Modern Mining October 2016

SAFETY IN MINING

Booyco at the forefront of a

One of the pioneers of PDS (Proximity Detection Systems) technol- ogy in South Africa is Booyco Electronics, which has been in business since 2006. When the company was first established, it had only a handful of competitors but today the field has become intensely crowded with as many as 30 suppliers of PDS technology operat- ing locally. “Most of these companies have no real track record,” cautions Anton Lourens, MD of Booyco Electronics. “They’ve simply been attracted to the PDS market by the fact that installation of PDS systems in South Africa’s mines is nowmandatory, following revi- sions to the Mine Health and Safety Act gazetted in February 2015.”

L ourens stresses that becoming ex- pert in the PDS field is not some- thing that happens overnight. “We now have 10 years of experience in developing and installing PDS technology and we consistently spend be- tween 5 and 10 % of our turnover on R&D,” he says. “Our technology has been improved over the years based on the continual feedback we receive from customers and we believe that our systems rank among the best in the world. But we’re certainly not complacent. Although our products are at a level of maturity, we rec- ognise that technology does not stand still and that maintaining our market-leading position

will necessitate a continuing heavy invest- ment in R&D.” He adds that even with all its experience, Booyco continues to learn. “We find that we are constantly encountering new challenges because every mine is unique. There is no such thing as a simple off-the-shelf solution when it comes to PDS technology.” Outlining the fortunes of Booyco Electronics since its founding, Lourens says that it has experienced year-on-year growth every year since 2006 and adds that this trend has not been upset even by the current severe recession in mining. “Safety has been a top priority in min- ing for at least the past couple of decades,” he

Anton Lourens pictured on the Booyco Electronics stand at the recent Electra Mining Africa show.

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Booyco Electronics spends between 5 and 10 % of its turnover on R&D.

34  MODERN MINING  October 2016