From left to right: Johan Olivier (Seamcor), Sollie Swanepoel (Samancor – BIS Group Manager), Rudi Stickling (Samancor – BIS Specialist), JJ Kotze (Seamcor)

Samancor Chrome has signed a contract with Seamcor to use its compliance software across all their business units. With a workforce in excess of 7,500 colleagues, Samancor Chrome is an innovative and progressive company that makes a significant contribution to the South African mining sector and is actively striving to be an employer of choice. Samancor Chrome is the largest ferrochrome producer in the world, with an annual capacity of 2.4 million tons of ferrochrome.

Samancor has completed a rigorous proof of concept of the Seamcor software in two of their business units, TC Smelter (TCS) and Ferro Metals (FMT). As part of the POC the software has been used for lab checks, production checks (including furnace inspections, shift checks), SHEQ audits, maintenance and engineering checks (including slag carrier, conveyer and overhead crane checks, water treatment maintenance inspections). In addition, as part of the POC real-time integration into the Samancor MES (Manufacturing execution system) was developed.

The Seamcor Software is a business process compliance tool that can be used anywhere in the business where there is a need to perform checks, tests, and inspections. One advantage of the product is the real-time data capture and visualisation. In this sense, department managers are in full control of their data.

A key advantage that works in favour of Samancor is the software’s ability to facilitate departments to create their own bespoke processes, procedures, and corrective actions for different areas or sites of the business. Examples of data capture within tasks can include (but not limited to) general workflow procedure, requiring signatures, and scanning of barcodes, photos of non-conformances and real-time integration with Bluetooth non-contact forehead thermometers.

The client data capturing part of Principle Suite is versatile in the sense that it can carry out tasks online and offline where strong wireless network connections are not always feasible on site.

However, once the device is back in range, tasks can then automatically upload to be audited. A completed task may include email alerts for non-conformances flagged at various stages of tasks, which can be sent to a customised list of recipients immediately upon completion.

Significantly, in early May 2020 Samancor approached Seamcor with the requirement to use the software for daily COVID questionnaires, with real-time integration with non-contact Bluetooth forehead thermometers. Applied Principles developed this functionality on short notice and the checks will go live early July 2020.

Sollie Swanepoel, BIS Group Manager at Samancor said, “the Seamcor software has revolutionised our ability to manage compliance across our business, their versatility and approach has been nothing short of game changing. Their turnaround responsiveness in relation to the development of the software to enable real-time, daily checks for COVID was impressive, they have become our partner in every sense of the word.”