Medupi power stations for Eskom,” Verster said. Applications range from cladding and plastering to general electrical and construction work. In addition, Goscor is introducing the new machine to cater for the latest trend in the warehousing and distribution sector for larger facilities requiring ever-bigger access equipment in order to maximise productivity and efficiency. “All the technology we source is not only the best in the world from a features, quality, and durability point of view, but is also aimed at ensuring our customers benefit from the low-

est total cost of ownership at the end of the Enquiry no: 29 day,” Verster said.

Mini straddle carriers make for a safer, less congested workspace

obicon mini straddle carriers from BLT SA, which are designed for lifting containers onto and off trucks and for moving loads around sites, significantly reducing onsite congestion, making the yard a safer workplace. That’s according to Charity Gumede, marketing director at the materials handling equipment specialist. “The Mobicon TF2 and 2T series increase operational efficiency and reduce demurrage costs for trucks waiting to be loaded and unloaded,” said Gumede.”These mobile container handlers efficiently move loads around sites, through warehouse doors, effectively taking the container to the stack or the receiving point.” She said one of the biggest problems associated with using conventional equipment to load and unload containers is damage caused to yards and pavements that are not suitable for carrying heavy weights. “Mobicon container handlers have a fouraxle, single-tyre design, with eight separate load centres, which enables them to utilise all parts of the yard and to operate on pavements

and in restrictive areas where a forklift or heavy equipment cannot go. With the Mobicon system, there is no damage to yards and therefore no need for costly repairs.” “These mobile container handlers have excellent manoeuvrability and can turn in tight spaces and are also able to travel inside warehouses, under awnings and up to docks. This flexible system requires very little maintenance, unlike conventional container handling equipment, where ongoing maintenance is expensive.” Other advantages of this mini straddle carrier system include easy handling of ramps

and speed bumps, faster container handling times in all weather conditions and minimal damage to contents normally caused by long lift truck runs. “The investment in a Mobicon system also reduces capital investment costs. Conventional forklifts, reachstackers, sideloaders or self loading trailers are more costly to operate.” These robust mini straddle carriers incorporate two independent towers and utilise the container as the structural component linking the two towers. This two-tower design provides the flexibility for the machine to be able to operate on sloping or uneven surfaces. The container is lifted from the bottom, which allows the operator to easily handle flat beds, tank containers, half heights, over heights and curtain sided containers. The lightweight Mobicon system has a 33-ton lift capacity and is able to carry any type or size ISO specified container, without the need for modifications or additional lifting equipment. The low centre of gravity of this system enhances stability, preventing it from rolling over like conventional forklifts. Enquiry no: 30

KZN company finds the cure for hard-wearing warehouse floors

HEN a KwaZulu-Natal company required W robust, dust-proof surfaces in a newly constructed building, Sika’s Mervyn Naidoo

specified Sikafloor-CureHard-24 for the project. The project site was Magnavolt, a supplier of furniture hardware and accessories, where newly laid concrete floors in its custom-built storage facility would be constantly subjected to heavy-duty hysters. For added protection and dust-proofing, ready-to-use and easy-to-apply, SikafloorCureHard-24 was applied to the flooring area. This transparent liquid is non-yellowing, solvent-free, and odourless, Naidoo said

Ernest Gibbon 083 632 4501 www.eiegroup.co.za

As a one-part, high solids, sodium silicatebased liquid, Sikafloor-CureHard-24 provides good penetration of concrete. It cures, hardens and seals fresh or hardened concrete providing an easy to clean, dust-proof surface with greatly improved chemical and abrasion resistance compared to untreated concrete. Sikafloor-CureHard-24 is suitable for physical resistance as well as protection against ingress and is the ideal product for interior or exterior applications in warehouses, industrial plants, shopping malls, service stations, parking structures and hangars. “A restricted time schedule resulted in the applications of Sikafloor-CureHard-24 occur-

ring simultaneously with other contractors on site. The ease of application and quick curing of Sika’s reliable product greatly facilitated this challenging situation and the project was completed in one day,” Naidoo said. Enquiry no: 31

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

TRANSPORT, DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSING

The robots are coming to a warehouse near you

ITH supply-chain management and logistics increasingly under the spotlight in Africa due to remote locations and time-consuming transportation, warehouses are turning increasingly to industrial mobile robot solutions to improve their efficiency and turnaround times. This has resulted in Omron introducing its first industrial mobile robot product line, the LD platform. “The fact that this latest technology is now available to the broader African market bears testament as to how highly we regard the opportunities presented by the continent to accelerate its uptake of innovation,” said Omron Field Application Engineer Evert Janse van Vuuren. He said the company’s mobile robots offered a new level of efficien-

cy and cost-savings when it comes to moving goods around large facilities. “This unique family of mobile robots is developed for rapid and reliable materials transport on a 24/7 basis.” Ideal for conveying goods throughout warehouses, distribution centres, and manufacturing facilities,

the LD mobile robot platform has a payload capacity of up to 130 kg, depending on the model. Compared to traditional Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs), Omron mobile robots can self-navigate entirely based on the natural features of the facility. No costly and time-consuming infrastructure modifications are necessary, which means no need for floor magnets, tapes or laser beacons, all typically associated with classic AGV deployment. “The simpler the technology is to get up-and-running, the sooner the end user can start to reap the benefits. This is of particular importance in Africa, where skill levels in terms of automation and robotics are scarce,” Janse van Vuuren said. Flexible factory layouts are now

also possible, taking into account tied and restocked. space and size constraints in indusOn-board intelligence allows them trial areas. “This is now possible as to not only avoid obstacles, but also delivery points can be modified for to choose the best path in order to the mobile robots. Omron mobile complete a task. This ‘smart’ moverobots also complement tradition- ment also makes them safe to operal automation, such as conveyors, ate alongside people. and provide traceable movement of A typical fleet can comprise up goods.” to 100 vehicles, which can now be This means that the company’s lat- managed centrally by fleet-managest technology can integrate seam- er software, who can interact with lessly with the older systems that are the factory or warehouse manquite prevalent in Africa, where tech- agement software such as MES nological development lags mature (Manufacturing Execution Systems) markets like Europe and the US by a or WMS (Warehouse Management significant margin. Systems). Equipped with patented Acuity In addition, the LD Cart Transporter technology, Omron’s mobile robots is an automated materials-handling have a robust self-navigation sys- solution. It includes an automatic tem, even where there’s constant engagement device, and is able to movement of people, pallets, carts adjust its approach path. Enquiry no: 32 and forklifts, andIndustrial shelves&being empTerex KZN Business News TER002 April 2017.qxp_Terex KZN Industrial &

Enthusiastic response to learnership programme

HERE was an enthusiastic T response from delegates attending the first Hino Learnership programme

organised by the truck maker in South Africa. The year-long programme has been compiled to provide comprehensive training for sales staff at the dealerships and started in February. Generally, the delegates are new to selling Hino trucks, although they may have prior experience as truck sales staff. There are 12 delegates on the first course, including one from Namibia. They undergo a week’s intensive theoretical and practical training each

month and will then be required to complete a tutorial on the subjects covered. The rest of each month will be spent working at their dealership. “The major focus is on sales and marketing knowledge and skills, although the course also includes visits to the Hino manufacturing facility in Prospecton, technical workshops, body builders and bus builders, so that they can understand the full scope of the environment in which they are working,” said Ernie Trautmann, Vice President of Hino South Africa. “Practical driver training is another aspect of the learnership course. I am a big supporter of driver training, not

only for the road safety benefits, but also for the fact that it contributes to the durability of the vehicle and the insistence by trained drivers on having a roadworthy truck to drive. “The learnership course is registered with merSETA and the delegates will receive a certificate when they graduate at the end of the year. They will then be able to continue their studies with a diploma course at Unisa,” added Trautmann. The course was developed in conjunction with a specialist training consultancy. The lecturer, Philip Brandt, comes from a background of vehicle Enquiry no: 33 fleet management.

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

automation & robotics

Sensors help forge fourth industrial age T HE industrial world is heading into its ‘fourth revolution’ with the paradigm shifting towards machine-to-machine (M2M) communication – and sensing technology is increasingly key to facilitating automated, lower cost production. The traditional ‘automation pyramid’, say experts, is breaking down. Data is no longer just passing from the field level up through other levels to the control level, to be gradually aggregated. Instead, data is available on all levels and can pass directly to a public or private ‘cloud’, so participants within a network can now exchange data with each other using internet technologies. Gerry Bryant, managing director of Countapulse Controls, said that this networking will not be simply between machines in a plant or factory, but will also be between these machines and all sorts of sensing and monitoring devices and systems. The company is a

leading supplier of sensing solutions. “The impetus behind this trend comes mainly from the increased automation of processing steps in industrial facilities, which is allowing production to become more and more complex. As manufacturing enterprises become increasingly automated, they need tighter control over processes and equipment to ensure high quality, low cost output and minimum waste,” Bryant said. In mankind’s first industrial revolution, mechanisation was the prime mover – applying steam engines to functions previously conducted in small workshops, and leading to

the evolution of largescale factories. The movement to mass production techniques and machinery in the early 20th century ushered in the second industrial revolution – an era marked by the commitment to productivity. Bryant said that increased use of micro-electronics and computers coupled with CNC control systems marked the advent of automation in industry – our third revolution – and this automation allowed high quality due to the finer tolerances achievable in the production process. “Our fourth industrial revolution is now driven

by the incorporation of digital technology in all equipment and machinery as well as in ancillary devices in all production environments.” A pioneer on this road into the future is global sensor company Leuze, represented in South Africa by Countapulse Controls, which was recently instrumental in the design of the world’s first commercially attractive interface: the IO-link. This interface allows simple sensors to exchange process and configuration data with the control system, and is another step towards achieving the full benefits of the fourth revolution – when process, configuration and diagnostic data is available not just in the control system but all the way up to the cloud. According to Bryant, sensors are likely to be vital in improving productivity in all manufacturing sectors and will grow as a key component in all smart manufacturing facilities. Enquiry no: 34

Control system enhances automation performance and flexibility

RIVE and control specialists Bosch Rexroth – the joint venture partners of the Hytec Group of Companies in subSaharan Africa – have introduced new IPCbased control hardware that enhances the already impressive overall performance of the IndraMotion MLC control system. According to the company, it connects motion, robotics and logic control with individual high-level language programming, opening up new possibilities for engineering Industry 4.0-capable solutions. “The new embedded control hardware IndraControl XM2 offers higher processor performance than previously possible and also offers modular expansion options for more flexibility in automation. OEMs combine the

control with IndraControl S20 I/O modules in the same form factor,” a statement from the company said. Local integration of peripherals ensures high-performance, synchronous I/O real time data processing. The combination of hydraulic and electrical tasks is possible on all device platforms of IndraMotion MLC. “Bosch Rexroth has integrated best-in-class controllers for hydraulic drive tasks and thus standardises the commissioning and operation of electrical and hydraulic axes.” With the new IndraControl L75 based on state-of-the-art processor technology, Bosch Rexroth provides a variant for applications with high performance requirements. The additional IPC control platform IndraControl VPB40.3

expands the system. The same device offers a Windows 7 operating system parallel to controlling up to 99 axes in hard real time. OEMs can thus use the same hardware to install powerful software tools for visualisation, real-time data processing, analysis, or reporting. Open standards for software and communication are a requirement for networked production environments. Bosch Rexroth controls support the Ethernet-based M2M communication based on OPC UA and Sercos as well as all other common real-time Ethernet protocols. With an expansion of the OPC UA information model, IndraMotion MLC improved the exchange of data between automation components of various manufacturers and offers transparent access to all higher system functions. OEMs can use the Open Core Interface to directly access control functions in a multitude of high-level IT languages and implement individual functions independently. This direct function access to all control elements allows the integration of smart devices, IT automation applications, and the virtual commissioning of control units without real machines. “OEMs can thus program, commission, and

optimise their machine controls parallel and even prior to assembly of the real machine. This significantly reduces the development times for new concepts,” the company said. In addition to the previous broad range of IT operating systems, development environments, and programming languages, the newest version also includes the easy programming of sequential command chains with the lean and compact script language Lua. The engineering environment IndraWorks covers all phases of PLC-based engineering. Prepared technology-oriented solutions, function tool kits, accelerate engineering. All Bosch Rexroth electric drives, controls and control systems are distributed and supported by Tectra Automation, a Hytec Group company. Enquiry no: 35

Automation fair unveils connected industries conference

74174_Hytec_Tectra_Automation_135x200mm.indd 1

A Joint Venture with Bosch Rexroth

BLISHE TA D

EADING automation and industrial control event, Africa Automation Fair, will this year host a high-level conference on Connected Industries in line with growing international focus on the ‘The Fourth Industrial Revolution’ and the advanced, connected industries of the future. The event, to be staged at Johannesburg’s Ticketpro Dome from 6 to 8 June, aims to update local automation and process stakeholders on key trends in global manufacturing and process management. Built on a long history of automation and manufacturing exhibitions, Africa Automation Fair was rebranded and relaunched in 2015. Delegates to the popular exhibition indicated a need for more information-sharing, which informed the launch of the Connected Industries Conference this year, says conference Director Hanli Goncalves. “There is significant interest across Africa in the so-called Industrie 4.0 and Fourth Industrial Revolution, in which smart production methods make processes more efficient and cost-effective,” said Goncalves. “This is a key topic across the US and Europe at the moment, and we are bringing leading European experts to South Africa to update South African public and private sector players, large manufacturing and processing plants, and the petrochemical, automotive and mining sectors on the latest trends and best practice internationally.” The Connected Industries conference, specifically for the automation and control industries, is a first in South Africa, and conference organisers Reed Exhibitions envisage taking

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2017/04/18 8:54 AM

the event on the road to East and West Africa in future. Africa Automation Fair and the Connected Industries conference have been endorsed by, and secured the participation of, a significant number of local and international industry bodies, as well as the South African Departments of Trade and Industry and Science and Technology. Representatives of the Department of Science and Technology, the European Union Embassy and Chamber of Commerce; the German Embassy and Chamber of Commerce and Industry; the Black Management Forum; the Universities of Pretoria and Johannesburg; industry bodies SAIMC and the IIG and leading enterprises will participate in the three-day event. Traditionally attracting around 4500 visitors, Africa Automation Fair has grown in stature and is expected to draw even larger numbers of local, African and international visitors this year. The exhibition area will showcase leading production and automation technologies and services, with three theatre areas for vendor launches and new product demonstrations. Visitors will also benefit from networking opportunities and new value-added initiatives such as match-making and the Hosted Buyer Programme. Alongside Africa Automation Fair and the Connected Industries conference, Reed Exhibitions will also present the Pollution and Waste Technology Africa showcase, which will feature its own workshop area. Enquiry no: 36

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

petrochemicals Local service station boosts black women in the fuel industry

ngen Hippo Park, offering customers a diverse range of convenience, including: a 24/7 QuickShop, car wash, ATM facilities and lotto tickets, was officially launched on 31 March 2017. Situated along Queen Nandi Drive in Durban, Engen Hippo Park is owned by Ntandokazi Kheswa (pictured). It is the 68th 100% black

women owned Engen service station in South Africa, as the company pushes ahead with what it describes as “achieving meaningful transformation” of its retail network. Approximately 46% of Engen’s 1000 strong service station network in South Africa is currently black (African, Coloured, Asian) owned. Kheswa says she was first offered

the opportunity in 2011 and it had taken six years to finally come to fruition. “As a black women owner, I am delighted to have this opportunity and have dreamt about owing my own business for a long time. I have had extensive experience working in other industries and believe that I have the potential to add a lot of value,” she said. According to the company, Engen Hippo Park is also strategically positioned to help alleviate problematic traffic issues resulting in unsafe and dangerous driving. It provides easy access for motorists who want to continue along Queen Nandi drive after filling up, or who want to travel further along the N2. Seelan Naidoo, Engen’s General Manager: Retail said the decision to build a new service station along Queen Nandi Drive was driven by the need to provide motorists with an accessible and safe thoroughfare off the busy N2. Enquiry no: 37

Enhanced safety instrumented system

makes for easier FGS adoption

okogawa Electric Corporation released an enhanced version of its ProSafe-RS safety instrumented system on April 26. This latest release, R4.03.00, includes an improved engineering function for configuring fire and gas systems (FGS) and new operation faceplates for the FGS operation and monitoring screens. These enhancements make it easier to adopt and use ProSafe-RS in FGS applications. In the oil, natural gas, petrochemical, chemical, and other energy and basic materials industries, various safety measures must be taken to prevent accidents and protect the environment. This includes the use of a safety instrumented system, which can secure plant safety by functioning as an emergency shutdown system (ESD) that detects abnormal conditions and safely initiates emergency shutdowns, and by functioning as an FGS. Yokogawa’s ProSafe-RS safety instrumented system can be integrated with the CENTUM VP integrated production control system and is widely used mainly in ESD applications all over the world. Based on an April 2017 Yokogawa survey, ProSafe-RS is one of the top selling safety instrumented systems on the market today. Since releasing this system in 2005, Yokogawa has continued to strength-

en its functions to satisfy a variety of customer needs. In response to the rising need for FGS solutions, this latest release includes features that make it easier to adopt and use this system in such applications. And by adding a new input/output (I/O) module and enabling the use of an alternate control network topology, we are giving our customers a greater range of choices in their ESD and FGS applications. Cybersecurity has also been strengthened. Software components (function blocks) that define the operations and functions to be performed when smoke, heat, and/or gas is detected, an essential aspect of any FGS application, have been added to the ProSafe-RS engineering functions. Standard FGS faceplates have been added for the integrated display of smoke, heat, and gas detector information such as gas concentration

level and device status. In addition, the I/O module has a new function that can reset the detector that sends smoke and heat detection signals to the ProSafe-RS system. This eliminates the need for a reset circuit to restore communications after an abnormality is detected, thus reducing both the size of the hardware and its initial cost. With these enhancements, the ProSafeRS is easier to adopt and use in FGS applications. Yokogawa provides an N-IO (Network-IO) I/O device with channels that can be configured by software to handle either analog or digital signals. As most safety instrumented systems rely mainly on digital I/O signals, the company has added a new I/O module to its lineup that is used for only the input or output of digital signals. This new module reduces the total cost of ownership for users. For the Vnet/IP*1 real-time control bus, ProSafe-RS has relied on the star network topology, in which all devices are connected to a central hub. The new ProSafe-RS is also compatible with the ring topology, in which devices are connected to each other in the shape of a ring. This feature affords our customers greater flexibility when configuring their systems. Enquiry no: 38

SIL 3 certification for valve maker

Z-Armaturen South Africa has obtained a SIL (Safety Integrity Level) 3 certification on their 2-way, 3-way, and control valves from Exida. The certification assesses and certifies that the organisations products have been developed and manufac-

tured in accordance with the IEC 61508 standard. SIL is a unit of measurement for quantifying risk reduction. The SIL principle is used to reduce risk posed by technical equipment and is defined within a range from 1 (lowest) to 4 (highest).

“Looking for a solution to replace your old m problematic foam Bladder Tank”

The SIL 3 capable rating which has been achieved by AZ-Armaturen South Africa is designed to provide their customers with reliable actuation solutions in critical applications without compromising their Safety Instrumented Systems (SIS). Enquiry no: 39

special risk fire protection ection

+27 (0) 861 111 544 www.dosetech.co.za

Service that delivers the

Difference

Air Products South Africa (Pty) Limited manufactures, supplies and distributes a diverse portfolio of atmospheric gases, specialty gases, performance materials, equipment and services to the Southern African region. Air Products touches the lives of consumers in positive ways every day, and serves customers across a wide range of industries from food and beverage, mining and petrochemicals, primary metal and steel manufacturers, chemical applications, welding and cutting applications to laboratory applications. Founded in 1969, Air Products South Africa has built a reputation for its innovative culture, operational excellence and commitment to safety, quality and the environment. In addition the company aims to continue its growth and market leadership position in the Southern African region.

www.airproducts.co.za

April / May 2017

PETROCHEMICALS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Safeguard against costly condensation I n today’s manufacturing environment, compressed air is an essential power source and therefore its quality requirements are vital. Even when meeting operational requirements, air moving through pipelines can lay down more moisture through condensation than what is acceptable, causing costly damages to production machinery. Brian Abbott, Product Manager at SMC Pneumatics (pictured) said that a simple solution which is often overlooked to avoid damage and downtime is a quality refrigerated air dryer. “Water carried with compressed air to the production systems can cause significant damage to the valves, cylinders, fittings and more. Components tend to rust and lubrication is rinsed out for a significantly shorter life span and slower production,” Abbott said. It is in fact, impossible to produce com-

pressed air without depositing water into the system and as such, loss of income, replacement of parts, low levels of productivity and damage to the production system will prove more destructive than condensation itself to any business. “Cost cutting around air preparation is never advised. Like with most things, what you put in is what you get out and the solution is very simple. Dry air can easily be obtained by means of refrigerated air dryers as a cost-effective means in the long-run. “Compressed air is led through the refrigerated air dryer, cooling it drastically to reduce the water content to between 10 and 3°C pressure dew point. Dryers can be located on the most critical work stations in the production process delivering air to the required ISO Class or can placed after the compressor for

general usage,” said Abbott. SMC’s refrigerated air dryers chill the air to 3°C reducing the water content in the compressed air to around 6 grams per cubic centimetre. The surplus water is drained directly from the refrigerated air dryer, and dumped via an auto drain. Refrigerated air dryers are a cost-effective means of providing air with pressure dew points of 3 to 10°C, thus meeting the requirements of ISO 85731 moisture classes 4 to 6. “All energy efficient SMC refrigerated air dryers feature compact and quiet construction, stainless steel heat exchangers, Montreal Protocolcompliant refrigerants and low pressure drops,” said Abbott.

“Models are available to meet various regional requirements in standard inlet temperature designs as well as high inlet temperature models.” He said the IDU, IDF and IDH series from SMC are designed to each meet the unique requirements of factories using compressed air, offering various capacities to meet the demands of the modern customer. These energy efficient solutions offer stable, compressed air temperature control while being able to withstand corrosion, regardless of external conditions. Enquiry no: 40

Smooth speed regulation with high precision

HE new Hengstler Acuro AX73 is an optical encoder that offers smooth speed regulation with high levels of precision. Its compact dimensions make it suitable for installation in areas where there are space constraints. Available from the official Hengstler distributor for southern Africa, Countapulse Controls, this absolute rotary encoder is ideal for ATEX-rated applications. The Acuro AX73 encoder carries ATEX and IEC Ex certification for gas and dust explosion proof requirements. This advanced optical encoder offers benefits for many applications including on winches, cranes, drill and other oil and gas industry equipment, as well as in paint plants, petrochemical facilities, bottling plants and grain mills. The connection configuration on the encoder allows the routing of cabling with the encoder installation in separate steps. This provides significant cost and time savings during installation, as cabling can be completed in advance. This type of installation also allows the quick replacement of a spare encoder during maintenance and servicing activities.

Another feature that facilitates ease of maintenance is the use of just two screws for the connection hood. According to the company, many comparable encoders use six or even eight screws, while insufficient corrosion protection makes such units difficult to uninstall. Special patented screws are used to protect the unit against dust, water and corrosion. The optical scanning system provides a highly accurate 22-bit resolution sensor signal for wherever precision or smooth speed regulation is necessary. “Despite this high level of accuracy, the encoder itself is robustly designed with excellent resistance to shock, vibration and external magnetic fields. The stainless steel housing is rated to IP 67 protection and can operate in Ex-related ambient temperatures from minus 40 to plus 70 degrees C,” s statement from the company said. With a housing diameter of only 76 mm, the encoder is ideal for use where space is limited. The encoder can be ordered with SSI, BiSS-B, BiSS-C and Profibus interfaces.

Enquiry no: 41

New sensor technology brings improved efficiency in gas detection

OLATILE Organic Compounds (VOC) can pose serious health hazards if inhaled by those working in harsh environments. MSA Africa’s Altair 5X has been improved to include XCell Sensor technology, which plays an important role in ascertaining safety, and significantly reducing the risk of exposure. MSA Africa respiratory and fire helmets product manager Suraksha Mohun said that the Altair 5X has a fast sensor response, which is 15 seconds faster than a standard sensor. “The Altair 5X multigas detector now includes XCell Sensor technology, which enables fast-

er response and span calibration times. This multigas detector is capable of detecting emissions of six different gases at a time; CO, H2S, O2, SO2, CI2, NH3 and more.” It boasts MotionAlert and InstantAlert, which are additional safety alarms. Mohun said the Altair 5X is agency-approved and holds an IP 65 rating certification. “The sensor will last for at least four years and can survive multiple incidental drops of up to 3m onto concrete. Our customers will also continue to benefit from the fast sensor response of MSA XCell combustible, toxic and oxygen sensors currently used in the Altair 5X.” A Photo Ionisation Detector (PID) can be added to the compact instrument, which can be worn all day unlike most PIDs. It includes Bluetooth wireless technology that can be used with Android devices and the MSA app to wirelessly manage instrument data and setup. “It has proved to deliver advanced safety and cost savings for thousands of satisfied customers worldwide,” Mohun said. VOC detection can now be fully integrated into customer instrument fleets using the GALAXY GX2 Test Stand and MSA Link Pro Fleet Management software infrastructure, enabling data access and control of the Altair Gas Detector. It has an 18 language capability and comes complete with sensors and a rechargeable battery with 13h autonomy. There is a twoyear warranty on NH3 and Cl2 XCell sensors. Enquiry no: 42

2017-04-Instrotech_KellerAtex AvertRev2-0KZN 20 April 2017 08:11:04 AM

April / May 2017

PETROCHEMICALS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Corrosion-protection systems for refinery industry

ansai Plascon offers internal and external corrosion-protection systems for tank lining and other hazardous environments in the petrochemical and refinery industry. According to the company, these coatings offer ideal protection against various fuel types. The specialist coatings manufacturer and supplier has been involved with the petrochemical and refinery industry since the mid-1970s, said Mike Byrd, its National Protective Coatings Specification Manager. "We assess sites for asset owners in the petrochemical and related refinery sector, compile reports on our findings, and then provide corrosionprotection solutions specific to each scenario. We offer a 360° guarantee,

in addition to monitoring all progress," said Byrd. Specialist coating products supplied to this sector are Plascoline 1000 internal lining, Plascotuff 3000 primer, Plascotuff MIO intermediate coating and Plascothane 9000 topcoat. In addition, the Protective Coatings divi-

sion offers technical and aftermarket support, as well as project management. “We go to great lengths to support and supply our customers, including new product developments. Kansai Plascon has always been at the forefront of coatings development, as we expand our product range with new technologies,” said Byrd. “Our custom-made solutions extend the life of essential infrastructure in the petrochemical industry by protecting tanks, piping and structural steel from corrosion. By keeping such infrastructure serviceable, these operations run continuously, with no costly stoppages and downtime, which translates into constant production rates.” Enquiry no: 43

New distributor for process oil brand

NGEN Petroleum, a leading producer and marketer of a wide range of fuels, lubricants and oil-based products in South Africa are the proud suppliers of a range of high quality, virgin process oils under the Parprol name. These new generation process oils utilise Group I base oils. The Engen Industrial Lubricants team, who have taken over the management of the Parprol range, have a significant footprint throughout the country. These special process oils can be used in various industries as either raw materials or as a processing aid. “Engen recognises that the quality of process oils is fundamental to the outcome of a customer’s final product which is why we strive to supply highly

consistent quality process oils,” said Herman van der Westhuizen, Engen’s National Sales Manager for Industrial Lubricants. Industries which enjoy the benefits of Engen’s Parprol process oils include manufacturers of adhesives, cable compounds, ink oil, plasticizers, rope dressings, rubber, leather softener, textile batching oil, pesticides, furniture polish and wood preservers. “Our process oils are available in a variety of convenient packs including true bulk, 210L drums and mini-bulk (IBCs). Engen is also able to assist with dispensing solutions to aid in inventory management, contamina-

tion control and disposal,” said Van der Westhuizen. John Kennedy, Engen’s Lubricants Business Manager said: “We recognise that security of supply is integral to any business which is why Engen provides a high level of supply assurance across our strong and reliable network.” In South Africa, primary distribution centres are present in all major cities as well as a number of secondary depots which are situated in outlying areas. “Our extensive footprint ensures that process oil is readily available to our customers when they need it and where they need it,” added Kennedy. Enquiry no: 44

The solution is to use a shortNew pyrometer for metals and wave pyrometer such as the FibreMini with the following advantages: Fibre optic sensing harsh temperature applications • head withstands up to 200 °C ambient temperature, making it

easuring the temperature of reflective metals is a challenge as reflective surfaces, hot furnaces and high ambient temperatures can make it difficult to achieve results with non-contact sensors. It’s a problem ASSTech aims to solve with the Calex Fibre-Mini fibre-optic pyrometer with a range of features for accurate measurement, specific for these applications. When using a handheld IR thermometer to measure the surface of shiny metals include it can be difficult to achieve an accurate measurement as changing the angle can affect the reading, or the thermometer cannot display a believable temperature, especially when aiming it into a furnace. General purpose, long wavelength temperature guns are not suitable to use on metals because they are more susceptible to errors than shortwave sensors if the emissivity setting is incorrect. A small error can cause a big error of measurement. Add to this the problem that the area surrounding the furnace is a harsh place to mount an infrared sensor, with the ambient temperature commonly exceeding 100°C and this challenging application rules out most choices of sensor.

Instrupump – a division of Air & Vacuum Technologies (Pty) Ltd are proud suppliers of one of the world’s largest producers of high quality Air Operated Double Diaphragm (AODD) liquid pumps.

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ideal for mounting near furnaces. • N o electronics in the sensor head make it immune to electromagnetic interference in high-EMC applications such as induction heating • Reflected energy compensation allows for an accurate reading when measuring reflective objects inside furnaces. Simply enter the temperature of the furnace interior and the sensor will compensate for the reflection for a more accurate reading. This can also be adjusted Enquiry no: 45 automatically on Modbus models.

HE new OptiMax injector T Superior mixing from Spraying Systems Co. offers what the company says is a better option for torch oil, slurry backflush, quench, and other similar injection operations. The new injector is specially designed to produce a uniform spray pattern for quick vaporization, mixing steam with the oil using a unique, patented atomization process. This process ensures thorough mixing of the steam and oil prior to injection. The mixed fluid that exits the injector consists of small drops in a uniform spray pattern. Benefits include: • Thoroughly mixed fluid and uniform spray coverage optimize the effectiveness of the

increases yield

chemical reaction • Fast vaporization of the hydrocarbon for quicker reaction in the process stream • Better control of drop size over a wide flow rate range provides more operating flexibility • Durable, dependable design for long wear life Ideal for: • Additive injection • Torch oil injection • Hydrocarbon atomization • Slurry backflush Enquiry no: 46 • Quench

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

water & effluent management

Engineering design for bulk services at big North Coast residential project S MEC South Africa has been appointed by Tongaat Hulett Developments (THD) to conduct the engineering design for the bulk services for the Sibaya Precinct in KwaZulu-Natal. Sibaya Precinct is a mixed-use residential development north of Durban, sprawling over 1 000 ha of coastal landscape. It includes a coastal dune forest conservancy and wetland rehabilitation, with about 75 km of paths, boardwalks and trails planned. Situated directly west and south-west of the coastal town of uMdloti, the precinct will be confined by the uMdloti estuary to the north, uMdloti Town and the ocean to the east, the uMhlanga estuary to the south, and the N2 to the west. The precinct will consist of seven nodes, to be developed in a phased manner. Development of Node 1 commenced mid-2016. Sibaya

ATER is becoming one of our most scarce resources due to the increased likelihood of extended droughts, the impacts of climate change and rapid population growth, particularly in cities. Water-scarce South Africa is the 30th driest country in the world. The impacts of our uneven and irregular rainfall patterns have been sorely felt this summer, with serious water restriction measures having put in place by most municipalities. There are a number of solutions, however, and green building is one of the simple and highly effective ways to save water. “Green buildings not only encourage water savings but ensure water is used wisely with innovative water-efficiency and water-captur-

Casino will be situated centrally within the precinct, with additional areas earmarked for commercial development. New bulk services are being constructed that will service both the new and existing developments. The existing Waterloo Reservoir will also need to be upgraded. However, this is only anticipated to be necessary following Node 4. “We conducted water modelling for Sibaya Precinct, including the demands from future developments in the area such as THD’s Cornubia North and Mount Moreland South,” said SMEC South Africa Project Director Etienne Viljoen (pictured). Construction has commenced on the 700mm-diameter steel bulk water main (about 3.6 km long), and the 355mm-diameter trunk

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M4, bordered to the north by the M27 and to south by Sibaya Drive. It will comprise residential, mixed-use residential, commercial, and education facilities. Here SMEC South Africa will carry out the engineering design for the civil services, including roads, stormwater, sewer and water reticulation. The Sibaya Forest Reserve forms part of one of the largest pristine dune forests in South Africa, outside of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Here visitors will be able to enjoy the scenery by accessing boardwalks through the forest. The reserve will include a visitor centre, restaurant, treehouse view point, and a boutique spa. SMEC South Africa is providing engineering input into the civil services such as water, sewer, stormwater and access. Enquiry no: 47

Water-saving tips for businesses

ing solutions,” said Dorah Modise (pictured), CEO of Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA). “They help to assess existing water resources and identify opportunities for reducing water demand, as well as capturing water and using alternative water supplies.” GBCSA’s rating tools – Green Star SA and EDGE – have aspects that focus specifically on water, while the Energy Water Performance (EWP) tool specifically allows benchmarking of existing office buildings’ water and energy consumption against an industry mean. “We are acutely aware of evaluating potable and non-potable water use in design, construction and operation of buildings according to best practice. Our rating tools reward

Robuschi Local Sales, spares and repairs are offered by Instruvac (a division of Air & Vacuum Technologies (Pty) Ltd.)

sewer main to service Node 1. The latter gravitates from the Sibaya traffic circle on the M4 tying into the existing 450-mm-diameter trunk sewer main (about 2.1 km long). “We are responsible for site supervision services as well,” SMEC South Africa Project Manager Siebren du Plessis said. The design of the 600mm gravity trunk sewer main and the upgrade to the Sibaya Sewer Pump Station is underway, with construction dependent on the demand for the second phase (Node 4), said Engineer Terence O’ Flaherty. SMEC South Africa has also been appointed to conduct the preliminary engineering services report for the Environmental Impact Assessment for Node 4 and the Sibaya ForestEstate. Node 4 is situated between the N2 and the

projects for doing well in their water initiatives,” Modise said. Some of the most common features of green buildings include efficient plumbing fixtures, submeters to better manage water supply and use, rainwater harvesting for uses such as irrigation and ablutions, and locally adapted or water-wise landscaping. It isn’t only water-saving buildings the GBCSA is encouraging, it is entire watersaving communities. Its latest tool, the Green Star – Communities rating tool, is being piloted and applied to the local context in South Africa. It will help governments, development project teams, contractors and other stakeholders to develop more waterefficient and sustainable large-scale projects, including neighbourhoods and precincts.

The GBCSA has a few simple suggestions to help your business do its bit to save water: • In addition to flushing and irrigation, harvested rainwater and grey water can also be used in fire sprinkler systems and cooling towers. • Offices can also reuse black water (treated sewage water) in some instances. • Besides low-flow taps and shower heads and dual-flush toilets, sinks in office bathrooms can also be fitted with taps that only run for a few seconds at a time or heat pumps that ensure hot water flows immediately, to avoid people wasting it before it heats up. • Install automatic shut off valves that utilise a leak detection system, especially for Enquiry no: 48 schools and offices.

Next-gen submersible motors available

OLLOWING a two-year design and laboratory test phase and a further two years of field testing, the new generation of Franklin Electric’s 4” submersible motors was launched into the southern African market last year. The new design, which was introduced to the European market in 2012, includes updated and user-friendly features such as full 304/316 stainless steel construction and reduced part count, clamped positive stop cable mount, flat cable with integrated earth lead and a replenishing valve that is accessible from the outside. The Franklin Electric 4-inch submersible motor was first available in South Africa in 1972 and, according to the company, has since become the driving force behind residential and light commercial submersible pumps with some of the earliest installed pumps still in operation today. Last year Franklin Electric reclaimed three working submersible pump motors with a combined age of 112 years in order to put them on

display and showcase their longstanding performance. Lyon Van der Merwe, Franklin Electric SA Application Engineering Manager, said: “With the NextGen 4” low thrust submersible pump, Franklin Electric customers can expect even better results at the same competitive prices as before. If the previous motor design could exceed a lifespan of 30 years, just imagine what you can expect from the new generation design.” He added that new developments on the pump concentrated on improving the electrical design of the motor, thereby increasing motor efficiency, lowering the motor temperature and extending the service life. New features include: • A full AISI 304/316 stainless steel construction and lower part count which has improved not only the look and feel of the pump but also the motor performance when used in slightly aggressive environments

• A new clamped positive stop cable mount that uses only 1 T25 hexalobular slot combination head screw that is torqued down to a positive stop with a well-defined torque of 3 – 4,5 Nm • A novel plug sleeve design that accommodates a jacketed, 4-cored flat lead which significantly reduces the effort of water-tight splicing the motor short lead to the drop cable, thereby reducing the installation time as well as the cost and risk of water ingress • An easily accessible outer replenishing valve allowing for a replenishing possibility via syringe from the outside of the motor by removing the plastic cap and filter • Modern, state-of-the-art design capabilities and manufacturing technology to replace heavyweight machining and resource intensive components needing functional protective coatings with modern, lightweight sheet metal stainless steel and high grade comEnquiry no: 49 posite material.

April / May 2017

WATER & EFFLUENT MANAGEMENT

KZN Industrial & Business News

Big upgrade for Newcastle pump station ity and downstream industrial businesses with an overloaded sewerage system. The existing old pumps were prone to tripping and often flooded the pump station, so the first step of the project saw Veolia cleaning the pumping station, situated 15 metres below ground. This included removing sump, scraping the walls and rehabilitating the existing infrastructure for the new, larger pumps. Veolia replaced the aged pumps with two new Sulzer pumps, imported from Germany, that were integrated into the existing pipework infrastructure. Sulzer is one of the Veolia Group’s interHigh capacity. Inside Ncandu Pump Station two Sulzer pumps national strategic suppliers wait to pump 220 litres of sewage every second. for pumps. The two immersible Sulzer XFP high-capacity EOLIA Water Technologies South sump pumps are capable of processing 220 Africa was recently contracted by the litres of raw sewage per second at a 27-metre Newcastle Municipality to upgrade the elevation. Ncandu pump station in KwaZulu-Natal. “The pumps are set at a standby duty conThe existing outdated pump station five figuration to ensure system reliability. This kilometres from the town was unable to meet means that when the first pump reaches 60% high sewage capacities, leaving the municipal- capacity, the second pump will automatically

Correct pump selection essential for effective dewatering

EWATERING is one of the most commonplace activities on mining and construction sites across the world. However, it is also one in which the incorrect selection of pumping equipment could have a major negative impact. Lee Vine, managing director of Integrated Pump Rental, cautions that different dewatering applications call for different solutions, and that it is not always a case of one pump fits all. As an example, he explains that dewatering on a mine or quarry site requires robust equipment capable of withstanding the harsh operating environment and, more often than not, pumps engineered to remove sludge and liquid containing solid particles. Commenting on incorrect pumping equipment being selected for a given dewatering job, Vine says that this happens primarily because of a lack of understanding of dewatering applications, as well as a lack of knowledge when it comes to pumps and pump design. “Most customers need a trouble-free pumping solution, and this means that the pump must be configured for the specific dewatering application,” Vine says. It is imperative that the pumping solutions supplier is able to accurately assess the site dewatering needs, and only then can an optimum dewatering plan be proposed. Factors such as the required capacity, suction lift and discharge head are important as are the basics such as access to power and logistics in reaching the actual site. Vine says, "Integrated Pump Rental has built its success on providing fit-for-purpose dewatering solutions to its customer base, and the company operates an extensive fleet of pumps that caters for all type of application requirements." As part of its total round-the-clock pumping solution, Integrated Pump Rental takes complete responsibility for all maintenance of pumps on site. This includes the keeping of a complete maintenance record which facilitates proactive, scheduled maintenance and optimum uptime for the pump installaEnquiry no: 51 tion.

switch-on to ensure demand is met and that no flooding or overflow discharge occurs,” said Blake Cooley, Project Engineer, Veolia Water Technologies, South Africa. “In addition, this standby configuration also ensures that if either pump malfunctions or requires servicing, it gives the pumping station a four to eight hour buffer period before breakdown or overflow.” These Sulzer pumps, however, would continue to operate in the unlikely case of overflow due to their submersible designs. Early in the installation, the existing pumps failed and flooded the entire pumping station. In addition to cleaning the waste, Veolia installed a temporary T8 pump to ensure that no effluent would be discharged during the installation period. “As this was a live operation, we had to bypass the Ncandu pump station using a temporary solution so that the pumping of the sewage to the wastewater plant could continue,” said Cooley. To ensure the maintainability of the pump station, Veolia installed a penstock stainless steel gate to effectively isolate the pumps from each other. This means that when one pump requires cleaning or maintenance, the gate will isolate the sewage flow to the functioning pump only. Prior to this, the operators relied on manually handled sand bags which proved

extremely laborious and often ineffective. In order to power the two 71 kW pumps, Veolia was also contracted to upgrade the transformer and Motor Control Centre (MCC) panels with the help of external instrumentation and control suppliers. “These MCCs provide variable speed and soft-starting pump performance ensuring that their operating capacity matches the sewage demand of the time.” These intelligent systems will also immediately alert the operator, via SMS, to any potential pump tripping or overloading. Veolia also installed a precautionary one-kilometre air raid siren to alert the operator of pump station overload or failure. “These safety systems, in addition to our operator training on MCC usage and proper maintenance practices, aim to reduce the chances of any sewage discharge from this pump station in the future,” Cooley said. Veolia repaired and refurbished the existing T6 pumps and returned them to the Newcastle Municipality where they can function in lowercapacity applications. The revamped Ncandu pump station was also designed to accommodate future growth and Veolia completed the required pipework for additional sump pumps as well as made space provisions for a new generator room. Enquiry no: 50

Wastewater – the unsung hero

N the face of growing concerns regarding climate change, the need to meet the escalating demand and efforts towards reaching UN-backed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), innovative approaches to wastewater management and water recovery is imperative. That’s according to Carl Haycock, Managing Director of Talbot & Talbot. “Treated wastewater may be a key strategy to meet the water needs on the African continent and can also help to address parallel challenges of food production and industrial development,” Haycock said. The augmentation strategies developed for the catchments in South Africa include, but are not limited to, treatment and reuse of wastewater, which is critical to contributing to the drive to provide sufficient water for population growth and industrial demands. Industrial water use accounts for approximately 8% of total water usage in South Africa. It has been projected that in rapidly industrialising countries current proportions could increase five times over the next 10 to 20 years. Talbot & Talbot supports industrial clients across Africa to reduce their water demand, and consequently their impact on the catchment. This is achieved through the treatment and recycling of wastewater using various technologies, some of which results in the production of biogas energy as a by-product. According to Haycock, industrial wastewater recovery can reach between 60% and 85% of total wastewater discharged, depending

on the quality of the effluent received for reuse and the optimisation protocols applied in operation. The water reuse by industries within their processes improves water availability in the catchment which ultimately supports social and economic development, driving the SDGs. Although South Africa has nearly 1000 municipal wastewater treatment facilities in operation, it is estimated that only 26% of sewage is adequately treated before being discharged into rivers. The operation of municipal wastewater treatment plants also requires a high skill level. Through Talbot & Talbot’s technical experts, municipal, private and industrial clients across Africa are offered innovative and sustainable solutions to their wastewater challenges. All sites operated by Talbot & Talbot have 24-hour access to process specialist support in case of plant upsets. Talbot & Talbot shares some basic guidelines for industries seeking to manage wastewater and improve water efficiences: 1. Start by unpacking your water footprint by identifying your current water intake, usage

and discharge. This is critical in the process to identify potential opportunities for water efficiencies, savings and reuse. 2. Identify opportunities to reduce your water use in your process and use wastewater in your business itself or between several businesses to form a viable symbiotic relationship. 3. Treated wastewater can be used back in the process, for cooling and/or heating and rainwater from roof collection can be used for flushing of toilets or irrigation. Enquiry no: 52

April / May 2017

WATER & EFFLUENT MANAGEMENT

KZN Industrial & Business News

Sustainability- the Latest motors for driving force of the future wastewater plant

atthew Renshaw (pictured), Managing Director of Profica South Africa, a leading property and construction solutions company that has been providing expertise in South Africa and across the African continent for over a decade, provides insight on the imperative for the property and construction sectors to adequately respond to the green revolution. If you’re considering building a new facility for your company’s relocation or expansion project, the option of sustainable or “green” building has probably been a topic of discussion. In the past, it was thought that the cost of investing in a greener and more sustainable building outweighs the yield. However, the cost of not being sustainable is starting to exert pressure on business and is far outweighing the capital needed to go green. As an industry, construction will be greatly affected by the stricter sustain-

ability legislation that is sweeping the globe. It is recommended that companies join this trend sooner rather than later, as green building is one of the greatest climate change mitigation strategies there is. According to World Green Building Trends, “Global green building continues to double every three years. Emerging economies like Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia and South Africa will be engines of green growth in the next three years, with development varying from twofold to sixfold over current green building levels.” The percentage of fi¬rms expecting to have more than 60% of their projects certi¬fied green is anticipated to more than double from a current 18% to 37% by 2018. The drought that South Africa and many other nations across the globe are experiencing will be a force that drives this change. Building technologies that require less or no water will become one the best investments for developers, as will techniques for harvesting rain and wastewater on site.

Is the medium flowing or not?

O check the flow processes in back into the rest position out of the pipeline systems, flow indicators field of view. With this design, it is posare frequently required which give sible, even in conditions of poor visibilan immediate visible answer to the ity and for cloudy and dirty media, to question: “Is the medium flowhave a clear indication of cooling ing or not?” water circulation, lubricant flow, Kobold, represented locally air supply and other media. by Instrotech, has their type The unit’s simple construcDKB flow meter with a ball, tion has only one moving part, used especially for checking thus guaranteeing reliable and the flow of small quantities of interruption free function. Type liquids. According to the compan y, DKB flow indicator is designed the method of operation of this unit is specifically for use horizontally running astonishingly simple: the flow makes pipes, and is offered in sizes from G 1/8 the white ball ‘dance’ to-and-fro under up to G 1. At flow rates as low as 0.05 theV:\!BMG\#Jobs\Adverts\2017\042017\BMG-FT13042017 glass dome. l/min for water for example, the ball - EN.cdr April 2017 04:27:54 PM If13 the flow stagnates, the ball drops lifts up and will be visible in the glass Color profile: Disabled

As global warming trends force business to adapt and find sustainable solutions, companies that invest in product innovation will reap the rewards. Profit margins can be expanded with innovation, environmental impact minimised and time spent on construction reduction. South Africa, and into Africa we need to begin holding a deep regard for the clever use of space, which includes the re-generation of old buildings, the use of solar energy, and the design of small living and working spaces. This type of thinking will follow through the industry, with every element of the process becoming increasingly measured and streamlined. In response to the universal problem of climate change, businesses have started to look for greener techniques and measures in order to meet legislative requirements. But it also goes beyond this, in the ability of companies to meet the ethical requirements of susEnquiry no: 53 tainable buildings.

dome. In the standard version with a brass housing and glass dome made of impact resistant borosilicate glass, the units are suitable for use in temperatures up to 120°C and pressures up to 6 bar. Applications include: • Maintaining demineralised water rinsing essential to electronics components manufacture • Showing the presence of condensate in steam return lines • Indicating chemical dosing for water treatment plants • Ensuring flow of cooling water to specialized medical equipment • Detecting changes in colour and condition of liquids during processing

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Enquiry no: 54

MAJOR wastewater treatment project in the Vaal Triangle has become the first recipient in South Africa of the new IE3 compliant DRN motors from SEW-Eurodrive. The new energy-efficient motors were introduced at Electra Mining 2016. The initial order is for 10 complete units, with gearboxes and motors (six 45 kW motors and four 55 kW motors), said Head of Projects, Rudi Swanepoel. These specific units will be used for aerator applications. “With aerator and mixing applications, our projects and engineering teams have to double check all of the loads and bending moments. These loads are supplied to us by the client, based on their designs. We then have to ensure that the gearboxes that have been selected are suited to the application at hand,” Swanepoel said. “Our calculation program has been designed specifically to

determine if the gearbox selection is adequate, based on the loads and bending moments. This is particularly important when it comes to aerators and mixers. Thus, these are not off-the-shelf products, but have been selected specifically for the system in question.” SEW-Eurodrive also had to comply with stringent specifications in terms of these motors, due to the arduous conditions on-site in the wastewater treatment plant. These included the addition of auxiliary instrumentation such as PT100s (to measure temperature) and thermistors (a cut-out failsafe when the motor temperature reaches a set high point). Other additional accessories included strip heaters for colder conditions, and rain canopies. Swanepoel said that, following this initial order, the company has received a subsequent order for another major wastewater treatment in the Eastern Cape. “These two major orders in quick succession represent a foothold for us in this industry, which is definitely picking up in terms of business.” Enquiry no: 55

April / May 2017

KZN Industrial & Business News

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

Digital environmental impact statement a world first R OYAL HaskoningDHV has pioneered the way environmental effects of projects are understood by launching what it says is the world’s first digital interactive environmental impact statement (EIS). “The new EIS uses accessible, interactive visuals to revolutionise the way the results of an environmental impact assessment are interpreted and shared between all project partners, saving valuable time, accelerating decision-making and advancing stakeholder engagement,” said Salani Sithole, Managing Director at Royal HaskoningDHV South Africa. Environmental impact assessment is required to ensure that the environmental effects of major projects and development

proposals are fully investigated and taken into account before decisions are made on whether they should proceed. These results must be outlined in an EIS. Where previously an EIS used text to explain the nature of the issue and what the future situation will look like, it is now replaced by easy to understand visuals and videos that clearly outline the assessment’s findings. Paul Eijssen, Strategic Advisor for Environmental Impact Assessment and a creator of the digital EIS at Royal HaskoningDHV said, “Responding to the increasing demand for digitisation and transparency, Royal HaskoningDHV is leading the way in which all data surrounding the impact of a project on the

environment is interpreted”. “The traditional manner of reporting an environmental impact assessment was outdated and I knew we needed to innovate and change to ensure that the EIS will continue to have relevance and impact in our collective decision making processes. “The new digital environmental impact statement is visualised via clickable maps and simple to understand tables and its unique interactive capability gives users the opportunity to walk through the virtual landscape and experience how the project will look once it is finished. This will accelerate decision making, enhance transparency and create greater stakeholder engagement.”

Cornubia developement roadworks underway

S construction on the Cornubia residential and commercial development adjacent to Umhlanga Ridge continues apace, developer Tongaat Hulett is tackling the infrastructure requirements in the immediate vicinity. “With key attractions such as the Cornubia Shopping Mall scheduled to open in September and residents and commercial tenants starting to take occupation, it is necessary to improve access into the development,” said Mtura Matshini, Development Executive of Tongaat Hulett Developments. “In conjunction with the eThekwini municipality, we have been involved in the construction of major roadworks to precede the anticipated increase in vehicle traffic as these amenities become operational to avoid any unnecessary congestion. Unfortunately, in the short term, this may result in some inconvenience for motorists and residents during construction.” The roadworks include the construction of a bridge over the N2 motorway to connect Cornubia with the Umhlanga Ridge town centre, as well as upgrading the Flanders Drive

Construction of a bridge over the N2 motorway is progressing well. The bridge will connect Cornubia with the Umhlanga Ridge town centre interchange. The N2 bridge will also contribute to the C9 corridor that feeds the city’s Integrated Rapid

Public Transport Network, also known as Go! Durban. C9 refers to the Gateway route which runs from Gateway, through Cornubia and

Entrepreneur competition open for entries

Developed in collaboration with the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment, the digital EIS has also received positive advice from the Netherlands Commission for Environmental Assessment, in recognition of the major step this presents in making impact statements more accessible, thereby creating opportunities for greater stakeholder engageEnquiry no: 56 ment.

he instrumental value that entrepreneurs add to the South African economy is undisputable – they are an important cog in the creation of the much needed jobs in the country. It is therefore encouraging that the challenges and obstacles which impede this valuable sector are receiving some much-needed attention from both the public and private sectors – with the inclusion of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and National Budget Speech – beckoning for a more focused approach to entrepreneurial development in the country. This is according to Ben Bierman, Managing Director at Business Partners Limited (Business Partners), who says that just as

important as government’s efforts of building an inclusive, supportive and thriving entrepreneurial eco system, is the need for society to encourage and support entrepreneurs in starting and growing businesses which positively contribute towards the country’s growth. “We need to be creating more platforms that stimulate and support entrepreneurship, we should work to promote and celebrate the successes of entrepreneurs – those individuals that tirelessly, often without recognition, contribute to growing the local GDP and improving employment figures.” Celebrating its 29th year, the Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and Business Partners competition seeks to

promote entrepreneurship in South Africa as a viable career path, by honouring dedicated entrepreneurs who have made great strides in their businesses and whose passion for growing their businesses and communities inspires and stimulates the nation. Bierman adds that as 73% of the country’s adult population sees entrepreneurship as a good career choice (2017 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report), industry leaders should be leveraging this to drive entrepreneurial participation in South Africa. “If we can create more entrepreneurs as a country, we can boost the economy which then in turn has various positive knock-on effects, such as creating jobs, introducing innovation and having a larger tax pool to fund all the key government projects including educating our young people.” The Entrepreneur of the Year competition

Lifting Solutions That Work.

Phoenix to Bridge City, another Tongaat Hulett Developments project undertaken in partnership with eThekwini Municipality. This transport network already plays an important role in improving access to Durban and Pinetown from areas north of the city, with many commuters residing in Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu. The Flanders Drive interchange will provide access to the south-east quadrant of the Cornubia Development that includes amenities such as the shopping mall, the business park and the town centre. Construction on the interchange is scheduled to be completed by August 2017, while work on the bridge will be completed the following month. With the shopping centre scheduled to open in September, all roads and routes will therefore be completed and allow for easy access. “We aim to minimise disruptions to traffic during this construction phase, with certain road closures for defined periods to be expected. We will keep residents and commuters informed of any such closures to reduce inconEnquiry no: 57 venience,” Matshini said.

sponsored by Sanlam and Business Partners, is a platform to reward and acknowledge the ongoing hard work of these entrepreneurs. With five categories, entrepreneurs from emerging to small and medium businesses can enter. Prizes valued at over R 2 million can be won, which include cash prizes of R60 000 for each main category winner, and R160 000 for the overall winner. Competition winners will also receive valuable mentorship support, networking opportunities and national media exposure. “Entrepreneurship can be a lonely endeavor, but also one of the most rewarding. Through the competition, we want to share the successes of these inspirational individuals who are making a difference, as well as create an environment in which entrepreneurs can engage, network and learn from each other.” Entrepreneurs interested in entering the competition can download entry forms online at www.eoy.co.za as well as interact on the competition’s social media platforms www.twitter.com/@EOY_SA and www.facebook.com/ EOY.SA. Enquiry no: 58

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Sustainable products help maximise growth opportunities

FE International’s adoption of sustainable business practices is bearing fruit in an economic climate where some organisations believe expenditure on “green” production is an unwelcome cost rather than an opportunity. “We have never viewed investment in environment-friendly technology as a negative; for us it is an imperative, and it is proving to be profitable,” said Dr Mehran Zarrebini (pictured), CEO of PFE

International. The diversified group is made up of a number of different companies with synergistic links to one another - Van Dyck Carpets, which has been operating in South Africa for 68 years; the tyre recycling Mathe Group; polypropylene staple fibre producer, PFE Extrusion; Envirobuild, manufacturers of eco-friendly rubber flooring; and Easigrass. All of the group companies are geared to maximise opportunities

T: + 27 31 700 6250 E: marketing@rubberengineeringsa.com W: www.rubberengineeringsa.com

Premium Engineering

T: + 27 31 700 6250 E: premeng@mweb.co.za W: www.premiumengineeringsa.com

created by the demand for sustainable products in their various industries. “There is a growing trend for consumers and businesses to seek more environmentally friendly products and raw materials”, Zarrebini said. “We are producing more sustainable products to meet this growing 'green' demand, all the while remaining conscious of satisfying procurement requirements.” Zarrebini said that PFE’s investment in a new tyre recycling facility for Mathe Group last year, had heightened the group’s commitment to more sustainable manufacturing and resulted in their becoming the largest processor and recycler of tyres in South Africa. Their end-product, rubber crumb, is used in the manufacture of eco-friendly rubber matting and paving tiles by sister company, Envirobuild as well as acoustic underlay for flooring. The group plans to invest further in extending the use of rubber crumb in the manufacture of innovative new

products. “We expect the demand for recycled rubber paving products to increase as residential and business customers seek products that are environment-friendly and produced by companies with good corporate governance,” he said. "We are also seeing a growing preference for products that are manufactured locally and benefit local communities. PFE Extrusion, for example, employs more than 500 people in the economically challenged areas of Hammarsdale and Umlazi.” Demand is steadily increasing for artificial grass from PFE’s Easigrass, both for commercial spaces and landscaping, as a result of last year’s drought as well as for its low-maintenance and environmental reasons – it does not need watering or the use of harmful pesticides. Zarrebini said that investment in new technology was essential to remain competitive internationally. Equally important was incorporat-

ing resource efficiency and resource reduction into manufacturing processes as raw materials became scarcer and more costly. “At PFE, we adopt an integrated approach to energy management, environmental sustainability and the minimisation of our greenhouse gas emissions which we expect will yield further reductions in carbon emissions, waste and water consumption into the future,” Zarrebini said. “Our emphasis as a group has always been on reducing our carbon footprint, a vital part of our long-term strategy. Energy use in production is a significant cost whilst optimisation of raw material usage represents a significant opportunity to reduce carbon emissions and ensure products can be recycled or reused at the end of their useful life,” he said. All of the companies in the PFE International group have local and international “green” accreditations including ISO 14001 environmental accreditation, ISO 15000 energy certification and ISO 14064-1 for greenhouse emissions management. Enquiry no: 59

Getting a mid-sized business ready for sale

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EXELTOP

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Morgan Jones

ne of the biggest challenges for owner-operator companies is when and how to introduce some form of exit or succession planning. Successful companies will first and foremost focus on their product and service offerings, expanding the customer base and managing operational issues to drive revenue and profitability growth. However, there are a few key disciplines that will not only assist with exit or succession planning but if done correctly, can also support delivery of these other business goals. When considering the introduction of a financial or strategic

partner, or an outright sale, the following areas should be contemplated to ensure the business attracts the right value, reflective of the true performance potential of the business:

Key man risk A business that relies heavily or solely on one person is inherently riskier. A business with clearly defined roles, systems, policies and an institutional knowledge base is a more stable organisation and will attract external investors. Reliable management information and Key Performance Indicators External investors need reli-

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able information in order to objectively assess the business. More than just the annual financial accounts are required. There should be an opportunity to obtain a deeper understanding of the business through key data points, the tracking of financial performance, the accuracy of budgeting and forecasting versus actual results and the ability to underpin the growth prospects of the business through a data-driven understanding of the business. In addition, the appropriate use of Management Information can often materially enhance the understanding of the business by the existing owners and offer opportunities for refinement and enhancement of strategy pre any investor dialogues.

Strategy and market strategy Whilst a very broad topic in and of itself, simplistically, growth opportunities and prospects as well as market conditions should be clearly understood. Being able to effectively define what the business can and should achieve will be critical. For example, a business with a diversified customer and supplier base in a deep and growing market mitigates concerns around concentration risk and enhances the perspective of growth opportunities being realistic.

Record keeping and administration An ability to demonstrate a proactive approach to record keeping and filing is always helpful. Critically, one should always seek to ensure that the business’ affairs (tax, legal etc.) are fully up to date and any issues or concerns must be clarified and adequately addressed.

External profile The company’s websites, brochures and marketing communications should be updated so that they reflect the desired external image. Contemplating an exit is in itself a complex conversation. Why would exit be relevant, why would a minority investor be relevant, am I looking to diversify, what is my role in the business going what is my role in the business going forward, is a sale or a listing on the stock exchange more appropriate? These considerations require expert input and guidance as there is never a one size fits all answer to these questions. In addition, if an exit in the medium term is a genuine possibility, it is also worth considering the legal structure of the company itself as well as that of the shareholders’ ownership of the company. By working with an expert adviser, all of the above can be factored into the thinking of the business and its owners. Jones is Principal in the Corporate Finance team at Bravura Enquiry no: 60

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

R27-million plant for new KZN mine

QUIPMENT manufacturer Osborn clinched a R27-million order for a turnkey crushing and screening plant for a new mine in KwaZulu-Natal. According to product sales manager Shane Beattie, this new plant features a unique process designed by Osborn to minimise fines generation in the production of calcite and lime. It has been supplied by Osborn to Umzimkhulu Industrial Holdings’ Rossmin open cast limestone mining

operation at Port Shepstone, on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast. “The plant was designed and installed to only produce two sized products: 80mm +30mm and -30mm +10mm. The -10mm is a by-product,” Beattie said. He added that that the process is revolutionary in that a conventional crushing plant would be a jaw and cone configuration to crush down to a -80mm product from a run of mine (ROM) of 600mm. “We supplied an Osborn modu-

lar 3042 jaw plant feeding into an Osborn modular 2340 jaw plant, then over an Osborn modular 6 x 20 triple deck screen, splitting the product into -80mm+30mm, -30mm+10mm and a -10mm +0mm. The primary reason for the two-stage jaw crushing process is to minimise the generation of fines (-10mm),” Beattie said, adding that this material cannot be used in the next stage and is a waste product. Beattie said that Osborn’s pioneering process is more effective than the conventional separation process at other plants, where all the ROM material is crushed to -1mm and smaller, then flotation is used to remove the impurities. “This process requires lots of water and waste that is more difficult to manage.” Umzimkulu and Rossmin will only process the high grade material, up to 99% calcite, Beattie said. “By only feeding the high grade -80+30mm to the Tertiary/Quaternary plant and, the next stage being dry, will produce a higher yield per ton crushed. Since this stage is the most expensive part of the process, by only crushing the desired calcite, the operation will be able to dramatically reduce its cost per ton, and the capacity in this stage is utilised to its fullest potential.” Osborn also supplied the mine’s

next stage with its imported high frequency screens, to cut at -2+1.2mm, -1.2+0.8mm, -0.8+0.4mm and -0.4+0.075mm. “This is an extremely innovative process that enables us to screen out the -1.2mm fraction. This is then sent to an air classifier, which removes the -0.075mm from the -1.2mm. The -1.2+0.075mm fraction is then sent to the second 2624VM high frequency screen, a double deck 6’ x 24’ screen, to separate the -1.2+0.8mm, -0.8+0.4mm and -0.4mm +0.075mm fractions.” He says that Osborn’s attention to detail and commitment to meeting the client’s needs, together

Cheers to largest centrifugal pump in SA

“At the moment, our campaign is focused on breweries and food and beverage,” Fourie said. Globally, a demand for increased production capacities and more efficient processes in the food and beverage industry has seen a need for stainless steel pumps with flow rates in excess of 1 000 m³/h. Responding to this latest market trend, Verder South Africa has launched its Colossus pump, an extension of Packo’s MCP3 and MFP3

ISO accreditation for crane hire company

LCON Crane Hire has celebrated many highlights over the past five years. These include RTMS accreditation, launching their 440-ton and 330-ton mobile cranes, and becoming members of the Concord Cranes Group. The Concord Cranes Group is a merger between Anglo V3 Crane Hire, Elcon Crane Hire, Castle Crane Hire, and Concord Namibia. The Group now has over 170 mobile cranes across 13 depots in Southern Africa. For more information see www.concordcranes.com. The company added ISO accreditation to its pedigree recently in the form of ISO9001:2008 (Quality Management), ISO14001:2004 (Environmental Management), and OHSAS18001:2007 (Health and Safety Management). “A key element of Elcon’s success has been its direct focus on the customers and specifically the desire to tailor make specific value adding solutions,” the company said in a statement. “Elcon’s Level 4 BBBEE accreditation alongside the ISO accreditation, RTMS accreditation (SANS1395-1:0107) and the Master and Builders rating provides value adding and ongoing quality assurances to its customers.” Elcon said it hopes its ISO accreditations will give it a competitive advantage when it comes to tendering as it assures current, and prospective, clients that it is serious about being sustainable and at the forefront of the Enquiry no: 63 mobile crane hire industry.

pump range. It weighs 1.6 tons, and offers a flow rate of 1 200 m³/h, with a 200 kW motor. While many breweries still use castiron pumps for higher flow rates, the stainless-steel design of the Colossus is much more hygienic. “It is likely to become the standard in the food and beverage industry in the future,” Fourie said. The MCP3 and MFP3 pumps are also energy-efficient and maintained easily, with an electro-polished finish that is highly-corrosion resistant and easy to clean. Applications include dairies, breweries, and distilleries. The pumps are a particularly reliable option for filtration applications, pasteurisation, yeast propagation, and in cleaning systems. Fourie said that Packo itself is undergoing an expansion and renovation of its facilities, which will allow it to manufacture and test pumps with a flow rate of up to 2 000 m³/h. Enquiry no: 62

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HE largest centrifugal pump available on the South African market for the food and beverage industry has been introduced by Verder Pumps South Africa. Part of its new Packo range of food-grade pumps, the new centrifugal pump is capable of pumping beer into eight million 250 ml bottles an hour. It was launched towards the end of last year. The Dutch-based Verder Group acquired the UK-based Fullwood Packo Group in 2015, with Verder South Africa embarking on an extensive marketing campaign for the food & beverage industry. Kobus Fourie, Packo pump specialist at Verder South Africa, said that the range had application in 11 niche sectors: Dairy, meat and fish, textiles, wastewater and potable water, breweries and distilleries, food and beverage, washing and disinfection, surface treatment, vegetables, animal feeds and biogas, hot frying oil, petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals.

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with the company’s long-standing reputation for quality machines and service, led to this significant order from Rossmin. The equipment supplied was transported to KwaZulu-Natal in 22 loads, and the scope of Osborn’s contract included the supply, installation and commissioning of the primary plant. “This order has been some three years in the making. We devoted the necessary time to truly understanding our client’s requirements, and we are proud to have delivered a truly unique and optimal solution,” Beattie said. Enquiry no: 61

New reciprocating saw blades launched in SA

N the highly competitive cutting and tooling sectors, customers rely on stringent quality, robustness and technically sound products which will not only last them a life-time’; but will provide excellent accuracy, performance and return-on-investment. In a nutshell, the ‘fastest first cut’. Since First Cut, a leading South African manufacturer and distributor of capital equipment and cutting consumables began manufacturing hacksaw blades 19 years ago under licence from Neill Tools (Spear and Jackson’s parent company) the relationship – as well as local market leadership - has grown and flourished. Recently, Spear and Jackson’s Export Sales Director, Steve Turner, visited South Africa to assist First Cut in launching the innovative new Eclipse Predator reciprocating saw blade range. “This new range of blades has been designed to serve the power tool market, a major area of development for Spear and Jackson as the demand for power tools and accessories grows – and one in which we can really achieve brand and market leadership,” Turner said. The blades are available in three types, High Carbon Steel (HCS), Bi-metal and Tungsten Carbide (TC).

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

The HCS blade range has been designed for wood cutting, although they are highly suitable for cutting other soft materials such as laminated chipboards and soft plastics. The bi-metal blades with their electron beam-welded heavyduty bi-metal construction feature a M42 HSS steel cutting edge containing 8% cobalt for robust, longer lasting teeth. The TC range features blades with tungsten carbide tipped teeth, which allow for fast, easy cutting through construction material such as brick, porous concrete and masonry. All blades are supplied in fivepacks with the exception of the brick blade which is sold in singles. With these blades, reciprocal saw users will be able to exploit the full potential of these versatile tools,” Turner said. Importantly, these new reciprocal saw blades also fit with the prevailing business strategy at Spear and Jackson. “We are often asked if we supply both professional and DIY ranges which are priced accordingly. Spear and Jackson has the philosophy that we supply professional quality tools which are accessible to the DIY user, who can then effectively ‘trade up’.” Enquiry no: 64

KZN Industrial & Business News

Small footprint, high power excavator comes to SA S MITH Power Equipment (SPE), South African importers and distributors of specialist machinery, turf maintenance equipment and offroad vehicles, recently announced the arrival of the Kubota KX080-3S Super Series eight-ton excavator. Ideal for tough construction projects that require high power and performance in confined spaces, the company says the KX080-3S can do just about anything that larger conventional machines can do. “With its compact size, the KX0803S can achieve a high level of industrial performance on space-restricted construction sites, making it a unique proposition for local contractors needing substantial power on space-restrained urban sites,” said Tom Bloom, SPE General Manager: Construction Equipment. The KX080-3S boasts a tight tail swing and due to its tight tail design and shorter rear overhang, the machine has improved stability, is equipped to handle a wider range of loads and can function comfortably in far more restricted spaces than traditional tail swing excavators can. The auto idle system on the KX0803S helps saves up to 10% on fuel, prompting the engine to idle automatically when it senses the control levers in neutral for longer than four

seconds. The engine immediately reengages if the control levers are moved. The auto idle feature aids in noise reduction, exhaust emissions and overall operating costs. The KX080-3S’ three-pump hydraulic system is a load-sensing system that makes use of three independent pumps for boom, arm and swivel for more efficient bucket operation. The high capacity control valve and hydraulic variable pumps of the system enable high performance shoveling and loading. Several other unique features of the Kubota KX080-3S excavator set it apart from its competitors, including stability, range, oil flow control, its

electric fuel refilling pump, auto-shift and boom lowering prevention. In terms of stability, the KX080-3S combines smooth hydraulic system performance with balance for optimal stability and, together with its extended dumping height, swing boom, large bucket capacity and deep digging ability; it can easily match or exceed the range of the latest high capacity dumpers, tippers in meeting construction site requirements. The machine’s unique function of oil flow control enables the user to control the oil flow in line with the requirements, including those of the specific attachments in use. Enquiry no: 65

Quality festoon systems for bulk materials handling machines

ESTOON systems are the life blood of mobile electric bulk materials handling machinery, feeding energy, data, air or fluids to these machines to keep them moving. As operations such as open cast and underground mines, quarries, stockyards, and ports depend on the reliable operation of these machines, equipment longevity, maximum uptime and high productivity levels are fundamental to sustainable production and subsequently profitability. “No matter how extreme and arduous the conditions, it is paramount that festoon systems maintain a reliable, efficient, seamless and uninterrupted feed to machinery at all costs,” said Powermite Marketing Director, Donovan Marks. “Our specialised festoon systems set the benchmark in quality and rugged reliability because there can simply be no compromise.” Powermite is part of the Hudaco Group and has been a specialist supplier to local industry of electrical

and mechanical equipment for moving machinery for close on 50 years. In partnership with French multinational, Delachaux and its Conductix-Wampfler operation, Powermite’s materials handling division has been distributing Conductix festoon systems, Cable Reeling Drums (CRDs) and slip-ring housings to the Southern African mining and industry for over four decades. “Drawing on Powermite and Conductix-Wampfler’s combined experience in electrification systems of over a century, the modular design of our light, medium and heavy duty festoon systems incorporates the latest… technology. Benefits… include above-average operational life, easy installation, uncomplicated operation

and cost effective maintenance with subsequent lowest possible operational and ownership costs and rapid return on investment,” Marks said. The design and correct alignment of the cable significantly influences the performance of energy and data transmission. The compact, rugged and reliable custom-made Powermite/ Conductix-Wampfler cable carriers on the festoon systems effectively and efficiently handle and protect flat and round power/data cables that transfer electrical energy and data to machinery. The I-Beam cable carrier is suited for heavy duty applications including bulk container handling by cranes typically found at ports. With a load capacity of up to 125kg and maximum system length of 150m, the C-Rail cable carrier, available in zinccoated and stainless steel, is an ideal energy supply system for light to medium duty applications and is suitable for indoor and outdoor use. Enquiry no: 66

Clear visibility for reliable flow monitoring

o check the flow processes in pipeline systems and for insight into the interior of process pipes, many flow indicators are used in which the flowing medium sets a rotor turning and

thus to a large extent visibly signals a flow. The special feature of Kobold’s special version Type DAA is that the rotor is housed in a glass cylinder. This version ensures a func-

tional flow check from two points of view. On one hand, its construction as a visible cylinder gives a relatively large and thus easily observed field of observation. In addition, the rotary movement of Teflon rotor permits reliable monitoring of cloudy or dark media due to its noticeably bright colour. This type of device is already widely used and has proved itself in industrial use thanks to its functional reliability. With the DAA flow indicator, due to integration of two wiper elements, Kobold has, for the first time, been successful in combining a flow indicator with a device which allows the equipment to be cleaned during operation. The sight tube can be rotated so that the wiper elements concentrate the dirt into two narrow strips on the interior of the glass. From there it is taken away effortlessly by the flow. For this purpose, the Borosilicate glass tube is fitted with O-rings which slide easily, so that the cleaning of the unit can be carried out by hand even under full operating Enquiry no: 67 pressure.

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Aluminium vs copper in transformer windings

HILE copper has been assumed to be the material of choice for transformer windings, global specialist WEG Transformers has successfully manufactured thousands of transformers with aluminium windings. An important factor behind this option is the likely future increase in the price of copper, as worldwide reserves of the metal gradually decline. While copper reserves are currently estimated at 5,6 billion tons; the reserves of bauxite, from which aluminium is generated, are more than 13 times greater at 75 billion tons. The price of copper has fluctuated greatly in the past and has recently risen much faster than the price of aluminium, making the winding of conductors with aluminium increasingly attractive. “After years of testing, it has been established that there are no significant differences between the use of aluminium windings and copper windings in designing and manufacturing distribution transformers, as well as small to medium power transformers. Either metal gives the transformer the same quality of operation and performance,” WEG Transformers said in a statement. The use of aluminium in transformers began as early as the Second World War when industry experienced a shortage of copper, which was in huge demand for the arms industry. By the 1960s, when copper prices rocketed due to high demand, aluminium again became popular in windings; previous technological problems were overcome, and these transformers became more reliable. Since 1970, aluminium was used intensively in the United States and the technology of

Winding underway at WTA’s manufacturing facility aluminium-wound transformers was further enhanced; it has now gained widespread acceptance in European countries and other parts of the world. “One of the myths that has been disproved is the belief that aluminium-wound transformers have bigger losses of electricity. While the aluminium conductors are larger than copper conductors, they are lighter; the result is that the mass of the core in an aluminium transformer is five to 20% more, but the total transformer mass is almost the same – for the same level of electrical loss,” the company said. With regard to the respective thermal properties, aluminium has a lower melting point than copper but it is still well above the real working temperatures of the windings. In normal circumstances, the ‘hot-spot’ temperature in the windings is between 105°C and 120°C, while aluminium only melts at 665°C. “More importantly, the lower thermal conductivity of aluminium does not affect the performance; the temperature differences in the conductor are negligible in relation to the temperature difference between the ambient air and the windings. Also, as a result of the difference in the material properties of the two metals, Eddy loss in aluminium winding is 38 % less than in copper with the same volume of conductor.”

Industrial Green Star rating for Maritzburg carpet maker

ELGOTEX Floors recently announced that it had been awarded 6 stars in South Africa’s first custom Green Star SA – Existing Building Performance (EBP) rating for an industrial facility from the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA). The certification recognises “World Leadership” at its Pietermaritzburgbased factory for its sustainability practices in all aspects of their plant and carpet manufacturing operations. The Green Star SA -Existing Building Performance (EBP) rating tool is the foremost programme focusing on whole building operational performance over 12 months measured against eight key criteria for human and environmental health. For the first time ever, this EBP tool was customised to cater for the certification of an industrial facility in order to evaluate Belgotex’s factory. It was adapted by expert green building consultants Ecocentric, who together with

the company’s comprehensive historic operational data and dedicated onsite sustainability team accelerated the process and enabled the company to achieve their certification in just eight months. Belgotex Floors achieved the 6 Green Star SA certification for implementing outstanding practical and measurable strategic solutions in the following areas: • Management: Building management, green cleaning performance, on-going monitoring and metering and learning resources; • Indoor Environment Quality: Indoor air quality, lighting comfort, thermal comfort, occupant survey, acoustic comfort and daylight views; • Energy: Energy consumption, peak electricity demand; • Water: Potable water management; • Transport: Alternative transportation; • Materials: Procurement and purchasing, solid waste management;

• Land Use and Ecology: Hardscape, landscape and pest management, and • Emissions: Refrigerants, legionella prevention and storm water Extra credits were earned for Innovations which saw the company adopt several new eco-innovative production processes and product development strategies. Innovative raw material input strategies were implemented to reduce energy and raw material consumption, minimise waste, and allow the company to develop products with higher recycled content. The adoption of a dry-manufacturing process and complete switch in production and product development to solution-dyed ranges resulted in 100% reduction in water consumption. The acquisition of a R5-million recycling machine enables Belgotex to recycle waste fibre and yarn back into production. Enquiry no: 70

Enquiry no: 68

Farms boost safety and productivity through asset tracking

ITH workers and machines occupying the same working area in busy farming operations, proximity detection systems (PDS) are becoming vital tools to promote safety and productivity. According to Anton Lourens, managing director of PDS supplier Booyco Electronics, the technology allows for intervention where a potentially dangerous situation exists between a pedestrian and a machine like a tractor. Essentially, the PDS is a sensing device that detects the presence of an object, an interface that provides an audible and/or visual alarm to the equipment operator, and wiring between the two. Both the vehicle operator and the pedestrian can then be warned of potential collisions and danger. Warning zones are stable and predictable, and can be adjusted to suit the specific agricultural application and standardised to particular equipment. In addition to avoiding accidents on a site, the data from the PDS can be analysed for patterns, allowing farm managers to identify unsafe behaviour and design an appropriate intervention. In terms of productivity, monitoring of machine movements by the PDS can also help managers to make better use of equipment at work, for instance by optimis-

Limitless Horizons ing cycle times. Linking the proximity detection hardware products and the monitoring devices is Booyco’s Electronics Asset Management System (BEAMS) – a web-based application used on a robust database. BEAMS is essentially a central information hub, and provides a reliable single source of information that can be leveraged for greater insight into all aspects of the operation. “BEAMS provides an effective asset management solution that will allow farming operations to feel secure in the control of their assets,” Lourens said. BEAMS offers better control, accountability and a single point of contact for the end-user. It can be set up to generate a standard set of reports, or it can be customised to suit the specific requirements of a farming operation. This flexibility provides users with a strong tool facilitating a comprehensive and in-depth view of the operational infrastructure as well as the performance Enquiry no: 69 of assets.

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ico Technologies, represented locally by Comtest, has completed the update on the PicoScope 9300 Series. The PicoScope 9301 and PicoScope 9341 have received a bandwidth upgrade from 20 GHz to 25 GHz – significant because 25GHz bandwidth allows 5 harmonic capture of data rates up to 10Gbit/s. With serial data streams up to 10 Gbits/s now commonplace, standards such as HDMI 2.0, PCIe Gen2 and Gen3, GBit Ethernet and USB 3.1 Gen1 and Gen2, to name but a few, all have transmission lines, cables, components, transmitters and receivers which all need precompliance testing and characterisation. Engineers need to constantly test and validate their designs before compliance testing. For most companies, owning a real-time scope with 25GHz bandwidth is unrealistic (upwards of R2 600 000/$200 000) so longterm renting is often the only way

forward but that could be +R195 000/$15 000, per month. Users can now own the 25 GHz scope on the bench and have it in use every day, for the equivalent of 1 month’s rent of a 25 GHz real time scope. This represents the best bandwidth vs price performance currently available to market. All PicoScope 9300 and 930025 sampling oscilloscopes use PicoSample 3 software. The latest releases, PicoSample 3.25, includes masks for USB 2.0 and USB 3.1 Gen1 and Gen2, and the user interface has been optimised (use with a mouse or a touch screen PC or laptop). No oscilloscope measurement system is complete without a set of high performance probes, and Pico Technology now offer a full range of highly cost effective microwave and gigabit probes, ideally suited to low-invasive in system probing of analogue, pulse, impulse and high speed serial data streams. Enquiry no: 71

KZN Industrial & Business News

Gases for laser cutting and welding processes

Update for oscilloscope series

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

ASER gases play a significant role in the operation of a laser machine. Afrox has more than a decade of experience in developing laser gases for different applications in the market. “Our specialist expertise enables Afrox to advise on every aspect of laser usage, whether it’s assist gases, supply mode or laser mixed gases and supply,” said Hennie van Rhyn – Application Development Manager Cutting, Heating and Safety for Afrox. Afrox, a member of the Linde Group, started penetrating the laser cutting market around 2005 and the company’s growth in this field and market share of laser cutting has dramatically increased since then. Afrox has the latest state-of-the-art laboratory with highly skilled operators to mix any Lasermix requirement to meet required tolerances for any OEM supplied laser machine to the industry. This includes four part mixes

for new 6 kW high-powered CO2 laser in South Africa. Afrox is licenced, as a member of the Linde Group, to sell five part mixed laser gases in South Africa and is very competitively priced, says van Rhyn. Afrox’s Trifecta technology is used as a pressure boosting system, capable of boosting the liquid pressures up to 34 bar, vaporising downstream, then regulating pressures from the operating point with special low pressure high flow regulators. Some gas suppliers still offer skid pump systems and other pressure raising methods in combination with conventional lower pressure cryogenic nitrogen or oxygen vessels. To cater for customers whose demand for nitrogen or oxygen exceeds the capacity of cylinder bundles and where higher delivery pressures are required, Afrox has included the Trifecta system offer, operating with lower pressure cryogenic bulk

tanks. Features include constant supply with no down time, less blow off rates compared to high pressure units, and no pauses in production while tank filling takes place, making the Trifecta system a very efficient option. Today, more and newer laser welding machines are powered by a fibredelivered laser. These have a much shorter wavelength than CO2 lasers, and apart from the major advantage that this wavelength can be transmitted by optical fibre, there is also another significant difference, caused by the wavelength, in how these two types of lasers interact with metal, both for cutting and welding. At the shorter wavelength of the fibre-delivered laser, steel has a much smaller so-called Brewster angle than the CO2 laser. Therefore a fibredelivered laser cuts thin sheet up to three times faster than a CO2 laser of the same power. Enquiry no: 72

New range of light compaction equipment

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LB Equipment has extended its range of Ammann compaction equipment to include the manufacturer’s range of light compaction and walk-behind machines. According to Craig Sheppard, national product manager for ELB Equipment the machines are ultraefficient and “punch well above their weight” when compared with traditional machines in their size and weight category. They are also extremely versatile and can provide users with a multitude of options when used on site. “For example, our range of rammers have a number of additional attachments that can be fitted to increase options on site, whether it be for longer stem, broader or narrow plate or different setup options, it makes a difference to have a machine that provides versatility. Dependent on the application, being for paving, roads or trenchwork, it is an advantage to be able to select from a wide range of attachments and pads.”

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ally narrower, making them additionally suitable for use in trench applications. The addition of up to three exciters in larger plate compactor models also ensures that the vibration and resonance provides the quickest and best possible settling of fines for quicker and more effective compaction. Ammann also has compaction meters that can be fitted to the entire range of machines to ensure the right compaction is achieved on site. “Without exception, our machines are designed to be ergonomically efficient with reduced vibration transmitted to the handle, as well as having more comfortable and easier to use controls. This enables operators to work for longer hours with less risk of repetitive-type injuries which can lead to costly health and safety implications and time-lost injuries. Enquiry no: 73

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On the larger plate compactors and reversible plate compactors the range is even more versatile, offering a variety of options per machine across a wide range of models. These models range from standard forward compactors of between 70-100kg in either diesel or petrol versions, to much larger reversible models of up to 440kg and the flagship hydrostatic models that weigh in up to 778kg. Locally, machines of this size are more akin to walk-behind rollers, but in the case of the large Ammann hydrostatic plate compactors they provide far better compaction than traditional rollers. They also have the advantage of having a smaller footprint and are usu-

lenses’ sharp focus

nfrared inspections often involve analysing temperature variations on something extremely small or too far away to see the needed detail with standard lenses. According to Fluke, two of its new lenses for infrared cameras bring those worlds into sharper focus. The 25 micron macro lens can identify defects that might otherwise be too small to see on targets like PCB boards. The new 4x telephoto lens gets users a four times magnified view of a target at a distance, so targets like a high electrical line or a tall flare stack can be easily inspected. The two lenses expand the Fluke portfolio of lenses for select infrared cameras of 320 x 240 resolution and under. The Fluke portfolio of lenses now includes standard, wide angle, macro, and 2x and 4x telephoto lenses—all precisely engineered germanium optics. All these lenses are easily exchanged between compatible cameras without the need to send the lens and camera back to the factory for calibration, eliminating the cost and downtime caused by shipping and additional calibration. The 4x telephoto lens, which is compatible with Fluke TiX560, TiX520, Ti400, Ti300, and Ti200 infrared cameras, helps identify problems in power utilities as small as a failed splice on a high electrical line while keeping technicians safely on the ground. In applications like petrochemical and metals refinement where explosive atmospheres, extreme heat, or dangerous electrical levels make keeping a safe distance critical, the telephoto lens makes distant details more viewable while keeping workers at a safer Enquiry no: 74 distance.

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Mammoth lifting projects

OHNSON Crane Hire has an These are then loaded onto established reputation as a trucks with all the auxiliary equiplifting specialist who gets the ment including the boom configujob done and this standing is ration and luffers and this is then starting to pay dividends for the transported either via road or sea company. to the country where the lift is takOperating what it says is the ing place. largest heavy lift fleet of cranes “Depending on the crane size in sub-Saharan Africa, the comand configuration selected to do pany is able to undertake complex the lift and the local road ordiheavy lift assignments with ease. nance ruling, there would be “Having such large and combetween 40 to 50 abnormal loads, prehensive fleet is without doubt and moving this several thousand a major differentiator, but we kilometres is no mean feat.” believe that the proficiency of our A heavy lift operation is an people is just as important,” said extensive project and can take Steve Robson, the company’s anywhere up to 60 days or more. executive business development. A technical team is despatched on “Undertaking such a complex and each lift project. Depending on the specialised activity as a heavy lift time frame and the actual location requires the ability to engineer the level of support may differ. the lift from the initial assessment “For example, if a very compliright the way through to the actual cated lift that is being done in a Johnson Crane Hire’s 750 t Liebherr LG 1750 remote area over an extended pericompletion of the job. “What is important is that Johnson lattice boom all terrain crane doing a wind od the support team would include farm installation. Crane Hire can undertake these technical maintenance staff, project mammoth projects in a seamless management, operators and relief operation.” lifts in remote areas. Robson said the operators, ground crew and equipThe company’s heavy lift division company is no stranger to working in ment.” makes use of 3D CAD software for Africa and is well positioned to extend The company has conducted both the design and engineering of its footprint even though there are successful heavy lift projects in the lift as well as the simulation there- differences from country to country; Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, of. “With full time and dedicated the lifting specialist has the distinct Lesotho and DRC in the past, and mechanical engineers as part of our advantage of understanding the con- each package was tailored to the heavy lift team, we understand the ditions across the continent. specific requirement to ensure its succomplexity and requirements that go Describing just how complex the cess. into the planning and execution of logistics around a heavy lift project “Project work can be done on a fully these complex lifts. This level of atten- can be, Robson said that after all resourced basis with technical and tion to detail is essential during the the planning has been completed the back up support and where possible planning stages.” crane being taken to the lifting site could include partnering with local Planning is a critical activity, espe- must be broken down into modular crane hire companies,” Robson said. Enquiry no: 75 cially when undertaking specialised components.

Durban business expo back for ninth time THE ninth My Business Expo takes place on 22 June 2017 at the Durban Exhibition Centre. According to the organisers, the expo will draw on leading business experts and specialists, and provide attendees with an opportunity to discuss every facet of doing business right; from startup to growth and success. Mike Anderson, NSBC founder and CEO said that each interactive exhibit, event, seminar, panel discussion and presentation is an ideal platform to gain valuable,

pany offers users in the photovoltaic pre-assembled PV-cables and wires for quick plug-and-play on-site installation. These include chains, PV wiring fuse/diode, pre-assembled potential equalization cables, adapters and other fit-for-purpose photovoltaic cables. Components in the solar range include panel boxes, male and female connectors and branches with a host of accessories that include cable glands, protection tubes, shrinkon sleeves and cable ties. “An example of the Solarflex solutions is Helukabel’s Solarflex-X PV1-F solution specifically for the solar indus-

One sensing range for all metals

FM Electronic South Africa is offering Kplus sensors, which have the same sensing range for all types of metals. According to the company, they are for example perfectly suited for the detection of aluminium, where conventional sensors show a considerably reduced sensing range. The high switching frequencies enable the monitoring of fast changing switching states. The resistant stainless steel sleeve allows reliable use in oil and coolant applications. The wide temperature range as well as the high protection ratings enable universal use of the new Kplus sensors. IFM also stocks a valve feedback sensor with easy wiring. The unit contains two inductive sensors in a potted and sturdy housing with protection rating IP 67. It signals two end positions and is equipped with a solenoid connection replacing the additional cable to the solenoid valve. The actuator interface is optionally equipped with a standardised M20 x 1 gland. The spacious terminal chamber allows quick and easy wiring. Since the terminal block can be removed, no new wiring is required if the sensor is replaced. A UL approval for this product is currently in Enquiry no: 77 progress.

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try which is able to withstand the harsh environments of solar plants exceeds TÜV, CE, Rohs and VDE quality certifications to ensure the longevity of installation where it is used – which generally has an anticipated life of 25 years’ service,” said Van Dyk. All Solarflex cables are ozone, UV and weather resistant and are highly resistant to chemical interference, as well as fire and abrasion. In addition, the cables can be made in rodent resistant versions or to customer’s exact requirements for specific sites. The bare copper, tinned and finely stranded cable is double insulated with cross linked Polyolefin while the outer sheath comprises the same material in a black, red or blue. The nominal voltage of this particular cable is rated at 600/1000 V AC Enquiry no: 76 and 1800 V DC.

practical insights to grow, learn, connect and network. “My Business Expo is for anyone serious about starting or growing a business. The objective of the event is to give enterprising and aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners the knowledge and tools they need to get ahead and become tomorrow’s legendary entrepreneurs. “As we enter our ninth year, we anticipate an excellent turnout of delegates,” Anderson said. Enquiry no: 78

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Fit-for-purpose solar cables

PECIALIST cable manufacturer Helukabel has positioned itself as a leading supplier of cabling solutions for many of the world’s most advanced solar plants. It has also supplied cabling for some of South Africa’s main solar projects including the latest plants in Kalkbult, Droogfontein and De Aar among others. The company is also gearing to supply several other new build projects throughout southern Africa. According to Helukabel South Africa sales manager, Hardus van Dyk, the company developed solutions for photovoltaic applications in the early 1990s, starting with its first photovoltaic (PV) cables which are still marketed under the well-known Solarflex trademark. These carry global approvals from TÜV and VDE. In combination with its PV-connectors, the com-

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Compact combi switchboxes range

EMÜ, a manufacturer of solutions for valves, measurement and control systems, has adapted its range of products in the area of combi switchboxes. With the addition of two new product types and the adaptation of an existing type, the company completes its product range and thereby offers its customers an even more customized selection. This enables a combi switchbox to be selected which is even better adapted to specific requirements. In comparison to external types, the integrated pilot valve offers both functional and cost benefits, such as fast reaction times, automatic programming of end positions and lower compressed air consumption. Gemü combi switchboxes therefore not only enable precise position detection, they also provide efficient activation of the respective process valve. With immediate effect, the

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

Gemü 4242 combi switchbox is also available with an increased air output, which means that it is possible to equip valves with a stroke of 2 to 75 mm with this product. The new size also comes with the same well-known features. This includes a high visibility display and position indicat o r, various interfaces such as AS-Interface, DeviceNet, IO-Link and 24V, as well as fast commissioning using automatic end position programming, both on-site and externally. Detailed diagnosis options make operation easier and simplify fault analysis. Both new Gemü 4240 and GEMÜ 4241 types work with mechanically adjustable sensors and offer a cost effective alternative compared to versions with electronic position detection. On the Gemü 4240, either microswitches or proximity switches enable the monitoring of valve Enquiry no: 79 end positions.

Offload costs with new sidelifter

ORT Elizabeth-based company, Versatile Container Handling supplies the Selflifter range of sidelifters and Isoloader straddle carriers in Africa. International Sales Manager of Versatile Container Handling, Harry Finlayson, said: “Our customers appreciate our solutions that assist in producing efficient intermodal transfers, container logistics, container handling and the lifting of heavy loads in various applications. “Every time you handle a shipping container or wait for a container to be moved, it costs you money. Effective intermodal transfer and warehouse logistics will help minimise the handling cost.” He said the company offers a “total logistics solution” combined with reliable lifting equipment for specific applications.

The Selflifter SL427 sidelifter handles both 20 and 40ft containers, does transfers to railwagon or trailers, places containers on the ground and can also double stack both full standard and high cubed containers. They also handle bolsters or flatracks. “With a massive 47 Ton lift, combined with Perkins and Danfoss reliability, the Selflifter is truly a state-of-the-art sidelifter designed and manufactured under the strictest quality control by engineers with more than 50 years experience.” Versatile Container Handling, together with Versarail, also supply a range of “bottom discharge containers” for bulk handling as well as a range of rubber tyred shunting locomotives for shunting operations inside small to medium-size yards, throughout Africa. Enquiry no: 80

KZN Industrial & Business News

Next-gen air-con tech for large buildings

ARGE buildings can now be supplied with heating and cooling plants that occupy the minimum space, while offering the best possible efficiency, thanks to the latest Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) technology from Toshiba Air Conditioning of Japan. This next-generation air-conditioning technology has been introduced locally by AHI Carrier South Africa, the official distributor for Toshiba Air Conditioning of Japan in Southern Africa. Toshiba Brand Manager Philip Theunissen said that the Toshiba SHRM_e (an acronym for Super Heat Recovery Multi, with the ‘e’ standing for ‘Evolution, Efficiency and Expansion’), represents the latest iteration of VRF technology. It can feed multiple indoor units from modular outdoor units, situated usually on building roofs or in strategically-located plant rooms. Up to an astonishing 528 indoor units can be controlled centrally by building or facility managers, in conjunction with the relevant Building Management System (BMS). The system uses Intelligent Flow Technology, based on independent Pulse Motor Valves (PMVs), to control the flow of refrigerant to each indoor

unit. These deliver a carefully-calibrated refrigerant flow to each indoor unit to create, and then maintain, optimum comfort conditions, utilising three sensors per indoor unit. This means that while a building’s air-conditioning system can comprise multiple units, in those instances of low demand, such as after hours or over a weekend, the Toshiba SHRM_e can achieve this without having to start up the entire plant, as is the case with conventional centralized plants. Instead, building and facility managers and service technicians enjoy immediate and/or remote access to all system parameters, while end users benefit from a host of additional features and benefits associated usually with high-tier air-conditioning systems. “It is important to reiterate that Toshiba SHRM_e VRF systems require maintenance by experienced and qualified technicians. This can vary from simple filter washes to more

technically-involved major services,” Theunissen said. Toshiba’s Wave Tool Technology (WTT) is a wireless commissioning and performance validation tool that enables engineers to read and write data to and from the condensing unit using a smartphone, without making physical contact. It enables testing and commissioning to be carried out without taking the covers off the unit, another industry first. This uses Near Field Communication (NFC) technology to transmit data between the outdoor unit and the engineer’s smartphone. The tool allows service and commissioning engineers to instruct and obtain key system information simply by touching their smartphone onto the NFC tag on the outdoor unit. The technology simplifies commissioning, as well as reducing the time spent on-site, giving the service engineer the ability to quickly and easily send key system data via e-mail back to the office for analysis. Enquiry no: 81

Geosynthetics for big substation build

ibertex South Africa has recently supplied a range of geosynthetic products for use in the construction of a large electrical substation in Cape Town. The new Eskom Pinotage Substation is located in Faure, near Somerset West. According to Fibertex SA’s Paul Baxter, the substation, which consists of a 400/132 kV high voltage yard, gave the Eskom Engineers some initial challenges, including a large cut to fill operation necessary to create a level platform for the new transformers. This necessitated the erection of a suitable peripheral precast segmental block retaining wall system. “Because correct geosynthetic reinforcement and drainage design is key to the stability and safety of any retaining structure, rigid Secugrid geogrids were used in combination with a heavy duty precast concrete segmental block. Fibertex also supplied various components for an advanced subsoil drainage system,” Baxter said. Approximately 46 550 m² of Fibertex’s PET (polyester) Secugrid

80/20 R6 uni-axial geogrid was installed. Secugrid, with its high residual strength at low strain, forms an integral part of the block wall by adding tensile resistance to the reinforced soil zone. The wall is approximately 700m in length with heights varying from 7m to 11m and was constructed by Terrafirma Retaining Walls. Secugrid is designed to strengthen naturally unstable soil and subgrades so that the composite soil structure will be able to withstand the required loading conditions, through both an inter-

locking and frictional effect, with little or no movement in the overlying soil materials over the structure’s lifetime. It is also highly resistant to biological and chemical degradation, as well as installation damage. Secugrid is supplied in rolls and is quick and efficient to install, with minimal demand on labour resources. Flexidrain, an extruded high density Polyethylene (HDPE) geonet covered with a Fibertex F-25 Polypropylene (PP) non-woven geotextile jacket to form a 500mm wide wick-drain composite, was placed at 8m centres horizontally and 45˚ to the vertical, between the G7 fill material and the selected granular fill. The subsoil water is then led to a front collector drain behind the toe of the retaining wall and discharged into Fibertex Drainex DN160 drainage pipes, which are also chemically inert. Fibertex supplies a comprehensive range of other geosynthetic products into the civil engineering and mining industries. Enquiry no: 82

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April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Premium welding equipment now available for rental

Flying the flag at KITE B EING held from July 26 to 28 at the Durban Exhibition Centre, the KwaZuluNatal Industrial Technology Exhibition (KITE) is a horizontal trade show that showcases industrial products, services and solutions targeted at industrial industries in the KwaZulu-Natal region. To recognise the importance of the packaging, food processing, plastics, printing and labelling industry sectors in South Africa, a Propak Africa Pavilion has been added to the event. Within this pavilion, at stand C20, Pyrotec PackMark is exhibiting a range of its latest coding technology to suit most applications – from start-up businesses to global enterprises. Visitors will see demonstrations of the 9018 small character inkjet printer from MarkemImaje, locally distributed by Pyrotec PackMark. This printer is engineered to offer innovation and simplicity. With its all-inclusive M6’ ink circuit, production can run uninterrupted. The easy to change M6’ can be clicked-in and clicked-out in less than six minutes using no specialised tools. Additionally, its innovative cartridge system and associated ink (MEK-free and permanent ink) make set-up automatic and clean, optimising operators’ time and overall production uptime. For coded cartons, Pyrotec PackMark is showcasing Markem-Imaje’s 4500 DOD large character valvejet printer. This printer codes 39 000 cartons with just one litre of ink, providing

unmatched value to production lines. Its highly-responsive colour touch screen makes daily operations immediate and simple. It offers clean plug-and-play consumable changeover in less than 30 seconds, no requirement for daily maintenance, and its extended connectivity enhances ease of use in the dustiest and most humid environments (IP54). The 4500 DOD allows customers to identify cartons with codes up to 56mm high, multiple characters and logos in several languages, and reduce waste with consistent quality print. The final machine on show is the Smart Date X40 thermal transfer printer – an advanced coding machine that offers long-term cost control, planet-conscious design, greater uptime, a 50% reduction in power consumption, and increased performance on the line even in harsh environmental conditions. Benefits of the SDX40 include its new standard 1 100mm ribbon that reduces changeovers and improves cost per print, its patented ribbon saving features that help to minimise ribbon waste, and an IP protection option for harsh environmental conditions and frequent pressurised water cleaning. The SDX40 prints at speeds up to 600mm/second at a high-quality (300dpi) resolution. The equipment being demonstrated by Pyrotec PackMark offers high-quality codes while reducing total cost of ownership and ink consumption to help customers reduce their Enquiry no: 83 carbon footprints.

First ‘all directional turning’ solution unveiled

UTTING tool and tooling system specialist Sandvik Coromant has unveiled what it says is a revolutionary new turning concept that offers improved machining flexibility and the potential for significant productivity gains. The company’s PrimeTurning methodology and supporting tools provide manufacturers, particularly in aerospace and automotive sectors, with the industry’s first true ‘all directional turning’ solution. Unlike conventional turning operations – which have remained largely unchanged for decades – PrimeTurning allows machine shops to complete longitudinal (forward and back), facing and profiling operations with a single tool. The methodology is based on the tool entering the component at the chuck and removing material as it travels towards the end of the component. This allows for the application of a small entering angle, higher lead angle and the possibility of machining with higher cutting parameters. Furthermore, conventional turning (from part-end to chuck) can be performed using the same tools. Sandvik Coromant believes that some applications could see productivity increases in excess of 50% through the deployment of PrimeTurning over conventional techniques. Some of these improvements are due to the small entering angle and higher lead angle, which creates thinner, wider chips that spread

the load and heat away from the nose radius. The result is both increased cutting data and extended tool life. In addition, as cutting is performed in the direction moving away from the shoulder, there is no danger of chip jamming (a common and unwanted effect of conventional longitudinal turning). Higher machine utilisation due to reduced set-up time and fewer production stops for tool changes also enhances overall productivity. PrimeTurning will be particularly beneficial to manufacturing industries such as aerospace and automotive where there is a need to perform external turning operations in big batch productions or where multiple set-ups and tool changes are often required. “Experienced operators know that a small entering angle allows for increased feed rates,” said Håkan Ericksson, Global Product Specialist at Sandvik Coromant. “However, in conventional turning they are restricted to using entering angles of around 90° to reach the shoulder and avoid the long, curved chips that a small entering angle characteristically delivers. “PrimeTurning solves these problems by combining a perfect reach at the shoulder and the application of 25-30° entering angles with excellent chip control and maintained tolerances. This innovation presents countless possibilities to perform turning operations in much more efficient and productive ways." Enquiry no: 84

FROX is now offering tailor-made welding equipment rental packages to the South African market, affording customers the option to rent a selection of premium welding machines for short- to medium-term projects. This first-of-a-kind rental equipment offer from Afrox incorporates four models from the Miller range of premium quality welding machines for large industrial applications. Afrox has been the exclusive distributor of Miller welding equipment in South Africa for over 50 years. Miller welding machines are widely regarded as a superior choice for welding and provide a combination of strength and refinement. Bespoke rental agreements will give Afrox customers the choice of short or longer term rentals, delivery and collection options, maintenance packages, on-site service, and complete customer support through Afrox’s national Service Engineering Offer. Other benefits of the Miller equipment rental offer include reduction of cost of ownership,

availability of additional equipment requirements and a maintenance-free rental agreement. Dewald Bodenstein, Afrox Product Manager, Arc Equipment said that this new rental offering is ideal for shortterm projects, giving customers the opportunity to lease additional welding machinery that they may not necessarily want or need in the long term. “This offer is aimed at the market segment where equipment needs are project based, affording our customers flexible and cost-effective alternatives to purchasing new machines.” Bodenstein added that the rental packages will particularly benefit the fabrication, transport, petrochemical and mining industries and will be tailor-made and customer specific, offered on a nation-wide basis in urban hubs. The range includes The Miller XMT 350, the rugged Miller Dimension 812, the Miller XPS 450 and the Miller Big Blue 500DX Diesel.

Enquiry no: 85

Screening products for every application

MG supplies a wide range of components for light and bulk materials handling systems, supported by technical resources, fabrication and field service capabilities. Key components for efficient materials handling include screening media, with various surfaces, to suit exact performance requirements. “Selection of the correct product is based on the specific application, material size, desired throughput and required efficiency of the screen,” said Chantelle Olivier, product specialist, materials handling, BMG. “Other factors to consider include operating temperature, vibration and weight.” BMG’s extensive range of screening products encompasses PU and rubber screen panels, side liners, spray nozzles, screen mounts, springs and rubber buffers. Standard PU screen panels, with an 85 Shore hardness, have a dynamic load capacity and are designed for efficient operation in wet and dry applications. Special PU (PolyTuff) screen panels, with a 60 Shore hardness, have the properties of standard PU and rubber and improved flexibility from specially engineered

plastics. These screens do not perish in elevated temperature environments and offer extended service life. Woven wire mesh screens, which are designed for corrosion and abrasion resistance, area manufactured from high carbon, mild steel, stainless steel and spring steel. These mesh screens are available in square, slotted, standard harp and tri-harp weave types, with an aperture range from 2 mm to 120 mm. Wire diameter ranges from 0,9 mm to 12,50 mm. All standard over-hook options are available in the C shape and 45˚ hooks. Other screening products include side liners, pins, sleeves and spray nozzles. Rubber buffers are manufactured from a natural rubber compound that withstands high frequency applications and prevents deterioration that would normal result from heat build-up. Also in the range are screen mounts, side clamps, perforated plates and rubber nosings. Wear liners – available in ultra high molecular weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE), rubber and Enquiry no: 86 Polyurethane (PU).

Welding – the miracle career There is no better career choice for a young man or woman than welding. It offers a wide variety of activities from inspection to administration through to actual welding in a host of different applications. And most importantly, with a welding qualification, you’re certain to get a job. So, see below for a list of our many courses and contact us for more information on how to bring a miracle into your life.

Courses offered by the SAIW Welding Quality Control; Welding Inspection; Welding Coordination; Codes of Construction; Heat Treatment; Competent Persons; Welding Symbols; Welding Metallurgy and Failure Analysis; Practical Welding; Non-Destructive Testing – Visual Testing, Magnetic Testing, Penetrant Testing, Eddy Current Testing, Radiographic Testing, Ultrasonic Testing. For further details refer to the Course Prospectus on our website.

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SAIW Southern African Institute of Welding

4/14/16 11:20 AM

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Work smarter not harder with new drill rig

ONGER drill rods, improved to advanced planning and fuel burn and upgraded soft- analysis of the operations ware have made the SmartROC at hand.” T45 Top Hammer drill rig from Atlas Automated operations Copco even smarter. such as remote con“This rugged and reliable machine trol solutions, automatic will boost production and productivity safety features and sysat limestone and aggregate quarries tems, improved informaas well as construction, open-pit and tion integration, visualisaselective mining operations by drill- tion and control of opering faster, better and more accurate- ations deliver a host of ly,” the company said in a statement. benefits including better “Automation goes far beyond fully planning, precision drillautonomous products," said Hedley ing, improved accuracy, machine Birnie, Business Line Manager, Atlas availability and extended equipCopco Mining and Rock Excavation ment lifecycle, enhanced operator Technique’s Surface and Exploration safety and performance, as well as Drilling. “It encompasses anything improved fuel efficiency for producfrom data collection on equipment tivity improvement across-the-board. utilisation and machine1 conditions “While automation technology is Launch Advert.qxp_Layout 2017/04/06 11:09 AM Page 1

fairly new to Southern Africa, there are sixteen SmartROCs - three in the Northern Cape, three in Limpopo and 10 in North West - of which five have been in operation for several years and we are seeing a growing interest in both the rigs as well as the automation features they offer. Smart mines and quarries realise

that the implementation of automation technology is crucial to a sustainable and profitable future and SmartROC is perfectly positioned to meet the necessary requirements,” Birnie said. Equipped with leading-edge automation technology, the SmartROC T45 delivers optimised drilling and blasting processes. Rig Remote Access (RRA) sends drill patterns, hole angles and depths to the rig with GPS coordinates enabling the SmartROC T45 to drill holes autonomously and accurately in the right place at the right depth and at the right angle.

“It also allows you to reach the desired hole depth while drill tubes are added automatically.” Recent upgrades have made the SmartROC T45 even more cutting-edge; the lengthening of the drill rods and starter rods to 4.2m and 6.1m respectively increases uptime due to fewer stops. “We are continuously updating the software of our SmartROC drill rigs for highest possible rig performance,” said Birnie. The latest updates on the SmartROC T45 include a better drill control system for improved performance in broken ground and better control of the GPS compass. Operators are also now able to turn the HNS (Hole Navigation System) on and off. Enquiry no: 87

Cost-effective sustainable access roads and trails

NTERLOCKING Armorflex Blocks from Technicrete are ideally suited to Jeep track (strip road) application, providing access to areas currently either without established roadways or with crumbling in situ cast concrete strips, the company says. In a statement, it said sites such as rural development and construction areas, agricultural and farm roads, tourism establishments, areas of bush, tree or high grass growth, gravel roads, earth tracks and in particular, locations where roads and embankments are subject to stormwater erosion, would benefit greatly from the installation of Armorflex. The non-slip Jeep track solution is cost effective for property owners and developers who require vehicle access where roads may or have already become eroded by weather. The specialised design of the blocks, with earth filled gaps and varying

height concrete areas, ensures greater traction for vehicles, particularly in mountainous environs and/or wet conditions. The ability to wire tie the blocks together into long mats and anchor these into the natural soil further assists in stabilisation of the blocks and road surface. Placement in Jeep track orientation is cost effective due to a material saving by only paving two strips of approximately 600mm wide each as opposed to paving the entire road width. Traditionally, gravel roads or earth tracks require costly regular maintenance, such as grading. In situ concrete surfaces start cracking up very soon after installation and degrade very quickly with large chunks of concrete spalling and breaking off. These type of installations generally require regular repeated applications that

become too costly to maintain. Technicrete’s Jeep track allows for vegetation growth through the blocks (if required) and easy maintenance of this. A correctly designed and installed Armorflex Jeep track project will offer a closure solution with minimal maintenance requirements that will not crack, break, shift or become unusable for vehicular access. These roads can be designed to accommodate low to high intensity traffic and a variety of loading from cars to heavy trucks. Technicrete ISG is part of the IS Enquiry no: 88 Group of companies.

New translucent sectional polycarb doors

ichard Wilcox, a leading manufacturer of speciality doors and hardware recently updated its extensive product line with the addition of translucent polycarbonate panels for sectional doors.

A sectional door is a one made from horizontally hinged panels that roll up into an overhead position on tracks. The door can be motor, chain or manually driven and are assisted with a spring to operate the door.

Canada-based Richard Wilcox make speciality hardware and door accessories for slide, swing, and slide-fold doors that are used in zoos, aquariums, stables, contemporary buildings, historic buildings as well as commercial, industrial, and residential applications worldwide. Stabaload partnered with Richard Wilcox and have been installing their sectional doors in South African as well as sub-Sahara Africa for several years, with more than 15 000 doors already installed. The company describes the new Richard Wilcox translucent polycarbonate panels as “very strong and asthetcally pleasing”. The translucent panels allow natural light into the work area creating an inviting work environment. In colder climates this also helps at reducing heating costs. “The panels are extremely resistant to impacts and also withstand long term exposure to extreme elements such as wind, rain, snow and sun without the risk of cracking,” the company said in a statement. The panels are made with 16mm thick, triple walled polycarbonate sheets and are very lightweight, providing easy operation with minimum stress on the rest of the door components. The polycarb doors are well suited for a large range of industries including service stations and garages as well as industrial, agricultural, commercial and institutional applications where a lightweight, strong, light-transmitting door is required. According to the company, these doors are also “very pleasing to the eye and will also suit up-market residential applications where image is of utmost importance”. The door has a 10-year limited warranty. Enquiry no: 89

April / May 2017

COMPANY & PRODUCT NEWS

KZN Industrial & Business News

Building harmony disruptions

UERIES regarding incomplete or inadequate design documentation, or specifications issued late during the construction phase, seem to crop up more often than any other issues the Joint Building Contracts Council (JBCC) has to face. That’s according to Uwe Putlitz, CEO of the JBCC, who says in the JBCC’s free “Frequently Asked Questions” service to users of JBCC agreements, the most frequent queries and disputes relate to late changes to the specified works, consequent revision of the construction period, partial or late payment to the contractor, and termination of the contractor’s appointment - when all else have failed. “JBCC has found that a significant number of queries relate to incomplete or inadequate design documentation or specifications issued late in terms of the contractor’s programme. These issues should have been dealt with speedily - and at little cost - in the pre-contract phase of a project while the employer was still initiating a project,” Putlitz said. He said essential questions to be asked – and answered – right at the outset to manage contractual risk include: • When is the facility required? “This is to ensure realistic expectations: invariably employers and consultants believe the inception, design,

to deal with environmental performance criteria during construction and during operation. Generally, this requires a larger number of skilled designers whose work must be coordinated and integrated before the procurement documentation is issued and contractors are appointed. “Quality design takes time. Such professional consultants must be fairly rewarded for their skills and the professional risks they assume on behalf of their clients.” He warned that failure to respect the design process in terms of the time and the skills required - and payment for appropriate professional fees - may result in the late issue of incomplete construction information to the contractor who may consequently be entitled to a revision of the date for practical completion, and possibly also additional costs. And delays in completion, mean delays in tenant income for the client. “Then will follow the search in the building contract agreement for a clause to blame someone who can be made to pay for the expense and loss incurred. If the professional designers are singled out for blame – should their professional indemnity insurance compensate the client for expense and/or loss incurred? Remember, the more avoidable claims are submitted to the insurers, the higher the premiums will be in future.”

procurement and execution of the works can be completed in ridiculously short periods.”; • Are specialist design and execution skills required, ranging from geotechnical engineers, town planning, urban design, acoustics, kitchen design, interiors, and landscaping so that these disciplines can be integrated timeously in the final solution? • Will the use of new materials and/ or the specification of untried construction technologies be involved; and • Who does the ‘design’ – will it be done within the employer’s organisation, or by professional consultants appointed by the employer, or by the contractor in a ‘design and build’ method or similar solution? “Buildings have become more complex to cater for more sophisticated technological operating systems and

Enquiry no: 90

A clean sheet approach to a changing paper industry

N the latest phase of a 60-year partnership, SKF is helping a leading global supplier of pulp and paper equipment meet the challenges of a changing industry With roots that stretch back to the end of the 18th Century, Espoo-based Valmet Oyj has evolved to become one of the world’s most important providers of capital equipment, automation and services for the paper, pulp and energy sectors. SKF bearings, associated components and services are now used on Valmet machinery on a global scale. “Ten years ago, paper production was all about economies of scale,” says Arto Huttunen, Global Strategic Account Manager at SKF. “Customers wanted the largest, fastest and widest

company’s latest OptiConcept M machines, for example, use a modular design to simplify specification, assembly, operation and maintenance. Compared to conventional designs, the OptiConcept M design requires up to 40 per cent less space. The approach also allows mills to optimise machinery investments according to their needs, providing increased flexibility to change the type and grade of material produced or to adjust capacity as demand changes. “The biggest, fastest machines would have design speeds of up to 2,000 m per minute,” says Huttunen. “Specifying bearings for the loads and speeds involved often called for tailor made solutions. With the modern, smaller machines with design speeds of up to 1,700m per minute, it becomes possible to use standard components, which can provide sigEnquiry no: 91 nificant savings."

machines, and they expected those machines to last for 20 or 30 years of continuous production.” Today, however, there has been a shift to smaller, cheaper and more flexible equipment. “Instead of 11 m wide rolls, many modern machines use 6m or 7m rolls,” says Huttunen. Smaller machines offer a host of advantages, he notes, from simpler, cheaper logistics, thanks to the lighter weight of components, to a quicker return on investment, something that is critically important in fast moving, volatile markets. As its markets have evolved, so has Valmet’s design approach. The

Enquiry Service For more information on product or service news please circle the number relevant to the article then return it to: KZN Industrial & Business News P O Box 1322 Wandsbeck 3631 or fax this coupon to enquiries at (031) 266 7514 or log on to www.mediaevents.co.za.

Name: ______________________________________________ Surname:____________________________________________ Designation:__________________________________________ Company: ___________________________________________ Address: ____________________________________________ ______________________________ Postal Code:___________ Tel:______________________ Fax:_______________________ E-mail:_____________________________________________ Nature of business: ___________________________________ Issue 104 - April/ May 2017 1

Upcoming features in June/ July 2017 • Construction, Civil & Structural Engineering • Electrical & Electronics • KZN Industrial & Technology Exhibition Preview • Machine Tools • Metals, Alloys & Fabrication • Sugar Industry For all editorial contributions contact Chantal Haines For advertising Cheryl Murphy Tel: 031 266 7511 Email: editorial@mediaevents.co.za

April / May 2017

INDUSTRY PEOPLE

Winners of the Ithala Development Finance Corporation Annual Business Achiever Awards held recently

KZN Industrial & Business News

Seen at a recent SAIMC monthly event held at the Durban Country Club from left:

Grant Douglas, Heaton Valves; Paul Ganter, and Craig Glenister, Proconics

From left, Yvonne Zwane, Ithala Group Chief Executive; Sandile Ntuli, “Entrepreneur of the Year” award winner and Dr Mandla Gantsho, Ithala Group Chairman

From left, Thamsanqa Ngcobo, Mlalazi Co-operative; Bonginkosi Ngcobo, Snembe Farm; Zolani Ngcingwana, Yellow Star Properties; Sandile Ntuli, Black Carrot Trading; Bongani Mdlalose, Mlalazi Co-operative and Phumlani Radebe, Sobantu Agriculture Co-operative

Ithala and the Businesswomen’s Association of South Africa (BWSA) hosted a business skills development workshop in Durban

Dean Truttles, Kevin McElroy and Howard Lister; SAIMC

Left: Busani Sibindi, SAIMC, Donald Hobson; Proconics and Dinesh Narayan, Moore Process Control

From left, Mpume Langa, BWASA Durban Chairperson Top 20 “Imbokodo Iyazenzela” nominees, Ntombenhle Gumede, Phumzile Ntuli and Nobuhle Mkhwanazi with Sitandiwe Dimba, Ithala Corporate Social Investment Co-ordinator

Bottom: Eddie Mohlmann, PCS; Keith Mitchell, Heaton Valves and Grant Howes, Valve & Automation

Yamkela Ndabeni (right), owner of Iyamzo Fresh Fashion in Stanger with her mentor, Stella Khumalo (left), regional BWASA Business Achiever 2016 award winner in the public sector category

Oil group donates science kits to schools “Willowton Group aim, through the donation of science kits, to increase the number of learners graduating in science, technology, engineering and mathematics,” said Farouk Moosa, Executive Director at Willowton Group. “With the right tools learners are given the chance after graduation to succeed at their studies.” Willowton Group has been donating science and maths kits to schools in KwaZulu-Natal for the past three years. The science kits are equipped for practical experiments for grades 10 to 12. “These science kits give learners greater exposure to the practical side of science, resulting in a higher level of education,” said Moosa. Pictured at the Circle of Excellence Awards are from left: Prof Marcus “It is imperative that corporate business assist Ramogale (Acting Vice-Chancellor & Principal of MUT), Mr AN learners throughout South Africa by donating (Vusi) Dumakude (delighted Principal of Umlazi Senior Secondary) equipment required at schools for key learning Mr Farouk Moosa (Executive Director Willowton Group), Nareshini in subjects such as science and mathematics.” Ranganthan (Edutrade) and Ahmed Motala (New Africa) The donations, which were made to the top three performing science schools as well as the OUR high schools in the uMlazi area recently received most improved school in science, will cover the a donation of science kits from Pietermaritzburg based FET physical sciences curriculum for Grades 10 to 12. The Willowton Group, manufacturers of Sunfoil cooking topics covered include mechanics - waves, sound and light oil. The kits were presented to principals of the schools at - matter and material as well as chemical change. the Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT) Circle of The kits are valued at R100 000 and contain all the necExcellence Awards held at Coastlands Hotel. essary chemicals for the experiments, and are housed in The awards recognise and honour the top performing a lockable metal cabinet with topic trays. They also come schools in the uMlazi District in various categories including complete with a teacher’s guide and learner worksheets. Enquiry no: 92 maths, physical science and accounting.

Financial services training academy opens THE Bidvest Financial Services Academy was launched on Umhlanga Ridge recently. This KZN initiative, a joint venture between Bidvest Insurance Group and Bidvest Bank, aims to play a pivotal role in developing the skills and capabilities of staff and potential candidates in the financial services sector. The academy is the first to be launched by Bidvest Financial Services (which now includes insurance) and follows the pilot Bidvest Bank academy currently running successfully in Cape Town. The academy will have its

own facilitators who have developed the programmes and course material. The academy has also partnered with Masifunde Training Centre to offer additional courses. The academy delivers learning and development courses not only to its employees, but it will also host a graduate development programme to fast-track graduates into the financial services environment and develop their skills, as well as offer learnerships for entry-level positions within Bidvest Insurance and Bidvest Bank. Enquiry no: 93

— Keep the systems Running OVR QuickSafe surge protection With the new OVR QuickSafe (QS) range ABB offers a new generation of surge protective devices (SPD) to protect residential and industrial buildings against transient voltages. Thanks to the innovative technology of this new range of OVR no dedicated backup protection is required for selected applications. QS technology increases the rated current in the power system so that the main upstream protection up to 125A MCB (B or C characteristics) or 160A fuse (gG or gL) can be applied. Compliant with the IEC/EN 61643-11 standard, the OVR QS range is the ideal choice to simplify maintenance and increase the safety of installations. abb.com/lowvoltage

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