The premise that South Africa`s information technology is the equal of that found in the world`s most sophisticated economies - and has often been of world leadership status - is no better illustrated than by the South African Mint.
A pristinely modern plant evolved from over a century of providing coinage for the nation, it is regarded as the most modern mint in the world
Of the 40 official mints world-wide, as well as the private companies created to manufacture coins, few have the pedigree of the SA Mint; few can offer the end-to-end process offered by the plant which sits midway between South Africa`s financial and administrative capitals.
Precision rolling, blanking, electroplating and high speed coining, not to mention scientific support services: the steps which take metal from shapeless lumps to polished tender, all riding on a strategically planned cycle driven by leading edge information technology.
Dion Swanepoel was the de facto father of the Mint`s all-encompassing IT department and now, as a consultant to the organisation, is handing over the reins to Marc van Gool, who will take their joint vision and apply it to what will be even greater advances.
"The SA Mint, "says Van Gool, "has no parallels and has been appointed by about a dozen other countries to provide coins. It is the only fully Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) plant of its kind, and is also one of the few mints which provide a full cradle-to-grave service, taking the process from raw material through the production of coin blanks and on to the final product."
The recent change in the coin series a few years ago provided Swanepoel and Van Gool with the perfect opportunity to set up a new mint infrastructure, and right now it is a classic example of a fully automated, non-labour intensive, secure operation that stands as a beacon to how information technology and light engineering can blend to create a cost-efficient, effective business.
Light engineering? Swanepoel correctly does not see the South African Mint as an operation exclusively devoted to the production of coins.
"In this day and age, with the emergence of smart cards, plastic money and the status of currencies world-wide, the demand for coins is, in many cases, going to decline.
We have geared the plant to service as a light engineering concern because we realise that the future is in diversification," he says. Van Gool has an IT staff of 19 - a grouping of technologists who are the lifeblood of the Mint.
"IT is perhaps the single most critical element of the Mint," he explains. "Nothing moves in the plant without our involvement. It is fully automated, and this in itself has provided significant cost savings. If the Mint was a typical labour-intensive operation we would require three times the current factory size, with an equivalent cost of investment.
"As it is, our entire material handling operation has just two people per shift, where normally with forklift and store management personnel, at least 10 people are needed.
They work on a two shift-per day basis, seven days a week." At the heart of the Mint`s technology lies Computer Associates` Ingres, which arrived preloaded into the hardware acquired by the Mint back in 1990, and which went live two years later to run the rolling mill.
Swanepoel and his then-team maximised what Ingres had to offer, custom-writing all other systems and running them on Ingres.
"Ingres fits into our future vision in that we believe it will provide an ideal basis for an executive information system," he says.
Right now, Van Gool adds, the Mint uses Ingres to provide weekly schedules, downloaded from SAP, with finite scheduling provided daily. Ingres controls the Mint`s material handling and balancing requirements, detailed store information, data collection, reporting and control and, indeed, the entire factory control system.
Computer Associates` Denise McMaster says that technologically the software company will be providing added solutions based on CA`s comprehensive suite of products.
"Data warehousing and EIS requirements fit into the Mint`s future vision, as does the the underlying data management system," she says. "We`re working with the Mint to assess key enabling technology which, all things being equal, will include elements of our strategic information and systems management tools in combination with other technologies which will enable the Mint to maximise the benefits of internet and intranet technology."
"Allowing management a point-and-click device for reporting is obviously a key requirement," Van Gool explains. "They would have the capability to fully utilise the system for greater efficiency, which is critical to any business operation. What this means is that by simply clicking on icons management can swiftly and easily use current data and make it work for them to ensure an unhindered flow of information."
The Mint`s configuration is based on a three-tier architecture, running SAP at the top end, with Ingres handling the factory controls and materials handling requirements, and a plant management system at the lowest tier.
Linked to the system are a series of Acer and HP Intel devices running SCO Unix which replaced the unsatisfactory proprietary IBM PS/2 and AIX systems.
"Prior to 1988 the mint had barely any information systems in place," says Swanepoel. "The current system therefore grew from grass roots - we had the equivalent of a sheet of metal and the opportunity to make of it our own coinage.
Now, with the best technology available, we`re in the position of having total control over production, costs, quality and security."
And that, as they say, you can take to the bank ...
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