Over R240 billion equivalent to 10% of the country’s GDP is the amount of money the country loses due to alcohol abuse annually. This is according to a study carried out by the South African Medical Journal in 2009. This enormous figure represents the estimate sum of all the different dimensions through which alcohol abuse deducts from us. From workplace incidents that cost and maim lives, to absenteeism, fraudulent leave and reduced productivity. Yet even with this mammoth loss, most employees would gladly not take any alcohol and illicit substance tests in their places of work.

The amount of money that alcohol and substance abuse costs South African businesses and their respective employees is huge and could otherwise have been better spent. Over and above this R240 billion loss, the emotional scars that alcohol imprints on families and loved ones are even more horrific. Breadwinners and spouses die or get maimed as a result of the effects of alcohol abuse in the workplace on a daily to weekly basis. For this reason alone one would expect that the behaviour of employees would change.

In South Africa employees are the primary beneficiaries of legislation that provides for health and safety standards in the workplace. The Law that governs general workplace safety is the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 1993 (OHSA) and in the Mining Industry, safety is governed by the Mine Health and Safety Act. Although the OHSA was poorly written and has often been misinterpreted, it is the Law that we have to work with and it has been in effect for over two decades.

The OHSA directs how safety is enforced and over time, as with all legislation, the act has been amended to suit the needs of evolving workplaces. In short, its objective is to “provide for the health and safety of persons at work.” The act empowers employers to formulate policies that will ensure that employees work in safe conditions that do not threaten their health in any way. These policies are the available instruments that all employees should be able to openly discuss with their employers on a continuous basis. The policies may deal with and include issues like substance abuse, alcohol testing, safety resources, training and frameworks for action in response to substance abuse, intervention and counselling.

Whoever the employer is in whatever industry, the company policies relating to health and safety must always have the same goal – to create a safe and healthy work place. Whatever the situation, the welfare of employees is of paramount importance and how an employer and employee interact, negotiate and agree on policies can ultimately make the difference between life and death. Through it all, the policies of companies and the legislation it is formulated under and a number of constitutional statutes all have to be observed faultlessly.

Some company policies provide for voluntary alcohol testing, while other companies test all employees entering their place of work. In industries which include mining, manufacturing plants that use heavy machinery, maritime and the transport space, alcohol testing is often mandatory. As a prerequisite to the operation of machinery, all employees must be sober and tested. For these industries testing is usually done at the entry point at the mine shaft or plant or factory using an automated AlcoScan Entrance Breathalyzer System (EBS).

AlcoScan Entrance Breathalyzer Systems can be connected to turnstiles where a biometric scanner, data logger and a camera can work hand in hand to identify an employee, capture a test result and log it against their record in the time and attendance database. If the EBS detects alcohol in your breath, you are automatically prevented from entering the premises. From this point, the company policies will then direct proceedings, whether it calls for a second confirmatory test or suspends the employee for the day without payment or calls for disciplinary action. In all instances, there is a zero tolerance of alcohol which when defied will be met with stringent disciplinary action as being under the influence of alcohol in the work place will threaten the lives of others as well as of that individual.

An innovative method to curb alcohol consumption within the workplace is to also ensure that employees are tested on their way out of the company premises. There have been a number of instances I have dealt with where employees have passed the breathalyser test when entering, but have then consumed alcohol during the day and beer cans have been found within the operating environment. Generally when employees leave work, there are no measures put in place to detect if there is alcohol in their breath. Testing for alcohol on the way out ensures that those that smuggle alcohol into premises are dealt with to preserve the safety of others. The barrier of outbound testing using the very same EBS used for inbound testing acts as a deterrent for all those who think they will be able to consume alcohol on site and get away with it.

For the transport industry, companies can opt for a breathalyzer to be installed for drivers to test before they start the vehicle. These Alco-Interlocks are connected to the ignition such that the vehicle will only start when the breathalyzer registers a pass confirming no alcohol has been detected in the breath. These breathalyzers may also be connected to a remote logging system and database that registers the test against the driver’s name. Together with the breathalyzer in the truck, a camera and ID tagging system can be installed to ensure that the test result registered is for the correct individual and not a passenger.

The importance of training and education about substance and alcohol abuse in the workplace cannot be emphasized enough. Unless adequate training and education is performed about substance abuse and why being under the influence of alcohol should never be mixed with heavy machines, employees will continue to operate vehicles and machines under the influence of alcohol.

It is also important to note that alcohol abuse puts more than just one person at risk. In a work environment, alcohol abuse affects a cluster, a department and the entire company negatively. An inebriated crane operator could make one wrong move due to impaired judgment as a result of being under the influence of alcohol and it can result in the maiming or death of team members he or she may be working with. A prime example: the recent and untimely death of Total CEO Christophe de Margerie by plane crash in Moscow was reportedly blamed on a drunk snow plough operator.

Misfortunes resulting from alcohol abuse and misuse do not distinguish who is affected and can cost the life of anyone from the ground up to the CEO. Therefore, it is imperative to keep in mind that alcohol abuse and misuse in the workplace is nothing less than a deathly wish that can be completely averted. If not for families and loved ones, then for the good of the business and ultimately the economy of our country. 

ENDSKey Words: Breathalyzer, Breathalyser, Alcohol Testing, Drug Testing, Substance Abuse 

For more information please contact Mr Angus MacArthur directly 

Angus MacArthur is the General Manager and co-owner of Alcohol Breathalysers CC and has been directly involved with the operations since inception in 2004. 

Tel: (011) 023 8955 /2
Mobile Phone: 072 747 6551
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.breathalysers.co.za
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BreathalyserGuy
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BreathalyserGuy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE --- 17/09/2014

Verifying the identity of an individual has never been easier with the new real time ID verification with photograph checks from V-Report.

No matter if you are opening accounts within the retail or banking sectors or assisting the job market in finding alternative employment, this verification can reduce your risk as well as the occurrence of potential fraud. Have you ever wondered how many times you have had a fraudulent identity document in front of you, but been none the wiser. Now V-Report can take care of the guesswork for you.

When using our new ID verification with photograph checks, you will receive real time confirmation to your inbox confirming the validity of an individual's personal information as well as the photograph on file associated with that individual at the South African Home Affairs Department. V-Report has two ID Verification with photograph checks on offer, the first option will verify the name and surname to the identity number provided and supply the associated photograph. The second option has more demographical information supplied, such as age, gender, citizenship and death status with the associated photograph being supplied.

Shane Meintjes, MD of V-Report said "V-Report has been on a drive to supply and source quality services and checks for our clients to help reduce fraud and the risks involved, we believe that our new real time ID verification checks are a big step in the right direction."

Once again, trying to assist clients as speedily as possible in making decisions, V-Report will soon be bringing the big four credit bureau's Transunion, Experian, Xpert Decision Systems (XDS) and Compuscan with real time credit checks to your inbox. Another positive step in the right direction we believe.

V-Report for your perusal can be found at www.v-report.co.za, 

We can be contact on (011) - 432-4416 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. anytime.

Companies are rapidly seeing the benefits of social media. In fact, social media is becoming indispensable for business, but with all the benefits come threats and risks as well for the workplace. Frost & Sullivan’s Global Workforce Study found that 64% of respondent companies limit employee access to social media through content filtering and website blocking technology, 51% restrict access by setting and enforcing policy and 25% have no restrictions on the use of social media by employees.  

Businesses should define clear social media usage policies, specifying who can access social media, what sites they can access, when they can access them, where they can access them and what devices they can use to access social media during work hours. There should be no room left for confusion. Policies should be clear, well defined and communicated to employees.  

Professionals who would benefit by attending include HR Managers, Digital Marketers, Chief Risk Officers, Social Media Strategists, Office Managers, Marketing Managers, HR Consultants, Employee Benefit Managers, Legal Advisors, Digital Projects Managers, e-Commerce Managers, Risk Managers to name a few...  

Rosalind Davey and Khomotso Makapane will facilitate the workshop, teaching all attendees how to understand and and mitigate the risks of social media in the workplace. Both of the facilitators are qualified attorneys from one of South Africa’s top law firms Bowman Gilfillan and specialise in employment law and Rosalind is one of the few attorneys specialising in social media law.  

During the half day workshop social media statistics, constitutional rights, RICA, freedom of expression and the law of defamation, liability for defamatory content on social media and vicarious liability, handling social media misconduct, loss of confidential information and contacts as well as mitigating the risks of social media will be addressed. View full agenda and download registration form at www.aoevents.co.za

Workshop registration fee: R800 pp. Groups of 3 or more receive 10% discount.

Email the completed registration form to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to secure your seat.

With 2014 being the year of Big Data it is essential to stay up to date with all the developments, challenges and laws of big data as well as how to analyse and manage big data. Attending the Big Data Analytics & Management Conference on 30 September is the best way to gain knowledge on all of this. The conference will be held at Emperors Palace, Kempton Park, Johannesburg.  

Data experts to address the conference:         

Gary Allemann - Master Data Management
Steven Burnstone - Eighty20 Consulting
Salome Coetsee - Ernst & Young Advisory Services
Stuart Cheverton - Hitachi Data Systems
Werner Coetzee - Hitachi Data Systems
Willem Conradie - PBT Group
Ashleigh Van Kerckhoven - KPMG
Dave Ives - Karabina Solutions  

Gert Botes, Conference Organiser at Alpha Omega Events said: “Professionals dealing with data analytics, business intelligence, customer insights, risk management, fraud & security, data management, marketing, customer relations, strategy development & implementation, operations, product innovation & management, risk & compliance, data engineering and ICT services will benefit greatly from attending this conference.”  

Experts will present on 10 big data myths busted – practical suggestions for starting big data analytics, data analytics: building a competitive culture, explosion of data and how to cope, data protection & POPI, using big data for fraud detection and prevention, cloud computing – an effective big data enabler, social media and big data and more…  

Delegates registration are open and seats are limited so book your asap to avoid disappointment.

Registration form can be downloaded on www.aoevents.co.za and emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Registration fee is R2199.00 per delegate and includes full access to conference and free parking, conference material, speaker presentations, coffee/tea and refreshment, 3 course buffet lunch as well as free shuttle from and to OR Tambo.

Group bookings of 3 or more will receive 15% discount on registration fee.

The second development phase at Somerset Lakes, a 42-hectare residential estate in Somerset West, will be released to the market in mid September. The first phase sold out rapidly, with 114 sales being recorded within just six weeks of the launch. Construction of the first phase is well under way and occupation is expected to take place in mid 2015.

The new phase, Waterford Green, comprises 48 freestanding double-storey houses, selling from R1,3 million including VAT, no transfer duty. These two and three bedroom homes offer spacious, contemporary, open-plan living areas and private gardens. All homes include at least two bathrooms, one being en suite, and the three-bedroom design offers a garage and an optional guest toilet.

According to Dave Harris, Sales and Marketing Manager of Somerset Lakes, the new product has been specifically designed to help meet the growing demand for affordable, quality housing in the popular Somerset West area.

“We’ve been inundated with requests from buyers looking for houses,” Harris said. “People want freestanding homes with gardens, views and security, in close proximity to the centre of Somerset West, and that’s exactly what our latest product at Somerset Lakes has to offer.”

Designed by Schabort Associates Architects, the new development phase is located alongside the six-hectare lake that gives the estate its name.

“This unique feature is a huge attraction,” Harris commented. “It’s ideal for swimming, canoeing, sailing, windsurfing and fishing, and home to a rich variety of water birds. A magnificent community clubhouse on the shores of the lake, The Summer Club, will enhance the appeal of this fantastic recreational asset, providing residents with play areas, boat sheds, a sandy white beach, and a swimming pool and deck area with stunning views of False Bay and the Hottentots Holland mountains.”

The developers, Omwieco (Pty) Ltd, a consortium of highly experienced development professionals backed by financial giant Investec, have devoted no less than 40% of the estate’s total area to green, open space for the recreation of residents. This includes the lakes and other water features, a mature forest of stone pine trees, landscaped parks and gardens, and kilometres of walking trails and mountain biking tracks.

An indigenous fynbos nursery has been established on the estate, which was recently awarded the prized 2014 SALI Gold Award for landscape design by the South African Landscapers Institute.“No expense has been spared to implement the most technically advanced security system at Somerset Lakes,” said Harris. "These measures include electrified perimeter fencing with 70 high-definition surveillance cameras, which are monitored around the clock from the hi-tech guardhouse, 24-hour guarding and patrols, and an on-site rapid response team. Other advanced features include biometric fingerprint access control."

All homes in the estate will be hardwired with fibre-optic cabling for superfast internet access, DStv and VOIP telephone connectivity, which will allow free telephone calls within the estate.

A Curro Castle School is being constructed on the estate and is due to open its doors in 2015.

Convenient access to the Somerset West village has been provided by the developers through the R16 million construction of Reunion Drive, which links the main entrance of Somerset Lakes to Sir Lowry’s Pass Village Road under a specially constructed railway bridge. Just a few hundred metres from this entrance, an upmarket new shopping centre is now under construction, where Checkers, Woolworths Foods and Clicks will be the anchor tenants.The Vergelegen Mediclinic and the Somerset West CBD are less than two kilometres away, while popular Somerset Mall shopping centre is just 3,5 kilometres from the estate.

“When you consider the amazing lifestyle advantages Somerset Lakes offers, the security, the convenience of the surrounding amenities, and the incredible natural beauty of the estate, I have no doubt our second phase will sell as fast as the first one,” said Harris.“I strongly advise anyone interested to register online for an invitation to a pre-launch sales opportunity, ahead of our public launch in mid September, to avoid disappointment.”

For further information visit www.somersetlakes.co.za or phone 021 202 2200.

Foscam, leading IP camera specialists, have released Fosbaby into the infant maket. Fosbaby is a baby monitor that sends a live camera feed directly to your cellphone; tablet; ipad or normal internet browser, enabling parents to monitor baby day and night.

Alternatively Fosbaby can be used to keep an eye on caregivers, ensuring peace of mind when parents are at work.

Fosbaby is plug and play, making setup easy for parents. Fosbaby is a 1.0 megapixel camera and full colour.

It also has night vision with a twist! The infra-red lights don’t glow in the dark, waking baby up. Instead, the infra-red lights have been hidden.

Another feature of Fosbaby is the ‘zone motion’ function. Parents can set up a zone around the baby so that when it detects motion in these areas, an alert is sent immediately to their cellphone using cloud service to the “Foscam Viewer” app.

Fosbaby has a beautiful design that will fit in well with nursery surroundings and is available in pink, blue or green. It can also detect room temperature and plays lullabys.

Mount Fosbaby in different places utilising the wall mount or handy tie that is part of the accessories it comes with.

“Fosbaby, Born to care”

Our children are our most valued possession. Take every measure to ensure their safety. Fosbaby can help you do just that.

Fosbaby sells for R1900 online at www.foscam.co.za.

Contact details:

Foscam South Africa
Tel: 011 469 5165
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Business Results Group and GIBS presents The 10th Progress Conference on Balanced Scorecard Essentials, with Dr David Norton, Live and in Person. Dave Norton will present a one day programme in JHB on the 11th September 2014. In 2012, over 500 executives participated in his colleague, Professor Kaplan’s event in South Africa.

Dr Norton has most recently been honoured by Thinkers 50 in their Hall of Fame sharing this acclaim with Tom Peters, Warren Bennis, Howard Gardner, Charles Handy, Philip Kotler, Henry Mintzberg, Kenichi Omae, Ikujiro Nonaka and his colleague Professor Kaplan, for their mammoth contribution to business management and leadership. Harvard Business Review recognised the Balanced Scorecard as one of the most influential management ideas in the past 75 years.

The 2014 programme includes the latest findings and experience in Strategy measurement, leadership, human capital and cross functional priorities and solutions.  

This is what his clients have to say,

“Our BSC helped us to deliver superior performance, consistently and predictably in all facets of our organisation.” Kris Gopalakrishnan, CEO, INFOSYS

“BSC is the strongest tool I have seen in 22 years of my career, to align people in the organisation to the corporate objectives.” Sunil Wahwa, CEO, New Delhi Power

“I am convinced that implementing the Balanced Scorecard has helped us to deliver record-breaking progress over the past 5 years.” Bill Padfield, CEO, Data Dimensions  

To acquire access to Dr Dave Norton’s latest thinking, findings and solutions to execute strategy in a new economy, call Angela on 011 463 9898.
For further information visit www.theprogressconference.com

Former South African President Nelson Mandela believed, “South Africa is blessed with a special geological heritage. As such, the mining industry has been the bedrock of the South African economy for more than a century.” (1) The importance of mining in South Africa cannot be understated. Minerals account for 60 percent of South Africa’s export revenues and 10 percent of the overall GDP.(2) It is a symbol of national identity and wealth. However, it has recently received increased negative attention. Illegal entry by individuals is posing financial and safety concerns. This issue has created a two-fold problem. Firstly, ensuring security of property and personnel in large mines can be difficult. Secondly, some of the access-control measures, such as standard fingerprint technology, are ill-suited for the mining industry.    

Illegal mining is a multimillion dollar industry in South Africa. It is estimated that in 2012, over 500 million dollars-worth of illegally extracted material was lost or stolen.(3) Currently, many within the industry have adopted a strategy whereby they accept the loss rather than attempt to deter theft through improved security measures.(4) However, others do not feel this is a viable strategy. From this perspective, biometrics appear to be providing a solution to this problem. In instances where access to mine facilities were restricted by biometric devices, such as fingerprint scanners, success rates in curbing illegal entry because of collusion and corruption increased.(5)  

While the basic fingerprint reader can help address one issue, it does not solve the second problem. Those who participate in the extraction of minerals often have scarred or rough hands. These circumstances can often lead to unreadable fingerprints.(6) Invalid, scarred hands can render fingerprint-reading devices ineffective. This problem requires a unique solution. It is possible to use cutting-edge technology to help fingerprint readers to enroll even damaged fingerprints. Anviz Global engineers have developed an algorithm, called BioNano, which is capable of reading heavily damaged prints. BioNano maps-out an individual’s fingerprints, even if the print is incomplete because of heavy scarring. It allows for accurate identification of individuals with an imperfect set of fingerprints. Moreover, every time a subject uses their finger to register on the device the algorithm stores the image. If the newest fingerprint template is better (a more complete picture) than the previous one that was saved in the device, the machine will automatically update the template inside the device. This ensures that BioNano is always aware of which fingerprint templates are most accurate, and is capable of dealing with changes in each subject’s physical properties within their hands.  

Anviz is an international biometric security company with six offices worldwide. The company offers a broad range of access control and time attendance products, ranging from biometrics, to surveillance, and RFID devices. For further information about Anviz, or its products, such as BioNano, please visit www.anviz.com. Anviz employees will be representing the company at IFSEC South Africa between May 13-15, 2014.

(1) Coetzee, Ben and Riana Horn. The Theft of Precious Metals From South Africa’s Mines and Refineries.       

http://www.issafrica.org/uploads/2613%20ISS%20THEFT%20OF%20PRECIOUS%20METALS.PDF

(2) “South Africa illegal mining: Bodies found in Roodepoort.” BBC News February 2014.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26352807

(3) “South Africa illegal mining: Bodies found in Roodepoort.” BBC News February 2014.           

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26352807

(4) Scheepers, Dolf. “Copper theft on SA's mines.” Tech-Security News. February 2013.

http://www.securitysa.com/7659a

(5) Sashnee Moodley “Illegal Mining on the Decrease but Still a Cause for Concern.” November, 2013.

http://www.miningweekly.com/article/illegal-mining-on-the-decrease-but-still-a-cause-for-concern-2013-11-29

(6) Nasiorowska, B. “Improving safety and security in platinum mining by utilizing the newest facial recognition technology.” 2010.

[Pressportal.co.za] The Paramount Group and Mahindra Defence Systems of India sign an exclusive global alliance agreement to develop and market defence solutions internationally.