New, smart ways to use resources
Restructuring and mentoring revitalised operations
Bringing to Lonmin the production discipline from the capitalconstrained gold mines — and the nickname Dr Stof (Ore) — six years ago led to Jurgens Visser having some tough conversations that started paying off.
“When I joined, the platinum mines had not suffered like the gold mines, where we worked hard on how to do things differently. For example, we’d reclaim, fix and refurbish equipment long before replacing it with new,” says Visser, Lonmin group head of mining and technical services.
One of the disciplines he brought with him is cleaning after every blast, something that is a religion in the gold sector but was not a priority for the platinum mines.
“We are thinking differently and smartly on how to develop and utilise our assets and mineral resources,” he says.
Another of the key disciplines he’s instilling at the mines is dilution control, with more accurate drilling and blasting to prevent excessive breaking above and below the ore.
Coming from a rival company in the platinum sector, Visser revitalised the ventilation department, an absolutely vital part of the mining operations in sweltering hot underground conditions.
“That was very difficult. We had to restructure the whole department,” he says.
For a manager who likes to talk about rattling people’s cages and not being afraid to step on toes, there is also the human side to Visser, who uses his 44 years of mining experience to mentor those rising through the ranks.
“I’m coaching and training the general managers, some of whom are newly appointed. For the first time, people from lower ranks at Lonmin are moving up into senior roles and it’s pleasing to see young talent succeed,” he says.
“For a long time in this industry things have been tough and people sit in their positions. If there’s no movement, people at the lower levels start getting anxious about not moving up.
“We are seeing a lot of youngsters coming into positions of mine overseers and underground managers. It’s great to see where they’ve come from and that they’re open to new ideas.”
The weekly Friday meeting is where Visser really hammers home his messages about the quality of ore being mined and dilution.
“The general managers face a lot of peer pressure in those meetings. I’m right in their faces at those Friday ops meetings, but I also give praise where it’s due,” he says.