tuks mining society newsletter tuks mining society … · development of leadership qualities....

Tuks Mining Society Newsletter

YOUR TUKS MINING SOCIETY NEWSLETTER ISSUE 1_2017

WE PROUD TO ISSUE THE FIRST EDITION OF THE

TUKS MINING SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

It is this time of the year again when we seem to have so much time, but in fact, time is running out. The Engineering Test week is upon us and shortly after the test week, we are in the home straight for the end of year final examinations. Firstly we would like to thank each and everybody for voting for the new committee of the Tuks Mining Society. We are very excited about the new team and would like to congratulate each member and wish them well during their term as committee members. We would also like to congratulate Francois, elected as the new Chairperson. We appeal to you all to support and join the TMS, a student body for the students run by students. For the outgoing committee, a huge thank you for your dedication and perseverance and especially Lana-Marie who stepped into the acting chair position and excelled in her role. Secondly, on behalf of the HOD, Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman and the staff of the Department we would like to wish you all the very best for the upcoming test week. Stay focused and committed and do your utmost and strive in achieving excellent results. For the final years, you are almost at the finish line, all the very best with mine design and the upcoming oral examinations. We will see you all at the TMS dinner later this month. Good luck and best wishes WW de Graaf.

A Word from Mr. W.W. De Graaf

CONTENTS 1.

TUKS MINING SOCIETY NEWLETTER


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TMS 1ST SMOKER, WHERE MINERS HAVE A BLAST

During the weekend of 20-21 April 2017, the Mining Engineering final year students left for Matlepeng Village. Matlepeng Village is a camping site situated in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng. This camp forms part of the Mining Engineering Leadership Academy which the final years have to attend. The camp aims to enforce team building of the final years and also enhance their leadership qualities/skills in preparation for the workplace. They spent 2 days and 1 night at Matlapeng. There were several obstacle courses, focusing on team building and development of leadership qualities. Enjoyed by all!

FINAL YEARS VISIT MATLAPENG…

On the 23rd of March, the TUKS Mining Society organized its first Smoker at Uitspan, LC de Villiers. The night was an opportunity for the TUKS mining department to get socializing, from first years to lectures, over a traditional braai and a drink or two. The night began with a motivation by Prof. Ronny Webber-Youngman regarding TUKS mining students being the future ‘Imagineers’ of the mining industry, then opened up the night to great fun and an amazing braai. The Smoker is an opportunity for all in the department to get to know one another, lectures and students, building friendships into the future. Tuks Mining Engineering is not just about giving its students a degree but also a network of colleagues for future endeavors.

TMS 2nd Smoker, Sponsored by Sedna IT Solutions It was on the 07 of September 2017 at Uitspan LC de Villiers when students from Mining Engineering Departent arrived with their Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to gather for the Second TMS Smoker of the year. The aim of the event is to foster culture relationships and social interaction between first year’s to final year’s, postgraduates, lectures, and staff from the department. The fires were lit at 18h00 when the acting chairperson of Tuks Mining Society Lana-Marie Malan welcomed everyone including the guests who attended. The Head of Department Prof Ronny Webber-Youngman gave a few words of encouragement and motivation to students, explain how happy he is to be part of the Imagineer generation. Prof was also extremely happy and proud to announce the positive outcome of the ECSA accreditation for the next 5 years. Mr. Darryl Mitchell from Sedna Industrial IT Solution presented his company and how they have been involved in IT outsourcing, wired and wireless data networking and fleet management for the mining industry since 2005. The lectures and students started braaiing and having some drinks after Lana-Marie gave her last speech on behalf of Tuks Mining Society Executive Committee. It was a unforgettable event filled with lots of fun and networking.


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JP Labaschagne: I try to find a good balance between studying, relaxing and doing my hobbies such as playing golf and hiking, and last year I just enjoyed the subjects that I had which made studying easier and it helped me remain more focused.

OUR TOP ACHIEVERS AND WHAT THE HAD TO SAY

I am Jerry Mokganya. Besides my degree, I love creating music. That is, producing beats, writing lyrics and designing chords. This is what takes up most of my time if I’m not studying. I never aimed to be a top learner. I fact I found last year difficult like everybody else. One key trait I have is persistence. I’m a hard-working person as well. I work consistently and try my best to understand my work. I think that’s where a lot of students go wrong, not understanding their work but resorting to cramming their work.

I got my understanding from lecturers through consultation. I failed some semester tests. I got 12% for SWK 120 semester test 2. I never gave up but instead worked the hardest I could. I got 95% in the exam and got a distinction for it. This is one of my proudest moments in life and it keeps motivating me whenever I fall. Anyone can do this, I mean anyone.

My success throughout the year was achieved by staying focused and seeing my end goal in front of me. That goal was to be the best I can possibly be. The only person you must challenge is YOURSELF. Not everyone operates and learns the same way, this is what you must embrace and makes you unique from the rest. It was not always easy, but doing something you love turns obstacles into opportunities that develop self-growth and perseverance. My message for everyone is to never give up when things get tough, keep moving forward! “If you want to turn a vision into reality, you have to give 100% and never stop believing in your dream” – My Hero Arnold Schwarzenegger


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What the Post Grad’s are up to....

The Harmony Chair in Rock Engineering and Numerical Modelling is sponsored Harmony Gold and the current chair holder is Mr. Johan Hanekom. The chair is aimed at the strategic development of specialized rock engineering research capacity at the University of Pretoria. The current focus of the chair is on the development of a numerical code to identify the risk of seismicity in hard rock tabular excavations. Tabular Excavation Analyzer known as Texan makes use the limit equilibrium theory to simulate the impact of on-reef fracture processes and provides the capacity to employ processes and parameters to derive actual rock mass responses. The current focus of the research is aimed at determining the impact of mining advance on seismicity. This study has been undertaken by Mr. Brandon Okhuis since the year 2015 and significant progress has been made. A noteworthy milestone has been achieved by Brandon in the completion of his Honours degree. The aim of his hons degree was the work to determine whether the presence of bedding planes around a tabular stope could impact on the resulting levels of mining-induced seismicity using the Texan code. The impact of on-reef fracture processes, different mining rates and different bedding thicknesses on the energy available for seismic release was estimated. It was concluded that the increased presence of bedding planes appear to reduce the levels of energy available for seismic release. The results suggest, assuming similar mining layouts and mining depths, seismic behavior in massive rock mass environments could be substantially different to the behavior in well-bedded environments. This difference indicates that potential for increased levels of face burst type events could exist where bedding is absent, for example in the igneous complex within which the South African platinum mines operate. This means that Platinum mines have the potential for increased face burst type events in the absence of bedding planes. Brandon is currently in the process of completing his master's degree. The focus of his current study is validation of the Texan code in verifing its applicability for commercial use in the hard rock tabular mining environment.

Some Words of Wisdom “ Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful

beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's for everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our

presence automatically liberates others.”

- Marianne Williamson


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Potjie Kos day 2017

It was a day filled with tasty food, fun in the sun and success for the mining engineering students. On Saturday the 16th of September mining students descended on the LC De Villiers sports grounds for a day of festivities. Students from mining engineering, metallurgy, and geology all met up with their respective groups at Uitspan, where the event was held. On the day several groups of students prepared a number of potjie’s. A cloud of apetizing aromas filled the air. In the afternoon the pots were judged by a team of judges, after which the delicious pots were served to the students. The mining department prepared 3 potjie’s. A chicken-noodle pot was prepared by Francois. The perfect lamb potjie was cooked by Blessing Gininda, Naniwe Kodisang and Henko Maritz. Our crowning achievement of the day was the Oxtail and banana potjie prepared with great care and detail by Yugen Govender, Eugene Preis and Dr. Bertie Meyer. The oxtail and banana potjie was chosen by the judges as the best potjie of the day. A gastronomic feast!! Well done to the winning team. It is also customary for each group to decorate their gazebo, where the judges taste the prepared meals. The mining department also won this category with their Kasi-shebeen themed gazebo. Other festivities of the day included soccer matches between the Mining department, Metallurgy and Geology, the Mining Engineering team beat Geology 3-2 but lost 3-2 against Metallurgy. The day also included a massive tug of war competition. Geology won the tug of war, with mining and metallurgy coming second and third respectively. A massive fun-filled dancing competition was held in the afternoon which was equally entertaining for spectators and competitors alike. The potjiekos day will continue to be a well-loved tradition for the students of the Minerals Sciences Building. It remains a superb day for students to relax and socialize with classmates outside of the lecture hall. Tuks Mining Society Achievements

The TMS has been actively involved in many initiatives apart from our mining department events such as the Inter-varsity Young Professionals Council (YPC) in which we have been recognized for our outstanding performance. We were awarded the “Best External Event” award and the “Best Collaboration” award which we share with the Metallurgy. These awards were handed over to us at the EBIT’s annual awards ceremony. On the 5th of August 2017, the University of Pretoria’s Mining Society and Metallurgical Sub-House had the privilege of hosting the annual YPC Career and Leadership Conference 2017 at the University of Pretoria. Weeks of hard work, lots of planning and determination led to this amazing and exciting event. This prestigious event, which was hosted in Engineering 3-1, provided an insight into the challenges of leadership and on leadership the mining and metallurgical industries faces. The event was officially opened by the president of SAIMM, Prof Cuthbert Musingwini. The Dean of EBIT, Prof S Maharaj welcomed all delegates on behalf of the University of Pretoria. We were also grateful for the opportunity of seeing various stakeholders from the mineral sector gathering for the same purpose, from students in the mining and metallurgy schools of four universities (Wits, UJ, UNISA, and UP), academic staff, and mining and metallurgical industry executives such as Ms Deshnee Naidoo(CEO - Vendanta), Dr David Powel (Mintek), Dr. Johan Uys and Ms Refentse Molehe. The conference provided students with an opportunity to learn that, as the future leaders of the industry, not to lose hope and to think of different ways to find solutions to the problems they may experience in the industry. There was also an opportunity for students and staff to participate in panel discussions which was facilitated by Mr. Leigh McMaster, the members consisting of 2 professionals from University and 4 students from each participating university. In a nutshell, the event was a resounding success and one that we are very proud of.


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Francois Nell Chairperson

Pholoso Sehlelane Vice-Chairperson

Naniwe Kodisang Secretary

Thando Nkosi Treasurer

Collin Papo Marketing

Esme Sekwele Social

Sphephile Dludlu

Student Affairs

Juandre Viljoen Sponsorship

Thobeka Cebekhulu

Transformation

The New TMS EC Commitee 2018

Highlights of the YPC Career and Leaderchip Conference 2017


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The annual TMS Dinner will take place on the 20th of October at Blue Crane. We have an amazing theme: Gold Rush and it will be a fun filled evening with some relaxation and networking opportunities. One of our very own Tuks Mining Alumini Karabo Mothapo will join us as a guest speaker at the dinner sharing her experiences and thoughts of the industry. Karabo graduated in 2011 and has extensive experience working in the mining industry. She has completed her professional in training (PIT) program and is now working as a business improvement manager for Aveng Manufacturing Automation & Control Solutions. With a fun line-up for the evening, such as a lucky draw and other exciting activities, be ready and come prepared. Remember if a table of 10 guests buys their tickets each guest will receive a R10 discount. Seats are limited,..... first come, first served!

See the pictures on the next page. You don’t want to miss this event.

The Annual TMS Dinner


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