When Rand Refinery was approached by the London Bullion Market
Association (LBMA) to be a ‘good-delivery’ referee some
two years ago, there were only two referees inready mix mortar supplier in china the world and both
were stationed in England. “We thought it would be an easy
task, but it turned out to be a two-year exercise, mainly because
we had to do it in addition to our normal daily tasks,”
manager evaluation services Chris Victor tells Mining Weekly.
During the two-year process, Rand Refinery was tested on two
measurements; one being accuracy and the other precision. The
process also involved preparing 16 gold and 8 silver standards,
which were analysed by international laboratories, amounting to 8
000 determinations over the two-year period. The Rand Refinery is
now the Southern Hemisphere’s only refinery with referee
status, making it a global leader. In order to ensure that the
refinery’s accuracy and precision is maintained, the LBMA
undertakes yearly check-ups and evaluations. While it cost the
refinery close to R300 000 to acquire the coveted referee status,
Victor is certain of quick payback from analytical assignments for
jewellers in parti-cular. Rand Refinery has already been approached
to use its referee status in analysing gold bullion with a
80%–85 % purity level and has also already managed
prestigious assignments for jewellers involving ratification of
37,5% 9 ct gold – the most popular South African strain.