Third consecutive national mining safety award presented to Lonmin
 | Third consecutive national mining safety award presented to Lonmin | 14.81 KB | Download |
 Preview | National winner's of the Gold Mining category, Collieries category and Diamondiferous, Base Metal and Opencast category. Photo c | 1.11 MB | Download |
 Preview | Lomnin's 1B4B Platinum Mine respresentative receiving the John T. Ryan Safety Trophy. Photo credit Irma Palm Photographers | 1.07 MB | Download |
 Preview | Winners Lonmin's 1B4B Platinum Mine. Photo credit Irma Palm Photographers | 1.36 MB | Download |
MineSAFE is the South African mining industry’s premier safety conference designed to bring local operations to ‘zero harm’ status, and is jointly hosted by the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM), Association of Mine Managers of South Africa (AMMSA) and the South African Colliery Managers' Association (SACMA). The 2014 event, hosted at Emperor’s Palace from 20 to 22 August, was concluded with the presentation of the highly-coveted John T. Ryan Trophy.
The John T. Ryan Trophy is named after the original founder of MSA – which is today recognised as a global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of sophisticated products that protect people's health and safety. MSA is also the official sponsor of the award, which is divided into five categories, namely; platinum mining, gold mining, collieries, other mines and the overall winner.
In addition to being named as the national winner of all categories, Lonmin's 1B4B Mine was also named as the national winner of the platinum mining category. The national winner of the gold mining category was AngloGold Ashanti’s Kopanang Mine. National winner of the collieries category was Optimum Coal Mine. National winner of the diamondiferous, base metal and opencast (other mines) category was Glencore’s Waterval Chrome Mine.
Impartial judges representing SAIMM, AMMSA and SACMA deemed Lonmin 1B4B Mine to be the deserved winner of the John T. Ryan Trophy, which is sculpted to feature a father coming home from work with his arms around the shoulders of his son and daughter. “This is a representation that the worker is the most important commodity in any mine, and has become the embodiment of safety in the industry,” states MSA Africa managing director Colin Oliver.
Lonmin head of mining SHERQ and MineSAFE organising committee member Jacques Erasmus notes that the John T. Ryan Trophy plays a fundamental role in the continuous promotion of achieving zero harm in global mining operations. “The John T. Ryan Trophy proactively encourages mining operations not only to achieve, but maintain, the highest standards of safety onsite.”
Erasmus has sent his congratulations to all of the category winners for achieving thousands of hours of fatality-free shifts. “This is a clear indication of these operations’ commitment to achieving zero-harm status. MineSAFE continues to attract more delegates each year, and this is evidence of the local industry’s commitment to continual improvement,” he states.
John T. Ryan – an iconic man behind the prestigious trophy
John Thomas Ryan was involved in safety and rescue programmes in the United States coal mining industry in the early 1900s. In one year, there were 1 000 recorded fatalities in a 100 mile radius of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – which equated to approximately six deaths for every one million tons of coal. Open flame underground lamps were considered a major contributor to this shocking statistic.
As a result, Ryan founded Mine Safety Appliances in 1914, and worked closely with world-renowned inventor Thomas Edison to create the electric cap lamp which, over the next 25 years, reduced mine explosions by an astounding 75 per cent. "Of all his inventions, this was the one that did the most for humanity," Edison would later say in life. Having expanded the company globally, Ryan died in 1941, leading to the birth of his namesake trophy that continues to promote worker safety to this day.
The symbolism of the John T. Ryan Trophy has become increasingly important worldwide, particularly within the past 15 years. It was first introduced to the Canadian mining sector in 1941, before expanding globally to include; Chile (1996), Peru (1999), Colombia (2011), South Africa (2011), Argentina (2012) and Brazil (2012).
Ends
Notes to the Editor
There are numerous photographs specific to this press release. Please visit http://media.ngage.co.za and click the MSA Africa link.
About MSA
MSA been the world's leading manufacturer of high-quality safety products since 1914. MSA products may be simple to use and maintain, but they’re also highly-sophisticated devices and protective gear - the result of countless R&D hours, relentless testing, and an unwavering commitment to quality that saves lives and protects thousands of men and women each and every day. Many of MSA's most popular products integrate multiple combinations of electronics, mechanical systems, and advanced materials to ensure that users around the world remain protected in even the most hazardous of situations. MSA's dedication to safety has been the key to its impressive year-over-year growth. In eight of the past ten years, MSA has achieved record growth numbers, with annual revenues of more than US$1 billion.
MSA Africa Contact Details
Colin Oliver
MSA Africa Managing Director
Tel: (+27) 11 610 2600
Email: Colin [dot] Oliver [at] msasafety [dot] com
Web: www.msanet.com
Media Contact
Renay Tandy
NGAGE Public Relations
Phone: (011) 867 7763
Fax: 086 512 3352
Cell: 082 562 5088
Email: renay [at] ngage [dot] co [dot] za
Web: www.ngage.co.za
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