Illegal mining is problematic across Africa, with between 20 t to 40 t of the 100 t of gold mined on the continent each year by artisanal miners, extracted through illegal means, and possibly fuelling conflict on the continent, Rand Refinery CEO Howard Craig stated at the Mining Indaba in February.

To put this in perspective, 100 t is half of South Africa’s yearly output.

Craig added that it was almost impossible for refineries to determine if the gold sent to them from small-scale miners was being used to fuel conflict or crime.

Gold giant AngloGold Ashanti’s executive VP Africa Robert Duffy said his company estimated that between 25 kg and 35 kg of gold was mined monthly by artisanal miners in Tanzania alone. “It is extremely difficult to determine the scale and the output of these artisanal miners, as they are all unregulated.”

Workforce systems provider Gensys notes that, in response to this problem, it is targeting mines across Africa with its high-security turnstile technology, aimed at increasing mine security and curbing illegal mining activities.

“The question is not whether illegal mining exists on unsecure sites, but to what extent it exists,” notes Gensys project manager and workforce management consultant Claytin Capell.

The turnstile technology denies illegal miners access to underground mine premises, thereby curbing the damage to underground infrastructure and the criminal risk to which mine personnel are exposed.

“The technology contributes to mineworker safety, as it enables the successful identification of personnel, enforces health and safety rules and provides mining companies with an employee’s location, either surface or underground, for shaft clear purposes,” he explains.

Gensys developed its high-security turnstile concept over three years and released the final product in January 2012. The high-security concept and operational functionality were developed and tested in Johannesburg, in conjunction with a local partner manufacturer physical access control manufacturer Turnstar.

“It is available worldwide and in demand in mining industries where valuable minerals are readily available underground in near finished forms,” Capell states.

He adds that this new design encapsulates the necessary improvements on contemporary turnstile design and drastically reduces penetration of the premises through control circumvention and enhanced operational functionality.

“The technology prevents illegal miners from penetrating mine barriers, owing to a 45° locking concept, forcing unidentified persons back to the entry point and only allowing those attaining a 100% combination result of identification and verification at reader point to enter the mine,” says Capell.

“The turnstile cannot be breached by climbing through, upwards or over any part of the unit and restricted space allows only one person to pass through and diminishes the possibility of two persons attempting to breach the barrier in vertical or side-by-side positions.”

The technology comprises a patented pending turnstile design and a Posi-Lock mechanism technology, which enables the electronic identification of a person when the mechanism is securely locked in place, with the identification logic disabled when the rotor is in any other position.

Multispectral sensor fingerprint and logic technology also form part of the turnstile solution, which increase the accuracy of personnel identification, he adds, noting that the overall size of the solution is similar to conventional single turnstiles, which allows the conventional in-line stacking of units.

Further, a lockable lid eliminates tampering with the turnstile system and wiring and, when enabled, the system reader and biometrics are not accessible from the outside, ensuring accurate user identification and verification.

“Battery back-up is also incorporated in the technology, with bidirectional operation capability, which saves space and enhances worker flow,” Capell points out.

He adds that the turnstile technology also eliminates ‘airlocks’ – two unidirectional turnstiles forming a sterile area – and creates an easily manageable high-security area, which makes the barrier exceptionally difficult to breach.

“More effective security management is ensured with the technology, which can decrease the number of security guards needed.”

The technology was installed at three vertical mining sites at a gold mine in February 2012, ensuring the protection of all underground entry points, which led to substantial interest in new installations and integration options, Capell concludes.