Modern Mining September 2019

PRODUCT News

First-of-its-kind mobile data centre installed at Khumani

Assmang is rolling out a ground-breaking mobile data centre solution at its Khumani iron ore mine in the Northern Cape to meet its fast-growing information storage requirements. The solution was proposed, designed and deployed by Infrasol, Datacentrix’s infrastructure design and deployment business unit. Ferdi Kirsten, Manager: Information Technology at Assmang Khumani, explains that the mine needed to update and expand its previous server room, which was designed in 2006 prior to Khumani becom- ing operational in 2008. “The original Khumani server room had become far too small for our needs – the 4 m x 4 m room containing six racks meant that there was very little space to manoeu- vre and we had experienced some issues with cooling,” he says. Assmang invited Datacentrix to join the

tender for the project and, according to Kirsten, the solution provider submitted the winning proposal for a specialised, fire pro- tected mobile unit, which would be the first of its kind to be installed in South Africa. “The container features a next-genera- tion Huawei Fusion Module 2000 modular data centre solution, integrated with cabi- nets, power supply and distribution, cooling and cabling and management. The Huawei Fusion Module 2000 Containment System comes with the TIER-Ready stamp of approval from Uptime Institute. The fact that this technology is located within a protected mobile unit, which is also fitted with vibration pads to protect equipment from vibrations caused by nearby mining machinery, is the first implementation of its kind in South Africa,” Kirsten says. The implementation was not with- out some challenges, says Bennett

come up with a strategy that could speed up delivery, making the decision to con- struct two 3 m x 13 mmodules at the factory. The two sections – each one 11 tonnes – were transported to the mine, lifted over the Khumani administration building using a crane, and placed in position. “Fortunately, Assmang quickly approved our team’s request to perform work on site, signing off our safety, health and quality specifications without delay. The two sec- tions were successfully lifted and rigged into position with no difficulties.” The state-of-the-art mobile data centre will provide Khumani with greater agility, as the solution can physically be moved as needed. “The new data centre was built with an eye on our future needs,” says Kirsten. “It will serve us well into the future, considering that our previous server room was operational for 11 years, and we foresee the new solution’s life expectancy being even longer.” Additional benefits for Khumani include rigorous security measures that were not in place previously, such as access control, CCTV and motion detection. The unit can also be monitored and managed remotely, with proactive alerts sent via mobile devices, and includes cold aisle contain- ment to solve issues related to the heat. Says Naidoo: “The four air conditioner units are configured in N+2 configuration to cater for the extreme heat conditions expe- rienced in Kathu, and the uninterruptible power supplies within the unit are config- through extensive skills upliftment. This includes the latest safety training, regulatory requirements training, artisan training, and actual experience at our overseas facilities. Thus our clients can rest assured that all of our work is carried out to international qual- ity standards,” says Parkhouse. Aury Africa’s extensive product range includes high-quality vibrating screens for the coal, gold, and minerals processing sec- tors. It also supplies a range of exciters to fit most OEM screen types. Consumable products available include centrifuge bas- kets, polyurethane (PU) wedge wire panels, intertank/interstage cylinder screens for classification, sieve bends, and static panels for separation. Aury Africa, website: www.auryafrica.co.za ured as N+1 for redundancy.” Datacentrix, website: www.datacentrix.co.za

Naidoo, Infrasol Business Development Manager at Datacentrix. “Our ini- tial plan was to build the entire solution at the mine. However, there were cer- tain constraints around the stringent health and safety requirements to be approved prior to work- ing on site at the mine. In addition, it was difficult to obtain the correct approv- als to enter the site over weekends and out of office hours. “Therefore, we had to

The mobile data centre solution at Khumani.

Aury Africa establishes technical hub in eMalahleni Screening and vibrating equipment solu- tions and services provider Aury Africa has established a technical hub in eMalahleni to service the Mpumalanga coalfields. The hub comprises its regional office and showroom at the Smokey Mountain Office Village in the Route N4 Business Park, in addition to a 720 m 2 workshop, storage, and fabrication facility.

are now available on their doorstep,” he states. Not only are delivery times reduced significantly but Aury Africa is also able to provide 24/7 technical back-up and after- market support. In addition, Aury Africa is able to offer a dedicated design and draughting ser- vice, based on the latest CAD programs, to generate fabrication, engineering, and assembly drawings for customer sign-off prior to manufacture and on-site installation. Project management assistance can also be provided if needed. “All the people employed in our installa- tion and technical support teams have been employed from local communities and gone

Since the establishment of the hub, Aury Africa has seen a definite increase in interest from coal-mining clients, says MD Sydney Parkhouse. “Our presence here has proven to be extremely beneficial, as the actual products our customers need in their daily operations

54  MODERN MINING  September 2019