Mine Design Technologies (MDT) reports that it recently came to an agreement with Ramjack to make them our exclusive distribution partner in Sub-Saharan Africa. The agreement is followed closely by and builds upon the agreement that Ramjack already has with Newtrax Technologies. MDT states: “We are confident that many deployments in the region will take advantage of the technologies we have to offer and ultimately transform the mining industry in this area of the world. African mining environments are unique and present challenges that are difficult to overcome without the right technology. We believe that our partnership with Ramjack will help mines in this area positively change their operations and also allow us to enhance our influence by distributing this technology in Africa.”
In 2014, MDT also released the Smart GMM100 Ground Movement Monitor. This instrument can be rapidly deployed and does not require any grouting. It provides “cost-effective and instant monitoring” of primary support regions. “When we designed the GMM100, one of our main goals was to make this device simple to use and cost-effective. To operate this device, all you have to do is thread it onto a rock bolt, insert the rock bolt into a standard sized borehole, use the supplied wrench to expand the rock bolt toe anchor, and secure the collar plate. This device also comes with a displacement range of 100 mm and provides critical information about displacement that occurs in primary support regions.” In addition, MDT and Newtrax in late 2014 released another RTU for the MineHop network that now supports up to 4 Measurand Shape-Accel-Arrays on one battery-powered box. The SAAF instrument is designed for monitoring deformation and vibration in the field, as well as tunnel deformation monitoring.
On its Australian presence the company states: “Here at Mine Design Technologies, we’ve experienced tremendous growth in the past year thanks to some of the partnerships we’ve developed and the branches we operate that are committed to designing innovative geotechnical applications for mining environments. In particular, our Australian branch has experienced significant growth and continues to thrive. To better serve our Australian client base, our Australian branch moved their office in the middle of 2014 so they could share a facility with Bamford Rock Testing Services. This will allow our Australian branch to work directly alongside Dr Bill Bamford and other experts in the specialty rock testing field.”
Finally, 2015 is MDT’s second year of ISO 9001:2008 certification. “By becoming certified, we agreed to adopt international standards that are designed to bring economic, technological, and societal benefits to consumers, as well as the mining industry we work in. These standards also make the industry more efficient by breaking down barriers that often prohibit international trade and reassure our clients that our products are efficient, safe, and good for the environment.”