Modern Quarrying Q1 2020

KEY TAKEAWAYS

As the membership scope has broadened over the years, so too have the services offered by Aspasa

One of the latest service offerings from Aspasa is the Explosives/Blasting compliance audit

Increasing requirements for certified quality aggregates has seen Aspasa introducing its own guidelines and auditing systems to ensure testing of aggregates and crushed granular materials is done in accordance with SANS 3001 AG and GR series test methods

Following the publication of the Mining Charter’s Implementation Guidelines and Amendments in December 2018, Aspasa has now extended its service to members with a Mining Charter Audit

focus on Social Compliance and Community Affairs. Nico Pienaar, director of Aspasa, tells Modern Quarrying that the Aspasa compliance audits assist operations, line managers, top management, boards and shareholders to ensure that operating standards are met in every aspect of the operation. Pienaar says the personal competencies of those operating the business are also addressed by a host of training topics that are covered by the association, while compliance audits point out issues that need attention. Safety and environmental compliance Over the years, Aspasa has offered its flagship health and safety audit, better known as ISHE Audit and the environmental audit, named About Face Audit. The ISHE Audit has ushered in new health and safety levels in the industry, with Aspasa members at the summit of excellence when it comes to health and safety issues. The environmental stewardship of Aspasa members across South Africa has improved significantly since the inception of the association’s About Face programme in 1994. The About Face programme has guided and aided most members to elevate themselves from mediocre environmental perfor- mances to being among the best opencast operations in the world. The ISHE audit covers MHSA and regulations. “Recently, we have been requested to expand our health and safety audits to cover the OHSA. We have developed an additional audit protocol that will allow Aspasa to audit other functions that are associated with mining operations, such as ready- mix, bitumen, brick plants and workshops,” says Pienaar.

Nico Pienaar, director of Aspasa.

practices in previous years. In recent months, the association has also added an array of compliance audits, including the Explosives/ Blasting Compliance audit, the Quality/Technical Compliance Audit, Mining Charter Audit and a stronger

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QUARTER 1 - 2020 MODERN QUARRYING