https://www.miningweekly.com

Preventive maintenance project for remote site facilities under way

RHETT BELLAMY It is our goal to make sure clients don’t suffer through endless breakdowns

PREVENTATIVE SOLUTION Ascot’s solutions will prolong the life of the equipment

Photo by Cumulus

30th March 2018

By: Melissa Zisengwe

Creamer Media Reporter

     

Font size: - +

Mass accommodation product supplier Ascot Site Solutions will provide preventive maintenance on current and future equipment at a project on a remote copper mine site, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“The project began in January and is scheduled for completion within one year,” says Ascot Site Solutions MD Rhett Bellamy, who tells Mining Weekly that the project also has an extension clause.

According to Bellamy, African mines have an obligation to provide their employees with decent accommodation and resources – this includes suitable catering and laundry facilities. Ascot Site Solutions has, therefore, been contracted to provide systematic inspection, detection and correction, and prevent incipient failures of catering and laundry equipment before any major failures occur. Since the mine is remote, functional laundry and catering facilities are required to make the lives of workers more comfortable, he stresses.

The company will implement plans for preventive maintenance on site, ensuring that there is access to resources, such as spare parts for kitchen and laundry facilities, should the need arise. The maintenance work further increases the safety and performance of the catering and laundry equipment, as it will not break down mid-use, thereby decreasing the need for constant and costly maintenance.

Ascot’s solutions will prolong the life of the equipment, reduce high-risk injury and limit day-to-day errors while keeping the machines running efficiently and productively, says Bellamy.

“Having good food and clean clothes is vital to a happy living and working environment. With our project, we aim to ensure that these functions run smoothly and with as few disruptions as possible,” he says.

Ascot uses the best local and international product ranges to ensure that the company can provide all the required kitchen and laundry services tailored for clients, he adds. The company, therefore, creates functional working and living environments for feeding and clothing mine-site employees, Bellamy stresses.

Ascot arranges trips to the DRC site every two months to conduct progress audits to ensure that implementation plans are being sustained. “We work with equipment at various stages of use, from two months to ten years, and from various suppliers. The successful completion of the project is to bring the equipment up to a certain standard and to maintain it,” adds Bellamy.

Nevertheless, starting and running a successful project in remote areas comes with its challenges: it takes 14 days for a truck to travel from Johannesburg, Gauteng, to the site in the DRC.

“Further, the electricity supply is not consistent and the quality of water is not great. This puts a greater toll on the equipment. As the site has been supplied by various suppliers over the years, there are many different types of equipment that makes sourcing the spares more difficult, but not impossible,” Bellamy explains.

He believes that Ascot’s 43 years of experience provides the company with the upper hand in handling crises, managing each challenge and providing the best solution for its clients.

Edited by Mia Breytenbach
Creamer Media Deputy Editor: Features

Comments

Showroom

GreaseMax
GreaseMax

GreaseMax is a chemically operated automatic lubricator.

VISIT SHOWROOM 
Aqs image
AQS Liquid Transfer

AxFlow AQS Liquid Transfer (Pty) Ltd is an Importer and Distributor of Pumps in Southern Africa

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Photo of Martin Creamer
On-The-Air (15/03/2024)
15th March 2024 By: Martin Creamer
Gold, hydrogen, mining boost make headlines
Gold, hydrogen, mining boost make headlines
15th March 2024
Magazine round up | 15 March 2024
Magazine round up | 15 March 2024
15th March 2024

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.134 0.164s - 88pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now