News and updates

RMC Paper 1 Download - Important Information

Friday, 30 March 2012

Dear SANIRE Member, we are apologizing for any problems being experienced during the download process, but we are experiencing very large download volumes. Be patient and try again. When successful downloading please check the following:

Install Paper 1 Material

o   Download the Installer file from the website
o   Double click of the Installer and allow it to install the information on your computer
o   When done, the Installer will create an Icon on your desktop that reads 'Rock Mechanics Theory', use this icon to open the document. You do not need to open any other files, but work through th...

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MOSHing towards zero harm

Monday, 19 March 2012

Rock related safety is a major issue. The Chamber of Mines' Mine Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) initiative is helping to address it. Find out more by reading on.

In 2003, representatives of the South African Mining industry - employers, labour unions and government - set historic and significant milestones for health and safety, to be reached by 2013, en route to zero harm for all employees.

The Chamber of Mines realised that the milestones, let alone the targets, would not easily be met without significant effort on the part of mines. Therefore the Chamber of Mines Learning Hub was ...

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From maths and computers to rock engineering

Monday, 19 March 2012

Roger Johnson's enjoyment of his job is based on the people he works with; the diversity in terms of commodity, geographic location and mining method; and the challenges and opportunities to introduce new technology, better practice and improved solutions. Here, he shares some of his ideas and experiences with Rock Talk.

Roger Johnson (56) had more of an interest in sport, the outdoors, music and social activities than in academics in his time as a scholar as La Salle College on the West Rand, but that was no predictor of his future.

Today, he has a slew of degrees and other qualifications t...

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March will bring your first free downloadable paper

Monday, 19 March 2012

Comprehensive rock engineering learning material for the South African mining industry is almost complete – and you can download it for free. Read more about it.

The writing of comprehensive rock engineering material for the South African mining industry started in the first half of 2011. It should be completed by end of March this year. At the time of writing this article, Paper 1 was complete. It should be available for download, free of charge, on the Sanire website by the time you read this article. The other papers will be available for download as and when they are completed.

Why is t...

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Design of Merensky Reef crush pillars

Monday, 19 March 2012

saimmlogo2 The Bushveld platinum group metal deposits are two distinct, shallow-dipping stratiform tabular ore bodies which strike for many hundreds of kilometres. Mining is extensive, with depths ranging from close-to-surface to 2300 m. The mining method is a variation of planar open stoping. Pillars are widely employed to support the open stopes. In the deeper levels, in-stope pillars are required to fail in a stable manner soon after being cut, and the residual pillar strength is used to stabilize the hangingwall. These pillars are commonly known as crush pillars. Little work has been done in the p...

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How Tuks makes positive change a constant

Monday, 19 March 2012

The University of Pretoria's Jannie Maritz asks: Are teaching and learning really making an impact? At Tuks, he thinks they are. Read on to find out why.

The University of Pretoria's department of Mining Engineering celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2011. The first mining engineering student enrolled for the degree in 1961 and subsequently graduated in 1964.

A lot has changed on and around the campus, yet one thing has stayed the same: The quality of mining engineer graduating has improved. Every year, Tuks Mining is delivering around 30 newly developed mining engineers into the industry. ...

Nov 25 2010

Proposed short course on Design and Analysis of Open Pit Slopes

Golder Associates Africa in conjunction with the Surface Mining Branch of SANIRE is looking to host a 2 day short course entitled:Design and Analysis of Open Pit Slopes using a Two-Dimensional Finite Element Modelling Tool; How to build realistic models of open pit slopes in jointed rock masses using Phase^2.Presented by Dr Reginald Hammah

When mine open pits reach significant depths or are developed in high horizontal stress environments, the mechanics of their behaviour are not well handled by the commonly applied methods of slope stability analysis. In such cases, numerical models are required to reliably design pit slopes and estimate levels of instability. These methods, among offering many other benefits, can estimate deformations, one of the most commonly monitored aspects of slope behaviour and important indicators of the onset of instability. Recent advances in computing power and numerical modelling software have made it possible to apply these tools to routine problem-solving.

The training course is designed to equip engineers with the skills needed to model and design open pit slopes using the two-dimensional Finite Element program, Phase2. Course participants will learn to apply the many powerful tools and features in the program to build models that capture many aspects of the real-world behaviour of jointed rock masses. This will include the automatic generation of rock fabric (networks of joints and fractures), finite elements for simulating the sliding and opening of joints, and the shear strength reduction (SSR) method for calculating slope factor of safety. Participants will also learn to calibrate numerical models based on measured slope deformations, helping to develop predictive models. The course will also provide tips that facilitate efficient model development and improve user productivity.

During the course, each participant will use the most recent version of Phase2 (version 8), which harnesses the parallel-computing capabilities of today’s multi-core laptops and desktops. Depending on operating system, participants can choose either the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Phase2, and will be granted full, free use of the software for four weeks.

Should you be interested in attending the course please contact Carl Fietze at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 011 313 1005.

Proposed date – first half of February 2011

Venue – Gauteng (exact venue to be confirmed)

Costs – dependant on the number of attendees and will be confirmed