Skiptainer set to put more minerals on rail

Innovation remains a sure way of removing excess waste from the supply chain, says ICM Group CEO Kiall Marsh. “If the global downturn of 2009 taught us anything it was that wastage in the supply chain can no longer be afforded and that we cannot continue to make the same mistakes. We must keep the supply chain lean at all times.” For this reason the company has focused on finding solutions that impact on supply chain efficiencies. “We have in the past few months patented two innovations – the Skiptainer and G-Track – and are extremely proud of these achievements. There are many people out there who have good ideas, but seeing those ideas in operation is not always so easy.” Marsh is confident the Skiptainer, a combination of a skip and a container that is easy to fill and empty, easy to load and offload and most importantly perfectly transportable on a flatbed rail wagon, will revolutionise the way that bulk cargo is moved in the country by reducing wastage. “It will also change the way that bulk rail is seen in the country as private companies with no rail sidings will now be motivated to use the Skiptainer and that will ultimately mean more mining product on rail. It will definitely reduce wastage.” Another innovation is G-Track, a specialised tracking device that measures g-forces, vibrations and location on any product, giving the user much-needed intelligence. “Essentially the data from G-Track allows us to monitor cargo from factory to site knowing what condition it is in at all times.”