Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Management make use of e-mail as a tool to enable them to do their daily tasks. E-mail is used as one of the best communication channels by management. Sishen Mine also makes use of e-mail as communication channel. The question however is whether e-mail has a positive or negative impact on management effectiveness. The history of e-mail as well as the reasons for e-mail use have been investigated. The different areas of use of email were discussed. Additional to this, the positive effects experienced by the individual as well as companies when using e-mail were highlighted and discussed. Unfortunately e-mail also has negative influences on the individual and the company and these were also highlighted and discussed. Data was obtained from the Sishen e-mail application in order to analyse the use of e-mail by the employees. The key insight from the e-mail application data was that a small group of employees send and receive the majority of e-mail at Sishen. A survey was sent out to all e-mail users at Sishen in order to determine the influence of e-mail on management effectiveness. The survey data enabled a detailed geographic analysis of the e-mail users at Sishen per department, gender, race, age and years of service as well as the details of the respondents. Analysis of the survey data revealed that e-mail has a positive impact on management effectiveness and that Sishen uses e-mail extensively. However, the data also revealed that e-mail impacts negatively on management effectiveness. The key insight from the survey was the extreme low levels of computer and e-mail training done by management. The lack of sufficient e-mail training was seen as one of the major contributing factors of high levels of frustration with e-mail experienced by management. Recommendations were made to Sishen as a result of the study to enable improvement of management effectiveness through the use of e-mail. Implementation of key recommendations with potential key positive impact was also highlighted. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Bestuur gebruik e-pos as 'n gereedskapstuk om uitvoering aan hul take te gee deur middel van die kommunikasiekanaal wat e-pos bied. E-pos leen hom daarna om 'n uitstekende kanaal te wees vir kommunikasie. Sishen Myn gebnuik ook e-pos as 'n kommunikasiekanaal. Die vraag is of die kommunikasiekanaal 'n goeie of slegte invloed het op bestuurseffektiwiteit van die bestuur van die myn. Die geskiedenis van e-pos en die redes vir die gebruik van e-pos is ondersoek. Die verskillende gebruike asook die waarde van e-pos vir die individu en maatskappye is uitgelig. E-pos het ongelukkig ook nadele vir die individu en maatskappye en hierdie nadele is uitgewys en bespreek. Na die toepaslike literatuurstudie is inligting vanaf die e-pos databasis onttrek om die e-pos gebruik van Sishen werknemers te evalueer. Die belangrikste insig vanuit die databasis-ontleding het daarop gedui dat 'n klein hoeveelheid mense die grootste hoeveelheid e-posse binne Sishen stuur en ontvang. 'n Vraelys is tydens 'n meningsopname aan alle e-pos gebruikers binne Sishen uitgestuur om die invloed van e-pos op bestuurseffektiwiteit te bepaal. Vanuit die analise van die vraelys inligting was dit moontlik om geografiese samestelling van die e-pos gebruikers te bepaal. Dit was moontlik om te sien hoeveel werknemers per afdeling, geslag, ras, ouderdom en jare diens e-pos gebruikers is, asook om die besonderhede van die gebruikers vas te stel. Verdere analise van die vraelysinligting het aangedui dat e-pos 'n positiewe uitwerking op bestuurseffektiwiteit het en dat werknemers dit goed gebruik. Ongelukkig het dit ook na vore gekom dat daar genoegsame bewyse is dat daar ook negatiewe invloed op bestuurseffektiwiteit is. Die mees insiggewende was die besonder lae vlakke van rekenaar en e-pos opleiding wat bestuur deurloop het. Dit word gesien as een van die grootste bydraende faktore tot die hoe vlakke van frustrasie wat ervaar word deur bestuur. Vanuit die bevindinge van die vraelys is daar aanbevelings aan Sishen gemaak om sodoende te help om die bestuurseffektiwiteit te bevorder deur die gebruik van e-pos. Die potensiele voordele wat verkry kan word wanneer die aanbevelings implementeer word, is ook aangedui.

Kumba Iron Ore, Ltd. is the world‘s fourth largest supplier of sea-borne iron ore and currently operates two mines in South Africa namely: the Sishen mine in the Northern Cape and Thabazimbi mine in Limpopo. The Sishen mine, located at the northern end of the Maremane anticline where the bulk of the hematite ore is buried beneath younger cover lithologies, was our focus area. Here the iron resources are made up by laminated and massive ore bodies that belong to the Asbestos Hills Subgroup. These ore bodies are overlain by conglomerates, shales, flagstone and quartzite. The alkalis, potassium and phosphorous, are common constituents of iron ore, which is known to have a deleterious effect on the manufacturing of iron and steel. Therefore steel making companies charge penalties when purchasing iron ore concentrates with alkali concentrations above predetermined levels. To ensure that the export batches at the Sishen mine stay within set limits, the ores from different batches (with alkali concentration greater and below set limits) are mixed to produce a batch which meet requirements. However this solution will soon become ineffective as the low alkali ore is progressively depleted. Conventional methods used to treat high alkali ores include pyro-and hydrometallurgical methods. These approaches have several limitations such as poor product recovery, involvement of high process and energy cost and an increase in pollution load of water resources. Therefore necessitating research and development of alternative cheap and environment friendly procedures, which could supplement or replace conventional methods to ensure that mining stays economically feasible at the Sishen Iron Ore mine. The application of microorganisms to mining practices is collectively referred to as biohydrometallurgy and includes bioleaching and biooxidation processes. The phrase bioleaching refers to the conversion of an insoluble metal (typically a metal sulfide) into a soluble form (typically a metal sulfate), via microbial activity. When metals are extracted into solution, the process is referred to as bioleaching, whereas if the metal remains in the mineral, it is referred to as biooxidation. The latter term biobeneficiation refers to the selective dissolution of undesired minerals from the ores by direct or indirect action of microbes, thereby enriching the desirable mineral content. Therefore the objective of this study was to determine whether bacteria (naturally occurring on the ore or introduced species) could be used to selectively remove the alkalis from the iron ore mined at Sishen. The species evaluated were able to change the solution pH and/or form biofilms, which is assumed to have affected mineral mobilization. Data obtained during this study suggests that the composition of the ore plays a significant role in its susceptibility to bioleaching. Furthermore we also found that the indigenous cultures were more effective than the introduced species to mobilize the alkalis, which could possibly be ascribed to an adaptation of the microbes present. These preliminary results suggest that bioleaching is an effective alternative cost effective approach to treat iron ore and could possibly be implemented in future into the mining schedule at Sishen. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Microbiology and Plant Pathology / unrestricted

A sustainable society is a society that satisfies its resource requirements without endangering the sustainability of these resources. The mineral endowment on the African continent is estimated to be the first or second largest of world reserves. Therefore, it is recognised that the African continent still heavily depends on mineral exports as a key contributor to the gross domestic product (GDP) of various countries. These mining activities, however, do introduce primary and secondary environmental degradation factors. They attract communities to these mining areas, light and heavy industrial establishments occur, giving rise to artisanal activities. This study focussed on satellite RS products as an aid to a mine’s operations and the monitoring of its environment. Effective operational mine management and control ensures a more sustainable and profitable lifecycle for mines. Satellite based RS holds the potential to observe the mine and its surrounding areas at high temporal intervals, different spectral wavelengths and spatial resolutions. The combination of SAR and optical information creates a spatial platform to observe and measure the mine’s operations and the behaviour of specific land cover and land use classes over time and contributes to a better understanding of the mining activities and their influence on the environment within a specific geographical area. This study will introduce an integrated methodology to collect, process and analyse spatial information over a specific targeted mine. This methodology utilises a medium resolution land cover base map, derived from Landsat 8, to understand the predominant land cover types of the surrounding area. Using very high resolution mono- and stereoscopic satellite imagery provides a finer scale analysis and identifies changes in features at a smaller scale. Combining these technologies with the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) applications for precise measurement of surface subsidence or upliftment becomes a spatial toolbox for mine management. This study examines a combination of satellite remote sensing products guided by a systematic workflow methodology to integrate spatial results as an aid for mining operations and environmental monitoring. Some of the results that can be highlighted is the successful land cover classification using the Landsat 8 satellite. The land cover that dominated the Kolomela mine area was the “SHRUBLAND/GRASS” class with a 94% coverage and “MINE” class of 2.6%. Sishen mine had a similar dominated land cover characteristic with a “SHRUBLAND/GRASS” class of 90% and “MINE” class of 4.8%. The Pléiades time-series classification analysis was done using three scenes each acquired at a different time interval. The Sishen and Kolomela mine showed especially changes from the bare soil class to the asphalt or mine class. The Pléiades stereoscopic analysis provided volumetric change detection over small, medium, large and recessed areas. Both the Sishen and Kolomela mines demonstrated height profile changes in each selected category. The last category of results focused on the SAR technology to measure within millimetre accuracy the subsidence and upliftment behaviour of surface areas over time. The Royal Bafokeng Platinum tailings pond area was measured using 74 TerraSAR-X scenes. The tailings wall area was confirmed as stable with natural subsidence that occurred in its surrounding area due to seasonal changes of the soil during rainy and dry periods. The Chuquicamata mine as a large open pit copper mine area was analysed using 52 TerraSAR-X scenes. The analysis demonstrated significant vertical surface movement over some of the dumping sites. It is the wish of the researcher that this dissertation and future research scholars will continue to contribute in this scientific field. These contributions can only assist the mining sector to continuously improve its mining operations as well as its monitoring of the primary as well as the secondary environmental impacts to ensure improved sustainability for the next generation. / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Environmental Science)