MechChem Africa May-June 2022

⎪ Products and industry news ⎪

Epiroc wins order for battery-electric mining equipment Epiroc has won a large order for bat tery-electr i c mining equipment from Assmang Proprietary Limited to be used at a manganese ore mine in South Africa. Assmang has ordered several of Epiroc’s battery loaders and mine trucks – the Scooptram ST14 Battery and Minetruck MT42 Battery, respectively – that will be deployed at its Black Rock underground mine in the Northern Cape Province. The order was booked in the first quarter of 2022 and is valued at MSEK 120. through the use of our cutting-edge bat tery-electric machines, while prioritising product ivi ty and safety,” says Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s President and CEO. The order extends Assmang ’ s and Epiroc’s col laboration to use state-of the-art solutions for optimised opera tions at the mine. Assmang previously ordered the same type of battery-elec tric machines for this mine, and in 2019 Assmang selected Epi roc ’ s Mobi lar i s Mi n i ng Inte l l i gence d i g i ta l so l ut i on , wh i ch prov i des super i or s i tuat i ona l awareness of the mining operation in “Epiroc is proud to support Assmang on its journey toward lower emissions

real-time. The Scoopt ram ST14 Bat tery and Mi net ruck MT42 Bat tery mach i nes , manufactured in Örebro, Sweden, are bui l t to face the toughest condi t ions and are packed with intelligent features. They wi l l be equipped wi th Col l i s ion Avoidance Systems as well as with the telematics system Certiq, which allows for automated monitoring of productiv ity and machine performance. C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s t o e v e r y o n e involved! www.epiroc.com water is processed through reverse os mosis, while treated water is chemically treated to achieve the correct ph balance. Scientists use sterile water to dilute vaccines and essential stabilisers such as gelatine also need water. So, it is no won der that biopharmaceutical manufacturing plants need water purification systems that are reliable, particularly in Africa. abecotanks.co.za

Water tanks to help fight COVID In collaboration with Zutari and Hidro Tech, Abeco Tanks has helped install two immense water tanks on the site of the Aspen Pharmacare manufacturing plant. One tank to hold 317 000 ℓ of treated water and the other for 108 000 ℓ of filtered water. This for use by Johnson and Johnson to manufacture its COVID vaccine in South Africa.Mannie Ramos Jnr, COO at Abeco Tanks comments, “The pro

cess of manufacturing the vaccine is com plex. From growing the cells to preparing the vials and cooling the machinery that mass-produces and stores the product, almost every step of the 60-day timeline relies on the water in some way.” The tanks are part of the larger water treatment process, which stores, filters and treats the water before use in the vaccine manufacturing plant. The filtered

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