ALCO-Safe creates safer roads, workplaces through detection equipment

11 Sep 2026

ALCO-Safe director Rhys Evans spoke to Engineering News & Mining Weekly during the Electra Mining Africa event, held in Johannesburg from 7 to 11 September 2026.

ALCO-Safe director Rhys Evans spoke to Engineering News & Mining Weekly during the Electra Mining Africa event, held in Johannesburg from 7 to 11 September 2026. Camerawork: Shadwyn Dickinson. Editing: Nicholas Boyd.

ALCO-Safe is a leading supplier of breathalysers and drug detection equipment in Southern Africa. In operation for more than 40 years ALCO-Safe has been extensively involved in developing procedures within traffic and workplace testing to ensure safe and fair testing on the roadside and within companies with a goal of creating safer roads and safer workplaces by supplying only the highest quality alcohol detection breathalysers and drug testing kits.

ALCO-Safe has supplied over 30 000 breathalysers to the South African market. The Industries supplied include, but are not limited to, the petrochemical industry, railways, mining, construction, manufacturing, trucking and logistics. ALCO-Safe is the sole supplier of LION breathalysers for South Africa and various other African countries. LION is a British manufacturer of breathalysers that won the Queen's Award for engineering excellence when it designed and manufactured the first reliable and accurate digital breathalyser for police to use on the roadside. LION continues to be a leading manufacturer of breathalysers. ALCO-Safe only supplies LION breathalysers in order to maintain very high quality and accurate equipment for its clients.

Saliva drug testing equipment as well as urine drug tests are also supplied by ALCO-Safe to major industry in South Africa. The equipment is manufactured by Abbott, the world's largest drug test manufacturer. Saliva testing via disposable tests and the class-leading SOTOXA drug testing analyser are currently the most sought-after form of drug testing because of recent changes in the legality of Dagga (cannabis) in South Africa.

ALCO-Safe provides assistance in policy development to ensure companies conduct fair and legal testing. It also provides operator competency training for any of the equipment that it supplies.

Maintenance and calibration of the equipment is essential for accurate and reliable results, and ALCO-Safe has a full technical team that conducts calibration and repairs on all the equipment that is supplied.

ALCO-Safe director Rhys Evans spoke to Engineering News & Mining Weekly during the Electra Mining Africa event, held in Johannesburg from 7 to 11 September 2026.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter