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BusinessExcellence Weekly

ISSUE No. 70 | www.bus-ex.com

Coastal Gold

Grade is king

Coastal Gold’s Hope Brook property is rapidly developing towards becoming a very significant producer

Emirates steel:

Trinity Exploration & Production:

alpine lounge:

HERE’S WHY ONTARIO, CANADA

IS YOUR NEXT

BIG IDEA Opportunities for mineral exploration in Ontario abound. Powered by global leaders in innovation and safety standards, our mining practices are among the safest and most sustainable in the world.

With business costs lower here than in most G7 countries, Ontario suppliers are more competitive – so you can depend on quality goods and services, delivered on time, on spec and on budget. Innovation is at our core. Make Ontario your next big idea.

YourNextBigIdea.ca/Mining

$2.9B

in non-metallic minerals, including diamonds, was produced in Ontario in 2012

$2.6B in gold

$1.5B in copper

$1.4B in nickel

$787M

in other metals such as platinum and silver

Paid for by the Government of Ontario.

business excellence

Business John O’Hanlon Editor johanlon@bus-ex.com Will Daynes Editor wdaynes@bus-ex.com Matt Johnson Art Director mjohnson@bus-ex.com Louise Culling Production Designer lculling@bus-ex.com Richard Turner Director of Sales rturner@bus-ex.com

Business Excellence brings you content from leading business influencers and strategic thinkers providing inspiration and guidance to help you and your business grow.

We showcase some of the best examples of successful organisations from around the world giving you a unique insight into how they operate.

Vince Kielty Director of Editorial Research vkielty@bus-ex.com Sharon Rooke Administration & Operations srooke@bus-ex.com Matt Day Head of Technology mday@bus-ex.com Andy Turner Chief Executive aturner@bus-ex.com

Contributors Bicom Business Software Developers

HINT: For the best experience, click the fullscreen icon

Subscriptions & Enquires info@bus-ex.com

Jacquard House, Queen Street, Norwich, NR2 4SX. England

Infinity Business Media Ltd

The content of this magazine is copyright of Infinity Business Media Ltd. Redistribution or reproduction of any content is prohibited. Š Copyright 2013 Infinity Business Media Ltd.

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issue No.70

6 6 technology

flexible telecom

A publishing company with telecom challenges of its own finds the ideal solution in a flexible, feature-rich platform from Bicom Systems.

14

14 operations

A brave new world of work

Companies face losing customers and revenue unless they equip changing workforces with the information sharing tools they need to take them out of the digital dark ages.

20 Coastal Gold Grade is king

20 4 | BE Weekly

The coast in question is that of Newfoundland, where Coastal Gold’s Hope Brook property is in rapid development towards becoming a very significant producer.

contents

46

30 Mariana Resources

Leading South American exploration

Mariana Resources’ highly experienced team is allowing it to transform its developing discoveries into robust projects.

32 Howden Africa Focused yet diverse

How Howden Africa design, manufacture and market air and gas handling solutions to a wide range of industries.

42 Planet Projects Men of steel

Planet Projects is a well-established South African fabrication and boiler-making company with a client list that reads like a who’s who of the country’s mining and infrastructure sectors.

46 Trinity Exploration & Production More than meets the eye

As CEO, Joey “Monty” Pemberton explains, Trinity Exploration and Production’s business has never been just about recovering oil and gas.

64

76

64 Emirates Steel

Shaping a low carbon future

The unwavering dedication Emirates Steel has towards producing only the finest quality products also extends to the company’s commitment to health and safety, the environment and energy efficiency.

76 Alpine Lounge

Alpine Lounge goes lean

South Africa’s premium furniture manufacturer is adopting best manufacturing practices more often associated with automobiles than luxury seating.

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Technology

Flexible

TELECOM A publishing company with telecom challenges of its own finds the ideal solution in a flexible, feature-rich platform from Bicom Systems Laura Espinosa Edited by Will Daynes

Words by

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Technology

M

oving one’s home can be, I’m sure many will agree, a challenging, stressful experience at the best of times. The same holds true for relocating a business, something the Business Excellence team have experienced firsthand recently. As anyone in the publishing business will attest to, there is a lot more to a company like ours than simply a few individuals who produce the features you see before you. Indeed the reality is that a vast amount of infrastructure contributes towards the day-to-day running of our business, the most important of all revolving around communications. Prior to our move we had long been users of a particular telecoms service provider, however in preparation for our relocation the opportunity was taken to look into possible alternative solutions that could support our operations as we entered a new era in our own development.

Until recently, we had been using a Hosted Service Provider. We looked into various alternatives from other hosted platforms (some were actually using the Bicom Systems PBXware Cloud Edition for Service Providers as it turns out). We began to explore on-premise hardware options as it appealed to have the flexibility of using different service providers for call traffic. PBXware was billed as a software tool possessing more feature-functionality than perhaps any other product of its kind.

We are very happy to say it lives up to its billing in every way.

The Move to PBXware Given our new found familiarity with PBXware, we asked Bicom Systems

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for an install and must thank them for extending themselves in every manner.

The download burned and installed smoothly. The set-up wizard took thirtyminutes. That may seem long but it was comprehensive and efficient in setting up the Communications platform to a point of basic working. Anyone with any experience with Linux could successfully install and start using PBXware.

The best part was that most of our staff couldn’t even tell the system had changed.

While they may have noticed faster connections or clearer calls, there was no training or learning curve involved.

We did not lose any days or even hours acquainting ourselves and ‘figuring out’ the new system. Desk phones were up and running quickly so calls were not lost.

We were very pleased with the smooth transition process and impressed with the short amount of time it took.

More Feature-Functionality Than Ever Before From the day we installed PBXware we began noticing and appreciating its features and tools. Going into each of those useful features would fill far too many pages, but we will highlight our two favorites here. PBXware’s Least-Cost Routing is truly phenomenal. This is something we do use frequently with calls to obscure locations. We have enjoyed a significant drop in expenditures on those calls. While most companies boast low connection costs and rates, it is not often that those claims hold true. On the contrary with PBXware, the rates are impressively low. Being able to use Bicom Systems’ SIP Trunks has been great.

Another favorite feature is the extreme flexibility of this platform. Bicom Systems is willing to customize and create a bestfit solution for the price of off-the-shelf.

The fact that we can now control this customized platform on our own is truly amazing. That kind of flexibility makes PBXware stand out from the competition.

“Bicom Systems is willing to customize and create a best-fit solution for the price of off-the-shelf �

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We cannot imagine being restricted by another platform ever again.

While we have not yet fully taken advantage of the desktop application and softphone gloCOM, it does not take long to realize what a powerful and indispensable tool it is. Some of our employees have paired gloCOM with their desktop phones and are now able to control their phones from their desktop and enjoy features like being able to copy and paste a phone number from an excel sheet into gloCOM. We look forward to continuing to explore gloCOM and its enhancements to the desktop phone as well as its softphone features.

Technology

There are many other features we could discuss: conferencing, call recording and monitoring, enhanced ACD queues, routing, FoIP, instant messaging, LCR, and PSTN/VoIP trunks, to name a few. The “Advanced” section of each feature topic seems to deal with every scenario imaginable. Of course ‘every’ would be a little too far-fetched, but reading the sales literature they do have an answer to any and every missing feature!

Aside from the obvious benefits of these features and capabilities, we have noticed subtle changes in the office environment: more time to spend on customers or sales, better communication with our end users, even less stress in the workplace. PBXware and gloCOM, with their efficiency and ease-of-use, deserve some of the credit.

We are looking forward to growing and evolving with PBXware and Bicom Systems at our side and hope service providers around the world would do well to consider providing their own customers with such a value add.

More on Bicom Systems With the migration of our communications infrastructure complete and our expectations of Bicom Systems more than fulfilled it seems only fitting to take a closer look at how this particular business got to where it is today.

“About five years ago we asked ourselves a very important question; do we specialize in one part of the communications systems business or do we cover the whole breadth? We chose the harder, slower option of covering

gloCOM interface Desktop and mobile

Web User Self Care This features management and administration of: Enhanced Services and CDR (Call Details Records)

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the whole range of products,” explains the man responsible for Bicom Systems’ worldwide sales, Stephen Wingfield.

“We did this for several reasons,” Wingfield continues. “Most of our core was the same technology and the investment is there to be reused, what you learn from different onsite installs can be fed into the Hosted Edition and likewise. However, the single greatest driving factor is our belief that each reseller relationship is our most valuable asset and that in communications, you simply do not know what your next sale wants.”

Available in Business, Call Center, and Multi-Tenant editions, PBXware has been deployed to thousands of organizations from small businesses to non-profit organizations to governments to enterprises and service providers.

Increasingly, service providers are incumbents as well as challengers as Bicom Systems SWITCHware supports the growing number of large selfhealing clusters.

“We work very hard with resellers

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“With PBXware if we don’t have it, we will build it to your exact need” at pre-sales,” Wingfield states, “often providing the quotes and the materials at source so they can be adapted to local language & conditions. Often though, what wins the bid is to provide a custom solution for the cost of off-the-shelf. The argument can be devastating when up against traditional vendors. Why pay large amounts and possibly still not have exactly what you need. With PBXware if we don’t have it, we will build it to your exact need.”

This sounds tall at first but one of the things that we appreciated most about PBXware is its Open Source Flexibility and the way that flexibility is in the DNA, not just of the product, but the company. Built on Asterisk, PBXware was the world’s first Professional Turnkey Communications System to use open source. “A few times we considered whether to open up and create ‘another’ Open Source Project. However we never did. We stuck with the notions of turnkey and the commercial guarantee to work.

It’s paid off well. Others came and went, we’re still investing,” Wingfield adds.

That turnkey principal has been taken

by Bicom Systems in two directions. One is for the service provider. With their TELCOware product, a provisioning system allows the delivery of a Turnkey Phone Company.

The other direction of the turnkey principle is in Unified Communications.

Technology

gloCOM is the desktop application that brings together online chat, video, presence, parking, faxing and more. “gloCOM is a very major play for us,” Wingfield elaborates. “For service providers offering the hosted model it deals with their two biggest issues, stickiness & churn!”

As before what seemed like an almost extravagant claim, was justified with what was clearly a very deep knowledge and far-sighted approach by the company. Where many service providers constantly have to lower their bundle costs just to keep customers, Bicom Systems sees a very genuine alternative business model.

In the near future gloCOM will be going mobile. Not as just another SIP client that scarcely works but to treat smartphones as an equal part of the switch. Whether you are at your desk or out and about you can be seen and you can see your colleagues and interact with the same efficiency. For the service provider this means an integrated offer to customers, not just of ‘the mobile

“Our individual journey with PBXware and Bicom System’s support team has been exceptional” transport’, but the whole solution. More value, but significantly, a customer cannot just disassemble all of their IVRs, queues, desktop and mobile applications because a competitor is offering half a cent less to call grandmother on the weekend. The service providers that take this space first will be in a far less pregnable position going forward.

Our individual journey with PBXware and Bicom System’s support team has been exceptional, with a painless migration of our entire infrastructure and great support from the Bicom team throughout the process.

Over the coming months we will revisit this subject and look at how Bicom Systems is helping others, particularly service providers like our readership.

About Bicom Systems Since 2003 Bicom Systems has been researching and integrating innovative Open Source Telephony Projects to commercialize by unifying with its suite of Telecoms Management Softwares. In September 2004 Bicom Systems launched its PBXware software and became the first company to deliver an Open Standards Turnkey Telephony System. The concept of “Professional Open Standards Telephony” was born. By unifying the best of open standards telephony and its own proprietary software Bicom Systems provides SMBs, Enterprises and Governments worldwide with turnkey solutions that take account of clients’ exact needs within a very cost-effective framework. This mix takes the best of royalty-free softwares, vibrant open source communities, available custom development backed up by accountable, professional support services brought together with commercially coded Management Tools. Warranted and supported - a safe choice for all organisations. www.bicomsystems.com

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Operations

A brave new

world of work

Companies face losing customers and revenue unless they equip changing workforces with the information sharing tools they need to take them out of the digital dark ages Words by

John O’Hanlon

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Operations

I

sector in particular seems to have n a very short space of time – less spent millions on IT systems and then than a decade really – technology millions more on setting up firewalls has changed the way people live their lives. It has also changed and restrictions to access that limit their the way they work. It was in 2008 that data geographically and departmentally Kevin Roberts, the worldwide CEO of within the organisation. The fact is that Saatchi & Saatchi, told me how his the real excitement of the digital age iPhone freed him from the constraints has been dampened by the entrenched of geography, enabling him to run the conservatism of big businesses – tankers business as effectively from his home in that are turning frustratingly slowly.

New Zealand as from his office in New The problem is not just that workers York or Lancashire, where he happened to are not allowed to use personal devices be at the time. Distinctions between work for work; managers think their job is and leisure time had all but disappeared to manage, and that to manage is to from him – the technology control. Despite all the was beginning to enable a talk of empowerment different approach to work people management “It is as if we and to the very structure is seen as directing of the organisation. the behaviour of were fish, which That was five years employees, not freeing after aeons ago, since when platforms them up to pursue the for accessing information ultimate goals of the suddenly became have progressed beyond business. To do that aware of water!” what was imaginable even would mean allowing then. In another five years access to information the capability and reach of – allowing them to knowledge storage and capture systems become iWorkers, a word which (no brand will undoubtedly progress even faster. connotations here) could be defined as The futurologist James Gleick last month intelligent workers, intuitive workers, came up as he can be relied on to do, inspired workers: reliable and skilled with an elegant insight when he said: “It employees who have 24/7 access to all is as if we were fish, which after aeons the necessary information to meet the suddenly became aware of water!” Just needs of the business and its clients. imagine what will be available to us by According to new research 2018 – and imagine is all we can do. commissioned by Ricoh Europe only Roberts and Gleick are far from being four percent of business leaders would the only people who have been excited currently describe the majority of their by the possibilities linking technology staff as iWorkers. This is based on and life, of which business is just a responses from 735 senior business and part. But it seems to have been a hard IT decision makers across eight vertical sell at the corporate level. The public sectors, education, legal, utilities/

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energy, healthcare, public sector, retail, manufacturing and financial services sectors in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, the Nordics (Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark), Switzerland and Russia.

Things can’t stay that way. Ineffective information sharing is having an enormous impact on the effectiveness of enterprises with lost revenues, lost customers and a lack of customer insight, in that order, identified as attributable to information bottlenecks.

The people questioned predict significant change over the next five years, with 37 percent believing that by 2018 the majority of their workforce will be iWorkers.

The study also shows there are challenges to overcome prior to increasing

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“The population of iWorkers is forecast to rise significantly: the question is, are businesses ready?” the presence of the iWorker in European businesses. While almost three quarters are investing in new technologies to improve employee productivity inside and outside of the office, the majority highlight the need to review existing processes so that employees can access business critical information more easily.

Over 70 percent believe the inability to access documents from a mobile device is holding their business back, while twothirds say that unsuitable search functions are preventing employees from finding the information they need to help the business move forward. In addition 62 percent say that disjointed information silos are hindering the sharing of information.

David Mills, COO at Ricoh Europe says: “The population of iWorkers is forecast to rise significantly: the question is, are businesses ready? Business leaders are more aware than ever before of the need to further optimise the way they use technology and eliminate the information silos occurring across the business. There is an urgency to review and change traditional ways of working and keep up with technology-led change, which will continue to bring new challenges.”

Ricoh is a good example of a company that has reinvented itself to survive. Known as a supplier of equipment like copiers and fax machines – not so long ago key

Operations

vehicles for information sharing – it had to transition from its old manufacturing mindset and become a service company.

David Mills modestly describes himself as a born again photocopier salesman but he is in reality as much a futurist as James Gleick. “The next five years are as much an opportunity for Ricoh as for our clients – we are in the fortunate position of having a soft landing ahead of us.” By this he means that the company is still actually growing on the hardware side though that may not be the case by 2018.

As long ago as the 1980s Ricoh was confident that the future of the workplace was digital and set about re-engineering itself to focus on the technology that would support this vision, such as OCR, introduced in 1985. Now the company’s technology and consultancy is already helping many businesses across the globe to receive, store, search, index, digitise and extract monetary value from critical information, unlocking the power of ‘Big Data’ by making it easier to manage and understand.

It is this topic and the issues surrounding it that formed the recent research report examining the next important questions in the ‘Big Data’ challenge for European businesses. As Mills puts it: “Now is the time for organisations across Europe to optimise critical business and document processes to prepare more effectively for the future. With greater innovations and technology led-change on the way, the establishment of the iWorker as a more informed workforce is essential to realising business growth, improved business agility, efficiency, productivity and responsiveness to client needs.”

What this research confirms is that the

“The establishment of the iWorker as a more informed workforce is essential to realising business growth” majority of businesses are still in the digital dark ages. They are in no state to drive digital transformation. It’s certain that a lot more technology-led change is on the way.

Businesses will need to be able to adapt quickly to new client demands, economic conditions and to maintain a competitive advantage. To meet the challenges posed by this change, IT management should no longer be sidelined as a supporting role: instead CIOs should be given their head to influence business models, client interaction and employee productivity.

This should start with business critical processes - the number one ranked activity to impact business growth, says David Mills. “CIOs can combine technology expertise with commercial acumen to review, and change the organisation’s traditional ways of working. In turn they will gain much more than cost savings. The business will benefit from being able to move forward with a more productive and agile working model where employee knowledge sharing is enhanced and they are more responsive to client needs. In the longer term, with these strong foundations in place, the CIO can focus on the core business areas and successfully lead the organisation into a brighter digital future.” The likes of Kevin Roberts may see a bit further than this, but it would be a start.

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Coastal Gold

Grade is king Coastal Gold’s Hope Brook property located in Newfoundland is rapidly developing towards becoming a very significant producer

written by: John O’Hanlon research by: Marcus Lewis

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Mine site looking north

coastal gold

T

he market has a lot to answer for, and so do investors in search of a quick buck. Where gold mining is concerned, it is a wellknown fact that as the price on the international metal exchanges fluctuates the viability of higher cost mines comes into question. There are properties all over the world that have been put into mothballs either because all the high grade material has been taken or because they can’t any longer sustain a decent margin.

In many cases this is not the whole story, however. The President and CEO of Coastal Gold Dr Bill Pearson is a geologist with a stellar track record in exploration, specialising in resurrecting mines that had been thought expired. He explains his apparent instinct for divination as merely a result of 40 years of learning and applying geological principles but what is not in question is that he has done it before. “Over the years I have developed a speciality in taking old and unloved mines and reassessing them giving them a new look and getting them back into production.�

As VP for Exploration at Desert Sun Pearson directed exploration programs that increased the overall resource base at the Jacobina mine in Brazil by 1.4 million ounces of gold and discovered a major new extension to the Canavieras deposit that is now being developed by Yamana - with a projected mine life of 30 years. And for Central Sun he and Peter Tagliamonte discovered new zones at the Santa Pancha mine and at Orosi (now Libertad) in Nicaragua as well as significantly expanding mineral resources in the region of Limon and laying the foundations of what is

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now a $1.6 billion company. Team building from top to bottom is one of Bill Pearson’s strong points. This summer he welcomed a new chairman to the board of Coastal Gold – Justin Reed is that rare animal, a banker trained as a geologist.

When his company Castillian Resources first looked at the Hope Brook deposit, discovered in 1983 by BP-Selco, and mined from 1987 to 1997 with total production reported to be 752,153 ounces of gold plus a copper

concentrate, he felt immediate recognition.

Others thought the prospects were too low grade and had no potential because everything significant had been found, but they were wrong. It was a familiar picture, he explains: “It was the technical work that was lacking. It needed proper geological work and engineering work. Once it got into production the geological work took a back seat, and of course this deposit was producing during a very low gold price era.” Any exploration was

“The people here are a pleasure to work with: they love working on ‘The Rock’”

New camp infrastructure

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coastal gold

Mine site looking south

limited to the immediate area economic assessment (PEA) round the mine, but Pearson on Hope Brook. The work is has since shown that it is now progressing well with remarkably wide open.

Newfoundland contractor Castillian changed its New Valley Drilling, and the support of local communities name to Coastal Gold in which make up the bulk of June this year following the workforce. Even Dave a merger with Ridgemont Drilling campaign under way Iron Ore and reflecting the Copeland the Chief Geologist company’s confidence that is a Newfoundlander, though with global experience. it can now focus all the energies of its experienced team on Hope Work is progressing well on all fronts. As Brook, properties outside of Canada have well as drilling, further attention is being paid been disposed of. The merger and the $2.7 to the old tailings. Preliminary work carried million funding it released, paved the way to out last year showed recoverable gold at about achieving its immediate milestones, a 4,250 one gram per tonne – in tailings produced metre resource definition diamond drilling when the old plant was running at maximum programme and competing a preliminary efficiency. Metallurgical, geotechnical,

4,250 metres

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“We have weathered the storm over the last 18 months and are ready to take Hope Brook forward” environmental and engineering work under technical manager Allan Polk is progressing apace and the results of this work will form a key part of the PEA. In every way, Newfoundland is a great jurisdiction to work in, and he clearly appreciates the lack of political and regulatory issues compared with many gold mining countries. Power is a case in point. Before he spent $14,000 on a line to link the camp

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with the grid he was spending $5,000 a week on diesel; now the camp, and eventually the production plant, can enjoy reliable supply for a quarter of that cost. “We have an airstrip, a wharf, existing tailing ponds, a ramp to 350 metres below surface, and we can bring all we need in by boat,” he enthuses.

“Newfoundland’s main shipping port, Port aux Basques, is just a 70 kilometre sea journey to the west and the town of Burgeo is only 30

coastal gold

kilometres to the east.” However the greatest advantage Newfoundland offers is its skilled workforce. “The people here are a pleasure to work with: they love working on ‘The Rock’ having worked on forestry, fishing and mining all their lives. They fix things before they are broken!”

The results of the drilling programme will be out by the end of this year and the PEA completed early in 2014. Drilling is currently taking place in two areas known as the Footwall and South West Pit Extension. Next year attention will move to the longer term potential of the property, a large area to the west of the historical mine called the 240 Connector Target. “We won’t be able to drill it in the current program but if we can establish the bridge from the South West Extension into that

target the potential expansion is tremendous.”

This is more than just a gut feeling. With significant past production, he feels that there is a lot of misunderstood geology going on.

“The key thing is that if you want to find a big mineral deposit you need to get into a big system and that is what I always liked about this project – it is a very big system, also very under explored.”

An important discovery he has made is that some of the old drill holes on which people were assessing the area were simply in the wrong place, or had failed to go deep enough. Drilling and geophysics have identified a major fold structure that closes below surface in the Connector Zone, he says, which explains why shallow historical drilling failed to intersect the gold bearing

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Core analysis program

coastal gold rock. Understanding these fold structures, he adds, are the key to unlocking the potential of Hope Brook. And Hope Brook is far from being the whole story. “It is part of something much bigger. It is not rocket science to realise that if we have some success here we are looking at a very substantial pit here, all of it open down dip and along strike!”

He also believes that the historical grade analyses are seriously flawed. “I believe historical drilling seriously underestimated the grades because of problems of grinding but also because they were only looking for higher grade material.” In the circumstances prevailing in the 1990s mid-grade and lowgrade samples never even got analysed, so they show up as zero in the database. “We are busy filling in gaps in the old drilling, eliminating historical holes we don’t think fit the picture. I am very confident we will see a big increase in grade in the next resource assessment. Naturally we want to expand ounces but right now getting the grade up is our prime focus.”

Coastal gold is a company to watch. It has strong investor support and will attract those investors who believe the gold price will recover going forward. Bill Pearson at any rate is optimistic. “I think now we have weathered the storm over the last 18 months and are ready to take Hope Brook forward – just watch what happens over the next half year!”

For more information about Coastal Gold visit: www.coastalgold.ca

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Leading South American exploration The work of Mariana Resources’ highly experienced team is allowing it to transform its developing discoveries into robust projects

Mariana Resources

M

ariana Resources Ltd is an AIM quoted South American gold, copper and silver exploration and development company focussed on advancing mineral rich projects up the resource development curve. Mariana has an extensive project portfolio in southern Argentina poised to generate value uplift in the long-term; however it is the company’s transformational leap into Peru which has excited investors, and where the company believe that significant economic opportunities exist in the near-term.

Mariana’s Peruvian opportunities consist of two highly prospective and potentially company-making gold/copper/ silver projects optioned from TSX-V quoted Condor Resources Inc. The 102 sq km Condor de Oro prospect in Northern Peru, where Mariana can earn 51 percent , is situated along the Cordillera del Condor corridor, one of the most significant emerging gold and copper belts in the world.

Importantly, extensive geophysics and sampling work conducted at Condor de Oro points to the prospect containing a highly mineralised intrusive related porphyry system with the potential to host a multimillion ounce gold and base metal deposit.

With this in mind Mariana has commenced an initial 1500m drilling programme with assay results due Q4 2013. The company believes these results will confirm the

mineralisation, economic and companymaker potential of the project.

Mariana’s can earn a 70 percent interest in the second project in Peru being the advanced Soledad gold-copper-silver project located in the Cordillera Negra metallogenic province in Central Peru, 34 km south of the Pierina gold-silver mine operated by Barrick Gold Corporation. This project complements the company’s diversification strategy into Peru and offers excellent exploration upside which the company plans to drill in the first half of 2014.

In addition, Mariana has assembled an impressive 200,000 hectare portfolio of gold, copper and silver projects in the prolific epithermal gold-silver district of Santa Cruz province, Argentina. The area has seen considerable corporate activity as companies seek out these major discoveries. Mariana has proved its ability to advance projects from discovery to resource phase; the Las Calandrias project was taken by the team from an initial discovery to a maiden Gold Equivalent resource of 519,000 ounces. Due to the current political climate, Argentina forms a longer-term delivery strategy for the company from which to deliver value for shareholders for the future.

For more information about Mariana Resources visit: www.marianaresources.com

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Howden Africa

Focused

yet diverse Howden Africa is a market driven, customer orientated company: its main business activities are the design, manufacture and marketing of air and gas handling solutions to a wide range of industries

written by: John O’Hanlon research by: Jeff Abbott

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Compressor plant for a Howden thermal ice storage system

Howden Africa

H

owden Africa was established in companies to focus on supplying a range of Johannesburg in 1952, to supply market-leading products to applications where fans for the mining and power performance and reliability are paramount. generation industries, just under The Howden business units located in Africa a century after the Scottish are Howden Power, Howden Fan Equipment, engineer and inventor James Howden set Howden Projects and Donkin Fans. What sets up the parent company in Glasgow. Howden Howden Africa apart from its competitors is was an innovator par excellence, but his most that many of the technologies used in these successful invention was a forced draught industries, including mine ventilation and system that dramatically improved the cooling, were first conceptualised by Howden performance of steam boilers. itself. The business units are supported by two Today Howden and its many subsidiaries world-class manufacturing centres designed have a long history of innovation in the air to service their particular needs, both located and gas handling field. It has grown to become in South Africa. The Johannesburg operation a worldwide organisation handles a range of large with over 4,200 employees scale engineered plant and products, including the design and companies in 17 countries. Its equipment can and fabrication of turnkey be found in virtually every projects. It manufactures industry, but particularly equipment including fans, The year Howden Africa heat exchangers, furnaces and in those such as power was established cooling systems, gas cleaning generation, petrochemicals, solutions and dust scrubbers. mining, steelmaking and cement manufacture, where the most arduous The Port Elizabeth centre is responsible air and gas handling duties are to be found. for the design and manufacture of the So Howden has been a major engineering comprehensive range of Donkin preforce in Africa for over 60 years – well over engineered fans and accessories. Howden in fact, since as early as 1925, Howden customers thus have the benefits of a companies were supplying main surface fans personal service and a presence in Africa to South African, Zimbabwean and Zambian with all the additional advantages of access mines. In early 2012, the Howden Global to an international network of world-class holding company Charter International was technological and engineering skill. Its acquired by the global manufacturing group involvement in the past development of Colfax Corporation of the United States. Africa’s industrial infrastructure is in this way Though the customers probably did not detect matched by its commitment to the future. any immediate change in the service they Howden Power has supplied virtually all receive, the synergies with Colfax’s existing the boiler Forced Draught (FD), Induced fluid handling capabilities will help both Draught (ID) and Primary Air (PA) fans for

1952

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ISC

Internoise (Pty) Ltd t/a International Sound Control & Insulation 13 Francolin Street, Somerset West, 7130|Tel. +27-(0)21- 855 1530 | Fax. +27-(0)21- 855 0875 | www.intsound.co.za

WE SOLVE YOUR NOISE PROBLEMS TURN-KEY SOLUTIONS • Survey / Measurements / Advice • Acoustical & Mechanical Design • Engineering & Fabrication • Installation & Commissioning • 25 Years Worldwide Experience • German Experts MAJOR CONTRACTS • Power Stations (via Howden Power) - Medupi and Kusile P.S. for Eskom South Africa, 2 x 6 Boilers - All Silencers for FD- Fans 8000 x 8500 x 5050 mm and for the PA – Fans 2000 x 2900 x 1500 mm • Mines (via Howden Fan Equipment) - Ø 5673 x Ø7172 x 2800 H conical Silencer, Zondagfontein Mine, South Africa - Conical Silencer Ø 4163 x Ø 5000 x 4000 lg.

Paardekraal Mine, South Africa

• Mines (via Actom - ex Alsthom/ABB-Flakt) - Ø 6300 x Ø 6829 x 1500 high conical Silencers, Thubelisha Mine, South Africa - Ø 6600 x Ø 7258 x 2500 high Conical Silencers for Shondoni Mine, South Africa - Ø 6600 x Ø 7258 x 2500 high Conical Silencers for Impumelelo Mine,South Africa • Mines (directly) Anglo – Gold - Ø 4310 x Ø 6625 x 3000 long Inlet Silencers for Bulk Air Cooling Towers at Anglogold-Ashanti Moab Khotsong Mine, South Africa.

De Beers - Large Blow- off Silencers for Main Compressor House at Cullinan Diamond Mine, South Africa.

I N T E R N AT I O N A L S O U N D C O N T R O L H A S T H E GRIPS ON NOISE CONTROL TECHNOLOGY

ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI - MOAB KHOTSONG GOLDMINE 3 off Ø 4310 x Ø 6225 x 3000 LG. CONICAL EVASE TYPE SILENCERS FOR BULK AIR COOLING TOWERS

CONICAL EVASE TYPE SILENCER, Ø 7172 / Ø 5674 x 2800 H FOR HOWDEN FAN EQUIPMENT / ZONDAGFONTEIN MINE

W E D E S I G N , E N G I N E E R , M A N U FAC T U R E A N D I N S TA L L E F F E C T I V E A N D E C O N O M I C S O L U T I O N S

Howden Africa all of Eskom’s fossil-fired fleet of 13 power stations dating back to the 1960s.

However as Africa’s leading supplier of boiler fan and air pre-heater technology it also supplies, petrochemical, sugar, paper and many other industries. It maintains a comprehensive inventory of parts and detailed records of every major installation.

Additionally, it frequently finds a way to make considerable medium and long-term savings by refitting older plants with up-to-date fan and pre-heater equipment that offers far greater efficiency.

It is happy to provide costed proposals for

any installation, whether or not it currently uses Howden equipment, to investigate the potential advantages of a partial or total refit.”

Africa’s deep mines represent some of the most challenging and demanding situations in the world.

Howden built its reputation by providing solutions for engineered systems in harsh environments and has taken the demands of deep mine ventilation in gold mining, where excavations often extend to depths of thousands of metres, in its stride. The quality and performance of equipment such as underground booster

ISC

INTERNOISE (PTY) LTD Company owner and MD, Heinz J. Beinroth (Dipl.-Ing & Dipl.

Wirtsch.-Ing), has more than 25 years experience in the Noise Control Industry. Heinz worked for 15 years with G+H Montage, largest insulation & noise control company in Germany with some 5500 employees (Head of Export Division). A further 7.5 years was spent at Willich, the second largest insulation and noise control company in Germany where he

held the position as Area Manager for South and Southern Africa.

In 1995, Willich set up their South African Division and in 1999 the Willich Division was taken over by H.J. Beinroth and the name changed to Internoise (Pty) Ltd. t/a International Sound Control & Insulation.

Over the last 25 years they have been involved in many major noise control projects in the USA, India, UK, Indonesia, Malaysia, U.A.Emirates and Germany.

Their South African projects include Kendal, Letabo, Matimba, Majuba (Power Stations), Saldanha Steel, Sasol 2 and many others. www.intsound.co.za

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Specialists in: • Detailing, planning and fabrication of all types of structural steelwork, Platework and piping with specialised welding capabilities.

• Plant fabrication and have the capacity to fabricate shop and site assembled Tanks, Chutes, Storage Bins, Silos, Ducting, Conveyors, Structures and Launders.

• Drawing office service includes detailing and developing fabrication items for various industries.

• Planet Projects has a comprehensive construction team to perform site erections and construction duties.

Planet Projects is an ISO 9001:2008 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certified company and all work undertaken is subject to our Quality Assurance and Safety Processes.

Tel: 011 738 1700 | E-mail: info@planetprojects.co.za www.planetprojects.co.za

Industrial Cleaning - T: +27 16 971 1218 | E: rockent@mweb.co.za Hydraulics & Engineering - F: +27 16 971 35 30 | E: andriesrockent@vodamail.co.za

Howden Africa and surface ventilation units PLANET PROJECTS has helped to introduce Our line of business is the detailing, planning and Howden products into other fabrication of all types of structural steelwork, plate work facets of mining such as dust and piping with specialised welding capabilities and we scrubbing and temperature also specialise in plant fabrication and have the capacity control, designing and of fabricating all types of shop and site- assembled Tanks, manufacturing a range of Chutes, Storage bins, Silo’s, Ducting, Conveyors, Structures and Launders. process compressors to cool Planet Projects is an ISO 9001:2008 and OHSAS deep-level gold mines.

18001:2007 certified company and all work undertaken is The technologies offered subject to our Quality Assurance and Safety Processes.

by Howden to the mining Our clients include Howden, Alstom, Bhubezi Projects, sector are changing. South Bateman, TWP Projects, Anglo Platinum, Impala Platinum, African mines are getting Xstrata Coal, Group Five and Goldfields.. deeper, and conventional www.planetprojects.co.za air cooling methods using surface chillers and blowers are becoming inadequate and energyinefficient, making it necessary to use hard ice plants to cool underground air. At 1,500 metres underground, rock surfaces reach 57 degrees, and hard ice plants provide an economical method of cooling.

The acquisition of Donkin Manufacturing in 1988 strengthened Howden’s position in medium and smaller fans that can shift up to 13,000 cubic metres per hour. The company had built up a considerable reputation since its foundation in 1956. Donkin has a modern, comprehensively-equipped manufacturing facility with full performance and noise level testing capabilities in Port Elizabeth, and sales offices in Johannesburg, Cape Geoffrey Chingwaru

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Town and Durban. Donkin Fans supplied several different fan types for installation in the new soccer stadiums constructed for the 2010 World Cup, for example the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth. And it doesn’t just supply the local market, having built up a considerable export business, including the recent supply of 500 HVAC ventilation fans, comprising both roof units and axial flow fans, to the prestigious Old Town Commercial Island project in Dubai.

The diverse capabilities of the business come together in Howden Projects, which provides cost effective turnkey solutions to a variety of industries including mining, manufacturing and power generation.

Wherever air cleaning is an issue, a system can be designed to keep particulate levels within statutory levels. Howden can design and supply single units, to integrate with and improve a customer’s existing plant, or become totally involved with the development of new projects from feasibility studies and consultancy right through to a full design, manufacturing, installation, testing and commissioning package with the highest standards of engineering and quality control throughout. A good example is its work at Eskom’s Majuba power station

in Mpumalanga, which boasts the world’s largest fabric filter plant - designed, built and installed by Howden Gas Cleaning.

Howden Africa has always been a great place to work and to acquire engineering skills. Being part of a global group allows

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Howden Africa

Howden main surface fan

the expertise and experience gained in one location to be applied in another and is an essential part of the approach that has kept Howden at the forefront of technology, and it has long recognised the importance of allowing individual engineers to develop their skills and knowledge to the full.

In 2008, the company took the groundbreaking step of adding a formal dimension to its training capabilities by instituting Howden Academy, a residential training course in which engineers from all Howden business units are brought together for an introduction to the technologies and business

practices it employs and the industries in which it operates. This has the additional benefit of reinforcing the spirit of friendship, co-operation and shared knowledge that has always distinguished the company and is exemplified in South Africa by its support for broad-based black economic empowerment (BBBEE) as the best route to empowerment for all the country’s communities.

For more information about Howden Africa visit: www.howden.com

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Planet Projects

Men of steel A well-established South African fabrication and boiler-making company with a client list that reads like a who’s who of the country’s mining and infrastructure sectors

written by: John O’Hanlon research by: Jeff Abbott

I

t was in 1969 that Douglas Simpson founded his fabrication business to serve the burgeoning industries of South Africa’s Gauteng Province. Today Planet Projects, the brand name under which the company sells its services, is located in the Labore district of Brakpan, an industrial town near to Benoni in the municipality of Ekurhuleni and conveniently located to the east of Johannesburg.

The town has excellent road and rail links to the mining operations of South Africa, which today tend to be Planet Projects’ principal customers. The company has been involved in an impressive array of high profile projects such as Great Basin Gold’s Burnstone mine in the South Rand area of the Witwatersrand Goldfields in Mpumalanga Province, Goldfields’ South Deep mine to the

south-west of Johannesburg, Xstrata Coal’s Atcom mine and Anglo’s Waterval smelter.

Other major clients include Alstom, Howden Energy Systems, Bhubezi Projects, Bateman, TWP Projects, Anglo Platinum, Impala Platinum, Xstrata Coal and Group Five.

Though the company lists many of the majors in its client list the company still serves a wide range of industries from infrastructure to manufacturing and mining services. From its 6,168 square metre production area Planet Projects offers services such as the detailing, planning and fabrication of all types of structural steelwork, platework, and piping with specialised welding capabilities. It also offers a drawing office service which includes the detailing and developing of fabrication items for a range of industries. Total production capacity is 850 tonnes per month.

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“Planet Projects’ internal transportation division ensures that its clients can rely on deliveries that are both on time and competitive” So while Planet Projects’ primary offering to its clients would be the detailing, planning and fabrication of structural steelwork and platework, it also specialises in plant fabrication and has the capacity to fabricate all types of shop and site assembly tanks, chutes, storage bins, silos, ducting, conveyor structures, launders (troughs used for washing ore), furnaces and incinerators.

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Each client has its own requirements.

Planet Projects’ internal transportation division ensures that its clients can rely on deliveries that are both on time and competitive in price. Its fleet includes tractors, double and tri-axle trailers and pick-up trucks. The construction team can travel to the client’s site to carry out on-thespot erection and construction duties. With

Planet Projects

so many years of experience, the team is well qualified to ensure that all essential quality, health, safety, legal and statutory requirements are followed. Planet Projects is an ISO 9001:2008 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certified business: quality and safety are twin priorities in all the work it carries out.

The work Planet Projects does is diverse and all of its operators have to be skilled.

Training is thus an essential part of its remit – both to fill its own vacancies and to address the skills shortages that affect the industry as a whole. The company is accredited to offer both welder and boilermaker institutional training and it offers apprenticeships in both trades. As well as on the job training, these apprentices

receive theoretical instruction and do practical work in a controlled environment.

An important aspect of this focus is it certification as a merSETA workplace. MerSETA is one of the 21 Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) established to promote skills development in South Africa, and encompasses manufacturing, engineering and related services. Planet Projects is participating in the accelerated artisan training programme (AATP) project as well as other merSETA skills development projects.

For more information about Planet Projects visit: www.planetprojects.co.za

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Trinity Exploration & Production

More than meets the eye Trinity Exploration and Production’s business has never been just about recovering oil and gas.

As CEO, Joey “Monty” Pemberton explains, it is equally about behaviour, rigour, purpose and changing the landscape in Trinidad for the better

written by: Will Daynes research by: Vincent Kielty

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Trinity Exploration & Production

I

n much the same way that Trinity Exploration and Production operates under the motto that “it’s not just about oil”, Joey “Monty” Pemberton has lived most of his working life with the belief that it’s not just about how much money one can earn.

“I think this outlook was borne out by the way I was brought up to never really be focused on money alone,” explains Trinity’s Chief Executive Officer. “It was back in 2003, during my time working in London that I decided to take a step back and look at my own future. In doing so I realised that even though I was getting paid handsomely for my work at the time, it would only be when I followed my own aspirations for a better life that I would truly be happy and that I would begin to reap the rewards that only such efforts can bring.”

It was in Bruce Dingwall, Executive Chairman of Trinity, that Pemberton found a kindred spirit when it came to this way of thinking and this helped greatly in convincing Pemberton to join, what was then Ten Degrees North Energy, as Chief Financial Officer in 2005, before being promoted to his current position in 2009.

Since Pemberton assumed the role of CEO the company has rebranded itself as Trinity, becoming the full cycle independent oil and gas producer that it is today, with onshore and offshore assets in Trinidad and South Africa.

Headquartered in San Fernando, Trinity’s focus is Trinidad where it operates assets on both the West and East coasts. The company’s core values are behaviour,

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Trinity Exploration & Production rigour and purpose, while its staff of more than 270 individuals possess an excellent understanding of the local operating environment and business culture.

Trinity is seeking to build Trinidad’s first independent oil and gas company of scale. It hopes to achieve this by growing reserves and production for the benefit of all stakeholders, and to its credit it has to date shown it has considerable ability to do so by quadrupling its production levels in the years since Pemberton became CEO. “While Trinidad is one of the world’s major oil and gas producers, the marketplace

SCHLUMBERGER TRINIDAD INC. The LiftWatcher real-time surveillance service provides remote communication and control of all artificial lift systems and surface controllers through a web-based interface.

Schlumberger experienced surveillance engineers monitor alarms and alerts 24/7, 365 days a year. Based at one of many Artificial Lift Surveillance Centers (ALSCs), they analyze data from multiple wells across several fields simultaneously and in real time. Data are transferred via satellite to and from remote locations, hostile environments, and sites with limited or no data acquisition capabilities.

Where an existing SCADA system is in place, the LiftWatcher system can extract the data and process it with the same top-quality results. From motor temperature to continuous flow, ALSC engineers review alarm events for all measurements at the wellsite. An ALSC surveillance database contains more than 700 data signatures—conditions that cause

alarms to be sent, one third of which are considered critical to preventing ESP downtime, misuse, or failure. The engineers analyze data summaries and poll data on demand. Using Schlumberger best practices and systematic workflows, they identify probable causes and quickly report remediation options for rapid implementation. Recommendations are relayed directly to field personnel, who review them via text messages, e-mail, or a user-friendly Web application. Critical events requiring immediate action to prevent equipment failure are also communicated by phone. When engineers see an opportunity to optimize a well, they recommend the use of the LiftPro Well Optimization Service for improving underperforming artificially lifted wells.

LiftWatcher and LiftPro are marks of Schlumberger. www.slb.com/liftwatcher

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SSL

Southern Supplies Ltd.

THE DIFFERENCE IS

ALWAYS SOUTHERN

Southern Supplies Limited is dedicated to providing our customers with a diverse range of oilfield and industrial products that improve their performance and productivity.

We also introduce Kerui Group Holding Co. Ltd as an agency we represent in the oilfield. Kerui is a National Hi-tech enterprise and one of the leading enterprises in China petroleum equipment industry base.

40-44 Sutton Street, San Fernando, Trinidad W.I. Telephone: 868-657-5194 | 868-652-8816 | 868-653-2531 | info@ssltt.com | www.ssltt.com

Seen “The delivery of Total Fluids Management (TFM) product achieved through project management, design and distribution of drilling, workover and completion fluids to oil and gas industry customers within the framework of Wellbore Management and Surface Solutions�

Baroid Trinidad Services Limited Certified to ISO 9001:2008 since 2006 Certificate of Registration No. 10000121 QM08

Contact us today and put your company in the spotlight!

Phone: 868-624-6620/648-3783 Email: iacosta@baroidtrinidad.com

vincent@bus-ex.com

Trinity Exploration & Production is characterised by its Southern Supplies Limited (SSL) lac k of i ndependent Southern Supplies Limited (SSL) has come a long way companies operating in since its humble beginnings in 1982, and is now a major the region,” Pemberton player in the supply of industrial equipment, pipe, valves continues. “What we have and fittings, tools, and hardware in the region. instead is a large number Our strategic local and international partnerships with some of major conglomerates of the world’s leading brands, manufacturers and suppliers, together with a dynamic and responsive international with incredibly large asset supply chain, allow us to fulfill just about any demand portfolios. This creates an that a customer can bring us. ideal scenario for purposewww.ssltt.com built vehicles like Trinity to come in and partner with these companies in order to help them monetise every drop of oil or gas that they would otherwise miss.”

Such efforts create a win-win situation for both Trinity and the major oil and gas players in the region, particularly given that Trinidad is home to significant reserve pools and lots of acreage in which Trinity can apply its model to great effect.

Underpinning this however is Trinity’s own asset portfolio, which itself has seen an increase in production of some twelve percent since February of this year. “As this production continues to grow and cash continues to flow into the business it helps to reaffirm our own strong position in the marketplace,” Pemberton highlights.

“Furthermore, we will commence the

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WHEN PRECISION IS PARAMOUNT Specialising in Heavy Haulage & Equipment Rental since 1945 We are the best source for large-scale construction, engineered heavylifting, equipment rental and multi-modal transport throughout the Caribbean. We are keen to show clients how it is that we are best suited to serve their projects.

Container Transport • Project Warehousing Crane & Equipement Rental • Turnkey Project Cargo Handling Irregular & Oversized Load Transport Port Cargo & Material Handling • New Equipment Sales Heavy Lift & Haul Engineering • Heavy Haul Transport Rigging Engineering • Customs Brokerage Affiliated companies are as follows: Advance Readymix Limited – Concrete Suppliers Vega Minerals – Quarry Operators, Aggregate Suppliers

Tel: 868 653 3802 | Fax: 868 652 8030 E-mail: info@paramounttransport.com | www.paramounttransport.com

Trinity Exploration & Production drilling of two more exploration wells in the coming weeks, which lie within existing assets and could potentially double the size of Trinity by themselves.”

Back in 2009, when Pemberton assumed the role of CEO, the company was producing approximately 1,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd). As a result of its efforts to grow both internally and through the acquisition of new assets Trinity today produces some 3,830 boepd.

At the same time its labor force has also grown from 120 employees to more than 300 at press time.

THE PARAMOUNT TRANSPORT AND TRADING COMPANY With a passion for service, Paramount was solidly anchored from the roots of Joseph Lutchmansingh in 1945. The Paramount group, first secured their place in the energy sector in 1967 by assisting with the construction of a desulfurization plant for Texaco Trinidad, and have since maintained a frontline presence building on experience gained by the demands of the highest standards known worldwide.

The Paramount name is now reinforced with an employee base of over 500 committed individuals who can celebrate 3 generations of best practice, refinement and evolution.

Through the years our clients have pushed the boundaries and Paramount have stepped up each and every time to deliver with exceeded expectation – size and volume are part of our daily routine. Through heavy lift equipment rated in excess of 700 tonnes, heavy haul capabilities beyond 1 kiloton and loads over

200 ft in length we have been known to draw a crowd while executing an impressive array of well planned lifts, twists and turns. Paramount’s value is not defined by lifting / moving a load within the parameters of our equipment; it is our ability to execute without incident, safely and as planned. Paramount’s potential is enabled through the technical skill of our workforce, providing customised solutions to the dynamic business needs of our clients. The Paramount influence in the construction industry includes the successful partnering of our own ready mix concrete plants (Advance Readymix Ltd.) with our quarry under the name of Vega Minerals Ltd. Our passion for refinement brings with it new, cutting edge equipment, which has enabled us to offer our clients a truly superior product, resulting in an ever expanding market footprint. www.paramounttransport.com

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Petroleum Contracting Services Limited is a locally owned and operated service company established and registered in Trinidad and Tobago in 2004.

We have since grown to be one of the largest local on-land providers of swabbing services, crude oil transportation and drilling site preparation.

265 Goodman Road, Penal, Trinidad W.I. Phone/Fax: 1 (868) 647 6655 Email: petroleumtrinidad@gmail.com

Trinity Exploration & Production The first half of 2013 saw the company bring At Petroleum Contracting Services Limited, we pride a total of six onshore ourselves in providing integrated services ranging from development wells into turn-keysolutions to one-off oilfield services. We are production with an average committed to providing the highest level of service to our initial production rate of partners. Our philosophy, accountability and work ethic 150 barrels of oil per day have fostered long term relationships with many of the existing on-land lease operatorships. We have a reputation (bopd), ahead of a budget to uphold and it’s our mission to do so, while continuing of 50 bopd per well. The to deliver the highest quality of service that our clients two exploration wells that demand, in an honest and trusted environment.

Pember ton prev iously We have extensive in-house expertise which translates mentioned, and which into viable solutions that help improve our efficiency and the company has already reliability without compromising our primary commitment to secured two jack-up rigs to health and safety.

E. petroleumtrinidad@gmail.com drill with zero cost options for additional rig slots if required, will bring this figure to eight wells for the year.

The company’s work for the year doesn’t end there however. On the contrary, Trinity intends to continue with its onshore development campaign by drilling a minimum of five new wells by the end of 2013. In light of these plans the company has updated its production guidance to 4,200 - 4,500 boepd exit rate for 2013.

Trinity strongly believes that Trinidad, a prolific hydrocarbon presence, offers significant remaining potential for oil and gas producers and that it is

Petroleum Contracting Services Limited

3,830 boepd Currently produced by Trinity

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Quality Service BuildS laSting relationShipS At EDG, we combine world-class engineering, design and project management with complete project team support. Through EDG’s project experience and our extension of staff approach we have become a trusted consultant to Trinity Exploration and Production Company, LLC. Our quality service, cost-effective solutions, and the character of our staff allow us to be a dependable resource to our clients, worldwide. For more information about EDG and our portfolio of engineering services, please visit us on the web at www.edg.net.

Better people

“Trinity Exploration and Production LLC values the relationship we share with EDG a company which we consider to be knowledgeable, professional and thorough in all of its operations. As well, Trinity considers EDG to be a competent provider of brownfield engineering support for our business.”

Chief Operating Officer, Trinity Exploration and Production

Better BuSineSS

www.edg.net | 1.888 .EDG .9298

Trinity Exploration & Production uniquely positioned to capture upcoming opportunities. As such it makes perfect sense that its current focus is trained firmly on the island. However it is important to remember that as an independent company with significant international experience possessed by its upper management, Trinity understands that as it expands as a business so too will its geographic reach.

“Of course we don’t know exactly where things will take us in the long run,” Pemberton says, “but what we do know is that having a solid business, built upon

EDG INC In December of 2010, EDG partnered with Trinity Exploration & Production, LLC (formally Bayfield Energy Galeota Limited) to provide engineering services for a Brownfield program located offshore of the East Coast of Trinidad.

Trinity called on EDG to provide an action plan for renovating four existing offshore platforms, interconnecting pipelines, and an onshore terminal they had recently acquired. These platforms were originally commissioned more than thirty years before and had seen little attention or upgrades over the years. EDG leveraged significant offshore, operations, design, construction and laser scanning experience to frame the opportunities and provide workable improvement alternatives without compromising the existing production.

Using laser scanning technology, EDG was able to create accurate as-built information to indicate all of the modifications that had occurred over the decades. This data

was leveraged by EDG’s multidisciplined team to successfully complete the project, which included engineering, design and drafting, procurement services, project and document control, construction management, inspection and laser-scanning. EDG’s project team of process, mechanical, electrical, instrument, and structural engineers quickly became an extension of Trinity’s staff, a team of reliable engineers that could be deployed when required. It was through quality execution and prompt responsiveness that EDG championed the project. From initial engagement to effective and innovated engineering solutions, EDG has earned Trinity’s confidence as their trusted advisor. EDG, Inc. is a multi-discipline, international, engineering, design and project management firm serving the Oil and Gas and Industrial Markets in eight offices worldwide for over 30 years. www.edg.net

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Envirospec We provide quality, environmentally safe water and air management solutions that are cost effective to our customers.

Phone: 744-0852/376-9598/376-9583 Email: envirospectt@yahoo.com

Services we provide • Waste Management • Automated Tank Cleaning Services • On-Site Analysis and Evaluation • Bottle-less Water Dispensers • Other Biodegradable Solutions for Industries Products • Five stage Reverse Osmosis Home Units • Three stage Filtration Home Units • Shower Filters

Southern Maintenance Services Co.Ltd

Southern Maintenance Services Co.Ltd Merging experience, technology, training and safety, to produce a level of service that surpasses our competitors, while focusing on our priorities, which are, our customers, employees and the environment.

Products and Services we provide: • Pipeline Construction • Sandblasting and Painting • Welding and Fabrication • Labour Supply - On land and Offshore • Procurement • Transportation • Civil and Marine Construction LP #55, Isthmus Road, Galeota, Guayaguayare, Trinidad, WI. Telephone – 1-868-630-3257 | 1-868-630-1970 | 1-868-630-6195 | E-mail – southmai@tstt.net.tt

Trinity Exploration & Production solid assets, can take you to Envirospec the right places. What we Founded in 2005 by Mr. Marvin Robert Wilson (CEO), who also know is that what we recognized that there was a viable market for air and water are doing today is helping treatment in Trinidad and Tobago utilizing air and water to grow our business, purification and filtration systems. Initially, focus was placed increase our options and on air and water purification and filtration home units which flexibility, and ultimately serviced both residential and commercial customers. These units utilize a Five Stage Reverse Osmosis Purification create a sense of excitement Process that currently serves over 150 customers. that can be felt throughout Envirospec has since been expanded to comprehensively the company.” include our industrial customers. We have been successful It is also Pemberton’s in combining the existing purification process and a Gravity hope that Trinity becomes Flow Pre Filtration Tank. something of a trendsetter We continue to modify our applications to suit our in the region. “The basin customers. Our main objective is to afford our residential, commercial and industrial customers the opportunity today is dominated by major to recycle their used or hazardous water on-site, thus international oil and gas reducing the overall water, energy and cost factors. companies. What we feel E. envirospectt@yahoo.com we need is more companies like ours to come in and look at monetising every single piece of acreage and extract value from material that wouldn’t otherwise be subjected to work. We believe that more Trinity’s in the marketplace will create a greater scope for oil and gas opportunities and helps create a natural chain throughout the region of

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businesses that will each profit from the development of the sector.”

Pemberton also hopes that the work of Trinity, and others within the sector, goes some way to helping the vast majority of Trinidadians to begin to really appreciate the size of the industry that exists on their doorsteps and the economic benefits it brings to the island. “What we have here is one of the most sophisticated industries of its kind, anywhere in the world,” he enthuses. “What you find here is upstream oil, upstream natural gas, mid-stream processing, downstream energy, export infrastructure and all the service companies that go with it, all of which occurs in an area no larger than 51 square kilometres, on an island with a population of just over 1.3 million.”

With so many opportunities located in one area it is Pemberton’s belief that it is only a matter of time before Trinidad’s oil and gas sector opens up further still to national and international investors, and Trinity wants to be on-hand to help facilitate this. “We are unique in the sense that being an operator on the ground we understand how things operate, how to bring the right people on board, how to build the right relationships and so forth.

This places up is a strong position to help make things happen in a part of the world where a vast amount of potential is just waiting to be harvested.”

For more information about Trinity Exploration & Production visit: www.trinityexploration.com

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Trinity Exploration & Production

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Emirates Steel

Shaping a low carbon future The unwavering dedication Emirates Steel has towards producing only the finest quality products also extends to the company’s commitment to health and safety, the environment and energy efficiency

written by: Will Daynes research by: Candice Nice

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H

istorically known for its large hydrocarbon wealth, which gives it one of the highest GDPs per capita in the world, the UAE’s decision in recent years to diversify its economic plans marked an important shift in the growth of the GCC country. It has subsequently proven to be a hugely successful move, with the country’s non-oil and gas GDP outstripping that attributed to the energy sector, accounting for 64 percent of its total GDP. This trend is reflected in Abu Dhabi, the wealthiest emirate of the UAE, with substantial new investment being made in industry, real estate, tourism and retail through the Abu Dhabi government’s industrial diversification policy.

A driving force for implementing this policy is Emirates Steel. Wholly owned by Senaat, the UAE’s largest industrial conglomerate, Emirates Steel is the only integrated steel plant in the UAE, utilising the latest technology to produce high quality rebar, wire rod and heavy sections.

Established in 1998, Emirates Steel grew in a relatively short period of time from a simple re-roller of imported steel billets to a complex integrated manufacturing plant, using modern solutions to meet market demand and generate value for its various stakeholders. In 2012, the company achieved a capacity of 3.5 million tons, following two expansions and an investment of $3 billion.

One of the core objectives at the heart of Emirates Steel today is its desire to meet market demand by producing steel in a safe and sustainable way. Amongst its

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CEO of Emirates Steel His Excellency Saeed G Al Romaithi

Emirates Steel

Emirates Steel is the largest steelmaker in the Middle East to produce structural steel up to a million tons a year

most important sustainable development priorities the company endeavours to provide the necessary training and personal protective equipment to maintain the safety of its employees. Also included in these priorities is Emirates Steel’s on-going efforts to utilise the CO2 it has generated during the iron reduction process at its DRP plants, and its work to promote environment and resource conservation.

In November this year Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Masdar, the

nation’s renewable energy company created a joint venture company to develop commercialscale projects for carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS). It will build a $123 million CO2 compression facility and a 50 kilometre pipeline, along which CO2 will be pumped to ADNOC’s oilfields.

Emirates Steel is a key partner in this project – the CO 2 its plants generate will feed the project when it goes operational in 2016 and the compression plant will be located close to its premises. The project

“Wholly owned by Senaat, the UAE’s largest industrial conglomerate, Emirates Steel is the only integrated steel plant in the UAE” 68 | be weekly

Emirates Steel

800,000 tons Emirates Steel will free issue the captured CO2 to Masdar will sequester up to 800,000 tonnes of CO2 annually – a massive contribution to Emirates Steel’s carbon footprint, which at the same time will improve ADNOC’s oil recovery.

“CCUS presents a viable technology for energy-intensive industries to lower their carbon footprint,” said His Excellency Saeed G Al Romaithi, CEO of Emirates Steel.

“By capturing and eventually storing our CO2 stream, Emirates Steel sets an example of supporting Abu Dhabi’s sustainability objectives through operating environmental friendly heavy industries within the emirate of Abu Dhabi.”

This is far from the first time that gas has been pumped underground to improve oil recovery, and in the past the UAE has used surplus hydrocarbon gases for this purpose.

However, with the nation’s rise in its energy demand, this CCUS project will allow the UAE to preserve its natural gas for domestic electricity generation. The feed from the Emirates Steel plant, containing 90 per cent CO2 , will be transferred to a common compression and dehydration facility at the project site in Mussafah. The feed stream will be compressed into dense phase; delivering a CO2 stream through 50 kilometres of pipeline network, to be injected in an onshore field, operated by ADCO. It is worth noting that

Fourth steelmaker in the world licensed to manufacture nuclear grade steel

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Emirates Steel is the first steelmaker in the world to capture its CO2 emissions on this scale, with the possible exception of some North American projects.

Protection of the environment has always been a key priority when it comes to Emirates Steel’s operations, with the company maintaining the belief that the steel production industry will only be able to show sustained development if it

can help minimize negative impact on the environment. It is this thought process that underlines the company’s ecological policy. “It is also for this reason that we are committed to continued compliance to all environmental regulations, to protect present and future human well-being in our local environment,” Al Romaithi added.

Emirates Steel’s environmental protection activities are based on a series of principles.

“Emirates Steel is the first steelmaker in the world to capture its CO2 emissions on this scale outside North America”

3,500 trees to be planted all around the steelmaking complex

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Emirates Steel

Monitoring the environment is a key priority

These involve conducting business in a socially and environmentally responsible manner, using best available techniques, preventing environmental pollution, having an environmentally friendly approach at all times and reducing the generation and accumulation of waste products. The result of these actions helps to reduce the impact on the environment from the company’s production activities, while at the same time aiming to provide a favourable living environment for the UAE community.

June 2009 saw the company put into action a comprehensive Environmental Monitoring Plan. Designed to fulfil the requirements of Abu Dhabi’s Environmental Agency, the plan involves the monitoring of effluent, WTP sludge, stack

emissions, ambient air quality, groundwater, ambient marine water, sediment, and noise emissions. An approved independent laboratory carries out the required measurements and monitoring reports are prepared and reviewed against regulatory limits.

Emirates Steel conducts regular stack monitoring for SOx, NOx, CO and PM to meet the requirements as set out by the Environment Agency of Abu Dhabi.

Meanwhile, the company has installed state of the art technologies such as low NOx burners and dry de-dusting units across its operations to minimise emissions. This has helped the company to achieve regulatory compliance consistently according to the monitored parameters.

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“the steel production industry will only be able to show sustained development if it can help minimize negative impact on the environment�

When it comes to ambient air quality, a real time ambient air quality and meteorology monitoring station has been commissioned at the industrial City of Abu Dhabi. Owned by Emirates Steel, it is operated and maintained by the Higher Corporation for Specialized Economic Zones (ZonesCorp), the industrial sector regulatory authority.

The process of non-contact cooling in the

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steel making process sees the use of both seawater and fresh water. In its role of an environmentally conscious business, Emirates Steel has operations in place to ensure that the wastewater generated from the process undergoes different stages of treatment prior to reuse and discharge.

Furthermore, in its attempt to achieve excellence in the field of by-product

Emirates Steel

Green belt project: A responsible business

recycling, constant efforts have been made to match the rates of recycling and generation for oxide fines, iron fines, slag, refractory, mill and scale. In addition, efforts have also been made to improve production processes and reduce waste.

Arguably one of the strongest examples of Emirate Steel’s commitment to sustainability and responsible business is its Green Belt Project. This undertaking has seen the company initiate a treeplanting program around the perimeter of operations. In one area in particular, 150 palm trees have been planted together with more than 2,000 Conocarpus Erectus trees, also known as Damas trees, in addition to grass and ground cover. In total, an area

of approximately 15,000 square metres has been planted. These new trees and other green areas are irrigated by the treated wastewater that previously would have been discharged back into the sea.

Protecting the environment with sustainable landscaping is a key priority at Emirates Steel. The company wants to be sure that it can minimize its environmental impact by drawing water very carefully from local sources. During Phase 1 of the Green Belt Project Emirates Steel has sought ways to embellish the surroundings by embarking on a green belt and associated road network project.

As part of this project, the company is planting 3,500 trees around the main

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Emirates Steel The Emirates Steel Industrial Complex

boundary fence and surrounding its stockyard. In addition to enhancing the green areas, the project helps the company to control the amount of dust emissions from plant activity and improves road safety. It is also used as a bunker for more storage space and as a controlled area for materials. The long-term plans of Emirates Steel from an environmental perspective revolve around building on the impressive efforts it has already made. Naturally this will involve an increase in environmental investments, which will enable the company to rank among the best GCC companies in terms of environmental protection, thus strengthening its competitive advantage and contributing to its own sustainable development.

The proof is there to see that, over the years, the company has striven to improve its processes and controls, has invested capital to increase efficiency and decrease energy use, and fostered a culture of resourcefulness and accountability.

As it looks to the future, Emirates Steel will soon become one of the first steel companies in the world to sequestrate CO2 on a large scale. Together with other energy reduction initiatives, it is believed that this will provide the company with one of the lowest carbon footprints compared to any integrated steel plant in the world, a fact of which it can be immensely proud.

For more information about Emirates Steel visit: www.emiratessteel.com

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Alpine Loung goes lean South Africa’s premium furniture manufacturer is meeting the challenges of a changing market by adopting best manufacturing practices more often associated with automobiles than luxury seating

written by: John O’Hanlon research by: Vincent Kielty

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Alpine Lounge

ge

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Aerial view of the factory

Alpine Lounge

A

member of the Bravo Group, South Africa’s largest and most diverse furniture ma nu f ac t u rer, A lpi ne Lounge has left behind the world of high volume mass-produced furniture. It is a premium marque and its Ashanti brand can only be described as aspirational. Founded in 1969 it has built its reputation on state-of-the-art technology, quality products, on-time delivery and caring and efficient after-sales service.

Alpine Lounge only uses top quality raw materials and enjoys exclusive use of indigenous leather types sourced from South Africa and Namibia. In fact one of the company’s unique selling points is appreciated by the discerning purchasing independent and therefore not suited to the mass market. Leather furniture has come into demand from a mass market in recent years; at the same time leather-look PU (polyurethane) and microfibre-faced fabrics have been perfected to the extent that it’s now virtually impossible to tell the real thing from the imitation. Car seating in particular, which consumes the pick of hides but routinely uses plastic on the non-contact sections of top of the range car seats, presents a challenge to the purist so perfectly matched are the colours and the textures.

Alpine Lounge furniture on the other hand makes a virtue of the marks that distinguish African leather whether from cattle grazed on the veldt or other indigenous species like gemsbok (sourced through strictly controlled culling programs in Namibia).

These hides show tick bites, thorn scratches and even the scars left by fighting. They tell

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Hanni fine quality leathers since 1724 We at Hannitan are proud to be associated with Alpine Lounge.

Hannitan Leather, under the management of Rudolf Hanni, started from very humble beginnings. Hannitan has expanded into the largest supplier of furniture leather in South Africa, producing an average of 1,200 hides daily. The tannery produces a wide variety of upholstery leathers including, aniline leathers, semi-aniline, full grain, corrected grain, buffed leathers and oil pull-ups in a huge selection of colours. Hannitan manufactures a HANNI range of leather goods including travel bags, hand bags, leather cushions, leather folders and slippers to various outlets . It also offers a customized service manufacturing for various other well known labels and brands. Hannitan supplies its own range of leather care products including waxes, silicones and hydrophobic products.

Tel: +27 (0)11 817 2150 | Fax: +27 (0)11 817 5259 | Email: hannitan@iafrica.com

www.hannitanleather.com

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HANNITAN LEATHER CC The Hanni family have dedicated itself to an unbroken lineage in the leather trade since 1724.

The Hanni family coat of arms Rooster symbol is incorporated as the main element representing the forefathers and next generations of the Hanni family. The crown signifies the handing over of the Hanni family trade of leather tanning from the father rooster to the son rooster.

The father rooster holds two arrows namely craftsmanship and quality which is

passed onto the next generation. The son rooster holds one arrow, signifying innovation to adopt to new trends and current changes.

E. hannitan@iafrica.com www.hannitanleather.com

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PROUD SUPPLIER TO ALPINE LOUNGE

South Africa’s largest producer of polyurethane foam.

Solutions in any shape, size and type.

Tel: +27 (0)21 5352280 | www.vitafoam.co.za

Quality Springs cc Distributors Of Industrial Staples, Coil Nails, Pneumatic Tools, Sagless Zed Springs, Hardware Products & Accessories to The Furniture & Allied Manufacturing Industries.

Telephone: +27 11 402 4250/7 | Fax No: +27 11 402 6661 | Email qualitysprings@tiscali.co.za KZN Branch: Telephone: +27 32 551 2262 | Email: qstanger@mweb.co.za | www.qualitysprings.co.za

Alpine Lounge when van der Merwe went Vitafoam to America, after Alpine Vitafoam South Africa is proud to be associated with Alpine secured the Africa-wide Lounge, a premier brand in the furniture industry in South licence to manufacture and Africa. As the leading producer of polyurethane foam in distribute La-Z-Boy products.

South Africa we offer our customers innovative solutions that This major US brand assist in product development and improvement. Vitafoam founded in 1927 had begun has been a major supplier to Alpine Lounge for many years and congratulate Alpine on their success and look forward to to struggle too, some seven making new contributions to their future success. or eight years previously, but www.vitafoam.co.za the common denominator was not just the competition from China. La-Z-Boy was founded in the 19th century and its designs reflected that but more importantly it was still manufacturing in a way consistent with mass production – the Ford model of motor manufacturing, if you like, which that industry had already abandoned in favour of the Toyota Production Method (TPM). “We started producing on line back in the mid 1970s, the time TV came to South Africa. And the factory was still laid out that way until last year. But the market has changed. We don’t have the volumes to enjoy the same economy of scale.

Stoppages are more frequent due to shorter runs and line imbalances result from that, Sewing department so it is no longer advantageous to produce smaller quantities on line.”

He put in some time in Quality Springs the States to learn how some We specialize in the BeA and Brett range of pneumatic tools and employ qualified technicians to service and maintain seven years ago La-Z-Boy these products both”in house” and on site at our customers had switched over to cell premises. Our mission is to offer the best quality products manufacturing, adopted lean and service on our ever increasing product range. We practices in its factory and are proud of the fact that we have established long-term revolutionised its designs, relationships with our clients and we continue to assist its methodology and quality them with their requirements. standards. At the same time www.qualitysprings.co.za it had revamped its design

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14 Chestnut Grove, Bower Road, Wynberg, 7800 Tel: 021 761 0513 Fax: 021 761 0915 Email: gregd@procbroc.co.za Procurement Services is hugely grateful for being granted the opportunity to honour the relationship we have enjoyed with Alpine Lounge since 1979, to whom we value the status of being a preferred and worthwhile supplier.

The function of Procurement Services is to select suitable supplies for Alpine Lounge. This begins with the selection and sustainability of the raw material, starting from the forest, its species and density.

From there our reliable and sustainable sawmilling procedure is equipped to selectively cut, dry and define the quality that is required by Alpine Lounge.

Alpine Lounge has secured the highest quality of raw material, specifically selected and processed for their individual needs and has built secure and much valued supply sources. On behalf of all of our selected suppliers we would like to thank Alpine Lounge for its past support and we wish to reinforce our gratitude and commitment to its future and continued success.

Seen

Contact us today and put your company in the spotlight!

vincent@bus-ex.com 84 | be weekly

and marketing thrust to appeal to a younger audience, even getting Brooke Shields in as the ‘face’ of the La-Z-Boy brand. “I was struck by how successful they had been in turning the business around. It pulled them out of the red and into the black and the business is now fully recovered and doing very well internationally.”

Back in South Africa he persuaded his CEO that, facing the threat from low cost imports and a changing market dynamic, the business should adopt the same approach that had delivered such a great result for La-Z-Boy. As a result the entire group has started its lean journey, an initiative that will undoubtedly deliver results across the value chain from raw materials procurement to showroom, though

Alpine Lounge

Adam recliners and sofa

it starts with production. It’s early days in a process that started in September 2012 but will, he emphasises, never end. “There’s a huge task ahead of us. We are starting with a five-year transformation programme, that being continuous improvement, or Kaizen. I believe it will take us forward into the next decade and beyond, as lean manufacturing is the survival kit for modern manufacturing.”

Cell manufacturing differs from single element procedures, where each operator

repeats the same step on a production line.

Instead there may be six operators, multiskilled and between them taking complete responsibility for the product. “There are so many advantages when you work out the return rates compared to online,” says van der Merwe. “Quality is so much better, as is general control of production, particularly with smaller runs. You can identify product that is relatively easy to produce, what falls into the middle area of complexity and what

“I was struck by how successful La-Z-Boy had been in turning the business around” be weekly | 85

“Lean manufacturing is the survival kit for modern manufacturing” requires more work – and allocate these to particular cells, with people who have matching skills.”

The lean journey is a challenge to people used to the old ways, and some move on, but there is no turning back. Cell manufacturing delivers better productivity with fewer people, less waste, better quality and faster lead times. The factory is already looking a very different place, he says, with clutter

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disappearing, and everything that is needed close to hand, visible and accessible.

This new manufacturing approach suits the increasing complexity and technical sophistication of furniture, a large proportion of which falls into the ‘motion’ category, with dynamic options built in. Alpine Lounge is the biggest manufacturer of motion furniture in South Africa and has been producing it in increasing quantities since 2002. To keep

Alpine Lounge

Panda in leather-look microfibre

pace with the growing sophistication of these systems as well as the volumes needed, Alpine Lounge recently shifted its sourcing to Leggett & Platt, the leading global supplier of mechanisms that can, for example, now recline a seat forward – or rather, ‘incline’ it like the latest aircraft seats into a 180 degree lay-flat position. This also means its back can be close to a wall, making it more suitable for the smaller room.

Finally, Alpine Lounge is now much in demand for cinema and auditorium seating, one sector of the market that seems to be recession proof. “Perhaps people go to the pictures to forget their problems!” Lawrence van der Merwe speculates. Whatever the

reason it is a growing market for Alpine Lounge, in happy partnership with the leading installer Destiny Seating. One UK cinema, Vue in Manchester, has just been completed, major cinema chains in South Africa are ordering, and the company is providing the seating for four cinemas in Doha, Qatar. Alpine is looking forward to the opportunity that offers to combine its luxury cinema offering with the innovative design and highly decorative finish beloved of customers in the Middle East.

For more information about Alpine Lounge visit: www.alpinelounge.co.za

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