LEADING GROUT INJECTION PLANT EARNS SAFETY ACCOLADE FOR 20 YEARS INJURY FREE

Murray & Roberts Cementation has a proven track record of operating grout injection plants within the mining sector.

There are few mining-related operations that have operated for two decades without a lost time injury – but Murray & Roberts Cementation has achieved just that at its grout injection plant between Northam and Thabazimbi in South Africa’s Limpopo province. This is Part 1 of a two-part article.

The 36 strong team at this grout plant oversees the logistics of mixing on surface, managing over 5 km of pipeline to underground destinations, and injecting grout at the workface to prevent inundation where water is intersected during mine development. Andre van Buuren, Murray & Roberts Cementation Project Manager, highlights the depth of experience that underpins the facility’s safety culture.

“Achieving 20 years without an injury is a real testament to the collective effort of our team, applying our corporate strategies and taking personal accountability for everything that happens on site,” says van Buuren. “It is no coincidence that there is very low staff turnover at this plant – where it is not unusual for our people to have up to 25 years of service.”

The average term of current staff is 10 to 15 years, with Northam injection plant site supervisor Hendry Collins having been with the operation for over 20 years. This has allowed a culture of safety to mature, and to be passed down from the more experienced staff to the newer entrants. Without overloading people with systems and procedures, he explains, everyone is imbued with a commitment to uncompromising safety principles that emphasise personal responsibility. This is expressed in key messages such as “If you see it, you own it” – which hold everyone to an exacting safety standard.

“Everyone is also steeped in the discipline of identifying the highest safety risk in every task they undertake and to ensure that it is mitigated,” he says.

As in any mining environment, this work certainly includes its fair share of risks. The Northam grout injection plant regularly pumps specialised grout mixtures at pressures of up to 10 MPa to underground workings. Over 20 tonnes of cementitious material are commonly injected into designated areas over a three to four day period, according to Murray & Roberts Cementation Senior Project Manager Pieter Oosthuysen. A recent water intersection incident required as much as 56 tonnes to be injected at high pressure to stem the flow of groundwater at a single point.

Continued in Part 2,,,