Ansys has won a R20-million contract to supply eight continuous rope-monitoring (CRM) systems to gold-mining major AngloGold Ashanti.

The CRM systems will be installed at the Moab Khotsong mine to enhance mine safety.

Engineering and technology company Ansys has won a R20-million contract to supply eight continuous rope-monitor- ing (CRM) systems to gold-mining major AngloGold Ashanti. The CRM systems will be installed at the Moab Khotsong mine to enhance mine safety.

Ansys CEO Alan Holloway reports that the technology used in these CRM systems is being specifically designed and developed by Ansys and Moab Khotsong mine management. The driving force for the initiative is the safety of the mine personnel as the company and all its mining affiliates subscribe to a strong safety culture.

The purpose of the equipment, which is still being tested, is to continuously monitor the health of the mine’s winder ropes, a requirement owing to the extreme depth of wind at Moab Khotsong, to prevent possible rope failure. “The CRM systems trigger an alarm if the tolerances on the steel cable used on the mine’s winder equipment differ by a certain agreed amount,” says Holloway.

He adds that mine safety is a critical issue in South African mines and, as human lives are at stake daily, there can be no margin for error. “Ansys is developing this equipment specifically to assist mining houses in monitoring the condition of their winder ropes to proactively prevent rope failure,” says Holloway.

Ansys will assist in the installation, testing and commissioning of the system, with AngloGold Ashanti being responsible for the overall installation of the equipment.

Measured output data from the system will also be dis- tributed to AngloGold Ashanti, Anglo Field Services and Ansys. A data record will be built up over time to ensure maximum system performance and increased fault detection.

Ansys will ensure the system’s continuous performance, which includes calibration and servicing as well as data monitoring and enhancements under a separate contract with AngloGold Ashanti.

Holloway points out the system being developed should have wide application throughout the mining industry in South Africa.

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Introduction

The 2010 financial year was the worst year in the history of Ansys. Performance was adversely affected by a number of factors. The group experienced longer than usual procurement and payment cycles of major clients. Two subsidiaries, Optocon and Emerging Signals experienced capital equipment pressure and delayed project execution respectively. Sales were depressed owing to reduced demand as a result of the global financial melt-down. The combined effect of these factors has resulted in the less than satisfactory results.

However, prospects for 2011 financial year have improved dramatically as the factors highlighted above have in main been resolved. Government’s re-energized commitment to service delivery has encouraged our public sector clients to speed up both procurement and payment cycles. Projects in the signalling and defence domain, a major portion of Ansys’ business, are being expedited to meet the service delivery backlogs.

Demand in our mining market has begun to grow. Major orders of the Ansys Rope Tester have been secured and more are expected for this unique product.

Ansys has significantly diversified away from the state-owned enterprise sector. Currently more than 50% of the R100 million orders on hand are from the private sector. Other actions were taken to improve the operational effectiveness of the business and are expected to improve returns. Improvements made to Optocon include the appointment of a new managing director and concluding a distribution agreement for the Ansys Commercial Optical Cameras with a major distributor to boost sales.

Emerging Signals, which is still imperative to Ansys’ rail operation, has been completely integrated in terms of its management and administration to enhance management’s focus. QuadSoft, which remains profitable and a generator of free cash flows, is expected to increase its contribution as efforts are underway to expand into other markets.

View Ansys Limited reviewed provisional annual results 2010 | PDF 140 KB

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Shareholders are referred to the announcement released on SENS on 21 April 2010 and are advised that Ansys is currently in the process of finalising its results for the year ended 28 February 2010.

It is anticipated, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that Ansys will reflect a basic and headline loss per share of between 10 cents and 12 cents (2009: basic and headline profit per share of 1.09 cents) for the year ended 28 February 2010.                                    

The financial information on which this trading update is based has not been reviewed or reported on by the company`s auditors. The company`s results for the year ended 28 February 2010 are expected to be released on SENS by the middle of
May 2010.                                                                      
                          

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