Rosh Pinah is a small Namibian mining town located some 100 km inland from the Orange River mouth. After having been in operation for over 40 years, the zinc and lead floatation units of the mine were structurally beyond maintaining and needed to be replaced. Capital for the project was approved and the contracts were awarded at the end of 2008.
All the civil, mechanical, electrical instrumentation and automation equipment needed to be replaced. The work was to proceed in two phases: phase 1 was the upgrading of the zinc circuit which was due for completion by September 2009 and phase 2 was the replacement of the lead circuit which was due for completion later in November. Arandis Services and K Neumayer were contracted to perform all the civil and structural work. Metso was responsible for the flotation cells, piping and instrumentation supply. ABB Namibia supplied the motor control centres. All the electrical and automation installation was executed by Iritron, with overall site management carried out by the Rosh Pinah mine personnel.
Iritron’s operations director Andre Roeloffze and managing director Alwyn Rautenbach were the consulting engineers responsible for the project management of the electrical, instrumentation and control portion of the project. They formed the interface between Rosh Pinah mine, ABB Namibia, Iritron and Metso. Frits Stoop managed the Iritron engineering team. Hardus Strydom was responsible for the electrical and lighting design, and Danie Smit designed the PLC and scada system assisted with the HMI graphics by Jan van Niekerk.
Andre Roeloffze says he enjoys going back to Rosh Pinah because he and the team are always welcomed. He says one of the reasons is the successful execution of the Rosh Pinah flotation unit replacement project.
RS South Africa shapes future engineering talent RS South Africa
News
RS South Africa is demonstrating that nurturing future engineers goes beyond traditional classrooms or competitions. On STEM Day, the company shone a light on the full spectrum of its educational initiatives.
Read more...UKZN’s SMART lab wins aviation award
News
: The SMART Lab at UKZN was awarded first place in the Aviation Research and Development category at the Civil Aviation Authority of South Africa’s award ceremony for outstanding contributions and achievements in the aviation sector.
Read more...Meta and partners announce completion of 2Africa subsea cable system
News
Meta, in partnership with leading global and regional telecommunications companies, has announced the completion and activation of the core 2Africa subsea cable system. This marks a historic milestone in digital infrastructure, establishing what the world’s longest open-access subsea cable system.
Read more...SEW-EURODRIVE unveils world class facility in Gqeberha
News
In a landmark event in the Eastern Cape attended by key customers and industry leaders, SEW-EURODRIVE officially opened its expanded state-of-the-art facility in Gqeberha, marking a major milestone in its strategy to strengthen regional support and deepen its footprint in the region.
Read more...Africa’s brightest young battery innovators Schneider Electric South Africa
News
Schneider Electric and Enactus, the international NGO dedicated to inspiring students through entrepreneurial action, have announced the winners of the 2025 Energy Transition Battery Innovation Challenge, funded by the Schneider Electric Foundation. It empowers young innovators to design battery solutions addressing the region’s most pressing energy challenges.
Read more...The road to the Indaba
News
The Africa Automation Indaba 2026 is set to become a landmark gathering for Africa’s automation, process control and manufacturing community. SA Instrumentation and Control will be running a dedicated editorial series spotlighting the voices, ideas and debates shaping Africa’s industrial future.
Read more...Crash reconstruction tests advance vehicle safety research
News
The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Scientific Multidisciplinary Advanced Research Technologies (SMART) Lab recently participated in a series of collaborative crash reconstruction tests held at the Toyota Test Track.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version