Modern Quarrying April-May 2017

AT THE QUARRY FACE WITH MOREGROVE

The contribution ex tends far from the city to the Mossgas pipeline, the dolosse that protect the coastline from erosion, the Blaukrans Pass project, Sterkspruit Dam and Middleton Road. The list goes on and on and is continuing well into the 20 th century. The 1990s gave Moregrove a new lease of life, and at that time, the rezoning of the eastern por- tions of Section D for open mining, extended the life of the quarry by some 48 years. At Moregrove, the long-term environmental impact has always been of major importance. Much of the workings are below the water table – creating opportuni- ties for a wetland breeding habitat for aquatic birds. The opening of Quarryman Park was the start of an extensive greenbelt, with tree and protea planting and general rehabilitation having started in the 1980s. The greening of Moregrove began long before environmental concerns became a major issue. Innovations Moregrove and innovations are synonymous. The ready mixed con- crete concept was introduced to the Eastern Cape from Moregrove, and there has been a succession of firsts and notable achievements over the decades. New produc ts developed at Moregrove in the early years included topping, retarded mor- tar, plaster, ready flow concrete, underwater concrete, lean-mix, trench fill and no-fines concrete. Cemented-treated sub-base and emulsion-treated sub-base were also pioneered by the Moregrove team as was foamed concrete. Its laboratory was the first in the country to be awarded a SABS commercial laboratory listing. Moregrove was the country’s first RMC plant to be awarded SABS 0157recognition for quality man- agement systems production, and it was the first quarry in the country to receive this coveted certification. That long-term commitment

N ew c a p a c i t y wa s r a p - idly designed and installed at Moregrove, the hub of the com- bined operation. A joint enterprise was agreed with Ready Mixed Concrete of SA and the Moregrove operation began to emerge. A ready mix concrete plant was built alongside the S&W quarry at Moregrove and a modern quarry- ing plant was commissioned 15 months later in March 1964. In the 1960s, the washing, mixing and batching equipment at Moregrove was among the most sophisticated in the world. In the 1970s and 1980s the quarry maintained its reputa- tion for successful innovation with new product development while achieving leadership status in prod- uct quality and control. The next major change was in January 1989 when Murray & Roberts and Blue Circle consoli- dated their quarrying and ready mixed concrete interests into one company, Ready Mix Materials. Operator safety, social and community responsibility became areas of increasing interest with Moregrove becoming a South African pioneer in the field of social and environmental responsibility. The operation has played a crucial role in the modern development of PE and the Eastern Cape. Its contribution is well documented but there is little public awareness of just how substantially it helped change the face of the region; every major construction or civil engi- neering project in the area used materials from Moregrove. Aggregate from the old work- ings at Fraser’s quarry and S&W, was used in the residential build- ing boom of the post-war period. During the construction boom of the 1960s, the merged operations at Moregrove provided the build- ing construction material that helped transform PE into a modern Port City. Every bridge and inter- change in the area was built with Moregrove materials. All national roads and municipal projects in the area used these materials.

A well-oiled machine: Photograph shows the plant which consists of the primary, and the secondary and tertiary.

The Dakota air separator and washing plant.

17

MODERN QUARRYING

April - May 2017