A Proudly South African continuous miner, which is being shipped to Australia for final assembly, is due to go into operation Down Under in May, Mining Weekly Online can today report. “It certainly shows that the Australian mining industry has gained a lot of confidence in our ability,” said Danie van Wyk, the CEO of JA Engineering Works, the exporter of the remotely controlled Wildcat JAE42A, which was designed and manufactured by JAE in Jet Park, Boksburg, and which has a high local content of 90%. JA Engineering Works is a 200-employee, 30.5% black-owned original-equipment manufacturer of not only continuous miners but also shuttle cars, roof bolters and feeder breakers, all of which are powered by grid electricity or large generators. The company is also a leading manufacturer of battery scoops, which are powered by direct-current batteries. The robust Wildcat has been built from scratch, in a way that responds to customer requirements.
