To support the rapid growth of its business in southern Africa, SANY Southern Africa is investing heavily in its aftermarket infrastructure. GM Samuel Zhang tells Quarrying Africa that the company has experienced a massive 40% average year-on-year growth in the past three years, which is why the company needs to invest in its facilities to better support the growing customer base.
Boaz Wang, SANY Southern Africa project supervisor, says the local growth is very much in line with SANY’s global progress, which has seen the company ranking as the fourth biggest construction equipment manufacturer on Off-Highway’s Yellow Table 2023.
Construction work has since started on the new headquarters, which is strategically located on the N12 highway in Boksburg. Leading international construction company, Sinoma, has been appointed to execute the 11-month project, which is being built on a nearly 40 000 m² piece of land.
Project in detail
Wang says the new headquarters will act as a regional hub for three legs of the business – logistics, manufacturing and training – which are all key to supporting the growth trajectory of the business in southern Africa.
The facility will include three buildings, a 2 300 m² administrative office which, according to Zhang, has the capacity to accommodate 200 employees. Initially, SANY will have about 120 employees working from this state-of-the-art facility. The second building is a 525 m² staff canteen.
Of note is the 9 500 m² assembly plant for excavators, which makes SANY the first overseas original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in the yellow metal space to invest in local production. The assembly plant will produce mid-size excavators from the 7-t SY75c to the 75-t SY750c. “The assembly plant has the capacity to produce 3 000 excavators and other machines per year. Inventory from the facility will cater for the African market at large,” says Wang.
“The assembly plant is testimony to our commitment to our customers in southern Africa. In an environment where lead times have become excessively long, we believe that local production is the answer to ensuring that we meet our customers’ equipment needs quickly and effectively. This is the first step in our localisation strategy,” says Zhang, adding that local production also supports the growth of the economy.
Investments galore
The new headquarters project follows hard on the heels of some recent investments in other aftermarket facilities. Recently, SANY has just commissioned a new parts distribution centre located in Olifantsfontein, Midrand. The new, bigger warehouse will enable SANY to increase its spare parts inventory from approximately R170-million to R270-million by 2024. The increase in stock items is made possible due to the size of the new warehouse, which is 20 000 m² with 12 000 m² under roof.
In addition, the company has just invested in a new pre-delivery inspection (PDI) centre in Benoni. The 20 000 m² facility enables SANY to expedite machine handovers to customers. The importance of PDI, says Zhang, cannot be stressed enough. PDI significantly contributes to customer satisfaction by delivering products that meet their expectations. By conducting a comprehensive inspection, SANY staff will be able to identify potential issues before the product reaches the customer’s hands.
As part of its strategy to further grow its aftermarket capacity, SANY has opened new branches in Middelburg, Rustenburg and more recently Richards Bay. The company, says Zhang, intends to open branches in all major cities across South Africa. In total, SANY envisages a network of nine branches in South Africa within the next few years.
“These investments are informed by our drive for customer satisfaction and to advancing the reputation of the brand in southern Africa, which is important for us. The huge capital investments also exhibit our long-term commitment to the local market,” concludes Zhang.
