African Review November 2013

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Europe €10, Ghana C1.8, Kenya Ksh200, Nigeria N330, South Africa R25, UK £7, USA $12

November 2013

African Review of Business and Technology

P44

November 2013

East African cargo trains

Volume 47 Number 29

P24

Ghana’s economic

growth sectors www.africanreview.com

Dr Hamadoun Touré, Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union

Economy:

Technology:

Construction:

Angola’s Atlantic oil prospects P21

Satellite support for key industries P37

Building business after bauma Africa P50

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UP FRONT

Editor’s Note

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Europe €10, Ghana C1.8, Kenya Ksh200, Nigeria N330, South Africa R25, UK £7, USA $12

November 2013

P44

East African cargo trains

T

his issue of African Review of Technology offers analyses of economic development, financial prospects, technological innovation, solutions for logistics, industrial initiatives affecting energy management and the environment, and operational improvements in construction and mining. So, an appraisal of the affluence of African households precedes analyses of Angola, Botswana, Nigeria and Ghana from page 20. Finance and technology come together from page 34, with explorations of developments in mobile money and mobile satellite communications.

Technology comes into play in logistics, too, alongside commercial considerations, from page 40.

And power coverage in this issue comes in the form of stories about engineering in renewable energy on page 46. Environmental concerns are addressed on page 48, in reporting on efforts aimed at improving rural water supply and sanitation in West Africa. Construction and mining interests are represented from 50 - in an extensive review of the technologies and business still emerging from the inaugural bauma Africa, in an article on the value of modular housing techniques, in a text on portable compressors, in observations on maintainance of transport links for mining operations, and in an overveiw of earthmoving and excavation methods at a South African platinum mine.

P24

Ghana’s economic

growth sectors Dr Hamadoun Touré, Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union

Economy:

Technology:

Construction:

Angola’s Atlantic oil prospects P21

Satellite support for key industries P37

Building business after bauma Africa P50

Cover picture: George Appiah Inset, top right: Geoffrey Muleme Inset, bottom left: ITU

Andrew Croft, Managing Editor

Contents

REGULARS 04 Agenda:

14 Bulletin:

Industry and innovation, around the continent

64 Solutions:

Solutions on agribusiness and energy

Materials, water supply and energy management

P32 FEATURES 20 Economy The increasing affluence of African households; Angola’s oil prospects; investment in Botswana; Nigerian healthcare - and analysis of Ghana’s banking, technology, mining and energy sectors

34 Finance How technological developments are improving access to mobile money transfer services

37 Technology Advances in mobile satellite communications to support exploration and operation in energy

P62

40 Logistics South African distribution; trucks in different industries across West Africa and the Middle East; mobile technology for transport; and East African cargo trains

46 Power Engineers in renewable energy tie a solar facility to the South African grid

48 Environment Improving rural water supply to improve sanitary conditions in West Africa

50 Construction and Mining The innovations for African builders at bauma Africa; modular house building; the latest in portable compressors; maintaining transport links for mining operations; and earthmoving and excavation methods at a South African platinum mine

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NEWS

Agenda / North SDLG prepares the ground for Moroccan rail The LG6300 adapts well to different working conditions while offering lower energy consumption and higher performance

The first SDLG excavators in North Africa have been playing an important role in the construction of the first high-speed rail line in Morocco. The Moroccan government says the high-speed rail link under construction in the country will help boost infrastructure and serve as a much needed supplement to its current rail network, which has seen rail passenger traffic increase from 14mn in 2003 to some 34mn in 2012, according to figures from the O.N.C.F., the National Office for Railways. The high-speed rail line is expected to carry up to 10mn passengers a year.

Hard at work on the construction of the new rail link are two LG6300 hydraulic excavators from SDLG - the first two excavators from the Chinese manufacturer to arrive in Morocco. The units are being used by Chinese contractor COVEQ, which is managing part of the building work on the project.

Committed to customers and conditions SDLG’s business director for Morocco, Abdelhalim Achattouss, said adding a new product line to SDLG’s offerings in the region reflected the company’s commitment to remaining a market leader in Morocco and the surrounding North African region.

“SDLG’s wheel loaders are very well known in the North African market and they remain hugely popular with customers,” he said. “Of course their competitive price makes them an attractive option initially, but once customers run them and see how durable they are

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

and how easy they are to service they love them even more. We believe the line of SDLG excavators can become equally popular, as they share the same qualities of value, robustness and ease of maintenance.”

The LG6300 has a bucket capacity of 1.3m3 and a second generation Deutz EMR2 engine that offers more torque, lower fuel consumption, better emission levels and very low noise. Travel speeds for the unit are 3.2/5.1km/h and a GPS is also available.

Improved stability on the LG6300 comes from the wider chassis combined with reinforced X-shaped lower brackets on the extended crawler. This set up allows the unit to adapt well to different working conditions while all the time offering lower energy consumption and higher performance. Other features of the LG6300 include dualpump constant power negative flow control in the hydraulic system and a control system with LCD color monitor, self-diagnostic technology and emergency fault alarm.

Once completed, the 350 km rail line will link the country’s economic centre, Casablanca, with one of the major cities in the north, Tangier, and cut travel times in half, to around two hours.

Under a joint agreement between Morocco and France, French companies are building most of the system, and O.N.C.F. will provide the passenger services, manage and operate the infrastructure, as well as fix installations and trainsets. The project is estimated to cost US$4bn and will start running in 2015. www.africanreview.com

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NEWS

Agenda / East Kenyan tea industry transitions to paperless transactions Tea Board of Kenya (TBK) and TradeMark East Africa ( TMEA ) have launched an online portal to enable tea industry stakeholders to interact with their regulator TBK online. The online portal has automated TBK’s processes, making them available electronically. This new development in the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) is expected to affect the tea sector by reducing transaction time, increasing efficiency in service delivery, resulting in the reduction of

the overall cost of doing business.

Cabinet secretary at the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Felix Koskei said, “ICT is one of the key instruments identified and adopted by the Government to spur economic growth for our country. There is no doubt that ICT is the answer to the many challenges that we have experienced in service delivery and trade facilitation. Our economy cannot be competitive if we continue to be bogged

Addis hosts meeting on science and technology

A

t the Bureau of Fifth African Ministerial Conference on Science and Technology (AMCOST V) - convened recently in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - HE Dr Martial De-Paul Ikounga, African Union (AU) commissioner for Human Resources, Sciences, and Technology, said that science and technology is an essential tool for development, prosperity ad stability of our region.

“Now Africa is thriving with imported technologies, our economic growth must spark off mass productivity and international competitiveness,” the commissioner emphasised. “We must assist the next generation to discover their own art and science. We must build a strong foundation for science in Africa,” he noted.

Dr Ikounga added that the African Union Commission (AUC) is committed to ensuring that science and technology contribute to sustainable development.

Bruno Jean Richard Itoua, minister of scientific research and technological innovation of DR Congo and chair of AMCOST V, stressed the importance of innovation and research to efficiency and competitiveness - and ongoing African efforts to develop science and technology.

AMCOST V discussed, among other issues, the progress report on the implementation of Africa’s Science and Technology Consolidated Plan of Action (CPA), and the New AU Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa 2024 (STISA-2024).

Support for Malawian reform The African Development Fund (ADF) is set to deliver a grant amounting to UA2.98mn (US$4.6mn) to finance the Public Finance Management (PFM) Institutional Support Project in Malawi. The grant will support the Government of Malawi in implementing its five-year Public Finance and Economic Management Reform Program (PFEMRP), which is designed to strengthen capacity to scale up the pace of public finance reforms in the country.

The project’s broad development objective is to support the Government of Malawi to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth through improved tax administration and procurement systems. The specific objectives are to strengthen capacity in revenue administration with a focus on increasing revenue collection and improving customs service delivery, and to enhance value for money, transparency and accountability in the use of public resources through public procurement reform.

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

down with slow manual processes even as we face competition from other global players.’”

The tea industry plays a key role in the agriculture sector with tea output contributing about 11 per cent of the agricultural sector’s contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Tea exports also play a lead role in the Kenyan economy. Tea exports generated 26 per cent of the total foreign exchange earnings in 2012.

Garmin positions for distribution Garmin sub-Saharan Africa has appointed Car & General as an East African distributor.

Car & General has a long-standing presence in the region, distributing brands such as Cummins, Briggs and Stratton, TVS, LML, Champion, Piaggio, Suzuki, Mariner, Electrolux, Ferodo, Ingersoll Rand and Eutectic Castolin, within 11 territories namely, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Seychelles, Somalia and South Sudan. Car & General were appointed as field specialists.

“We are pleased to announce this partnership and we welcome Car & General into the Garmin family,” said Walter Mech, managing director, Garmin sub-Saharan Africa. “This partnership will strengthen Garmin’s presence in this rapidly growing region and we look forward to closely supporting our partners and customers in East Africa.”

Since its inception in 1989, Garmin has delivered more than 100mn GPS enabled devices - far more than any other navigation provider. Garmin is the global leader in satellite navigation, having developed innovative products and established a leadership position in each of the markets it serves, including automotive and mobile, aviation, marine, fitness and sports, and outdoor recreation. www.africanreview.com

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NEWS

Agenda / South bauma brings business for Linden Comansa and Tower Crane Services

‘Bankability’ is key to solar power growth

T

The 21LC290 showcased by Linden Comansa and Tower Crane Services was the only tower crane at the show, and generated much interest amongst professionals who were looking for this type of machinery

Linden Comansa closed the first edition of the recently-held inaugural edition of bauma Africa with a good feeling.

"The quality and quantity of the visitors have been better than expected, and we have made many new contacts with African companies and contractors. It has been our first participation in a tradeshow with our distributor Tower Crane Services and the experience has been very positive, as it allowed us to strengthen ties with our customers in the area as well as to meet new potential customers," said Martín Echevarría, Linden Comansa’s sales director after his return from Johannesburg, South Africa.

8

Several companies with interests in construction and mining visited this joint exhibit by Linden Comansa and Tower Crane Services in Johannesburg. Richard Fletcher, owner of Tower Crane Services, and official distributor of Linden Comansa, said, "Many visitors were South African construction companies that we had not made contact with before, and who have a real need of tower cranes for their projects.

There was also interest shown by visitors from various African countries, the Gulf and even as far as India. We hope to develop long and meaningful business relationships with contacts made at the show.”

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

he South African sun shines brightly for most of the year, providing the ideal setting for the predicted growth of the photovoltaic energy market in the country. The region is considered a potential high growth area, and according to a study conducted by Pew Charitable Trusts, a US-based research authority, South Africa is a cornerstone of clean energy development for the entire African continent.

However, as Talesun Energy CEO Arthur Chien observes, an important factor of whether projects within the region will go ahead or not and reach the expected growth is whether they are considered ‘bankable’, or assured to bring in a profit.

He writes, “There has been an increased demand for solar photovoltaic energy in the South African market. 2012 saw a yearon-year increase of 20, 000 per cent to about US$5.5 bn in clean energy, with US$4.3bn going towards solar power. In the South African market, where electricity costs are already very high, there is an increasing need for solar energy, and we thus expect the market to grow significantly going forward.

“The global market, as well as companies that are operating in South Africa, must show that they are in a position to get economically solid projects up and running. Only those who have their costs under control and are considered 'bankable' will be able to profit from the expected growth in the business of sunshine.”

In order to ensure bankability, Talesun works closely with renowned banks, insurance and re-insurance firms. Its efforts help the financing of projects, not only on the yield side, but also in supporting the evaluation process by the financial institutions. Further support has come in the form of assessment by Allianz Climate Solutions (ACS), the environmental division of insurance entity Allianz Group. www.africanreview.com

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NEWS

Agenda / West Ecobank guarantees business with new fund The co-operation agreement between Ecobank Transnational Incorporated and the African Guarantee Fund to promote and support small business across sub-Saharan Africa unlocks US$50mn to maximise the potential of small and medium-sized enterprises to deliver inclusive growth in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, the DRC, Kenya and Nigeria. The inaccessibility of finance is a major obstacle to small business growth and development, with only 20 per cent of African SMEs receiving a credit line from a financial institution. Ecobank and AGF aim to

Ecobank’s commitment to support small and medium-sized businesses and our collaboration with Africa Guarantee Fund will further enable the SME sector play a critical role in the socio-economic development of Africa

The inaccessibility of finance is a major obstacle to small business growth and development, with only 20 per cent of African SMEs receiving a credit line from a financial institution assist viable SMEs by providing a partial guarantee for 50 per cent of net losses of principal under loan facilities extended to customers in the value chain of SME financing programmes - including: Contract & Receivables Finance; Distributorship Finance; and Asset Finance.

AGF chief executive officer Felix Bikpo said, “The partnership with Ecobank is of great significance as it provides the Africa Guarantee Fund with a very important pan-African banking network through which African small and medium-sized enterprises will be assisted in getting increased access to financing. This partnership is another manifestation of AGF’s role as the missing link to increasing the financing of African SMEs by banks and non-bank financial institutions.”

Corporate network set to encourage best practices The African Corporate Governance Network is set to encourage best practices in corporate governance among African institutions, and contribute to capacity building in corporate governance. The ACGN, which was launched in Mauritius in midOctober 2013 with sponsorship by the IFC, is based in Nigeria. The ACGN was formed to develop the institutional capacity of members, enhance effective corporate

governance practices and build better governed and more accountable private and public sector organisations in Africa.

Countries currently involved in the network include: Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Member countries will be bound by the ACGN constitution, which was signed during the launch.

Jane Valls, CEO of the Mauritius Institute of

Directors, said, “The African Corporate Governance Network is an important initiative for Africa. I am especially pleased that this event should be taking place in Mauritius on the eve of our international conference. I am confident that the African Corporate Governance Network will soon find its place as one of the major organisations promoting best practices in Africa.”

An exposition of sustainable energy

T

he 2nd West African Clean Energy and Environment Exhibition and Conference, held from 12-14 November 2013 at the Accra International Conference Centre in Accra, Ghana, reflects the fact that double-digit growth rates for West African imports of energy and electro technology as well as political stability make Ghana the natural gate towards the high potential West African market.

West Africa’s major energy, electrical engineering and environmental exhibition & conference has been organised by AHK Ghana-Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Ghana and the German trade fair specialists fairtrade supported by GIZ, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit.

A wealth of resources, a prosperous economy and an increasing

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

energy demand require intelligent energy generation technologies.

Proof of this, is the fact that West African imports of energy and electrotechnology rose by 27.3 per cent in 2011, to 7.642bn Euros (US$10,358bn). West African imports in this sector stood firm on a high level in 2012, amounting to 7.402bn Euros. The next important issues for infrastructure in West Africa will be the improvement of water treatment and waste management.

To cope with this potential, the leading trade show in West Africa provides an ideal business platform.

At WACEE leading technology suppliers meet annually with seniorlevel buyers, wholesalers, retailers, designers, planners and architects from all over Ghana and West Africa to learn, network and to do business. www.africanreview.com

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NEWS

Events / 2013/14 December January

11-13

CIBEX East Africa Nairobi, Kenya www.cibexeastafrica.com

2-3

21-23

The African High-Growth Markets Summit

Offshore West Africa

11-13

Accra, Ghana www.offshorewestafrica.com

Middle East Electricity

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia cemea.economistconferences.com

23-24

Dubai, UAE www.middleeastelectricity.com 13-15

GeoPower Global Congress

Indian Ocean Ports and Logistics

Amsterdam, The Netherlands www.greenpowerconferences.com

Pointe Aux Piments, Mauritius www.transportevents.com

Bujumbura, Burundi www.eafca.org

3-5

27-28

17-20

agrofood West Africa

Middle East and North Africa Energy

African Water Association

3-4

Accra, Ghana www.agrofood-westafrica.com 3-5

London, UK www.chathamhouse.org

African Fine Coffee

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire www.afwacongress2014.org 24

Accra, Ghana www.ppp-westafrica.com

February

9-11

3-6

24-27

Gulf Traffic

Investing in African Mining

Nigeria Oil & Gas

Dubai, UAE www.gulftraffic.com

Cape Town, South Africa www.miningindaba.com

Abuja, Nigeria cwcnog.com

9-12

4-5

26-28

MS & Africa Middle East

Middle East Rail

Mozambuild

Cairo, Egypt www.msafrica.net

Dubai, UAE www.terrapinn.com

Maputo, Mozambique www.mozambuild.com

plastprintpack West Africa

Nigeria Power Abuja, Nigeria www.nigeria-power.com

Training Nigerian youths in entrepreneurship and financial literacy MasterCard and Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) have formed a joint collaboration to provide experiential education and training on financial literacy and entrepreneurship to Nigerian youths.

JAN is engaged in the venture through its Girls’ Enterprise Program (GEP). Around 600 secondary school students across 20 schools in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja will benefit from the initiative.

The Girls Enterprise Program is a part of JAN’s Leadership Empowerment Achievement and Development (LEAD) camp which recruits and trains senior secondary level 2 (SS2) students on different aspects of setting up and running a business, including writing business plans,

12

selling shares to raise capital, electing officers, managing a business and financial records as well as returning profits to shareholders as dividends.

Further to the LEAD camp, forty volunteers and sixty small businesses have been deployed for practical sessions to fully implement the programme. Ten participants will be assigned to each partner with small businesses for two weeks on internship, and afterwards undergo a one day interactive session with the Microfinance institution. At the end of the exercise, 100 “girlpreneurs” will assess resources and loans to start-up their businesses. All the 600 participants will also form peer support groups based on their locations.

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Speaking about the partnership, Omokehinde Ojomuyide Vice President and Area Business Head for MasterCard in West Africa, commented, “MasterCard is privileged to work with Junior Achievement Nigeria to turn around the lives of young people in the country. We fully stand behind the youth, the future of this country, and gladly support this initiative to build capacity in entrepreneurship, which is a crucial component of financial empowerment. The partnership between MasterCard and Junior Achievement is ideal because we both share a passion for educating youth as they become financially active in society.” www.africanreview.com

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NEWS

Bulletin / Agribusiness Commitment to improving Arabic food security

Dialogue since 2007, as a platform for regional stakeholders to discuss

African and Arab ministers of agriculture have agreed to strengthen

and share experiences on different aspects of Integrated Water

cooperation by promoting sustainable investment in agriculture and

Resources Management (IWRM).

food security; “We can make the Africa-Arab Cooperation a powerful instrument to enhance trade and investment to the desired levels that

Zambian fishmongers get deep freezers

match the strong cultural ties, the geographic proximity and the

A total of five 2.7-litre deep freezers procured by COMESA Secretariat

tremendous potential that exist within our regions,” said Tumusiime

staff have been presented to fishmongers in the Siavonga district

Rhoda Peace, commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, African

south of Lusaka to address storage challenges for fresh fish; Speaking

Union commission, at the 2nd Africa Arab Ministerial Meeting on

at the handing-over ceremony, early in October 2013, Siavonga

Agricultural development and Food Security in Riyadh, Kingdom of

district commissioner Brave Mweetwa affirmed that the Zambian

Saudi Arabia.

government views women groups and associations as an instrument to eradicate poverty because they have the potential and capacity to

Exploring the water, energy and food Nexus

contribute to national development if well-managed, saying, “In line

The 6th SADC Multi-Stakeholder Water Dialogue - held under the

with the platform of action for the world conference on women, the

theme Watering Development in SADC: Exploring the Water, Energy

government of Zambia has deliberate policies that focus on poverty

and Food Nexus - facilitated a multi-stakeholder discussion on how to

and unemployment reduction among women and youth.”

address the interconnections between water, energy and food nexus, and how each sector has the potential to help or harm the other, to serve policy making level aimed at promoting greater collaboration between nations; SADC has conducted the Multi-stakeholder Water

A boost for the south Launched recently in Zambia, under the auspices of the NEPAD Business Foundation (NBF) and the Agri-Business Forum (ABF), the Southern African Agriculture Development Partnership Platform (SAADPP) aims to promote innovative approaches to increasing private sector participation in agricultural development.

Zambian agriculture & livestock permanent secretary Siazongo Siakalenge has acknowledged the Zambian chapter of SAADPP as contributing to an important base on which strong partnerships in agricultural development can be anchored.

Zambia's Government is committed to building a robust and broadbased agricultural sector which will stimulate growth along the whole value chain - Siazongo Siakalenge, Zambian agriculture & livestock permanent secretary ‘’The Government and private sector should jointly develop and map out strategies on the future of Zambia’s agribusiness in particular and how it relates to regional and world markets. As Government, we are committed to building a robust and broadbased agricultural sector which will stimulate growth along the whole value chain,’’ Siakalenge said.

Nawa Mutumweno

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

www.africanreview.com

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E V E R Y D A Y M I S S I O N D E L I V E R E D .

E V E R Y D A Y V A L U E .

Design, comfo r t , quality standards and innovative technology: here it comes the NEW 682, the n ew g en er a t ion of h eav y t r u ck s.

With its cab inspired by the award winning New Str alis cabs, and powered by Iveco Fiat Power t r ain Cur sor 9 engine , New 682 is available on the on-road and off- road ve r sion.

It represents the best mix among reliability, flexibility and perfo r mance , the r ight solution to face a wide r ange of tr anspor ts.

New 682. A new breed.

W W W . I V E C O . C O M

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NEWS

Bulletin / Energy Experts in Nigerian energy at Lagos exposition

Gaborone; as part of the turnkey solution, ABB

More resources in Mauritania

is supplying its Symphony Plus total plant

Intec has been working on a programme in

A West African showcase event for the power

automation system to monitor and control the

Mauritania for the development of Eastern

industry, held in Lagos during the first week

pump stations and reservoirs located along the

Zone Electricity Systems initiated by Société

of October 2013, brought together headline

360 km water network, enabling aggregation

Mauritanienne d’Electricité (SOMELEC),

organisations from Africa and around the

of data across the network, to reduce

which is intended to help achieve the

world, offering products and services for a

engineering time and effort from custom

objective of the Government of the Islamic

booming regional energy sector; “The power

development, and minimise commissioning

Republic of Mauritania to increase the

transformers market is growing strongly and

time and risk of misconfiguration during

nation’s urban electrification rate from 39

Power Nigeria will provide a platform to

startup.

per cent to 80 per cent, and the electrification rate in rural and semi-urban

benefit from this growth while providing an

areas from three per cent to 40 per cent by

portfolio,” said Aasit Naik, general manager of

Evaluating future oil flows at Ekales-1

central marketing at Voltamp Energy.

Tullow Oil has disclosed that the Ekales-1

engineering and design, establishment of

wildcat, located in Block 13T in northern

tender documents, and monitoring and

Taking Earth Hour beyond the hour

Kenya, has made a new oil discovery - with

supervision of construction works for two

results of drilling, wireline logs and samples of

hybrid solar PV-diesel power plants in Nema

WWF-SA and ICLEI Africa have been

reservoir fluid indicating a potential net oil

(4 MW diesel, 2MW solar PV, 500kW energy

managing the 2013-14 Earth Hour City

pay in the Auwerwer and Upper Lokone

storage) and Adel Bagrou (2MW diesel, 1MW

Challenge - in which, for the first time, South

sandstone reservoirs of between 60 and 100

solar PV, 250kW energy storage), for the

African municipalities compete with cities

metres; future flow testing aims to confirm

appropriate MV/HV lines and associated

around the world for the title of Global Earth

productivity from these zones, at the fourth

substations, and the LV distribution lines.

Hour Capital by registering their data on the

consecutive wildcat discovery, in the first oil

Carbon Cities Climate Registry, an

basin opened in Northern Kenya, since Tullow

SA PV plant operates early

internationally recognised reporting

drilling commenced in 2012.

One of the largest photovoltaic (PV) power

opportunity to diversify our product

2018; Intec is carrying out detailed

plants in Africa equipped with central

platform managed by ICLEI; the challenge

inverters from SMA Solar Technology AG

which asks citizens across the world to

Disouq concession fields produce gas

switch off their lights for an hour in support

RWE Dea Egypt is proceeding with

Kalkbult, South Africa; equipped with 84

of global efforts against climate change -

production at the Disouq concession in the

SMA Sunny Central 800CP inverters,

though the EHCC asks cities to take Earth

Egyptian Nile Delta, following development

Kalkbult is the first PV project in the South

Hour beyond the hour by demonstrating

of seven gas fields in the area, which is

African Renewable Energy Independent

their plans and actions for low carbon

expected to produce a total of approximately

Power Producer Programme (REIPP) to have

development and for increasing the use of

11.4bn cu m of gas; Disouq is the first natural

been connected to the grid.

sustainable renewable energy and energy

gas project to be brought into production by

efficiency solutions in the future.

RWE Dea as operator in Egypt.

builds on WWF’s Earth Hour campaign,

(SMA) has commenced operation in

Pipeline and pump infrastructure in Botswana Power and automation technology group ABB is working to provide an instrumentation, control system and electrical equipment (ICE) package for a water pipeline and pump station in eastern Botswana, which will support SMA and the Norwegian PV power plant developer Scatec Solar are cooperating in South Africa for the 75MW project Kalkbult

growing demand driven by new mining ventures, power sector developments and a

The Disouq Concession gas fields

growing population around the capital,

16

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

www.africanreview.com

S03 ATR Nov 2013 Bulletin_Layout 1 31/10/2013 15:39 Page 17

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S03 ATR Nov 2013 Bulletin_Layout 1 31/10/2013 15:39 Page 18

WEB SELECTION

African Review/On the Web A selection of product innovations and recent service developments for African business Full information can be found on www.africanreview.com

Nigeria cuts registration fees for new businesses by 50 per cent Nigeria has slashed registration costs by 50 per cent for new businesses with an equity investment of US$3.1mn to encourage small companies and foreign investments to the country.

For investors registering businesses with equity higher than US$3.11mn, the registration fee has been reduced by 25 per cent. http://www.africanreview.com/financial/business/

Renault-Nissan Alliance to set up vehicle assembly hub in Nigeria The Renault-Nissan Alliance has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with West African conglomerate Stallion Group to start a vehicle assembly unit in Nigeria.

The car makers have decided to set up a base in Nigeria as they expect the government to approve a new policy designed to encourage the development of the automobile industry in the country. http://www.africanreview.com/manufacturing/industry/

ADF approves Partial Risk Guarantee for Lake Turkana project The first of the African Development Fund’s Partial Risk Guarantees (ADF PRG), the Lake Turkana Transmission Line Delay Partial Risk Guarantee, has been approved for US$27mn.

The ADF’s partial risk guarantee will support the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya, which involves the development of a 300MW wind farm comprising 365 wind turbines of 850kW capacity each, a 33kV electrical network and an average electricity production of 1,440GWh per year. http://www.africanreview.com/financial/banking-a-finance/

The ADF's Partial Risk Guarantees will support the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya. (Photo: aocrane/Flickr)

ANA Aviation and Astral launch African venture

Nissan is preparing to make Nigeria a significant manufacturing hub in Africa. (Photo: Nissan)

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

ANA Aviation Services and Astral Aviation are operating in partnership for an all-cargo service The companies will be using a Boeing using a Boeing 747-400 wet-leased 747-400 Freighter aircraft wet-leased from Atlas Air. (Photo: ZK-NGJ/Flickr) from Atlas Air - operating a triangular route from Ostend (Belgium), travelling southbound to Lagos and Port Harcourt (Nigeria) and then on to Malabo (Equatorial Guinea). http://www.africanreview.com/transport-a-logistics/aviation

www.africanreview.com

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ECONOMY

Society

Unifying an African demographic The continuing trend towards increasing affluence amongst an increasing number of African households

O

ne third of all Africans are now classified as middle-class. Their incomes allow them to inhabit an economic bracket that is variously defined but by any definition is growing. With this growth is greater political clout as larger numbers of Africans with possessions from cars to homes to stock portfolios seek social stability and good governance to ensure the continuing comfort of their lifestyles.

More in the middle For a continent long perceived as economically challenged, the rise of an African middle class represents laudable progress.

According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), 34 per cent of Africa’s 326mn people were earning middle class incomes in 2010, compared to 27 per cent of Africans in 2000.

Mostly upward mobility accounts for the increase. Greater economic opportunity translated into more formerly poor households advancing into middle class. However, a move toward accountable democratic governments has resulted in fewer individuals whose fortunes are based on corruption and government theft. During the past decade, upper income earners decreased from five per cent to five per cent of the continent’s population, the AfDB reported.

The past decade’s increase in middle class Africans continues a decades-long trend. A generation ago, in 1980, 70 per cent of Africans lived in poverty and only a quarter could be considered middle-class. Income figures vary from country to country – home ownership is less expensive in Mozambique compared to South Africa – but guidelines based on family possessions are sometimes used for surveys. Families are asked about such things as car ownership, education levels of family members and leisure time activities to ascertain whether they enjoyed middle-class possessions and lifestyles.

Private sector marketing firms, meanwhile, have been conducting their own surveys to

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determine how middle-class Africans disposed of their incomes. Increasingly, Africa’s US$1,8 trillion economy is fuelled by consumer spending. To what extent is brand loyalty important to Africa’s middle-class?

How swayed is this group by advertising, to the status of purchasing imported foreign brands, to the comfort and familiarity of locally produced goods?

In Nigeria, following a quintupling of GDP from US$46mn in 2000 to US$247mn in 2011, the financial group Renaissance Capital conducted a survey in 2011 and found that half of middle class Nigerians intended to purchase “big ticket” white goods like refrigerators, stoves and similar domestic appliances. The survey suggested Nigerian middle class households prioritised spending on home improvements. Nigeria’s large population is skewed toward youth, and 70 per cent of middle class Nigerians were under age 40. Younger consumers tended to spend more and save less for a future that for them still seemed relatively distant.

Africa’s middle class is not a unified demographic. Impoverished and wardisturbed Central Africa is still developing a stable civil service and entrepreneurial business class to create positions for middle class income earners. Northern Africa appears to be home to the greatest percentage of middle class per national populations, but at the same time the middle class of the region is less secure. 80 per cent of Egyptians are classified as middle class, 85 per cent of Moroccans are in the middle class, and 90 per cent of Tunisians. However, the African Development Bank considers a large number of the middle class nationals from those three countries ‘floating middle class’.

Making more money Africa’s middle class is accounting for more wealth on the continent but is also exerting influence on population growth and governance. Middle class families tend to be

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

urban residing and have fewer children than rural residents for whom large families are required for the agricultural production needed to sustain the family. Middle class children, by contrast, contribute little if anything to a family’s wealth and are generally consumers of food and goods purchased by parents. Children’s educational needs tend to be prioritised by their parents. Having fewer children means less school tuitions to pay and better schools for existing children.

Looking ahead fifty years, the African Development Bank projects that by 2060 a majority of Africans (60 per cent) will belong to the middle class. If this projection holds true, this will have a profound impact on Africa’s population growth. Unsustainable population growth has put irreversible pressure on ecosystems, water resources, wild animal populations and food supplies in many parts of Africa because, as The Population Institute noted, the continent’s poor considers having more children rather than less children the way to cope with poverty.

The middle class’ emergence is having a salutary effect on governance. For decades, African leaders have sought election by appealing to the poor on a continent comprised mostly of the poor. This was usually done by promising goods and services that, if they were ever delivered, were paid by tax revenues levied on middle and upper income taxpayers. A growing African middle class (which will in a generation equal and then surpass the poor in number) is showing the conservatism inherent to any middle class by demanding accountability and efficient and effective governance.

Educated, they involve themselves in public policy matters on the local and national level.

With the age of “Presidents for Life followed by rule of the president’s progeny” coming to an end, more candidates will be emerging from the middle class. ■ James Hall www.africanreview.com

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Angola

ECONOMY

Growing in from the Atlantic coast The re-opened Lobito Corridor should bring even more economic growth to Angola, Africa’s second largest oil producer - and to its neighbouring countries

A

ngola really turned its first economic corner of the modern era when oil exports hit the big time a decade ago. Its second comes with the 1,340 km rail line from Benguela and Lobito on the Atlantic coast to Luau on the DR Congo border. The first construction trains crossed the frontier to Dilolo late in the summer of 2013, to eventually link up with the unmodernised systems of both the DRC and Zambia’s Copperbelt.

For several years, Angola’s economy has been one of the fastest-growing in the world, consistently more than 10 per cent annually (and 11.5 points last year). But despite massive existing wealth created within the Sonangol Group with its energy products and waiting in the wings in the form of diamonds, other solid minerals including iron ore and hydro power, too. This still remains one of the poorest countries in the world by multiple telling indices such as the UN’s Human Development ranking. This is just one result of a decades-long civil war.

Outside the capital, the narrow strip of landmine-cleared land along the rail line across the Planalto, and the Cabinda energy exclave of course, the social wealth and infrastructure gaps remain huge.

In the long-term, more than subsistence agriculture must be a principal source of hope.

With its strong links with Brazil, Angola used to be an exporter of some of the world’s finest coffee, and the offshore fishery resources remain almost entirely undeveloped by local entrepreneurs. The reconstructed rail line with its splendid brand-new and blue-liveried rolling stock will be able to make a major contribution in exporting and distributing these and many more products. And earning substantial cross-border transit revenues from the mineral-rich interior too.

Meanwhile, all those lucrative exports of low-sulphur Cabinda crude to China (primarily; this is the main source of development finance, and of entrepreneurial www.africanreview.com

Angola’s economy has been one of the fastest-growing in the world, consistently more than ten per cent annually - and massive wealth created within the Sonangol Group with its energy products, with additional revenues from diamonds, iron ore and other solid minerals” skills too now that Angola has become its number-one source of imports) but also the USA will be paying for it all. Meanwhile Luanda has already become one of the world’s costliest cities in which to do business.

Optimistic over investment prospects A recent report from Absa Capital* paints a very optimistic picture of Angola’s current investment prospects; the long-standing MPLA government was even able to set up a sovereign wealth fund last October, one of very few in Africa, it says. With currency and stability remaining the Central Bank’s main objectives inflation is being kept below ten per cent nationally - just. And with firm oil prices and improving production (oil already supplies more than three-quarters of total government revenues), the BNA should be able to keep the kwanza enviably stable, it maintains.

Oil production is projected to increase from 1.74mn to 1.84mn barrels/day this year, and could exceed 2.0 in 2015. This means that Angola’s record as being Africa’s second largest oil producer should be easily held on to. All of which is fuelling strong import

growth to keep all that infrastructure construction, and rising middle-class living standards, going in the right direction. The China-supplied locomotive fleet for the rebuilt railway is growing fast, and most of the standard-pattern stations feature an efficient three-track layout so that the freight can keep moving up and down the line while passengers get on and off.

The legendary eucalyptus-fuelled Caminho de Ferro Benguela (CFB) steam rail line has been inoperative for more than 40 years now, but it has been totally rebuilt by China Railway Construction Corp on the original (very well-graded) alignment and equipped with modern diesel locomotives.

The construction trains that crossed the border into the DRC and through freight shipments are expected to be running to and from a planned refurbished Zambian branch soon, possibly by the middle of 2014. The volume of passenger and freight traffic in both directions is certain to grow rapidly, but some of the millions quoted in unofficial forecasts of both are likely to be well off the mark. After such a long gap rail awareness will take some time to develop.

Nevertheless, the completely rebuilt and restocked line was a major talking point ahead of Fleming Gulf’s 2nd Annual African Railways Summit in Johannesburg in November. The prospects of interlinking with other ‘Cape Gauge’ lines throughout southern Africa are multiple, and the economies of several neighbouring countries are certain to be positively affected by what will effectively be a secure and refurbished route for heavy freight right across the continent. High distribution costs are universally recognised as being one of the key constraints on the development of industry throughout Africa; Angola’s revitalised economy will soon have a major contribution to make on this front. ■ Notes: * ”African Local Markets Guide 2013”

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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ECONOMY

Botswana

Profitable positions for new economic growth Botswana’s political elite is working with core investment stakeholders to rationalise and reconfigure the nation’s economy

B

otswana’s traditionally buoyant economy, fuelled by the country’s impressive natural resources, has been assessed and profiled by a recent International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by the organisation’s mission chief for Botswana and Namibia, Lamin Leigh. The team conducted discussions to review recent economic developments as well as prospects and policies to ensure Botswana’s continued macroeconomic stability and growth. The mission met with the minister of finance and development planning, O.K. Matambo, Bank of Botswana governor, Linah K. Mohohlo, permanent secretary for Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Solomon Sekwakwa, and senior government officials, development partners, and representatives from the private and public sectors.

Positions and production Leigh outlined the IMF mission's preliminary conclusions in a statement, saying that following two years of strong growth following the global economic crisis, the growth of real GDP had fallen to just four per cent in 2012. This slowdown in growth was driven by the reduced global demand for diamonds, which continued into the first quarter of 2013, said Leigh.

Botswana’s level of inflation had, by the end of May 2013, reduced to 6.1 per cent from a level of more than nine per cent in December 2011, bordering the Bank of Bostwana’s target range of three to six per cent. The overall outlook for the country’s economy remains positive.

“Botswana’s fiscal and external positions remain strong thanks in large part to the government’s prudent macroeconomic management,” said Leigh, adding that the budget for the 2012/13 fiscal year was balanced for the first time since the financial crisis of 2008/09. Real GDP growth for the remainder of 2013 is expected to remain stable at four per cent while headline inflation is expected to drop further in the first quarter of 2014.

Leigh’s statement also praised the government’s efforts to simplify the tax system

22

and credited Botswana’s banking system for being “profitable and well-capitalised with relatively low non-performing loans and adequate buffers to smooth shocks”. The government was also commended for its focus on greater private sector development and economic diversification, as put forward in the recent review of its 10th National Development Plan (NDP10). Indeed, Botswana’s efforts to diversify its economy look set to pay off, according to the IMF, with non-mining growth expected to offset the continuing slump in mining production.

The UN continues to assist Botswana in the areas of capacity building and the provision of advisory services. Botswana's government cofunds UN activities and accounts for 60 per cent of the total country programme budget. The programme supports activities built around five strategic areas: ●

Economic diversification and poverty reduction.

●

Governance and the promotion of human rights.

●

Health and HIV/ AIDS.

●

Environment and climate change.

●

Children, youth and women empowerment.

A development plan The UN and the government of Botswana recently announced a revised version of their Programme Operational Plan (GoB-UN POP) to bring the plan’s core aims in line with NDP10 and the country’s national framework for the future, Vision 2016, to help make its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) a reality. The revised plan was signed during a ceremony by both the government of Botswana and fifteen agencies of the UN. The government and the UN use joint annual plans to set themselves targets to achieve

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Non-mining growth is expected to offset the continuing slump in mining production in Botswana

intended goals. The five implementing ministries are the Office of the President, the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry Of Wildlife and Tourism and the Ministry Of Local Government.

The current, overall analysis of the progress towards achieving the MDGs is positive and the government and people of Botswana have pulled together to harness the country’s resources. The UN has however highlighted that major steps need to be taken immediately to ensure that HIV/AIDS does not wipe out many of the development efforts and achievements since the country’s independence in 1966.

“Going by current trends achieving all the MDGs, or ensuring that progress in vital areas is not eroded will prove a very serious challenge to Botswana,” the UN said in a statement. ■ www.africanreview.com

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Nigeria

ECONOMY

Nigeria’s air ambulance pioneer While in East Africa, the idea of flying doctors and air ambulances is almost taken for granted, thanks to the work of AMREF, in West Africa the concept has only just taken off – thanks to the work of Dr Ola Orekunrin

W

hile her air ambulance business, Flying Doctors Nigeria, has been a great success, there is real sadness in Dr Ola Orekunrin’s story of how her initiative took off. When her younger sister fell ill in one of the remoter parts of Nigeria, her family tried to find an air ambulance to evacuate her for hospitalisation.

“I thought it would be quite straightforward,” Ola recalls. “However, there was no air ambulance in Nigeria. So, we started looking out in the surrounding region, in countries like Chad and Sierra Leone. As we found there was no air ambulance in more and more countries, we became more and more worried about how we were going to move her.

“Then we were able to find a company in South Africa that could evacuate her. But by the time we had actually made all the arrangements to do that, she was dead. She was just 12 years old and that made me start thinking about what sort of path my life should take and how impactful I could be with the skills I have.”

Making the most of medicine It was perhaps for her an easy decision, except her parents threw up some initial objections.

“I’ve always loved medicine, and I’ve always loved flying actually,” Ola told Africa Review. “But when I first started to think about choosing a career, my parents were adamant that I shouldn’t learn to fly because they were very afraid of crashes and thought planes were very unsafe. So I decided, initially, to study medicine.”

This was something of a departure for her family as nobody had ever before elected to become a doctor before, and as Ola explains, her mother was not absolutely thrilled by her career choice, but at least she was not flying!

“I think she would have preferred me to do something more feminine. Medicine involves dedicating a lot of time, a lot of night calls and all hours’ duties etc, maybe she would have rather I had gone for something more homely.”

www.africanreview.com

Shortly after completing her medical studies in the UK, she decided to move back to Nigeria and start a pediatric air ambulance service to, in some way, meet the challenge of bad roads and huge distances. “There was no way that sick people could move around in Nigeria or in fact the whole West African sub region,” she says.

But inaugurating an air ambulance service had its own challenges. “When I arrived in Nigeria, I decided to start an air ambulance, not just a specialist pediatric air ambulance, that would actually cover Nigeria and West Africa. It took a huge amount of work to get started with a lot of mistakes and a lot of completely dead ends.”

However, persistence and dogged determination paid off, and today Ola’s company is well-established. “We have a mixedpool of over 20 aircraft that we use for different types of evacuation, and about 30 staff all employed in different capacities with us and branches in three major cities in Nigeria.”

An intensive approach to care The result is that hundreds of lives have been saved and just not in Nigeria, but across the sub region. Half in jest, I asked Ola if she owned an oil well or two, as air operations take so much capital.

“No I don’t,” she replied with a laugh, “but I work for a lot of people who do own them, a lot of oil and gas and mining companies, and a lot of industrial firms who sign up to insurance schemes for emergency evacuation services.

“A lot of people somehow assume that as its Africa, it has to be a charity and that there’s not enough money to pay for these things. But actually, when I started pitching and trying to sell and explain the role of these services, people embraced the idea as there was nothing else like it,” she says.

But marketing her emergency air ambulance services does not take up all her time. Medicine is still a passion, and she specialises in trauma

Dr Ola Orekunrin

evacuation cases, sometimes traveling along with the patient as they are transferred to intensive care facilities.

“I do a few transfers myself. I try and do the long distance ones – repatriations to India, to the UK, to South Africa when there are critically ill patients. As I have already said, sick people can’t move around in Nigeria and we have about a hundred cases of trauma every day in the country.

“We would probably need around 100 aircraft to take them all to hospital. So, we have started looking at other things that we can do, looking at land ambulances, looking at boat ambulances to solve this problem because right now if you have an accident in a remote region or on a Nigerian motorway, you are almost certainly dead. There’s just absolutely nothing, no mechanism, no emergency response system that can serve sick or injured patients.

“So, with the Nigerian national army, we have started a paramedics training college that will first train 10,000 paramedics over the next five years; hopefully that will be another step in the direction of making sure that Nigerian patients, and patients throughout West Africa, can get to an appropriate medical facility within the right time frame.” ■ Stephen Williams

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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ECONOMY

Ghana

Bringing more money into rural banking Progress made by Mumuadu Rural Bank amongst Ghanaian communities in remote locations

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est African banking is really reaching into rural communities. In Ghana, the Mumuadu Rural Bank at Akyem Osino, in the Fanteakwa District, recorded an unprecedented profit before tax of GH¢1,245,696 (US$629,839), representing a 95.47 per cent increase over the previous year. The bank’s asset book stood at GH�23,388,566.92, up by 31.5 per cent from GH¢ 5,607,139.97 in 2011.

Seth Adom-Asomaning, chairman of the bank’s Board of Directors, disclosed the performance data at the institution’s 25th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Akyem Osino.

“Our loan book grew by 31.02 per cent to GH� 14,270,526 from GH¢ 9,843,500 while our customer deposit improved by 29.95 per cent from GHC 13,685,229.70 to GHC 17,785,105.35,” he said.

There is a climate of cautious investment, nonetheless. Adom-Asomaning reported, too, that the bank’s advances had grown from GH�9,843,500 to GH�14,270,526 - while investment in Treasury Bills amounted to GHC3,709,715. He confirmed, also, that the Board had declared a dividend of GH¢0.02 explaining that “there was no increase over the previous year’s because of the need to keep a healthy minimum capital and not to be found wanting when the Central Bank decides to raise the minimum operating capital in the not too distant future.”

Further insights indicate that the Mumuadu Rural Bank is in good health. The board chairman observed that the bank’s adequacy ratio - at 19.28 per cent - was well above the regulatory minimum threshold of 10 per cent “emphasising our strong capital position in the industry”. He noted that the Akuafo cheque purchased for the year 2012 amounted to GH�5,033,780.

Retaining integrity by social investment Adom-Asomaning also urged the bank’s branch managers to aspire to maintain a high reputation of ethics and integrity by making

24

The importance of rural banks - including the Mumuadu Rural Bank - as providers of financial services to ensure growth in a predominantly agrobased economy cannot be over-emphasised” sound business decisions with the customer in mind. On matters of social responsibility, he said that throughout the past year, the bank had spent GH¢44,354.00 to lend support to various activities aimed at improving societal welfare in areas like education and health.

Rural banks were first established in Ghana in 1976, and have since provided credit to small-scale farmers and businesses, as well as providing support for development projects.

The importance of these banks as providers of financial services to ensure growth in a predominantly agro-based economy cannot be over-emphasised. They undertake a mix of micro finance and commercial banking activities structured to satisfy the need of the rural areas. They provide banking services by way of funds mobilisation and credit to cottage industry operators, farmers, fishermen and regular salaried employees. They also grant credits to customers for the payment of school fees, the acquisition and rehabilitation of houses, and to meet medical expenses.

Some of the banks have subsidiary companies engaged in consumer credit and other developmental activities. They devote part of their profits to meet social developmental activities such as donations to support education, health, traditional administration and the needy in their respective communities.

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

There are presently 137 such institutions, which are locally-owned and managed - but they are supervised by the clearing bank ARB Apex Bank - under the regulation of the Bank of Ghana, which itself was established in 1957 from the structure of the Bank of the Gold Coast (BCG).

Kwadwo Aye Kusi, managing director of the ARB Apex Bank, complemented AdomAsomaning’s position in a speech read on his behalf, and commended the board, management, staff and shareholders of the bank on their performance. He said the Efficiency and Monitoring Report prepared by the Apex Bank had rated the performance of Mumuadu Rural Bank as satisfactory.

“In terms of profitability, Mumuadu Rural Bank was fourth out of 21 rural banks in the Eastern Region and 26th out of 137 rural banks country-wide,” he reported.

“Your bank is at the third position in the area of stated capital in the Eastern Region and eight country-wide. Mumuadu Rural Bank placed 18th in terms of capital mobilisation.”

Regional distribution ofGhanaian rural banks Region Ashanti Central Eastern Brong Ahafo Western Volta Greater Accra Upper East Upper West Northern TOTAL

Number 25 21 22 20 14 12 7 5 4 7 137

Kusi, however, appealed to the bank’s shareholders to acquire more shares in order to cushion the bank in case any negative situations should arise. He advised the bank to put in place pragmatic and realistic programmes and policies such as risk management, staff training and product development and customer service to be able to sustain and consolidate its operations. ■ www.africanreview.com

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ECONOMY

Ghana

Technology for empowerment Ghana helps African technologists prepare to hold discussions on the development and application of telecommunications for economic good

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Regional Preparatory Meeting for Africa was held in Accra, Ghana’s capital city, early in October 2013, and some months ahead of the 2014 World Telecommunication Development Conference organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), to assess the ongoing implementation of Plan of Action agreed on in Hyderabad, India, in 2010 and to identify priority areas for the deployment and utilisation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to support development strategies in continent.

ITU’s sixth World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-14) will take place in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, from 31 March to 11 April 2014. The gathering of policy makers, regulators and experts from around the world will forge a plan of action for telecommunication and ICT development over the next four years. The preparatory meeting in Accra addressed key areas of interest for the African region.

Resources for innovation ITU secretary-general Hamadoun I Touré acknowledged the opportunities presented at the preparatory meeting for WTDC-14 in Accra. He said, “Ghana has been endowed with natural resources like many other African countries, but it has built on its human capital and innovation to develop high economic growth and count among top per capita GDP rates on the continent.

“This is an inspiration for us to invest in ICT development in Africa and capitalize on the inherent talent for innovation among African people to generate overall economic growth and achieve the goals of sustainable development.”

Ghana enjoys more than 100 per cent mobile cellular subscriptions with 26.33mn subscribers recorded in February 2013.

Mobile broadband subscriptions surpassed

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33 per cent with more than 17 per cent of the population using the Internet.

More work is to be done, however, on matters of inclusivity and innovative uses for mobile technologies - as represented in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). ITU deputy secretary-general Houlin Zhao, said, “ITU is committed to connecting the world, and to bring the benefits of ICTs to the world’s people.”

Noting that the RPM aims to advance openness and inclusion in the discussions of ICT for development and ITU’s commitment to connecting the world serves as “a catalyst for Africa’s attainment the Millennium Development Goals”, minister for communications and technology of Ghana, Edward K Omane Boamah, remarked. “Over the past five years, Africa’s mobile market overtook fixed lines in 2001 and now outnumber fixed telephone lines by nearly ten to one, with mobile cellular subscribers set to grow to more than 300mn by the year end.”

The minister noted that this potential for development brings Africa into the Information Technology Age. The African region has experienced remarkable growth in mobile-cellular networks and services development since 2008, allowing an increasing number of the almost 850mn people in the region to get connected and join the information society. Within five years, the region’s mobile-cellular penetration rate has doubled from 32 to 64 per cent and active mobile-broadband penetration, which was practically nonexistent in 2008, has grown to almost 11 per cent. ICT uptake in the region has been growing faster than in other regions, with the 2008-2013 growth rates of key ICT services well above the global average.

“Credit goes to governments for their

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

ITU secretary-general Hamadoun I Touré

political will, to the private sector for investing in the ICT sector, and to the citizens for a high uptake of these new technologies,” said Brahima Sanou, director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau. “I believe the future is very bright for Africa.”

Sanou pointed to the global population of young people born in the digital age that are nurtured on information and communication technologies as an integral part of their lives.

“More than 20 per cent of the population in Africa consists of young people within the 15-24 age range – as compared to 12.4 per cent in Europe. As the future is in the hands of the youth, the prospects for Africa are very good.”

The RPM was preceded by the Regional Development Forum (RDF) for Africa. The Forum provided a platform for open dialogue, cooperation and partnerships among telecommunication/ICT policy makers, regulators, industry, academia, regional and international development agencies and organizations on telecommunication/ICT issues of regional concern.

Based on ICT for Development and Empowerment in Africa (IDEA), the sessions focused on broadband as an enabling agent for development and empowerment in Africa, examining innovative ways and initiatives to bring broadband applications and services to users, especially in the areas of governance, healthcare, commerce, agriculture and education. Particular attention was given to the ITU m-Powering Development initiative and the potential for mobile applications to change lives.

Enhancing cybersecurtity featured prominently with an emphasis on creating a safer cyberspace for children, electronic transactions, and personal data protection with the establishment of Computer Incidence Response Teams (CIRT). ■ www.africanreview.com

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ECONOMY

Ghana

When gold loses its shine Ghanaian mines face hard times, resorting to layoffs and possible takeovers to survive

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hana’s gold mines are in trouble.

Sources from the Ghana Chamber of Mines said more than 3,500 permanent jobs will be lost this year due to the falling worldwide price of the commodity and rising production costs in a sector that has enjoyed a consistent decade-long boom.

The sources said job losses are inevitable if the price of gold persists at the current level of approximately US$1,200 an ounce, which is in stark contrast to the price of US$1,600 in April 2013.

The multinational mining companies have found themselves in a quandary following the 25 per cent fall in the world price of gold, which has affected their revenues and is gradually squeezing profits, which, even when measured by the optimistic standards of cash cost per ounce, does not include all their total costs.

New regulations by the government and its agencies, including local and traditional authorities, have since 2010 introduced new financial commitments on the miners, thereby increasing their overall costs significantly. For example, mineral royalties have gone up from a range of three per cent to six per cent to a flat five per cent, while capital allowance has been changed from 80 per cent in the first year and 50 per cent thereafter annually on a declining balance basis, to a straight line amortisation over five years at 20 per cent each year.

Corporate tax has also gone up to 35 per cent while other corporate organisations are still paying the 25 per cent until the government reintroduces the five per cent national stabilisation levy.

There has been a 900 per cent increase in exploration permit fees charged by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and a 1,800 per cent increase in stool fees per 50 sq km of mining licenses, while the state continues to insist on tighter fiscal terms.

A Ghana Chamber of Mines study in August 2012 concluded that it costs $751 per ounce of refined gold, giving the mines a $450 per ounce profit. This figure

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The mining industry attracted US$1bn worth of total investment into Ghana in 2012” however did not include other adjacent costs such as exploration, capital expenditure on mine upgrade and expansion, vehicles, meeting existing tax obligations, levies, license and permit fees.

The industry research conducted last year by the Chamber on the NCE at a time when the commodity was selling at about US$1,600 came up with US$1,200 per ounce, demonstrating that the mines were barely covering their overall costs and any further increases in their fiscal obligations could send them into losses.

Despite the government’s tough talk, it is aware of the negative effect the mine closures could have on the economy. In its reintroduction of the Stabilisation Levy, it excluded the mines, although mining support service providers were included.

Industry watchers say myriad taxes may make Ghana uncompetitive globally, thereby drying up new investments in the sector. They hinge this fear on mining costs from other mining destinations around the continent. For example, Ghana’s production cost of US$751 per ounce is higher than in Liberia (US$553), Sierra Leone (US$439) and Côte d’Ivoire (US$509).

Ghana however has the advantage of proven resources, a track record of production, requisite skills and support services.

The mines’ contributions to the local economy tend however to be measured only by their direct corporate social responsibility, rather than their taxes and levies which are not matched by any other sector of the economy.

Ghana’s biggest mine, AngloGold Ashanti’s (AGA) Obuasi Mine, for example, announced that approximately 430 of its

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

miners will be declared redundant, partly due the falling price of gold and the company’s broader revival strategy.

CEO Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan said, “Obuasi is currently making losses at the operating level ... The current cost structure at the operation is clearly unsustainable.”

A report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has warned the industry is facing a severe confidence crisis based on whether costs can be controlled, whether return on capital will improve and whether commodity prices will collapse.

The report pointed out that although mining stocks fell only slightly last year, they went down by almost 20 per cent in Q1 2013. Regaining confidence in the industry, according to the report, will be hinged on how the companies react to the challenges it is confronted with.

But despite the problems, “it's not all bad news”, the report said.

Figures from the Minerals Commission indicate the mining industry attracted US$1bn worth of total investment into the country in 2012.

For an industry that does not enjoy the best of public sympathy, this year seems to be its worst moment. Host communities have regularly complained about the brutalities meted out to them by security officials and the fact that the mining companies have taken over their land has not placed them in good stead also.

In his reaction to the plight of the mines, President John Mahama said, “Government is very concerned about what is happening and is looking out for options to solve the problem.”

CEO of the Chamber of Mines, Tony Aubynn, faulted the government for the woes of the industry, saying the authorities want to squeeze abnormal revenue from the mining sector with the introduction of numerous taxes, while the uncompetitive fiscal regime has been worsened by the decline in gold prices. He also added that the issue is not so much about the declining price of gold, but about the cost of operation. ■ www.africanreview.com

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Regimanuel Gray Ltd

PROFILE

22 years of unrivalled leadership

R

egimanuel Gray Ltd (RGL) was established 22 years ago with Regimanuel Ltd, a Ghanaian company owned by Emmanuel Botchwey and his wife, Regina Botchwey and Gray Partnership Incorporated of Houston, Texas, as its original shareholders.

RGL was incorporated with estate development as its core business and has over the years become synonymous with the delivery of unmatched master-planned gated estates in Ghana whose distinguishing features are high quality housing units at prime locations provided with superb infrastructure, utility services and social amenities like schools and sports facilities. The house types are designed to meet the pockets of a wide range of economic groupings.

The company has added more than 3,000 housing units to the housing stock in Ghana since its inception – a feat which is unmatched by any private sector real estate developer in the country to date. RGL estates can be found at: East Airport, Accra; Tema Communities 14, 15, 18, 19 and 20; Kwabenya, Accra; Katamanso, also in Accra; and Essipon, near Sekondi.

www.africanreview.com

RGL’s current development project for which sales are already in progress is the Katamanso housing project, located off the Accra-Dodowa Road. The project which is being undertaken on approximately 1, 300 acres of land was started in 2010 and comprises 10 clusters of an average of 800 dwelling units per cluster. Each cluster will be gated with an assortment of housing units ranging from expandable 2-3 bedroom detached and semi-detached houses and 2-3 bedroom apartment blocks. This development will bear the famous RGL trademarks of superb infrastructure - tarred roads, underground drains, water and electricity services etc. They will also have the benefit of professional estate management services delivered by RGEMC Ltd which is RGL’s wholly owned subsidiary dedicated to the management of its estates.

The company’s activities have not been limited to Ghana alone for in 2004, the RGL brand was successfully exported to Sierra Leone with the establishment of Regimanuel Gray (SL) Limited which has since become the leading player in the housing development industry there.

Emmanuel Botchwey

The company has followed a policy of diversification into complementary industries to enhance its capacity to deliver the high quality and highly desirable housing units that it is famous for. Thus, it has invested in subsidiaries concerned with the manufacture of concrete products like pipes, construction blocks, pavement blocks, etc, quarry products, sale of swimming pools and provision of estate management services. The following are examples of its complementary subsidiaries: ● Bessblock Concrete Products Ltd Sierrablock Concrete Products Ltd ● Regimanuel Concrete Products Ltd ● RG Estate Management Ltd ● Desjoyaux Ghana Limited. ■

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ECONOMY

Ghana

Expanding the reach of broadband Internet The Ghanaian plan to deploy all state assets to expand reach of highspeed Web services

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he Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), the country’s sole transmitter of bulk electric energy is to use its transmission assets to carry out general commercial telecommunication and other related services soon.

This means that GRIDCo’s transmission towers which also carry a fibre-optic transmission line that are used in managing its systems across the country could become useful as telecom cell sites and also configured to make Internet services available across the country.

An earlier plan by GRIDCo to use its fibreoptic infrastructure for these services was declined last year by the shareholders - the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and the Ministry of Energy explaining that involvement in the telecom services could distract it from its core operations.

Though the shareholders have this year agreed on the proposal they have however urged the company to concentrate its energy on its core mandate – power transmission services.

Improving communication, country-wide Giving details, board chairman, Emmanuel Appiah Korang, revealed recently that companies with the technical knowhow and ability to develop the GRIDCo towers into cell sites have approached the power sector operator for that business collaboration.

“We ourselves are not going to do that; we have been approached by companies who have the technology and can do this to improve communication in the country for everyone, but at the same time, GRIDCo would also earn some revenue,” he explained.

What places GRIDCo as the beautiful bride being courted by many suitors, especially the telecommunication companies struggling to meet the quality of service (QoS) standards set by the sector regulator, National Communication Authority (NCA) due to their inability to cover the entire country is the fact

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GRIDCo’s pylons traverse the four corners of the country and hence the ability to deliver signals in real time is a clear advantage to both parties as it reduces the investment the telcos have to make to reach the remotest corners of the country while the transmission service provider also makes income for the investment it made many years ago.

According to the board chairman, “If we play our role well, we can enhance Internet connectivity throughout the country because our transmission lines go everywhere and this is one area we are looking at to earn extra income.”

Going further with fibre This point was further stressed by Ghana’s deputy minister of communication, Victoria Hammah, who said government is developing and expanding fibre optic facilities in the country to meet growing demand for broadband communication services.

According to her, a 780 km fibre optic ICT backbone infrastructure is being constructed in the eastern corridor of the country to provide broadband services to towns and communities along the route from Ho in the middle part of the country to Bawku, with links to Tamale from Yendi in the north, which

when completed will be connected to the existing national fibre backbone which includes GRIDCo’s fibre optic infrastructure to promote further development of the sector.

Hammah said the completion of the fibre backbone infrastructure would result in the reduction of bandwidth cost and bridge the gap between the urban and rural communities.

For the telecom companies, the availability of GRIDCo’s infrastructure will improve on the quality of service standard that they have agreed on with the sector regulator, National Communications Authority.

For example, the regulator’s market statistics for the month of July 2013, increased to 27,244,579 from 27, 012,099 country wide which means that mobile voice subscribership increased by 0.9 per cent during the period under review there are still major challenges on the network of all the players in the industry.

Their inability to meet the Quality of Service (QoS) standards as set by the industry regulator in different parts of the country at different times has attracted heavy penalty fines from the NCA. ■ Kafui Gale-Zoyiku

ECOWAS on energy efficiency The ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) recently organised a Renewable Energy Investment Week in collaboration with the USAID Regional Clean Energy Initiative, the Climate Technology Initiative-Private Financing Advisory Network (CTI-PFAN), the Regional Collaboration Centre of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC-RCC), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), the West African Development Bank (BOAD) and the African Renewable Company (AREC).

Featuring the West African Clean Energy

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Finance Forum and the ECOWAS Renewable Investment Forum, the week was attended by more than 100 participants from Africa, Asia, Europe and the USA - and formed part of the main goals of the ECREEE, aiming to mitigate financial barriers to investment in small, medium and large-scale renewable energy and energy efficiency projects and businesses within the ECOWAS region. To this end, the programme brought together representatives of financial institutions, project promoters, as well as potential investors, thereby pursuing the creation of a business-friendly environment conducive to networking between the parties. www.africanreview.com

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ECONOMY

Ghana

Turning around a turnkey turbine project T

he haulage of the two Alstom Gas Turbines (GT) and their ancillary generators for the Kpone Thermal Power Plant (KTPP) project was completed recently, ahead of schedule. The transportation process started 15 October 2013, and was expected to have been completed on 27 October this year - but ended suitably one week ahead of schedule with the lifting of the two Gas Turbines.

The Alstom Gas Turbines of 110 MW capacities each were fired with direct gas supply from the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) upon completion and will provide urgent, reliable and efficient thermal power for the local power market.

The transportation of the 200-tonne each gas turbines and generators was undertaken by officials of Panalpina, a heavy duty haulage company based in Nigeria. The transportation process lasted barely two hours and was jointly supervised by a team of engineers and officials from the Volta River Authority (VRA), Alstom, Panalpina, Zhakem International Construction Limited (the project contractor), and officials of the State Insurance Company (SIC), the project insurer.

They also received support from the Ghana Police Service who provided escort services from the VRA Procurement yard to the project enclave at Kpone. Other stakeholders such as the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and telecommunication giants, Vodafone Ghana also rendered handy assistance to ease the process.

Two turbines, ahead of time KTPP project engineer Edward Dovlo said the transportation of the first Gas Turbine started at about 6am at the Tema procurement yard on 15 October and arrived successfully at the project site two hours later. This was followed closely by the transportation of the second turbine five days later and the final haulage of the two generators, which was done concurrently on 20 October.

The offloading and installation of the first turbine onto the turbine concrete started at about 11am on the said day and was

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Personnel of the Ghana Police Service providing escort services to ease road traffic

monitored closely by Engineer William SamAppiah, director of engineering services and staff of all the stakeholding companies.

Richard Afaglo, area manager of the Tema branch of SIC, said his outfit had in place a "goods in transit" insurance package service cover for the movement of the equipment. He said the company had made provision for accidental damage insurance, load risks and offloading packages to guarantee the safety of the equipment and staff of the latter company.

Engineer Dovlo credited the effective transportation process to an elaborate preliminary survey conducted by Seyram Dzefi, environment and safety coordinator, and Samuel Annan, project administrator and logistics manager, which identified possible exigent areas two weeks ahead of the commencement date.

He noted that the weight of the equipment made it mandatory to hire the services of the Panalpina Haulage Company, which uses a hydraulic jerking system to load heavy duty machinery on its Goldhofer Truck sitting on 96

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

wheels. According to him, the loading of the Gas Turbines and Generators on the 12-axeled Truck had to be done previous nights of the scheduled dates for transportation to meet work load as scheduled and ease road traffic congestion on the main Tema-Aflao road.

Managing movement and monitoring Mr Dovlo acknowledged the managements of GRIDCo, ECG, Vodafone, the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana National Ambulance Service for their cooperation and said the ECG and Vodafone disconnected some of their low voltage and communication overhead cables to ensure free access and movement of the truck travelling at a speed of 20 kilometres per hour.

He said officials who facilitated the transportation process demonstrated fully standardised Safe Limit Approach practice, which ensured an acceptable point of clearance of the item being transported to avoid damage to overhead electrical and telecommunication lines. â– www.africanreview.com

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FINANCE

Remittances

Afrocoin revolutionises money transfer industry A start-up mobile money transfer service is promising to revolutionise how the African Diaspora sends money to family and loved ones back in Africa

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frocoin Mobile Money is a secure, fast, efficient and reliable online money remittance service that can be accessed wherever there is Internet connection and via mobile devices. With its growing network of banking partners, financial services partners, agents and mobile money payment networks, Afrocoin Mobile Money continues to seek better ways to ensure that transferred funds are accessible to those who do not have access to regular banking services, or live in the remote areas of Africa.

The significance of the economic impact of money remittances by the African Diaspora to the continent was underscored in a recent research publication in the European Journal of Development Research, where it was demonstrated that there is a direct positive relationship between increased access to money remittances and improvements in the quality of life in the beneficiary communities.

Recent research studies published by Adams Bodome of Hong Kong University show that money remittances from the African Diaspora now account for more capital injection into Africa when compared to donor aid from Western countries. Afrocoin Mobile Money seeks to play a significant role in the financial inclusion movement currently underway in Africa, by harnessing the potential of mobile money technologies to make positive contributions to initiatives that will improve efficiency of the money remittance distribution channels, lower money remittance fees and provide greater access to Africa’s unbanked and underbanked communities.

Bongi Mlambo, President of Afrocoin Mobile

In previous years there has been a very limited service for those looking to send money to Africa” 34

Afrocoin Mobile Money customers are able to send money quickly through a mobile app.

Money, says, “Current money remittance service operators are not doing enough to improve distribution channel efficiencies, lower fees or provide greater access to Africa’s unbanked or underbanked communities. As a result Africa still has some of the highest money remittance fees in the global market, seriously disadvantaging the pursuit of a better quality of life for many African communities dependent on money remittances. We have come from the frustrating position of taking time off work to stand in long queues at the money transfer shop, risking being turned away if you miss the shop’s inconvenient business hours, completing long paper forms with almost illegible small printed words, and then being charged exorbitant fees for a service that requires your beneficiary in Africa to travel long distances to the city agent to collect cash. This current state of affairs was one of the main factors that motivated us to do something about situation, as a result we started Afrocoin Mobile Money with the objective of providing a secure, fast, convenient and low cost online money

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

remittance services fully geared for today’s 24/7 mobile world. Customers are able to send money quickly through our website or on the go via our Mobile app”.

“In previous years there has been a very limited service for those looking to send money to Africa.”

Mobile apps with limited capabilities have come into the market, providing half-hearted attempts at innovation with minimal impact on improving money remittance efficiencies or lowering money remittance fees. Afrocoin Mobile Money provides a comprehensive money remittance solution anchored on a fully mobile approach, where customers can initiate, process and complete their money transfer transaction on mobile phones and other mobile devices. Afrocoin Mobile Money is developing a secure, state of the art emoney payment system that will be deployed in Zimbabwe in partnership with Allied Bank Zimbabwe. ■ To learn more about Afrocoin Mobile Money and to download the free Mobile app, visit http://www.afrocoin.com www.africanreview.com

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Infinova

PROFILE

Security management system object counting What’s new and what’s great about the video management software from Infinova

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nfinova’s Security Management System software includes built-in video analytics - offering the folowing advantages, as compared with separate video analytics software: ● Seamless user interface. ● Simpler to configure. ● Lesser maintenance efforts. ● No synchronisation is needed between VMS and video analytics configurations. ● All cameras and video servers supported in VMS are available for video analytics. ● No ‘integration’ related issues. ● All alarms and meta-data generated by video analytics module is recorded in same database, used by the VMS. ● Integrated reports. ● Video evidence is automatically available for all alarms and conditions detected by video analytics module.

Infinova’s Security Management System provides several video analytics features - including object counting, which works as a real time people traffic measurement and analysis system for business intelligence solutions. It provides precise data on people entry and exit activities that allows users to make strategic decisions necessary to improve business performance. It helps building managers to understand factors influencing human traffic and thus help plan for optimal resource utilisation. It abets in planning advertising and promotional activities by making sure that these activities are performed at high foot-fall locations.

The inputs can also be used for market research, customer advertising campaign, assigning space for new anchors and renovation. The system generates reports that are useful to understand various factors like people traffic, rush hour parameters, etc, to help improve business performance. The reports can even be customised to a client as per requirements. www.africanreview.com

The Security Management System software is fine-tuned to an appropriate camera setup - and will give good accuracy, when requirements are met. It provides several video analytics software applications for different requirements.”

objects in a predefined area. These objects must meet certain criteria such as size and movement, in order to be counted. The proprietary real time vision processing engines count people even in complex indoor or outdoor environments. The count lines can be in any direction as per user definition. The system can store up to 10,000 event records in its non-volatile memory, with each event record being as small as a minute. The solution provides simple yet powerful GUI software to configure commission & monitor with least effort and in minimum time.

Installation scenarios include: ● ●

Unobtrusive technology

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Object Counting uses overhead video cameras, high speed video processing electronics to track people movement unobtrusively in indoor or outdoor environments in real time. The solution monitors people movement by tracking

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Customer trend monitoring.

Customer centric market surveys.

Business evaluation for shopping centres, galleries, banks, nightclubs, libraries, malls and individual retail outlets.

For counting retail traffic, customer numbers, consumers, pedestrian flow, etc.

Visitor or object counting.

People counting in buses, trains, etc.

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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PROFILE

Infinova

Infinova’s Security Management System includes several key features: ● ● ●

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Standalone, easy to install and maintain.

Scalable.

The system can work in single, multiple, wide doorways or passage ways.

System can count in uni-directional, bidirectional & group entry methods.

Counts people moving at various speeds and directions across a defined count zone.

Accurate counting in high density conditions.

Advanced digital image processing technology to overcome effects of shadow and reflection Overlay of count data on screen.

Reporting module to generate graphs, tables and comparison reports.

Making sure security works For the video analytics software to work

effectively, mount the camera similar to a deployment or real-life situation. This point is important. For example, a camera placed on a table is not a real-life case, and so the video analytics algorithms would not be able to analyse the video correctly, as its database does not have the data for situations which do not exist in real-life deployments.

Make sure, too, that the camera is fixed, rigidly mounted. Even small shakes and vibrations could create problems for the video analytics algorithms. The camera should be mounted and the zoom level should be adjusted such that a single person (for people detection application) or a single vehicle (for vehicle detection application) is visible fully, at any possible position where the person or vehicle can exist in the field of view of the camera, and is part of the ‘detection zone’ in the video analytics software.

Objects too close to the camera will not be fully visible; hence such camera angles should be avoided.

The Security Management System software is fine-tuned to an appropriate camera setup - and will give good accuracy, when requirements are met. It provides several video analytics software applications for different requirements.

Moreover, Infinova’s Security Management System offers customised video analytics algorithm has been developed for specific custom requirements.

Please contact the vendor, for cases which do not follow the above mentioned camera setup guidelines.

Infinova will be happy to provide customised video analytics software, as per your requirements. ■ www.infinova.com

Infinova V2217 - Security Management System Infinova, US manufacturer for CCTV Surveillance Solutions, launches its new improved Video Management Software Infinova® V2217, with impeccable features which are equivalent or better than the industry peers.

Infinova is a one source solution provider for a complete range of CCTV surveillance system, fibre optic communication and security management software. Infinova’s best-in-class solution encompasses a wide spectrum of product technology to meet the security needs of government, industry, banking, retail, and service companies across the globe. Infinova’s industry experience in HD Megapixel, IP, Analog and Fiber Optics reinforces its reputation for flexibility with both integrators and end users.

The newly improved VMS inculcates unique features such as – ● Support for 47 different languages ● Support for ONVIF compliant video sources ● 10+ new camera makes added, totaling support for 48 camera makes / series ● Alarm handling – with support for sending SMS, making a phone call, send to FTP ● Support for 'No motion' (end of motion) alert ● Non- Synchronized Playback Screen ● Auto-Zoom feature in digital / camera PTZ mode ● Support for complete set of Video Analytics ● Support for server application to run on Virtual Machine platforms ● Faster switching for failover server processing

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Infinova® V2217 is powerful Video Management Software with unique features, and is extremely user-friendly

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with indications on client software Android Client Support Resources monitoring feature. Reports can be exported in several formats Automatic daily configuration backup for server application as well as client application Automatic application maintenance and computer maintain ace Automated watchdog application Detailed error reporting

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Infinova® V2217 is not only powerful software with unique features, but also an extremely user friendly software and simple to use.

For more information on Infinova products and solutions, please visit our website: www.infinova.com For sales inquiries, Teamindia@infinova.com

please

email:

www.africanreview.com

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Telecommunications

ICT

Giving greenfield sites the green light Gerbrand Schalkwijk from Inmarsat explains how the latest advances in mobile satellite communications can help the energy sector realise the development value of greenfield sites more quickly

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support for most standard office applications, or interfaced with third-party hardware and software as part of a tailored solution for the energy sector.

Rapid deployment Mobile satellite services have long been an established part of the communications mix for energy sector personnel operating in areas that are remote from fixed-line and wireless networks. From exploration through to development and production, new solutions are required to help them work more efficiently and cost-effectively.

Supporting large-scale field operations, Inmarsat’s services have been deployed by many oil and gas companies in order to bring fields onstream faster and at lower cost. With many greenfield operations typically found in remote and inhospitable regions – from swamps to equatorial forests and deserts to deepwater fields – and in all sorts of climate, the equipment needs to be not only lightweight and portable but rugged too.

Inmarsat’s BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network) is an example of a robust and highly affordable system that can be set up in minutes by exploration teams with little or no experience of communications equipment, while providing a guaranteed broadband data capability. Compact and lightweight, the all-in-one voice and high-speed IP data terminal provides immediate connectivity during field and site exploration and first phase construction. It can be configured as a mobile office at base camps, with

Satcom on the move Highly versatile, the BGAN platform can be extended to support operations as new sites develop. A system variant can provide broadband services that can send and receive larger amounts of real-time critical data from a fixed location. Designed specifically for those working in remote areas for sustained periods of time, and who require high volumes of standard IP data, the system can transmit field data in a low cost, low powered and low maintenance system to rival VSAT (an alternative system which can often take a week or two to set up by technical specialists).

As exploration teams typically cover great distances, a push-to-talk system provides a rugged PTT capability for voice dispatch and communications in support vehicles. A vehicular-based BGAN can be used with a roof-mounted antenna, base station and hand-held microphone in the cabin. The IP-based, voice and data PTT communication system can readily replace VHF/UHF-based trunk radio systems commonly in use within the oil and gas sector. Inmarsat’s network routes both voice and data traffic, providing communication between base camp, remote drill sites, crew vehicles, HQ and any site in the world, at the touch of a button.

When only voice is needed, especially for field workers moving quickly from site to site, or where a back-up system is needed, global, low-cost, handheld satellite phones can offer high quality voice as well as support for SMS text messaging, email, and social media.

ithin the energy sector, satellite communications continues to meet the needs for data connectivity across multidisciplinary teams. Meeting this challenge, mobile satellite services lend themselves to use in areas where traditional fixed line or GSM telecoms infrastructure is either ‘thin on the ground’ or non-existent, particularly on greenfield exploration sites.

www.africanreview.com

Inmarsat's headquarters in London, UK.

Remote Management To track and monitor fixed or mobile assets, satellite-based machine to machine (M2M) applications are also supported by the Inmarsat network, with a range of integrated M2M services that give operators increased visibility of their business operations. For assets that need continuous monitoring, such as remote pipelines and oil wellheads providing pressure, flow rates and other essential metrics, M2M provides an automated telemetry service to ensure the control of critical applications in remote, unmanned locations.

Satisfying key Health, Safety & Environment (HS&E) requirements, the benefits of M2M can also extend to journey management for maintaining the highest standard of crew welfare. With HS&E increasingly a priority within the sector, complying with the strict regulations by ensuring base camps and remote sites have guaranteed voice and data links is paramount. And with a range of modern satcom services that can be easily and cost-effectively employed, especially in completely undeveloped sites, nothing else is required. ■

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ICT

Telecommunications

Satellite-based infrastructure enabling ultimate mobility Delivering broadband from the high seas to remote exploration fields

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ervice providers who offer telephone, Internet and enterprise broadband networks and applications to customers in harder-to-reach areas understand that reliable connectivity is a crucial differentiator in today’s marketplace.

Satellite-based infrastructure is the only way to deliver robust access across large bodies of water and sparsely populated inland areas. One of the greatest challenges for satellite providers is to ensure that there will be capacity in higher demand areas such as busy waterways and on routes where ships typically aggregate.

Broadband providers need to understand where geographic demand for connectivity is greatest among their cruise line, commercial shipping, and oil and gas platforms as well as leisure and government customers.

Accordingly, satellite communications networks need to be tailored to meet specific demands – ie, where capacity is needed the most – in order to provide reliable solutions.

As with expansion in the maritime sector, energy operations are being established in increasingly distant or isolated areas around the continent, often well beyond the reach of existing communication networks. Satellite communications also offer the oil and gas sector a highly effective solution to keep remote sites connected, especially when performance relies on a mix of complicated mission-critical applications, such as real-time drilling data management, seismic information, live video monitoring and surveillance, and extended organizational network capabilities to improve productivity and profitability.

Seamless broadband connectivity is now a necessity for vital business operations in remote outposts and satellite infrastructure is the only way to meet this need. With these sectorspecific requirements increasing, satellite will be

38

relied upon even more to provide reliable, flexible and powerful solutions.

C-band services, among the first to be delivered to offshore and maritime users, continue to be in strong demand today due to their global footprint and high availability. But in recent years, Ku-band services have seen strong growth in the maritime and offshore sectors. By leveraging both C- and Ku-band frequencies, service providers can quickly establish carrier-grade networks for their oil and gas customers with the kind of robust availability required in these harsh environments.

Satellite technology provides reliable, flexible and powerful solutions to meet the ever increasing demand for broadband in remote areas.

The uptake for VSAT solutions has also been strong, driven largely by the availability of mobile broadband capacity in more isolated regions where oil and gas exploration and production is now taking place. A decade ago, satellite operators were focused on providing network coverage for fixed, land-based services.

Today, the offshore and remote market is much

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

better catered for, and has attracted many customers for VSAT. The concept of “broadband everywhere” – readily available, high-speed connectivity supporting modern business operations – is considered a must-have.

In order to meet the growing requirements of the sector, Intelsat unveiled the EpicNG platform in 2012, which offers a highperformance, backward compatible design and open architecture that allows for a choice of hardware and technology platforms. This is particularly exciting for remote and offshore locations, where it will be able to provide levels of throughput and cost per bit performance that have been previously unavailable. It will also ensure that mobility communications requirements on land, at sea and in the air are met with seamless reliability. The platform will leverage an innovative combination of C-, Kuand Ka-bands, wide beams, spot beams, and frequency reuse technology to provide a host of customer benefits.

Satellite technology provides reliable, flexible and powerful solutions to meet the ever increasing demand for broadband in remote areas. Intelsat’s global mobility network gives customers the flexibility to quickly deliver broadband data solutions and keep end-users connected, even in the harshest and most isolated environments.

As the race to deliver broadband connectivity to every degree of latitude and longitude across land, sea and air continues, innovative, costeffective technology and an understanding of how best to meet the demands of 21st century businesses are critical factors service providers need to provide optimal support to end-users’ increasing demand for secure, high bandwidth applications literally everywhere. ■ Grant Marais, head of Africa, Intelsat www.africanreview.com

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LOGISTICS

Distribution

A primary partnership I

mperial Managed Logistics - part of the Imperial Logistics group was awarded a three-year contract for primary distribution services

by Tiger Brands recently. The contract commits Imperial to transporting 46,000 loads per year for the FMCG group.

Elaborating on the scope of the contract, Imperial Managed Logistics’ joint managing director, Johan Truter, explained that it focuses on all primary transport activities - including full load finished goods movement from factory to warehouse, distribution centre or direct customer deliveries for Tiger Brands’ Consumer and Grains Divisions. It sees Imperial Managed Logistics handling Tiger brands goods ranging from grain, groceries, snacks and beverages to baby care, personal care and home care brands - across brands that include Jungle, All Gold, Crosse & Blackwell, Ingram’s and Purity.

“The contract encompasses all the activities associated with the planning, execution, management, reporting and IT required for the provision of primary freight logistics management services as a consolidated solution,” Truter said.

Imperial’s proven capabilities in IT network integration and its national order visibility linking capacities contributed to the company securing this contract, he said.

“Our track record in operations consolidation to improve decision making, as well as our operational representation at key sites, also

Imperial Managed Logistics secured a contract to distribute Tiger Brands’ products nationally

helped us seal the deal.”

Imperial Managed Logistics’ winning solution for Tiger Brands includes a central operations command centre - to meet the client’s need for centralised planning, reporting and visibility of their network.

The company won this contract in a closed tender.

“We are delighted to have been selected as Tiger Brands’ single primary freight transport management partner, and look forward to a mutually rewarding partnership,” Truter concluded. ■

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Trucks

LOGISTICS

MAN makes headway in MEA markets In Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, TGS trucks are energising companies working in very different industries

R

obust, economical and reliable, the MAN TGS is driven in national and near-border international long-haul transport. The TGS is designed consistently for cost savings with the MAN EfficientLine equipment packages. Deals conducted in the Middle East and in Africa recently underline the vehicle’s success.

Working in West Africa The Nigerian construction company Julius Berger Nigeria PLC recently acquired 78 new MAN TGS trucks - off-road trucks with various bodies, which have now been shipped and are working for the company.

Julius Berger ordered the TGS 33.360 WW variant for a variety of applications - as concrete mixers, rear tippers, water tankers and setdown skip loaders, amongst others. The trucks are being deployed on construction projects in Nigeria. The 33-tonne TGS WW with 360-hp engines are equipped with two driven rear axles and leaf suspension all round, suitable for use under tough off-road conditions.

Ensuring safe and user-friendly operation, all the vehicles have MAN TipMatic Offroad transmission and BrakeMatic braking systems.

Julius Berger has been active in Nigeria for nearly fifty years. The company's scope covers building projects above ground, as well as the build-up of infrastructure and industrial plants. Julius Berger Nigeria PLC is listed on the Lagos Stock Exchange and, with around 18,000 employees, is one of the biggest private employers in the country.

heat-sensitive perishable goods to the entire Gulf region as well as Jordan and Egypt. The company had already ordered a major number of trucks for its fleet in 2009.

Furthermore, MAN has supplied 200 TGS tractors with TipMatic automated gearboxes to Global Specified Transport in Saudi Arabia.

The MAN TGS trucks are specially designed to meet the requirements of the Middle East regions and are thus optimally suited for the climatic conditions in the extreme heat and sand of the desert.

As a result of increased market demands, local MAN Truck & Bus Distributor Haji Husein Alireza Co (HHA) announced plans to build three new service centres in the cities Jubail, Madinah and Khamis Mushait. In this context, HHA also strengthens the coverage of its mobile service fleet. â–

Supporting business in Saudi Arabia Meanwhile, MAN has also delivered 440 trucks to Saudi Arabia, whilst expanding its Arabic service network. Food producer Almarai ordered 240 new trucks of the MAN TGS type from MAN Truck & Bus, rejuvenating its current fleet of 1,290 MAN long-haul trucks. Almarai conducts the distribution of its chilled foods and dairy products single-handedly and operates the vehicles around the clock to deliver

MAN has delivered a fleet of trucks to Julius Berger Nigeria

www.africanreview.com

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

41

S08 ATR Nov 2013 Iveco Advertorial - Report GA GD_Layout 1 31/10/2013 16:22 Page 42

PROFILE

Iveco

With two new models in the heavy- and light-medium sectors of Sudan’s truck market Iveco is building its market share in the North with its traditional distributor, Abbarci Engineering

V

IA ITS FIAT ancestry Iveco has been involved in Sudan for many decades; the tough go-anywhere 682 truck used to be known as the “Lion of Africa”.

The secession of the South in 2011 hit all Northern businesses hard; three-quarters of the income from oil was lost. So the Khartoum-based economy faced a historic change, with a new strategy based on economic diversification via agriculture, gold mining and the development of new businesses like gas and the bottled gas market.

This unavoidable necessity is impacting on the truck business, with new transportation needs and new methods of distribution. But, regional export sales manager Andrea Scollo says that this has brought opportunities too. Crude oil needs to be moved up from the South; export crops like raw cotton have to be marketed; minerals development needs heavy transport.

In response, Iveco SpA imported around 400 vehicles last year through its traditional agent Abbarci Engineering. Sixty per cent of these were new-style 682 tractors, cabs and tippers, the rest newly-introduced Leoncinos.

The new 682 is the legendary “Lion” reborn, a very strong truck capable of heavy loading.

The new model aims to reincarnate these traditional lion-sized values, sharing principal components (cabs and engines) with trucks built by Iveco in Europe. It is the result of a joint-venture based in Chongqing, China, SAICIveco Hongyan Commercial Vehicle Co. Ltd (SIH, created in 2006).

This new business concept has allowed the offer of affordable functional trucks embodying European standards at very keen prices. The vehicles come equipped with Iveco’s own turbocharged, six-cylinder diesel, the Cursor 9 F2CE0681B. Rated at 380hp this features Waste-Gate.

Waste-Gate is an important component for Iveco682 - a valve useful to control the pressure when the turbo works. This component is equipped also on the European Trakker, a precious element which makes our engines one of the most affordable in heavy duty conditions valves, semi-elliptic suspension, hub reduction on the rear axle and ZF power-assisted steering, all these features being matched with a comfortable cab.

Both tractor (4x2 and 6x4) and rigid (4x2,

42

Iveco’s 682 truck

6x4 and 8x4) models are supplied to North Sudan, and a wide range of bodies are available suited to agricultural, general transport and local contracting applications.

The complementary Leoncino is a lighter vehicle, built in Nanjing by the Iveco-Naveco j/v. This is designed to meet the need in the North for a light ‘cab-over’ truck in the 3.5-6 ton range (three models), suited primarily to urban use. Separate 116 (conforming to Euro 2) and 127 hp (Euro 3) engines are available with a straight “C” section longitudinal chassis equipped with semi-elliptic leaf springs on both axles. Once again various specialised bodies can be fitted by the factory in China, including a versatile tanker for water or fuel.

Iveco’s local business partner since 1972, Abbarci, is part of a group operating in diverse fields including general transportation, trading and LPG tank/cylinder manufacture/distribution.

This company helps local Iveco customers through its well-equipped workshops and the comprehensive after-sales service it provides.

Says Mr Scollo, “Our line-up of Chinese products count on Iveco’s territorial coverage just as our European models do. This is our ‘added value’, our source of competitive advantage. The success or the failure for an

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

industrial vehicle such as a truck depends on the availability of service.

“After-sales service is essential. With such reliable service a manufacturer can extend the life cycle of a product, increasing its customers’ satisfaction and starting a ‘virtuous circle’ which will lead to a repeat purchase, to an increase in market share and to a better ‘brand perception’ in the market.

“The company decided to brand and assist their Chinese trucks with the official Iveco network. This means a customer can buy a Chine-manufactured truck assisted by European standards. This places Iveco’s added value in front of its main competitors.”

As to future plans, the company says it will shape its Chinese line-up according to the needs of the Sudanese truck market. As the economy develops, says Mr Scollo, “We have to shape our trucks in order to follow the specific new needs of the market”.

This can already be seen in the new vehicles now on offer. The reborn 682 can be profitably employed in agriculture, transportation of fuel and other products, the movement of fresh water and so on. And the brand-new Leoncino can satisfy not only industrial needs but also the requirements of small businesses, including local retailers. ■ www.africanreview.com

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Technology

LOGISTICS

Easy mobile solutions Right software is a must for efficient business - with several considerations affecting current and future options

Conduct a needs analysis: Why do you need a mobile system? Do you want to be more effective? Do the clients demand more access to information? The answers will help you identify the specific functions you require in your mobile solutions. Decide who will use the system and how much the system may cost. If you skip this, there is a risk that the supplier’s sale team gains control over the process and create needs that do not really exist.

Engage and involve your employees in the process: Try to engage and involve your staff in the process of implementing a mobile system as early as possible. Engaging them from an early stage will make them motivated to implement the system/solution and showcase the benefits of a mobile solution.

Carefully choose a system and a supplier: I strongly recommend using standardised systems rather than a customised system. The development of mobile technology is evolving very rapidly, which makes the standardised system more future-proof and flexible than the customised one. Choose a supplier that is of “the right size”: not small enough for you to risk ending up with a system that will disappear or cease to be updated, and not too big for the supplier to lose interest in you when you are no longer a key customer.

Keep the option to cancel the order: Try to negotiate an evaluation period with the option to cancel the order should you discover that the system is not right for you and your organisation.

Listen to the supplier: Once a supplier is chosen — stick to your choice. Let them know what you want to achieve and be all ears to any good advice and feedback that the supplier can give. www.africanreview.com

One step at a time: Running several projects simultaneously will increase the complexity and can lead to devastating consequences.

Instead, create a plan with a chain of smaller activities that you can each finish before starting the next one.

Do not cut back on the wrong things Do not try to cut back on consultation or education — and be generous when setting a deadline. Be prepared to adjust the deadline along the way if you feel that your needs have changed.

Plan for the future Invest in a solution that can be developed along with the development of your company. The world is changing and we cannot predict what the future holds — you might need to change some things within your company, and mobile solutions technologies are developing fast. ■ Mikael Nilebacke, MD at Erisma Technologies

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obile solutions, i.e. software for PDAs and smartphones, have an enormous potential to improve efficiency and save big money for companies that today rely on time-consuming paperbased solutions. Industries reliant upon effective logistics and operational processes have much to gain by adapting modern mobile business Mikael Nilebacke, solutions.

MD at Erisma Technologies However, the transition from paper-based/manual/traditional solutions to advanced mobile solutions is full of loopholes. Many things can go wrong that can leave you with an inadequate, or in worst case, non-functioning solution.

What follows is advice on how to succeed with the implementation of mobile solutions:

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LOGISTICS

Railways

The route, which was last in operation in 1993, has been re-opened for business following the completed repairs on the rail track, bridges and culverts along the route.

Ugandan cargo trains boost East African trade Now that cargo train operations from Mombasa, Kenya to Northern Uganda have recommenced, trade is expected to increase in these two countries as well as in South Sudan and the Eastern DR Congo

A

ccording to reports, the first train transporting steel imports destined for Juba in Southern Sudan recently arrived in Gulu, Northern Uganda, from where the consignments are set to be transshipped by road to Juba.

The route, which was last in operation in 1993, has been re-opened for business following the completed repairs on the rail track, bridges and culverts along the route.

The railway line will link a population of approximately 78mn people from Kenya to Uganda as it provides easier access to the Albertine region in Western Uganda, which is rich in oil.

Ugandan newspaper New Vision quoted Rift Valley Railway (RVR) operations manager Josiah Nyarangi as saying, “We will now be able to provide a more efficient cargo transport to customers along routes in Northern Uganda, Eastern DR Congo and South Sudan.�

The newspaper said the development was a major step towards the wider efforts of scaling up infrastructure in East Africa, a region whose competitiveness was for a long

44

time hampered by poor roads and dilapidated railway lines.

The US$2mn rehabilitation was funded by RVR with the aim of facilitating cargo access to Northern Uganda and allowing easier transshipment by road to Juba and Eastern DR Congo.

Nyarangi was further reported as saying the company was exploring the possibility of improving cargo handling capacity in Gulu and using the town as a logistical hub for Northern Uganda and other nearby countries.

The Uganda government, in its privatisation drive, placed Uganda Railways Corporation under category and conceded its assets to RVR, which took over the operations of the Kenya and Uganda railways in 2006.

Through a bidding process, the governments of Kenya and Uganda jointly tendered a 25-year concession for the rehabilitation, operation and maintenance of the railway for both countries.

Uganda Railways Corporation, a state body formed following the break up of the East

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

African Railways Corporation in 1977, said in its performance review that during the financial year of 2012/13, there was a significant decline in freight carried, with a drop of 19 per cent in net tonne kilometres and 20 per cent drop in gross tonnes carried.

These figures came despite the improvements in the track between Mombasa and Nairobi and the installation of culverts between Tororo and Jinja in Eastern Uganda.

Uganda Railways Corporation said that, regarding freight carriage, there was a significant downward change in the golden indicators, posting a 19 per cent drop in net tonne kilometres from 153.5mn in 2011/12 to 124.4mn in 2012/13 and a 20.1 per cent drop in net volume.

Locomotive productivity dropped by 15.5 per cent from 168 to 142km per locomotive per day and wagon turn-around from Mombasa to Kampala to Mombasa went up by 3.8 per cent from 26.6 to 27.6 days.

Meanwhile, transit time from Mombasa to Kampala improved by 29 per cent from 11.5 per cent to eight days on average. â– www.africanreview.com

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POWER

Renewables

Africa gets its largest industrial solar plant Belgotex’s industrial rooftop photovoltaic facility in Pietermaritzburg is the first step towards green commercial buildings in South Africa

S

outh Africa’s Pietermaritzburg is leading the way with the continent’s first 1MW rooftop grid-tied solar plant. Awareness and concern for climate change is growing, and with an increase in electricity costs of 200 per cent in the last five years, businesses are increasingly looking to implement more environmentally-friendly, sustainable and cost effective energy solutions. One such company is Belgotex, which has invested in Sustainable Power Solutions, to transform one of their roofs into Africa’s largest industrial grid-tied solar plant. Recognising the trend of Yellogen Diesel Generators Specialist supplier of Power Generation Products Tel: 0044 (0)1430 850 001 Fax: 0044 (0)1430 850 002 www.yellogen.com mail@yellogen.com

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Belgotex facility in Pietermaritzburg

ever increasing electricity prices, Belgotex made the decision to build a 1MW solar plant on the 100,000 square metres roof of their manufacturing facility at a cost of US$1.73mn as part of their strategy to offset five per cent of their carbon emissions. Sustainable Power Solutions installed the solar plant in two and a half months, and the system will be ready soon.

How it works The system is built on the north-facing roof of the facility at an angle of 15 degrees resulting in a yield of 1,415MWh per annum. The entire installation comprises 4,080 poly crystalline modules each rated at 245 Watt peak (Wp). The solar modules are tied to 64 Danfoss three-phase grid inverters and the output of the grid inverters is integrated into Belgotex’s electricity system at 11,000V. The integrated web server function in the inverter compiles data on the status of the solar plant which is fed to a web portal, and can be easily accessed by Belgotex and the operations and maintenance team. The energy generated daily is estimated to power 200 average households and avoids carbon emissions of 1,386 tonnes each year from not having to rely on coal produced electricity.

Axel Scholle, managing director of Sustainable Power Solutions, said, “The interest of commercial and industrial clients in solar power generation is what will make solar power sustainable in South Africa and will ultimately lead to a change in how the electricity sector in the country will operate to incorporate the increasing contribution of intermittent renewable energy generation.”

Sustainable Power Solutions boasts a highly qualified and dynamic team of engineers and professionals with over 30 years local and international experience in the renewable energy sector. The optimised engineering design, the use of high quality components and consistent service offer as demonstrated in previous projects such as Dube Trade Port (700kWp), GlaxoSmithKline (80kWp) and Impahla Clothing (30kWp) bear reference to this. ■ www.africanreview.com

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ENVIRONMENT

Rural Water Supply

Water monitoring in rural Ghana

Around 780 people will be trained to monitor the services in Ghana

A new initiative allows the agencies to keep an eye on the use of water and the sanitary conditions in 64 districts in West Africa

T

he Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA), IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre, Akvo, Water for People and SkyFox have launched SMARTerWASH, a three-year project to monitor water and sanitation in 64 districts in Ghana.

This new joint initiative is aimed at ensuring that monitoring information is effectively used to keep water and sanitation services working.

Indicators for functionality, service levels and sustainability have recently been developed and tested, using mobile phone technology and a web-based application.

SMARTerWASH will mainstream the monitoring vision and operational guidelines of the CWSA so that districts will have the

necessary data to solve problems with infrastructure and community service providers.

AKVO FLOW will be used for collecting the data.

Ghanaian private company SkyFox will set up an SMS alert system and strengthen customer relationships between community service providers, area mechanics and spare part distributors.

Around 780 people — regional and district government staff, community service providers and enumerators — are expected to be trained in the use of the applications.

Thousands of water systems will be mapped and services monitored.

By mid 2014, the district governance machinery will have started action to correct failures, the agency said. ■

Achieving sanitation goals Eight African countries are creatively achieving the goals of community led total sanitation programmes (CLTS), including one idea in Malawi where handwashing is monitored according to the health of tree seedlings planted beneath water outlets.

Plan International’s five year Pan African CLTS (PAC) programme, which ends in December 2014, is operating in the eight countries of Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Zambia and Malawi, Ghana and Niger. With the backing of the Dutch government the project was designed to promote and scale up sanitation in communities and schools.

In Zambia, several schools have established vegetable gardens to reduce malnutrition and improve school attendance. Some of the harvests have been sold raising funds for school activities.

In Sierra Leone, men have traditionally been the community leaders but women are now being encouraged to play a major part in village committees and networks of natural leaders. To support CLTS women conduct house-to-house monitoring, giving health talks and reporting diseases — many of them overcoming challenges such as illiteracy to maintain the programme.

A mid-term programme review by Plan Netherlands, the Plan International Regional

48

Office for Eastern and Southern Africa (RESA) and their programme partners which include the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) and the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex (IDS) shows that Ethiopia has made the most progress. One of its achievements is the introduction of local bylaws on sanitation.

By the end of 2012 the country’s 103 kebeles (small neighbourhoods) with 117 households and one or more schools had safe sanitation and hygiene services and reached ODF (no open defecation) status.

With schools a focus of CLTS in Ethiopia ODF status schools need a water supply system to clean latrines and for washing hands. As there is no toilet subsidy or financial reward when the community reaches 100 per cent ODF, planning these systems for schools and communities helps communities and schools climb the sanitation and hygiene ladder.

The Plan Ethiopia review found those involved in constructing sanitation facilities were women and children with support from wealthy and poor households. The review noted that benefits for women included being able to avoid open defecation at night, avoiding security issues and easier care of children.

Costs were lower than anticipated for the

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Ethiopia project, with the total cost per person in an ODF community at less than US$1 and total cost a new household latrine at US$3 — compared to usual programme costs of US$515 per household.

In Uganda, local governments and communities monitor CTLS so district health inspectors can share the data with ministries and national government. In Kenya chiefs, assistant chiefs and community health workers were trained to encourage communities to become ODF. This resulted in locations being selected for toilets in many communities.

Many women in Zambian villages are members of a sanitation action group. They have highlighted how inadequate sanitation causes diarrhoea and that using a toilet is much healthier, hoping their successful efforts will motivate neighbouring villages to be as vigilant.

Malawi had the strongest engagement with local government. Natural community leaders spotlighted activities to attain ODF status.

Leaders reported bi-monthly on progress on such issues as the use of handwashing facilities, and the availability of drop-hole covers in latrines.

Leaders’ networks have helped in information exchanges especially between successful ODF villages and those who struggle to attain the ODF status.

www.africanreview.com

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S10 ATR Nov 2013 Report GD Environment - IB IC Construction_Layout 1 31/10/2013 16:29 Page 50

CONSTRUCTION

bauma Africa

Big amongst builders The showcase of crushing products, amidst a comprehensive spread of construction and mining equipment, at the inaugural bauma Africa

T

his was a big event, a massive display of domestic and international equipment, solutions and services for the region’s builders and miners. There were numerous products to look out for at the inaugural bauma Africa 2013. There was much to learn, with respect to techniques and technical developments. There were many to meet, representing exhibitors and representing customers, speaking from a broad range of industry sectors.

The bauma Africa 2013 international trade fair was specifically designed to showcase building material, mining and construction vehicles and machines. Its debut was marked by an emphasis on excellence in terms of both machinery and services. In fact, many companies used bauma Africa as a platform to launch new products, some of which have never been available before in the Southern African region.

The event was brought to South Africa by Messe Munchen International (MMI), a trade show company which recognised the need for

We were very satisfied with the high quality of customers from the entire Southern African region and even beyond. The German Pavilion gave our customers the chance to see what ‘Quality made in Germany’ means.

We shall certainly be back in 2015 to use this important platform to show our latest innovations to our Southern African customers.”

- Ralf Beier, CEO at HESS

a networking event in the country. Messe Munchen hosts around 40 trade shows annually with over 30,000 exhibitors contributing and approximately two million visitors in attendance overall. In keeping with Messe Munchen's record of organising events, Bauma Africa offered an exemplary networking opportunity, which included a 'Matchmaking tool' – a smart platform that connected the exhibition's exhibitors and its

Oil Review Africa covers the oil and gas related sectors including exploration, drilling, production, pipelines, refining and gas processing across the continent.

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visitors. Exhibitors used this tool to establish a personal profile prior to the event, which listed both their services and target markets. It was possible, then, to sift through all the existing profiles on the event database and find exhibitors the profiles that match their requirements. Visitors' profiles were also filtered, allowing them to locate relevant product providers and connect with other individuals in similar industries. This improved

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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“Many thanks for a very informative & useful magazine!

I rate it as the best O&G magazine in Africa.”

General Manager West Africa, Protea Chemicals

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S10 ATR Nov 2013 Report GD Environment - IB IC Construction_Layout 1 31/10/2013 16:29 Page 51

bauma Africa

CONSTRUCTION

The quality of visitors is excellent and we could make very good contacts with new customers and potential dealers.�

- Stefanie Herr, head of corporate marketing at Wacker Neuson SE

communication, as compared with other events in the construction and mining industry, and facilitated target-specific inquiries.

Moreover, bauma Africa included a supporting conference programme, which boasted a number of highly-regarded speakers including a comprehensive and straightforward explanation on how the global mining industry works by Dr Chris Hinde, editorial director at IntierraRMG. Dr Hinde had previously worked with consulting companies SRK and Golders Associates, and gained underground mining expertise with Anglo American.

Elaine Crewe, CEO of MMI South Africa, was clearly excited by the show's receptionin the region. She said, “This is huge for South Africa and the industry here. With its premiere, bauma Africa has immediately become the largest show for the construction machinery, building material machines and mining machines sector. The feedback we have received is just fantastic.�

The incredible amount of attention that bauma Africa attracted before, during and after it was held is testament to its relevance to the local African markets - to local companies at work in the region's economies, and to

international players with local interests. The event was welcomed by the South African Construction and Mining Equipment Supplier's Association (CONMESA), along with a number of other high profile local and international organisations. According to Marc Carter, the president of CONMESA, with its primary focus on the local business environment, has been missing on the African continent and especially in Southern Africa. Mr Carter was convinced that bauma Africa would bring considerable value to the association's members, and also to the African construction industry and the worldwide construction machinery industry.

Lawrence Peters, chairman of CONMESA, confirmed the outstanding success of the show, saying, “Bauma Africa exceeded our expectations by far – we are extremely satisfied. This show is what we wanted, it is for the industry.�

CONCRETE BATCHING VEHICLE

SELF-LOADING

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CONSTRUCTION

bauma Africa

The show's success is reflected not only in quotes, but also in numbers. There were 14,700 registered trade visitors from more than 110 countries at the inaugural bauma Africa - with 84 per cent of the visitors coming from South Africa, six per cent from other African countries and a further 10 per cent from other continents. Most visitors arrived from within South Africa, and also from Mozambique, Germany, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Italy, Namibia, the UK and India. Gary Bell, CEO at Bell Equipment, said, “We are very pleased with the number of visitors and their quality was good. It seems that we are going to have a good output.”

The quality of the event as a platform for doing business was reflected also in the words of Ludwig Geyser, CEO at Putzmeister, who commented, “It has been a really, really good show. The quality of the visitors is extremely good. We sold loads of machinery during the show. I’m overwhelmed with the response.”

Further credibility was added by comments on the value for the show to the mining sector.

Glenn Schoeman, vice president at Sandvik South Africa, observed, “This show has been a long time coming and not exhibiting here is a big mistake. We had only quality visitors from countries we needed and sold several machines right here during the show.”

Anton Wheeler, managing director at AARD, added his sentiments with respect to the relevance to underground mining operations.

“We presented new products here and received very good feedback as well as most effective contacts. Bauma Africa is of a better quality than other shows.”

The quality of visitors has been exceptional and we had visitors from Mauritius, Botswana, Tanzania, Kenya, Congo, etc.”

- Heinrich Schulenburg, managing director at Wirtgen, Germany

All in all, 754 exhibitors – 123 from South Africa and 631 that are headquartered abroad – from 38 countries attended bauma Africa.

Besides South Africa, the top exhibitor countries were China, Germany, India, Italy, Korea, Spain, the UK and the US. Quintin Booysen, Marketing & Sales Manager at PMSA, sums it up: “We really are beyond our expectations. Next time we will be back with twice the space because I’m sure that there will be twice as many visitors. Those who missed out missed an exceptionally good show.”

bauma Africa is a good show for us. We met some traditional visitors but also existing OEMs. It’s important for us to show that we are here and it was a good choice to come to this show.”

- Theo Jooste, business manager commercial engines at Barloword Power

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

More machines for a growing market Amongst exhibitors, Pilot Crushtec International is well-known in Southern Africa for the provision of quality machinery to the mining, quarrying, construction, civil engineering and recycling sectors. At bauma Africa, Pilot Crushtec exhibited a vast array of products - including a selection of new machines never before seen in the region. In particular, visitors were able to check out three products from the firm: the TwisterTrac VS350 tracked vertical shaft impact crusher is a completely mobile, diesel hydraulic, remote-controlled machine, which is known for its durability and instant installation times. It produces 'in spec', superior, cubically-shaped aggregates and sand - and, thus, performs optimally as a third or fourth stage crusher. It slots into an existing plant, and can also be used on its own. The Pilot Modular/TRIO MJ3042 is a skid-mounted, single-toggle jaw crusher, which comes with a VGF4616 vibrating grizzly feeder and MC1000 front delivery conveyer. This machine is ideal for operation over a vast range of challenging conditions, and can be utilised for primary and secondary hard rock crushing, crushed or broken concrete, asphalt, river rock and mixed demolition debris. This product is well-known for being affordable, with low operating expenses and undemanding maintenance requirements.

Also on Pilot Crushtec's stand was the Sandvik US440i - a mobile, track mounted, heavy duty cone crusher, which is made for harsh conditions and endurance jobs. Pilot Crushtec distributes Sandvik’s range of mobile crushing and screening equipment in Southern Africa, which is noted in mining, quarrying, recycling, contracting, metal working and advanced material technology industries. The US440i can tackle the toughest rocks, accommodating a feed size of up to 400mm. Its diesel and transmission technology is fuel-efficient, greatly reducing running costs.

As mentioned, Pilot Crushtec was not alone in launching products. There were 754 exhibitors from 38 countries at bauma Africa. ■ www.africanreview.com

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CONSTRUCTION

bauma Africa

Shantui launches SDLG’s robust and reliable products new models

African markets are expected to play an instrumental role in the future growth and development of the Shantui brand "Africa is a strategic market for Shantui, and this is clearly evident in the fact that three of the company's 10 global subsidiaries are located in Africa, which holds unlimited potential for growth opportunities," he said.

Shantui Equipment Southern Africa vice general manager, Garron Troskie, pointed out that the company's new SE480 excavator boasts a 47.6 ton operating weight and a bucket capacity of 2.3 cubic metres (cu m), making it ideally suited for mining and quarrying applications.

"Mining and quarrying are among the most rapidly developing sectors in Africa, and the introduction of the SE480 excavator will assist Shantui in gaining a stronger foothold in this market. The excavator offers power and quality at an affordable price, and is designed for quarrying applications, as well as for entry level mining operations."

Chicken highlighted the latest -3 version of the Shantui SL60W wheel loader, which has been designed for mining and quarry applications.

"The Shantui SL60W-3 wheel loader is powered by a Cummins engine, which develops 175kW. This unit has an operating weight of 21 tons and has a 3.5 cu m bucket capacity," he noted.

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portfolio, SDLG displayed its RS7120, a 12 ton hydrostatic compact road roller. The company’s road rollers are equipped with a Deutz diesel engine and American Sauer driving pump and motor for efficient performance and low noise during operation.

In addition, these machines feature internationally-recognized roll-over protection structure (ROPS) and falling object protective structure (FOPS) systems for better safety of the operator.

“South Africa is a core market for SDLG and we will continue to develop our products and services to suit the needs of customers here,” explained Wang Xiaohui, head of export sales for SDLG.

RUD invests in South African lifting technology

G

erman engineering group RUD is investing in Special Industry Supplies, a South African manufacturing company based in Johannesburg, to enable RUD’s lifting technology division to continue expanding its market development and market penetration in South Africa. This strategic investment is driven by the prospect of dynamic growth in South Africa, particularly in mining and automotive industries, offering significant revenue possibilities in future-oriented lifting technology.

A company spokesperson commented, “South Africa is a tremendously interesting market for us, especially in the future, and this investment will secure and strengthen our presence there in the long-term.”

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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Shantui Equipment Southern Africa director and vice general manager for Shandong Shantui Construction Machinery Import and Export Co., Ltd., Dylan Chicken believes that bauma Africa served as the ideal platform for the company's new product launches.

Chicken stressed that Africa will play an instrumental role in the future growth and development of the Shantui brand, which currently has a total machine population in excess of 5,500 units throughout the continent, of which more than 550 units are in Southern Africa.

Chinese construction equipment manufacturer Shandong Lingong Machinery Co., Ltd. (SDLG) showed a broad range of products at the inaugural bauma Africa, where the company was present alongside South African dealer Babcock International Group. The emphasis for both SDLG and Babcock was on delivering strong service and parts support for its notably easy-to-maintain machines.

SDLG showed a range of wheel loaders, excavators, motor graders and road rollers alongside its trusted South African national dealer Babcock at bauma Africa. Its newlylaunched excavators were displayed alongside SDLG’s latest motor grader, the 146kW rated G9190. Powered by a German-designed Dalian Deutz electronic injection engine, the motor grader offers premium performance – from highways and airports to construction and agricultural applications. The machine comes with a 3.9 metre moldboard as standard, for wider grade coverage, and a world-class blade down force of 8,386kg which maximises cut depth without front-end drift.

To reinforce the strength of its road machinery

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bauma Africa

CONSTRUCTION

The success of Bauer Maschinen Group at bauma Africa

A

t the inaugural bauma Africa, Bauer Maschinen Group (BMA) showcased a wide spectrum of specialist foundation machinery and equipment on a 700-sq m stand in the outdoor arena and introducing numerous ideas tailored specifically for the South African market.

Hermann Schrattenthaler, BMA sales manager for Africa, summed up his experience of the event, saying, “The response to the Bauer Maschinen Group from the trade experts was positive throughout. For the first bauma in Africa, the number of visitors we had the opportunity to meet completely fulfilled our expectations. We were particularly impressed by the high professional standard of the visitors and, of course, extremely pleased that more than half of all exhibited equipment was sold during the trade fair.�

The focus of the exhibits on show at bauma Africa was directed specifically at machines and equipment for bored piles, water well drilling and mining operations, as important construction activities are expected in these particular areas.

On show were a BG 20H, representing the rotary drilling rigs of the BG

series, and a multi hammer drill (MHD) particularly suited for drilling in hard rock and through boulders embedded in soil formations.

Prakla Bohrtechnik GmbH showcased its RB 50 universal drilling rig capable of drilling to depths of up to 1,200 metres. This drill has already operated very successfully in many African countries, including Angola, Namibia and South Africa, where it drilled water wells in remote regions.

The wide range of applications for blast hole drilling was demonstrated by two drilling rigs. With its Rhino 1300, Bauer-DeWet showcased a crawlermounted hydraulic top drive drilling rig capable of being deployed for a wide range of rotary and down-the-hole hammer drilling operations. The HSB 3000 blast hole drilling rig manufactured by Hausmann System Bohrtechnik is a typical high-performance representative of the HSB series of nine Hausherr rigs for drilling blast holes to depths of up to 45 metres.

The decision by Klemm Bohrtechnik to go ahead at the first Bauma Africa with showcasing its robust universal small diameter drilling rig KR 909-1, developed specifically for numerous and versatile applications in the small diameter borehole sector, was fully endorsed by the keen interest shown in this machine by the visitors.

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CONSTRUCTION

bauma Africa

Magni telescopic handlers hit the heavy-industrial market On display at bauma Africa, the all-new Magni Telescopic Handlers brand to the heavy-duty mining and construction sectors. The range’s advanced technology sets new standards in productivity, safety and functionality – effectively creating a new market segment for a ‘telehandler super-breed’.

“We identified the need in the African market for a machine that is capable of more than just day-to-day material handling, and that delivers significantly elevated capacities and heights,” said Larry Smith, the Managing Director and founding partner of Eazi Sales & Service. “When we came across the Magni brand, we visited the factory in Italy, evaluated the technology and realised that the designers and engineers probably have more experience than any other telehandler company currently in the world.”

Magni Telescopic Handlers, which has been manufacturing since September 2012, was founded by the long-term Manitou Italy

president, Riccardo Magni. The brand has already gained significant market acceptance in Europe, with an annual demand estimated to surpass 300 machines by 2014.

“The advanced technology that has gone into each machine makes the range stand out from a functionality, safety and performance point of view. With a complete range of attachments available, we’re confident the range will gain significant market share in the heavy-duty mining and construction markets,” said Smith.

Magni currently manufactures the rotating RTH and high-capacity HTH telehandlers. The RTH range consists of seven models with weight capacities ranging from four to six tons, and features maximum heights of between 18 and 30 metres. The HTH range is available in three variations and is capable of lifting a maximum of either 15, 25 or 30 tons – making the HTH 30.12’s model the largest capacity telehandler in the world.

Bell’s new B60D makes its debut at bauma Africa The inaugural bauma Africa was held on the doorstep of South African manufacturer Bell Equipment, and the company made a strong impact locally by showcasing innovative products including the 60tonne articulated dump truck, the B60D. The company's flagship, the B50D, has been available for export since Bauma Germany in 2004. The B60D follows that machine by taking ADT design and innovation into a new league, opening up opportunities for the company in a domain that was previously only contested by rigid haulers.

The B60D has full articulation and oscillation steering but differs from a traditional ADT in that it has two driven axles, giving it 4x4 capability. With a 60-tonne payload the company believes it will be able to move considerably more dirt than a regular ADT, at a lower cost per tonne than comparative rigid haulers. At the same time the truck offers much better off-road capability than a rigid hauler and has the ability to work in worse underfoot conditions to increase days in production.

Bell Equipment marketing manager Stephen Jones noted that the B50D Ejector, as well as the E-series ADT and upgraded Fleetm@tic fleet monitoring system, were well received at Bauma Germany earlier this year. Bell Equipment chief executive Gary Bell added, of bauma Africa, "An international exhibition of this stature in our region has been long awaited and Bell Equipment looks forward to the positive spin-offs for the region, the construction industry and our customers."

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Balkrishna Industries

PROFILE

Our tires never tire: BKT Kindly highlight the concept of “new solution for the new world” The company caters to an expansive range of clients for tires all over the world, thus has to be very proactive and in sync with their growing and changing needs.

BKT develops about 150-160 stock keeping units (SKUs) every year. It has facilities to develop new compounds and technology which keeps adding new products to its already gigantic range of solutions every year.

The company has its own mould plant which enables them to have the fastest turnaround time — that is from a new concept to product availability in the market.

This enables BKT to attend to very specific demands of its exclusive customers.

Let us know about the company’s “One stop shop for Mining & Industry Needs” There is a huge demand for OTR tires world over including Africa. Identifying these opportunities, BKT has ventured into fully

What is the company’s experience with this initiative of the port tires?

There is a wide gamut of tires available in this line, ranging from port reach stacker sizes to RTG sizes. We have been selling tires to major companies like Kalmar Sweden, world’s leading reach stacker machine manufacturer. BKT also recently launched an ultra advanced range of tires especially for high-speed cranes. The tire 445/95R25 enables heavy high speed cranes to travel at a speed of 80km/hr.

Arvind Poddar, CMD of BKT

fledged production of mining and industrial solutions, providing a huge range of tire variants for various applications.

BKT is into the production of all steel radials since 2008. BKT is the first tire company in India to produce all-steel radial OTR tires.

What is the company’s contribution to agriculture tires?

BKT offers a huge range of solutions for agricultural activities. The range of tractor tires is specially designed to carry higher loads on and off roads with minimal soil compaction in field. Their superior make ensures great road ability, traction and durability making them a fitting choice for today’s high horse power tractors and trailer applications. ■

Davinomixer Italy Web : www.davinomixer.com E-mail : delta@davinogroup.com

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CONSTRUCTION

Housing

Modern solutions for modular projects RATEC and Reymann Technik have developed a modular housing concept based on innovative upcrete technology

P

resented at bauma Africa in Johannesburg, the upcrete technology developed by RATEC and Reymann Technik has proved fundamental to the introduction of a modular concept that promises to revolutionise housing construction in Africa.

The concept incorporates prefabricated concrete elements, which support the production of affordable living spaces in large numbers and shortest possible time.

Customer inquiries from countries with rapidly growing population and a huge demand for high quality and affordable living space have inspired the company’s developers to design a modular housing concept on the basis of its upcrete technology.

The concept has been successfully implemented in a first project in South America, in Peru - with further projects expected to take place in South Africa.

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The concept and the challenge The basic idea of the concept is the production of a monolithic room module with floor, four walls and beams in one piece, including plumbing, wiring and sanitary fixtures and fittings. The room module is complemented by the roof, separating walls - for example, for a patio and stairs, which are concreted in separate moulds and assembled on site.

The project goal is to build 3,600 houses, each with 60 sq m living space, a private patio and garden on a 100,000 sq m site in Ica (Peru) within a period of just 60 months.

Another challenge: the houses have to be earthquake-and storm-proof.

The self-developed upcrete technology of Reymann Group constitutes the basis for this production. Instead of pouring normal concrete into the forms, self-compacting

concrete (SCC) is pumped from below into the formwork. This eliminates the step of compacting by vibration, which is essential for conventional concrete, and thus makes the production process faster and more effective. Furthermore, this method allows the filling of complex geometries in-situ and produces concrete elements with all-sides smooth surfaces in exposed concrete quality.

"To create affordable and safe living space for a growing population is one of the biggest challenges of our time," JĂśrg Reymann, managing director of RATEC, states. "With the modular formwork units in combination with upcrete technology, we have found a way to do this quickly, cost-effectively and in high quality."

The rigorous development of this concept, in conjunction with upcrete technology and the new modular form units, has opened up entirely new horizons for the industrial manufacture of residential space. â–

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Compressors

CONSTRUCTION

Tier 1 and Tier 2 portable compressors T

he portable compressor range from Doosan Portable deliveries from 10.6 to 12.0 m3/min at output Power is built to withstand the rigours of everyday pressures from seven to 10.3 bar. The higher applications in the toughest conditions in Africa. It is pressures are designed for more specialist one of the most comprehensive for the African market and applications such as abrasive blasting, spray includes not only a wide selection of Tier 3 High Ambient painting and optical fibre blowing. models, but also 14 Tier 1 or Tier 2 engine-powered There are four large Tier 2 compressors in the models covering free air deliveries from 5.0 to 30.3 range – the XP750WCU-T2, HP750WCU-T2, m3/min at output pressures from seven to 25 bar.

HP935WCU-T2 and 9/235HA-T2 – delivering The 7/51HA-T2, 7/71HA-T2 and C185WKUB-EX-T2 21.2 to 30.0 m3/min of compressed air at The C185WKUB-EX-T2 Tier 2 compressor from Tier 2 models, the smallest in the range, operate at a pressures from 8.6 to 10.3 bar. These cover not Doosan Portable Power working pressure of 7 bar and are aimed at standard only standard pressure applications, but also pressure applications in construction such as powering breakers and tools more specialist uses including drilling and standby/temporary in road repair, demolition and refurbishment. For these applications, there compressed air for industry. With free air deliveries from 26.0 to 30.3 are three or four air power outlets and a number of useful options. m³/min, the extra large XHP900SCAT-T1, XHP900WCAT-T1 and Next in the series are the medium sized XP375WCU-T2, HP375WCUXHP1070WCAT-T1 compressors have pressure outputs up to 25 bar for T2 and P425WCU-T2 Tier 2 models which are based on a common applications where high pressures are critical such as quarry drilling, platform and are aimed at similar applications, providing free air industrial processes and pipeline testing and commissioning. ■

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MINING

Logistics

Steering locomotives for improved supply Replacing train wheels is an expensive process, necessitating infrastructure, locomotive downtime and man hours

A

division of international manufacturing and engineering company DCD Group, DCD Rolling Stock supplies locomotives, wagons, bogies and related equipment to local and international railways, mining and industrial operations.

DCD Rolling Stock product engineer and Jika PHS inventor Pat Smit indicates that the company's latest technological breakthrough in hydraulics, which is officially being trialled in full rail service, serves as a more efficient, reliable and cost effective alternative to the current mechanical linkage system for locomotives.

In addition to minimising wear on the rail and locomotive wheel, the reduction of locomotive force also reduces the lateral movement of the rails on their sleepers that results in the rail

Bogie fitted with Jika PHS

spreading apart. Smit says that it is important to note that the Jika PHS also reduces the angle of attack between wheel and rail.

"A prominent overseas locomotive manufacturer is on record that one test showed maintenance on the curved sections of the railway system reduced by 60 per cent," he said.

The Jika PHS is also beneficial for traction and braking, but most importantly, the system reduces the rolling resistance of locomotives when negotiating curves, consequently reducing energy consumption by three percent. Secondary benefits of the Jika PHS are that the system makes the locomotive more universal for use on lighter rail sections, thereby reducing the fleet number.

Tertiary benefits include a smoother and almost silent ride, and less pollution as steel particles ground off moving wheels are all but eliminated.

"Mechanical linkage systems in locomotives have proven to be inefficient, as a large amount of time and money is spent on maintenance. Bearing this in mind, DCD Rolling Stock began research on a more user friendly and cost effective solution for locomotive bogie steering and maintenance in 2009," he added.

Smit pointed out that by using a hydraulic system, the traditional links and levers can be dispensed with.

"This reduces the number of components in a bogie, making the steering sub-system easier to maintain. Another issue that the Jika PHS overcomes is the lack of space within, and distance between, the wheel sets of a bogie. This is particularly relevant in the case of three-axle bogies, where there is a central wheel set with its traction motor and braking system."

Smit pointed out, also, that the Jika PHS has been specifically

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Logistics designed for commercial freight lines, where frequent and small radius curves are common.

"The replacement of train wheels is a regular and expensive process, as it involves infrastructural costs, locomotive downtime and man hours. The use of the Jika PHS will also permit the use of more powerful three-axle bogie locomotives (CoCo), as opposed to the less powerful two-axle (Bo-Bo) bogie models. This system is equally important to heavy haul lines with axle loads of up to 30 tons."

According to Smit, another major benefit of the Jika PHS is that it can reduce flange wear eight fold.

"This design benefit will ultimately extend the lifespan of the average locomotive wheel by three times, thereby ensuring greater efficiency and substantial savings on maintenance."

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Proven performance in testing DCD Rolling Stock has been undertaking concept testing on the Jika PHS products since 2010, and is currently in discussions with various rail operators worldwide to undertake in-service testing in other environments to validate its initial data.

Using instrumented wheel sets that measure and record the force that locomotives impart on the railway line, DCD Rolling Stock engineers discovered that the Jika PHS reduced lateral forces by a factor of five in curves on these long wheelbase bogies.

"During one test, official data revealed that a four ton existing lateral force on the rail was reduced to just 800 kg," claimed Smit.

Following these successful tests, the Jika PHS bogie was retrofitted onto bogies on three locomotives, and will operate in full service. The Jika PHS bogie were compared against six similar locomotives fitted with conventional bogies for a six month trial period.

DCD Rolling Stock technical manager Daryl Leggitt states that this is the first time that hydraulics have been applied to locomotive bogies in South Africa.

"Three locomotives have been fitted with Jika. The first two have already done over 11 round trips of approximately 11,000 km, in addition to three round trips of 3,000 km respectively. The trips were all fault-free."

This 'real-life' application testing process is being undertaken to focus strongly on wheel tread and flange wear reduction.

Aspects such as improved serviceability, reliability and maintainability will also be studied. In addition, noise levels and the lateral wheel-to-rail forces will be recorded. â–

MINING

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MINING

Platinum

A cost-effective route to excavation The bulk earthmoving and excavation methods used to establish vent shafts at the Bokoni platinum mine located near Polokwane, Limpopo, in South Africa

M

urray & Roberts Cementation has taken an innovative approach to a project that will see the establishment of two ventilation shafts - one upcast and one downcast - at Bokoni Platinum mine on the north-eastern Limb of the Bushveld Complex in Limpopo. For this project, the mining infrastructure, construction and services company has departed from the conventional blind sinking option in favour of bulk earthmoving and excavation methods.

Project manager Dirk Visser explains that Murray & Roberts Cementation conducted a trade-off study during the tender phase which revealed that taking a bulk earthmoving and excavation route would be more cost effective. It is also the safer of the two options and will reduce the manpower requirement substantially, with personnel on site at project peak likely to be less than 45 people.

The upcast 88 metre 2East0 ventilation shaft has a completed diameter of 4.6 metres and the 350 metre downcast 6West1 ventilation shaft a completed diameter no less than 5.9 metres. Both shafts were constructed using the same method, with variations on the dimensions and quantities.

Murray & Roberts Cementation's project offices at Bokoni

On both shafts Murray & Roberts Cementation began by excavating and removing the soil overburden from depths of about 24 to 50 metres to reach competent rock. Portions of the initial excavation process were carried out simultaneously and, after the overburden was excavated, contiguous piles were sunk from the bottom of the open excavation to the refusal depth.

B125 casagrande establishment for contiguous pile construction at Bokoni

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

After piling, a curtain grout precementation method was applied to a depth of 80 metres. A concrete reinforced pile cap was constructed as a foundation for the raisebore machines. Once raiseboring was completed precast concrete rings, with diameters that correspond with the diameters of the shafts, were installed from the bottom of the installation back to natural ground level. Concurrent with the precast concrete ring installation, the previously excavated soil materials were backfilled and compacted to natural ground level.

A remote shaft lining machine was used to inspect the shaft and, based on the client’s recommendation, a 100 mm fibre lined Drycrete shotcrete was applied to the shaft walls in layers of 25 mm.

The Murray & Roberts Cementation team was mindful of the wellbeing of the local community, especially when it came to using community roads where the large earthmoving machinery interfaced with the community’s vehicles. Overburden, being used for backfill purposes during the contract, was stockpiled well away from the local community’s dwellings. ■ www.africanreview.com

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Indeco

PROFILE

For the second time ever, the world’s biggest rock breaker is an Indeco

I

ndeco breaks all records with its HP 18000, the biggest hydraulic breaker in the world.

Its sheer size is breathtaking, not to mention its performance, making it the ideal breaker for huge earthworks, primary winning and extra hard rocks. 4.6 metres high, weighing 11.05 tons, it can handle tools with a diameter of up to 250 mm, and has a destructive potential that is far and away the best of any breaker on today ’s market.

Despite its size, the HP 18000 can also be rapid and versatile, achieving a striking rate of up to 460 blows per minute. That sort of speed is quite incredible when we think how much rock is moved. Compared with other breakers, it has greater hydraulic efficiency, ie a better ratio between input and output power, and this leads to greater energy yield.

This has been achieved by introducing new technological systems and improving existing ones throughout the Indeco range. The new automatic power and speed variation system makes the Indeco giant more sensitive, and so more adaptable to the material it is demolishing.

The CDPS, or Collateral Damage Prevention System, sends a signal to the operator if the breaker is operating in sub-optimal

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conditions, warning him to stop working so as to prevent any damage. The ABF (Anti Blank Firing) system cuts out blank fire by eliminating any down pressure from the breaker whenever the tool is not resting firmly on the surface to be demolished. This increases the service life of all components subject to wear and tear, as well as reducing stress to the breaker body and excavator arm.

The external regulation system on the casing eliminates any clearance between the breaker and the wear plates within the housing, further reducing any damaging vibrations.

Even the housing has been specially reinforced to withstand the huge mechanical stress that a breaker of this size has to deal with. The mounting bracket is interchangeable with that of the HP 12000 model one, a distinct advantage as the same carrier can now be used for two different breakers. All in all, Indeco’s new champion is living proof of the company’s commitment to coming out with true technological innovations that are both reliable and productive. And that is the record they are most proud of. ■ www.indeco.it African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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SOLUTIONS

Materials Handling How Movigear makes energy savings

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lass bottle manufacturer Consol has managed to reduce its CO2 footprint significantly at its flint glass manufacturing plant in Nigel, Gauteng, South Africa, by adopting the Movigear decentralised drive system developed and by supplied by specialist drive engineering company SEW-EuroDrive.

The glass manufacturing process requires a considerable amount of energy and Consol, which has an estimated capacity to produce more than one million glass containers per year, introduced a number of environmentally friendly measures in its production process in 2011 to reduce its power consumption, and the Movigear drive system is among these energy saving solutions.

The SEW-EuroDrive Movigear mechatronic drive system offers advantages over traditional drive solutions, as it combines the gear unit, motor and drive electronics into one single housing.

The integration and co-ordination of these drive components leads to an extended and reliable service life, thereby resulting in a higher degree of system availability and lower energy consumption.

Consol manufacturing services manager Grant Bailey explains that the Movigear drive system at the manufacturing plant has over ten stations - each of which can be used to form four bottles simultaneously - and each station is operated using 18 servomotors. "The entire system is controlled numerically so that parameters can be accessed and stored quickly and easily."

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Terex Finlay strengthens sales efforts in Southern Africa A specialist in tracked mobile materials processing equipment, Terex Finlay has strengthened its position in Southern Africa by locating two key sales and technical support staff in Johannesburg to support a newly appointed distributor for the region.

The company also recently sold its first I-100 impact crusher into South Africa. This innovative recycling machine was developed with the support of Investni, placing the company in a position to gain market share in a new and growing segment for South Africa.

The news was announced recently by Northern Ireland’s Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster, at bauma Africa; Terex Finlay is based in Northern Ireland. Minister Foster recently lead an Invest Northern Ireland trade mission to South Africa, in which several companies exhibited on a common stand at bauma Africa.

The Minister said, “Terex Finlay already has a strong presence in South Africa and is now implementing an ambitious strategy designed to strengthen its position in a market it regards

Northern Ireland’s Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster, with the Terex Finlay team, at bauma Africa

as being of utmost importance to its growth in both the short and long term.

‘The positioning of experienced business development and technical staff in South Africa gives the company significant on the ground expertise to support Bell Equipment, its newly appointed distributor, in key functions such as sales development, technical training and aftermarket support.”

Nigel Irvine, Terex Finlay’s sales and marketing director, said, “Locating staff in South Africa with our new partner represents a major statement of intent to accelerate our growth and enhance our position as the market leader in Southern Africa.”

Kalmar and Global Service set to work on a diesel-LNG reachstacker Cargotec subsidiary Kalmar is conducting a project, as the primary external industrial partner of the GreenCranes pilot action, for the engineering and realisation of a reachstacker prototype using dualfuel technology (diesel and liquefied natural gas, or LNG). LNG is natural gas, mostly methane, which has been cryogenically super-cooled and condensed into liquid form for storage and transport.

To achieve this ambitious and visionary project, Kalmar signed a partnership agreement with one of its customers - Global Service, which is acting as leader of the pilot. Global Service is located in Livorno, Italy, and it is regarded as a key player in the equipment rental business in that country.

Kalmar and Global Service has worked closely on the creation of this prototype, which is expected to deliver significant results in terms of environmental friendly operation. A public demonstration of this pilot is scheduled to take place on 4 December 2013 at the Port of Livorno.

The pilot and demonstration will be based on the adaptation of a Kalmar reachstacker to a motorisation for reducing the environmental impact and the energy consumption. The project's pilot phases are: ● Design of a reachstacker that adopts alternative environmental compatible fuelling, dual fuel (LNG- diesel) powered engine. ● Integration and realisation of a prototype according to the design. ● Functional testing of the prototype. ● Pilot of the prototype and analysis of performance in a real port container terminal.

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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SOLUTIONS

Utilities Sustainable water supply: the case for solar pumping Access to a clean, reliable water supply is critical for the survival of humans and animals. Ground water sources offer cleaner and reliable supplies of drinking water.

Solar-powered pumping systems are designed for the highest possible efficiency and dramatically reduce power consumption compared to standard AC-powered pumps.

With a focus on reliability and efficiency, Lorentz has perfected unique designs for pumps, DC drives and controllers. Components are designed and manufactured using the highest quality materials to ensure a long and trouble free life with low maintenance requirements and low operating costs. Lorentz pumps are matched to local water conditions for optimum performance. Intelligent designs keep electronics above ground and the

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brushless DC drives match solar generators perfectly. The deepest well pumps can lift water over 450 metres, while the highest volume pumps can deliver over 135 cubic metres (cu m) per hour. The power rating ranges from 0.37kW to 25kW. Lorentz solar irrigation solutions produce no emissions, generate no noise. Solar power for irrigation is more reliable than wind power while being significantly cheaper and cleaner than diesel power. Lorentz solar pumps complement the design of drip irrigation systems, delivering water precisely and efficiently to individual plants. Very high volumes of water for large scale irrigation can also be supported through a wide range of pump sizes and vertical lifts.

Lorentz solar irrigation solutions are a very

attractive alternative to diesel powered pumping and support sustainable agriculture.

Each system consists of a pump end, pump motor and a controller. This modular concept allows for simple servicing, ease of access and a low cost of ownership, while several optional accessories such as the well probe sensor, float switch, etc may also be used to truly customize a system to your needs.

Lorentz was founded in Germany in 1993.

Research and design functions are done in Germany, while manufacturing is carried out in facilities across the world.

Lorentz is represented in Nigeria by Fordmarx Nigeria Limited. www.lorentz.de/www.fordmarx.com marketing@fordmarx.com

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SOLUTIONS

Electrical DEHN at A+A

A

n international specialist in surge protection, lightning protection and safety equipment, DEHN demonstrated numerous safety devices and solutions at this year’s A+A in Düsseldorf, Germany. The focus of this year’s event was on the active arc fault protection system for low-voltage switchgear DEHNarc and the personal protective equipment for passive arc fault protection DEHNcare. This equipment protects workers from the thermal effects of arc faults whilst working on installations.

“Our arc-fault-tested protective clothing DEHNcare and our portfolio of active protection systems such as DEHNarc ensure a safe environment for workers exposed to arc faults since arc faults cannot be completely excluded during live working on electrical installations,“ said Rainer Ziehmer, product manager for safety equipment at DEHN. The mobile arc fault protection system DEHNarc consists of an optical detection system, control device and short-circuiter unit ensures minimum disconnection times in low-voltage switchgear in case of arc faults. This preventive measure protects persons from the fatal consequences of an arc fault and prevents damage to the installation, downtime as well as the resulting costs.

Surge protection for IT systems Copa’s NET Protector surge arrester protects switches, Ethernet hubs and 10/100 Base T systems against surges. The device provides low protection levels for all lines and is suitable for use according to the lightning protection zone concept at boundaries 1-2 and higher. The 19” enclosure is equipped with up to three eight-way surge protection boards and only requires the space of one vertical module for 24-ports. NET Protector modules are normally installed in the 19” cabinet, which houses the hub or switch. They are inserted as a patch panel with surge protection, or as a retrofitted device for patching between the patch panel and the device to be protected.

The NET Protector with its completely shielded 19” enclosure and its 4TP panel for 100 Base T Ethernet has RJ45 connectors on both input and output and is supplied with 1m fly leads as standard.

Only 1U in height with a depth of 80 mm, the NET Protector surge protection modules are available in eight, 16 and 24-way formats, and are fitted with eight-way shielded connectors. The NET Protectors offer a 100Mbps data transmission rate and a response time of < 1ns. A different protective circuit and connection are provided by the protective boards.

Telkom talks to customers

Distribution line equipment Tel: 002718 468 3344 (Switchboard) Fax: 086 667 2900 e-mail: sales@liveline.co.za Web: www.liveline.co.za

Telescopic Link sticks

Drop out surge arrestors

Replace your surge arrestor liveline - with a link stick 66

African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

Whenever there is a thunderstorm, it is possible that lightning, or electrical power surges caused by lightning, may damage one or more of your computer components with excessive voltage. Modems are especially susceptible, because a harmful power surge can reach the modem in two ways - through the electrical power grid and through the telephone line to which the modem is connected. South African communications firm Telkom advises its customers that when there is a thunderstorm, all electronic devices (especially computers) should be unplugged to avoid damage from harmful power surges. Not only should all power supply cables be unplugged, but also any telephone cables that are connected to the computer.

A lightning protection unit- also known as a surge suppressor - can help reduce the risk of damage. Some commercially available lightning protection units have additional sockets to protect against power surges that travel through the telephone line. However, while lightning protectors can add extra protection from power surges, it is important to note that the best possible protection is by unplugging all power supply cables and telephone cables. A telltale sign that a modem has been damaged by a power surge is that the computer reports "no dial tone," even though the modem is properly connected to a telephone line. The computer may also report that the modem is "not responding." In other instances the indicator lights on the modem do not illuminate. If other components have been damaged, you may find that the computer will not operate at all. If any of these symptoms occur soon after a thunderstorm, it is highly likely that one or more computer components have been damaged by a power surge. www.africanreview.com

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SOLUTIONS

Generators Pramac Ibérica consolidates its presence in Angola and Mozambique

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ollowing a strategy of internationalisation and consolidation in emerging markets, Pramac Ibérica supported its distributors EXONIS at FILDA (International Fair of Luanda in Angola) and TURBOMAR in FACIM (International Fair of Maputo in Mozambique) during the recent summer months of 2013.

The company has just signed a contract for five million euros to provide gensets in a range of 15 to 22 kVA power, to ensure the supply of electricity to the communication towers of the Angolan major operators.

Andrés Granados, CEO of Pramac Ibérica, said, "This contract means consolidating Pramac brand in a strategic sector such as Telecom and also in a strategic country like Angola, where it will continue to invest in the coming years." Ángel Cruz , Pramac Ibérica commercial director, commented, "This contract is the result of good work in the past three years during which Pramac Ibérica has provided more than 1,200 gensets, being a leader in this

This contract means consolidating Pramac brand in a strategic sector such as telecom and also in a strategic country like Angola, where it will continue to invest in the coming years. Ángel Cruz, Pramac commercial director, said, "This contract is the result of good work in the past three years during which Pramac Ibérica has provided more than 1,200 gensets, being a leader in this sector and market with excellent reliability for the operator and thus gaining confidence in our product. The goal now is to implement Telecom sector in other markets such as Mozambique, Cape Verde and Sao Tome. " sector and market with excellent reliability for the operator and thus gaining confidence in our product. The goal now is to implement Telecom sector in other markets such as Mozambique, Cape Verde and Sao Tome. " Pramac Ibérica, SAU is a subsidiary of PR

Industrial - an Italian multinational, which serves the markets of Spain, Portugal and Africa PALOPs. Its headquarters are located in Murcia, Spain, where it manufactures portable and industrial gensets, and sells material handling and lifting equipment.

Hatz helps with power and water pump The South African branch of the German based engine manufacturer Motorenfabrik Hatz offers a variety of small to mid-sized power generators, engines and water pumps. Hatz Diesel SA’s portfolio includes the generator HDG 5700 R/E, which consists of an air-cooled Hatz 1B40T engine and a Meccalte generator.

The compact engine that brings the wellknown Hatz qualities ruggedness and durability, delivers 10.2hp at 3,000rpm.

There is also a 230/380 volt generator, which is based on a Hatz 2M41 engine. The generator

has an output of 15 kVA and can be customised according to customer requirements with other options.

Another option is the 230/380 volt generator with a power of 10 kVA, which is based on a small Hatz 1D81 engine, which is operated at a speed of 3000 rpm.

In addition to the generators, Hatz Diesel also offers a 2-inch

clear water and trash water pump. The selfpriming centrifugal pump consists of a Hatz 1B20 with recoil start and an E50 Varisco pump.

It is distinguished by its robust construction.

Thus the pump housing is made of durable cast iron. The flow rate is max. 566 L / min. www.hatz-diesel.com

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African Review of Business and Technology - November 2013

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Clean lighting in Tanzania Farnell element14 has embarked on an innovative initiative to provide solarpowered LED lighting to remote villages in Tanzania, working with a charity, the United Bank of Carbon (UBoC). The global electronics distributor has developed lighting kits, which provide an environmentally friendly, cost saving alternative to the liquid fuel-based forms of lighting currently used by the local communities. Designed by Farnell element14’s in-house technical team, the units have been optimised for ease of assembly, using own brand parts along with components from some of its leading suppliers.

Farnell element14 is also providing funding to hire and train a local engineer to build, install and maintain the kits so that the community can deal with technical problems without having to rely on outside help.

Four hundred kits have already been shipped out to the Tongwe community in remote western Tanzania near the Mahale Mountains National Park for use by schools, clinics and forest rangers. Given the remoteness of the villages, Farnell element14 has received essential support from safari company Nomad Tanzania which has transported the kits by air to one of its camps only a short distance from Tongwe Land.

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