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Trackless high-speed development project to be completed next year

13th September 2013

By: Zandile Mavuso

Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor: Features

  

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Following the success of the decline sinking project in October last year at Lubambe copper mine, in Zambia, mining contracting company Murray & Roberts Cementation has been awarded a new contract, extended until January next year, for trackless high-speed development at the joint venture-owned deposit.

The mine is owned by South Africa-based mining company African Rainbow Minerals, diversified mining corporation Vale and Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings.

The latest contract involves all horizontal and inclined development for trackless high-speed technology in ramps 3, 4 and 5, situated in the mine’s eastern limb.

Murray & Roberts Cementation will be responsible for the infrastructure development of two conveyor-belt systems and will maintain the owner’s fleet of equipment.

“For the project that we were awarded last year, our team achieved 14 190 m of the trackless speed development installation and we remained ahead of target against the mining schedule for the duration of the contract. The support regime involved welded mesh, with split sets being installed by the drill-rig operators after every blast from grade line to grade line, and extended to 0.5 m from the face,” says Murray & Roberts Cementation Lubambe senior project manager Wyllie Pearson.

He mentions that additional work included in the previous contract included the installation of 75 m level tips – each 6.1 m in diameter and 18 m long. These tips were raisebored and the construction of the tip and box front infrastructure were subsequently also awarded to Murray & Roberts Cementation. The cover drilling, which was included in the contract to ensure safe and effective development, was undertaken using Kempe diamond drills, which covered the advanced development.

“The first sand zone, 30 m wide, has been successfully negotiated using Titan soil nails, Becker Arch Sets and 5.6 mm welded mesh and shotcrete as support mediums, with the second zone currently being developed. The sand is excavated out of the face using a Hyundai 35Z7 mini excavator. With the project team comprising of South Africans, Australians, Filipinos and Zambians, the team is once again exceeding the development target,” highlights Pearson.

The company mentions that the equipment purchased by Lubambe for the contract awarded last year, was shipped to the Durban harbour and transported by truck to the Zambian Copperbelt. The machinery includes five Sandvik DD320-26 split-feed drill rigs, two Sandvik DD320-26 fixed-feed drill rigs, two Sandvik LH514 and four Sandvik LH410 load-haul-dump (LHD) units, nine Sandvik TH540 trucks, three Getman emulsion charge-up utility vehicles, one Getman scissor lift, one Fermel scissor lift, one Fermel grader, one Manitou and seven Toyota Land Cruisers.

The drill rigs are developing about 1 450 m every month, while the LHD units and dump trucks are moving 63 500 t of ore and 32 500 t of waste – a total of 96 000 t of rock on a monthly basis, from the development ends to the internal silos and surface stock piles.

“All equipment for the contract is being maintained by Murray & Roberts Cementation and is audited by the original-equipment manufacturers to ensure continued compliance with requirements. We have also established an on-site workshop at the mine incorporating a three-bay facility, with a separate washing bay, two administration containers and three store containers. Maintenance services are carried out during the day shift and drill rigs are brought in for a 12-hour service every week,” Pearson points out.

Murray & Roberts Cementation has also hired new employees from Zambia for the project and has initiated training programmes that will assist the employees to gain knowledge of the work required of them.

“Although the new employees gained experience with the mechanised equipment being used for this project during our first contract, it was necessary to elevate the competency level for the latest project.

“We’ve extended the training programme to include maintenance and rebuilding on the mechanical and electrical aspects, civil and steel fixing and the efficient supply of services, as well as the development logistics required to achieve 1 450 m every month. Underground vehicle training has been accomplished with the assistance of the client’s simulators, supplied by mining construction company Sandvik, and final assessments and pass-out were undertaken in underground conditions,” Pearson highlights.

Murray & Roberts Cementation employees are taken through the safety inductions of Lubambe and Murray & Roberts Cementation. The foreign-supervision employees have also had safety training at the company’s Bentley Park group training facility near Carletonville, South Africa, before being sent to Zambia. All employees undergo job-specific safety training on site and, to date, the team’s safety record is 162 809 fatality-free shifts and more than 1.88-million fatality-free hours.

“Safety is the cornerstone of all Murray & Roberts Cementation projects and our vision is to develop a business culture that supports and delivers injury-free projects. This is underpinned by the Murray & Roberts Group safety philosophy – Stop.Think.Act.24/7 – an approach that emphasises the importance of taking action to correct unsafe conditions and behaviour, while recognising positive behaviour. This philosophy highlights the need to be safety-aware at all times, at work and after hours,” he emphasises.

Edited by Megan van Wyngaardt
Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

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