100 Refuge Chambers Built At MineARC Systems Africa

In Johannesburg, the office and manufacturing facility of MineARC Systems Africa opened in 2013 and services the entire African continent. This quarter, they reached a milestone with the manufacture of their 100^th refuge chamber, MAF100.

MAF100, a 4-person MineSAFE Compact Design (CD) Refuge Chamber, was procured through Supply Chain Specialist, Tradecorp Logistics, for Kibali Gold Mine. Kibali Gold Mine is operated by Randgold Resources and comprises a 1,836km2 integrated open pit and underground operation in the Moto Goldfields of the North East Democratic Republic of Congo.

The MineSAFE CD Refuge Chamber is a small, compact, ultra-portable refuge chamber that is easy to manoeuvre and position around a site. It is designed specifically for tight mining confines to provide safe refuge even in the most remote, inaccessible parts of the mine. For optimum autonomy, the CD chamber is equipped with a unique dual UPS battery bank configuration. The chamber’s Extra-Low Voltage Portable’ (ELVP) control system enables the chamber to sit stand-alone from mains power for extended durations. When the chamber is used in an emergency, the ‘primary’ battery bank is activated; powering the refuge chamber’s entire life support systems for a minimum of 36 hours.

Further standard features and vital life support systems of a MineSAFE CD Refuge Chamber include primary and secondary oxygen supplies in the form of MineARC’s Compressed Air Management System (CAMS) and oxygen cylinders, digital gas monitoring by the Compact Aura-FX, an air conditioning unit, positive pressure systems and MineARC’s ELVP Scrubbing System which ‘scrubs’ the build-up of harmful CO₂ (carbon dioxide) and CO (carbon monoxide) from the air inside the refuge chamber using pre-packaged MARCISORB chemical absorber cartridges.

Kibali Gold Mine has opted to include a step-down transformer and an oxygen candle kit for a third oxygen supply. Structurally, chamber MAF-100 has been reinforced for blast shield protection with a polycarbonate porthole window protector and external protection for the air conditioner unit, mine air, lights and sensors.

Kibali Gold Mine purchased three 8-person MineSAFE Standard Design Refuge Chambers, a 40-person MineSAFE Permanent Refuge Chamber, and HyperION Cap Lamps. MineARC hopes to continue the growing relationship with Tradecorp Logistics, Kibali Gold Mine and Randgold Resources in the future.