MINUTES OF THE CM&EE MEETING HELD ON 25 JANUARY 2017 AT THE CHAMBER OF MINES BUILDING CM&EE MINUTES CIRCULAR NO 01/17 (For approval)

Transcription

1 28 February 2017 MINUTES OF THE CM&EE MEETING HELD ON 25 JANUARY 2017 AT THE CHAMBER OF MINES BUILDING CM&EE MINUTES CIRCULAR NO 01/17 (For approval) 1. WELCOME The chairperson, Mr. Robert Hart, opened the meeting at 11:00 and welcomed all present. The following persons attended the meeting: Robert Hart Shaldon Naicker Patrick Eyre Julius Hattingh Ceaser Molobye Vitesh Maharaj Adrian Burn Riaan Blignaut Karel Opperman Chris Van Heeswijk Hennie Lombard Gustav Van Der Linde At Greyling Duncan Julyan Christian Teffo Ntsikelelo Phokwana Kagisho Motseme Harmony Sasol Kumba Nkomati Nickle Mine Petra Diamonds Anglo Platinum Royal Bafokeng Platinum Lonmin Sibanye Gold Gold Fields AMRE/Exxaro De Beers Group AngloGold Ashanti Chamber of Mines Chamber of Mines Chamber of Mines Chamber of Mines Apologies Vaughan Townsend Implats

2 Johnny Coetzee Johan Kleynhans Siphamandla Mthethwa Richard Mack De Beers Group Gold Fields AMRE AngloGold Ashanti 1. WELCOME Safety brief Mine employees are exposed to unsafe taxis daily on their travels to the mines and this is imprinted on their minds. Mines have to work on human behaviour to ensure safety by also understanding the influences from external factors. Confirmation of the Agenda The agenda was accepted with the addition of Engineering Training Section 26 Artisans. 2. PRESENTATIONS There were no presentations. 3. MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 23 NOVEMBER Approval of the minutes 1. Apologies Johan Kleynhans is to be added to the apologies.

3 2. Presentation The spelling of Khumani Mine was corrected and the presentation from Danie Van Der Merwe is outstanding. Ntsikelelo Phokwana 10.2 The correct Occupational Exposure Limit for dust is 2mg/cubic meter With these changes added, the minutes were taken as a fair reflection of the CM&EE meeting held on 23 November Matters Arising 11.4 Conveyor Belts The Chamber contacted the Conveyor Manufacturers Association s Chris Townsend. Chris indicated that the conveyor belt standard was completed in 2014 and the suppliers agreed to work according to the standard until the SABS facilities are in place. The CMA and SABS have held multiple meetings to sort out the challenges experienced with the SABS Laboratories. At the CMA s last board meeting it was agreed that a task team consisting of manufacturers and customers would be convened to engage the SABS. The CMA requested representation from the AMRE, SACEA and CM&EE for the task team. 1. The CMA are to be requested to consider the use of the ISO Laboratories rather than the SABS Labs. C Teffo 2. The Conveyor Manufacturers are to be requested to test the conveyor belts at their own facilities. This can only be done if SANAS accredits their laboratories and mines can specify on their tenders for these conditions above to be satisfied. In the meantime the CMA are to be requested to write a letter as assurance that their conveyor belts are produced according to the standards.

4 C Teffo 4.1 Safety Experiences Harmony is considering the implementation of safety netting when working at heights. The CM&EE responded that safety netting is currently being used at brine ponds, dams, orepasses and around settlers to avoid falling in. They reported that they never use netting whilst working at heights. Robert Hart Feedback was requested from the AMRE with regards to the MHSA Amendment of Chapter 1, 2 and 15. The item will be raised at the next CM&EE meeting. Siphamandla Mthethwa 4.3 Centre of Excellence Projects Feedback Assessment of Statutory Equipment Compliance This is a centralised web based data system being created by the CSIR for the MHSC. The CM&EE was invited to a Stakeholder Workshop to consider the demo before finalisation by the MHSC on 12 December 2016 at Cedarwoods of Sandton. Armand Smit from Lonmin, C Teffo and N Phokwana represented the Chamber of Mines at the workshop. Inspectors of Machinery and Mines from different DMR provinces also attended the stakeholder workshop. The intention of the system is to have a centralised database where schedules of statutory inspections on winders, boilers, elevators and shafts are listed. There are not many serious and fatal accidents with regards to these equipment, thus the questions around the project from the inspectorate. The inspectors wanted clarity as they reported that the mines do send them the schedules which rarely changed and they can schedule their visits according to these schedules. The MHSC Project Manager reported that it s not about accidents but if the system works then it can be rolled out to include schedules of other equipment. The MHSC database will not require the full

5 inspection results but will only require information on when the maintenance was done and if the equipment was in good working order IBMQI Update The IBMQI is to remain a standard agenda item. The noise measurement methodology document has been presented to MOHAC and will replace the 2005 note that was issued by the Chief Inspector of Mines. Feedback on the use of the screening tool by mines is low as only 6 companies have supplied the info to the MOSH. The MOSH has decided to source the information from the Group Environmental Engineers. After the GEE meeting a report will be tabled at the CM&EE meeting. Nomination is required for replacing Mr. Francois Van Niekerk whose role at Exxaro has been changed and is no longer available for the IBMQI work. C Teffo/Kagisho Motseme 4. HEALTH AND SAFETY 4.1 Safety Experiences The deceased dump truck operator was struck and pinned against the steering wheel by the cross beam of the steel set support that had dislodged. He was operating the dump truck on the ramp between two adjacent destress cuts. All the arched sets in the mine have been inspected, the inspector has requested the mine to concrete the footwall of the sets and 5m around the sets. In restricted areas the mine has agreed on a 0.5 m clearance on all sides for safe passage of vehicles. The ramp is a curved decline which makes maneuvering the haul truck challenging. It is suspected that the driver drove too close to the arched set. AngloGold Ashanti was congratulated for achieving a Fatal Free Year in Moab Khotsong is currently on 2 Million Fatality Free Shifts. Nkomati Nickel Mine was also congratulated for achieving more than 5.7 Million Fatality Free Shifts A mine using 54 kombis to transport about 600 people to work has experienced multiple challenges with its kombi drivers who are being recruited from the local taxi industry.

6 An over-wind up to the jack catches occurred whilst the engineer was doing dynamic testing on the shaft which has been stopped for over a year and is on care and maintenance. The driver overshot the station position into the jack catches as the artisan had not relocated the markings to the original station position. Section 54 was issued by the DMR. The CM&EE offered to share single winder procedures. The miner was crushed to death between the sidewall and the drill rig when the drill rig fell on him whilst they were trying to rerail it at a development end. The loco driver and guard claim that they used a Simplex jack which is part of the SOP and the record of a PTO for the unit is there. The Simplex jacks were removed from the stock list and replaced with other jacks but they are still being used in the mine. Mr Maharaj offered to send the calculations for the jacks and rail gauge to Mr Opperman. Some companies have included in their standard operating procedures that all rerailments will be supervised by the shiftboss. Other CM&EE members reported that all derailments at switches have to be done with three eyebolts and a rigger has to be called out. Dynamic rerailing methods are also being considered, the investigation is ongoing. Whilst tailgating, a truck fitted with PDS rammed into another. The Venetia Diamond Mine Opencast and Plant was congratulated for achieving 10 Million Loss Time Injury Free Hours. A fuel hose that was chafed released a fine diesel spray which caught fire when it got in contact with the truck s hot engine and exhaust. The automatic fire suppression was activated and the operator also used a fire extinguisher to extinguish the fire, resulting in minor damages to the machine. The root cause is the improper connection/inspection of the pipes/hoses after servicing the vehicles A Grab used at a scrapyard touched the 22kv power line which tripped and the operator was not harmed. During investigations it was revealed that the risk assessment was not done and that there was no travel route plan for the vehicle. Exxaro in 2016 achieved LTIFR of 0.11 against a target of 0.15 and the company had 16 LTIs for the year. A belt became loose due to substandard installation of belt support resin bolts (only 3 bolts installed instead of 8) at the tail end of the belt. An employee installing pipes nearby broke his leg as he was trying to run away from the loose belt.

7 An operator lost his finger on the drill rig when his loose-fitting glove was pulled in by the drill. The use of gloves around rotating machinery is being investigated. A pneumatic reamer helper lost two fingers after using loose-fitting gloves on the rotating part of the machine. Pneumatic reamers are difficult to isolate as the operators have to walk back to the plug to disable the machine. Safety latches/lockouts are to be installed on the machine to make isolation easier. An inexperienced apprentice was carrying out the task in this instance. Rock drillers also get their fingers amputated whilst using gloves to collar a drill hole. The design of the machine is the solution. The machine is to be designed in a manner where the operator is not required to grab a rotating drill steel. The use of collaring tools rather than hands to avoid touching the drill steel by hand whilst it is rotating. Whilst the artisan was inspecting a toolbox the damaged door fell on his boot and resulted in a fracture. The miner of the short-wall reported that the sidewall fell on his face whilst installing ventilation brattices. He sustained lacerations to the face which required stitches. An employee used a chisel and an 8-pound hammer to open a padlock instead of a 4 pound hammer, he amputated his hand in the process. Whilst using a mobile crane a 16-ton counterweight was used instead of using a 45-ton counterweight which resulted in the toppling of the crane. The solution is for the engineer at the mine to ensure that the crane is safe for use. On conveyor belts the DMR inspectors have requested the mine to specify the maximum amount of force required to activate the emergency safety pull wire. The inspectors are requesting mines to specify this to ensure that women are able to stop the belt in case of emergencies. The employee who was seriously injured last year after he was struck by a conveyance when he leaned into the shaft, and about which had been reported at a previous meeting, has subsequently passed away. A belt attended was killed whilst loading out a blockage on the tail pulley in tension whilst standing on top of the belt, once the blockage was cleared the belt moved and pulled him into the tail end. Systems had been in place (nip guards etc.) but were

8 removed by the engineering crew. It took more than 3 hours to remove the employee from the tail pulley. A truck ran out of fuel on the ramp, the operator activated the emergency foot brake which stopped the vehicle from rolling down. The accumulators then leaked and pressure was lost within 4 minutes which resulted in the vehicle rolling into a wall. The accumulators were supposed to be changed every 5 years, but it this was not done. An LHD fire occurred due to hydraulic oil leaking onto hot engine and exhaust. The fire extinguisher was used successfully to extinguish the fire. The smelter burned down after electrodes were changed and the non-flammable hydraulic fluid was drained and replaced with hydraulic oil. Harmony was congratulated for their two mines that achieved 2 Million Fatality Free Shifts (Tshepong Mine has achieved 2.75 Million Fatality Free Shifts) At a mine that uses a dual purpose winder (skip and winder) the banksman and crew are trained to do skip/cage changes daily on a flat car with safety slings. When they tried to hook the cage the skip pan did not hook correctly in the bridal. Whilst pulling the skip into the shaft the pan dislodged and fell from a height of 600 mm onto the bank and protruding into the shaft. The banksman had no view of the latching point and relied on the helper/spotter who on the particular day was not at work. It s important to have a safe working procedure and to have a direct line of sight from the bells for this type of operation. An inspector issued a Section 54 at a mine due to missing humble hooks entries in the logbook. The DMR was taken to court by the mine where the court handed down a decision that the DMR cannot stop the whole mine instead of the small part of mine affected. It was also reported that another mine was suing the DMR for cost after a Section 54 stoppage. The Chamber members are to meet to consider a way forward with regards to the DMR Section 54 stoppages. The Chamber is to organise a Section 54 Workshop. Elize Strydom/Rehana Gafoor A day of learning on static braking tests was held and the DMR inspectors appreciated the invitation from the industry.

9 4.2 Industry Safety Performance CM&EE Circular 02/17(for noting) There is no improvement on the safety record if Lilly Mine is included in the statistics. There s an improvement in terms of Transportation & Mining fatalities which were 22 in 2015 and are 16 in Serious accidents are on the decrease. The Chamber members are to focus on the development and management of critical controls for fatal risks, with an emphasis on the controls that are higher up the hierarchy of controls. The behaviour of personnel also needs to be changed at all levels to enhance their compliance and ability to accept change. 4.3 Update on the Advisory Note on Diesel Particulate Matter by Marco Biffi In terms of the proposed legislation on limiting exposures to diesel particulate emissions the legislation has not been promulgated yet. There are rumours that there are issues between the Department of Mineral Resources and the Department of Energy (for the adequate supply of low emission fuel) that need resolution at ministerial level. This should be seen as an opportunity for the Industry to put in place a multi-disciplinary approach to manage this pollutant well ahead of the introduction of regulatory measures to avoid unnecessary sanctions. Further updates will be supplied to the CM&EE committee as and when there are new developments. Marco Biffi 4.4 MHSC Pressure Vessels Task Team Representation by Employer/Chamber There is currently a task team considering two methods being the risk assessment methods and pressure testing methods for pressure vessels at the MHSC for inclusion into the national standard. Anglo Platinum and Harmony agreed to forward representatives for the MHSC Pressure Vessels Task Team. Vitesh Maharaj/Robert Hart

10 5. TECHNOLOGY 5.1 MOSH T&M MOSH T&M Industry Team Composition The MOSH T&M Team has three industry teams being Hard Rock Team, Coal U/G Team and the Opencast Team. The other two teams are properly represented whereas the representation at the MOSH Coal U/G Team is not satisfactory in terms of numbers attending the meeting and their level of seniority. The last meeting was held on July 2016 and only three companies attended of which two representatives were not regulars and the third person was a safety officer. The MOSH thus requests the CM&EE to assist in selecting proper representation for the Coal U/G team. Ntsiky and CM&EE T&M Milestone Reporting Templates A presentation was made by Mr Phokwana on the above and will be shared with the CM&EE. Harmony, Anglo Coal, PPC and AGA have submitted the requested milestone reports. Due to the low number of companies that have sent in reports the graphs are not yet representative. Companies have not submitted the info although they do keep the statistics requested by the MOSH. From 2014 to 2016 statistics with regards to serious injuries which resulted in workers being away from work for 14 days and more was requested whereas in 2017 there is an additional requirement to send information with regards to LTIs quarterly. The CM&EE agreed that the MOSH are to request the information from the OH&SPC and the CM&EE are to influence the OH&SPC to submit the data. The DMR has stopped collecting the data and that s why the responsibility has been rested upon the MOSH. Ntsiky Phokwana/OH&SPC

11 6. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT 6.1 GCC Issues Mentor Training for the GCC At the previous CM&EE meeting there was a query on the training required by the DMR for GCC mentors. The DMR has not specified the accreditation for the training of GCC mentors but requires some sort of mentorship training from an accredited provider. The mentor is not supposed to be appointed at the time of the training but is to have 5 years experience. The Annexure E has been completed and is awaiting finalisation by the DMR. 6.2 Engineering Training Section 26 Qualifications The employer is to verify the experience that a Section 26 artisan acquired during their training to ensure that it is relevant. The new qualifications are issued by the QCTO which requires knowledge, workplace experience and practical knowledge. It is best for companies to include the requirements for hiring of artisans in their procedures. The letter from Stella Carthy with regards to the temporary measures is to be recirculated. C Teffo QCTO Qualifications Apprentices that are appointed from now on are to follow the new curriculum from the QCTO as the MQA is no longer responsible. The MQA have informed the Chamber that they still have funds available for artisan training and have requested mines to take in more artisans as they can claim it back. The engineering training list that is being kept by the Chamber is not up to date as

12 members have not been sending information. The CM&EE are requested to send the information to the Skills Department, the circular will be resent to the CM&EE. In 2016 there were 107 engineers in training which is not reflective of the numbers that are in training. Duncan Julyan/CM&EE Sibanye has taken over the underground training facility at the Rustenburg Mines formerly owned by Anglo Platinum 7. NATIONAL STANDARDS 7.1 SABS Technical Committee No items were considered. 8. LEGISLATION 8.1 New Electrical Regulations Update CM&EE Circular No 03/17(for consideration) The CM&EE made a decision to constitute a task team that will comprise of those that have previously commented being Mark Peters and Christo Olivier, At Greyling and Chris Van Heeswijk. Members agreed that the membership has to have more representation to ensure that the document produced has depth.. Recommendations that were previously made by Brian O Connor and At Greyling that were submitted before the finalization of the regulations are to be used in the position paper that is to be developed. The way forward on the new electrical regulations challenges is to also be considered by the chairperson and Mr Van Der Woude on 02 February. Robert Hart/C Teffo

13 8.2 Interpretation of the TMM Regulations Update CM&EE Circular No 04/17(for consideration) The chairperson reported that he held a meeting with Mr Van Der Woude to consider the way forward with regards to the PDS Regulations. The CM&EE had proposed to use Mr. Thys Greyvensteyn as a project manager for the milestones that Chamber members have agreed upon in the revised PDS Position Paper. One of the CoE projects was going to be used to finance the project but this failed. The project will cost about R3.4 million and will be tabled at the CEOs Committee. Chamber members might need to fund the project jointly. On 02 February the chairperson, Mr Van Der Woude and Mr Van Achterbergh are having a teleconference with to consider the funding of the project. A circular is to be tabled at the next meeting for funding of the project. Robert Hart The CM&EE received the proposed PDS Regulations Clarity document in November 2016 for comment. The CM&EE members supported the document and correspondence was sent to the MHSC. At the MRAC meeting of 16 January 2017, members were requested to approve the document for submission to the MHSC. Employers however emphasised the need for the document to include definitions of the different types of surface mines, such as open cast and open pit mines, although stakeholders supported the document in principle. Once the document has been finalised it is to be presented at the various tripartite forums to clarify the interpretation challenges. Mr Mthokosizi Zondi has been appointed as the Chief Inspector and will be instrumental in the notes approval 9 RESOURCES 9.1 Eskom Matters Eskom Status Report The Eskom/Industry task team meeting was held on 24 January The security of supply challenges have subsided and Eskom currently has spare generation available. Maintenance of

14 plant has improved from a poor 67% last year to 75% in Eskom had planned to maintain 66 generators in 2016 and exceeded the target by maintaining 75 generators. The NERSA has a responsibility to ensure that Eskom is sustainable due to the National Energy Regulator Act. It s due to this that Eskom believes that an increase will be given by the NERSA around 24 February 2017 after it has considered its options and consulted its legal department. There are four probabilities with regards to the NERSA Tariff increase for Eskom: % increase - This is the percentage left in the MYPD3 determined 8% increase for 5 years. The increases given in the last 4 years were 8%, 8%, 12.2% and 9.6%. This would mean that the effect of RCAs is taken out from the previous two years as it s found to be unlawful % increase - This is the current inflation rate 3. 8% Increase - This is the approved increase for the MYPD % Increase - Eskom has put in an RCA application for Year 2 and Year 3 which amounts to R43 billion. It is highly unlikely that this increase with the court case pending. Eskom will most likely receive the 2.2% increase or the 6.7% inflation related increase. Eskom warned that this would mean double digit increases for the next 5 years. Eskom sales dropped by 0.95% which means that their revenues have continued to decrease. If the IPP capacity is factored in then the loss in revenue amounts to about 2 %( 1.1% renewables 1 800MW). On 25 February NERSA is to make a decision on the Eskom revenue for 2017/2018 and Eskom has to submit their MYPD4 by 01 April The taking over of supply of electricity to municipalities that are not paying has been taken to parliament for a decision. Eskom has also requested the mining industry to consider increasing their demand as they have more electricity available. 9.2 IRP 2016

15 The date for the submission of comments into the IRP 2016 has been extended to 31 March The EIUG is working closely with the CSIR in developing a comment. The Chamber will use inputs from the EIUG and BUSA to augment their comments. 9.3 Chamber Comment on the Rand Water Tariff 2017/18 CM&EE Circular No 06/17 The circular was noted. 10 COMMITTEE MATTERS, INDUSTRY COMMITTEES AND ASSOCIATIONS 10.1 Report from AMRE The AMRE Gala Dinner will be held on Saturday 25 February REPORT FROM SACEA The SACEA meeting will be held on 16 February where the 2017 calendar will be considered The SACEA Strategic Planning Session will be held from February The SACEA Northern Region meeting will be held on 23 February The LDV Meeting with Gerotek to consider the LDV standard is to be held on 9 February and the 2009 South 32 document will be considered to determine a way forward An air and water dust suppression system is to be tested on a continuous miner at a mine, the compressor on the CM is flameproof and the research is to be completed in April 2017 by Coaltech. The CTC has a recognised MQA Medium Voltage HT Switching Qualification

16 11 GENERAL Birthday wishes were extended to Shaldon Naicker, whose birthday was on the day of the meeting, and to Kagisho Motseme who had his birthday on 24 January. The November 2016 EIT GCC results are being released on the day of the meeting. The Fire Prevention CoP is coming into effect by the end of February. The SANS code is very onerous and difficult to apply in the mining industry. The DMR is planning a further six CoPs. 12 CLOSURE Date of the next CM&EE meeting is 29 March 2017.