Dushendra Naidoo

Head of Safety & Sustainable Development Minerals Council South Africa

Mr. Naidoo’s career began at the CSIR’s Mining Technology Division as a Research Engineer where he was involved in a variety of research projects including underground mine support design, Mine Health and Safety Council projects and technology driven initiatives for over 5 years. He obtained a merit award for successful project outcomes for a mining project at the CSIR. This was followed by 5 years in the manufacturing arena at Joy Mining Machinery as a Senior Mechanical Engineer where he led aspects of a special project that involved developing a hard rock continuous cutting machine and obtained a design patent for the rock breaking system. At Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions he was a Lead Engineer for multi-million-rand projects for over 5 years including the design and construction of the first vertical lime kiln in Zambia. He also managed proposals for a brief period in the petrochemical department. Thereafter he joined Fermel as a Design Office Engineering Compliance Manager where he was responsible for mine vehicle certifications, design compliance and quality assured outputs from a design team. His passion for training young engineers and design led to him winning the first phase of the Isidingo Drill Challenge that was an initiative hosted by the Mandela Mining Precinct. He spent some time at Bosch Projects in the Sugar and Industrial Department as part of a leadership team and was involved in major projects including the design of one of the largest rotary cascade sugar dryers in the world for a Client in Thailand. His technical know-how also led to him having a brief involvement in a major expansion project at Tronox Minerals Sands. He was the Principal Adoption Specialist for the Minerals Council’s MOSH Transport and Machinery Team for over two years where he was able to express his passion for engineering, safety, and the mining industry through the many safety initiatives that he is responsible for. He was promoted to the Head of Safety and Sustainable Development at the Minerals Council South Africa. On the academic front, Mr. Naidoo holds both a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Natal and is a certified Professional Engineer with ECSA. Recently, he obtained a Postgraduate Diploma in Management Development from GIBS. He has acquired certificates in project management, financial management, value engineering and behavioural based safety. Mr. Naidoo spent some time in Germany where he acquired specialized knowledge from experts on miscellaneous plant equipment. He is admired by his peers as being an innovative, creative lateral thinker who always believes in the power of positive thinking and exemplifies this in his work ethic and personal life.