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From the Curatorial Desk · The SA Mint at Centurion

Numismatic computer systems.

How CA-Ingres, 19 technologists, and a 1992 greenfield plant in Centurion gave South Africa the most modern mint in the world.

How Computer-Integrated Manufacturing transformed the South African Mint into a world-class facility — regarded as the most modern mint in the world, with fully automated production, real-time material tracking, and precision engineering down to microns.

Edited by
Ben Ungerer & Johan Ungerer · The Jardines Curatorial Desk

1992
First CIM Plant1
19
IT Technologists1
2
People Per Shift1
2 bn
Coins Per Year

What is Computer-Integrated Manufacturing?

Cradle  to Grave

Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) uses computers to control the entire production process — from initial design to finished coin. The South African Mint’s Centurion facility was designed from the ground up as a “pristinely modern plant” with CIM at its core. It is the only fully CIM plant of its kind, and also one of the few mints providing a full cradle-to-grave service — taking the process from raw material through to the final product1.

Implementation at Centurion

1992  Greenfield Build

When the Mint relocated to Centurion in 1992, Dion Swanepoel and Marc van Gool — the architects of the Mint’s IT department — seized the opportunity to build a completely new infrastructure1.

The Stack

Software architecture

• Database core Computer Associates’ Ingres, acquired in 1990 and went live in 1992 to run the rolling mill. All other systems were custom-written and run on Ingres1.
• Three-tier SAP at the top, Ingres handling factory controls and materials, and a plant management system at the lowest tier1.

The Hardware

Iron & people

• Hardware Acer and HP Intel devices running SCO Unix, replacing proprietary IBM PS/2 and AIX systems1.
• IT staff 19 technologists — the “lifeblood of the Mint”. Nothing moves in the plant without their involvement1.

Key components

Four  Integrated Layers
CAD · Design

Digital sculpting

Artists create digital 3D models and renders. For circulation coins, designs must be approved by the Mint Board, SARB Governors, Cabinet, and Minister of Finance, then published in the Government Gazette2.

CAM · Tooling

Die production

A computer-controlled machine cuts the model directly into high-grade steel, creating a machine punch. The toolroom is equipped with state-of-the-art CNC machinery, producing all tooling in-house3.

Production Scheduling

SAP \2192 Ingres \2192 floor

Ingres provides weekly schedules downloaded from SAP, with finite scheduling provided daily. The system controls material handling, balancing, store information, data collection, and reporting1.

Material Tracking

Every gram, tracked

Every piece of metal is tracked from receipt through casting, rolling, blanking, plating, annealing, polishing, coining, and packaging — all in real time3.

The minting process

Eight  CIM-Controlled Stages

The following steps are controlled and monitored end-to-end by the CIM system3:

1

Casting

Continuous casting furnace with computer-controlled temperature. Raw materials are melted and cast through carbon dies into 1.5-ton coils.

2

Rolling

Computer-controlled breakdown and fine rolling mills produce strip thickness within microns of specification. Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) deliver and remove materials.

3

Blanking

High-speed blanking presses punch discs. Each blank is rimmed and inspected for weight and diameter.

4

Electroplating

For plated coins, the CIM system controls deposition of copper, nickel, or bronze onto steel cores.

5

Annealing · gold/silver only

Flat belt furnace with nitrogen atmosphere, computer-monitored.

6

Polishing

Multi-sided tumblers with stainless-steel balls and special soap — fully automated.

7

Coining

High-speed presses (750–850 strokes/min for circulation; 3–5 strokes under 200–260 tons for proofs). CIM monitors every strike.

8

Packing

Automated packaging lines; final product stored in computer-controlled high-bay store accessed only by AGVs.

Material handling system

MHS  Stores, Cranes & AGVs

The Mint’s sophisticated Material Handling System (MHS) is a direct result of CIM integration3:

• Stores — raw material store, coil store, unplated blanks store, final product store; all managed by Ingres.
• Cranes — coil crane and two final-product cranes, moving materials to and from storage locations.
• Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) — operate in coil store, unplated blanks, plated blanks, and final product store; issuing and removing materials automatically.
• Conveyors — in-feed and out-feed conveyors in final product store move materials horizontally.

— The Labour Equation —

Two people per shift

The entire material-handling operation requires just two people per shift — compared to ten or more in a typical labour-intensive operation1. That is the single clearest measure of what CIM delivered at Centurion.

2
SA Mint · CIM
10+
Typical Operation

Quality control & laboratory

ISO  9001 · 14001 · 45001

The CIM system integrates rigorous quality checks at every stage. The Mint’s well-equipped laboratory includes4:

Spectroscopy

Compositional analysis

• ICP — Inductively coupled plasma spectrometer
• OES — Optical emission spectrometer
• XRF — X-ray fluorescence spectrometer
• AA — Atomic Absorption spectrometer

Physical Testing

Mechanical analysis

• Carbon / sulfur analyser
• Tensile tester
• Hardness testers
• Metallographic microscopes & surface-thickness instruments

The Mint holds ISO 9001:2015 (quality), ISO 14001:2015 (environmental), and ISO 45001:2018 (health & safety) certifications4.

Benefits for collectors

Why  CIM Matters

• Consistent quality — computer monitoring ensures uniform strikes; every proof coin meets exacting standards3.
• Advanced security — latent image technology (e.g., the 2018 Mandela centenary R5) and laser-engraved finishes are made possible by CIM-controlled die production5.
• Complex designs — split-face, colour, and interactive designs (e.g., the OR Tambo faceted coins) rely on precise CNC machining5.
• Traceability — each coin’s production history is recorded, from metal batch to final packaging.
• Export expertise — the Mint produces coins for about a dozen other countries, attesting to its world-class capabilities1.

Sources

Five  References
1

ITWeb. The buck starts here (1998).

2

South African Mint. Customer Newsletter — From Metal to Money (2020).

3

South African Mint. Manufacturing of Coins.

4

South African Mint. Health and Safety — Laboratory.

5

Engineering News / The E-Sylum. New technology being used to immortalise Mandela (2018).

Revision history

Living  Document
22 February 2026
Initial build — expanded with verified ITWeb and SA Mint sources.
12 May 2026
Redesigned in the locked theme system; citations renumbered to clean contiguous 1–5 (original used non-contiguous [1,2,3,4,8,9] against a 5-source list); minting process surfaced as a numbered timeline; 2-vs-10 labour contrast surfaced as a callout.

Keep exploring

Related  Reading

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The history of the £ sign on South African coinage — from the Roman libra through the 1923 Union coinage to its retirement at decimalisation.

Next \2192

People behind the coins

Designers, engravers, and Mint Masters — the human side of South African coinage, from George Kruger Gray to the modern Centurion team.

Hub

The SA Mint today

The full reference for the South African Mint at Centurion — structure, products, and place in the world’s coinage industry.

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