DEDICATED TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
De Beers will now work with Synova to develop a fully automated cutting and shaping technology, with LMJ at its core, which is expected to enhance diamond cutting and polishing efficiency
Photo by: Synova
Diamond major De Beers announced last month that it had acquired a 33.4% equity stake in Swiss-based patent- protected laser micro jet (LMJ) technology owner and supplier Synova SA.
De Beers will now work with Synova to develop a fully automated cutting and shaping technology with LMJ at its core, which is expected to enhance diamond cutting and polishing efficiency.
This technology could potentially help diamantaires achieve higher yields, reduce the risk of damage to stressed stones and generate higher throughput as a result of faster cutting time and easier processing.
De Beers notes that this equity stake in Synova supports the company’s strategy for technology development, adding that technology is critical to ensuring the supply and efficient sorting of diamonds in the industry. Technology also ensures that these activities are safe and have a minimal environmental impact.
“This investment is another example of our continued commitment to technology. We have had great success with our technologies in rough diamond sorting, inscription and grading for the Forevermark programme and synthetic detection. We believe that this new cutting technology has the potential to play an important role in the diamond industry, as efficiency becomes increasingly more important for diamantaires,” says De Beers Group CEO Philippe Mellier.
“This investment is focused on supporting our customers’ businesses and making a commercial investment in a growing technology business,” he adds.
Mellier further notes that De Beers expects significant commercial benefit to stem from the production of the fully automated cutting and shaping technology. The company also recognises opportunities to develop even more beneficial diamond-related technologies as it continues to identify synergies between Synova and its existing technological expertise.
Importance of Technology
De Beers has placed itself at the forefront of technological innovation that ranges from process improvements through the adoption of dense-media cyclones, the exploitation of new resources and the pioneering of marine mining at offshore deposits.
De Beers uses proprietary technology in sorting, valuing and sales to produce consistent assortments of its diamonds to satisfy customer requirements, such as machines for weighing, as well as the shape, colour and quality sorting of about 300-million stones handled by the company each year.
Industry Risk
De Beers notes that undisclosed synthetic diamonds pose the risk of damaging consumers’ confidence that they are buying natural diamonds, which could have dire consequences for the whole industry.
To reduce the risks of dented consumer confidence resulting from deliberate or inadvertent undisclosed synthetics, De Beers has invested nearly $65-million in research over the past 30 years to develop sophisticated technology, including DiamondSure, DiamondView and DiamondPlus, which can readily detect all types of gem synthetics. This restores consumer confidence that they are not unknowingly buying an undisclosed synthetic instead of a natural gem.