Civil Engineering August 2021 | Vol 29 No 7

On the cover G rinaker-LTA left Booysendal Mine in 2012 after completing infrastructure for it’s North Shaft complex, and returned in February 2017 to construct new, quality infrastructure for the Mine’s Central and Merensky shaft entrance areas. Since 2017, Grinaker-LTA has constructed three silos by means of concrete sliding, two reservoirs by hand-over-hand construction, two drive station bases of nearly 900 m 3 each, complex concrete structures, 1.5 m thick decks requiring staging, concrete roads, and foundations for steel structures and conveyors. THE ROPE CONVEYOR The most notable conveyor foundations constructed by Grinaker-LTA are the foundations for the RopeCon conveyor that currently transfers material from the mine’s central shaft silo to its Southern processing plant. The conveyor can transfer 1 150 tons of ore an hour at peak operation and has a conveyor belt that differs from conventional conveyor belts. The RopeCon at Booysendal Mine is the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa. It spans hills and valleys over a distance of 4.8 km but is only supported at 12 points by towers, which reduces the environmental footprint of the conveyor. Grinaker-LTA constructed the concrete foundations for these 12 towers, which posed significant access challenges due to the mountainous topography and un- derlying rock and boulders. The grounds are also home to protected plant species which can complicate construction Solid foundations for Northam Booysendal Mine’s RopeCon project The Northam Booysendal Mine spans an array of mountains and valleys that are rife with fauna and flora, overlapping the Mpumalanga and Limpopo provincial border near Draaikraal. Grinaker-LTA is employed as a contractor on Northam Booysendal Mine under DRA Global’s construction supervision. Grinaker-LTA is currently the largest out of the 34 contractors that fall under DRA, with 224 employees on site including sub-contractors. 4 August 2021  Civil Engineering Grinaker-LTA has constructed three silos by means of concrete sliding