UP Department of Mining Engineering 60-year Book

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING

DIAMOND JUBILEE

Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology Fakulteit Ingenieurswese, Bou-omgewing en Inligtingtegnologie / Lefapha la Boetšenere, Tikologo ya Kago le Theknolotši ya Tshedimošo

DEDICATION

This publication is dedicated to the staff, students and alumni of the Department of Mining Engineering. You have shared in the success of the Department, and contribute to the future of the mining industry both at home and abroad.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING

DIAMOND JUBILEE EDITORIAL TEAM EDITOR Prof RCW Webber-Youngman ronny.webber@up.ac.za

TEXT, LAYOUT AND PRODUCTION JANINE SMIT EDITORIAL SERVICES janine@jses.co.za www.jses.co.za Janine Smit Helena Haupt

PUBLISHER DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology University of Pretoria Private Bag X20 Hatfield, Pretoria 0028 South Africa ©2021

Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information presented in this publication, room for error remains due to the publication’s reliance on personal accounts of events (E&OE).

Front cover: A modern collage illustrating the Department of Mining Engineering’s activities.

Back cover: A 3D-printed model of the revamped fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building; home of the Department of Mining Engineering.

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Educating and leading mining engineers

FOREWORD

to become imagineers.

The publication of this book coincides with the diamond anniversary of the Department of Mining Engineering in the University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology in 2021. To commemorate this milestone, the Department engaged in a number of events in celebration of its diamond jubilee.

These included special celebratory meetings of the Mining Engineering Advisory Board and the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP), as well as a 60-year celebratory Golf Day – all of which culminated in a gala dinner for the stakeholders who have made this achievement possible.

The occasion was memorialised with the development of a special logo, as well as the publication of this commemorative book. The support of the Faculty and the Office of the Dean have been invaluable in making this year-long celebration possible.

The Department is ready to continue its excellence in mining engineering education and contribute to new ways of innovating for the future.

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P A G E iii

CONTENT 1

3

5

MESSAGE FROM THE VICE-CHANCELLOR AND PRINCIPAL, UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA

MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN, FACULTY OF ENGINEERING, BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF DEPARTMENT, MINING ENGINEERING

9

15

32

TIMELINE: 1961–2021

SIXTY YEARS OF EXCELLENCE IN MINING ENGINEERING EDUCATION

HIGHLIGHTING SIX DECADES OF EXCELLENCE

75

89

101

FLAGSHIP INITIATIVES

FUTURE FOCUS

MESSAGES OF CONGRATULATIONS

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

ACRONYMS 4IR AI AMMSA AR ARM ARWU COMRO CSIR DSI GDP HOD IIT M&R MELA MASUP MCSA METF MHSC MMP MMS MRRC SACMA SACPE SAIMM SAMERDI SOMP STIG TMEC UP VR VRC WEF XR

Fourth Industrial Revolution Artificial Intelligence Association of Mine Managers South Africa Augmented Reality African Rainbow Minerals Academic Ranking of World Universities Chamber of Mines Research Organisation Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Department of Science and Innovation Gross Domestic Product Head of Department Interactive Immersive Technology Murray & Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria Minerals Council South Africa Minerals Education Trust Fund Mine Health and Safety Council Mandela Mining Precinct Mechanised Mining Systems Mining Resilience Research Centre South African Colliery Managers’ Association South African Council for Professional Engineers Southern African Institute for Mining and Metallurgy South African Mining, Extraction, Research Development and Innovation Society of Mining Professors Association of Mining Engineers and Technicians (Polish) Tertiary Mining Education Committee University of Pretoria Virtual Reality Virtual Reality Centre World Economic Forum Extended Reality

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MESSAGE FROM THE VICE-CHANCELLOR AND PRINCIPAL, UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA Prof Tawana Kupe students. This is a positive response to the University’s call to foster and sustain a diverse, inclusive and equitable university community.

Throughout its development, the Department’s strategic intent has mirrored that of the University of Pretoria. This is evident in its vision to be a leading research-intensive mining engineering department, recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally.

As the University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering celebrates 60 years of excellence in mining education, it is perhaps appropriate to reflect on the important role the Department plays in delivering graduates who can contribute to the sustainability of the mining industry, and who are focused on eradicating poverty, unemployment and inequality.

While mining has historically been one of the core drivers of the South African economy, and despite the growth of the other sectors of the economy, mining continues to be a fundamental contributor to economic productivity and the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Although South Africa is a country rich in natural resources, further exploitation of these resources is constrained by a number of factors.

Chief among these is a scarcity of skills.

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Looking back at the Department’s evolution over the past six decades, I note one common trend: the actions taken by its leadership to keep mining education at the University of Pretoria relevant to the challenges of the time.

This surfaced during threats to its existence at the turn of the century, in its endeavour to meet the training needs of a changing demographic with the advent of a new democratic dispensation, and in response to the threats to the sustainability of the industry in the face of disruptive technologies.

Its recognition of the changing face of the mining industry is furthermore reflected in its changing student profile, which now, 60 years after its establishment, comprises 91% students from the black, Indian and coloured population groups and 43% female

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

The Department’s response to disruption, both in society, as evidenced by the lingering COVID-19 pandemic; and in industry, as evidenced by the threats to the sustainability of the mining industry, provide an indication that it will continue to strive to create a better world for the citizens of this country. This reflects the essence of the University’s mission, which is the pursuit of excellence in the core functions of, teaching, learning and research, and utilising that research to constantly improve our society and communities.

The Department’s ongoing commitment to multidisciplinary research initiatives that are focused on the future, as well as its excellent relationships with the industry it serves, was most recently witnessed in its contribution to the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology.

This research chair, established in the Department of Information Science, is set to be a game changer for training in mining operations and, in particular, mining safety.

Throughout its development, the Department’s strategic intent has mirrored that of the University of Pretoria.

Without the vision and initiative of the Head of Department, the generous financial support of Exxaro to establish this unique initiative would not have been possible.

This initiative will enable the University of Pretoria to become a leader in digital transformation on the African continent, and will ensure that our graduates are ready for the Future of Work.

The high-quality education graduates from the Department of Mining Engineering receive is further reflected in the prominent role its alumni play in mining houses nationally and internationally. As such, they make a positive contribution to the development of the country’s economy. These individuals are also ambassadors of the University of Pretoria, and enhance its image through their exceptional achievements in the executive ranks of many of the top companies in South Africa, not just in the mining industry.

Many of these individuals also serve on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board. This body, which was established to ensure that the Department’s academic and research programmes remain relevant to the demands of our time, comprises several industry leaders who are willing to share their expertise in the interests of the future of our country.

Central to the Department’s endeavour to prepare its graduates with the skills required for the Future of Work is its focus on leadership skills in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) in mining and related industries. During a recent online panel discussion, alumni participants from the Department, who occupy leading roles in the mining industry, agreed that an increased emphasis on leadership skills will help individuals working in mining and related industries cope better with the demands of the high-pressure and stress-related environment that characterises the mining industry.

The University of Pretoria (UP)

In celebrating this milestone in the history of the Department of Mining Engineering, my message for the Department’s stakeholders and students is that South Africa and Africa need educated, skilled and well-rounded citizens who see the way forward through collaboration that truly anchors our democratic future, promotes inclusive economic development, and achieves environmental sustainability and peaceful social progress.

showcasing South African

Let us share the gifts of knowledge, innovation and diversity. Let us make today matter.

to academic quality.

was established in 1908 with just four professors and 32 students in a little house called Kya Rosa.

Today, it is one of the largest research universities in South Africa. UP has transformed into a dynamic university community of staff and students who come from a range of diverse backgrounds and cultures, and global societies. The University was born from a vision to create a space for quality education and for new ideas to flourish. Over the course of its existence, and through different phases of political power and social change, UP has been resilient in its commitment

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MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN, FACULTY OF ENGINEERING, BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Prof Sunil Maharaj

It is with great pleasure that I take this opportunity to congratulate the Department of Mining Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology at the University of Pretoria (UP) on achieving its milestone diamond anniversary. Established in 1961, only five years after the establishment of the original Faculty of Engineering, it has made an important contribution to the country by providing it with world-class mining engineering leaders.

I am particularly proud of the fact that the celebration of the Department’s 60th anniversary could coincide with UP’s inclusion among the top 50 universities in the world for minerals and mining engineering by the QS World University Rankings by Subject for 2021.

We are led by our slogan, Innovating our Tomorrow, in our quest to remain relevant, to be globally competitive, to reinvent ourselves and to deliver graduates who will be ready to embrace the disruptive unknown with an awakened mind.

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The Department therefore joins the Faculty in taking its place on the frontline of innovation as it prepares to reposition itself to tackle the challenges of the future world of work with a generation of problem-solvers and innovators who are ready to change the world to create a sustainable planet.

Nowhere has this been more evident than during the recent pandemic that has changed the way we live, work, educate and socialise. This unprecedented shift has offered an opportunity to embrace best practices associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).

As early as 2015, the Department had the vision to prepare itself

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

for the 4IR with the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality (VR) Centre for Mine Design. This initiative more than five years ago illustrates the Department’s adherence to the Faculty’s slogan: Innovating our Tomorrow. I am encouraged by the Department’s continued commitment to remain relevant, strive to be globally competitive and to reinvent itself in order to deliver graduates who will be ready to embrace the disruptive unknown with an awakened mind.

As the first of its kind in Africa at the time, the VR Centre has proved itself to be an innovative resource for bringing real-world scenarios to learners to enhance their exposure to their chosen industry, as well as allowing technical and other practitioners to simulate plans and designs in a risk-free environment with minimal time and resource allocation.

This paved the way for the Department to embrace other disruptive innovations related to augmented reality, mixed reality and extended reality. This culminated in its contribution to the establishment of the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology in the Department of Information Science in September 2021. Research in this Chair will contribute to improving the health, safety and productivity of mine workers, while enhancing sustainability and ensuring responsible mining through the use and implementation of XR technology.

This also serves as an example of the Department’s multidisciplinary approach to research, which

UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA TOP 356 of universities ranked globally for ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY in the 2021 QS Rankings

TOP 1%

#1

ENGINEERING SCHOOLS globally in 2019 Clarivate Analytics Essential Science Indicators

ENGINEERING SCHOOL in Africa by the US News and World Report Rankings 2020

TOP 50 of universities ranked globally for MINERALS AND MINING ENGINEERING in the 2021 QS Rankings

was envisioned in 2017 with the establishment of the Department’s Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC). This multidisciplinary research centre collaborates with other departments in the Faculty, as well as across the broader university, that are engaged in mining-related research.

As such, it contributes to finding solutions for complex challenges facing the mining industry. This will not only benefit the broader mining sector, but the country as a whole.

The activities of the MRRC over the past four years have enhanced the Department’s reputation as a leader in mining research. This led to it partnering with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg in the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) strategy. An outcome of this initiative was the Mandela Mining

Precinct programme of the Department of Science and Innovation.

This collaboration, coupled with research projects conducted in the MRRC on mechanised mining, led to the Mandela Mining Precinct selecting UP to host the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems.

The agreement was signed in 2021 for a multidisciplinary research initiative between the Department of Mining Engineering and the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering.

As we enter the era of Society 5.0, ethical leadership has become a critical direction of thinking. In this regard, the Department’s innovative teaching practices, particularly in the area of leadership development, are highly regarded in industry. Through initiatives such as the Murray & Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (M&R MELA), the Department

is enabling its students to succeed and contribute to a sustainable, inclusive future for all.

This is aligned to the Faculty’s commitment to delivering graduates to the workforce who understand the fundamentals of problem-solving, impact on the environment and how to work as part of a multicultural and diverse team.

Through successful industry partnerships, the Department will continue to deliver work-ready graduates and real-world solutions to the benefit of an indispensable industry.

I wish to extend my appreciation to the Department and its leadership, and am encouraged that it will continue to embrace the Faculty’s endeavour to be future-focused in its education and training of mining engineers who can make a difference.

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MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF DEPARTMENT, MINING ENGINEERING Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman

This is a privilege I have never taken for granted. The fact that I have been supported by such an outstanding group of senior managers, executives and staff members over the last decade and a half has contributed, in no small way, to the Department’s successes.

After concluding my studies at the University of Pretoria (UP) in 1984, my academic career at UP resumed in 1997 when I was appointed as a senior lecturer in the Department of Mining Engineering.

Little did I know that I would be appointed Head of Department (HOD) ten years later to follow in the footsteps of great leaders such as Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, Prof Frik Leiding, Prof Alf Brown, Prof André Fourie and Prof Nielen van der Merwe.

I have had the privilege to be part of many exceptional achievements of the Department over the past two and a half decades, many of which are included in this publication. The fact that this is my 14th year as Head of Department makes me exceptionally proud to be able to celebrate the Department’s diamond jubilee, marking 60 years of excellence in mining engineering education.

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The primary objective of the Department is to uphold the high standard of the programmes that it offers. We owe this to our alumni and the future generation of mining engineers that will be educated in this department. Its vision is to be a leading, research-intensive department that is recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally, thereby establishing the Department as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems facing the mining industry and making vision visible through innovative interactive immersive technology applications for teaching, learning and research.

As we celebrate 60 years of excellence in mining engineering education, it is perhaps appropriate to reflect on the achievements of the Department and the progress it has made since its establishment in 1961 by means of a commemorative jubilee publication. The influence and quality of the Department’s graduates, who have taken up very senior positions worldwide, is testimony to the quality of education that has been, and is still offered by the Department.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

One of the elements of the Department’s strategic intent over the last decade has been to strengthen its research and international profile.

Several major achievements in this regard coincide with the celebration of the Department’s diamond jubilee.

This represents the culmination of 60 years of excellence in engineering education.

The celebratory year started with the announcement of the University of Pretoria’s ranking among the top 50 universities in the world for minerals and mining engineering in the 2021 QS World University Subject Rankings.

We are exceptionally proud of this achievement, which is an indication of the success of our Mining Footprint initiative at UP, in which research related to minerals and mining engineering is taking on an increasingly transdisciplinary nature, spanning different departments and faculties at the University.

Another important form of recognition that the Department received from industry in 2021 was the awarding of the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) Research Centre in Mechanised Mining Systems to the University of Pretoria by the Mandela Mining Precinct. This research centre will be managed as a multidisciplinary initiative in collaboration with the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering to further stimulate research activities in South Africa’s mining industry, which will boost the economy and contribute to the sustainability of the industry.

Multidisciplinary research was furthermore stimulated in 2021 by the establishment of the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology, in collaboration with the Department of Information Science, with the aim of designing XR technologies that can enable intuitive interaction with virtual environments. This is an extension of an initiative launched by the Department in 2015 with the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design as a result of the Department’s excellent relationships with its industry partners.

Since my appointment as Head of Department in 2007, it has been my aim to visibly align the Department’s educational and research objectives with industry needs. In the process, the Department achieved several highlights. The most notable are the following:

The accreditation of the Department’s undergraduate curriculum by the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) every five years since 2007.

The establishment of the Harmony Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling in 2013 to conduct research on a safer working environment in the hard-rock mining industry. The initial three-year sponsorship was renewed in 2016 and again in 2020.

The establishment of the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy in 2016 to groom students for the modern workplace by equipping them with various non-technical skills that promote creative and innovative thinking.

The launch of the English Literacy support drive to assist students with writing, communication

and presentation skills in 2013. This was initially only presented to finalyear students, but was expanded to students in all four academic years of undergraduate study in 2015.

The launch of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design in 2015; the first centre of its kind to be housed at a university in Africa.

The refurbishment of the Department’s offices on the fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building in 2015, together with a new minerals exhibition centre funded by African Rainbow Minerals (ARM).

The establishment of the Mining Resilience Research Centre in 2017 as a multidisciplinary research centre that contributes to solutions for complex mining problems through the rigorous integration of scientific research.

The establishment of the AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rockbreaking Technology in 2018 to position the University as a centre of excellence for emerging rock-breaking technologies.

The establishment of the Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 in 2019 to facilitate research in leadership relevant to mining.

The launch of the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems in collaboration with the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering in 2021.

The establishment of the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology in collaboration with the Department of Information Science in 2021.

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In addition to the infrastructure development and establishment of research chairs that have taken place during my terms of office, I am particularly proud of the innovative teaching and learning initiatives that have been developed. These have been aimed at supporting undergraduate students and enhancing the Department’s throughput and success rate, while ensuring that it delivers well-rounded mining engineers to the workforce.

Mining is not everything, but without mining everything is nothing.

Despite the ongoing challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of social distancing protocols on teaching and learning over the past two years, the Department still achieved several milestones, even over this period.

An important focus area of the Department going forward is preparing its students for the skills they will require for the future world of work.

This is reiterated in a McKinsey report released in June 2021, which highlighted aspects related to selfleadership such as self-awareness, selfmanagement, entrepreneurship and goal achievement. This matches the objectives of the Department’s Mining Engineering Leadership Academy to prepare its students for the future world of work with skills such as critical thinking, communication, mental flexibility, developing relationships and teamwork effectiveness.

Many industry leaders have played an important role in the growth of the Department over the years. The Department furthermore benefits from the expertise of leaders from industry and academia who serve on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board, the active support of the members of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP) and the financial support of industry through the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF).

The Department’s alumni are among the leaders of industry locally and abroad, and include many individuals who serve in the leadership ranks of prominent organisations and on their boards of directors. They are recognised for the role they play in the development of the

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Max Planck, German physicist (1858–1947)

country’s economy. These individuals are also ambassadors of the University of Pretoria, and enhance its image through their exceptional achievements as the chief executive officers, chief operating officers, managing directors and executive heads of various mining companies.

The Department’s alumni also play a prominent role in the country’s foremost industry associations, with the current presidents of both the Association of Mine Managers of South Africa (AMMSA) (Francois Janse van Rensburg) and the South African Colliery Managers’ Association (SACMA) (Rico van Staden) hailing from the Department. A further testament of the quality and achievements of the Department’s alumni is the appointment of Peter Steenkamp, CEO of Harmony Gold, as Vice-President of the Minerals Council South Africa (MCSA) in 2021.

It has been a privilege to head this exceptional department and to commit myself to being available in any way necessary to ensure the success and achievements of my staff and the University. A leader is only as good as his people, and I was fortunate to have very knowledgeable and supportive staff members throughout my three terms of office as HOD.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Their contribution, commitment and enthusiasm have made this experience a most enjoyable one.

I am confident that we have laid a foundation for the Department to grow even further, and establish itself as an international Department of Mining Engineering that will grow from strength to strength as it continues on its journey towards its centenary celebrations in 2061.

In conclusion, I wish to thank the University of Pretoria – as a whole – and, in particular, the deans under which I served: Prof Roelf Sandenbergh, who was at the helm of the Faculty when I was appointed Head of Department, for believing in me and supporting my appointment to this esteemed position; and Prof Sunil Maharaj, the Faculty’s current Dean, for his ongoing support of the activities of the Department of Mining Engineering. I am also indebted to Prof Con Fauconnier, who has been a personal confidant, mentor and coach to me over the past decade.

Finally, without the support of our alumni and industry partners, the Department would not be where it is today. You are our greatest supporters and collaborators, and for that I salute you!

The primary objective of the Department is to uphold the high standard of the programmes that it offers. We owe this to our alumni and the future generation of mining engineers that will be educated in this department. The Department’s vision is to be a leading, researchintensive department that is recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally, thereby establishing the Department as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems facing the mining industry and making vision visible through innovative interactive immersive technology applications for teaching, learning and research.

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1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

2011-2021

TIMELINE: 1961–2021 1956 Establishment of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Pretoria, and launch of the Mining Engineering programme in the erstwhile Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences

1959 Approval by Senate to establish a mining engineering department in the Faculty of Engineering

1961 First student enrolment in the newly established Department of Mining Engineering 1961

25

2011/10/12 9:33 AM

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd

25

1964

Let the journey begin

26

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 26

2011/10/12

Appointment of Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts as Head of Department

26

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 26

Graduation of first student to enrol for the BEng (Mining) degree

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

29

201

1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

2011–2021

1989 Establishment of the School for Mining and Mineral Sciences, incorporating the departments of Geology, Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, and Mining Engineering

1981 End of Prof Frik Leiding’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Alf Brown as Head of Department

1974 1980 Establishment of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP) following the acceptance of its Constitution by the Board of the Faculty of Engineering

1970

1977

Establishment of the Industry Advisory Committee for the Department of Mining Engineering (Mining Engineering Advisory Committee)

Drafting of the Constitution of a proposed mining alumni society for UP

1975 Appointment of Prof Frik Leiding as Head of Department

1974 End of Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts’ term of office as Head of Department

80

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE 50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 80

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54

1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

1996 End of Prof Alf Brown’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof André Fourie as Head of Department

1998 First female student enrolled for Mining Engineering

2000 First black students enrol for Mining Engineering at UP (Phillip Nxobo, Kennedy Sengani and Floyd Masemula), including the first black female (Tebogo Modiba) Inclusion of the Department of Mining Engineering in the School of Engineering in the newly established Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology

2002 First female Mining Engineering student, Janine Rautenbach, graduates from the Department

2001 End of Prof André Fourie’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Nielen van der Merwe as Head of Department Approval of language policy to change teaching language of third- and fourth-year students to English only

2004 First black Mining Engineering students graduate from the Department

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

2011-2021

1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

2011–2021

2012 The Sasol Chair in Mine Safety, Health and the Environment is established Accreditation of the undergraduate programme by the Engineering Council of South Africa until 2017

2008

2007

Mining Engineering Trust Fund approves salary subvention to attract experienced mining engineers to join the Department as lecturers

End of Prof Nielen van der Merwe’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman as Head of Department Accreditation of the undergraduate programme by the Engineering Council of South Africa until 2012

2005 First black female Mining Engineering students graduate from the Department Establishment of the Tuks Mining Society

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1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

2011-2021

2013 The Mining Industry Study Centre is officially opened The Harmony Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling is established.

The Sasol Engineering Leadership Academy is established The English Literacy support drive is launched for final-year students Prof Webber-Youngman is elected President of the international Society of Mining Professors (SOMP)

2014 Prof John Napier, Prof William Spiteri, Prof Jan du Plessis and Prof Francois Malan are appointed as extraordinary professors in the Department

2015

The Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design is launched and virtual reality becomes part of the Department’s teaching strategy The Department’s new offices on the fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building are completed, as well as the African Rainbow Minerals exhibition centre The establishment of the Mining Engineering Education South Africa forum with Prof Webber-Youngman as inaugural chairperson

2016

The Department enters into a collaboration agreement with the Camborne School of Mines at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom Establishment of the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy

The English Literacy support drive is expanded to all four academic groups.

2017 The establishment of the Mining Resilience Research Centre Accreditation of the undergraduate programme by the Engineering Council of South Africa until 2022

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

1961–1970

1971–1980

1981–1990

1991–2000

2001–2010

2011–2021

2021 The ranking of the University of Pretoria in the top 50 universities in the world for minerals and mining engineering in the 2021 QS World University Subject Rankings The establishment of the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality Technology The approval of the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems in collaboration with the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Prof Webber-Youngman is elected to the Council of the international Society of Mining Professors (SOMP) Department administrator, Ms Daleen Gudmanz, retires after 24 years of service The Department celebrates its 60th anniversary

2020 Launch of the ARM Postgraduate Bursary initiative Prof Francois Malan receives B2 rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF)

2019

2018 The establishment of the AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology The launch of the Department’s #UPMiningMatters marketing drive The adoption of a value-based framework in the Department, focused on respect, care, honesty, integrity and trust Participation in the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) Strategy, in which the Department collaborates with the CSIR, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg.

The establishment of the virtual reality blast wall in the Department to enhance training

The establishment of the Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 and the M&R Mining Engineering Leadership Academy The ranking of the University of Pretoria in the top 100 universities in the world for mining and mineral engineering in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) subject rankings The Department acquires new laboratory equipment with the assistance of METF funding

The introduction of the interactive immersive technology drive and the gamification of education and training Prof Bharath Belle is appointed as extraordinary professor DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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SIXTY YEARS OF EXCELLENCE IN MINING Uittreksels uit Senaats/Raadsvergardering ENGINEERING EDUCATION Established in 1961 following the successful institution of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Pretoria (UP) in 1956, the Mining Engineering programme had been hosted in the erstwhile Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science since 1956. The institution of an independent department 60 years ago was necessitated by the recognition of mining engineering as an important discipline in South Africa and the need for a second mining school in the province (in addition to the Mining School of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg) to serve students from the more northerly parts of the country.

THE EARLY YEARS Its history goes back to August 1956 when the UP Senate approved a motion to establish a school of mining (later referred to as the Department of Mining Engineering) in the former Faculty of Engineering at the University of Pretoria. According to the minutes of the Senate meeting held on 4 June 1958, it would be established as from 1959 as a new field of study and as an independent department with a professor as its head. Relevant amendments to the Regulations made provision for a curriculum for the first year of study in the field of mining engineering.

Although the first student to follow this programme was enrolled in 1961, the numbers in the first three years were still too small to appoint a Head of Department. For this reason, Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts was only appointed as Head of Department in 1964.

A special meeting of the Faculty of Engineering, held on 20 June 1958, recorded the resolution that the following building and laboratory facilities, equalling 3 528 square feet, be allocated to the Department:

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

• • • •

One lecture room for 40 students Three offices One seminar room Other facilities for modelling and drafting

The minutes of UP’s Building Committee, held on 16 February 1959, recorded the resolution that the Department of Mining Engineering be housed, together with the Department of Metallurgical Engineering, which had been established in 1959, in Block C of what was known at the time as the JG Strijdom Building (the present Engineering II Building) from 1960.

The new Department of Mining Engineering thus started operating in 1961. It therefore celebrates its 60th year of excellence in mining engineering education in 2021.

Head of Department 1964 - 1974

Head of Department 1975 - 1981

1964 Appointed as the first Head of Department in 1964, Prof De Villiers Lambrechts had made a significant, internationally recognised contribution to the mining industry in the field of the atmospheric environment and control in mines. He was also the first South African to obtain a PhD in Mining Engineering, which he received in 1959.

He was therefore impeccably qualified to establish this department at the University of Pretoria.

The Department’s first student following the official establishment of Mining Engineering as an individual discipline at the University of Pretoria, Johan Heystek, graduated with a degree in Mining Engineering in 1964. By 1965, the staff complement had grown to three (including the Head of Department), and the graduating class had grown to five students. This group included Ben Alberts, who went on to serve as Chairperson of the University’s Council from 2000 to 2003.

Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts

33

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 33

In the subsequent years, the number of students graduating from the Department increased gradually, providing it with the necessary credibility to continue operating. Another early graduate who has continued to support the Department is Prof Con Fauconnier, former Chief Executive Officer of Kumba Resources (now Exxaro Resources), who is an honorary professor in the Department, as well as the Honorary President of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria. He graduated in 1968. In that year, the number of graduates broke the barrier of 10 for the first time. The Department produced 60 graduates in its first 10 years of its existence.

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 83

Prof Alf Brown

2011/10/12 9:34 AM

Prof André Fourie

162

104

Prof De Villiers Lambrechts headed the Department from 1964 to 1974, after which Prof Frik Leiding took over the reins until 1981, followed by Prof Alf Brown until 1996. Prof André Fourie then took up this position until 2001, after which Prof Nielen van der Merwe led the Department. The current head of Department, Prof Ronny WebberYoungman, has been at the helm since 2007.

Prof Frik Leiding

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 162

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 104

2011/10/12 9:45 AM

Prof Nielen van der Merwe

Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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NOT ALL PLAIN SAILING

1996

As economic and political circumstances changed, the undergraduate enrolment increased.

Growth in enrolments

The years 1996 to 2007 were turbulent.

There were two attempts to merge the Department with the Mining School of the University of the Witwatersrand, but the University of Pretoria opposed the proposal. During this time, Prof Fourie, and after him, Prof Van der Merwe, headed the Department.

When Prof Fourie saw the Department’s budget and realised that student numbers were the only thing that could secure financial support, he immediately prepared himself for some hard work. Together with a reliable team of lecturers, he started recruiting students in earnest, and the numbers started to climb. However, at that stage, the Chamber of Mines raised the question whether it was really necessary to have more than one mining school in South Africa. It was also proposed that UP and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) should work together more closely and that the mining schools of UP and the University of the Witwatersrand should fall under the CSIR. Fortunately, senior UP alumni in the mining industry applied sufficient pressure on the Chamber to continue its support to UP, and the proposal on collaboration with the CSIR did not prove to be viable.

Over the years, the Department faced many challenges, with student numbers following the ebb and flow of the fortunes of the industry. This was further exacerbated by recessionary periods and political turmoil. In 1976, the University saw only three students graduating from the Department.

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63 1961

1997

88

125

162

206

248

311

337

345

2002 2003 2004

2006

2011

2013 2014 2015

After a steady increase in enrolments over the years, stabilising at approximately 220 undergraduate and 35 postgraduate students between 2008 and 2012, a rapid increase in enrolments took place, culminating in 345 undergraduate and 53 postgraduate students in 2015. However, following a slump in mining student numbers worldwide, the Department took a strategic decision to reduce its first-year intake in alignment with the decreasing need for mining engineers worldwide, together with current trends in the South African mining industry. It therefore decided to cap its undergraduate student capacity at 120 students, which would include 40 final-year students. At the same time, it increased its focus on postgraduate enrolments, with the aim of having 70 postgraduate students by 2025. By the end of 2021, it had 123 undergraduate and 57 postgraduate students (the highest number of postgraduate students in the Department’s history). This includes the highest number of full-time postgraduate students. These 12 PhD, honours and master’s students serve as assistant lecturers, to support the Department’s teaching capacity.

Since its establishment, the Department has therefore contributed greatly to the mining industry by providing world-class mining engineering leaders. It has delivered a total of 952 graduates since its inception, as well as 232 postgraduate candidates. As a specialised discipline, it has grown steadily over the years into a leading department of mining engineering in South Africa, with many alumni serving the mining industry with distinction.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

2000 In 2000, an attempt was once again made to integrate the mining schools of the universities of Pretoria and the Witwatersrand (Wits). There were claims of fears in industry regarding the sustainability of two separate mining schools. The preferred solution was to create a single school for educating mining engineers in South Africa.

The Tertiary Mining Education Committee (TMEC) was established to investigate and solve the problem.

If the schools were combined, it was logical that such a school should be situated at Wits, due to that institution’s superior numbers and excellent laboratory facilities. The University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering would then effectively be shut down.

When Prof Kader Asmal, Minister of Education at the time, announced exactly this decision by government in June 2002, the University of Pretoria decided to challenge it. It formulated a plan and involved all the friends and alumni of UP in an attempt to block the plan. The Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria played an instrumental role in this campaign.

Several high-ranking University officials also put their weight behind the move, which was slowly gaining momentum.

After countless meetings and correspondence, and a period of five years, a high-ranking executive of Anglo American stated, in a Chamber of Mines executive meeting, that a merger was not a good idea, and that the matter would not be discussed any further. Prof Van der Merwe, who was Head of Department at the time, described the morning of that meeting as one of the highlights of his tenure at the Department. Looking back at these troubled times in the Department’s history, Prof WebberYoungman states that “without a doubt, I think it made us stronger and even further united as a department”.

INDUSTRY SUPPORT Fortunately, the Department survived all these challenges. Its current strength and positive contribution to the mining industry is a tribute to the vision and hard work of many members of staff over the years and to the solid foundation that was laid in the early years. This led to the Department going from strength to strength.

Its current reputation of excellence in mining engineering education can

also be attributed to the academic and moral support the Department has received from the broader Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology at UP, the largest and arguably the best faculty of its kind in the country.

Many industry leaders, as well as the Chamber of Mines (today known as the Mining Council South Africa), have played an important role in the growth of the Department over the years.

To this day, the financial support of the industry, via the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF), and the expertise of leaders from industry and academia, who serve on the Department’s Mining Engineering Advisory Board, play a crucial role to ensure the continued efficacy of the Department. It furthermore enjoys the active support of its alumni through the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria, as well as the South African Colliery Managers’ Association (SACMA) and the Association of Mine Managers of South Africa (AMMSA), the country’s two prominent industry associations The Mining Engineering Advisory Board comprises prominent members of the mining community, many of whom are alumni of the Department, who ensure that it remains relevant to the demands of our time. In 2021, the Department appointed five new members to serve on its Advisory Board: Leon Joseph, General Manager: Sasol Mining, Syferfontein Colliery; Kennedy Sengani, Manager: Mining, Anglo American Platinum, Der Brochen Project; Nozipho Dlamini, Technical Services Manager, Thungela Resources Limited Greenside Colliery; Mbali Phejaolema, Relationship Manager: Mining and Metals, Rand Merchant Bank; and Charles Makgala, Managing Director, Amandla Group (Pty) Ltd).

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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MINING ALUMNI The Department has a special relationship with its alumni. They are among the captains of industry locally and abroad, and include many individuals who serve in the leadership ranks of prominent organisations and on their boards of directors, and are recognised for the role they play in the development of the country’s economy. These individuals are also champions for the University of Pretoria, and enhance its image through their exceptional achievements as the chief executive officers, chief operating officers, managing directors and executive heads of various mining companies.

These individuals are testament to the quality of education prospective mining engineers receive at the University of Pretoria, and make the Department of Mining Engineering proud.

It is also one of only a few departments at the University that has its own active alumni society. The Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP) serves as a great support structure for the Department. This was evidenced by the indispensable role that it played in the Department’s survival when it was threatened with being shut down.

The society was established in 1977 by the first group of graduates in the Department of Mining Engineering.

Through this platform, alumni support the Department by raising sponsorships, and ensuring that a high level of skills and educational standards is maintained. This society also serves as a social network for mining engineers in industry.

Its establishment was first proposed at the farewell function of the Department’s first Head of Department, Prof De Villiers Lambrechts, in 1977. Founding members included the following: • Dr Ben Alberts (1965 graduate) • Mr JC van Rooyen (1965 graduate) • Mr DJ van Niekerk (1968 graduate) • Prof CJ Fauconnier (1968 graduate) • Mr DS van der Spuy (1969 graduate) • Mr HP Saunders (1969 graduate).

Prof Fauconnier and Mr Van der Spuy were tasked to compile a suitable Constitution for the proposed society.

This was accepted by the founding members on 21 November 1977.

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This Constitution was ratified and accepted by the Board of the Faculty of Engineering on 24 July 1980.

Membership is limited to people who have obtained undergraduate mining engineering or postgraduate qualifications from UP, or have been lecturers in the Department for at least one year.

Over more than the past decade, MASUP has actively promoted mining engineering as a career opportunity among learners, and organises and presents seminars at the University. It sponsors lecturers to attend local and international conferences, provides financial assistance to the Department, organises international symposiums in South Africa – in collaboration with the Mining Council South Africa (MCSA) and the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM) – and organises informal functions for MASUP members.

The earlier management committees of MASUP gave birth to numerous important achievements, including the following:

• The establishment of an Industry Advisory Committee for the Department of Mining Engineering (still in existence today and known as the Mining Engineering Advisory Board, with the Dean as Chairperson), with terms of reference approved for the purpose by the Board of the Faculty of Engineering on 24 July 1980. MASUP’s Management Committee assisted the Dean to identify and recruit industry leaders to serve on the Advisory Committee.

• The organisation of the first MASUPinitiated and organised symposium: “The future training of mining engineers” in 1979.

• The arrangement of a specialist lecture in surface drilling and blasting practices

by Prof Alan Bauer in July 1980. This set the scene for the incorporation of surface mining practice in the mining courses of the Department.

• The arrangement, in collaboration with SAIMM, of the first-ever international conference on surface mining practice. The compendium of papers presented at this conference was subsequently published as conference proceedings by SAIMM, and still enjoys recognition as among the most valuable source documents on surface mining.

The Department’s alumni also play a prominent role in the country’s foremost industry associations.

Since the establishment of the Association of Mine Managers of South Africa (AMMSA) in 1892, eight of its alumni have served as President of this association. The current President of this association for 2021, Francois Janse van Rensburg, is also a past student of the Department.

A similar trend can be observed in the case of the South African Colliery Managers’ Association (SACMA), with its current President for 2021, Rico van Staden, also being an alumnus of the Department.

In addition, the President-Elect of SACMA for 2022, and also the association’s first black female member, Nozipho Dlamini, is a loyal alumna of the Department. She also serves on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board and is a member of the University’s Council.

Another prominent industry body that has an alumnus of the Department among its top ranks is the Minerals Council South Africa, which appointed Peter Steenkamp, CEO of Harmony Gold, as its Vice-President in 2021.

This is further testimony of the quality and achievements of the Department’s alumni.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

TRANSFORMATION OF THE DEPARTMENT The transformation of South Africa in the early 1990s and the first democratic election in 1994 stimulated huge transformation at all the tertiary educational institutions in the country, including the University of Pretoria and the Department of Mining Engineering.

Against this background, the Department ensured that it took positive steps to keep mining education at the University of Pretoria relevant to the changing times, which it continues to do. This has included initiatives such as introducing English as an alternative means of tuition to enable black students to register for Mining Engineering, and the subsequent support provided in the form of English literacy training, as well as assistance related to student wellbeing and financial support.

In 2000, following an innovative restructuring of the University’s various schools and faculties, the Faculty of Engineering became a school in the newly formed Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology, with the Department of Mining Engineering as one of the seven departments in the School of Engineering.

In the following year, the Department revised its language policy so that third- and fourth-year Mining Engineering students would receive tuition in English only. This made it one

of the first departments at UP to adopt English as a language of tuition.

This was strategically a very important decision for the Department, which allowed access to non-Afrikaansspeaking candidates, and ultimately led to a diverse student body, which reflected the demographic composition of the country. Currently, only 7% of the Department’s students has English as their first language.

This also served to make the Department’s programmes more competitive in terms of the international mining community. As a result of this and other transformation initiatives, the Department went from no black students in 1999 and a humble start with five black students out of a class of 80 in 2000, to 127 black students out of a class of 137 in 2020, which represents 93% of the student body.

Furthermore, its students from other African countries, such as Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland, Tanzania and Zimbabwe, which was enabled by the presentation of the Department’s programmes in English, are an indication of its international competitiveness. In 2020, 7% of its student body comprised international students.

Prof Webber-Youngman remembers how this strategic decision to deliver classes only in English had been further spearheaded by an exchange

programme in which three students from the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla, Missouri, in the USA had formed part of the final-year mining group in 2000. In order to avoid duplicating sessions in English and Afrikaans, the classes could conveniently be presented in English only.

This successful transformation of the student body is a tribute to the commitment, dedication and hard work of the Department’s academic staff and Head of Department to bring about meaningful change to the benefit of the Department, the University and the country.

A further consequence of these changes was the continued growth of the Department, and the composition of the student body increasingly starting to reflect the demographics of South African society. The growth in students from 76 in 2001 to 206 in 2006 led to the need for more academic positions and an increase in the Department’s permanent staff complement.

The Department has also witnessed the transformation of its student body in terms of gender over the past two decades. The first female mining engineering student graduated from the Department in 2002. This number has grown to the point where, in 2021, the number of female students comprises 43% of the total student intake. This is true progress in a male-dominated industry.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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INCREASED FOCUS ON POSTGRADUATE STUDY During the term of office of Prof Fourie from May 1996, the Department had started to expand in terms of undergraduate and postgraduate student numbers, as well as academic research funding and publications. During this period, undergraduate student growth exceeded 38%, and the postgraduate student number tripled. This increase in student numbers was, in part, also due to an increase in the number of undergraduate bursaries offered, notably from the Anglo Group, which sponsored 70% of the Department’s undergraduate student intake at that time. The exceptional growth in postgraduate student numbers at that time could also be attributed to intensive in-house marketing and the development of specialisation courses.

A growth in postgraduate student numbers is important for the sustainability of the Department, as a good measure of research and postgraduate studies is necessary to underpin, support and enhance the quality of academic teaching at undergraduate level. Enrolment in the Department’s postgraduate programme has continued its strong upward trend in recent years from 26 postgraduate students in 2008 to a record number of 57 postgraduate students in 2021, including nine doctoral and eleven master’s candidates.

This is aligned with the Department’s strategic drive to increase its postgraduate student numbers, which has a direct impact on its research publication output. As a department, it is continuously increasing its research publications in journals and at conferences, which enhances its visibility.

TEACHING EXCELLENCE

2007 The Department of Mining Engineering has focused intensively on structuring its curriculum in such a way as to optimise learning. The Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) has evaluated its undergraduate curriculum every five years since 2007. Its favourable reports over the past three accreditation cycles have resulted in the full accreditation of the degree up to 2022. Its undergraduate programme is also internationally recognised through the Washington Accord.

In the early years, most of the lecturing and learning apparently took place across the desk of the Head of Department at the time, Prof De Villiers Lambrechts. Over the following two decades, lecturing methods largely took the form of passive teaching. However, in the early 1990s, the teaching style moved to a more problem-orientated group teaching style. This new lecturing technique paid dividends in the form of an improved pass rate for mining engineering students.

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A new postgraduate qualification was also developed and implemented: the BSc Hons (Applied Science), as well as a compulsory research-related subject for honours students, which was introduced in 2007. In this subject, students have to identify a real-time problem in

the mining industry and recommend a solution or improvements with the support of appointed staff members.

This immediately led to an increase in applied research-related projects, which were supported financially by the mines at which these projects were conducted.

Undergraduate students pursue the BEng Mining Engineering degree programme. Postgraduate students can pursue honours, master’s and doctoral degree programmes in Mining Engineering and Applied Science in Mining.

The Department has developed innovative teaching and learning initiatives over the past two decades, which have incorporated cooperative learning techniques. These are particularly aimed at supporting undergraduate students and enhancing the Department’s throughput and success rate, while ensuring that it delivers well-rounded mining engineers to the workforce.

Industry visits form part of the Department’s curriculum, and serve to expose students to what they can expect when they start working at a mining operation.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

2013 A further priority of the Department is the development of its students as future managers and technical specialists. An initiative to develop the non-technical (soft) skills of students – the Sasol Engineering Leadership Academy – was developed in 2013 to assist graduates to adapt to the challenges of the world of work. It incorporated all the engineering disciplines but was limited to 50 students.

Upon conclusion of Sasol’s sponsorship of this initiative, the Department decided to launch a similar initiative exclusively for finalyear Mining Engineering students, known as the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (MELA). It was funded from the Department’s own third-stream income, and focused on grooming students for the modern workplace by equipping them with various non-technical skills that promote creative and innovative thinking to enable them to deal with the complexities of the mining industry. It formed part of the Mine Design module, and was focused on enabling prospective mining engineers, who need to be able to deal with up to five different generations of workers in the workforce, with special skills.

This included the development of leadership and communication skills, as well as conflict resolution, problemsolving and stress management skills.

The leadership academy plays an important role in addressing the challenges pertaining to the next generation of mining, which need to be dealt with in a very different way to what has been done in the past. The programme is presented

by Dr Johann Uys, a senior lecturer in the Department and an industrial psychologist with decades of leadership development experience in mining and related industries. This initiative received a boost in 2019 when it was incorporated into the Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0.

A related initiative introduced in 2017 was the interactive, multimedia approach to teaching and learning, which incorporates group work. The multimedia presentation of the learning material includes the use of high-quality pictures and illustrations, animations showing concepts in mining that are difficult to grasp, and video material to make the images come alive. It is in use in all the Department’s own technical modules. The use of instructional design for all its technical subjects also enhances the learning experience.

Another initiative that is being extensively explored is the use of interactive immersive technology as a teaching technique. This initiative

was introduced in 2018 and is linked to the use of gamification (the use of game-design elements in a non-game context), which is becoming more and more popular in higher education.

Linked to the interactive immersive technology drive is the establishment of a virtual reality blast wall in the Department in 2018. It enables learners to plan and execute the blasting of a rock face in a controlled and safe environment. By means of virtual reality and augmented reality, they are able to design the blast, mark the blast holes and blast hole timing sequence activities, and actually execute the blast and experience the “explosion” on an interactive screen.

In 2015, collaboration – in the form of Mining Engineering Education South Africa – was established among the four mining schools in South Africa: the University of Pretoria, the University of the Witwatersrand, the University of South Africa and the University of Johannesburg; with Prof Webber-Youngman, Head of Department at the University of Pretoria, as the inaugural chairperson. This forum was established to have a uniform platform for the four mining schools in South Africa to engage and discuss challenges and solutions related to mining education and research, and to foster a spirit of collaboration in this regard so as to benefit the mining industry in South Africa as a whole.

With the demands placed on the mining industry by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the Department had to reevaluate its approach to educating and training the next generation of mining engineers. This included incorporating the skills identified by the World Economic Forum as being essential to survive in the 4IR in the training of final-year Mining Engineering students.

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The 4IR represents a fundamental change in the way we live, work and relate to one another. It refers to the blurring of boundaries between the physical, digital and biological worlds. In 2020, the World Economic Forum, in its “Future of Jobs” report, identified the following skills as being critical for the modern workforce: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Analytical thinking and innovation Active learning and learning strategies Complex problem-solving Critical thinking and analysis Creativity, originality and initiative Leadership and social influence Technology use, monitoring and control Technology design and programming Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation

These critical skills find clear resonance in the redesigned curriculum of the Department of Mining Engineering, particularly its emphasis on leadership development and promoting creative and innovative thinking so that graduates are prepared to deal with the expected complexities in the mining industry once they enter the job market.

Like many other mining schools, the Department went through an extensive redesign of its Mining Engineering curriculum in 2017. This process contemplated the future of mining, specifically what the mining engineering profession will look like in years to come. In accordance with the recommendations of Prof Con Fauconnier, Honorary Professor in the Department, the new Mine Design curriculum, which was to be implemented in 2020, included exposure to aspects such as leadership, the social context of business, rectifying the imbalances of the past, as well as international economic systems, striving to create a more equal, yet productive society.

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Although not many new mines are commissioned in South Africa, an increase in the productivity of existing mines is becoming increasingly important. By adopting new technology interventions and mining methods, as well as focusing on the health and safety of the workforce, mine management is realising that it is no longer a question of whether one should embrace technology, but when one should do so.

The most important aspects that have therefore been incorporated into the new Mine Design curriculum are improved employee safety, increased productivity, lower energy consumption, and reduced environmental impact; none of which

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

would be possible without the adoption of appropriate disruptive technologies.

In 2020, the Department had to embrace the disruption to its normal teaching, learning and assessment practices due to the nationwide lockdown that was brought about by the rapid spread of COVID-19. This resulted in the country basically shutting down in March 2020. This was the first sign that the University and its students would be experiencing disruption on a hitherto unimagined scale. Literally overnight, lecturers were expected to change their method of transferring knowledge to an online system. The Department’s staff rose to the challenge and did an exceptional job of accommodating this new approach to teaching and learning.

STUDENT SUPPORT Another initiative to support students to succeed academically is the English Literacy support drive, which was launched in the Department in 2013. This was developed following the identification of students’ mastery of the English language as one of the challenges that affected their academic performance since only 7% of the Department’s students have English as their first language. Undergraduate students receive assistance with writing, communication and presentation skills, and an English tutor provides feedback on their assignments to improve their English writing. It was initially only presented to final-year students, but in 2015 was expanded to students in all four academic years of undergraduate study.

An important focus of the Department is the wellbeing of its students. Its interaction with its students takes place according to a value-driven framework, guided by the values of respect, care, honesty, integrity and trust. Where possible, the Department lends support to

avert any anxiety students may experience during their studies, especially students who are in need.

The development of life skills and responsible leadership is also encouraged through participation in student activities. This includes involvement in the Tuks Mining Society, which was established in 2005 and is still going strong. It supports the Department’s students on a holistic level and is currently one of the most active student societies on campus. This society gives Mining Engineering students the opportunity to network and socialise with other students and staff of the Department outside lecture halls. A mentorship programme is also in place where junior students are assigned senior students to assist them with academic issues and provide them with guidance based on personal experience.

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FACILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

The Department was initially accommodated in the JG Strijdom Building (known today as Engineering II).

In 1973, an additional laboratory was erected between the JG Strijdom Building/Engineering II and the Heavy Machinery Laboratory to make provision for a reinforced concrete tunnel for experiments with explosives.

When the new Engineering I Building was completed in 1975, the Department took up office space on the ninth floor, which it shared with the Department of Land Surveying and Town Planning. The lecture rooms were in the basement and in other buildings where the laboratories were located.

In 1987, a new building was constructed for the Department of Physics, known today as Natural Sciences I. Once this new building was occupied by staff of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, the building in which they were formerly located, the Mathematics and Science Building, became vacant.

The Department of Mining Engineering subsequently moved into this building, which they occupied together with the Department of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering and the Department of Geology. It was renamed the Mineral Sciences Building.

For the first time, the Department’s lecture halls, laboratories, storerooms and workshops could all be in the same building. This also led to the close collaboration, which still exists today, of these three departments, which form the Mining Cluster (Geology, Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, and Mining Engineering).

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NEW DEVELOPMENTS The Department’s excellent relationships with its industry partners led to the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design (VRC), which was made possible through an R18.8 million investment over three years by Kumba Iron Ore in 2013. This is the first centre of its kind in Africa to be housed at a university, and enables the Department to realistically simulate a range of mining functions in a low-risk, high-impact learning environment. The facilities comprise a wall-to-wall 3D theatre, as well as an immersive mine simulation theatre, which casts 360° images against dark surrounding panels with cinematic clarity and highly realistic sound effects.

With the establishment of the VRC, virtual reality became part of the Department’s new teaching strategy.

It also paved the way for the later introduction of augmented reality, mixed reality and extended reality, and enabled the introduction of interactive immersive technology as a drive that encapsulates the future of education.

This gave rise to the adoption of the Department’s new slogan in 2015: “Educating and leading mining engineers to become imagineers”.

The infrastructure development, which was completed in 2015, included new offices for the Department on the fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building, while African Rainbow Minerals provided funding for a new minerals exhibition centre.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

The support of African Rainbow Minerals is ongoing, as is evidenced by funding made available in 2020 to support postgraduate students who wish to pursue a research career.

The financial support of the mining industry also contributed to the construction of the Mining Industry Study Centre on the ground floor of the existing Engineering I Building.

This venue, which was officially opened in 2013, serves all students in the School of Engineering, and provides facilities that support learning, especially groupwork. It accommodates 758 students in various configurations, from individual workstations and cubicle seats without workstations to venues where groups of up to seven students can work in a private cubicle equipped with a table and flat-screen monitor.

Such a facility became a necessity due to the complexity of students’ lecture timetable and their changing demographic profile. Many students live far from the campus and travel great distances on a daily basis, and do not have adequate facilities for study or groupwork at their homes or on campus.

In 2019, funding from the METF enabled the Department to equip its African Rainbow Minerals laboratory with equipment related to mine ventilation, including rock engineering and explosives engineering.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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RESEARCH The establishment of several industry-funded research chairs during the past decade has enabled the Department to expand the focus of its research.

Research focus areas

The Sasol Mining Chair in Mine Safety, Health and the Environment was established in 2012 to advance teaching and research in the field of safety, health and the environment as it pertains to the mining industry. The initial three-year sponsorship was extended for a further three-year term in 2015.

The Harmony Gold Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling was established in 2013 with support over three years to conduct research on a safer working environment in the hard-rock mining industry. Harmony Gold subsequently extended its initial sponsorship of the research chair by a further three years in 2016, and again in 2020. The research conducted in this chair forms part of individual postgraduate study programmes under the leadership of Prof Francois Malan and Prof John Napier, both renowned specialists in the field of rock engineering.

The AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology was established in 2018 to position the University as a centre of excellence for emerging rockbreaking technologies. It made use of the Department’s Virtual Reality Centre to focus on three-dimensional blast simulation and the visualisation of new research.

The Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 was established in 2019 to facilitate research in leadership relevant to mining. The research conducted in this Chair is supplemented by the Murray & Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (M&R MELA), which forms part of the finalyear students’ Mine Design curriculum. This expands on an initiative launched in 2013 to develop the non-technical (soft skills) of students, and assists graduates to adapt to the challenges of the world of work.

The Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology was established in 2021, in collaboration with the Department of Information Science, with the aim of designing XR technologies that can enable intuitive interaction with virtual environments.

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Mechanisation and automation

Rock-breaking and explosive engineering

Management and leadership

Rock engineering

XR technology

2017

The Mining Resilience Research Centre strives to enable the mining industry to transition from being reactive and compliant to becoming resilient in issues related to safety, health, environmental sustainability, social responsibility and community management through well-structured and committed undergraduate and postgraduate education and research. It is therefore dedicated to visibly aligning its educational and research objectives with industry needs. Its active involvement in the community includes the participation of its staff members in the activities of professional societies, as well as through expert consultation and community projects within the Faculty.

In recognition of the fact that a resilient mining industry is of particular relevance to Africa, the Department launched the Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC) in 2017. This is a multidisciplinary research centre that contributes to solutions for complex mining problems through the rigorous integration of scientific research, the pursuit of practically implementable solutions and the education of graduates who are equipped with relevant skills. It has been engaged in several collaborative contract research projects for industry since its establishment.

Prof Francois Malan, who had served as an extraordinary professor in the Department since 2014, was appointed in a full-time capacity to serve as the Director of the Centre in 2018.

The MRRC facilitates interdisciplinary research within the departments of the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology and those in other faculties across the broader university that are engaged in miningrelated research. Its flexible contract research model also allows for wider collaboration among other faculties at the university and players in the broader mining sector.

Through the MRRC, the Department actively collaborates with stakeholders such as the Minerals Council South Africa (MCSA), the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), the Mine Health and Safety Council (MHSC) and the Mandela Mining Precinct (MMP).

The activities of the MRRC have enhanced the Department’s reputation as a leader in mining research. It was also an active participant in the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) strategy. As a partner in SAMERDI, the Department collaborates with the CSIR, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg. The Mandela Mining Precinct initiative of the Department of Science and Innovation is an outcome of this initiative.

The Department’s longstanding association in SAMERDI gave rise to several projects in mechanised mining. In 2021, the Mandela Mining Precinct announced that it had

selected UP to host the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems. This will be managed as a multidisciplinary research initiative between the Department of Mining Engineering and the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering.

The Department’s current research agenda places greater focus on areas of outstanding research and builds on these areas. The Department currently has three areas of expertise that compare with the best in the world: rock-breaking and explosives engineering, rock engineering, and management and leadership. Two emerging areas that will be expanded upon with the establishment of the Exxaro Chair in XR Technology and the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems are those of XR technology, and mechanisation and automation, respectively. This will, in turn, stimulate economic development and impact on the contribution of mining to the country’s gross domestic product.

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT The Department has been actively involved with the community over the last decade through the participation of staff in the activities of professional societies, the provision of expert consultation and community projects in collaboration with the Faculty as a whole.

In conjunction with Enterprises University of Pretoria, the Department offers short courses in collaboration with industry and the professional associations. Important contributions over the past decade have been the Safety Risk Management Programme for Anglo American, Sasol Mining and other mining companies, and the Leadership Development Programme for Harmony Gold.

The third stream of income that is generated through the presentation of short courses by the Department’s staff members and alumni provides additional funding that is utilised to the benefit of the Department’s students.

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STAFF Attracting staff to the Department has always been difficult, especially given the fact that mining is a well-paying industry with many opportunities for mining engineers across the globe.

Its current full-time academic staff members are encouraged to improve their teaching and research skills, and to be active in teaching and in industry to ensure that their knowledge remains current and that they are able to contribute to departmental administration and community service.

Their work is complemented by the active participation of contracted industry experts as part-time lecturers.

This forms a very important part of the Department’s teaching strategy.

The involvement of guest lecturers on an ongoing basis keeps the Department in touch with industry needs. The Department’s postgraduate programme currently benefits from the involvement of Prof Con Fauconnier as honorary professor, and Prof John Napier, Prof Jan du Plessis, Prof Bharath Belle, and Prof William Spiteri as extraordinary professors.

The remuneration of academic staff, compared to what their counterparts earn in industry, is usually a problem for tertiary institutions. In the case of the Department of Mining Engineering and other mining schools in the country, the financial contribution of the METF, in the form of a staff salary subvention since 2008, enables the Department to attract teaching staff similar to the high quality that are employed in industry.

The Department’s teaching staff is its prime resource. The Faculty’s current guidelines for the appointment of lecturers is that they need to obtain a PhD to be recognised as a leader in their specific field. The minimum requirements for a lecturer to be promoted to a full professor position in the Department are very strictly implemented with a PhD as minimum academic requirement to be appointed to the position of senior lecturer. In its full-time academic staff complement, the Department currently boasts four lecturers (57%) with a PhD and the other three with a master’s degree.

The Department’s current teaching complement comprises seven fulltime lecturers, with almost 150 years of combined industry experience.

Furthermore, the Department makes use of 12 full-time postgraduate academic assistants, who serve as

assistant lecturers, five honorary and extraordinary professors, two contract lecturers, and five administrative staff members, bringing its total staff complement to 31. This is the largest staff component in the Department’s history.

Extraordinary Professors

Prof John Napier BSc (Chemical Eng), MSc (Chemical Eng), PhD (Wits) Research interests Rock engineering and numerical engineering

Prof Jan du Plessis BEng (Mining) cum laude (Pretoria), MEC (Unisa), BEng (Hons) (Mining) (Pretoria), Diploma (Risk Management) (Stellenbosch), PhD (Mining) (Wits) Research interests Mine ventilation engineering

Honorary Professor

Prof Bharath Belle Research interests Mine ventilation engineering Dr Con Fauconnier BSc (Mining Eng), MSc (Mining Eng), PhD (Pretoria), MBA (Oregon) Departmental interest Fundraising and facility development Prof William Spiteri BSc (Industrial Eng), PhD (Chemical Eng) (Wits) Research interests Explosive rock-breaking engineering

Prof Fauconnier is a member of the graduating class of 1968, the first students to have competed their full studies in the Department of Mining Engineering.

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INTERNATIONALISATION One of the Department’s key strategic initiatives is to ensure that its research is recognised internationally for its high standards. In 2015, it established an exchange programme with Clausthal University of Technology in Germany. It also has a signed agreement with Camborne School of Mines at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom. The intention was to increase the collaboration potential among researchers with similar technical subject knowledge and skills, and to foster international co-publication.

The Department is also a member of the Society of Mining Professors (SOMP), a global academic community representing mining academics all over the world, which is committed to making a significant contribution to the future of the minerals discipline internationally. The main goal of this society is to guarantee the scientific, technical, academic and professional knowledge that is required to ensure a sustainable supply of minerals for mankind. It facilitates information exchange, research and teaching partnerships, as well as other collaborative activities among its members. Prof WebberYoungman served as its President for the 2013/14 term of office, and has been appointed to its Council from 2022 to 2025.

GLOBAL RANKING One of the key aspects that the Department has been actively pursuing over the past two years is the improvement of its representation on international ranking systems. These play a significant role in determining an academic department’s relevance and contribution to the economy and society at large. They are used to evaluate overall performance and give a clear indication of a department’s status in the international context.

The first step in achieving this was realised in 2019 when the University of Pretoria was ranked in the top 100 universities for mining and mineral engineering in the world in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) subject rankings, based on data from the international Web of Science. This was followed in 2021 with the University’s ranking in the top 50 universities worldwide for minerals and mining engineering in the 2021 QS World University Rankings.

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An initiative launched in 2019 to improve the Department’s visibility, both locally and internationally, was the Mining Footprint initiative of the MRRC. This is a strategic intervention to integrate research emanating from various faculties and departments at the University that is related in some way or other to mining. The main purpose of this initiative is to contribute to solutions to complex mining problems. The amplification of mining-related research in other faculties will also enhance mining as a career of choice.

TOP 50 of universities ranked globally for

MINERALS AND MINING ENGINEERING in the 2021 QS Rankings

CHALLENGES OF OUR TIMES Over the years, the Department has faced many challenges, with its strategic intent following the ebb and flow of the fortunes of the industry.

However, it has proved to be resilient and ready to turn challenges into opportunities. This was demonstrated most recently in 2020 when the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic caused it to embrace disruptive approaches to teaching and learning, and to emerge more agile and flexible than ever before. The change of its language of tuition to English in the late 1990s to facilitate access, the present strong emphasis on leadership skills grounded in sound technical skills, and contributions to inculcating a safety culture in mining operations serve as further examples through which it ensures the delivery of work-ready graduates.

Paying tribute to lost colleagues and alumni Over the last decade, as in the past, we have lost several colleagues and alumni through old age, some tragic incidents, and even the Coronavirus. I would like to pay tribute to them. We salute and honour them.

Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

HIGHLIGHTING SIX DECADES OF EXCELLENCE 1956–1970 1956

1959 1961 1964

Establishment of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Pretoria, and launch of the Mining Engineering programme in the erstwhile Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences Approval by Senate to establish a mining engineering department in the Faculty of Engineering First student enrolment in the newly established Department of Mining Engineering Appointment of Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts as Head of Department Graduation of first student to enrol for the BEng (Mining) degree

1961

1962

Let the journey begin

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HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE FIRST DECADE1 The Department of Mining Engineering is the last department that was established in the Faculty of Engineering. The University Council had approved the establishment of the course in 1956 already, and it had been started in 1958. However, the number of students who enrolled for the course was so small in the beginning years that a Head of Department was only appointed in 1964. At an event that was held later on, Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, the first professor in the Department, explained that some prejudice was attached to

working underground, as it was viewed as unnatural. That was the reason why the course had never had a big intake, and why there was a shortage of mining engineers in the industry.

In between his studies, he was employed by Crown Mines Ltd in Johannesburg. Later, he was appointed as a mine inspector at the Department of Mining. After that, the Anglo American Corporation employed him in its ventilation division. On 1 January 1965, he was appointed as professor and Head of the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria. In this capacity, he laid the groundwork for training in this industry. He remained at the University of Pretoria until 31 December 1974, when he retired.

Prof De Villiers Lambrechts obtained the BSc(Eng) degree in Mining and Metallurgy in 1932, the MSc degree in Mining in 1941, and his doctoral degree in Mining Engineering in 1959 – all of these at the University of the Witwatersrand. The latter was the first qualification of this kind to be awarded in South Africa.

Lifelong ambassador from the first class

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Class of 1965

The Department’s graduating class of 1965 included Ben Alberts, a loyal supporter of the Department and the University of Pretoria throughout his ensuing career, who went on to serve as Chairperson of the University’s Council from 2000 to 2003. He passed away on 8 April 2013 at the age of 74.

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As a student, he was Chairperson of the Engineering House, served on the Student Council and was a founding member of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria. He was also involved in the establishment of the Mining Engineering Advisory Board. He was a member of the Council of the University of Pretoria for many years, and was also Chairperson of the Alumni Association of the University of Pretoria (TuksAlumni).

Front: Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer) Back: DJ Hugo, BC Alberts, JC van Rooyen, CJ Breytenbach, MW Theunissen

Career highlights:Sittende: Dr BenProf Alberts J de V Lambrechts, Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding Dr Alberts worked at coal, chrome and iron ore mines he was Staande: D J Hugo, B C Alberts, J C van Rooyen, C Jbefore Breytenbach, M Wappointed Theunissen as the responsible official for all Iscor’s mines.

He managed the privatisation of Iscor and obtained the mining rights for the unbundling into Kumba Resources, and later Kumba Iron Ore and Exxaro. He was also an active member of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM) for many years and served as its President from 1985 to 1986. In 2011, he was honoured with the Institute’s highest accolade, the Brigadier Stokes Medal.

1 Source: Ad Destinatum II: 1960–1982 – ‘n Geskiedenis van die Universiteit van Pretoria PAGE 33

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Class of 1966 Front: EG Churr (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer) Back: JD Stone, MvN Venter, WP de Villiers, PG Henderson, PW Greeff, PJ Pretorius Sittende: Mnr E G Churr, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding Staande: J D Stone, M v N Venter, W P de Villiers, P G Henderson, P W Greeff, P J Pretorius

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1969

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Class of 1967 Front: Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer), EG Churr (lecturer) Back: HJ Engelbrecht, GF du Toit, LJ de Jager, JH Kritzinger, JP Kruger

Sittende: Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding, Mnr E G Churr D E P AJ RT ENT OF Staande: H J Engelbrecht, G F du Toit, L J de Jager, J H Kritzinger, PM Kruger

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Class of 1968 Front: DJ van Niekerk, HC van Zyl, FQP Leiding (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, EG Churr (lecturer), MH Kirchner, CJ Fauconnier Back: JJ Versluis, B Pretorius, C Roets, RH Preller, FW Knox, CG Ladds

Sittende: D J van Niekerk, H C van Zyl, Mnr F Q P Leiding, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Mnr E G Churr, M H Kirchner, C J Fauconnier Staande: J J Versluis, B Pretorius, C Roets, R H Preller, F W Knox, C G Ladds Prof Con Fauconnier

Looking back on 60 years of excellence in mining engineering education My earliest and lasting memory of the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria dates back to 1965 when, as a wide-eyed, totally overwhelmed first-year student, I met Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, the first Head of Department and a man who touched and enriched the lives of many mining people in South Africa and abroad. Prof Lampies, as he was affectionately known among students, was a giant in his field and an appropriate man to lay the foundations of a department that would contribute so handsomely to the wellbeing not only of the mining industry, but of South Africa in general.

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Prof Lambrechts was brought in from industry, where he was group ventilation engineer for the Anglo American Corporation at the time, to start a mining department at the University of Pretoria to accommodate the growing importance of the Afrikaans community in the mining industry. He was a man of great intellect and integrity with a wealth of practical experience and the vision to start such a department. At the same time, he was a humble person with a demeanour that made him a friend of students, colleagues and industry leaders alike. From small beginnings in the early 1960s with a new department with student and graduate numbers

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

in single figures to the formidable department with international standing it is today, his legacy is there for all to see in the quality of the many graduates who have made their mark in South Africa and abroad in the mining industry, as well as many of its support industries.

This is proof, once again, that institutions, like structures, built on a solid foundation tend to last for a very long time.

Following the retirement of Prof Lambrechts, his successors all contributed through their individual skills and efforts to the further growth, survival and ultimate prosperity of the Department of Mining Engineering.

It was not always plain sailing for the Department of Mining Engineering as recessionary periods and political turmoil played havoc with student numbers, with 1976 seeing only three students graduating from the Department. Attracting staff was also difficult, and remains so to this day, in a well-paying industry with many opportunities for mining engineers across the globe. Furthermore, the Department, from time to time, had to contend with well-intended, albeit fundamentally misguided, efforts to close it down with the intention of creating a single mining school in South Africa. Fortunately, sanity prevailed and the Department survived all these headwinds. Its current strength and hugely positive contribution to the mining industry is a tribute to the vision and hard work of many members of staff over the years and to the solid foundation that was laid in the early years. What was also very helpful was the academic and moral support the Department had from the broader Faculty of Engineering of the University of Pretoria, the largest and arguably the best engineering faculty in the country.

Many industry leaders and the Chamber of Mines played an important role to support the survival and growth of the Department over the years, as they did with other departments and at other universities. To this day, the financial support of the industry via the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF) and the advice of senior industry staff serving on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board play a crucial role to ensure the continued efficacy of the Department and that it remains relevant to the demands of our time.

The transformation of South Africa in the early 1990s and the first fully democratic election in 1994 stimulated huge transformation at all our tertiary educational institutions, including the University of Pretoria and its component parts such as the Department of Mining Engineering. It was heart-warming and encouraging to see the positive steps that were taken to make, and keep, mining education at the University of Pretoria relevant in these changing times. In my view, the major visionary step

came in the early 1990s when the Faculty of Engineering, in line with broader university policy, decided to allow English as an alternative means of tuition in several departments, including Mining Engineering. This was a fundamental step, which enabled black students, who, more often than not, are more accomplished in English than in Afrikaans, to register for Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria.

In line with this, the transformation progress of the Department of Mining Engineering has been nothing short of spectacular: from no black students in 1999 and a humble start with five black students out of a total of 80 students in 2000, the number has grown to 127 black students out of 137 in 2020, representing 93% of the student body.

I will be remiss if I do not touch on two other areas of meaningful change, or progress for that matter, in the Department: gender transformation of the student body in mining engineering and the significant growth in postgraduate students. From a zero intake of female students in 1997, this number has grown to the point where, in 2020, the intake of female students into the Department exceeded 40% of the total intake of new students – true progress indeed in a male-dominated industry.

With regard to postgraduate studies, no department can flourish without a good measure of research work and postgraduate studies to underpin, support and enhance the quality of academic teaching at the undergraduate level. Due to the attractiveness of employment in industry after graduation, coupled to the dire shortage of qualified mining engineers in industry, it has always been difficult to persuade both students and companies to actively support postgraduate studies in meaningful numbers. It is therefore pleasing to note the strong upward trend in recent years from an average of around 25 postgraduate students per annum for the past decade or more to a record number of 57 students in 2021, including nine doctoral and 11 master’s candidates.

Another very pleasing development I wish to highlight is the strong teaching support the Department currently enjoys from the mining industry. Over

I believe the Department will play its part to enhance the quality of mining engineering graduates our country so desperately needs.

the past decade, the Department has developed a modus operandi whereby several members from industry participate, with the support of their employers, on a voluntary basis as part-time active lecturers in the Department. The industry also seconded some middle management, experienced employees to the Department on a full-time basis to complete their postgraduate studies, while at the same time assisting the Department with some of its teaching and research commitments. These initiatives have played a major role in alleviating the excessive burden on fulltime staff and have brought additional value to the curricula via the quality and currency of their inputs.

I believe the Department of Mining Engineering will play its part to enhance the quality of mining engineering graduates our country so desperately needs. At the 60-year mark in the Department’s history, these are certainly exciting developments and it behoves all of us to say to the Department of Mining Engineering: Congratulations on the success of the past 60 years and best wishes for the next 60 years – may the Department go from strength to strength!

Prof Con Fauconnier

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Dirk van Niekerk

The Class of 1968 Another graduate of the Class of 1968, together with Prof Con Fauconnier, was Dirk van Niekerk, who served as Managing Director of SIYAZI Consultants. This was also the first class that had started as first-year students in the Department, and qualified as the first group who had completed the entire programme in Mining Engineering, as opposed to the earlier graduates who had come over from other departments and only completed their final years in the Department.

This class made serious history in the Faculty of Engineering at the time, when the 1968 final-year class exceeded the magical number of 10 for the first time (according to Van Niekerk, there were actually 11 students in the final-year class of 1968, but one of the students only graduated in 1969.

Van Niekerk recalls how those were the days when learning in the Department

became more structured; less informal, but still with very personal contact with the lecturers (not sitting across the lecturers’ desks).

“What made the tour significant was the fact that it was a joint tour with the Mining Engineering students from the University of the Witwatersrand.”

“Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, Head of Department, lectured us in Mine Ventilation. What a privilege to learn from such a world-renowned ventilation engineer. Mr Frikkie Leiding, a former Principal Mine Inspector, was responsible for all the mining-technical related subjects and Mr Eric Churr was seconded from the Economics Faculty to teach us the very important subject of Mining Economics and related aspects.

With the exception of one of the graduates who decided to become a dentist and another who transferred to the civil engineering fraternity, the other graduates all worked in the mining and minerals sector, and without exception all made their mark on the industry: two CEOs, two consulting mining engineers and the rest practised as general managers or mine managers until their retirement.

“Our group was closely knit, and I recall that we got together spontaneously, frequently to discuss difficult and challenging assignments. One of the highlights in our final year was the mining tour during the July recess to some of the mining operations west, north and east of Pretoria.

Members of the Class of 1968 are recognised for contributing to the development of future generations of mining engineers.

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Members of the Class of 1968 are recognised for having reinvested, in some or other manner, their knowledge, skills and attitude back into their profession – for the benefit of the future generation of Mining Engineering graduates from the University of Pretoria, but also the future of South Africa.

Class of 1969 Front: JP Mulder, EG Churr (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer), CJ Fauconnier (lecturer), AP van der Merwe Back: HP Saunders, PC Pretorius, JF du Plessis, MJ Lourens, JH du Plooy, DS van der Spuy, AP van Jaarsveld

Sittende: J P Mulder, Mnr E G Churr, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding, Mnr C J Fauconnier, A P van der Merwe Staande: H P Saunders, P C Pretorius, J F du Plessis, M J Lourens, J H du Plooy, D S van der Spuy, A P van Jaarsveld

Class of 1970 Front: C Swart, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer), PG Henderson (lecturer) Back: AW Basch, GA Fourie, PS van der Merwe, SG Low, CB Phillips, JC Viljoen, JN van der Merwe

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Sittende: C Swart, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding, Mnr P G Henderson

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1971–1980 1974 1975 1977 1980

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End of Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts’ term of office as Head of Department Appointment of Prof Frik Leiding as Head of Department Drafting of the Constitution of a proposed mining alumni society for UP Establishment of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP) following the acceptance of its Constitution by the Board of the Faculty of Engineering Establishment of the Industry Advisory Committee for the Department of Mining Engineering (Mining Engineering Advisory Committee)

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SECOND DECADE2 The first Head of Department, Prof Lambrechts, was succeeded by Prof Frederik Quintin Painter Leiding, his colleague of many years. Prof Leiding completed his training as a mining engineer at the University of the Witwatersrand, where he obtained the BSc(Eng) in 1940. After this, he worked as state inspector of mines, among others. In this capacity, he gained knowledge on the mining practices of all the different types of mines in the country: gold, platinum, diamonds, coal and several others. Influenced by the fatal rock burst accidents that occur from time to time, he had conducted research in this field since 1963, and was later appointed as the head research official in Rock Mechanics at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

When the Department of Mining Engineering was established, he was appointed as a senior lecturer – from the beginning of 1965 – and succeeded Prof Lambrechts as professor and Head of Department on 1 January 1975.

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Expanding facilities The second part of the erstwhile JG Strijdom Building was completed in 1960, while an additional wing was added to the Heavy Machinery Laboratories in 1973. In 1975, the Engineering Tower Building (known today as Engineering I) was completed. This building made provision for the Dean’s Office, administrative staff, departmental offices and 10 lecture halls with a total of 700 seats. In 1987, the Old Physics Building was renovated to

As an important mining country, South Africa developed modern methods that were adopted by other countries. These included methods related to ventilation and rock pressure, to which the Department contributed. The significance of training in this discipline is obvious, considering that this industry delivers a service of national importance and has thus always been a pillar of economic advancement of the country.

In 1980, a Mining Engineering Association was established by alumni of the Department, with the primary aim of expanding the syllabus according to new requirements set by the industry. Prof Leiding played a significant role in establishing this association. When Prof Leiding retired on 28 February 1981, he was succeeded

by Prof Alfred Norgaard Brown.

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accommodate the departments of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, and Mining Engineering. The building is now known as the Mineral Sciences Building. It also houses the Department of Geology, which promotes essential interaction between these three disciplines. In 2015, a fifth level was added as an extension for the Department of Mining Engineering. This level is home to the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design, among others.

1970

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Class of 1971

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Front: CO Esterhuysen, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Prof CA du Toit, FQP Leiding (lecturer), PG Henderson (lecturer) Back: JW Oberholzer, FWC Coetzer, PJ Strobos, JvdM Grimes, HG Waldeck, JL Pretorius, PJ de Witt 77

Sittende: C O Esterhuysen, Prof J de V Lambrechts; Prof C A du Toit, Mnr F Q P Leiding, Mnr P G Henderson Staande: J W Oberholzer, F W C Coetzer, P J Strobos, J v d M Grimes, H G Waldeck, J L Pretorius, P J de Witt

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Class of 1972 Front: PG Henderson (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, FQP Leiding (lecturer) Back: JJS de Beer, JG Coetzee, PW Jordaan, PA Versluis

Sittende: Mnr P G Henderson, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Mnr F Q P Leiding Staande: J J S de Beer, J G Coetzee, P W Jordaan, P A Versluis

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Class of 1973

Class of 1974

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Front: FQP Leiding (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, PC Pretorius (lecturer), JJ van Rensburg Sittende: Mnr F Q P Leiding, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Mnr P C Pretorius, J J van Rensburg M J R Meyer, G S Esterhuizen, W J C Pothas,NN Green Back: MJR Meyer,Staande: GS Esterhuizen, WJC Pothas, Green

Class of 1975

Front: FQP Leiding (lecturer), Prof J de V Lambrechts, PC Pretorius (lecturer), JJ van Rensburg Sittende: Mnr F Q P Leiding, Prof J de V Lambrechts, Mnr P C Pretorius, J J van Rensburg M J R Meyer, G S Esterhuizen, W J C Pothas,NN Green Back: MJR Meyer,Staande: GS Esterhuizen, WJC Pothas, Green

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Front: PA Rossouw (lecturer), PC Pretorius, Prof FQP Leiding, DJ van Niekerk Sittende: Mnr P A Rossouw, P C Pretorius, Prof F Q P Leiding, D J van Niekerk Staande: Mnr N T Halgreen, P C Crous, J Claassens Back: NT Halgreen (lecturer), PC Crous, DJDClaassens

Front: DJ van Niekerk (lecturer), Prof FQP Leiding, Sittende: Mnr D J van Niekerk, Prof F Q P Leiding, Mnr P C Pretorius PC Pretorius (lecturer) Staande: Mnr J Barenberg, P R Botha, J J Coetzee Back: J Barenberg (lecturer), PR Botha, JJ Coetzee

In honour of Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, first Head of the Department of Mining Engineering.

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Class of 1977 Front: PK Bredell (lecturer), DJ van Niekerk, Prof FQP Leiding, FS A de Frey Back: AJ Lategan (lecturer), GG Jacobs, BN Barnard, LJ Meyer, M Welthagen, P Gericke

Sittende: Mnr P K Bredell, D J van Niekerk, Prof F Q P Leiding, F S A de Frey Staande: Mnr A J Lategan, G G Jacobs, B N Barnard, L J Meyer, M Welthagen, P Gericke

Class of 1978 Front: FSA de Frey (lecturer), Prof FQP Leiding, Prof DK Schoeman (Dean), DJ van Niekerk (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer) Back: SEC Neuhoff, GdeB van Niekerk, WH Schroeder, PRS van Dorssen, AW de Villiers, FCL Hutten, OV Jevon, JR de Villiers, JT Collins

Sittende (v L n R): Mnr F S A de Frey, Prof F Q P Leiding (Departementshoof), Prof D K Schoeman (Dekaan), Mnr D J van Niekerk, Mnr P K Bredell Staande (v L n R): S E C Neuhoff, G de B van Niekerk, W H Schroeder, P R S van Dorssen, A W de Villiers, F C L Hutten, O V Jevon, J R de Villiers, J T Collins DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 1979 Front: JA van der Westhuizen, JFA Robberts, PK Bredell (lecturer), DJ van Niekerk (lecturer), Prof FQP Leiding, FSA de Frey (lecturer), JP Deetlefs, DM Andriesse, WG Wessels Back: CS Pretorius, T van der Walt (lecturer), JF Strauss (lecturer), MD Ras, JC Nel, DJ Murray, JP Richter

Sittende (v L n R): J A van der Westhuizen, J F A Robberts, Mnr P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Mnr D J van Niekerk (Senior Lektor), Prof F Q P Leiding (Departementshoof),Mnr F S A de Frey, (Senior Lektor), J P Deetlefs, D M Andriesse, W G Wessels Staande (v L n R): C S Pretorius, Mnr T van der Walt, Mnr J F Strauss, M D Ras, J C Nel, D J Murray, J P Richter

Class of 1980 Front: JC Cloete, PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof FQP Leiding, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), DJ van NIekerk (lecturer), FSA de Frey (lecturer), JS de Vos Back: JFO Scholtz, FC Kruger, LJ Slabbert, WC Vergeer, P de Hill, F du Plessis, W Uys, LJH Fourie, JB McGrath, EJ Conradie, Y Timmerman

Q P Leiding (Departementshoof), Prof D J Schoeman (Dekaan), D J van NIekerk (Senior Lektor), F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), J S de Vos Staande: (v L n R): J F O Scholtz, F C Kruger, L J Slabbert, W C Vergeer, P de Hill, F du Plessis, W Uys, L J H Fourie, J B McGrath, E J Conradie, Y Timmerman

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D E P A R TSIttende: M E N T O(vF LMnI R): N I NJGC Cloete, E N G I N EPEKRBredell I N G D (Senior I A M O NLektor), D J U B IProf L E EF

1981–1990 1981 1989

End of Prof Frik Leiding’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Alf Brown as Head of Department Establishment of the School for Mining and Mineral Sciences, incorporating the departments of Geology, Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, and Mining Engineering

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE THIRD DECADE3 When Prof Leiding retired on 28 February 1981, he was succeeded

by Prof Alfred Norgaard Brown.

Prof Brown qualified as a mining engineer at the University of the Witwatersrand, obtaining his BSc(Eng) in 1955 and his MSc(Eng) in 1959. After this, he gained experience as a mining manager. He was employed as a mining engineer, and later as a manager, at several mines. From 1971 to 1976 he owned a private practice. In this capacity, he was involved as consulting mining engineer and managing director at a number of mines. He was employed as consulting engineer at Gold Fields of South Africa from 1976 to 1 March 1981, when he was appointed as professor and Head of Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria.

By 1982, the Department had five lecturers.

Until 1988, the Department was situated in the Engineering Tower Block, but that year it moved, together with the Department of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, to the Old Physics Building. The Department of Geology remained in the building to link the earth sciences. During this time, the Department had considerably more students than before. An average of 14 students graduated per year.

Because of the worldwide economic recession in the late 1980s and the additional problems experienced by the mining industry, the number of new

first-year students decreased sharply after 1991 because of the decrease in the number of bursaries awarded by the mining houses.

In 1989, all syllabi of the Faculty of Engineering were reviewed. The purpose was to make students learning partners, and to that end, the number of subjects in each study field was reduced or subjects were developed from scratch. The exclusive mining subjects were reduced from 11 to seven. A smart approach enabled the transfer to be concluded within a year.

The first accreditation visit by the South African Council for Professional Engineers (SACPE) took place in 1981.

Members of the team visited the Department of Mining Engineering separately again in 1983 to make sure that the recommended changes had indeed been implemented. The second accreditation visit took place in 1987, and as before, a favourable report on the Department was submitted. In the meantime, the SACPE has undergone a transformation and is now known as the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA). A third accreditation visit took place in 1993.

One of the outstanding aspects of the course for mining engineers was the annual study tour that was undertaken during the winter recess. It provided senior students the opportunity to visit and study various mines in remote

places. In 1990, mines in Botswana were visited as part of the University’s African mission.

Until 1982 the Department had few undergraduate, and consequently, few postgraduate students. However, proper attention was paid to this issue. A list of 12 courses at honours level was added, of which a limited number were offered annually. An average of 10 postgraduate students enrolled for these courses on a part-time basis. Student numbers were considerably lower than those in the other engineering disciplines. The main reasons for this were the particularly negative view of postgraduate studies among companies in the mining industry, and the fact that the nerve centre of mining is in Johannesburg. Nevertheless, two huge achievements were reached on postgraduate level when two students obtained PhD degrees in 1987.

In the early years of the Department’s existence, a postgraduate diploma in Mining was offered. The purpose of this was to train graduates of other engineering disciplines in the field of mining. The course combined the mining subjects of the third and fourth study years into one compact academic year. Up until 1985, 26 students had obtained this diploma.

Over the following years there was no demand for this diploma, and in 1991, it was discontinued. Since then, graduates of other engineering disciplines have obtained a second BEng degree by completing the third and fourth year of study.

3 Source: Ad Destinatum III: 1983–1992 – ‘n Geskiedenis van die Universiteit van Pretoria DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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With regard to short courses, the Department, together with SAIMM, hosted a course on boring and blasting operations in open-cast mines in 1986.

In 1985, a course on blasting hazards in coal mines was presented. In addition, four courses on strata control were held. The aim of these workshops was to showcase which computer analyses could be used in the field of rock mechanics, and what could be achieved by using these.

Before 1982, the only computer facility of the Department was the University’s mainframe computer. Furthermore, terminals were scarce. The decade of the personal computer followed.

Since the first personal computer was bought in 1984, change has occurred at an astonishing speed. By 1992, the Department had a computer facility consisting of seven personal computers, together with a huge variety of software systems. Mining software was acquired from the Chamber of Mines Research Organisation (COMRO), and mining companies and suppliers. The University made spacious facilities, equipped with personal computers, available to students.

The Mining Alumni Society of UP (MASUP) established an Advisory Council in 1980 to provide advice and assistance to the Department. This Council was chaired by the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, and consisted of 14 members representing different sectors in the mining industry. It met once a year to discuss the Department’s annual report and common problems in the mining industry.

Two institutions supported the Department throughout the years. The Chamber of Mines supplemented the salaries of lecturers in order to decrease the salary gap between lecturing and practising mining engineers. From 1984, a junior research officer post was supported, and since 1990, two senior lecturer posts were fully financed. Since MASUP was founded in 1980, its main aim was to support the Department and promote its interests. Mr Ben Alberts, one of the Department’s first graduates and a member of the University Council, played a leading role in achieving this.

MASUP has supported the Department at financial and moral levels, and excellent collaboration was established with the Department’s staff.

In 1989, the School of Mining and Mineral Sciences was formed by combining three departments: Mining Engineering, Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, and Geology.

The Department of Mining Engineering participated enthusiastically in this move.

All staff were members of SAIMM. Prof Brown served as President of SAIMM in 1982/83, and was elected as lifelong fellow in 1987. In addition, staff were members of both the South African Group for Rock Mechanics and the South African chapter of the Institute of Quarrying. All staff members also belonged to the Association of Mine Managers South Africa and MASUP. Prof Brown served as President of the Federation of Associations of Professional Engineers in 1987/88, followed by his role as President of the Associated Scientific and Technical Associations in 1991. He also served on several ECSA committees, as well as on the Chamber of Mining and Industry of the Afrikaans Chamber of Commerce.

The Department thus contributed significantly to the operations of these organisations.

Prof Alf Brown

From humble beginnings The foundation of even the most stately edifice may not outwardly look all that impressive. But it must be sufficiently sturdy to support the ensuing superstructure. The foundation of the Department of Mining Engineering laid

by Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts and his cohorts 60 years ago was superb.

One should bear in mind that when Prof Lambrechts commenced his mining career before the start of the Second World War, technology can best be described as having been primitive. Since then, technological advancements have been stupendous, almost breathtaking.

Each of the successive heads of the Department, in turn, eagerly embraced the advances in technology as they

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developed to keep the discipline at the cutting edge of progress. The African continent, but more particularly Southern Africa, was richly endowed with mineral resources.

From its humble beginnings, undergraduate and postgraduate education and training in the Department produced a plethora of mining graduates, some outstanding, who have made a huge contribution to exploiting that mineral wealth by occupying many senior positions and leading roles in the minerals industry.

As a recognised leading centre of excellence, the Department and its future graduates stand ready to serve the minerals industry, not only in

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

South Africa, but on the whole African continent.

It would be remiss not to recognise the influence and effects of belonging to a large family of members of the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology at the University of Pretoria, consisting of 14 different departments.

There is no doubt that the Department of Mining Engineering will continue to go from strength to strength. Best wishes to all who will carry the standard forward into the future and to meet the many challenging, exciting years that lie ahead.

Prof Alf Brown

Class of 1981 Front: G Vergeer, PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), DJ van Niekerk (lecturer), FSA de Frey (lecturer), A Joubert Middle: JP Blignaut, KG Gribnitz, AJJ Botes, J du Plessis, AH Swart, D de Klerk, P Joubert, JF van Wyk, JJ Bornman Back: HJ Prinsloo, BS Maddocks, HN McReadie, J Kriek, SJ van Niekerk, J Hager, C Kruger

Eerste Ry (v L n R): G Vergeer (Klasverteenwoordiger), Mnr P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof D J Schoeman (Dekaan), Mnr D J van Niekerk (Senior Lektor), Mnr F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), A Joubert Tweede Ry (v L n R): J P Blignaut, K G Gribnitz, A J J Botes, J du Plessis, A H Swart, D de Klerk, P Joubert, J F van Wyk, J J Bornman Derde Ry (v L n R): H J Prinsloo, B S Maddocks, H N McReadie, J Kriek, S J van Niekerk, J Hager, C Kruger

Class of 1982 Front: SJ Maartens, JC Prins, SEC Neuhoff (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), PK Bredell (lecturer), FSA de Frey (lecturer), JB Raath, JP Jordaan Back: JB Vermeulen, Bester, Mienie,(Senior PJ Louw, GSProf Potgieter, AJ (Departementshoof), van der Merwe, HW DB(Dekaan Steyn,–FT Olivier, PCCH Snyders, Eerste Ry (v L n R): STJJ Willemse, Maartens, JPRL C Prins, S E CFNeuhoff Lektor), A N Brown Prof Dörgeloh; D J Schoeman Fakulteit Ingenieurswese), FJA Kruger Mnr P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Mnr F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), J B Raath, J P Jordaan Tweede Ry (v L n R): J B Vermeulen, T J Willemse, P R L Bester, F Mienie, P J Louw; G S Potgieter, A J van der Merwe, H W Dörgeloh; D B Steyn, F T Olivier, P C C H Snyders, F J A Kruger DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 1983 Front: SEC Neuhoff (lecturer), FSA de Frey (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, PK Bredell (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer) Middle: MJ Pretorius, HJ Laas, JJ Coetzee, DRO Venter, GAJ Jordaan, LD Turvey Back: A van den Brink, J De Hill, GVR Landman, LD Boshoff

Eerste Ry (v L n R): Mnr S E C Neuhoff (Senior Lektor), Mnr F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Mnr P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Mnr G S Esterhuizen (Lektor) Tweede Ry (v L n R): M J Pretorius, H J Laas, J J Coetzee, d R O Venter, G A J Jordaan, L D Turvey Derde Ry (v L n R): A van den Brink, J De Hill, G V R Landman, L D Boshoff

Class of 1984 Front: AJ Reinecke, FSA de Frey (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), PK Bredell (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), AP Oberholzer Middle: H Grobler, JH Jordaan, RCW Webber, LC Botha, MS van Staden, LM Bredell, ND Geldenhuys Back: CP Aspeling, GP Prinsloo, AC Munro

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Eerste Ry (v L n R): A J Reinecke, F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof D J Schoeman (Dekaan: Fakulteit Ingenieurswese) I N G D(Senior I A M OLektor), N D J U BGI LSEEsterhuizen, E  D E P A R T M E N T O F M I N I N G E N G I NPE KE RBredell (Lektor), A P Oberholzer Tweede Ry (v L n R): H Grobler; J H Jordaan, RCW Webber, L C Botha, M S van Staden, L M Bredell, N D Geldenhuys Derde Ry (v L n R): C P Aspeling, G P Prinsloo, A C Munro

Class of 1985

133

Front: PW Steenkamp, GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), FSA de Frey (lecturer), DB Steyn (researcher), PA Rossouw (lecturer), GJ Labuschagne Eerste (v L n MJ R): Bleeker, P W Steenkamp (Klasverteenwoordiger), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof AJaarsveld, N Brown (Departementshoof), Middle: DA Kruger, JJ Ry Louw, Q Roux, AD Dods, JC Visagie, WJ Nöthnagel, J Smit, WW de Graaf, G van AC Hofmeyr Prof DGJH J Schoeman (Dekaan),JGF Oelofse, S A de FreyHS (Senior Steyn (Navorsingsbeampte), P AKDE Rossouw (SeniorJAJ Lektor), J Labuschagne Back: OW Fourie, DB Fourie, Combrinck, vanLektor), Gass,DJBHeystek, D van Heerden, Fischer, van GRensburg

Tweede Ry (v L n R): D A Kruger, J J Louw, M J Bleeker, Q Roux, A D Dods, J C Visagie, W J Nöthnagel, J Smit, W W de Graaf, G van Jaarsveld, A C Hofmeyr Derde Ry (v L n R): O W Fourie, D B Fourie, G J H Combrinck, J G Oelofse, H S van Gass, J Heystek, D van Heerden, K D E Fischer, J A J van Rensburg

Class of 1986 Front: PK Bredell (lecturer), FSA de Frey (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof DJ Schoeman (Dean), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), DB Stey (researcher), PA Rossouw (lecturer) Middle: AC Pothas (staff member), MJ Lensly, M Hanekom, P Potgieter, D Roets, L Germishuys Back: C Marais, D Vogel, WJS van Zyl, SG Becker

Eerste Ry (v L n R): P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof D J Schoeman (Dekaan), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), D B Stey (Navorsingsbeampte), P A Rossouw (Senior Lektor) Tweede Ry (v L n R): A C Pothas (Rekenaar Assistant), M J Lensly; M Hanekom; P Potgieter; D Roets, L Germishuys Derde Ry (v L n R): C Marais, D Vogel, J ESNvan G IBecker D E P A RW TM T OZyl, F MSI N NG ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE 

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Class of 1987 Front: PA Rossouw (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof L van Biljon (Dean), Prof AN Brown, FSA de Frey (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer) Middle: H van Dyk, BHJ Havenga, HJ van Velze, GI van Niekerk, SM MacDougall, R Karstel, CD van der Linde Back: SJ Coetzer, HC de Wet, FA Uys

Eerste Ry (v L n R): P A Rossouw (Senior Dosent); P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof L van Biljon (Dekaan), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor); G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor) Tweede Ry (v L n R): H van Dyk; B H J Havenga; H J van Velze; G I van Niekerk; S M MacDougall, R Karstel, C D van der Linde Derde Ry (v L n R): S J Coetzer, H C de Wet, F A Uys

Class of 1988 Front: PK Bredell (lecturer), PA Rossouw (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof L van Biljon (Dean), FSA de Frey (lecturer, GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), JJ Louw (lecturer) Middle: T Botoulas, LG Fouché, AJ Benson, NJ Muller, AW Hartmann, JJ Booyse, LD Meyer, CI Griffith Eerste TRyEksteen, (v L n R):RH P KSchmidt, Bredell (Senior Lektor; P A Rossouw (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof L van Biljon (Dekaan), Back: F Minnaar, HJ Faul, BJ Fourie

F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), J J Louw (Navorsingsbeampte / Junior Lektor) Tweede Ry (v L n R): T Botoulas, L G Fouché, A J Benson, N J Muller, A W Hartmann, J J Booyse, L D Meyer, C I Griffith Derde Ry (v L n R): F Minnaar, T Eksteen, R H Schmidt, H J Faul, B J Fourie

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Class of 1989 Front: PA Rossouw (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), FSA de Frey (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), JJ Louw (researcher) Middle: A du Plessis, D Roos, G Roets, P Booysen, D Bosman, H Hafenscher Back: J Botha, T Botha, J Jansen

Eerste Ry (v L n R): P A Rossouw (Senior Lektor), P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), J J Louw (Navorsingsbeampte) Tweede Ry (v L n R): André du Plessis, Danie Roos, Gert Roets, Pieter Booysen, Deon Bosman, Hermann Hafenscher Derde Ry (v Ln R): Johan Botha, Theuns Botha, Johan Jansen

Class of 1990

Front: KH Matthysen (researcher), PA Rossouw (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, FSA de Frey (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer) Eerste Ry (v L n R): K H Matthysen (Navorsingsbeampte), P A Rossouw (Senior Lektor), P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Middle: JP du Plessis, L van Aswegen, Fourie, JJL duLektor), Plessis,GJA Jansen, JA Britz, Impey, Wentzel F SZB A de Frey (Senior S Esterhuizen (SeniorWC Lektor), P JWJ J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor) PN LLategan, AW Diedericks, Smuts, TweedeBack: Ry (v AJ L nFourie, R): J P JP du Potgieter, Plessis (Jean), van Aswegen (Lucas), Z B EJ Fourie (Zirk),E Els, J J LJPd Strydom Plessis (Dup), J A Jansen (Jan), J A Britz (Jan), W C Impey (William), W J Wentzel (Wynand)

Derde Ry (v L n R): A J Fourie (Dries), J P Potgieter (Kobus), P N Lategan (Piet), A W Diedericks (Wim), E J Smuts (Ettiene), E Els (Ian), J P Strydom (Johan) DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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1991–2000 1996 1998 2000

End of Prof Alf Brown’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof André Fourie as Head of Department First female student enrolled for Mining Engineering First black students enrol for Mining Engineering at UP, including the first black female Inclusion of the Department of Mining Engineering in the School of Engineering in the newly established Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE FOURTH DECADE4 Prof André Fourie became Head of Department in May 1996. The expansion of the Department continued in terms of undergraduate and postgraduate student numbers, and also academic research funding and publications. Undergraduate student growth over the period was in excess of 38% and the comparable figure for postgraduate students was 300%.

The increase in student numbers could primary be attributed to an increase in the number of undergraduate bursaries offered, notably from the Anglo Group (comprising Anglo Coal, Anglo Gold, Amplats and De Beers), which sponsored the study of 70% of the student intake by the end of 2000. The exceptional growth in postgraduate student numbers was due to intensive in-house marketing and the further development of the specialisation courses offered by the Department A number of undergraduate student prizes were available for top performers, such as the SAIMM and the Chamber of Mines Gold Medal awards that feature competition with other departments and tertiary institutions.

The undergraduate curriculum underwent minor modifications from its primary revision in 1989, although the lecturing methods themselves were extensively revised, moving from a passive teaching style to a problemoriented group teaching style. The success of the new lecturing technique was reflected in the high pass rate for

mining students: more than 85% of registered students completed the Mining Engineering degree. In 1992, the final-year students undertook a visit to mines in Zimbabwe as part of the University’s African mission.

The curriculum was re-evaluated by the Engineering Council of South Africa in 1997 and its favourable report resulted in full accreditation of the degree up to 2002. Further changes to the Mining Engineering degree programme included the option of a five-year degree programme and, in 2000, the launch of a dual-medium tuition stream accommodating English-speaking and Afrikaans-speaking students in either a four-year or a five-year programme. The introduction of the dual-medium option was the result of market analysis, which indicated the need to accommodate English-speaking students in the Mining Engineering degree programme and the industry-wide trend of using English as the lingua franca of the mines.

Through an agreement with Iscor Mining in 1997, the Department gained access to the Mooiplaas Dolomite Mine for use as an operational laboratory to supplement undergraduate teaching. Students were able to collate data in an operational environment and test theories by implementing their designs under operational conditions. Experiments were regularly performed in the field of blast design and optimisation, transportation productivity, rock drilling and slope

stability, together with more fundamental research as part of staff members’ contract research work. The Chamber of Mines donated its mine ventilation laboratory equipment to the Department in 1998, enabling the students to benefit from top-class laboratory equipment and to simulate ventilation networks and test fan performance under controlled conditions. In terms of computer-based learning, Maptek, Gold Fields and Emenvee Computers donated a fully equipped Vulcan Mine Planning System to the Department for undergraduate and postgraduate training in surface and underground mine design. Together with the Department’s own computer room facility, students received comprehensive supplemental training in most examples of software systems relating to Mining Engineering.

The staff complement remained essentially static, although individual staff members had augmented their academic and professional qualifications. In 1999, all staff members had Mine Manager’s Certificates of Competency. In 1994, long-term lecturer, Dr Frik de Frey, retired after 17 years at the University. In 1999, following 14 years of teaching, Dr Essie Esterhuizen resigned, and was succeeded by Prof Matthew Handley.

Mr Piet van Vuuren retired in April 2000 after 10 years with the University. The Department’s current Head, Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, was appointed in 1997, where he served both as a lecturer and the warden for the Taaibos residence.

4 Source: Ad Destinatum IV: 1993–2000 – Historical developments and events at the University of Pretoria PAGE 51

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

The Department continued to enjoy the support of the Chamber of Mines in terms of funding for specific posts and staff members’ salary subventions, enabling the Department to attract suitably qualified and experienced staff for academic appointments.

1993

Departmental research output rose significantly in terms of research publications in accredited journals, conference proceedings and the general press. Contract research work expanded to over R1.4 million in 1999.

Applied research conducted on behalf of the mining industry was centred on rock engineering research, mine safety and health, mine environmental engineering, mining productivity and mine haul road design and management.

During April 2000, the Department was awarded the PMR Golden Arrow Award for being the “highest rated tertiary education institution in Mining Engineering”.

Prof André Fourie

Hard work and dedication

162

50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 162

It is indeed a great privilege to congratulate the Department of Mining Engineering on this very special occasion, where we can celebrate 60 years of excellence in mining engineering education.

2011/10/12 9:53 AM

This can only be achieved through the hard work and dedication of highly qualified staff members and enthusiastic students. The Department has come a long way and is now counted among the leading mining schools in the world. This is something to be proud of.

Keep up the good work and best of luck for the next 60 years.

156

The Department received the PMR Golden Arrow Award as the highest rated tertiary education institution in mining engineering.

Prof André Fourie 50 jaar herdenking boek.indd 156

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 1991 Front: KH Matthysen (researcher), PJ Jansen van Vuuren (lecturer), PK Bredell (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), Dr FSA de Frey (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), RJ Thompson (lecturer), R Gerber Middle: IJ Marais, JH van Huyssteen, S de Villiers, D Visagie, KG Bartie, HJT Deale, JC Terblanche, CA Rawlins, HJC Ferreira, A Marx Back: L Eybers, HEM Henning, S Willmer, L Esterhuizen, FM Burger, BR du Plessis, JF Grimbeek

Eerste Ry (v L n R): K H Matthysen (Navorsingsbeampte), P J Jansen van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), P K Bredell (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), Dr F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), R J Thompson (Senior Lektor), R Gerber (Klasverteenwoordiger) Tweede Ry (v L n R): I J Marais, J H van Huyssteen, S de Villiers, D Visagie, K G Bartie, H J T Deale, J C Terblanche, C A Rawlins, H J C Ferreira, A Marx Derde Ry (v L n R): L Eybers, H E M Henning, S Willmer, L Esterhuizen, F M Burger, B R du Plessis, J F Grimbeek

Class of 1992 Front: KH Matthysen (researcher), PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), Dr F de Frey (lecturer), RJ Thompson (lecturer), JJL du Plessis (lecturer), J le Roux K Meintjes, AJ van Ghent, PA JLewis, J Lucas, IL Thomson, W Till, A Reynolds, D AVisagie EersteMiddle: Ry (v L n D R):Botha, K H Matthysen (Navorsingsbeampte, J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), G SJ Steyn, Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), Prof N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), Back: A Hamman, C Brönn, L van Vuuren, F vanR Vuuren, E de Villiers, R Carstens, C Fryer, E Môller Dr Frik de Frey (Senior Lektor), J Thompson (Senior Lektor), J J L du Plessis (Lektor), Jacques le Roux (Klasverteenwoordiger) Tweede Ry (v L n R): Dirk Botha, Karel Meintjes, Abraham Johannes van Ghent, Arné Lewis, Jacques Lucas, Ian L Thomson, Johan Steyn, William Till, Andy Reynolds, Danie Visagie Derde Ry (v Ln R): Albie Hamman, Cobus Brönn, Len van Vuuren, Flip van Vuuren, Eugéne de Villiers, Riaan Carstens, Charl Fryer, Ettienne Môller PAGE 53

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Class of 1993 Front: F Harvey, PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), Dr FSA de Frey (lecturer), RJ Thompson (lecturer), JJL du PLessis (lecturer), B Swarts Middle: AA van Stelten, JA Barnard, JJ Botha, CP de Villiers, R Jacobs, CJ Moolman, CDW Joubert, JG Hermann, A Pretorius, J Möller Back: RL Goosen, AC Joubert, MAW Gericke, JD Botes, EN Winter, JF Jansen van Vuuren, JP Britz, BJ Vorster

Eerste Ry (v L n R): F Harvey, P J J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan),Dr F S A de Frey (Senior Lektor), R J Thompson (Senior Lektor), J J L du PLessis (Lektor), B Swarts Tweede Ry (v L n R): A A van Stelten, J A Barnard, J J Botha, C P de Villiers, R Jacobs, C J Moolman, C D W Joubert, J G Hermann, A Pretorius, J Möller Derde Ry (v Ln R): R L Goosen, A C Joubert, M A W Gericke, J D Botes, E N Winter, J F Jansen van Vuuren, J P Britz, B J Vorster

Class of 1994 Front: IZ van der Bank, WD Wieland, PJ Jansen van Vuuren (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), JJL du Plessis (lecturer), GR Coetzee (technical assistant), A Labuschagne Ry (v L HJ n R):Kriel, I Z van Bank,TJWOtto, D Wieland (Klasverteenwoordiger), Jansen van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), Prof A N Brown (Departementshoof), Second row: Eerste BJ Bruwer, AMder Smit, AA Visser, FP van Tonder,P JJvan Breda, RV Bagley, DJ de Swardt, SB Williams, AM Eksteen, Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), J J L du Plessis (Lektor), G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant), A Labuschagne GB Keyser, R Lombard Tweede Ry (v L n R): B J Bruwer, H J Kriel, A M Smit, T J Otto, A A Visser, F P van Tonder, J van Breda, R V Bagley, D J de Swardt, S B Williams, A M Eksteen, G B Keyser, R Lombard Third row: JH Jordaan, FC Reinecke, JD Kirsten, ZJ van Zyl, W Swanepoel, HJ Potgieter, CL Claassens, AA Strydom, CG Marx, WA Holder Derde Ry (v L n R): J H Jordaan, F C Reinecke, J D Kirsten, Z J van Zyl, W Swanepoel, H J Potgieter, C L Claassens, A A Strydom, C G Marx, W A Holder Back: P Malan, DP van den Berg, FP Cloete, SJ Venter, N Naudé, A Vermeulen, FL Geldenhuys, W Bender, JR Ballot, E van Niekerk, SN Badenhorst Vierde Ry (v L n R): P Malan, D P van den Berg, F P Cloete, S J Venter, N Naudé, A Vermeulen, F L Geldenhuys, W Bender, J R Ballot, E van Niekerk, S N Badenhorst

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Class of 1995 Front: WF Hattingh, RJ Thompson (lecturer), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), Prof AN Brown, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), PJ Jansen van Vuuren (lecturer), CA Rawlins (lecturer), GR Coetzee (technical assistant), P Fourie Back: JHC Cronjé, Cronjé, PM Bredell, A Treadwell, WJ Spies, Möhle, APH Plooy,Prof JBAOosthuizen Eerste Ry (v GP L n R): W F Hattingh.

R J Thompson (Senior Lektor), G SH Esterhuizen (Seniordu Lektor), N Brown (Departementshoof), Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), P J Jansen van Vuuren (Senior Lektor) C A Rawlins (Lektor), G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant), P Fourie Tweede Ry (v L n R): J H C Cronjé, G P Cronjé, P M Bredell, A Treadwell, W J Spies, H Möhle, A P H du Plooy, J B Oosthuizen

Class of 1996 Front: CA Rawlins (lecturer), RJ Thompson (lecturer), Prof GA Fourie, Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), PJ Jansen van Vuuren (lecturer), GR Coetzee (technical assistant) EersteJPD Ry (v L n Schalkwyk, R): C A Rawlins J Thompson Lektor), Prof GWA du Fourie (Departementshoof), Middle: JF van Graan, van CC(Lektor), Ballot,RRSE Alberts,(Senior GJ Buitendach, Toit, JS van HeerdenProf J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), G S Esterhuizen (Senior Lektor), P J Jansen van Vuuren (Senior Lektor, G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant) Back: V Anfield, TD Howard, CS van Aswegen, WJ Swanepoel, WD Esterhuysen Tweede Ry (v L n R): J F van Graan, J P D van Schalkwyk, C C Ballot, R S E Alberts, G J Buitendach, W du Toit, J S van Heerden Derde Ry (v L n R): V Anfield, T D Howard, C S van Aswegen, W J Swanepoel, W D Esterhuysen PAGE 55

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Class of 1997 Front: PN Lategan, GR Coetzee (technical assistant), Dr RJ Thompson (lecturer), GS Esternhuizen (lecturer), Prof GA Fourie, EM Gudmanz (administrator), RCW Webber (lecturer), PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), PC Botes Back: R Swart,Eerste FW Knox, van Rensburg, PH Boshoff, JJ Lotheringen, H Tukker, LF Steyn, CM Lotz, AJ Krause, Kruger Ry (v L FP n R):Janse P N Lategan (Peet)(Klasleier), G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant), Dr R J Thompson (Senior Lektor),H GOlivier, S Esternhuizen (SeniorHG Lektor),

Prof G A Fourie (Departementshoof), Mev E M Gudmanz (Sekretaresse), R C W Webber (Senior Lektor), P J J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), P C Botes (Pieter) Tweede Ry (v L n R): R Swart, F W Knox (Frans), F P Janse van Rensburg (Francois), P H Boshoff (Pieter), J J Lotheringen (Jaco), H Tukker (Hugo), L F Steyn (Lars), C M Lotz (Tinus), H Olivier (Herman), A J Krause (André), H G Kruger (Hennie)

Class of 1998 Front: R van Staden, PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), Dr GS Esterhuizen (lecturer), Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), Prof GA Fourie, EM Gudmanz (administrator), RCW Webber (lecturer), GR Coetzee (technical assistant) Ry (vDeventer, L n R): R van (Klasleier), TF P Jvan J vanNiekerk, Vuuren (Senior Lektor), S Esterhuizen (Senior Prof J A G Malherbe (Dekaan), Back: O Richter,Eerste JPC van PSStaden van Heerden, PJ Loock, JC Dr duGToit, JF Kirsten, JH Lektor), Engelbrecht Prof G A Fourie (Departementshoof), Mev E M Gudmanz (Sekretaresse), R C W Webber (Senior Lektor), G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant) Absent: Prof RJ Thompson Tweede Ry (v L n R): O Richter, J P C van Deventer, P S van Heerden, T F van Niekerk, P J Loock, J C du Toit, J F Kirsten, J H Engelbrecht Afwesig: Prof R J Thompson DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 1999 Front: GR Coetzee (technical assistant), GJJ van der Bank, TJ Kotze (lecturer), PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), Prof JAG Malherbe (Dean), Prof GA Fourie, Eerste Ry (v L n R): GRCW R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant), G J J van der Bank (Gert)(Klasleier), T J Kotze (Senior Lektor), P J J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), EM Gudmanz (administrator), Webber (lecturer) Prof PDF J A G du Malherbe Prof G A Fourie (Departementshoof), Mev E M Gudmanz (Sekretaresse), R C W Webber (Senior Lektor) Middle: FM van Daalen, Preez,(Dekaan), JH le Roux, WC Kuys, JA Breedt, FP Coetzee, JH Kleyn, SJJ van Heerden, GG Olivier, AD Roux, A Steyn Tweede Ry (v LMI n R):Botha, F M vanJADaalen (Frans), P D F du Preez (Niel), J W H leKotze Roux (John) W C Kuys (Wilhelm), J A Breedt (Justin), F P Coetzee (Pieter), Back: N Rossouw, A Fryer, Fourie, K Louw, CW Niehaus, J H Kleyn (Johann), S J J van Heerden (Steve), G G Olivier (George), A D Roux (André), A Steyn (Allen) Absent: Prof RJ Thompson Derde Ry (v Ln R): N Rossouw (Niel), A Fryer (André), M I Botha (MI), J A Fourie (JAF), K Louw (Kobus), C W Niehaus (Wouter), W Kotze (Werner) Afwesig: Prof R J Thompson (Mede Professor)

Class of 2000 Front: Prof MJ Handley (lecturer), RCW Webber (lecturer), Prof CWI Pistorius (Dean), Prof GA Fourie, EM Gudmanz (administrator), J Richter (lecturer) Middle: PJJ van Vuuren (lecturer), G Krugel, F Sadie, L Boshoff, S Esterhuysen, J Gerber, GJ Coetzee (technical assistant) Eerste Ry (v L nP R): Prof M J Handley (Senior Lektor), R CWielligh W Webber (Senior Lektor), Prof C W I Pistorius (Dekaan), Back: B Nel, J Maritz, H van der Merwe, Bezuidenhout, J Grobler, A von

Prof G A Fourie (Departementshoof), Mev E M Gudmanz, (Sekretaresse), J Richter (Senior Lektor), Tweede Ry (v L n R): P J J van Vuuren (Senior Lektor), Gawie Krugel (Klasverteenwoordiger), Frikkie Sadie, Lood Boshoff, Stephan Esterhuysen, Jan Gerber, G J Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant) Derde Ry (v L n R): Beyers Nel, Jannie Maritz, Hannes van der Merwe, Pretorius Bezuidenhout, Johannes Grobler, Anton von Wielligh PAGE 57

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

2001–2010 2001

2002 2004 2005

2007

2008

End of Prof André Fourie’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Nielen van der Merwe as Head of Department Approval of language policy to change teaching language of third- and fourth-year students to English only First female Mining Engineering student graduates from the Department First black Mining Engineering students graduate from the Department First black female Mining Engineering students graduate from the Department Establishment of the Tuks Mining Society End of Prof Nielen van der Merwe’s term of office as Head of Department and appointment of Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman as Head of Department Mining Engineering Trust Fund approves salary subvention to attract experienced mining engineers to join the Department as lecturers

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE FIFTH DECADE5 Prof Nielen van der Merwe became Head of the Department of Mining Engineering in April 2001 and served in this capacity until April 2007. During his tenure, it was decided to revise the Department’s language policy to make it more competitive in terms of the international mining community. It was decided that the Department would only offer its mining courses in English for third and fourth-year Mining Engineering students from 2000. Between 2001 and 2009, there was a large increase in postgraduate student numbers, which indicated the need for further learning in the mining industry. The increase in student numbers was therefore primarily attributed to the change in language policy, as more students who preferred English as language of tuition were drawn from the rest of Africa. Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman succeeded Prof van der Merwe as Head of Department in April 2007.

A new postgraduate qualification, BSc Hons (Applied Science) Mining, was developed and implemented during the period under review. The Department remained fortunate that several undergraduate student prizes and donations from industry, such as SAIMM and the Chamber of Mines Gold Medal awards, which featured competition with other departments and tertiary institutions, were still available. Financial support in

terms of subventions for lecturers in the Department was increased significantly, which2011/10/12 enabled9:57 theAM Department to attract high-quality lecturers from industry.

This was achieved through the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF). Other institutions, such as the South African Colliery Managers’ Association (SACMA), as well as the Association of Mine Managers South Africa (AMMSA), also donated funds to the Department.

Through these donations and sponsorships, it was possible to convert the Department’s old laboratory into student discussion rooms (also known as quiet rooms) for groupwork.

The undergraduate curriculum underwent modifications from its primary revision in 1989. The Department also started with a more innovative approach to teaching and learning, which incorporated cooperative learning techniques. The lecturing methods themselves were extensively revised, moving from a passive teaching style to a problem-oriented group teaching style.

The Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) re-evaluated the curriculum in 2007 and its favourable report resulted in full accreditation for the degree up to 2012. The Department embarked on introducing non-technical skills development (soft skills) as part of every mining module as from the third year of study. It also introduced a compulsory

research-related subject for honours degree students in 2007. In this subject, students had to identify a real-time problem in the mining industry and recommend a solution or improvements with the support of appointed staff members. This immediately led to an increase in applied research-related projects, which were concluded at the cost of the mines at which the projects were completed.

Funds generated from short courses in risk management that were offered to Anglo American, together with the Wits School of Mining and the Chemical Engineering Department of the University of Cape Town, were used to fully equip a new computer room in the Department. The intention was that this computer room or IT lab would be used to introduce students to the real world of mining through interactive video and animations, as well as other mine design packages, which would form a new approach to mine design for final-year students in future.

The Department also established its active involvement in industry with specific reference to mine environmental engineering, mine safety, explosive engineering and rock engineering.

Prof Webber-Youngman was actively involved in the establishment of the Safety Risk Management Roll-out Strategy for Anglo American in 2009, which would lead to safety risk management research.

5 Source: Ad Destinatum V: 2001–2009 – Historical developments and events at the University of Pretoria DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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226

50 jaar herdenking

boek.indd 226

Prof Nielen van der Merwe

A new era dawns

6

At this milestone in our journey over time, we should remember that the Department of Mining Engineering at nking boek.indd 186 the University of Pretoria developed from the Kimberley School of Mines when it was relocated from Kimberley to Pretoria towards the end of the 19th century. At that time, it no longer produced mining engineers – more than 60 years had to pass for the miners to reemerge.

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jaar herdenking boek.indd 180

2011/10/12 9:55 AM

When this eventually happened, 60 years ago, the mining world was a lot different to what it is now. The first drum-type continuous miner in coal mining was not yet used; the first gold had just been poured in the Evander gold field; the industry employed more than 600 000 people; and the role of

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women was mostly confined to being secretaries or store clerks.

Tuition consisted of taking notes from blackboards and all the students were male, white and Afrikaans-speaking.

That was the mining world the first graduates from the University’s Department of Mining Engineering walked out to meet when they left campus.

Over the last 60 years, the world, South Africa and the mining industry have changed, and the Department has continuously evolved to remain relevant to this day and to create a new future through the expansion of research. This has been especially impressive over the last decade. Life in the Department, like

mining itself, was never plain sailing. At times the existence of the Department was challenged by external forces – it not only survived against the odds; it came out of each challenge stronger and more 220 determined than before.

201

Now, the Department is ranked in the top ng boek.indd 220 50 jaar herdenki 50 mining schools in the world. This is a remarkable achievement, testament to the ingenuity and resilience of the leadership.

The Department of Mining Engineering is now 60 years old in the wide spectrum of time, but as young as the youngest student at any moment in time.

The Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria is here to stay.

Prof Nielen van der Merwe

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

2

Class of 2001 Front: GR Coetzee, Prof RJ Thompson, Prof MJ Handley, Prof RF Sandenberg (Dean), Prof JN van der Merwe, EM Gudmanz, RCW Webber, PJJ van Vuuen EersteGRyvan (v L nHeerden, R): G R Coetzee (Tegniese Assistant), R J Thompson Professor), MJ FThompson Handley (Mede Professor), Prof R F Sandenberg (Dekaan), Middle: C Strydom, F le Roux, R Engelbrecht, L Möller,(Mede W Thompson, J N vanLder Merwe M (Departementshoof), Mev E P M Mulder, Gudmanz (Sekretaresse), R C W Webber (Senior Lektor), P J J van Vuuen (Senior Lektor) Back: R Deysel, W Prof Moeller, Sloane, Janse van Rensburg, E Kruger

Tweede Ry (v L n R): Corné Strydom (Klasverteenwooridger), Gawie van Heerden, Francois (Druppel) le Roux, Riaan (Crusty) Engelbrecht, Lou Möller, Willie Thompson, Jody (Boeries) Thompson Derde Ry (v L n R): Rudi Deysel, Werner Moeller, Lomar Sloane, Martin Janse van Rensburg, Phillip Mulder, Ekhard Kruger

Class of 2002 Front: GR Coetzee, Prof MJ Handley, EM Gudmanz, Prof JN van der Merwe, Prof RJ Thompson, GH Lind, RCW Webber Middle: J Rautenbach, T Roos, J Grobler, Q Botha, M Smith, H Jordaan, DJ Campbell Back: M Eerste Coetzer, S le Roux, PGE Nortjé Ry (vWL Snyman, n R): G R Coetzee, Prof JT M FJordaan, Handley, Me M Gudmanz, Prof J N van der Merwe (Departementshoof), Prof R J Thompson, G H Lind, R C W Webber Tweede Ry (v L n R): Janine Rautenbach, Tinus Roos, Jaco Grobler, Quentin Botha, Marius Smith, Hennie Jordaan, Duan Jason Campbell Derde Ry (v L n R): Marius Coetzer, Willie Snyman, Servaas le Roux, Johan Terence Jordaan, Petrus Gerhardus Nortjé DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 2003

199

Front: GR Coetzee, Prof MJ Handley, DE Gudmanz, Prof JN van der Merwe, Prof RF Sandenbergh (Dean), Prof RJ Thompson, RCW Webber-Youngman, Mawela Eerste Ry (v L n R): S George Coetzee, Prof Matthew Handley, Daleen Gudmanz, Prof Nielen van der Merwe (Departementshoof), Prof Roelf Sandenbergh (Dekaan), Middle: P Oosthuysen, M Smith, D Hattingh, M Prof Joubert, C Badenhorst, MJ Opperman, Stephens AJ van Zyl, B Burger, E Shaw Roger Thompson, Ronny Webber-Youngman, Mawela Back: H Ludik, P van Rooyen, W Smith, van der Walt, A Nel, GP van Greunen, R Nell Tweede Ry T(vJordaan, L n R): Pieter Oosthuysen, Marc Dorus Hattingh, Mauritz Joubert, Casper Badenhorst, Mattheus J Opperman, A J van Zyl, Bennie Burger, Eddie Shaw Derde Ry (v L n R): Henk Ludik, Terence Jordaan (Nagraads), Pieter van Rooyen, Werner van der Walt, André Nel, George P van Greunen, Réghard Nell

Class of 2004 Front: GR Coetzee, Prof RJ Thompson, Prof MJ Handley, DM Gudmanz, Prof JN van der Merwe, RCW Webber-Youngman, Dr I Matunhire, A Bester, D Boshoff Eerste RyJ Bekker, (v L n R): JGeorge Coetzee, Prof Roger Thompson, Matthew Handley, Daleen Gudmanz, ProfPNielen der Merwe (Departemenshoof), MIddle: F Masemula, Jacobs, P Scheepers, M Breed, Prof W van Straten, K Sengani, G Botha, Vusi van Ncombo Ronny Webber-Youngman, Dr Isadore Matunhire, Alton Bester, Dawid Boshoff Back: F Müller, H Turner, J Klingenberg, J Breytenbach, J Kroon, D Lourens, F Stander, A van Niekerk Tweede Ry (v L n R): Floyd Masemula, Josua Bekker, Jaco Jacobs, Patric Scheepers, Michiel Breed, Wynand van Straten, Kennedy Sengani, Gerhardus Botha, Phillip Vusi Ncombo Derde Ry (v L n R): Fanie Müller, Holden Turner, Johan Klingenberg, Jacques Breytenbach, Jenkins Kroon, Danie Lourens, Fanie Stander, Arnoldus van Niekerk PAGE 61

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Class of 2005 Front: Dr RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof RJ Thompson, DE Gudmanz, Prof JN van der Merwe, Prof RF Sandenbergh (Dean), Prof MJ Handley, Dr I Matunhire, G Coetzee First Row (LCt Botha, R): Dr Ronny Webber-Youngman, Roger Thompson, Gudmanz, Prof Nielen van der Merwe (Departementshoof), Middle: FJ Baloyi, T Modiba, G Cilliers, F Grobler,Prof M Ligudu, T Kok, Daleen S Mawela Prof Roelf Sandenbergh, Prof Matthew Handley, Dr Isadore Matunhire, George Coetzee Back: F Vermaak, J Mans, R Ranta, SJ van Vuuren, RL Pienaar, I Shikongo

207

Second Row (L t R): Fanie J Baloyi, Tebogo Modiba, Chris Botha, George Cilliers, Francois Grobler, Mulisa Ligudu, Thys Kok, Stephens Mawela Third Row (L t R): Frikkie Vermaak, Jaco Mans, Raymond Ranta, Stefan J van Vuuren, Riaan L Pienaar, Immanuel Shikongo

Class of 2006 Front: O Mothibi, Prof MJ Handley, Dr I Matunhire, Prof RJ Thompson, Prof JN van der Merwe, DE Gudmanz, K Naidoo, Dr RCW Webber-Youngman, H de Klerk First Row (L t R): Oupa Mothibi, Prof Matthew Handley, Dr Isadore Matunhire, Prof Roger Thompson, Prof Nielen van der Merwe (Departemenshoof), Daleen Gudmanz, Second row: T Moonsamy, T Semela, J Gouws, T Manyaka, E Croeser, J Krzyzanowska, R van der Merwe, N van der Merwe, T Grobler, M Geyser, Kumesh Naidoo, Dr Ronny Webber-Youngman, Henri de Klerk (Class Representative) J Mphahlele, van Wath Moonsamy, Thabang Semela, Jaco Gouws, Tshepo Manyaka, Eric Croeser, Joanna Krzyzanowska, Reghardt van der Merwe, Nico van der Merwe, Sedond E Row (L tder R): Tarusha Third row: P Matamela, E van Niekerk, C Cloete, W Grobler, Botes, Markus J-D vanGeyser, Rensburg, J Barlow, W Reyneke, T Daling, J Cullum, N Hlatshwayo, K Müller Tinus Joel Mphahlele, Eldoreen van der Wath K Wyman, J Olivier, C van Bothma, vanCloete, der Westhuizen, Brink, E Welthagen, SJ Nothnagel, N Viljoen, Janse vanJustin Rensburg Third RowBack: (L t R): Phumudzo Matamela, Eben Niekerk,EChris Wynand Botes,GJan-Douglas van Rensburg, Judd Barlow, Wynand Reyneke,HTheo Daling, Cullum, Ntokozo Hlatshwayo, Keith Müller Fourth Row (L t R): Kevin Wyman, Jaco Olivier, Coen Bothma, Etienne van der Westhuizen, Gerrie Brink, Edrich Welthagen, S J Nothnagel, Nico Viljoen, Hugo Janse van Rensburg

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Class of 2007 Front: O Mothibi, DE Gudmanz, Prof MJ Handley, K Naidoo, Prof RF Sandenbergh (Dean), Dr RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof RJ Thompson, Dr I Matunhire, J Pretorius Second row: N Mashinini, A Stoker, B Hamese, T Randima, S Moroku, J Janse van Vuuren, M Phejaolema, I Sibisi, N Ramaremela Third row: M Magavha,First P Kluge, Breed, Coetzer, D Pretorius, D Mitchell, R Teffo,Kumesh E Ramurafhi Row (L Ft R): OupaW Mothibi, Daleen Gudmanz, Prof Matthew Handley, Naidoo, Prof Roelf Sandenbergh (Dean), Back: G Potgieter, B van Rensburg, O Buys, G Snyman,Prof J Esterhuyse, W Coetzer Dr Janse Ronny Webber-Youngman (Head of Department), Roger Thompson, Dr Isadore Matunhire, Johan Pretorius (Class Representative) Second Row (L t R): Nozipho Mashinini, Angelique Stoker, Bonolo Hamese, Takalani Randima, Sizwe Moroku, Jarno Janse van Vuuren, Mbali Phejaolema, Israel Sibisi, Nancy Ramaremela Third Row (L t R): Maanda Magavha, Paul Kluge, Freddie Breed, Wiekus Coetzer, Dewet Pretorius, Douglas Mitchell, Ronald Teffo, Edward Ramurafhi Fourth Row (L t R): Gerard Potgieter, Brandon Janse van Rensburg, Ockert Buys, Gerrit Snyman, Johann Esterhuyse, Wentzel Coetzer

Class of 2008 Front: Prof MJ Handley, K Naidoo, J Bernitz, Dr RCW Webber-Youngman, M Harris (Chairperson: Mining Society), DE Gudmanz, O Mothibi Second row: V Phaahla, A Angelov, D Pretorius, J Pretorius, D van Wyk, N Molala, A Segoe Third row: SFirst Wicks, R Niehaus, W Heenop, llan, Naidoo, MA Cisse, H Neuhoff, Opperman Row): Prof Matthew Handley, RG Kumesh Jonathan Bernitz R(Class Representative), Dr Ronny Webber-Youngman (Head of Department), Back: A Smit, H Prinsloo, E Thorne, A Scholtz, C Dekker, JC Gordon, A Meek Megan Harris (Chairperson Mining Society), Daleen Gudmanz (Department Administrator), Oupa Mothibi

Second Row: Vincent Phaahla, Angel Angelov, Dewet Pretorius (Assistant Lecturer), Johan Pretorius (Assistant Lecturer), Deon van Wyk, Ntjatji Molala, Andrew Segoe Third Row: Steven Wicks, Roelof Niehaus, Werner Heenop, Riaan Gilfillan, Mahamadoun Aly Cisse, Hannes Neuhoff, Rudi Opperman PAGE 63  DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE Fourth Row: Anton Smit, Hannes Prinsloo, Edmund Thorne, Alwyn Scholtz, Christiaan Dekker, James C Gordon, Aidan Meek

Class of 2009 Front: A Angelov, C Knobbs, N Olivier, Dr RCW Webber-Youngman, DE Gudmanz, T Moonsamy, O Mothibi Second row: N Ndaba, A Rabumbulu, M Mtsoeni, M Loots, A Meek, S Rapelego, V Malele, M Seloma Third row: A Mutelo, R Els, M Lecturer), Coelho, CClive du Knobbs, Toit, M Nitha Neale, M Tshegofatso, T Vivaldino, A(Head Nandesifeni First Row: Angel Angelov (Assistant Olivier, Dr Ronny Webber-Youngman of Department), Daleen Gudmanz, Tarusha Moonsamy, Oupa Mothibiß Fourth row: W Warschkuhl, J Burger, H Reyneke, B Steyn, JP Viljoen, P du Plooy, R Nengwenda Second Row: Nomfundo Ndaba, Avheani Rabumbulu, Millicent Mtsoeni, Michiel Loots, Aidan Meek (Assistant Lecturer), Shirley Rapelego, Verah Malele, Mahlodi Seloma Back: J Oosthuizen, J Louw, Human, K de van Zyl, J de Klerk, Pieter Boonzaier Third Row: ArckyBD Mutelo, Ruben Els,Klerk, MiguelRCoelho, Chrisjan du Toit,C Michael Neale, Mashapu Tshegofatso, Tuhafeni Vivaldino A Nandesifeni

Fourth Row: Wilhelm Warschkuhl, Jaco Burger, Hein Reyneke, Barend Steyn, JP Viljoen, Petri du Plooy, Rofhatuwa Nengwenda Fifth Row: Jodri Oosthuizen, Jacobus Louw, Barend Daniël Human, Karel de Klerk, Riaan van Zyl, Jean de Klerk, Carel Pieter Boonzaier

Class of 2010 Front: G van Heerden, C Knobbs, N Olivier, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, DE Gudmanz, WW de Graaf, O Mothibi Second row: T Hoshela, LD Pheko, LE Mbena, A Weststrate, OB Lesejane, M Coelho, M Neale, F Fourie, R Raphukula, MI Nkosi, N Nkoe Row: Gawie van Heerden, Clive EKnobbs, Nitha Olivier,A Dlamini, Prof RonnySWebber-Youngman (Head M of Department), Gudmanz, Wolter de Graaf, Oupa Mothibi ThirdFirst row: D Skhosana, A Katalyeba, Tshetlhanyane, Pillay, Q Kleynhans, Thanwane, VDaleen Modimola Second Row: Tshilidzi Hoshela, Limpho David Pheko, H Lota Edwin Mbena, Anton Weststrate, OB Lesejane, Miguel Coelho (Assistant Lecturer), Back: T Aipanda, A Kramer, E Mabilo, F Taljaard, VR Oppel, Kruger Michael Neale (Assistant Lecturer), Frikkie Fourie, Refilwe Raphukula, Musa Innocent Nkosi, Ntsoaki Nkoe Third Row: Dolly Skhosana, Alex Katalyeba, Edward Tshetlhanyane, Archibold Dlamini, Sashwyn Pillay, Quintin Kleynhans, Mugidi Thanwane, Victor Modimola Fourth Row: Tomas Aipanda, Adriaan Kramer, Elton Mabilo, Rhyn Kruger D E P A RFrancois T M E N TTaljaard, O F M I NVan ING E NOppel, G I N E EHendrik RING D IAMOND JUBILEE  PAGE 64

2011–2020 2012

2013

2014 2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

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The Sasol Chair in Mine Safety, Health and the Environment is established Accreditation of the undergraduate programme by the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) until 2017 The Mining Industry Study Centre is officially opened The Harmony Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling is established.

The Sasol Engineering Leadership Academy is established The English Literacy support drive is launched for final-year students Prof Webber-Youngman is elected President of the international Society of Mining Professors (SOMP) Prof John Napier, Prof William Spiteri, Prof Jan du Plessis and Prof Francois Malan are appointed as extraordinary professors in the Department The Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design is launched and virtual reality becomes part of the Department’s teaching strategy The Department’s new offices on the fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building are completed, as well as the African Rainbow Minerals exhibition centre The establishment of the Mining Engineering Education South Africa forum with Prof Webber-Youngman as inaugural chairperson The English Literacy support drive is expanded to all four academic groups.

The Department enters into a collaboration agreement with the Camborne School of Mines at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom Establishment of the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy The establishment of the Mining Resilience Research Centre Accreditation of the undergraduate programme by the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) until 2022 The establishment of the AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology The launch of the Department’s #UPMiningMatters marketing drive The adoption of a value-based framework in the Department, focused on respect, care, honesty, integrity and trust Participation in the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) Strategy, in which the Department collaborates with the CSIR, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg.

The establishment of the virtual reality blast wall to enhance training The introduction of the interactive immersive technology drive and the gamification of education and training Prof Bharath Belle is appointed as an extraordinary professor.

The establishment of the Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 and the M&R Mining Engineering Leadership Academy The ranking of the University of Pretoria in the top 100 universities in the world for mining and mineral engineering in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) subject rankings The Department acquires new laboratory equipment with the assistance of METF funding Launch of the ARM Postgraduate Bursary initiative Prof Francois Malan receives B2 rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF) The ranking of the University of Pretoria in the top 50 universities in the world for minerals and mining engineering in the 2021 QS World University Subject Rankings The establishment of the Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality Technology The approval of the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems in collaboration with the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Prof Webber-Youngman is elected to the Council of the international Society of Mining Professors (SOMP) The Department celebrates its 60th anniversary

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SIXTH DECADE Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman served as Head of Department from 2007.

Under his leadership, the Department continued to visibly align its educational and research objectives with industry needs. A highlight for the Department was its celebration, in 2021, of 60 years of excellence in mining engineering education.

Its efforts to increase the University of Pretoria’s national and international visibility and recognition for mining and mineral engineering bore fruit when the University was ranked in the top 100 universities in the world for mining and mineral engineering in the Academic Ranking of World Universities in 2019 and in the top 50 universities in the world for minerals and mining engineering in the 2021 QS World University Subject Rankings The Department maintained its core full-time academic and support staff, who were complemented by contracted industry experts as part-time lecturers.

Its postgraduate research programme benefitted from the involvement of Prof Con Fauconnier as honorary professor and Prof Bharath Belle, Prof Jan du Plessis, Prof John Napier and Prof William Spiteri as extraordinary professors. Prof Francois Malan was promoted to a full professor in 2021.

The financial contribution of the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF), in the form

of a staff salary subvention, enabled the Department to attract high-quality lecturers from industry.

A steady increase in enrolments was witnessed from 2009. However, in 2015, following a slump in mining student numbers worldwide, the Department took a strategic decision to reduce its first-year intake in alignment with the decreasing need for mining engineers worldwide, together with current trends in the South African mining industry. It therefore decided to cap its undergraduate student capacity at 120 students, which would include 40 final-year students. At the same time, it increased its focus on postgraduate enrolments, with the aim of having 70 postgraduate students by 2025. By the end of 2020, it had 123 undergraduate and 57 postgraduate students (the highest number of postgraduate students in the Department’s history).

In the last decade, the Department focused extensively on restructuring its curriculum in such a way as to optimise learning. The Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) has evaluated its undergraduate curriculum every five years since 2007. Its favourable reports over the past three accreditation cycles have resulted in the full accreditation of the degree up to 2022.

Its redesigned curriculum, which was to be implemented in 2020, is focused

on the mining engineer of the future and includes exposure to aspects such as leadership, the social context of business, rectifying the imbalances of the past, as well as international economic systems, striving to create a more equal, yet productive society. It also considers equipping its students with the skills required to survive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which includes skills such as analytical thinking and innovation, complex problem solving, and critical thinking and analysis.

The Department’s excellent relationships with its industry partners led to the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design (VRC), which was made possible through an R18.8 million investment over three years by Kumba Iron Ore in 2013. This is the first centre of its kind in Africa to be housed at a university, and enables the Department to realistically simulate a range of mining functions in a lowrisk, high-impact learning environment.

The facilities comprise a wall-to-wall 3D theatre, as well as an immersive mine simulation theatre, which casts 360° images against dark surrounding panels with cinematic clarity and highly realistic sound effects. The infrastructure development, which was completed in 2015, included new offices for the Department on the fifth floor of the Mineral Sciences Building, while African Rainbow Minerals provided funding for a new minerals exhibition centre.

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The establishment of industryfunded research chairs enabled the Department to expand the focus of its research.

The Sasol Mining Chair in Mine Safety, Health and the Environment was established in 2012 to advance teaching and research in the field of safety, health and the environment as it pertains to the mining industry.

The Harmony Gold Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling was established in 2013 with support over three years to conduct research on a safer working environment in the hard-rock mining industry. Harmony Gold subsequently extended its initial sponsorship of the research chair by a further three years in 2016, and again in 2020. The research conducted in this chair forms part of individual postgraduate study programmes under the leadership of Prof Francois Malan and Prof John Napier, both renowned specialists in the field of rock engineering.

The AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology was established in 2018 to position the University as a centre of excellence for emerging rock-breaking technologies. It would make use of the VRC to focus on three-dimensional blast simulation and the visualisation of new research.

The Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 was established in 2019 to facilitate research in leadership relevant to mining. The research conducted in this Chair is supplemented by the Murray & Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (M&R MELA), which forms part of the final-year students’ Mine Design curriculum. This expands on an initiative launched in 2016 to develop the non-technical (soft skills) of students, and assists graduates to adapt to the challenges of the world of work.

The Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology was established in 2021, in collaboration with the Department of Information Science, with the aim of designing XR technologies that can enable intuitive interaction with virtual environments.

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University of Pretoria Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof Tawana Kupe, during a VR experience.

In recognition of the fact that a resilient mining industry is of particular relevance to Africa, the Department launched the Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC) in 2017. This is a multidisciplinary research centre that contributes to solutions for complex mining problems through the rigorous integration of scientific research, the pursuit of practically implementable solutions and the education of graduates who are equipped with relevant skills. It engages in several collaborative contract research projects for industry. Prof Francois Malan, who had served as an extraordinary professor in the Department since 2014, was appointed in a full-time capacity to serve as the Director of the Centre in 2018.

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Through the MRRC, the Department actively collaborates with stakeholders such as the Minerals Council South Africa (MCSA), the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), the Mine Health and Safety Council (MHSC) and the Mandela Mining Precinct (MMP).

The activities of the MRRC enhanced the Department’s reputation as a leader in mining research. It was also an active participant in the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) strategy. As a partner in SAMERDI, the Department collaborates with the CSIR, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg. The Mandela Mining Precinct initiative of the Department of Science and Innovation is an outcome of this initiative.

The Department’s longstanding association in SAMERDI gave rise to several projects in mechanised mining.

In 2021, the Mandela Mining Precinct announced that it had selected UP to host the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems. This will be managed as a multidisciplinary research initiative between the Department of Mining Engineering and the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering.

The Department has developed innovative teaching and learning initiatives. These were particularly aimed at supporting undergraduate students and enhancing the Department’s throughput and success rate, while ensuring that it delivers well-rounded mining engineers to the workforce.

Industry visits form part of the Department’s curriculum, and serve to expose students to what they can expect when they start working at a mining operation.

The Department’s current research agenda places greater focus on areas of outstanding research and builds on these areas. The Department currently has three areas of expertise that compare with the best in the world: rockbreaking and explosives engineering, rock engineering, and management and leadership. Two emerging areas that will be expanded upon with the establishment of the Exxaro Chair in XR Technology and the SAMERDI Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems are those of XR technology, and mechanisation and automation, respectively. This will, in turn, stimulate economic development and impact on the contribution of mining to the country’s gross domestic product.

An initiative to develop the non-technical (soft) skills of students – the Sasol Engineering Leadership Academy – was developed in 2013 to assist graduates to adapt to the challenges of the world of work. It incorporated all the engineering disciplines but was limited to 50 students. Upon conclusion of Sasol’s sponsorship of this initiative, the Department decided to launch a similar initiative exclusively for final-year Mining Engineering students, known as the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (MELA). It was initially funded from the

Department’s own third-stream income, and focused on the development of leadership and communication skills, as well as conflict resolution, problemsolving and stress management skills.

With the establishment of the Murray & Roberts (M&R) Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 in 2019, it benefitted from the support of this engineering and mining contractor, and became known as the M&R MELA. The programme is presented by Dr Johann Uys, a senior lecturer in the Department and an industrial psychologist with decades of leadership development experience in mining and related industries. The use of interactive immersive technology as a teaching and learning technique was introduced in 2018, and is linked to the use of gamification (the use of gamedesign elements in a non-game context).

Linked to the interactive immersive technology drive is the establishment of a virtual reality blast wall in the Department in 2018. It enables learners to plan and execute the blasting of a rock face in a controlled and safe environment. By means of virtual reality and augmented reality, they are able to design the blast, mark the blast holes and blast hole timing sequence activities, and actually execute the blast and experience the “explosion” on an interactive screen.

Another initiative to support students to succeed academically is the English Literacy training drive, which was launched in the Department in 2013.

This was developed following the identification of students’ mastery of the English language as one of the challenges that affected their academic performance since only a small percentage of the Department’s students have English as their first language. It was initially launched to support final-year students, but in 2015 it was expanded to all four academic groups. Undergraduate students receive assistance with writing, communication and presentation skills, and an English tutor provides feedback on their assignments to improve their English writing.

An unexpected disruption of the Department’s teaching and learning methods came about in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic caused the University to join the rest of the country in a nationwide lockdown.

Literally overnight, lecturers were expected to change their method of transferring knowledge to an online system. The Department’s staff rose to the challenge and did an exceptional job of accommodating this new approach to teaching and learning.

An important focus of the Department is the wellbeing of its students. Its interaction with its students takes place according to a value-driven framework, guided by the values of respect, care, honesty, integrity and trust. Where possible, the Department lends support to avert any anxiety students may experience during their studies, especially students who are in need. Mining engineering students are given the opportunity to network and socialise with other students and staff of the Department outside lecture halls through the Tuks Mining Society, a student organisation that supports the Department’s students on a holistic level. A mentorship programme is in place where junior students are assigned senior students to assist them with academic issues and provide guidance based on personal experience.

The Department benefits from the expertise of leaders from industry and academia, who serve on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board.

The Department also enjoys the active support of its alumni through the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP). Through this platform, alumni support the Department by raising sponsorships, and ensuring that a high level of skills and educational standards are maintained. This society also serves as a social network for mining engineers in industry.

The Department’s alumni are among the captains of industry locally and abroad, and include many individuals who serve in the leadership ranks of prominent organisations and on their boards of directors, and are recognised for the role they play in the development of the country’s economy. These individuals are also champions for the University of Pretoria, and enhance its image through their exceptional achievements as the chief executive officers, chief operating officers, managing directors and executive heads of various mining companies.

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Class of 2011 Front: J Maritz, Rl Raphukula, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, N Olivier, WW de Graaf, C Knobbs Second row: M Ngoasheng, L Lehasa, N Sekata, A Kramer, B Mfadala, P Mafhala, K Mathibe First Row: Jannie Maritz (Senior Lecturer), Refilwe Raphukula (Junior Lecturer), Daleen Gudmanz (Secretary), Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman (HoD), Nitha Olivier (Instructural Designer), Third row: L Ratshivhadelo, K Mothapo, L Mokoatsi, K Moloto, M Makopo, S Ferreira, L Makgoana, M Kgaphola Wolter de Graaf (Senior Lecturer), Clive Knobbs (Senior Lecturer) Fourth row: A Phoko, L Nzimande, S Nkoko, E Kaveru, J Phasha, E du Toit, M Lebelo Second Row: Magoge Ngoasheng, Lehlohonolo Lehasa, Nchaeng Sekata, Adriaan Kramer (Academic Instructor), Busisiwe Mfadala, Pity Mafhala, Katlego Mathibe Back: G Segaetsho, H Connick, W Opperman, J Louw, W Grobler, X Maree, J Chiappero Third Row: Lesley Ratshivhadelo, Karabo Mothapo, Libuseng Mokoatsi, Komane Moloto, Madimetja Makopo, Stephanie Ferreira, Lebogang Makgoana, Mollette Kgaphola Fourth Row: Aubrey Phoko, Lunga Nzimande, Samuel Nkoko, Elvid Kaveru, Joel Phasha, Elris du Toit, Metja Lebelo Fifth Row: Gomotsegang Segaetsho, Hayes Connick, Werner Opperman, Jacques Louw, Wynand Grobler, Xander Maree, Jonathan Chiappero

Class of 2012 Front: J Maritz, M Budeba, M Carelsen, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, DE Gudmanz, WW de Graaf, C Knobbs Second row: O Senna, P Koatla, J Chiappero, G Segaetsho, E Gerryts, N Olivier, J Louw, P Mafahla, F Viljoen, N Phalama Third row: D Baloyi, L Moleko, L Ramosito, T Chiloane, C Bilankulu, T Manyoni, M Denga, J Mashilo, O Letlape, M Mongoma Fourth row: A le Grange, M Kunene, J-J Maré, E de Villiers, I Breedt, L Webster, S Potgieter, R van Niekerk Back: R Maphalla, R Phumzo, J Krüger, N Mutilitha, J Botha, A Nkosi, M Rakoma, D Roodt PAGE 69

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

Class of 2013 Front: P Bredell, JJ Louw, J Maritz, N Bruyns, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, DE Gudmanz, C Knobbs, WW de Graaf, M van Staden Second row: S van der Walt, C Bilankulu, R van Niekerk, S Potgieter, E Maphalla, D Roodt, M Budeba, E Gerryts, J Mashilo, M Mongoma Third row: N Masiagwala, V Mathiba, M Tswaane, E Preis, S Gunn, R Weber, L Matakanyi, T Malane, Z Radebe, D Swanepoel, C Tonkin, T Kagogo, J Krüger, L Tukula, B Mukhola, P Makhoba Fifth row: T Siobo, M Neser, JP Lafond, C Postma, D Möwes, J Goveia, E Theron, M Letsie Back: H Holtzhausen, A Muridili, T Kekana, W van Zweel, H Mabege, D Kleynhans, J Krüger, S More, M Guliwe

Class of 2014 Front: J Louw, J Maritz, WW de Graaf, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof J du Plessis, P Bredell, Dr B Meyer, C Knobbs Second row: W Magohgwa, T Kagogo, M Budeba, M Guliwe, W van Zweel, T Kekana, I Venter, E Gerryts, J Maphoto, Third row: T Raphiri, Z Mhlanga, L Zondo, A Muridili, E Preis, C Tonkin, M Lebitso, M Nomthandazo, K Ngoma, Y Chambati Fourth row: A van Wyngaardt, W van Zyl, M du Toit, R Tshibalo, S Mxolisi, K Lombard, R Lombard, F Mashigo, M Maapoga, A Matsemela Back: L Nemabaka, L Mafiri, U Murangi, L Korope, J Scholtz, B Okhuis, Y Oyedipe, N Mahlalela Back: W Botha, J Jacobs, K Mamabolo, J de Waal, G Slabbert, E Schmidt, C Legote DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 2015 Front: P Bredell, J Maritz, WW de Graaf, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, N Bruyns, S Uludag, C Knobbs, Dr B Meyer Second row: I Venter, E Gerryts, J-P Kayumba, J Scholtz, J Louw, J Jacobs, R Phumudzo, M Budeba, B Okhuis, A Kgatshe, E Preis, J Maphoto Third row: S Mahlangu, J Keyter, J-M Page, Z Lekgothoane, V Baloyi, O Manne, L Mohloua, B Manana, J Sapsford, M Nkoana Fourth row: B Mthombeni, C Serota, T Phago, T Ngake, L Ngwenyama, K Mosebedi, Z Manyathela, W Motholo, M Mokwena, S Ngcobo, N Mbuyanzi, S Itumeleng Fifth row: J Mabaso, S Grobler, U Murangi, S Ndhlazi, S Ngobese, V Sosibo, L Valjee, M Mpofu, P Mashavhathanga, P Brummer Sixth row: T Mathabathe, N Maleka, R van der Colff, L Liebenberg, C Singo, G Botha, G Lindque, B van Wyk, J Roets, L Tingini Back: R Mahundla, S du Plessis, S Nene, A Hall, T du Toit, T Mathode, J Botha, T Mavimbela, J Singh, S Baloyi

Class of 2016 Front: E Preis, J Louw, S Uludag, WW de Graaf, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, J Maritz, Dr B Meyer, Prof J du Plessis, P Bredell, J Jacobs Second row: J Maphoto, D Baloyi, L Ngwenyama, M Hicks, J Scholtz, J Roets, B Okhuis, P Ramashau, G Lindeque, S Ndhlazi, A Kgatshe, I Venter, M Tsiane Third row: L Xongo, B Motau, M Mariba, P Magagane, K Mmotlana, N Khosa, J Silinda, S Mabuza, S Tshabalala, E Moloko, N Mahlangu, N Mphakoba, A Els Fourth row: T Phukubje, M Shabangu, T Motjopi, L Nkoana, M Tshuma, M Mokwele, D Mashabela, L Fakude, M Mukheli, V Mosebele, G Passeri, N Ndiweni Fifth row: C-S Murape, P Warambwa, K Chima, S Masupa, P Raikane, S Raseawelo, N Matete, T Phiri, M Tuku, T Titisi Sixth row: R Dinkelmann, K Ledwaba, I Kube, S van Dyk, N Sibisi, R Blunden, C Ngomane, T Mokoqama, T Mkhize, D de Ponte Back: P Olivier, T Nkosi, J Ahlers, B Mhlongo, G Gomes-Sebastiao, H Hinricks, S Sibiya, R Maboya, L Burger, K Philo PAGE 71

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Class of 2017 Front: WW de Graaf, M Hicks, J Maritz, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Dr B Meyer, S Uludag, E Preis, J Jacobs Second row: I Venter, W Magongwa, L Ngwenyama, Dr J Uys, J Hanekom, Z Beest van Andel, J Ahlers, R Elphus, K Philo, A Kgatshe, M Mukhelo, D Baloyi, J Sapsford Third row: B Rapoo, I Motsogi, N Ngcobo, M Loots, S Mokonyane, L Langa, M Tharage, M Ndlovu, M Letsie, T Mokoatleng, G Motloung, H Maseru Fourth row: T Motjopi, O Pasch, M Mankuru, A Jojo, L Lizwane, K Sibiya, L Mothwa, JP Labuschagne, T Mathabatha, V Ngobeni, S Mthembu, K Madzhasi, P Lee Back: S Mnisi, L Magwete, W Nobela, K Mogodiri, T Mitchell, D Erasmus, H Mans, C Mahanyele, N Maruping, R Raleie, F Habile

Class of 2018 Front: Dr J Uys, S Uludag, WW de Graaf, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof F Malan, Dr B Meyer, J Maritz, M Hicks Second row: J Sapsford, D Baloyi, M Mukheli, L Langa, A Kgatshe, K Philo, J Ahlers, J Jacobs, S Mokonyane, W Magongwa, Z Beest van Andel, I Venter Third row: S Phetheli, K Mokati, D Tlhagale, S de Jesus, T Mabunda, T Mojela, T Searle, A Mgwenya, B Mkalipi, S Dludlu, L Malematja Fourth row: E Moemedi, L Mokwana, M Ralefeta, Y Govender, B Jacobs, P Zulu, P Sehlelane, N Mhlongo, C Klopper, B Gininda Back: D Swanepoel, M Mahlangu, Y Nel, J Viljoen, J Meyer, F Nell, J Maritz, L de Wet, A Fourie DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

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Class of 2019 Front: S Uludag, WW de Graaf, Dr B Meyer, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof F Malan, J Maritz, M Hicks, I Venter Second row: J Maphoto, S Dludlu, A Kgatshe, S Rembold, M Mahlangu, H Maritz, T Oates, J Muller, K Philo, Z Beest van Andel, B Mkalipi, W Magongwa, J van der Walt Third row: A Ramuhovhi, P Mangwane, N Matshiane, T Ntlola, T Motsoene, N Mzontho, L Mthembu, T Tshailane, T Moiketoa, M Mphahlele, J Choma, T Nkosi, M Ntsekhe Fourth row: D Wessels, N Kodisang, R Ngwenya, T Magoro, K Sekwele, T Nkgabane, L Moruta, R Kobe, L-M Malan, E Ndebele, T Gwanzura Fifth row: P Maboya, C Moeng, J Ngunjiri, C Strydom, S Nyandeni, T Ramushu, D Ile, A Boyi, J Mokganya, M Mahlafunya, M Letsoalo Back: L Cronjé, R Pedrelli, U Mukwevho, B Zongondi, J Strauss, R Matshitela, R Els, M Mafafo, G Nkalanga, R Flattery, Q Anderson

Class of 2020 Front: Dr B Meyer, WW de Graaf, DE Gudmanz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof F Malan, J Maritz, Dr J Uys Second row: D Ile, M Hicks, T Oates, S Uludag, M Mahlangu, K Philo, A Kgatshe, S Rembold Third row: S Dludlu, W Magongwa, C Papo, I Swart, J Maphoto, B Mkalipi, D Wessels, J van der Walt Fourth row: S Buthelezi, K Maboshego, P van Zijl, B Molete, P Reddy, K Rubikesan, T Mthalane, M Magubane Back: T Msimanga, T Gebekhulu, G Mamabolo, K Mmushi, I Petlele, K Molaudzi, K Kotsane, E Nhachengo PAGE 73

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Class of 2021 Front: Dr J Uys, WW de Graaf, A Kgotshe, J Maritz, Prof RCW Webber-Youngman, Prof F Malan, Dr B Meyer, Dr S Uludag, L Ngwenyama Second row: I Swart, Z Beest van Andel, M Mahlanga, K Philo, R Els, T Oates, D Ile, P Reddy, J Maphoto, J van der Walt Third row: C Greyling, S Dludlu, C Papo, B Mkalipi, M Hicks, S Rembold, W Magongwa, D Wessels, S Buthelezi Fourth row: G Kesiloe, R Khutsoane, A Sibeko, E Machethe, E Ringdahl, M Mtsweni, L Sibiya, P Shilote Back: N Phetla, K Kubyana, J-P Strydom, KC Mohlala, DW Olivier, K Mogowe, K Lekala, D Kganyago

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FLAGSHIP INITIATIVES MINING INDUSTRY STUDY CENTRE At the start of the last decade, the Faculty’s School of Engineering embarked on a growth strategy to address the shortage of engineering skills in South Africa.

In the process, the Faculty’s engineering student numbers increased to the point where the facilities to accommodate them had to be expanded.

Among the developments made possible by the financial support of both the University of Pretoria and the Department of Higher Education and Training, was the construction of the Mining Industry Study Centre.

The study centre is a vital part of the School of Engineering’s strategy to increase the success of engineering students by providing facilities to support learning, especially groupwork.

Such a facility had become a necessity due to the complexity of the lecturing timetable and the changing demographic profile of students. This notion supports the Department of Mining Engineering’s mission to empower young engineers with the skills they require to thrive in industry, and to engage with students with compassion and an understanding of their ever-changing needs.

The financial support of Xstrata and the Anglo American Chairman’s Fund made the development of the study centre possible.

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KUMBA VIRTUAL REALITY CENTRE FOR MINE DESIGN With the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design, the training of mining engineers in South Africa entered a new era. The centre was the first of its kind in Africa to be hosted at a university, and only the second in the southern hemisphere.

It is based on the premise of providing safe training to students and mine staff on mine safety and other related issues in a simulated mining environment. The equipment is able to realistically simulate a range of mining functions, from accident reconstruction and risk analysis, to responding to potential hazards and testing evacuation procedures – all in a low-risk, highimpact learning environment.

The facility takes the Department’s students beyond the boundaries of traditional education into experiential training in a safe and forgiving virtual world. Undergraduate mining engineering students are able to integrate different conceptual and software modelling techniques, which incorporate geological models, mineral extraction methods, mine planning and design and mining systems in a virtual reality environment.

This also holds the benefit of virtually designing a complex mining operation from the ground up. The virtual operation can be analysed throughout its life cycle, and show the visual and environmental consequences of technical decisions. By improving the ability of mining engineers to take into account the long-term consequences of their financial and technical decisions in a virtual environment, there are significant economic, environmental and safety benefits to the industry and surrounding communities in the real world.

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The centre comprises three sections, each designed and developed with the aim of providing students with a realistic and immersive experience of the possibilities, limitations and challenges of mine disign; not only from a research perspective, but also in industry.

The first section of the centre comprises a computer-assisted lecture hall where students learn about mine design and apply their newly acquired skills to their own mine design projects.

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The second section comprises a wall-to-wall 3D theatre, where student mine designs and other teaching resources can be showcased so that students can learn through a visual process.

The final section of the centre provides an immersive experience, and comprises a theatre with 360⁰ floor-to-ceiling screens inside which the virtual reality simulator casts images against the dark surrounding panels with cinematic clarity and highly realistic sound effects.

Making vision visible

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The centre is an embodiment of collaborative efforts between various disciplines. Most significantly, it emphasises the power of Big Data collected and collated on a large scale to find ways of addressing real problems and inform learning and practice in various industries. Through initiatives such as this, the Department advocated for implementing the lessons learnt in other industries by integrating other fields of study into the centre’s virtual world.

As an expression of these institutional goals, the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology realises that contributions to the knowledge economy from these research efforts require an essential step towards the “human economy”, or a serious investment in improving human capital. The Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design is a platform designed to close the gap between study and industry by equipping students for the realities, challenges and dangers of mining; a testimony to the University’s efforts to ensure that it is not isolated from industry and that it is able to deliver graduates with relevant and implementable skills.

The Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design signifies a huge leap in innovative education and teaching in South Africa.

This is an essential characteristic of institutions that strive for relevance both in academia and in industry, which is a core strategic goal of the University.

The incorporation of virtual reality technology constitutes an essential supportive resource in the interactive immersive teaching model adopted by the Department of Mining Engineering.

Essentially, this hybrid teaching model brings to life the 3D structures and principles that students traditionally had to visualise from their 2D textbooks.

Although the virtual reality experience cannot replace the experience of the real situation gained by actual mine visits, students can see exactly where they will work and what they will do before even setting foot on a real mine.

The Department calls the students who participate in this teaching and learning platform “imagineers”, because they will become a new generation of engineers who will be able to imagine better solutions to real-world problems.

The centre has been operating since its launch in August 2015. Its strategic goals are as follows: • To be a leading virtual reality centre to the benefit of the mining industry • To strengthen the centre’s national and international profile through the establishment of sound sustainable business and other collaborative relationships • To explore and contribute significantly in terms of the drive towards interactive immersive technologies used in teaching and learning activities in the Department • To further explore the use and implementation of virtual realityand augmented reality-related technologies in the mining industry • To become financially independent in establishing the virtual reality centre as a sustainable virtual reality-related business unit in the Department The virtual reality centre strives to be an innovative resource for bringing realworld scenarios to learners to enhance their exposure to their chosen industry, and allowing technical and other practitioners to simulate plans and

Engineering subjects are highly technical, and it is often difficult for students to visualise the concepts without actually seeing them. Students can now design their mining projects on computers and see their design decisions in the 3D theatre where they can identify potential problems and see the effects of these problems in a simulated environment.

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designs in a risk-free environment with minimal time and resource allocation.

Operational benefits to be gained from interpreting and portraying actual data in the high-quality and realistic visual format offered by the virtual reality centre include the following: • Operational productivity and overall effectiveness can be achieved by playing out different scenarios before committing resources to a particular course of action.

• Engineers, planners and other stakeholders are better placed to make choices that take into account the long-term and socio-economic consequences of their financial and technical decisions by first considering these in a virtual environment.

• Incidents that may pose an operational risk can be minimised when one can simulate activities without actually exposing people or equipment to harm.

• Virtual reality allows multiple data sets to be converted into strategic business information. Once decisionmakers are exposed to an immersive experience that portrays their data visually, it becomes easier to make decisions and improvements on their project design and other activities that operationalise their strategies.

Most recently, the Department is engaging in collaborative projects with the Department of Information Science, in particular its Multimedia programme, to ensure that the centre and its software applications remain relevant as technological advancements become commercially available.

Celebrating the official opening of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design in August 2015 are (from left) Prof Sunil Maharaj, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology, Prof Cheryl de la Rey, erstwhile Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria, Norman Mbazima, erstwhile CEO of Kumba Iron Ore, and Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, Head of the Department of Mining Engineering.

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MINING RESILIENCE RESEARCH CENTRE Together with the establishment of the Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design, the Department of Mining Engineering also established the Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC) following thorough industry consultation.

The need to establish such a centre within the Department of Mining Engineering was identified prior to a number of very exciting and game changing events within the South African mining context, such as the Mining Phakisa and the establishment of the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) initiative. The centre will play an important role in these initiatives, while simultaneously addressing the need to develop the next generation of mining researchers.

The MRRC strives to link all the expertise related to mining research at the University, and to harness the skills of local and international associates. In this endeavour, it continuously strives to expand its multidisciplinary network by forming partnerships with leading local and international universities.

The focus of its multidisciplinary research activities is driven by an attempt to deliver an enhanced product or service that takes inputs from various disciplines, and not purely technical engineering solutions, into consideration. The centre develops technical solutions that assists the mining industry to bridge the gaps that mine modernisation and mechanisation bring. This takes into account the skills gap, as well as what the future mining engineer must be able to manage and engineer in the mine of the future.

The main aim of the MRRC is to provide modern approaches, world-class facilities and globally relevant topics, making it possible for researchers to excel and for the industry to build capacity. It has established several multidisciplinary collaborations, which have succeeded in addressing a number of issues of relevance to the mining industry. These include issues such as future mining education, future new PAGE 81

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technologies, the future socio-economic aspects of mining and future mining governance in Africa to meet the highest standards. Researchers in several faculties at the University are currently taking part in the activities of the MRRC. The vision of the MRRC is to establish itself as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems in the mining industry. Its mission is to increase the resilience of the mining industry by developing solutions that can be practically

implemented so as to enable the mining industry to transition from being reactive and compliant, to becoming resilient in issues relating to productivity, safety, health, environment, social responsibility and community management through well-structured and committed postgraduate education and rigorous, integrated, scientific research initiatives.

Prof Francois Malan was appointed as Director of the MRRC in January 2018, and he continues in this role.

COLLABORATIVE AND CROSS-CUTTING RESEARCH FOCUS AREAS Many collaborative and cross-cutting research capabilities have been created within the Department. This contributes to enhancing the Department’s profile as a leading, research-intensive department that pursues excellence in teaching, learning and research, and is recognised for the quality of the graduates it delivers. The Department has taken the strategic decision to place greater focus on the areas of outstanding research and build on these areas.

Collaboration and integration are the keys to solving complex problems.

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Mechanisation and automation The Department’s longstanding association with the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) initiative has given rise to several projects in the Mechanised Mining Systems (MMS) programme. This collaborative venture with the CSIR, the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Johannesburg is coordinated by the Mandela Mining Precinct (MMP). The Department’s involvement in this initiative received a boost in 2021 when the MMP announced that it had selected the University of Pretoria to host its new Research Centre for Mechanised Mining Systems. This will be managed as a multidisciplinary research initiative between the Department of Mining Engineering and the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering. Initiatives like this will stimulate the increase in research activities in the mining industry even further. The next-generation mining drive will be completely different to what it was before.

Rock engineering The Department’s Rock Engineering Research Group benefits from the expertise of two internationally acclaimed specialists in the field: Prof Francois Malan and Prof John Napier (an extraordinary professor in the Department). Prof Malan has a B2 rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF) and was promoted to a full professor in 2021. A key aspect of the research in this focus area is the development of new design criteria and layouts for hard rock mines to ensure their sustainability.

Improved formulae and methods for designing hard rock pillars are also being investigated. Close collaboration has been established with the mining industry, especially with Northam Platinum, Impala Platinum and Harmony Gold.

Rock-breaking and explosive engineering The activities of the AEL Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology has delivered outstanding research outputs in this field. Although the sponsorship of this research chair has come to an end, the Department looks forward to harnessing its research capabilities in topics in this field. An important study conducted in this research focus area was a study to develop a technique to measure the in-flight motion of flyrock so as to better understand the causative factors. This research study included developing a data acquisition methodology and conducting field investigations for the research, and the further development of a proposed measuring tool. This study is continuing as part of a doctoral research project.

Management and leadership Research in the field of management and leadership is conducted in the Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0. The research projects in leadership relevant to mining range from acceptance of technology by leaders to the safety and risk leadership that is required to navigate the impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on South African mining companies. Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, Chairholder and Head of the Department of Mining Engineering, and Dr Johann Uys, a senior researcher appointed in the Department‘s M&R Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0, are currently working in this area. The M&R Mining Engineering Leadership Academy supplements research in this focus area.

XR technology Extended reality technology is a new research focus in the Department, which gained momentum with the establishment of the Exxaro Chair in XR Technology. Although formally housed in the Department of Information Science, the interdisciplinary research in this field will benefit more than just the mining industry. It has three main focus areas: developing the proof-of-concept application of XR systems within the Exxaro Group, using Exxaro’s test sites to evaluate the effectivity of XR interventions, and establishing the viability of these interventions within the mining industry. The intended outcome is to improve productivity through the use of XR technology. It is also involved in educating and training the next generation of developers and researchers with real-world projects that are unique to XR technology.

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INDUSTRY-FUNDED RESEARCH CHAIRS In addition to enhancing the AEL brand within the University, the Chair allowed AEL to exploit the Department’s virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) expertise and facilities to further strengthen AEL’s market and technology leadership position.

These visual technologies can be applied advantageously in several areas, such as the training of AEL’s personnel and other stakeholders, and the 3D scanning of mining environments that would allow analysis and visualisation in an immersive, virtual setting.

It has focused on three projects in particular: Harmony Gold Chair for Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling Chairholder: Prof Francois Malan The Harmony Gold Chair for Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling was established in the Department in 2013 with support over three years to conduct research on a safer working environment in the hard-rock mining industry. Harmony Gold subsequently extended its initial sponsorship of the research chair by a further three years in 2016, and again in 2020.

The research conducted forms part of individual study programmes under the leadership of Prof Francois Malan and Prof John Napier, both renowned specialists in the field of rock engineering.

The Chair conducts research into techniques to simulate the rock mass behaviour in South African deeplevel gold mines. A key objective when designing layouts for deep gold mines is to minimise “excessive” stress concentrations. This is currently achieved by elastic numerical modelling of the layouts and using historic design criteria such as average pillar stress and energy release rate. These two criteria are imperfect as they do not consider the extensive stress-related fracturing of the rock mass that is ubiquitous in the deep gold mines.

Other forms of inelastic behaviour, such

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as total closure, cannot adequately be considered when using these criteria.

As many of the older mines exploit remnants, the question should be asked to what extent these criteria are valid in older mines and remnant areas, and if they are not, what alternative method should be used to estimate the stress distribution and associated hazard. A very important component of the planned work is the development of enhanced design criteria and appropriate numerical tools that can be used to assist with the layout design of these deep gold mines.

AEL Mining Services Chair in Innovative Rock-breaking Technology Chairholder: Prof William Spiteri The AEL Intelligent Blasting Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology was established in 2018 to position the University as a centre of excellence for emerging rock-breaking technologies.

It made use of the Department’s Virtual Reality Centre to focus on threedimensional blast simulation and the visualisation of new research.

Its purpose was to channel the support of AEL Intelligent Blasting into new technologies that would synergistically benefit AEL, as well as the Department of Mining Engineering’s research capabilities.

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• The development of a quantitative measuring technique to physically capture and study the in-flight motion of flyrock so as to improve on predictive models and better understand the causative factors • The application of VR technology to enhance the learning process of AEL’s personnel and related stakeholders. The assembly and operation of the Detnet electronic detonator system and components was selected as an initial pilot project. The game-based programmes would allow problem scenarios to be interactively solved and the trainees’ performance evaluated.

• The development of techniques to convert visual data (such as video footage obtained by a drone flying over an open-pit mine) into 3D VR and AR images. This work is being carried out by the Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering under the auspices of the Chair.

Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 Chairholder: Prof Ronny WebberYoungman The Murray & Roberts Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 was established in 2019 to facilitate research in leadership relevant to mining.

Department of Information Science and Jannie Maritz from the Department of Mining Engineering. While the allpervasive nature of XR technology and its applications in many sectors is evident, the resources of a JSE-listed company like Exxaro will enable the University to optimise the relevance of this technology for mining-related challenges.

The generous funding of Exxaro over a three-year period will contribute to making the University a leader in digital transformation on the African continent, and prepare its graduates for the future of work. Among other things, developers will be appointed to work on applications in virtual reality and augmented reality in Exxaro’s training facilities, and to improve production and technology selection.

The research conducted in this Chair is supplemented by the Murray & Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (M&R MELA), which forms part of the final-year students’ Mine Design curriculum. This expands on an initiative launched in 2016 to develop the non-technical (soft skills) of students, and assists graduates to adapt to the challenges of the world of work.

One of the key future challenges with regard to the 4IR or Industry 4.0 is requisite leadership for the mining industry. The Department recognises that current 20th-century leadership theory is largely redundant or inappropriate for the 21st century.

In view of this, several leadership initiatives and research projects are being conducted for the mining industry.

Exxaro Chair in XR Technology Chairholder: Prof Ina Fourie The Exxaro Chair in Extended Reality (XR) Technology was established in 2021, in collaboration with the Department of Information Science, with the aim of designing XR technologies that can enable intuitive interaction with virtual environments.

This Chair is the outcome of negotiations originating in the Department of Mining Engineering, as well as the vision and initiative of Head of Department, Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, together with Koos de Beer from the

It will also build capacity and expertise among developers, and create opportunities for students in Multimedia and Mining Engineering to work on industry-related projects. This investment in technological advancement will furthermore allow ongoing research to be undertaken to establish a safer, more economic and more environmentally sensitive form of mining.

Exxaro’s decision to invest in this technology was motivated by several factors within the context of digital transformation. The future needs innovative technology to cope with the challenges of the 4IR, and XR technology offers a strategic intervention to deal with these mining-related challenges.

To supplement current research, the research outcomes of the M&R MELA for students has expanded the finalyear students’ Mine Design curriculum to incorporate futuristic leadership aspects required by the 4IR. Research projects in leadership relevant to mining conducted in this research chair were the adoption of technology by leaders in terms of the safety and risk leadership required by these leaders to navigate the impact of the 4IR on South African mining companies, as well as the risk profiling of senior managers in the mining industry.

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DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING BLAST WALL

The implementation of safe and efficient blasting practices in an underground mining environment contributes to safer working conditions and increased productivity.

Training learners in a real production mining environment is often inefficient, with associated safety concerns. The University of Pretoria has therefore embraced digital technology to provide training in a “practical” environment through the use of virtual reality (VR).

The establishment of the VR blast training wall in the Department of Mining Engineering enables learners to plan and execute the blasting of a rock face in a controlled and safe environment. By means of VR and augmented reality, they are able to design the blast, mark the blast holes and blast hole timing sequence activities, and actually execute the blast and experience the “explosion” on an interactive screen.

This has the advantage over teaching in a traditional classroom environment, as the learners are able to visualise and fully comprehend the concepts being taught, while gaining practical experience in a user-friendly, safe and erasable environment, where mistakes can be made without any consequences.

The blast wall is projected on a screen, and the learners focus on the marking of grade lines, direction lines and grid lines on the virtual wall, using a

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computer mouse shaped like a paint brush (again portraying the real-life environment).

It is important for the learners to draw the grade and direction lines accurately, as this will determine the blast hole positions, and ultimately the direction of advance of the tunnel. At this point, they can either proceed to the next step, or delete the lines and start again. The intersection points of the horizontal and vertical grid lines represent the drill hole positions.

After marking the drill hole positions, detonator delay numbers are assigned to the drill hole positions.

Once the students are satisfied with the marking and timing of the round, they can watch the simulated blast sequence in real time or slow motion.

The hardware that forms part of this training exercise comprises a personal computer, overhead projector, stereo sound, infrared receivers and an infrared paint brush.

The VR blast training wall can also be used to train newly appointed mine workers to effectively master the skills of marking and timing blast rounds in a controlled and “real” environment, and is the perfect tool to give workers refresher training at regular intervals, thereby enhancing their skills and improving the quality of tasks to be performed underground for safe and efficient blast outcomes.

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ENGAGED AND CONNECTED TEACHING AND LEARNING PRACTICES Mining Engineering Leadership Academy While engineers are generally rational and logical thinkers, immersed in the “hard” data of technology, who would rather not get involved with the intangible issues of human behaviour, they will inevitably end up spending nearly two-thirds of their time interacting with people.

This may be in the form of collaborating with other professionals, performing a project as a member of a team of engineers, managing staff or meeting with suppliers and service providers. It is therefore essential that they develop the soft skills required to deal with attitudes, perceptions, group norms and interpersonal conflict when they leave university and start working in industry.

The ability to interact well with people is what distinguishes a highly effective engineer from a mundane one.

on determining the personality traits of dominance, influence, steadiness and conscientiousness) and the Myers-Briggs personality profiles. In conjunction with academic performance, commodity and biographic profiles, teams should be as diverse as possible.

MELA usually concludes in July with a Leadership Week in which students are introduced to the 4.0DTM Leadership Model for Industry 4.0, developed

by Dr Johann Uys. In the context of teamwork in the Mine Design course, MELA focuses on working in teams, emotional intelligence and conflict management. At the end of the week, the teams embark on an outwardbound experiential and action learning team-building day to tackle challenges similar to those they may experience in the world of work first-hand.

The Department’s Murray & Roberts (M&R) Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (MELA) is a critical part of exposing final-year Mining Engineering students to the workplace leadership challenges and opportunities they will encounter once they enter the industry. The programme’s aim is to create awareness and skill students in leadership. In this way, students are not only guided to discover their own leadership potential, but also to unleash and cultivate their individual leadership qualities.

All final-year Mining Engineering students attend the MELA programme at the start of each year. The programme then extends to the second half of the year, when students are typically divided into teams of four students each for their Mine Design course. The MELA programme is structured to better prepare students for their careers in the mining industry by creating an awareness of the stewardship of being a Tukkie and a future mining engineering leader. Under normal circumstances, the teams are selected based on psychometric assessments obtained from the DiSC profile (based

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The final phase of the leadership programme incorporates contemporary topics relevant to mine design with specific reference to mine closure design, as well as community awareness and responsibility.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the MELA programme continued, primarily through online sessions.

The group assignment presentations that emanated from the leadership week were the first socially distanced contact sessions with the examination panel of four, together with the four design students that made up each team.

With the relaxation of the lockdown restrictions at the beginning of 2021, the programme could continue on campus with contact sessions under strict rules.

Industry visits The Department is greatly indebted to its industry partners for providing its students with the opportunity to gain practical experience at mining operations throughout the country. As part of the students’ curriculum, they are required to gain practical experience by completing 12 weeks of vacation work at a mine during their third and fourth years of study. During their time at the mine, students are required to investigate a problem experienced by the mine and come up with a solution. Upon conclusion of their projects, they are given the opportunity to present their findings to the mine’s senior management. This research ultimately forms part of their final-year research report.

English literacy drive The Department is committed to providing education in a manner that addresses the real obstacles facing South African students in an ever-globalising world. A key factor to address this is the Department’s English Literacy programme. The majority of the Department’s student cohort are not English first language speakers, and the fact that English is the language in which they have to study can become a hurdle to adequately understanding and communicating their understanding of complex concepts. Comprehension has been identified as a key element that needs to be addressed, and the English support programmes that are being put in place address this need. The Department’s dedicated English support staff provide students with individualised solutions for their language skills improvement.

Student wellbeing An important focus of the Department is the wellbeing of its students. Due to its comparatively small lecturer-to-student ratio, the Department is able to interact personally with all its students. Its interaction with its students takes place according to a value-driven framework, in which the principle of heartfelt leadership features prominently. Furthermore, its Student Wellbeing Committee offers emotional and other support to students, especially those in need. In the extraordinary circumstances brought about by the nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several challenges had to be overcome. These included providing students with data, access to laptops and the narrated recording of lectures. Under normal circumstances, students are assisted in other ways as well, including the provision of prescription glasses, daily meals, accommodation and registration fees.

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FUTURE FOCUS IS MINING ENGINEERING STILL AN OPTION FOR ASPIRING STUDENTS? A report by Swan Global Investments on addressing the mining skills gap states that, for the next 25 years, there will be a high demand for metals in the world to meet the requirements pertaining to the 4IR. The report amplifies the pressing skills shortage that needs to be addressed as students’ interest in mining declines, and the industry becomes increasingly characterised by an ageing workforce that needs to be replenished. It furthermore highlights five key areas driving the lack of interest in mining: a lack of information pertaining to mining, climate change, resistance to coal-fired power stations (which are detrimental to a healthy lifestyle), uncertainty in job opportunities due to the cyclical nature of mining, and politics.

The Department’s Prof Francois Malan believes that, because commodity cycles are part of mining, the next super cycle is probably not far away.

Here, capital will flow into the mining industry on a much larger scale than ever before. This will result in a severe skills shortage, and the mining industry will lure good students with attractive benefits. Mining engineers will require skills that have previously been thought to reside in the domain of computer engineering and computer science.

The adoption of new technologies should make the industry even more attractive to a new generation of tech-savvy students who are born into a technologically advanced world.

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engineering disciplines, but with a foundation in mining engineering.

In addition to conventional mining engineering skills, it will also be an option for individuals who are keen to develop leadership skills in order to get the most out of people.

In addition, the increased focus on smart technology related to the 4IR will ensure that the career prospects for mining engineers will be even more diverse and exciting. Graduates who are trained in the skills required for the modern workforce are creative, innovative thinkers, and are prepared to deal with the complexities that the mining industry presents.

Mining is no longer merely a maledominated domain. The fact that mining operations can be controlled from afar in a digital age, minimising workers’ exposure to harsh conditions, offers a much wider scope of opportunities for young women who are in possession of critical and creative thinking skills, and are challenged to solve complex problems.

Postgraduate students in the Department are very positive about the viability of mining engineering as a career option. It has been said that there has never been a perfect mine, and until there is, there will always be problems to solve and the chance to add value. Although the saturation of conventional miners in the industry is a possibility, the demand for imaginative individuals has never been higher.

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While mineral resources are still among the country’s primary sources of raw material and make a big contribution to the country’s GDP, mining will remain a viable career option. Added to this is the expected demand for new minerals such as rare earth elements that are used for cutting-edge technological applications, and the prospect of asteroid mining and deep-marine mining. According to Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, this will open up new avenues for mining as a career with the potential to continue for many years to come.

With the rapid growth of the global population, emerging markets are industrialising with the aid of the 4IR. This growth is coupled with a high demand for raw minerals to sustain not only economic growth, but also the drive towards decarbonising our energy systems. Mining will be the key player in the development of more sustainable societies and more environmentally conscious systems.

As long as there is a demand for more effective materials and methodologies, mining engineers who enter the industry will need to find innovative ways to deal with outdated and obsolete techniques, mines that do not take the social needs of the surrounding communities into account, and unsustainable methods with negative environmental impacts. These inherited problems require new ways of thinking to find innovative solutions, such as those nurtured in students graduating from the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria.

What makes a UP Mining Engineering graduate unique?

The Department of Mining Engineering works tirelessly to ensure that its academic programmes remain on par with international standards in mining engineering education. As a result, it has contributed to the University of Pretoria being rated as one of the top 50 universities worldwide in the field of minerals and mining engineering according to the QS World University Subject Rankings of 2021.

It boasts a range of unique teaching and learning initiatives, which are aimed at enhancing the Department’s throughput and success rate, thereby ensuring that it delivers well-rounded, technically sound mining engineers to industry.

According to Prof Webber-Youngman, engineers are – by nature – problem solvers. In its education of the engineers of the future, the Department encourages its students to think beyond merely the solution to the problem. In today’s world, one

can no longer think in silos if one is to come up with a viable and sustainable solution.

The problems faced by engineers in the mining industry often relate to situations that have never presented themselves before. Even though it is one of the oldest known industries, it is ever changing, with ever-increasing risks that threaten to close down operations and impact on the country’s GDP. Taking account of the skills that have been identified as essential in the 4IR, the Department focuses on developing analytical thinking, innovation and complex problem solving in its students.

The Department’s Jannie Maritz states that, with advancements in technology, the Department of Mining Engineering is also focusing on teaching its students to apply cross-disciplinary thinking to incorporate solutions from other walks of life that can mitigate risk and increase profitability.

His colleague, Wolter de Graaf, adds that the Department is teaching its students to think out of the box in a manner that supports digital innovation and the 4IR. It has moved away from rote learning, and encourages its students to be creative thinkers who can apply innovation and complex problemsolving to today’s challenges.

Prof Francois Malan describes the Department’s graduates as engineers who embody a fantastic mix of skills and experience, ranging from complex mathematical techniques, and business and leadership skills to exposure to practical mining operations.

The Department of Mining Engineering produces well-rounded graduates who are prepared for the complex environments in which they will operate in the mining industry. Good leaders need to have a strong grounding in values, which is instilled in students during their training at the University of Pretoria.

Developing a new skill set for future mining engineers The 4IR is bringing about a revival of the mining industry. However, the introduction of the numerous technological advances associated with next-generation mining also requires the new workforce to have a new skill set.

In recognition of this, the Department of Mining Engineering is equipping its future mining engineers with the skills they need to succeed in the future.

Integral aspects of the 4IR, such as automation, virtual and extended reality, robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT), will require mining engineers to be more technology-minded and have a different mindset. According to Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, in addition to the technical skills required to work as a mining engineer, it is important for students to also be exposed to the non-technical or soft skills associated with the 4IR during their undergraduate studies. Leadership skills, in particular, improve the employability of the Department’s students.

In 2016, the World Economic Forum (WEF) published an article that revealed

the ten critical skills that are required for the 4IR. In 2020, the WEF updated this skills list in its Future of Jobs report, and identified the following skills as being critical for the modern workforce: 1.

2.

Analytical thinking and innovation Active learning and learning strategies 3. Complex problem-solving 4. Critical thinking and analysis 5. Creativity, originality and initiative 6. Leadership and social influence 7. Technology use, monitoring and control 8. Technology design and programming 9. Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility 10. Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation These critical skills find resonance in the emphasis on leadership development in the Department’s curriculum, particularly its promotion of creative and innovative thinking so that graduates are prepared to deal with the expected complexities in the mining industry once they enter the job market.

Developing these skills in its students forms part of the M&R Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (MELA). The management and leadership activities in which students are involved in this programme incorporate aspects such as team building, conflict management and social awareness around mines. These are necessary skills to prepare students for the workplace.

According to Prof Webber-Youngman, in any mining set-up, effective verbal communication skills are essential; not only from an operational point of view, but also to ensure a safe, healthy and productive work environment. However, given the fact that the preferred method of communication of the generation known as Gen Z is non-verbal, through texts and email, they need to be taught the appropriate skills to survive in a mining environment. They have to realise that the smartphone is not a conflict management tool: they need to be able to deal with conflict face to face. For that they need to have achieved a high level of emotional intelligence, which is the focus of the M&R MELA programme.

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WHERE ARE WE TODAY? The Department of Mining Engineering has made a significant contribution to the mining industry by providing it with world-class mining engineering leaders. Its alumni have taken up leading positions in business and industry. The Department has established a sound foundation for the future development of its teaching, research and community service initiatives. It is actively involved in the community, and its staff members participate in the activities of professional societies, as well as in expert consultation and other activities in the Faculty.

VISION To be a leading, research-intensive department, recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally; thereby, establishing the Department as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems facing the mining industry and making vision visible through innovative interactive immersive technology applications for teaching, learning and research.

MISSION To educate and lead mining engineering students to become imagineers by empowering them with technical and non-technical skills through the use of world-class education, research, leadership and related technology interventions.

VALUES

FUNDING STRATEGY

• Respect • Care • Honesty • Integrity • Trust

The presentation of short courses in conjunction with Enterprises UP forms an important part of the Department’s funding strategy as it relates to its third-stream income activities. These courses would not have been possible without the support of industry.

They furthermore enable the Department to supplement its Development Fund. Income derived from research chairs and short courses forms the bulk of the Department’s thirdstream income, which enables its appointment of full-time postgraduate research students.

The Department also graciously acknowledges the financial support of its industry partners.

ACADEMIC OFFERING • BEng Mining Engineering • Honours, master’s and doctoral degree programmes in Mining Engineering and Applied Science Mining

STRATEGIC INTENT The Department’s overarching goal is to enable the mining industry to transition from being reactive and compliant to becoming resilient through well-structured and committed postgraduate education and research. Its strategic intent is to have 45 students registered for an honours degree, 15 students registered for a master’s degree and 10 students registered for a PhD (70 postgraduate students in total) by 2025. This will represent 33% of the total Mining Engineering student body (the target for undergraduate students is set at 120 students).

Achieving the expected postgraduate number of 70 students will only be possible through strategic alliances with staff members of international universities to act as additional supervisors, as well as industry involvement and collaboration strategies with other South African universities to further emphasise the importance of postgraduate research as part of the strategy of making mining safer, healthier, productive and more profitable.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT NUMBERS

POSTGRADUATE STUDENT NUMBERS

ENROLMENT TRENDS SINCE 2017 IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE TARGET FOR 2025

STRATEGIC GOALS 219

• To be a leading research-intensive department • To pursue excellence in teaching and learning • To be recognised continuously for the quality of graduates delivered • To strengthen the Department’s national and international profile through the establishment of sound sustainable business and other relationships • To become financially independent in terms of the growth strategy of the Department PAGE 91

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184 172 137

120

123

70 51

57

57

2020

2021

46 35

2017

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2019

2025

INTERNAL CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT Staff members in the Department are actively advancing their academic careers. The Department has succeeded in increasing its overall research output with the appointment of several contract researchers, as well as with the appointment of assistant lecturers who are engaged in postgraduate study. These postgraduate students form an important part of the Department’s succession planning.

In addition to its full-time academic capacity, the Department enjoys the service of extraordinary professors to further enhance its academic and research-related activities. They contribute to forming the building blocks to establish an academic team that can enhance the Department’s research output through their supervision of master’s and PhD students.

The Department also makes use of industry experts, appointed on a part-time basis, to conduct cuttingedge research in the areas it has identified as its strategic strengths.

This approach is paying dividends, and the Department intends to increase capacity in its research focus areas.

A continuing initiative of the Department is the focus on improving the impact factor (H-index score) of its full-time lecturers to enable them to apply for ratings from the National Research Foundation (NRF). Historically, the Department has not been known to deliver a high number of research outputs annually due to its small academic staff complement. However, all the Department’s academics are registered with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) as professional engineers. Since 2014, there has been a steady increase in the Department’s research output in the form of journal articles and conference publications.

In terms of the requirements for the graduation of BEng (Hons) Mining Engineering and BSc Applied Science Mining (Honours) students, all registered

Staff members during the diamond jubilee year of celebrations (2021)

students must submit an article for publication with their respective academic supervisors as part of the assessment process. If the article is of an appropriate standard, the supervisor and student may agree to submit the article for publication. All master’s and PhD candidates also need to provide evidence of experience in research methodology.

As such, all potential master’s degree candidates are registered “master’s in progress” as a prerequisite for the successful completion of the Research Methodology module.

The Department of Mining Engineering has always aimed to produce highquality graduates that are equipped with the knowledge, perseverance and adaptability required for the everchanging South African mining industry.

Considering the technological advances and initiatives within the global mining industry over the past decades, as well as the mindshift towards the oftenneglected leadership skills required by engineers in management roles, the Department has realigned its longterm strategy to take account of the changing face of the industry. In the process, it has realised that the mining industry needs flexible, high-quality and competent researchers to drive and implement technological changes.

The initiative of the Department to shift the focus from enrolling more undergraduate students to increasing its postgraduate student numbers has been pursued by the Head of Department since 2010, with the full support of the Department’s academic staff, as well as the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology as a whole.

Over the past ten years, the Department has seen a steady increase in postgraduate enrolments, while maintaining an acceptable number of undergraduate students in the programme to feed into the postgraduate programme. The Department places great emphasis on a postgraduate qualification to ensure the sustainability of the industry.

This is because the generation of new knowledge, which is vital for a sustainable mining environment, can only occur though quality research and the subsequent inclusion of that new knowledge in the Department’s undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, as well as its short courses for industry. Bringing together fundamental research and practical implementation in postgraduate research facilitates the complex problem-solving skills that are needed to drive change in future mining operations.

Postgraduate students in the Department also have a clear view of the value of a postgraduate qualification from the University of Pretoria. Postgraduate studies provide the opportunity for students to explore specialised fields such as rock engineering and ventilation, which are essential and scarce skills in the South African mining industry.

Driven by innovation, researchers contribute to solving mining’s toughest challenges and thereby push the industry forward into a new era of depth and productivity.

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WOMEN IN MINING Compared to the situation in 1997, when there were no female students enrolled in the Department of Mining Engineering (and legal regulations prohibited women from working underground), the increase in the Department’s student enrolment to the point where female students make up more than 40% of the student body is a clear indication that the age of excluding women from mining engineering is long past.

As noted by Divine Ile, one of the Department’s female postgraduate students, mining is becoming more inclusive since it has become evident

that women can perform the same tasks as men. Progress on this front is escalated by the introduction of automation, autonomous vehicles and 3D mine designs in modern mines.

Nozipho Dlamini, Technical Services Manager at Thugela Resources and alumna of the Department, believes that digitalisation and automation will provide more flexibility, which will attract even more women to mining.

Prof Francois Malan, the Department’s Research Lead, states that women are doing exceedingly well in the mining industry, and are adding significant value to the industry in general.

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Numerous studies have shown that the influence of women in top management positions greatly increases the profitability and efficiency of an operation. They bring a different perspective to the table, which not only assists in effectively optimising operations, but creates a sense of community that imparts more care towards the people involved. Incorporating women in the mining industry will reduce gender inequality and lead to a positive economic and inclusive social development outcome.

Incorporating women in the mining industry will reduce gender inequality and lead to a positive economic and inclusive social development outcome.

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A REIMAGINED FUTURE THROUGH EXCELLENCE IN MINING ENGINEERING EDUCATION As the University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering celebrates its diamond anniversary in 2021, it stands on the threshold of a reimagined mining industry. The future of the mining industry is characterised by significant technological shifts brought about by a 4IR-enabled approach to the modernisation of the sector.

Mining conditions are also becoming all the more challenging, making conventional methods increasingly less viable. Incorporating digital solutions and determining new ways of safely extracting minerals underground, new ways of supporting the rock and new methods to ventilate much deeper can reduce mineworkers’ exposure to risk and increase mines’ profitability.

Research findings reported in Mining Weekly6 reveal that South Africa’s mining industry is increasingly making use of cutting-edge technologies to run more efficient operations, manage risk, improve health and safety, and reduce the cost of maintenance and extraction, while pursuing the upliftment of skills.

It is against this background that the Department of Mining Engineering needs to focus on preparing the next generation of mining engineers for a reimagined future; one that will concentrate on the skills required for the 4IR, in which digital innovation is at the forefront. As such, the Department is already highlighting the importance of automation and mechanised mining systems, as well as the application of virtual reality and augmented reality in its research and education initiatives to give a new dimension to the education and training of the future mining engineer.

Roger Baxter, CEO of the Minerals Council South Africa, notes that, over the last decade, mining cost inflation was 2–3% higher per annum than general inflation, while mining output declined by 10% and minerals sales contracted by 11%. To be globally competitive, not only in terms of costs, but also in terms of environmental, social and governance issues, the South African mining industry needs to embrace the 4IR. This will also make it more attractive to the best talent and, ultimately, enable mining to contribute even more as the economy and society are reimagined.

Like many other mining schools around the world, the Department has gone through an extensive redesign of its Mine Design curriculum over the last few years. This process was aimed at aligning its activities with the challenges that will be faced in the next generation of mining, and fuelled contemplations on the future of mining, specifically what the mining engineering profession will look like in years to come.

The future mining engineer At this point in time, it is envisaged that conventional mines will reach the end of their productive lifetimes in the medium term unless new technologies are applied. This, coupled with the environmental impact of coal-fired electricity generation and the health and safety aspects related to underground mining, will make the digital transformation of the mining industry paramount.

Mines are going deeper to access their resources, thus increasing risk to the health and safety of mineworkers.

The University’s new Mine Design curriculum includes exposure to aspects such as leadership, the social context of business, rectifying the imbalances of the past, international economic systems, and striving to create a more equal, yet productive society.

The most important aspects that have been incorporated into the new Mine Design curriculum are improved employee safety, increased productivity, lower energy consumption and reduced environmental impact.

None of this would be possible

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without the adoption of appropriate disruptive technologies.

While not many new mines are being commissioned in South Africa, improving the productivity of existing mines is becoming increasingly important. By adopting new technology interventions and mining methods, as well as focusing on the health and safety of our workforce, mine management is realising that it is no longer a question of whether one should embrace technology, but when one should do so.

The challenges pertaining to the next generation of mining need to be dealt with in a very different way than has been done in the past. The Department’s M&R Mining Engineering Leadership Academy plays an important role in this regard as – in addition to the technical skills that the Department imparts – it provides students with non-technical skills that promote creative and innovative thinking to solve industry problems.

Through this programme, the Department is grooming its students for the future of work.

The Department of Mining Engineering describes the future mining engineer as an “imagineer”, and its approach to educating its students is crafted to support this vision. Graduate imagineers must be able to develop and implement highly imaginative concepts in the South African mining industry.

According to Prof Francois Malan, the Department’s Function Head: Research, South Africa’s miningrelated problems are technically challenging and unique. The country therefore needs a corps of mining engineers who can constantly innovate and devise new technologies to overcome problems.

As one of the Department’s future mining engineers, postgraduate student Ruan Els believes that the Department is developing a mindset

of reimagining how things can be done by breaking the mould and thinking differently, boldly and innovatively. “This not only allows for more efficient mining and increased economic contributions, but also creates a platform for innovation in mining on a global scale.”

Imagineers cannot be restricted by the conventions of the past and the confines of present-day industry. They need to be brave when their ideas are challenged, and skilled enough to defend them.

Future mining engineer and postgraduate student, Thomas Oates, notes that one must dare to dream of robots in an underground stope and lasers that cut rock.

Bheki Mkalipi, another postgraduate student, sees the mining engineer of the future as someone who can embrace change and innovation as their core principles, both in practice and in their world view, to help solve problems. This paves the way for proactively shaping the future of engineering. Imagineers must produce end-to-end solutions that depend on the seamless interaction of humans, machines and technology in mining.

Head of Department, Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, supported by Dr Johann Uys, a senior researcher in the M&R Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0, believe that the success of any company in the future will depend on the ability of its managers to relate to the needs of their subordinates in a much greater way. Leadership – and specifically the quality of leaders – will play a significant role in shaping the future of mining globally, specifically taking into account the challenges associated with the 4IR and beyond.

Today’s mining engineers are caught between conventional mining and new technology, with pressure from labour markets, environmentalists and investors. Their main function is to ensure value creation for the mine’s stakeholders, safe and cost-effective mineral extraction and the mitigation of environmental impacts. The mining engineer of the future will be increasingly versatile and well equipped with soft skills, will follow a leadershipdriven approach and have a dynamic mindset. These characteristics will all be aligned with new technologies to reshape the industry.

With alternative approaches using technology, the mining engineer of the future will be a vital driver in building the foundation of growing global economies.

Mining is an essential element of a future world that focuses on energy efficiency and rapid technological enhancement, making it the backbone of a better society. It is the foundation of civilization, and that role will not change in the future. However, how the world perceives mining and how mining perceives the world will largely dictate what the future holds.

Labour-intensive operations, technical planning and the execution of mining practices will be replaced by mechanisation, automation and digitalisation. Changes in the workplace, the workforce and the nature of work have already increased the complexity of mining operations.

These multifactorial changes require new solutions and effective interfaces that focus on human-machine interactions and collaborative workplaces through technology, data analytics, integrated support services and socio-technical applications.

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Undertaking research with real-life implications South Africans are working towards a future where all citizens are equal and prosperous. The vast mineral wealth of the country is a vehicle for financial and societal liberation. Mining companies are therefore responsible for huge networks of economic activities.

the longevity of the mine. In addition to being focused on the social impacts of mining, research is conducted into the future of mining, the role of technology and methods to improve operations to make them more efficient and safer, ultimately building healthier, more resilient communities.

With improved technology and mining methods, these networks can be expanded to eradicate poverty, unemployment and inequality.

Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman believes that research related to eradicating these three societal ills will not only benefit the mining industry, but society at large. A cornerstone to this is the training of excellent mining engineers. As the mining industry is such a large employer of human resources, it has a responsibility towards its communities in terms of both the social licence to operate and ensuring that the environment surrounding mines is both healthy and safe.

According to Prof Francois Malan, the closure of older mines with only a few new mines being commissioned has a large impact on the sustainability of the industry. The subsequent loss of employment is devastating to communities. South Africa is unique in the sense that many of its ore bodies are tabular and much innovation and research is required to mine them.

Many older mines have significant resources left in their stabilising pillars, and an important research area is determining how these

By valuing not only the investing stakeholder, but also the people involved in mining, a reimagined mining industry, supported by relevant research, can enable a better workforce and create a more sustainable industry and a healthier community. The mining landscape is constantly changing with a larger demand for social and environmental considerations. These are core elements of the Department’s research interventions.

An outcome of growing the mining industry through relevant and resilient research is an increase in the country’s GDP, with an accompanying reduction in the unemployment rate and the establishment of associated industries.

The Department therefore has a responsibility to produce more socially minded young mining engineers who can promote this change.

Research that is focused on improving the sustainability of the industry by improving productivity and the optimisation of mines will also benefit the communities that are reliant on

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resources can be mined safely and profitably to prolong the life of many of these mines.

While the Department’s research into rock engineering is exploring the future of smaller and more effective pillars in the hard rock environment, research into flyrock and stemming are improving the science and practice of blasting into a new era of safety and performance. Research into leadership and technology are also redefining how leadership and technology are being used in large mining houses.

Other future prospects for mining include breaking the enigma of rock stresses and expensive cooling for deeper mines, ocean mining (underwater mining), automation and the modernisation of mining, and mechanised rock-breaking.

Technology implementation at South African mines The role of technology is undeniable when contemplating a more efficient and effective mining industry. With the proliferation of low-cost sensors and progressively cheaper computer processing power, data can be gathered easily and cheaply from virtually any piece of equipment.

This, coupled with recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), is already making autonomous operations an emerging reality. Large pieces of equipment, and even entire facilities, can either run themselves or be controlled remotely.

was designed based on the best technology of 40 years ago.

According to Prof Ronny WebberYoungman, the implementation of technology on South African mines is no longer a “nice to have”, but a “have to have”. Without new digital technologies, many operations will become unfeasible, leading to major value lost. However, the application of new methodologies based on the disruptive technologies of the 4IR generates a high level of risk, which, in turn, generates uncertainty. The subsequent fear of job losses may cloud any reasonable judgement towards the benefits derived from using this new technology.

These fears are often misplaced as there are vast opportunities to be discovered, which will lead to a shift in the skills needed as new jobs are created to replace those that will cease to exist due to the introduction of new technologies.

By revolutionising the way in which we learn and conceptualise information, digital innovations could be the key to unlocking higher economic value and a more sustainable future.

Danél Wessels, one of the Department’s postgraduate students, believes that the implementation of new technologies allows for better understanding and for creating smarter ideas on how to be innovative and improve the mining industry to be more sustainable. Implementing this technology for learning will provide students with the opportunity to visualise the mining environment in the classroom and understand mining concepts much better, making it easier to apply them in the workplace.

In the view of Prof Francois Malan, resistance to change, in many cases, is due to the original capital investment in the mine being too small and the remaining life of many mines being too short to warrant a huge investment in expensive new technology. Many of the old-school mining personnel did not grow up with technology and have a natural tendency to resist it. It is also difficult to change a mining operation that

To move forward and compete in a global market, mines need to be

smarter and integrate people and technology in such a way that both parties will benefit. This is where the 4IR will have a major impact on the future of mining education.

The impact of the 4IR and the subsequent Fifth Industrial Revolution According to Dr Bertie Meyer, a senior lecturer in the Department, without new technology, the mining industry will collapse. A new solution must be found. The 4IR (and the subsequent Fifth Industrial Revolution) will improve the interaction between operator and machine. Mining engineering education plays an important role in this regard to prepare students to adapt more easily to the rapid changes of the future.

Prof Webber-Youngman explains that, until now, the focus has primarily been on the challenges and the future of industries in the context of the 4IR, which examines the interactions between human beings and machines to facilitate solutions that require collaboration between the two. However, subsequent revolutions will follow. The Department is thus already preparing its students for the future, and is anticipating what is starting to be known as the Fifth Industrial Revolution. This forms part of the Department’s forward-thinking approach.

By looking at what futurists are saying about the Fifth Industrial Revolution, the Department is equipping its students with a whole new set of skills that will enable them to cope with the future Fifth Industrial Revolution. In many ways, this should complement the skills identified to thrive in the 4IR, drawing on the 4IR to enhance humanity. Innovations will be a coordinated process of human beings interconnecting with machines through AI to enable new levels of creativity and progress. This will have a direct impact on mining education as mining practices will be effectively conducted by competent people, linked with enabling technologies to change how work is done, including data-driven monitoring and modelling, and improvements in connectivity, resource management and continuity of work, where resources are flexible, and are managed by humans at the centre.

The many challenges associated with Mining 4.0 (next-generation mining) form an integral part of the Department’s teaching and learning strategy. Its reimagined curricula also resonate the critical skills that are required for the 4IR, as identified by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in its 2020 “Future of Jobs” report. The emphasis is on developing graduates who are able to deal with the expected complexities in the mining industry when they enter the job market through their creative and innovative thinking abilities.

The Department’s application of disruptive technologies in teaching and learning include initiatives related to its interactive immersive technology (IIT) drive, which makes use of the Department’s state-of-the-art Kumba Virtual Reality Centre for Mine Design. This infrastructure enables students and researchers to realistically simulate a range of mining functions in a low-risk, high-impact learning environment.

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OUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE The Department of Mining Engineering’s vision for 2020–2023 With the reappointment of Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman as Head of Department until 2023, he is committed to continuing the important role that the Department plays both locally and internationally, and enhancing its reputation and visibility.

His creative and innovative approach to leading the Department since 2007 is encapsulated in what he terms an “inside-out approach”, which responds to three pertinent questions: Why, How and What? This approach follows the thinking of leadership authority, Simon Sinek.

WHY? The first question considers the reason for the Department’s existence (the Why). This is captured in the vision of the Department: “To be a leading, research-intensive department, recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally; thereby, establishing the Department as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems facing the mining industry and making vision visible through innovative interactive immersive technology applications for teaching, learning and research.”

• Implementing a Mining Engineering marketing and communication drive • Identifying and exploring opportunities • Pursuing excellence in teaching and learning, for example through the interactive immersive technology drive • Continuing the activities of the Murray and Roberts Mining Engineering Leadership Academy (M&R MELA) • Engaging in international collaboration and the related increase in postgraduate student numbers, as well as the publication of research in high-impact journals • Implementing an employee demographics and succession plan • Continuing with the implementation of the English Literacy support initiative • Engaging in multidisciplinary research collaboration through the Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC) and its partnerships with the South African Mining, Extraction, Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) initiative, as well as the Mandela Mining Precinct • Developing leaders in academic, teaching and learning, and research to become “imagineers” • Establishing research chairs as a third-stream of income • Encouraging all staff to be in possession of a doctoral qualification

• Partnering with recognised world leaders in identified mining topics

WHAT? Following on how the Department will go about attaining its vision, the following outcomes are envisaged (the What): • Improved QS ranking and related international recognition • Improved academic reputation • Improved citations per published journal article • Improved H-index citations for the Department’s lecturers • The MRRC established as an innovative research centre for mining • The M&R MELA functioning as a key game changer • Improved employer reputation • Well-rounded graduates with great non-technical and literacy skills as well • Sustainable succession implementation Underlying the implementation and outcomes of the Department’s vision is the all-encompassing #UPMiningMatters drive to increase the visibility of mining-related research being done at the University of Pretoria as a whole.

HOW? With this as a point of departure, it is possible to interrogate how the Department will go about achieving this overarching aim. Over the past decade and a half, under Prof Webber-Youngman’s watch, the Department has established the following initiatives to support the attainment of its vision (the How): • Addressing the components that drive the value chain of international rankings, such as the QS World University Subject rankings PAGE 99

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VISION

INSIDE-OUT APPROACH

VISION: We aim to be a leading, researchintensive department, recognised internationally for its quality, relevance and impact, and for developing people, creating knowledge and making a difference locally and globally; thereby, establishing the Department as a leading international contributor to solutions for complex problems facing the mining industry and making vision visible through innovative interactive immersive technology applications for teaching, learning and research.

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MESSAGES OF CONGRATULATIONS

CELEBRATING 60 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE IN MINING ENGINEERING EDUCATION Mxolisi Mgojo, CEO of Exxaro “I have been really amazed by the transformation that I have seen in the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria. The thinking and foresight for the future, and embracing that future, and creating a Department that is relevant for mining of the future is outstanding. That is one of the reasons that I am so excited to be associated with this Department. We have spent time with the Board, where we have gone and seen what the Engineering Faculty is doing, and we say this is an institution we really want to partner with, because they are ever shaping and responding to the future. I want to congratulate this Department on the transformation it has embarked on over the years, where one can truly say that, from a student perspective, the Department truly represents what South Africa truly looks like: where opportunities are given to all. I am astounded to see the number of graduates of all races that are coming out of this Department. I really commend the Department for that spirit, because if we can unlock the total talent of this country, we can create an amazing country; when all its people can be the best that they can be, we can really create something great for the future of this country.

“Keep up the good work. Continue being the institution that is going to shape academia; the people who are going to play a role – not just in South Africa – but who can be global and compete with the best of the best in the world. The Department is on the road to that. Exxaro is privileged to be able to partner with a university with a value system like yours.”

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Henry Laas, CEO of the Murray & Roberts Group “Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman studied Mining Engineering with me – we were in the same class; and when I met him again many years later, I was so pleased with what he had achieved in his career; to end up in the academic field and as the Head of Department of Mining Engineering. I was very proud of what he had accomplished. Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria has been ranked globally as one of the top 50 subject fields in the world, but I believe it could be one of the top 10. Prof Webber-Youngman has brought an altogether different approach to the Department. He is very much on top of current developments and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He is on top of his game, and is not preparing his students for the mining industry of yesterday, but the mining industry of tomorrow.

I wish the Department everything of the best. Keep on doing what you are doing.

You are doing a great job.”

André Joubert, CEO of African Rainbow Minerals: Ferrous Division “A sixtieth anniversary for a Mining Engineering department is a great achievement.

This is also a new beginning for the Department. I really want to congratulate Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman for what he has achieved at the University of Pretoria. I always look back at my time at the University of Pretoria with very fond memories. I am very proud of my degree from the University, and the fact that a very competent university put me through a very tough process and found me competent to qualify as a mining engineer. I am likewise proud to still be associated with the University, and to be able to call myself a mining engineer who graduated from this Department.

“I am also proud and excited to see the work that the Department is doing to grow the new, young imagineers of the future.

“Happy birthday to the Department. May you and your staff members be blessed for many years.”

Peter Steenkamp, CEO of Harmony Gold “I would really like to congratulate the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria on 60 years of turning out fantastic mining engineers; not only for the career development of its students, but also for its research and other initiatives. It has really grown from strength to strength under the leadership of Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman. It has been fantastic to be involved in the Department as a member of the Mining Engineering Advisory Board. I am very proud of the University of Pretoria, specifically the Department of Mining Engineering, for the quality of engineers they have put into the market.”

Chris Griffith, CEO of Goldfields “Congratulations to the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria on its 60th anniversary. I remember being a young, nervous first-year student walking into the University of Pretoria 35 years ago. If I think about the quality of education I received, it is testimony to the staff in the Department of Mining Engineering. The quality of student that has come out of the Department and has gone into industry has made so many companies look at mining engineers from the University of Pretoria and say, we really want to get hold of these engineers because they add so such incredible value. Today, 60 years later, the Department of Mining Engineering is as relevant, if not more relevant, to industry than when it started. I hope to come back in 40 years time when the Department celebrates its centenary and see where it is then.”

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Prof Con Fauconnier, Honorary Professor in the Department of Mining Engineering and Honorary President of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria “Sixty years of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria is certainly worth some congratulations. I have been very privileged to be involved in the Department right from the start. I joined the Department as a student in 1965 when the Department was five years old. In fact, I was one of the first group of Mining Engineering students who came through from first year right up to final year. I have been privileged to have worked with all the heads of department, from Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts right up to Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman, and to have served as a member of the Mining Engineering Advisory Board. Through many trials and tribulations, congratulations are due, not only for surviving, but thriving! The Department is doing very well, and I must congratulate Prof Webber-Youngman and his staff for what they have achieved over the years. The Department of Mining Engineering is at the forefront of a lot of things – look at the state-of-the-art Virtual Reality Centre, for example. A big thank you and congratulations to the Department of Mining Engineering, which has contributed handsomely to the wellbeing of South Africa and the wellbeing of the South African mining industry. I am sure it will continue doing so for a very long time into the future. This is a marvellous milestone.”

Prof John Napier, United States National Academy of Engineering “The mining industry remains a vital component of the South African economy. The Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria has, over the last six decades, provided a unique environment for student training and opportunities to nourish research in this industry. During the past few years, significant support has been given to the Department by the Harmony Gold Rock Engineering Chair funding initiative. This has fostered the exploration of innovative numerical problem-solving tools for the improved design and extraction of deep-level tabular ore bodies. The research effort has enabled the development of novel techniques to represent time-dependent fracture zone deformations near excavation edges in order to facilitate the optimal design of safe and efficient extraction schedules.

“From my personal perspective, it is a great privilege to have been able to contribute to these activities in an environment that encourages innovation and the application of fundamental engineering knowledge to an essential industry.”

Dr Bhareth Belle, Anglo American Coal, Brisbane, Australia “I am immensely glad to be informed that the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria has reached a milestone of completing 60 years of meaningful existence and meritorious educational service to the South African and global mining and allied industries. Please accept my hearty congratulations and best wishes to you, and to the team members at the Department of Mining Engineering.

Since its inception, it is noted that the Mining Engineering Department at the University of Pretoria has been rendering remarkable service to the South African mining industry through academic and research contributions to mine workers’ health and safety. May the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria continue to serve the current and future generation of talent for the continued growth and nation building of the beautiful South Africa for many, many years to come.”

Jan du Plessis, Glencore Holdings “I have been part of the Department for the past 34 years, joining as a student in 1987. In the early years of my career, I decided to continue my studies and joined the Department as a lecturer in the early 1990s. This made me reailise the importance of continuous education, as well as realising the absolute dynamics of knowledge assimilation and the need to always try and be on top of new developments.

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“This also formed the academic in me. As my professional career developed, I remained part of the Department, supporting it in various roles within the Department. I had the opportunity to join the Department in a full-time position in 2013 where I had the opportunity to fulfill a number of positions and to be part of the establishment of the Mining Resilience Research Centre (MRRC) as its first Director.

“The past decade has seen a great acceleration in several specialist areas within the Department, including areas such as explosive technology, geotechnical engineering, leadership development and the use of virtual reality as part of mine planning and as an educational tool. Leadership development was integrated into the educational programme, and led to the development of the Leadership 4D model and its roll-out into the mining industry.

“The Department has always taken great pride in delivering quality engineers and has a history of producing industry leaders. The establishment of a number of key research chairs has been galvanising specific research within the areas of the research chair expertise. This, together with the establishment of the MRRC, has accelerated the Department’s research activities within the University, utilising many resources across many departments. This is supported by a strong and growing postgraduate pipeline within these areas. Furthermore, this has been supported by the establishment of world-class teaching facilities and the virtual reality capacity. All of this is supported by the visionary leadership of the Head of Department and his team.

“Over the past two years, the Department has been faced with an even greater challenge related to how to manage and keep on educating both undergraduate and postgraduate students as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded. This challenge was again met, and the outcome has been an almost seamless transition into the virtual education scenario. This was no mean feat and required a vison of how to deliver, and a superhuman effort from the Department’s staff.

“It has been a great privilege to have been part of the Department and for the Department to be recognised as one of the best mining schools in the world. I wish the Department all the best and will continue to be in support of the best Mining Engineering Department in the world.”

Prof William Spiteri, AEL Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology “My involvement with the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria started more than a decade ago. At the time, I was the Technology Manager for what was then Sasol Nitro, the explosives and fertilizer division of Sasol.

Among other functions, I was also involved with the training of the explosives sales personnel on the basics of explosives technology and the appropriate application of explosives in commercial blasting.

“As these training requirements grew, it was decided to outsource the activity to a reputable academic institution that would give the individual staff members an independent and recognised certificate. The Mining Engineering Department at the University of Pretoria was an obvious choice.

“In our interaction with the mining industry, UP graduates were frequently encountered in leadership positions and the University had the reputation of producing quality mining engineers. The Mining Engineering Department had furthermore already emphasised the importance of blasting design in the mining value chain, and had several staff members specialising in the field.

“Through our close collaboration, a thorough short course for explosives engineers was drawn up. It soon became clear that the requirement for such a course extended across all the explosives, mining and construction industries. The course has been refined over the years and has now become an established and recognised qualification.

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“After my retirement from the explosives industry, I continued my association with the Department of Mining Engineering by periodically acting as a guest lecturer, as an external examiner and as supervisor for postgraduate students. In 2018, I was appointed to head the AEL Chair for Innovative Rock-breaking Technology. A field of expertise that has been introduced by the Department and further developed through collaboration with other university faculties has been the application of virtual reality as a tool in the training of mining engineers. The AEL Chair has promoted research in the use of virtual reality for training, and also as a tool in mining operations.

“During these years of association with the Department, I have been impressed by the dedication of the small group of professionals that make up the staff complement. The Department prides itself on the policy of quality over quantity, and furthermore strictly defends and maintains teaching and academic standards at all levels. The relatively small staff and postgraduate student numbers are nevertheless able to conduct cutting-edge research and produce a steady stream of publications “It has given me immense pride to have been associated with the University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering over the past decade, albeit only on a part-time basis. The Department has been successful over the last 60 years, and I am sure that it will do even better in the future. I heartily congratulate the Department on its 60th anniversary.”

Dr Bertie Meyer, President: Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria (MASUP) “The University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2021. Sixty years of rich history have been built in the Mining Engineering Department and many graduates have earned their places in the mining industry and made their mark. MASUP has a host of alumni that have left their indelible mark on the mining industry both locally and internationally. These are the chief executive officers, managing directors and chief operating officers of blue-chip mining companies. They are a testament to the quality of education mining engineers receive at the University of Pretoria. They have made the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria proud of their achievements.

“At the farewell function of the former Head of the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Pretoria, Prof Jaco de Villiers Lambrechts, in 1977, it was decided to investigate the possibility of establishing a Mining Alumni Mining Society at the University of Pretoria. The team then consisted of the following graduates: Ben Alberts, JC van Rooyen, Con Fauconnier, DJ van Niekerk and Niel van der Spuy (the so-called founding members). At this meeting, Fauconnier and Van Niekerk were tasked with the job to compile a suitable constitution (articles of association) for the proposed society. The meeting at which the proposed MASUP Constitution was accepted by the founding members took place on 21 November 1977. This constitution was ratified and accepted by the Board of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Pretoria on 24 July 1980.

“The principal goals of the Mining Alumni Society of the University of Pretoria, as practiced by MASUP, are promoting the wellbeing of the alumni of the Department of Mining Engineering and donating funds to the Department of Mining Engineering to support needy students. MASUP sponsors the bags for the annual third-year mining tour and rewards the best final-year Mining Engineering student with a cash prize.

“Monthly meetings are held to maintain and strengthen close ties with the Mining Engineering Department. A very popular MASUP and Friends social gathering is held every last Thursday of the month. Sponsors fund the evening and give a short presentation on their company.

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“Many successful business deals have been concluded from this event. Before the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, a weekend breakaway with families was held to involve the entire family, to mingle and relax. A very successful exchange programme has been established between MASUP and the Rybnik Branch of the Association of Mining Engineers and Technicians (STIG) of Poland, where six members of MASUP visit Poland for a week and STIG members visit South Africa for a week to visit mines and places of interest in the two countries.

“The graduates of the Department of Mining Engineering become members of MASUP after graduation. The President is on the Mining Engineering Advisory Board and annual meetings are held to assist the Department with advice and strategy.

“An annual Presidential dinner is the highlight of the organisation, where a black-tie event is held, with distinguished guest speakers addressing the guests. The heads of the different mining schools in South Africa also attend the dinner. The final-year students attend the dinner and are rewarded with MASUP badges to welcome them to the society. A newly introduced Presidential Golf Day, in collaboration with the Department of Mining Engineering, is held annually to enable members to socialise.

“A special thanks to all the heads of the Department of Mining Engineering who have supported MASUP over the years, the honorary presidents and MASUP presidents who served on the MASUP Committee, the MASUP Committee members for all their sacrifices and contributions to make MASUP such a strong society, and the loyal members who have supported and given advice over the years, especially on the annual Presidential Dinner and Golf Days. A final word of thanks goes to the loyal sponsors of MASUP for the contributions they regularly make to sponsor MASUP and Friends, as well as the annual Presidential Dinner and Golf Day. “May the Department of Mining Engineering go from strength to strength and maintain the role of game-changer for many of its students and future leaders.”

Denis McDougall, Chairman: Mining Subcommittee, Minerals Education Trust Fund “It is an honour and a privilege, on behalf of the Minerals Education Trust Fund (METF) Board and Subcommittee members, to congratulate the University of Pretoria’s Department of Mining Engineering on achieving 60 years of significant contribution to the South African and international mining industry.

“In a country with 11 official languages and an industry where the Fanagolo dialect is predominant, bridging the communications gap was always going to be a challenge for young South Africans entering the mining industry. Through foresight and vision, the Department of Mining Engineering recognised this, and was the leader in integrating a powerful English language support programme to overcome this potential barrier.

“A similar vision has led to the modernisation of both interactive immersive technology learning methods and a curriculum review aimed at aligning to a technology-driven future, providing students with a solid understanding and culture of Fourth and Fifth Industrial Revolution thinking. Having already made a significant step-change towards embracing a technologically developing world outlook, also stood the University in great stead, having to adopt a new way of learning delivery in a COVID-19 impacted world.

“It is this vision, combined with the traditional essence of developing the open minded, well-disciplined, yet humble student leaders, synonymous of Pretoria Mining Engineering students, which is providing for a growth in the University’s contribution towards leading research and development within the industry and the increased recognition and higher rankings it has achieved as a leading academic institution.

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“I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the chief executive officers and captains of industry for their continued generosity and support of the METF, which has provided for the sustainability of the Fund and enabled us to be in a position, not only to have made a small contribution towards this evolution at the mining school, but also towards improving the lives and experience of the staff and students at the University.

“We wish you well for the future and have great confidence that our industry will remain sustainable and healthy in the hands of the young mining “imagineers” being developed at a truly inspirational and world-leading institution.”

THE NEXT GENERATION Jennifer van der Walt, PhD student 2021 “The Department of Mining Engineering has always aimed to produce high-quality graduates that are equipped with the knowledge, perseverance and adaptability required for the ever-changing South African mining industry. Considering the technological advances and initiatives within the global mining industry over the past decades, as well as the mindshift towards the often-neglected leadership skills required by engineers in management roles, the Department has realigned its long-term strategy to take account of the changing face of the industry. In the process, it has realised that the mining industry needs flexible, high-quality and competent researchers to drive and implement technological changes.

“The initiative of the Department to shift the focus from enrolling more undergraduate students to increasing its postgraduate student numbers has been pursued since 2010. Over the past ten years, the Department has seen a steady increase in postgraduate enrolments, while maintaining an acceptable number of undergraduate students to feed into the postgraduate programme. These full-time postgraduate students work in the Department as assistant lecturers.”

Ruan Els, Master’s student 2021 “The Department of Mining Engineering strives to impart a mindset of reimagining how we do things by breaking the mould through thinking differently, boldly and innovatively. This will not only allow for more efficient mining and increased economic contributions, but will create a platform for innovation in mining on a global scale.

“Current mining engineers are caught between old-age mining and new technology, with pressure from labour markets, environmentalists and investors. A mining engineer’s main function is to ensure value creation for stakeholders, safe and cost-effective mineral extraction and mitigating environmental impacts. The future mining engineer will become increasingly versatile and well equipped with soft skills, a leadership-driven approach and a dynamic mindset that is aligned with new technologies that are reshaping the industry. With decarbonising energy systems and alternative mining approaches using technology, the mining engineer will become a vital driver in building the foundation of growing global economies.”

Thomas Oats, Master’s student 2021 “Some might consider the future of mining to be bleak. This is only if we continue as we have in the past; if we continue to be an enemy of the environment and a stain on the modern vision of a green and sustainable society. However, mining is necessary in this modern vision of a future world. Energy efficiency and rapid technological enhancements will change this necessary, but currently “evil” industry into the backbone of a better society. Mining is the foundation of all civilization and that role will not change. However, how the world perceives mining and how mining perceives the world will largely dictate what the future holds.

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“With this in mind, the Department of Mining Engineering is developing a new type of mining engineer that looks beyond what is known and seeks to reimagine the mining industry both locally and internationally. This individual is known as an “imagineer”. Imagineers are willing to dream of robots in an underground stope and lasers that cut rock. Imagineers are not afraid of the conventions of the past and the confines of present-day industry. They need to be brave as their ideas are challenged, and skilled to defend them. I believe that if an individual wants to make a difference, mining is the place to do it. To date, there has never been a perfect mine, and until we achieve that, there will always be problems to solve and a chance to add value.”

Bheki Mkalipi, Master’s student 2021 “Reimagining mining methodologies unlocks new potential for feasible mineral resources. Mechanisation and automation improve the efficiency of operations and add meaningful value to mining as a business and to the social impact of mining.

Engineers have become instrumental in designing and facilitating the required change processes and management of transformation through research and development; eventually selecting the most optimal systems for implementation.

“Mining has traditionally been very labour-intensive. The technical execution of mining has taken a new trajectory following mechanisation, automation and digitalisation. Changes in the workplace, workforce and nature of work have increased the complexity of mining. These multifactorial changes have set new requirements for engineering designs to create solutions and effective interfaces that are focused on human-machine interactions and collaborative workplaces.

“While the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) focuses on the interaction between human beings and machines, Industry 5.0 draws from the 4IR to enhance humanity.

Innovations will be a coordinated process with human beings interconnected with machines through artificial intelligence to enable new levels of creativity and progress. Mining engineering education will be impacted directly as mining practices are effectively conducted by competent people linked with enabling technologies to change how work is done, data-driven monitoring and modelling, and improving connectivity, resource management and the continuity of work.

“As work in the mines becomes automated and mechanised, the traditional physical tasks predominantly occupied by men are becoming obsolete, which provides an opportunity for women to work in the mining environment. Examples include remote control and remote-centre-operated equipment such as loaders and cutters (continuous miners) and trucks. Engineering work is predominantly driven by design and virtual reality makes the environment that would normally be dangerous for women more easily accessible. Increasing the employment of women has a direct socio-economic impact as it increases the general wellbeing of society.”

Danel Wessels, Master’s student 2021 “The Department of Mining Engineering is fantastic! It allows for innovation, provides motivation and helps each individual grow. It inspires its students to leave a legacy behind that everyone will remember.

“A mining engineer who has studied at the University of Pretoria is able to implement an imaginative concept and not follow old ways that may be ineffective. Being an imagineer allows one to make something more effective, sustainable and efficient.

“With the digital age, the future of mining engineering is exciting. It enables one to be in a mining environment without stepping outside one’s home or comfort zone. Mining operations can be controlled from afar, minimising the number of workers exposed to harsh conditions.

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“Mining is definitely a viable option for potential students and the future is doubtlessly exciting as new technology emerges. Being an imagineer will allow students to be creative and dream about ways to improve the current mining environment as the industry needs to become more efficient and sustainable. To move forward and compete in a global market, mines need to be smarter and integrate people and technology in such a way that both parties benefit.

“There is definitely a place for women in the mining industry. Women tend to look at the finer things in life and will add value in a larger sense, whether it is production, services or finances. Incorporating women in the mining industry will reduce gender inequality and will lead to a positive economic and inclusive social development outcome.

“Postgraduate qualifications contribute to society at a greater level. They allow one to think on another level about how to improve or contribute to something larger.

They allow one to think “out of the box” to find something that is more sustainable for now and for the future.”

Divine Ile, Master’s student 2021 “Having the term “imagineers” introduced to me at the start of my first year in 2016 helped me to see the sky as the limit when it comes to thinking of solutions for South Africa’s mining industry. We face numerous challenges. However, it is reassuring to believe that we can imagine and realise new solutions. Mining is still a viable industry for prospective students as it is an essential part of society; mined minerals are required to produce most of the devices we use on a daily basis.

Furthermore, the age of excluding women from mining is past. Mining is becoming more inclusive, and women have the ability to perform the same tasks as men.

“In order for the mining industry to continue to thrive, especially in South Africa, a digital approach is necessary. Mines are going deeper to access their resources, thus increasing the risk to the health and safety of mineworkers. Incorporating digital solutions will reduce their interactions with dangerous conditions. Mineworkers and trade unions believe that the digitalisation of the industry will cause job losses. This is untrue. There will simply be a shift in the skillset that employees need to have. Although certain jobs will no longer exist, there will be a surge in new jobs that are created.

“Obtaining my BEng (Mining) from the University of Pretoria has been a great privilege. The University of Pretoria is widely recognised around the world, which makes me value the degrees I have obtained even more. The Department reinforces the values of respect, care, honesty, integrity and trust. These values resonate with me because they were among the most important values my parents taught me as a child. Not everyone is raised with these values, so I think that the Department introducing them to us enables everyone to leave the university and enter the industry with a value-based framework.

“The way the curriculum is set up enables us to merge our understanding of modules from various engineering disciplines with mining. This helps us to gain a better understanding of the calculations we work on. The Virtual Reality Centre also helps us visualise what is being taught in our classes. The Department has adjusted the curriculum to introduce mining modules to learners from their first year instead of the second year. This gets students more interested in mining and the new solutions they need to come up with when they enter industry.

“Postgraduate studies play an important role in helping us find what truly excites us.

The four years I spent as an undergraduate student gave me an overall idea of the various aspects of mining, but doing an honours degree enabled me to pursue that through research.

“The Department has produced some of the best mining engineers in the industry in the past 60 years and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for us.”

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Sphephile Dludlu, Honours student 2021 “As a student, I was able to gain a better understanding of the content presented to me if I could visualise it. The Department’s Virtual Reality Centre assisted in providing a picture of what the lecturer was talking about, especially for mining modules. Through this approach, I could imagine the whole mine and how it operates by the time I visited a mine for the first time. Because the Department prepares its students to be “imagineers”, as graduates they are already innovative, and are able to come up with solutions to optimise the mine’s operation for greater profit.

“Mineral resources are not yet depleted. They are just in a much deeper location than they were when mining started. Mining is thus still a viable career option; it just requires new skills, and we are learning these skills at the University of Pretoria.

The industry has already started introducing new technologies, but mines have yet to adopt these changes as they perceive them to be expensive and fear that their implementation will lead to job losses.

“The Department also taught me to conduct proper research, as well as how to use it and analyse the data I obtained. We weren’t just taught to solve the problem, but to first understand the problem.

“Postgraduate studies not only provide students with the opportunity to identify current problems and scientific discoveries that can be used to address problems in different ways, but provide exposure and opportunities to share findings at discussions around burning topics in different industries.

“The constant review of the industry's challenges provides us with a platform to constantly improve on the mining environment in terms of productivity, safety and other considerations. These innovations can be used globally in the wider mining industry.”

FROM GOLD TO DIAMOND TO PLATINUM … WHERE IS THE DEPARTMENT HEADING?

Dr Johann Uys, M&R Chair in Industry Leadership 4.0 Since the Department of Mining Engineering’s golden jubilee in 2011, tremendous changes have occurred in the mining industry that have challenged the industry’s deeply ingrained conventional views of the mining sector that served companies so well in the past. Views such as “safety first” (after production and profit) and “men make the best miners who work hard and play hard” are no longer likely to succeed in the future.

Over the past decade, through the words of people like Mark Cuttufani, for instance, who said: “Our business is people; people is our business”, views on people have changed tremendously and their roles in mining have been entrenched even deeper as a vital factor for success; alongside viable ore bodies, and well-developed and optimised operations.

At this junction, where the Department of Mining Engineering celebrates its diamond jubilee, women in mining are a common and accepted practice.

Sustainable operations and industry are top of mind for miners. Safety is non-negotiable, Community and social responsibility are ingrained, and issues related to environmental impact are a reality. With the Fourth Industrial Revolution upon us, miners need to embrace it through innovation, exploitation and the application of technologies. Industry 4.0 will catapult mining forward.

As the Department of Mining Engineering continues its journey towards its platinum jubilee in another decade, vital questions cross our path, specifically from a leadership perspective. We need to consider how we see the mining landscape changing in terms of our social license to mine.

What are our commitments to uplifting the communities around mines? How do we make mining more sustainable through our approach to educating the next generation of mining engineers (“imagineers”) and leaders who will boldly and courageously take us into the future?

The question is further complicated by current global crises alluded to by Blair Sheppard in his 2020 book, Ten years to midnight: Four urgent global crises and their strategic solutions, in which he states: “The world is on the brink of four broad crises that, if not addressed, will cause irreparable harm in the next ten years: a crisis of prosperity, a crisis

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of technology, a crisis of institutional legitimacy, and a crisis of leadership.

The Department of Mining Engineering, like the global mining industry, cannot be a bystander to this. Until its platinum jubilee, the Department and the industry will see change, and perhaps be part of the leadership towards change, to avoid the potential catastrophic situations Sheppard predicts. With this, I see a number of interconnected shifts that must happen in the industry.

Firstly, there should be much more than just a drastic mining leadership rethink. Mining leadership must change virtually immediately, and mining schools must take the lead with our young engineers and equip them with leadership qualities to face up to and deal with these challenges. At the Department, leadership has been on the agenda for the last decade.

The Department has strategically aligned its programme to the recently developed 4.0D Leadership Development Model and the online 4.0D Leadership Assessment Protocol to enable young leaders to cope with the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).

We believe that, by firstly attacking the crisis of leadership, the industry will deepen its credibility. This point of departure will authenticate the issue of institutional legitimacy and deepen the trust in the role of mines as a community stakeholder.

Whereas benefits to the communities in the past were largely based on philanthropy, an urgent shift is necessitated. The reason for this is the emerging perception by communities that philanthropy is essentially based on people or industries exploiting people and communities, and then “graciously” spreading millions to those that they deem deserving, but that they have exploited. The Fifth Industrial Revolution alludes to this, with the notion that business will cease to function for the benefit of a few (stakeholders and investors), but for the benefit of all people. This is the social license to mine of the future.

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While Industry 4.0 brings very exciting possibilities for mining, we must be mindful of a number of things that will sustain the people in the industry. The main shift in mining will be from a purely technical activity to an increased sociotechnical activity. The Department of Mining Engineering recently aligned its approach to mine design to this shift, and students are educated in both pure mine design against a background of full closure and rehabilitation, and community impact – either through the establishment of a new community or through the awareness of possible resettlement.

Both these approaches address sustainable social impact in a postmining activity environment and economy.

As people, miners also need to accommodate needs and create a balance between the use of technology and the role of the human being. The technologies related to the 4IR may disrupt people, and while artificially intelligent algorithms may take over much of human decision making and predictions, the entire human function is not replaceable. Future human skills such as complex problem solving, adaptability and flexibility, resilience and negotiation will be of vital importance.

Enterprises must adapt to change by adopting solutions and innovations brought about by disruptive technologies. It will be necessary to extend beyond the current fixed value chains, shifting knowledge away from production points to offsite trans-organisational knowledge hubs and shared services. In this lies the requirement of a leader with a specific set of future skills. The ability to strategise will always be a human skill.

In this regard, the future brings a vast array of possible scenarios.

Some of these can be described as follows: • What happens when the future reveals itself only by blurring the boundaries between the physical, digital and biological?

DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING DIAMOND JUBILEE

• Technological change not only forces us to reassess reality, but also to reflect on and reassert our values. Defining the need and importance of values in future leadership contexts is therefore an important part of the adoption of new technology in the 4IR and future revolutions.

• Shaping the impact of technological change, leaders must clarify what matters most, in what balance, and with what trade-offs – technology will not be able to do this.

In the end, the key understanding is that technology does not evolve in isolation. As much as it is a product of science and engineering, technology is also a product of values and institutions. Rather than asking what technology will do to us, we need a shared vision of how it can benefit economies, societies and ourselves.

The challenge is to convince mining leaders to collaborate to this end, as the true impact of the 4IR lies in our own hands.

So, in this diamond jubilee year, and as we head towards the platinum jubilee, the Department of Mining Engineering must tap into many of these skills collectively and individually, while equipping our students, as the mining engineering leaders of the future. From these cohorts, we will reap the next line of staff to prepare the next generation of mining engineers for the postplatinum jubilee era.

Mining Engineering at University of Pretoria Department of Mining Engineering, University of Pretoria

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#UPMiningMatters #60YearsUPMining Department website http://www.up.ac.za/mining-engineering Enquiries Ms Abea Kgatshe Tel: +27 (0) 12 420 3763 Email: abea.kgatshe@up.ac.za

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