BUSINESS WOMAN WANTS TO BLOW RENEWED LIFE IN 68-YEAR-OLD TESTING LAB BY PARTICIPATING IN THE SERITI WOMEN IN MINING ESD PROGRAMME
“I don’t want to be somebody’s shadow.”
Evander based Silver Solutions 1445 cc, now trading as Colliery Environmental Control Services, has a soft but firm hand holding the reigns. Business owner Shamilla Rampersad is trying to have her “space recognised in the competitive world of mining” and hopes the recently launched Women in Mining programme, sponsored by Seriti, will provide her with the necessary tools and skills to succeed. The programme is designed and managed by Collective Value Creation (CVC) on behalf of Seriti.
Born and bred in Dannhauser in KZN, Shamilla eventually made her way to Mpumalanga in 1999 and into the world of mining as a personal assistant at Sasol mining in Secunda. In 2007 she ventured into the personal protective equipment environment by starting a small supplies company. After many years of trying to break into the market, she finally got a break in 2016 to do stone dust sampling for a mining house.
In 2020, the struggling laboratory assisting Shamilla’s company with sample analysis came on the market and, yet again, this driven businesswoman with a quest for innovative ideas and continuous improvement, grabbed the opportunity to extend the scope of her business. Today she is very proud of the expert talent and dedication of her twenty employees.
Collieries Dust and Ventilation Laboratory established in 1954, had its name changed in March 1981 to Collieries Environmental Control Services (CECS) and formed part of Colliery Training College (CTC).
Nowadays CECS, a SANAS accredited laboratory, does a number of tests such as respirable airborne particulates based on NIOSH 0600 for personal dust monitoring and continuous miner dust monitoring; total airborne particulates based on NIOSH 0500; Crystalline Silica Analysis based on NIOSH 7203 and Stonedust colourimetric standard preparation and analysis, to name a few.
Shamilla explains that her business tests for basically everything “that can cause harm to humans and in order for mining houses to take corrective action to create a safe and healthy work environment for miners”. Fortunately, the business was still regarded as an ‘essential service’ during the Coronavirus pandemic and, even though only a limited number of staff were employed, all were paid their salaries.
Also read: Women in Mining – Olivia Knoesen participates in Seriti”S programme
With the Women in Mining programme, Shamilla is hopeful that she can share and also learn best practises within the group and mentors of the programme. She believes that by sharing expertise, participants will add value to each other’s experiences. Her husband is part of the company and a valuable contributor towards the technical side of the business for which she is grateful. However, it is important to her that she is not just seen as a shadow but recognised as an equal. “I need people to believe in me and my abilities.”
With her focussed approach to life and business, Shamilla is an avid believer in ensuring her tasks and life are balanced and rightly prioritised. To relax, she loves reading, especially motivational books by Deepak Chopra and spends time on creative art such as embroidery and painting.
This mother of three adult children hopes to leave a legacy, especially for her daughters, that it is important to be a confident woman and take up your rightful space in society and in business.
Nyaniso Rapiya, Preferential Procurement & ESD Lead said: “Seriti continues to introduce initiatives aimed at developing communities surrounding our operations and the Women in Mining ESD programme is one such initiative. This WIM programme is structured to provide different types of support based on the stage or level of business maturity of the SMMEs, as well as existing operating gaps. In this way, we are able to equip the women entrepreneurs with the much-needed skills and support to ensure that they are successful and sustainable, way into the future.”
