The North West Province is home to a true local treasure that is contributing meaningfully to the upliftment of South Africans though our country’s mineral wealth. The Platinum Incubator is the only small business start-up hub in the world devoted to encouraging the development of products and applications using Platinum Group Metals. Since it’s inception in 2006, TPI has assisted 155 talented enterprises and more than 234 young people as a pipeline of PGMs beneficiation, from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. The support is geared towards participants to realise their dream of becoming professional jewellers.
The Platinum Incubator facilitates expert mentorships, in all aspects of design and manufacture relating to the use and deployment of PGMs, and provides candidates with the knowledge to develop lucrative, self-sustaining businesses. In collaboration with the National Skills Development Strategy Programme, the Mining Qualification Authority and SEDA, TPI Academy offers a range of Development programmes of quarterly, 12- to 18-month and 2-year durations. They do this by partnering with industry players and like-minded cooperates like Imfundiso, Sibanye Mines, NWU, and national and provincial government agencies. TPI’s aim is to attract the brightest and most creative young minds from all over South Africa and inspire them to succeed not only within the jewellery sector, but also to become ‘platinum pioneers’ by innovating new industrial and technical applications for Platinum Group Metals.
Their facility houses quality equipment and machinery for the evaluation, preparation and manufacture of PGM-based prototypes and their SMEs and interns enjoy controlled access under the Platinum Incubator license to not only platinum but palladium, gold, silver, diamonds and semi-precious stones – which are all sourced from southern African mines.
They offer mentorship and on-going support to graduates as well as SMMEs and aspiring entrepreneurs determined to build careers in this industry through a range of incubation programmes, as well as offering networking opportunities and licensing, regulatory and business advice.
Cape Precious Metals commends TPI on the outstanding work they are doing within our industry. Our Sales Representative Renel Grobler recently visited the Incubator to educate Interns on how to collect their scrap to get the highest returns from their refining batches. We have also installed sink traps on all of their basins to ensure that nothing valuable is washed down the drain. Every single one of their Interns has entered the PlatAfrica awards this year, and with the extremely high standard of world-class jewellery produced by this institution, we are sure to be congratulating them when the winners are announced!
Above are platinum powder 3D printed product and hand made products on projects done with Sibanye Mine to improve efficiencies and volumes in servicing markets.
TPI’s vision is to become a global training partner in platinum minerals beneficiation and a leading platinum innovation hub that reaches beyond the art of jewellery design, promoting active economic participation by a cross section of South Africans. If you would like to apply to study, or you have a business idea involving platinum that looks promising, please contact the Platinum Incubator on:
Tel: +27 14 597 0736
Fax: +27 86 688 1011
Email: info@tpi.org.za
Web: http://www.tpi.org.za
Fatima Bhayat Street | Rustenburg | 0299
