Modern Mining May 2018

CRUSHING, SCREENING AND MILLING

more scarce as the procurement zone is tight- ened up, making it vital for well-resourced partners to step in and share their knowledge and experience. “The coal mines also have increasing pres- sure on their levels of efficiency and safety, and so there are onerous requirements on their suppliers to meet health, safety and compliance standards,” says Mazibuko. “As B&E International, our experience as a sub- contractor allows us to assume much of this responsibility from the customer, and also to bring our local small business partners up to speed – a task that often falls to the mine itself.” In addition to designing, building and commissioning plants, the company offers a

this requirement for local economic empower- ment has been reinforced by Eskom,” he says. “We have therefore partnered with local sup- pliers in coal mining areas to help provide the necessary technical support they need when offering services to coal mines. This gives greater assurance to the end-customer – the mine – while building the capacity of local small businesses to perform in line with expec- tations and to grow their sustainability.” B&E International, in partnership with local entrepreneurs, is even setting up an office in the Mpumalanga town of Belfast, to be closer to cus- tomers and to take a more hands-on approach to supporting partners in the coalfields. “Our partnerships with small and medium-

Crushing at a coal cus- tomer’s site in Kriel.

A crushing operation for a customer in the coalfields.

s i zed en t e rpr i s e s i n these areas is our way of contributing to local eco- nomic development, as we work closely with them in terms of skills transfer and capacity-building,” he says. “This process of col- laboration and mentoring has become more critical as mines work towards sourcing more suppliers from within the province, the district municipal area and the local munici- pal area in which they operate.” He highlights that the necessary skills and tech- nical capacity available to mines obviously becomes

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May 2018  MODERN MINING  43