Modern Quarrying April May 2015

AT THE QUARRY FACE WITH MIDMAR

to build this house is what we would supply. We opened up the doors in mid-October, and things are going well,” Fourie says. Maritzburg Mix Concrete is renting space on the premises, which is beneficial for the group, as every quarry needs a readymix outlet. This allows the group to focus on its core activities. What is interesting is that the group is in the process of providing another offering, through a company which it has named Malleo Equipment. Translated from Latin, the wordmalleomeans ham- mer. The hydraulic hammers and attachments are a product line from from South Korean manufacturer Sangdo International. At the time of writing a ship- ment of products and spares was on the water, and Fourie was nervously watching the exchange rate! Eire Contractors, a well-known Durban-based company, is utilising various models of these hydraulic hammers and is very complimentary about the product. “However, availability of spares is vital to the success of this endeavour and we have established a workshop on site to service the hammers. We have built our own hydraulic test bench for testing the product. We are still in the early stages, but initially we will do repairs on this site, which includes repairs to other makes of ham- mers as well.” Fourie says there has been a good feedback in terms of Malleo and the Sangdo product. Midmar Crushers As mentioned earlier, Midmar Crushers has been the enabling factor for the expansion of the Midmar Group, and MQ was excited to hear about how the quarry has developed over recent years, especially in the light of it being voted top inde- pendent quarry by Aspasa for two years in a row,

their personal interests,”he tells MQ .“We have gone through many hurdles including having to move off site. We also had our 18 m steel weighbridge stolen together with two shipping containers, but these are challenges to be overcome.” Fourie’s father Louis, has built the initial plant for Canton, utilising surplus equipment acquired over the years and is currently planning the next phase. “There are some exciting developments for the Midmar Group with a 26% BEE worker’s ownership agreement in Midmar Crushers, which will hope- fully be a benchmark for similar industries want- ing to do the same,” he says. “Our feeling is why enrich a BEE partner who already is privileged? We believe it is important to empower our own employees rather than an outside entity. The aim of our empowerment initiative is that everybody in the company is able to work together for a mutual goal in terms of our vision, which is ‘effecting change through positive contact’. The empower- ment shares will be unencumbered and managed through an employee trust.” Another part of the expansion is Midmar Building Supplies, which MQ noticed on entering the 1 000 m 2 building, and which Fourie attributes to his father’s vision. “We make our own blocks and offer the entire package,” he says. “This was also born from customers arriving here and seeing our products, and asking to pur- chase cement. So based on the demand, it made sense for us to expand to the next level,” Cassy explains.“It’s not a fully ranged hardware as we only stock the basic requirements for local housing.” “Our market is predominantly low-cost housing in the area. So we deconstructed a four-roomed house, and decided that whatever was needed

Landscape view of the plant. Just below the green drums in the distance, is the workshop, with the admin building in the foreground. From there, one can see the plant and the stockpile area. The entire operation has been fenced off.

Midmar Crushers quarry manager Bronwyn Moore.

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MODERN QUARRYING

April - May 2015