Sweden’s Epiroc expects to complete its acquisition of mine vehicle collision avoidance system developer Mernok Elektronik in the first quarter of next year, adding to its recent purchase of Australian mobile machine control specialist RCT Global.
Epiroc said the acquisition of South Africa’s diminutive Mernok strengthened its position as “a world-leading provider of automation and safety solutions for mining operations”.
Pretoria-headquartered Mernok, established in 2008, is said to generate annual sales of circa-US$5 million and employ about 45 people.
Changes to South Africa’s Mine Health and Safety Act required mine owners and contractors to introduce collision avoidance and proximity detection systems for mobile equipment by the end of 2020. The country has become a key global market for the technologies.
Epiroc says Mernok designs and produces South African EMESRT Level 9 (highest level) technologies for individual mine vehicles or mixed fleets. The company’s customer base was “primarily in Africa”.
