News from All Diamond

Namibia is a Southern African nation with rich diamond reserves. Their production comes mostly from marine sources: diamonds that have been deposited on the ocean floor as a result of river movements and ancient tidal basin flows. There are also a few small, land-based mining operations. Marine mining is a difficult, costly, and highly mechanized process. De Beers is the main producer of diamonds in Namibia, having invested heavily in marine mining equipment and exploration vessels over the years. The limited artisanal mining in the country means the government has strong controls over production levels. 

On September 20, 1966, Botswana declared its independence from Great Britain. At the time, the country had a GDP per capita of less than $84, and was one of the poorest and least developed countries on the planet. Just seven months later, in April 1967, geologists discovered the Orapa diamond mine within a cluster of kimberlites in the North-Central part of the country. The discovery set off a diamond rush that eventually led to the discovery of many more viable diamond mines, and elevated the country into one of the most important diamond producing nations in the world. Since that time, Botswana transformed itself into a thriving African nation, with diamonds central to its development. 

Diamond mining is perhaps one of the least understood parts of our business pipeline. There are many who spend their entire careers working in the diamond industry without ever stepping foot in a mining camp. The truth is that many of the world's best-known diamond miners don't actually do any mining. They may not own a single piece of construction equipment, and may not have a single operator on their payroll. This is often the job of mining contractors, a very important but largely unknown support service in our industry. Let's take a closer look at these businesses that are so important to the production of our raw material.

Diamonds are the most compact form of wealth in existence, and can be worth more than one hundred thousand times their weight in gold. Few, if any, other assets allow you to carry millions of dollars in your pocket without revealing a thing to others. But of course this makes diamonds a prime target for theft, both large scale and small. Security companies provide a critical service to the diamond industry by providing safe and secure transport of diamonds. Some companies cannot even conduct business without these security agents, as their insurance providers mandate their use. Anyone who has ever walked the diamond district of Antwerp would have noticed the dozens of security people walking the streets with unmarked suitcases of diamonds moving from place to place. Let's take a look at some of the major security companies in our industry and the key role they play.

Jewelry manufacturing was once the work of skilled artisans, working mostly by hand. In some countries this is still the case, although technology is finding its way into even the simplest of manufacturing operations. Although many of the products we buy today are mass-produced for a global consumer public, jewelry has not yet gone down that route entirely. Although large retail chains do have assembly line production facilities using high tech tools and equipment to make jewelry, there is still a large element of the industry that remains niche, and that continues to focus on bespoke jewelry for a discerning clientele. However, in operations both large and small, technology is changing the way jewelry is made. Let's look at some of the recent developments and tools employed in the jewelry manufacturing industry.