Saiccor - The First 50 Years 5.8 MB - Sappi

The First Fifty Years
so concerned about the South African operators (both white and
black), that he wrote a letter (on a SAICI letterhead) on 3 January
1956 on behalf of the SAICI Start-up Team Management to the Saiccor
General Management concluding that, ‘if something were not done
about the standard of the operators, the plant could not operate�’ He
found the South African operators inefficient, uncooperative, ill
disciplined and unwilling to learn, compounded by a high turnover
of whites�
The Italians had come out in 1954 on a two-year contract to build
and start up Saiccor and were due to return to Italy in 1956� Because
of Fonda’s concerns, Saiccor management offered all the Italians the
opportunity of signing a further three-year contract with a ‘signing
on’ bonus of £300 (about 10 months’ salary)� Although their wages
were relatively low by today’s standards (30 cents an hour), their
standard of living in Umkomaas was better than it had been in Italy�
About half the Italians signed the new three-year contract, while the
other half started returning to Italy from 20 April 1956� Many of the
artisans who stayed on were employed as operators�
Production increased steadily from 78 t/d in January 1956 to 163
t/d in April 1959, achieving the design capacity of 110 t/d from July
1956 onwards� The yearly figures were:
1956: 105 t/d 1957: 130 t/d 1958: 148 t/d
Although numerous minor alterations were made to the plant, like
increasing pipe and motor sizes, the increase in production was
achieved largely by learning how to get the maximum output out of
each and every piece of equipment�
For example, the following alterations were made to the drying
machine over the period�
A new 200 mm steam line
Removing rashig rings from the air water heat exchanger
Increasing the air flow through the dryer
Improved felts and wires
Improved vacuum at the suction presses
With these relatively minor changes, the output of the machine
increased from its design of 110 t/d in early 1956 to average around
150 t/d in the second half of 1958� The first time 181 t (200 short
tons) was achieved was on 22 August 1958�
Naturally the output of all other plants had to match the drying
machine and all increased accordingly�
A fatality unfortunately occurred on 10 February 1956� Foreman
Instrument Mechanic Ego del Bianco was killed by the digester lift�
A block of flats under construction in Saiccor Village at the time was
named Del Bianco Court in honour of Ego, as was a street in the
village�
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