This document outlines challenges and improvement plans for ventilation and occupational hygiene at VOHE mines. Key ventilation challenges include non-compliance with air utilization standards, leakages, and restrictions reducing airflow. Occupational hygiene challenges include high dust levels, incomplete sampling, and overexposures. Improvement plans focus on sealing leaks, removing restrictions, enforcing brattice installation standards, improving dust suppression, ensuring daily sampling, and addressing projects to reduce dust and noise.

1. SHEQ IMPROVEMENT PLAN 2014
VOHE
J TAU and B MOKOENA

2. Sections ventilation performance (FY 2014 average)
AV
Sect.01
AV
Sect.02
MUG
Sect.01
MUG
Sect.04
MUG
Sect.05
L.T.R Air Utilisation 73.0 79.1 89.5 85.3 84.2
Section Air Utilisation 60.3 59.1 78.6 66.9 71.1
Standard 80.0 80.0 80.0 80.0 80.0
0.0
10.0
20.0
30.0
40.0
50.0
60.0
70.0
80.0
90.0
100.0
Percentage
Air Utilisation
AV
Sect.01
AV
Sect.02
MUG
Sect.01
MUG
Sect.04
MUG
Sect.05
Velocity 0.86 0.89 1.11 1.10 1.19
Std 0.60 0.60 1.00 1.50 1.50
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
1.40
1.60
m/s
Velocities

3. Sections ventilation performance (FY 2014 average)
AV Sect.01 AV Sect.02 MUG Sect.01 MUG Sect.04 MUG Sect.05
Quantity 18.8 19.8 20.6 48.1 50.5
Std 30 30 30 50.3 55.1
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
m3/s
Quantities

4. CM Dust Sampling (FY 2014)
Sect. 01 Sect. 04 Sect. 05
Average 2.52 3.23 3.37
DMR Limit 5.00 5.00 5.00
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
mg/m3
CM sampling dust levels
Sect. 01 Sect. 04 Sect. 05
Actual DMR
Compliance
81.8% 71.0% 72.5%
Std DMR Compliance 90.0% 90.0% 90.0%
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
100.0%
CM sampling DMR compliance

5. Personal dust sampling compliance
No of samples/sampling
stategy
No. of samples taken % Sampling compliance No. of samples above OEL % samples above OEL
Series1 498 455 91 68 14.9
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
AxisTitle
Personal dust sampling

6. Personal dust sampling compliance
No of samples/sampling
stategy
No. of samples taken % Sampling compliance No. of samples above OEL % samples above OEL
Series1 260 187 72.7 62 33.2
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
AxisTitle
Personal noise sampling

7. Challenges
VENTILATION
Air utilisation non-compliance: Aviemore not complying with both l.t.r and section utilisation;
Magdalena complying with l.t.r utilisation, but not complying with section utilisation.
Leakages between the l.t.r and main return
Brattice installation standard
Leaking walls and air crossings
Restrictions: (fall of ground, stowing and water accumulation) in return airways – Magdalena; Single
roads with small cross-sectional area (dyke areas) – Aviemore.
Section 04 and 05 velocities: not complying with the required 1.5 m/s l.t.r standard
Quantities: All sections are not complying with the required quantities in terms of ventilation supply.
Ventilation structures that are not working are adding to the airflow restrictions, and hence to the
overall system resistance (air crossings, walls, brattices that are perpendicular to airflow direction)
Leakages in the system (walls, regulators and access doors) affecting l.t.r velocity and air utilization
compliance
OCCUPATIONAL HYGIENE
CM dust sampling: not complying with the DMR 90% set standard
 Not complying with the number of samples taken (pumps not taken underground daily)
CM dust suppression compliance; and high dust investigations
Personal sampling (dust and noise): sampling not completed in time for each quarter, overexposures
and outstanding investigations.
Thermal stress and welding returns: not done

8. Improvement plan for 2014 and beyond
Ventilation:
Brattice installation STP has been drawn – ensure/enforce compliance to the STP
Seal all leaking walls, remove restriction in the return airways (pump water, remove stowed coal and
flatten all duff accumulation).
Remove all obsolete ventilation structures to alleviate restrictions in the system.
Occupational Hygiene:
CM dust suppression: ensure compliance as per OEM specifications.
Conduct CM dust suppression survey monthly and generate reports.
Ensure that dust pumps are taken underground daily (VOHE to monitor)
Ensure that all required DMR returns are done and submitted timeously.
Ensure that high dust investigations are conducted promptly and report at planning meetings
Engage with BU management to discuss projects that must be implemented to deal with dust and noise
challenges (noise attenuation, effective dust suppression systems, effective PPE compliance monitoring,
etc.)
VOHE to follow up and put pressure on VOHE Steering Committee meetings commitments.