Founded in 1934, AfriSam (then trading as Anglovaal Portland Cement Company Limited) started construction on its first cement plant in 1935 at the plant’s current location in Roodepoort.
The factory was brought into production on 11 November 1935 and immediately ran at full capacity. Over the past 85 years the plant has undergone a number of clinker capacity expansions – reaching 300 000 t of clinker a year, at its height. No longer a clinker producing factory, the Roodepoort plant is now AfriSam’s primary grinding, blending and packing facility with capacity to produce 1 000 000 tons of cement a year .
Approximately 12 000 t of clinker is received a week by means of train and bulk road trucks. The clinker is then transferred through a Tippler to two 10 000 t storage silos. Clinker, gypsum, and limestone are transported to the plant’s Mill 8 to be ground into Milled Clinker (MC). Rapid Hard Cement (RHC) is also produced at Mill 8, with additional capacity for production of different composition products.
The grinding process is monitored and controlled using an ABB PLC system and regular quality samples are analysed in the company’s laboratory to ensure that optimum quality products are produced. Particle size distribution, chemical composition and most importantly product strength are monitored.
The MC is primarily stored in a 15 kt-capacity silo and the RHC cement is stored in three 1100 t silos. Blending Plant (BP) 1 and BP2 receive MC, slagment and pulverised fuel ash, which are blended into various cement products for packaging, which makes up about 35% of total sales, or bulk despatching for 65% of total sales. There is an efficient single line, fully-automated packing plant producing high quality palletised cement bags.
Located on Main Reef road in Roodepoort, the 36 Ha plant is wholly owned by AfriSam and employs 157 permanent and contractor staff.
AfriSam’s Roodepoort plant recently received a 95.83% NOSA safety rating and has received a record 38 NOSCARs, the highest in history for any NOSA affiliated company.