SA firm manufactures cranes, hoists and lifting equipment for African mine expansions

CONSULTING firms in Canada and Australia have placed multiple orders on a South African company to manufacture cranes, hoists and other lifting equipment for mine expansion projects in Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Namibia.

Condra, the company executing the orders at its Johannesburg factory, has revealed general details but has declined to name either the customers or the mines because of non-disclosure agreements.
The cranes will work in general workshop and feeder-line maintenance applications, with capacities ranging from two to eighteen tons.

Sierra Leone’s order comprises one long-reach jib crane, three single-girder overhead cranes and a portal crane, while Tanzanian mines will receive two double-girder cranes, a single-girder machine, one portal crane and a long-reach jib crane.

Six Titan hoists, among them several fitted with articulated carriages to negotiate curved girder tracks, will go to Namibia along with two portal cranes, a long-reach jib crane, two single-girder cranes and a double-girder machine. Fifteen chain hoists and blocks will also be shipped to that country.

Condra’s Titan hoist range is versatile, comprising the Compact Series with capacities to 32 tons, and the SH (Short-Headroom) Series with capacities to 18 tons. All models are variants of the veteran K-Series hoists, but refined to offer a more compact profile with markedly reduced overall dimensions.

Among the cranes included in the international orders are several equipped with high-lift K-Series hoists, in one instance to a height of 40 metres. The company says these hoists have a proven record in high-lift applications, with Condra widely recognised as Africa’s market leader in this specialised arena. The company’s installed base includes hoists with controlled lifts as high as 150 metres.

A company spokesman said there had been close cooperation with the consultants to ensure that agreed prices could remain competitive without compromising the robust reliability required for harsh operating conditions.

Overall lifetime cost will remain lower than cranes offered by rival firms, said the spokesman, while inspection and testing will take place at defined stages during manufacture to ensure compliance with international quality control, safety, and lifting equipment standards.
Condra’s customers placed their orders in late August.