Consultancy Services Metals & Minerals

Providing first class solutions for your major laboratory and mining projects.

Bureau Veritas has a wealth of experience and knowledge available for the provision of inspection and testing consultancy services. We utilise our skills and resources to tailor a solution that meets your requirements and project needs.



Bureau Veritas can help you develop projects from simple analytical procedures through to the design and commissioning of major laboratory facilities. We can provide technical auditing in the inspection field at ports, mining or refining locations including sampling bias testing. Expert training is offered at our centres of excellence or on-site at your facility. From production of expert and detailed reports to training your people in practices built around international standards, Bureau Veritas has a solution for you.

Summary

Key Benefits of Our Consultancy Services

  • Simplify your proceedings and methods to achieve significant cost savings, faster turnaround times, improved accuracy and precision
  • Knowledge that your people have been trained thoroughly using the latest techniques to comply with the highest quality and health, safety and environmental standards worldwide
  • A long-term commitment to work with you to achieve your project objectives and provide support in the future, underpinned by our strict confidentiality agreements and Code of Ethics

our trade services :

Coal, Coke and Biomass

Read more about the coal industry services

Inspection and Testing Throughout the Coal Supply Chain

The movement of bulk cargo can be associated with a number of risks, including loss of material through poor handling and quality variations from contamination or transport damage. These risks can result in significant financial loss for the commercial parties involved.

Bureau Veritas’ independent inspection, weighing, sampling and testing services are available worldwide to monitor the supply chain and minimise or eliminate these risks. We have an array of expertise that covers the full range of solid fuels, including energy and coking coals, coke, pet-coke and biomass.

We also design, install and operate mechanical sampling systems and our laboratories cover the full range of solid fuels testing from standard coal tests to specialist tests such as coke reactivity, petrography and many others.

Key Benefits of Our Coal, Coke and Biomass Services

  • Extensive global network offers rapid turnaround time from sampling to certification
  • Umpire or arbitration assaying to support commercial settlement
  • ISO 17025 accredited laboratories in key exporting and importing countries
  • Overcome sampling and quality problems with training and consultancy services

Non-Ferrous Metals

Bureau Veritas - the trusted name in the international inspection business

Bureau Veritas is one of the leading providers of inspection and assaying services to the world’s non-ferrous metals industry. We have inspection and sampling experts based throughout the world’s main mining, shipping and refining locations and can provide international coordination through our UK centre.

Our key laboratory in the UK is accredited by the London Metal Exchange and carries ISO 17025 accreditation for its full range of tests. We provide independent high precision assaying of metal content allowing trading parties to agree value.

Key Benefits

  • Umpire or arbitration assaying to support commercial settlement
  • ISO 17025 accredited laboratories provide assurance
  • Expert sampling of ores, concentrates, refined metals, intermediates and by-products
  • Helping you overcome sampling and assaying problems with training and consultancy services

Precious Metals: Catalyst Services

Minimising Risk, Maximising Benefit

Automotive and industrial catalysts contain a range of increasingly valuable metals. Bureau Veritas’ expert services are on hand to provide you with independent, high precision measurements of the precious metal content of your catalysts.

Fresh catalyst can be sampled and tested for its high value precious metal content prior to being incorporated into various applications. When catalysts have been exhausted or depleted they retain a high value to be recovered during the refining process. Bureau Veritas will supervise the unpacking, weighing, sampling and sample preparation during recovery at a given precious metals refinery.

Key Benefits of our Precious Metals: Catalyst Services

  • Accurate sampling and measurement of metal content in fresh and spot catalysts ensuring optimisation of return during the recycling process
  • Independent measure of metal content allows trading parties to agree value
  • Umpire or arbitration assaying to support commercial settlement
  • ISO 17025 accredited laboratories provide assurance

Precious Metals: Gold, Silver and Platinum Group Metals (PGM)

Specialist assaying to the precious metals industry for over 150 years

Bureau Veritas has teams of expert personnel located within easy reach of all major precious metal refineries. Our services include the supervision and monitoring of raw materials delivery, sampling operations and high precision assaying for commercial settlement.

PGM materials come in a wide variety of forms from high purity bullion to concentrates and dore. They are also recovered in the form of scrap from the electronics, dental, photographic and jewellery industries. With high metal values and the complex range of forms, these materials present many sampling and analytical challenges. Our highly trained inspection and analytical team will ensure maximum return on your investment.

Bureau Veritas is also accredited for the proactive monitoring of refineries for the London Bullion Market Association ‘Good Delivery’ status.

Key Benefits of our Assay Services

  • Accuracy and independence that allows smoother commercial transactions
  • Umpire or arbitration assaying to support commercial settlement
  • ISO 17025 accredited laboratories provide you with assurance
  • Training and consultancy services helping you overcome sampling and refining problems

Steel Raw Materials

Inspection and testing throughout the supply chain

There are a number of risks associated with the movement of bulk cargo, including loss of material through poor handling and quality variations from contamination or transport damage. These risks can result in significant financial loss for the commercial parties involved.

Bureau Veritas' independent inspection, weighing, sampling and testing services are available worldwide to monitor the supply chain and minimise or eliminate these risks.

Our Testing expertise covers

  • Ores: iron, chrome, manganese, nickel and others
  • Pig iron, DRI, HBI and other intermediates
  • Ferroalloys
  • Finished and semi-processed steel
  • Steel scrap


Key Benefits of Our Steel Raw Material Services

  • Ability for trading parties to agree on value with accurate sampling and independent high precision assaying of metal content
  • Umpire or arbitration assaying to support commercial settlement
  • ISO 17025 accredited laboratories provide assurance
  • Expert sampling of ores, concentrates, refined metals, intermediates and by-products
  • Training and consultancy services helping you overcome sampling and assaying problems.

Load and Discharge Supervision and Inspection

Helping to safeguard your interests

There are a number of risks associated with the shipment of metals and minerals, including loss of material through poor handling and quality variations from contamination or transport damage. These can result in significant financial loss for the commercial parties involved. This is why load and discharge supervision and inspection is so critical. Whether you are shipping a consignment of gold bullion or a capesize load of iron ore, Bureau Veritas can help safeguard your interests by providing independent inspection and testing services.

Working from the world’s major ports, mining and refining locations, we aim to minimise commercial risk by quickly and accurately determining the physical properties of materials. We also design, install and operate mechanical sampling systems.

Key Benefits of  Load & Discharge Services

  • Our worldwide inspection network helps you reduce the risk of errors or losses at key points in the supply chain – e.g. loading, unloading, sampling
  • Appropriate international standards and procedures are adhered to (ISO, ASTM)
  • Our certificates of quality and quantity are accepted by the world’s main producers, traders and financial institutions
  • Conformity to stringent ethical, health and safety and environmental standards

Sampling and Sample Preparation Supervision Services

Protecting your commercial interests through quality and quantity determination

Bureau Veritas staff are available in each office to assist with your sampling and sample handling needs. We offer:

  • Sampling in accordance with ASTM, GPA, AGA and other industry recognised standards
  • IATA certified shipping staff
  • Shipping containers in compliance with IATA/DOT requirements
  • DOT approved labels
  • Access to preferred carrier networks
  • Ability to ship samples of various sizes, from 50ml to 50 gallons
  • Coordination of your sample dispatch (nationally and internationally)

With offices located throughout the world we are ideally situated to draw samples and arrange for shipment. Whether your product, is petroleum, chemical, gas, mineral or agri based, we have a solution to meet your needs.

Key Benefits of Our Sample Preparation Services

  • Ensuring that samples taken are truly representative of the cargo and in accordance with ISO and other international standards
  • Ensuring accurate calibration
  • Correct sample preparation and moisture determination to produce a quality sample for analysis
  • Independent and experienced personnel based in all key locations worldwide

Weight Determination

Determination of Consignment Weight

Bureau Veritas performs draft surveys on vessels to determine the weight prior to and after loading. Intermediate surveys can also be performed during loading into different holds, which enables our surveyors to determine the weight of individual cargo as it is loaded or unloaded. Where material is sent along inland waterways, barge gauging surveys are conducted.

Similarly, where material is moved in trucks, or rail wagons, weight is determined by a number of methods, including weighbridge and volumetric surveys.

Our experienced surveyors ensure quantities are accurate and product value is realised, through supervision and maintaining weighing procedures.

Key Benefits of  Our Weight Determination Services

  • Independent check on weight of material, loaded or discharged
  • Qualified and experienced surveyors
  • Independent and experienced personnel are based in all key ports worldwide
  • Enhanced product value

Vault and Storage Facility Auditing Services

Performing regular audits for your monitoring program

As the value of metal and mineral products continues to increase, the need to demonstrate strong inventory control systems has become more important than ever.

Today, Bureau Veritas' inspection and assurance services are being used across a range of industries including:

  • Investors in precious metals who use our services to audit their holdings in vaults across the world
  • Electronics manufacturers who can ensure their products are disposed or recycled in accordance with statutory regulations
  • Coal stockpile measurement for power utilities
  • Warehouse inventory/tally of stocks and conditions.


Key Benefits of Our Storage Facility Auditing Solutions

  • Independent check of stock, e.g. each individual gold bar against your inventory list
  • Check weighing of a statistically representative random sample of bars
  • Summary reports which confirm stocks and list any anomalies that have been found
  • Individual audit reports from multiple global vault sites, can be combined into one report