Swisslog Trans-Tele's air tube transportation systems have strengthened the security of two South African diamond sorting operations.
At Southern Era Resources' Klipspringer Diamond Mine near Potgietersrus, Swisslog Trans-Tele recently completed a R250 000 contract upgrading the air tube system for the secure selection and distribution of diamonds and semi-precious stones.
The concentrate is conveyed to a series of five hoppers, from where it is fed into individual glove boxes through 63 mm diameter PVC tubing. Sorters hand-separate the final product into carriers which, when filled, are propelled at 8 m/s by compressed air through 100 m of 110 mm diameter tubing to a secure safe prior to its identification and valuation. "Specially designed software controls the transportation process, and the air pressure in the tubes is constantly monitored to detect any breach," said Swisslog Managing Director John Meiring.
This contract follows the design and installation of a similar air tube system for De Beers in Kimberley: the De Beers contract entailed the installation of more than 400 m of steel tubing to transport sorted diamonds from eight glove boxes and an acid box into the identification/valuation/storage sequence. The system went into operation in mid-1997.
Swisslog Trans-Tele air tube systems are widely used throughout South Africa in the transportation of valuables, notably in the secure movement of cash and negotiable documents: Existing installations include;
* A cash transportation system at a leading supermarket in Sandton where money from the tills is deposited in an in-store bank.
* A cash transportation system in a large Sandton bank where money from the tellers is deposited in a vault.
* A cash transportation system in a leading wholesale operation in Port Elizabeth taking money from the tills into the back office accounting process.
For further details contact John Meiring, Swisslog Trans-Tele on tel: (011) 794 4136.
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