WINNING
bought primarily to service the ready-mix
concrete operation we have [adjacent to the
quarry], a plant batching in the region of 1
500m3 of ready-mixed concrete per month.
Currently we have a Dezzi 1700 and we
had a Dezzi 2500 which was subsequently
swapped out with a sister plant that had
fortuitously doubled its production due
to being awarded a large order. NPC
ultimately opted for Dezzi loaders in the
confidence the equipment is manufactured
to tough African conditions, and with
components which were reliable and
robust, with minimal electronic equipment.
Economically, you can’t have two loaders
standing at one plant – you’d never make
money. So you want a machine that you
know will be reliable, and if it breaks down
Avin Mandass, quarry manager at NPC Sterkspruit Aggregate.
Strerkspruit’s ready-mix plant makes product to client specifications.
22_QUARRY SA| NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018
you can get it back on line as soon as
possible,” says Mandass.
The future business
environment
The mine still has a long lifespan ahead of
it – “My grandchildren may one day be able
to get a job here,” says Mandass as there are
still huge reserves of raw material available
for processing. With such a long life span
ahead, Mandass explains the company
hasn’t yet settled on exactly what it wants
to do in terms of its rehabilitation plan.
“One possibility is to make the benches
wide enough so they can accommodate
mini factories within what would be a light
industrial zone.”
Long term plans of that nature are
dependent on the medium- and long-term
business environment, which in the short-
term appears dire. “My impression is that
business conditions are very depressed and
tough at the moment. We’ve been through
times like this in the past, but then at least
we knew there were big contracts coming
along to look forward to. Right now there
is little to look forward to. The roads
business has largely died – it’s going to be an