November web

November 2012 www.endeavourmagazine.com

SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL BLOOD SERVICE ECONO-HEAT CHOPPIES ENTERPRISES UK £4.95 CAN $14.75 USA $7.99 EUR €7.90 SA ZAR 58.00

FAIRTRADE:

HELPING YOU CHANGE THE WORLD Inspired by your success

Life is Short! Get Wild.

Speak to one of the Rhino Africa expert consultants about a tailor-made African holiday today.

www.rhinoafrica.com

November 2012 www.endeavourmagazine.com

Editor’s note SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL BLOOD SERVICE ECONO-HEAT CHOPPIES ENTERPRISES UK £4.95 CAN $14.75 USA $7.99 EUR €7.90 SA ZAR 58.00

By Daemon Sands

FAIRTRADE:

Chief Editor of Endeavour Magazine

HELPING YOU CHANGE THE WORLD Inspired by your success

Heads of Departments Editor in Chief Daemon Sands daemonsands@littlegatepublishing.com Director of Research Don Campbell doncampbell@littlegatepublishing.com Sales Director James Martin jamesmartin@littlegatepublishing.com Corporate Director Anthony Letchumaman anthonyl@littlegatepublishing.com Lead Designer Alina Sandu studio@littlegatepublishing.com Publisher: Stephen Warman stevewarman@littlegatepublishing.com Any enquiries or subscriptions can be sent to info@littlegatepublishing.com ENDEAVOUR MAGAZINE is published by Littlegate Publishing LTD which is a Registered Company in the United Kingdom.

Company Registration: 07657236 Registered office: 343 City Road London EC1 V1LR VAT registration number:116 776007 Littlegate Publishing Ltd Kings Lane Norwich, NR1 3PS United Kingdom

While the politicians in the UK and US are hollering about the end of the recession, the rest of us daren’t make mention of it in whispered conversation because the hope is so fragile it could shatter if we brought too much attention to it.

But why not?

As the ashes of our hope are brushed aside and that last remaining spark is gently breathed upon and rekindled, why should we be scared to allow it to turn into a blazing fire? The Olympics was tailored to be a major boost to the economy, since when are the British so cynical that we can’t have a little faith…? Poor examples aside, it’s very quick to take a black and white view on the financial crisis when we don’t fully understand the economics, politics and circumstances that are taking place. It’s only when we look backwards that we see that anything important enough can be made fun of and we forget that, as people, we’re not really that good at seeing the bigger picture.

The economy is recovering. Whether it’s by an inch or a mile and irrespectively we are closer to economic prosperity than we were last year and we are still here.

And whether the recession is over or if we are just breaking the surface we have the opportunity to look at the lessons we can learn from the businesses that despite the global recession have remained not only profitable but hopeful, not only focussed but focussed on excelling.

We have featured a couple of these for you this month. Just to lift your spirits.

We’ve caught up with companies such as the Fairtrade Foundation, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, Choppies Group and the South African National Blood Service. Donnie Rust our resident comedian has learnt all about email management and Jim Blythe and Rob James are at their usual level of scathing, questioning honesty.

Littlegate Publishing Ltd does not accept responsibility for omissions or errors. The points of view expressed in articles by attributing writers and/or in advertisements included in this magazine do not necessarily represent those of the publisher.

Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained within this magazine, no legal responsibility will be accepted by the publishers for loss arising from use of information published. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in a retrievable system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the publisher.

Copyright © Littlegate Publishing Ltd 2012

I don’t want to brag, but this may just be the best issue we’ve produced yet.

Kindest,

Endeavour Magazine • September 2012 •

3

Features

16 Nordic Offshore Marine: Keeping Us Connected 24 Ghana National Petroleum Corporation 28 Econo-Heat: Out Front And Moving Ahead 36 Altech Alcom Motomo: Communications Anywhere 44 Seco: Offshore Engineering And Logistics Group 48 South African National Blood Service: The Lifeblood Of South Africa’s Medical Sector 52 Haifa Port: Truly The Pride Of Israel 62 Nyanza Bottling Company: Message In A Bottle 66 IPP Resources: Finding The Gold 70 Vaal Sanitaryware: Highest Standards 74 Choppies Enterprises: Putting The “Super” In Supermarket

Rubik’s Cube

By Joan Pumpkin

The Rubik’s Cube was invented in 1974 by a Hungarian professor of architecture, Erno Rubik. However the Rubik’s cube was also independently invented by a self-taught engineer, Terutoshi Ishigi, in Japan in 1976. His cube was almost exactly like Rubik’s cube inside and out, though he knew nothing of that, having invented his cube around the same time as Rubik. Rubik is credited as the inventor though because Ishigi didn’t receive his patent (in Japan) until about a year after Rubik did in Hungary.

Articles

6 The Armchair 10 Entrepreneur You Did 12 What?

A Giant Leap 14 Or Electric Pants?

Fairtrade Foundation: Helping You Change The World

Here, Try This.

By Gerald Washroot Despite designing the first commercially successful solid body electric guitar, the Telecaster, and the most influential of all electric guitars, the Stratocaster, and inventing the solid body electric bass guitar the Precision bass, Clarence Leonidas Leo Fender was an engineer and not a musician and never learnt how to play the guitar.

Spam Is Older Than We Think

By Marcus Berundi

“The crossroads of trade are the meeting place of ideas, the attrition ground of rival customs and beliefs; diversities beget conflict, comparison, thought; superstitions cancel one another, and reason begins.”

Will Durant

Though not called spam, telegraphic spam messages were extremely common in the 19th century in the USA particularly (maybe it’s genetic?). Western Union allowed telegraphic messages on its network to be sent to multiple destinations. Thus wealthy American residents tended to get numerous spam messages through telegrams presenting unsolicited investment offers and the like. This wasn’t nearly as much of a problem in Europe due to the fact that telegraphy was regulated by post offices there. Spamming continued when telephones became the norm via telemarketing and of course reached new heights via the internet and the various message sending protocols used there.

HELPING YOU CHANGE THE WORLD

by Donnie Rust

“How do you save the world? You do it one step at a time.”

This is the philosophy of Mike Gidney, Deputy Director of the Fairtrade Foundation who since 1994 has been fighting the good fight and making an astonishing difference in the economies of the world. I was very happy to get the chance to speak with him regarding his philosophy and approach to running this globally recognized and highly supported brand.

“One of the biggest hurdles we had at the start was the belief of people,” Mike explains, “We had an idea that we knew had potential but nothing like it had been done before.”

The problem was a clear one, the people at the grass roots level of a supply chain for certain high-demand products were working on less than $1 a day while supporting entire families. Long hours and poor working conditions combined to make a living environment that was not sustainable. However, what was the solution?

“Consumer support,” Mike reveals. “The consumer has all the power and if a consumer is given the choice of purchasing two products knowing that one of them is produced through a highly sustainable route of supply where all the companies involved are fighting against what constitutes slave labour then they will choose that product. People want to help they just need to be given the chance to.”

Mike is ardent in his belief in the importance of Fairtrade and he speaks with humility despite the success of the brand. In 2011 the organisation experienced 12% growth and brought in over £1 billion.

“Despite the recession we have experienced growth and that shows the extent of the consumer support we have,” he explains. “It shows that even though times are tough they’re

not abandoning Fairtrade.”

And it’s purely judged by public poll. Consumer awareness and trust is at an all-time high, with awareness up at 75% and trust at 90%.

“A lot goes into this,” Mike tells us, explaining why he believes the consumers are rallying like never before. “The genie is out of the bottle now. Companies cannot go back to the way they did business twenty years ago because, thanks to the internet, consumers are aware of what companies do and they don’t like sweatshops. Like never before, companies are accountable to the public.”

The Fairtrade mark is a promise to the consumer and its power can be measured by the size of the companies rallying behind it and making use of it for promotion. You have Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 7

companies like Ben & Jerry’s declaring in their advertising that all of their cocoa is Fairtrade. You have every major retailer in UK stocking their shelves with Fairtrade goods.

In the same way that we cannot see the shield of Superman and not feel a sense of safety, we cannot help but feel good about buying Fairtrade.

Additionally, with all the dirt that’s being dragged up on banks being deceitful and cunning, on clothing brands being revealed to use sweat shops in Asia and politicians weaving complicated lies to get their own way, consumer trust is at an all-time low.

“There is a rigorous standard that needs to be met to be a Fairtrade member,” Mike points out, “Alongside a minimal fee a company needs to ensure that suppliers meet a number of expected standards, as there are clear benefits to be Fairtrade, we’re able to create an exponential change throughout the supply chain.”

And what is the proudest part of all this for Mike?

“As an example 43% of bagged sugar is Fairtrade,” Mike mentions, “And thanks to the companies and suppliers being Fairtrade there is more money making its way back to the grass root workers and that goes almost directly into the community.”

Community investments have included schools and medical centres to increase the standard of living and as the Fairtrade produces a positive ripple effect that travels down

the supply chain these developments and community projects have a positive ripple that travels upwards, thus creating an increased sustainability which further enhances the products that can be produced.

“We bucked the trend,” Mike says. “It’s caught on.”

The success of Fairtrade is a direct result of their focus and their targeted approach. They’ve built up the reputation of their branded mark slowly and this slow growth has given every new push and development a powerful and solid foundation to launch from.

“We’ve had an independent clarity and approach since the start,” Mike adds, “And there’s been a popular campaign to promote what we do that’s happened outside of our realm of control, independently from consumers and that’s been happening over the last twenty years. It was a meme that predated the internet.”

There is still more to be done and more to be addressed.

“Sustainability is still an issue,” Mike warns, “There are increased problems of sustainability in the future. Due to a previous disinterest in the supply chain, the Cocoa supply is in danger and has become a resource that is running dry and will not be able to keep up with demand coming into the future.

The Fairtrade Vision Our vision is of a world in which justice and sustainable

development are at the heart of trade structures and practices so that everyone, through their work, can maintain a decent and dignified livelihood and develop their full potential.

To achieve this vision, Fairtrade seeks to transform trading structures and practices in favour of the poor and disadvantaged. By facilitating trading partnerships based on equity and transparency, Fairtrade contributes to sustainable development for marginalised producers, workers and their communities. Through demonstration of alternatives to conventional trade and other forms of advocacy, the Fairtrade movement empowers citizens to campaign for an international trade system based on justice and fairness.

The Foundation was established in 1992 by CAFOD, Christian Aid, Oxfam, Traidcraft, the World Development Movement, and the National Federation of Women’s Institutes. Member organisations now also include Banana Link, Methodist Relief and Development Fund, National Campaigner Committee, Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign, People & Planet, Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund, Shared Interest Foundation, Soroptimist International, Tearfund and the United Reformed Church.

The Foundation unites, through labelling initiatives, the world including Europe, Japan, North America, Mexico and Australia/New Zealand as well as networks of producer organisations from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 9

THE ARMCHAIR ENTREPRENEUR

Does everyone reading this like ball sports?

Yes, marvellous. No? Okay, do you at least know someone who likes ball sports?

Have you, dear naysayer, heard of or are you aware of the concept of ball sports? To clarify, it is the opportunity for people to simulate war through a game involving a ball, rules and preferably no bloodshed unless of course you play rugby or Hurling (Click here for Donnie Rust’s hilarious article on why the Irish have their own island.)

I’m just drawing an analogy here and feel that we have gone a little off topic, but rest assured that as this is, of course, a one way dialogue I’m still going to make use of this analogy irrespective of your personal awareness of ball sports.

So! Being the big ball sports fan you are, you will no doubt be aware of another type of ball sports fan: the armchair fan*.

The armchair fan watches a lot of their chosen sport from the comfort of their armchair. At the slightest request they can recite, at length, any amount of trivia about their favourite ball sport. Try this with a soccer fan in England and you will eventually have to sit down and by the end you’ll be none the wiser as to why you can’t call it soccer in England.

Asked, or unasked, they will tell you about the players of their favourite ball sports team, every associated fact, score, game details and other intrinsic revelations about their private lives that would make you believe they were close friends, or even intimate.

Every detail except of course the directions to the grounds they’re playing at.

Because your armchair fan doesn’t trouble themselves with getting involved! Involvement is for lesser beings who don’t have seventy inch flat screen televisions, surround sound and forty seven different channels for watching the same game. It isn’t laziness; it is a lifestyle statement.

Now, do we all know an armchair ball sports fan? You’re thinking of them right now aren’t you? You’re remembering that time you stood for an hour in the rain cheering on your * if not then please just go with it ** names have been changed to protect the writer *** he’ll also tell me my jokes are lame

by Jim Blythe

favourite ball sports team and were there, with the crowd but still had less to contribute to the conversation later because you never heard the commentary and because it was rainy and very muddy and you were guessing who your team was because you were too frightened to ask.

Met one? Talked to one? Good, I’m changing the topic now. Have you met an armchair entrepreneur?

Your armchair entrepreneur works in a similar way to your armchair ball sports fan – they can talk about it; indeed they seem to be quite the expert, but they never, ever get involved.

My first meeting with an armchair entrepreneur came about through a friend of mine, Scott, who introduced me to his friend Pete**. We found ourselves drinking together at a bar after work one evening; a suggestion of Scott’s as I’ve recently decided to leave my place of work and become self-employed.

“Self-employed as what?” Scott asked me.

Now I’d be the first to admit that I haven’t given this particular point a great deal of thought. I have some ideas but that’s about as far as it goes.

I guess I will eventually have to thank Self for employing me***. So I just shrug and say: “Oh you know, just self….employed.”

“Well that’s just silly.

You have to be a selfemployed something.”

Scott says definitely, “You can’t just be self-employed.”

Reluctantly I have to

concede that he has a point and this is where Scott brings up the subject of Pete. Pete is an old friend of his who has loads of brilliant ideas and can surely set me off on the right route of successful self-employed-ness.

All I have to do is to agree to meet him in a bar one evening. As I generally find bars agreeable, I agree. And so I meet Pete. And Scott’s right; Pete has a lot of ideas. During the course of the evening Pete suggests that I should start various web companies specialising in such diverse things as up-and-coming musical talent, online veterinary diagnosis & recruitment (no specific industry), as well as non-online ventures such as performance art, bespoke insurance, taxidermy and mind reading. All of these, Pete assures me, are sure-fire ways to make money without me having to do any actual work at all. Now this is very exciting news; I like the idea of making money especially if I don’t have to do any actual work at all.

Who wouldn’t?

Well, Pete maybe. Pete is a workmate of Scott’s and Scott works in a drycleaners. Neither Pete nor Scott run the drycleaners they just work there.

And I can’t help but wonder why? If Pete knows of all these sure-fire ways to make lots of money without having to do any work at all why does he work in a drycleaners for not very much money at all?

“So why,“ I ask him “do you work at a dry cleaners?”

“I do not understand,” Pete says.

“Why” I begin again, assuming he’s missed the actual

point “don’t you run any companies doing any of these things?”

Leaning back with what I suspect he thinks is an enigmatic smile he replies, “Who says I don’t.” There is a silence while I let this sink in.

“Well... do you?” I ask.

Pete smiles the same smile again. It’s not enigmatic, it’s annoying because this armchair entrepreneur is setting himself up as an expert in things he knows nothing about and trying to get me to invest my time and money into pursuing them for him. He wants to gain entrepreneurial experience vicariously through my entrepreneurial endeavours.

At least an armchair ball sports fan is essentially harmless and can always be put in their place when you ask which stand they usually sit in for the matches. Nobody takes them seriously in the conversations because while they talk the talk they can’t walk the walk.

Just then my beer spilled onto my new ball sports jersey and that is when Pete became very useful!

Jim Blythe is a writer, actor, director, producer, comedian and inconsiderate lover. When he isn’t moaning about his experiences in the field of business he runs Spooky Kid Productions, a platform to help new talent get in front of an audience. See more of what he does at www.spookykid.co.uk.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 11

YOU DID WHAT?

by Donnie Rust The ventilation shafts in films are always big enough to crawl through quite comfortably; I guess they have to be to allow space for the camera crew. In reality they’re only a foot and half wide and I’m stuck. I am highly invested in hiding from my chief editor Daemon Sands*t. Allow me to explain.

Last month I made the suggestion of putting together some subtly erotic articles in the magazine written specifically for the office-female to ride the back** of the success of Fifty Shades of Gray. It was a brilliant idea to generate additional readers who would be drawn into the magazine by tasteful articles on the risqué edge.

Upon preparing a series of 1200 word articles I put them forward for the chief, Daemon Sands, to have a read through to see what he thought. Upon reading the first line he gave me a withering look.

“Donnie,” he said, “Please tell me that this is in no way going to appear in my magazine or on my website.”

Having learnt from my previous transgressions, I had stopped myself from uploading the article onto the website and submitting it to the print run, so I was able to smile and answer absolutely truthfully, “This is in no way going to appear on the magazine or on the website.”

He nodded, evidently relieved, and continued reading.

It was then that I learnt that the only thing more awkward than an awkward silence with your boss is when there’s an awkward silence because he’s reading something you’ve written. Especially when what you’ve written is intended to get ladies across the globe hot under the collar and at one point I believe I used the word gush.

I knew when he reached that point because he asked me to leave his office.

Outside, I loitered around making significant glances at everyone there surprised because this was the first time I had walked out of Daemon Sands’ office without him yelling at me. Something occurred to me and I went to Nigel, the man who, as one of many things, is in charge of uploading articles to the website and submitting material into the magazine.

“Nigel,” I said sidling up to him.

He froze, rigid with terror at my presence and I wondered what rumours he had heard about me this time ***.

“Did you get that email I sent you?” I asked.

Before I could continue, Daemon’s voice boomed forth from his office and in a pavlovean dog response I bounded for the door and upon entering said automatically, “It most probably wasn’t me.”

He looked at me with a quizzical expression, I smiled embarrassed, he shook his head and I cleared my throat, “What do you think of the article?”

He smiled at me.

Christ he’s going to kill me!

“This is by far the most brilliant collection of corporate erotique that I have ever read,” he began, rising from his seat, his eyes upon the page so he didn’t see my jaw drop, “It transcends mere smut and borders on the biblical. Instantly engaging and riveting as eloquently paints a stiffening landscape of sublime detail and story.

“My god Donnie,” he said, “If I had known that you were able to write in such a fashion I would have insisted you do this years ago! I’ve never read anything like this. It’s blatant and savage, and filthy. So filthy but it’s a work of art there is no denying it. However it can never, ever, ever appear in the magazine.”

My heart which had been drifting upon a cloud of approval which I had never experienced before plummeted to the bottom of my belly. The disappointment was outrageous.

“Ever.” He emphasized.

“So what do you want me to do with it?” I asked.

“I would suggest writing some more,” he said, “And bring them to me.”

“And what are you going to do with them?”

“Read them,” he said.

It was the way he had said ‘read’ that made my skin crawl.

As far as disconcerting things to make one feel peculiar it was right up there with seeing an old man lick his lips while maintaining eye contact.

Thoroughly off-put I turned to leave the office. Daemon returned, with my article, to his chair and sat down saying, “Donnie. Do not put this in the magazine.”

Daemon is a man who can say a lot with a tone.

Telepathically I got images of broken limbs, shattered windows and a long fall to the parking lot below, a boot in the unmentionables and lots and lots of pain. I nodded meekily and as I left the office I saw him return to the article.

And lick his lips.

“You’re grey,” Nigel said from his desk when I closed the office door behind me.

“I keep telling people No I’m not,” I shrieked, stamping my foot.

Nigel blinked, I blinked, he looked away, I said, “Sorry, I misheard you Nigel,” I started to the elevator eager to get away, “Listen, could you please delete that article from your emails just to make sure that it doesn’t go out.”

“Oops,” I turned on my heel and returned to Nigel’s desk where he visibly shrank away from me.

* harder than you think ** hehe *** I have to remember what gossip I spread about myself

“Nigel what have you done?”

“Nothing, nothing I’ve stopped it now.”

“Stopped…?”

He giggled nervously, “I thought it was an invitation.”

This was not happening. This was not happening. A welldeveloped part of my mind that’s devoted to narrow escapes and getting me out of trouble started marking possible exits in a panicked fashion.

“An invitation?”

“To the magazine.”

“Yes?” “That I send out to invite people to Biz-Tainment.com.”

Biz-tainment.com is the quarterly entertainment magazine that Littlegate Publishing publishes; it’s a delightful little publication featuring the latest rising stars in music, comedy and television. It’s very well received by everyone and has become one of our finest vertical publications. It is one of the few ideas I’ve had that Daemon hasn’t spent a great deal of time berating me over seeing as the subscribers, who send their emails directly to him have responded quite positively to the publication. However: “It wasn’t an invitation,” I squeaked.

“How was I meant to know that?” Nigel squeaked.

“Did you read it?”

“No of course not,” he said, “If I had read it would I have sent it out?”

“I doubt you would have!”

“Donnie!” Daemon, who has the uncanny ability to sense trouble in the office, boomed from his office.

Automatically, I started to the door, whispering over my shoulder, “How many were sent out?”

“I stopped it quickly don’t worry,” he told me with hollow assurance.

“How many?”

“Twenty thousand.”

There was a bing-bing from inside the office as Daemon received his first responding email and the whole office heard my terrified squeak as I changed direction abruptly. When he opened it all he saw was a puff of dust and a Donnie shaped hole in the elevator doors.

Donnie Rust, (AKA The Naked Busker) is one of Britain’s foremost comedy writers in the field of business, travel and adventure with over 1 million readers worldwide. His stand-up comedy is apparently hilarious too. He can be found at: www.facebook.com/donnierust.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 13

A GIANT LEAP OR ELECTRIC PANTS?

by Rob James

In the quest to trespass on unexplored ground and prolapse the boundaries of our scientific understanding what is a reasonable cost and spend?

Google “latest discoveries” and you have a lot of scientific breakthroughs in producing things that are not only amazing, brilliant, new-age and expensive, but also utterly useless. They are things that once discovered we are obliged to find a use for it. This seems to me to be more a tiresome obligation and a test of creative confidence acting together in the same way that the man who discovered the wheel had to ask himself, “oh… okay how can I use this?” and bish-bashwhallop the Frisbee was born. It took a woman to attach it to a basket, making the first wheelbarrow before telling the man to go clean the garden.

But I digress.

Scientific advancement is controlled chaos, with the most respected scientists not knowing exactly where they’re going with something but happy to hope for the best. The preferred scientific philosophy of “I’m sure this will work out okay” costs money. Lots of money.

For example, I’ve been following the exploits of Felix Baumgartner, the Austrian skydiver who recently broke the sound barrier and set the record for the highest sky dive. At a cost of $4 million.

Now, in their defence the researchers on the “Red Bull Stratos” project say that this has provided invaluable data for the development of high-performance, high-altitude parachute systems because when you can see the curvature of the earth it’s the best time to use a parachute.

Also, the lessons learned will influence the development

of new ideas for emergency evacuation from vehicles, such as spacecraft, passing through the stratosphere. NASA and its spacecraft manufacturers have asked to be kept informed because apparently even they don’t know the reason for breaking the laws of physics to get a hot air balloon that high only to chuck someone out.

Yes. Very droll you probably just said. And if you actually said, “That Felix Baumgartner and his team have significantly advanced our scientific knowledge what with the invaluable data they’re providing for the development of high-performance, high-altitude parachute systems”- you are reading the wrong article.

Instead, after finding out about Felix Baumgartner who has, fortunately a long career of jumping off of anything and everything for a living (in case you thought they just snatched the most insane Austrian they could find off the street), most people responded with a resounding, “Jeez, he must be mental!”

What worries me is that the major coverage given to scientific research of this kind gives science a reputation for being costly and irresponsible and pointless.

But that simply isn’t the case. You see, I like to keep my eyes on all sorts of scientific advances and I was delighted, as I’m sure you will be, to see that Doctors at the University of Calgary have discovered that underwear designed to jolt the buttocks with electricity may be able to prevent dangerous pressure sores.

For those of you not in the know and especially for you eating your lunch, pressure sores are open wounds that form when someone is stuck in one position for too long and the skin, through bacterial infection, breaks open and weeps puss. It’s the same thing that happens when you leave a pile of soggy teabags in the bottom of a dark bin for too long.

With the sort of innovation that sounds like it started as a joke, these doctors have tested underwear with two pads of electrodes on each buttock that jolted them with electricity for ten seconds every ten minutes twelve hours a day.

The findings, presented at the Neuroscience 2012 conference, showed benefits to patients with spinal cord injuries and the stimulation not only prevented the 37 patients tested from developing even one sore but also left them with a pair of buttocks you could bounce a coin off.

Now I’m genuinely pleased that those who have suffered with these sorts of sores may finally be able to put this experience behind them but I’m also a little bit pleased that science has discovered a use for electric pants, which have previously been something of a niche interest product I believe.

My favourite part of this story was a claim by the researchers that “the pants were popular with nurses and patients, however, much larger studies would be needed to test how effective the underwear was at preventing bedsores.”

There it is again, a scientific breakthrough, this time in

the medical industry, that proved popular with patients and nurses alike before they figured out what they could be used for!

It recalls an article by Donnie Rust where he commented on the validity of spending £50 billion on the creation of CERN which is a giant machine designed to create black holes (breaking the laws of physics again) to prove the existence of a theoretical particle that now, in theory, they’ve proved doesn’t exist.

Don’t cite me on the accuracy of that statement as I did see Donnie Rust running through the office yesterday wearing an inflatable floatation ring shaped like a dragon.

My point is that science might be the next best thing to get into and as a writer I’m sure I could put together some ideas that would knock the socks off the sky diving, pant shocking, electron ripping crowds out there.

I don’t like heights though and don’t trust battery powered clothing.

Rob James is a guerilla comedian prefering never to announce a gig in advance and to just turn up. He dislikes organised events, organised political parties, organised religion and organised socks.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 15

Choppies Enterprises www.choppies.co.bw +267 318 6658 Written by Daemon Sands

PUTTING THE “SUPER” IN SUPERMARKET Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 17

Choppies Enterprises

Recently listed on the Botswana Stock Exchange CHOPPIES GROUP is a name that is synonymous with quality, the highest levels of customer satisfaction and employee loyalty.

In Botswana they are not only a household name but the household brand. Chief Executive Officer Ramachandan Ottapathu spoke with me regarding the important steps that Choppies have taken to secure their position as leaders in their industry and they’re plans to continue into 2013.

Unity in diversity, Choppies is a unique name in Botswana with a turnover above 1000 million Pula per year spread across the country where they have over 50 stores, handle more than 45,000 products and employ a family of 4000 service oriented staff.

“We provide the best quality products and the highest service,” Mr Ramachandan says, “With a smile and value for your money.”

There is a simple, driving mission behind the company to be the best service provider in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG). This is a position that they currently firmly Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 18

Unique R&B Music Proudly supporting the Choppies Group *New Single Coming Soon* Lookout for the 2013 Tour For Bookings Contact Mr Bohitile 00267 744 07018

kbohitile2010@yahoo.com

Choppies Enterprises

dominate however Mr. Ramachandan understands that their position is dependent on them making use of the best business practices in the industry and by setting the standards.

“Our mission is always to be the leader in this industry,” he continues.

How is this achieved though? The story behind Choppies is an impressive one. From humble beginnings in 1986 with one supermarket named Wayside in LOBATSE, the unit has grown into the leading retailer group in the FMCG industry in Botswana. It holds over 30% of the retail market share and serves the population in all the nooks and corners of the vast land extending from Pitsane to Shakawe. Over 70% of the local farm produce is marketing through their outlets alongside 45000 products and their own brands.

The answer to how, is simple. Their vision, which is simple but poignant, to satisfy all their customers’ needs fully. This, begins with the employees.

Choppies is a well-oiled machine, consisting of a team of highly qualified professionals from various disciplines including engineers, Chartered Accountants, Information Technology (IT) experts and Business and Finance professionals. Over and above the group of professionals, Choppies stores in Botswana are bolstered with a strong workforce consisting of citizen employees and expatriates.

“It starts at the employee level,” Mr Ramachandan explains, “The employees are looked after and trained,

provided with the tools they need to offer our customers the full service they expect and this extends beyond just working in the stores but also the infrastructure we’ve set up to support our shops. There is a philosophy in Choppies which we strongly uphold and have introduced pension schemes for our staffs which is a rare thing here.

“We also believe in supporting young talent and we not only employ the youth but also train them periodically to develop them professionally so that they can meet quality and service standards as required by our valued customers.”

Their infrastructure is supported by two warehouses, one packaging unit and a strong logistics division. Most of the shops are equipped with a Bakery, Butchery and Takeaway section in addition to normal super market facilities to cater for all the basic shopping needs as well as taking those inevitable spontaneous purchases into account.

With goals to be the best in Africa and to expand beyond their home country borders Choppies has a firmly established footprint in Botswana and South Africa providing employment to more than 1600 people in the country.

“South Africa is a good and applicable market that is similar to that of Botswana,” Mr Ramachandan reveals, “It is conducive to what we can offer and was the best option for expansion,” “We are looking at other countries but we prefer to grow via small steps providing a solid foundation on which to launch any new objectives,” he continues.

“Winning with Customers & Shoppers” is a fundamental priority of Nestle Southern Africa, we want to engage with “all” customers, big & small, modern & traditional, wherever Nestle products are sold. Nestle as a manufacturer recognises the different dimensions of doing business across Southern Africa & wants to simultaneously grow its business profitably with all customers at the same rates as they are growing their different categories that we compete in. Joint business planning is an enabler to this process, thus enabling Nestle Southern Africa as business to be relevant, to achieve its growth objectives & together we can “Win with Customers & Shoppers”.

We produce and offer for sale farm produce and services to green grocery shops and chain stores such as Choppies Group.

Ndingo Johwa Recording Artist & Musician

johwandingo@yahoo.com Botswana (+267) 76 27 92 40 www.gimmesound.com/NdingoJohwa

www.nestle.co.za P O Box 50616 Randburg 2125 +27 (0)11 514 6000 Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 21

Choppies Enterprises

In Botswana, the company operates from their state of the art warehouses located in Gaborone and Lobatse. In Gaborone they have sixteen stores while in Lobatse they own six. The design and set up of each of the stores vary in size from 1500 to 3000 Square meters, depending on the region and the surrounding population to ensure easiest access to their stores.

In order to assure continuous supply in all our shops in the most expedient way, the group owns a fleet of more than 200 commercial vehicles which carry out all the transportation requirements. In South Africa, the group is concentrating on the North West province where shops have already been opened in Zeerust, Swartruggens, Northam, Koster, Litchenburg, Mafeikeng, Phokeng, Carltonvile and Rustenberg.

All business activities are intended to provide an overall positive impact on the customers as well as on the society as a whole. Sustainable development is the philosophy and Choppies aim is to deliver economic, social and environmental benefits, through operations.

Choppies currently helps employees to integrate into the society. A number of individual training programmes are designed to achieve this goal. Choppies organizes different sports activities, festivals and other types of entertainment for their personnel and their families. Choppies is passionate about sports and has always provided support to a number of sports events. Choppies is also one of the biggest contributors to Football Development Appeal (FODA).

Kenzo Enterprises (Pty) Ltd +267 391 2379 | sales@royco.co.bw

Choppies sponsors the Lady Khama Charitable Trust Event. We have proved our commitment by donating a number of houses for the destitute. Donations and free supply of food is given to many charitable organizations. We have followed a well thought of recruitment plan for the disabled which has been diligently followed, making their lives better.

This action by Choppies shall be noted as the first amongst local companies to help the disabled, thereby contributing towards one of the most crucial pillars under Botswana’s Vision 2016 which is to become “ a just and caring nation”.

Ahead of the green movement that is sweeping across the world, Choppies have always endeavoured to avoid or minimize the impact on the environment in all their business activities engaged in. With this in mid the companies’ logistics operations are designed to be as green as possible and sourcing decisions have become stringent so that environmentally damaging products are not procured and distributed. This follows suit with a philosophy shared by many of the top global companies that to ensure change needs to start internally by promoting best practices.

And what is in store going into 2013 for a company as forward thinking with its employees and so considerate with its customers?

“2013 is looking to be an exciting time,” Mr Ramachandan concludes, “We are heavily involved in a number of community upliftment projects which are of particular interest to us as this helps us encourage growth amongst our staff as well as the on-going mission to be the best.

We thank Choppies Group for their continued support and wish them good luck for the future.

/ BOK454W

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 23

Nordic Offshore Marine www.nordicoffshore.dk +45 636 103 64 Written by Djamil Benmehidi

PROVIDING THE RIGHT PERSONNEL, EQUIPMENT AND EXPERTISE TO KEEP US CONNECTED Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 25

Nordic Offshore Marine

In much the same way as everything else these days, the marine services industry is changing quickly; due in large part to the global push towards clean energy sources. Soren Mikkelson, Managing Director of the newly formed Nordic Offshore Marine told Djamil Benmehidi about its successful merger and plans in the face of a changing market.

The transition from fossil fuels to clean energy sources has seen the renewable energy sector experience massive growth over the last decade, a significant part of which is accounted for by wind power. With offshore wind arrays mushrooming off the coasts of countries all over the world, around 2.5% of global energy output was being generated from wind farms at the end of 2010, a figure which experts expect to increase ten-fold by 2050.

The rapidly growing wind energy sector has opened up new opportunities for the marine services industry; and make no mistake, the commercial potential within an industry which is already worth hundreds of millions is mind-boggling for the companies with the specialist personnel, equipment and industry knowledge to exploit it. Nordic Offshore Marine is one of those companies.

The birth child of a merger which took place between Nordic Offshore and Marine Offshore earlier in 2012, Nordic Offshore Marine, based in Faaborg, Denmark is a ISO 9001:2008 certified maritime services provider which combines a personnel contracting arm enabling it to source the finest talent in the industry with an offshore projects branch which takes on surveying and marine cable installation & maintenance projects for the telecommunications and more recently, the renewable energy sector.

“Primarily, our main line of work in the past has been in the installation and maintenance of sub-sea cables for the telecommunications sector, not to mention conducting surveys. However whether installing cables for the telecommunications sector or power cables which run from wind farms to the mainland, the principles are the same.

It was important to diversify, the renewables market is the future.”

With a single office and no more than 40 permanent staff on its payroll, Nordic Offshore Marine is by no means a large business compared to other larger players in the industry.

However let not the size deceive you, as Nordic Offshore Marine’s quality over quantity approach to business has seen it develop a polished reputation and is respectfully thought of in the marine services industry as a business which has been equal to the challenge of every project taken on to date.

“It is as simple as this; what we say is what we do.

Between myself and three of the other founding members of the business, we have over 100 years experience in this industry. For example, this emphasis on quality has been our main focus on the personnel contracting side of our business.

Our clients know that our database has people from across the world with the right qualifications and experience to do the job, be it in machining, equipment handling or any other area of marine operations.”

Following the successful merger which has seen the two former companies Nordic Offshore and Marine Offshore

pull together harmoniously, Nordic Offshore Marine now possesses full in-house capabilities and owns all of the necessary equipment to enable the company to take on any smaller project independently. In addition to this, Nordic Offshore Marine’s acquisition of the OMS Pollux, a multipurpose ship which can accommodate a crew of 18 and is capable of serving the offshore industry in a variety of tasks, ranging from conducting surveys via the use of ROV’s to sea bed sampling to simply performing guard duties for example, has given them a global reach and the capability to operate anywhere in the world.

Recently, Nordic Offshore Marine has just successfully completed two UK based projects in the Irish Sea alongside the UK based diving company, Osiris Marine Services whereby the two companies were contracted to fault-find and then repair two major interconnectors linking Ireland to the British mainland. Though on this occasion Nordic Offshore Marine did not use the OMS Pollux, it chartered the DP1 cable and repair vessel ‘Atlantis’ which had been equipped with the Rotech excavation tool, ROV, dive spread and cable handling equipment among other things.

Following completion of this project in mid-October, Nordic Offshore Marine immediately mobilised it’s workforce and equipment in preparation for a major route clearance project off the coast of Brazil, having chartered a local vessel for the job.

“We often charter a local vessel and then send our equipment via container ship to where it is needed. Though we have our own vessel, there are many variables to consider.”

Following a successful 2012 for the fledgling company, Soren believes that Nordic Offshore Marine will continue to take this success into the new year and has set out a future strategy to ensure that the business continues to go from strength to strength.

“Undoubtedly our main goal for next year is to continue growing as a business and to continue increasing our capabilities. We are looking to expand our number of vessels by 1 or 2 so that we can start to build a fleet to accompany our existing ship.

We want to move from being a tier 3 provider which we are currently to a tier 2 or 1 provider instead. This is why in addition to more ships, we are also looking to increase the amount of equipment that we have, as well as our number of staff. After all, you can have all the equipment and ships in the world but without the right numbers and quality of people to man them, it is pointless.

On the contracting side, we are aiming for 100% growth which is very achievable. We will continue to source the right officers and crew who have the right character.”

In relation to the wider industry, Soren also told us how he believes that the marine services industry will to continue to gravitate further towards the renewables sector.

“We think there may be a dip in the telecommunications side of the market because of market trends but we are hopeful that the growing renewables sector will make up for this. We will soon be appointing a new CEO to help lead the company to achieve our goals and he is a well-known man in the industry, it should be a good year.”

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www.hydraurent.com Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 27

GNPC www.gnpcghana.com +233 303 206 020 Written by Don Campbell

GHANA NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 29

GNPC

Founded in 1985 Ghana National Petroleum Corporation provided a crucial, strategic organizational plan to create an institution for the management and development of the petroleum industry in the region. With technical assistance from Braspetro the Brazilian National Petroleum Corporation (Petrobras) the original plan involved five main functional divisions and four staff departments, in what was an ambitious but necessary move. Don Campbell speaks with their head of corporate affairs, Eric Pwadura.

As far back as the 1890s there was significant international interest in the oil potential of the onshore Tano area. This coincided with interest in the large-scale gold mining in the Gold Coast at Obuasi and Tetteh Quarshie’s introduction of cocoa from Fernando Po, now Equatorial Guinea. Since 1896, wells were drilled in and around Half-Assini as a result of oil seeps found in the onshore Tano basin.

Proving to be a fertile area, the Tano basin has mothered a number of oil, oil/gas and gas fields. Eighty nine have been drilled in total within the country, six discoveries have been made and seventy five percent of the top fifty exploratory wells drilled have encountered varying degrees of hydrocarbon.

Today in Ghana, the political environment is favourable, the petroleum geology is good and the draft legal framework is excellent for investment in the country.

The GNPC was established to support the Ghanaian government’s efforts in providing a reliable supply of petroleum products and reducing the country’s dependence on crude oil imports through the development of its own petroleum resources. Prior to the establishment of the GNPC in 1983, this had been a competency of the Petroleum Department under the Ministry of Fuel and Power. The coordination of petroleum exploration activities was the job of the Technical Directorate of the Ministry of Fuel and Power and the Geological Survey Department before the establishment of the GNPC. Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 30

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 •

GNPC

As a response to changes in the internal and external circumstances of the corporation, a focal shift will be occurring within the next five years from investment promotion and facilitation to developing GNPC as a key player in the sub region with activities geared towards a number of activities.

RigWorld Services Limited is a model Ghanaian upstream Oil and Gas servicing company which is recognised by GNPC, the Petroleum Commission and other west African National Oil companies. The success of RigWorld in the Gulf of Guinea as a leading Logistics and labour provider for the Oil and gas fields in west African is described by a few key words which have become the backbone of the company: • Safety

• Quality

• Dedication

• Loyalty

Systematic investment in employment capacities to produce assets and activities across a broader value chain, further investment in replacement of reserve growth and securing capital to maintain an optimum level of participation in petroleum operations with the intention of creating an appropriate environment for stakeholder participation.

The fine-tuning of identified prospects and the development of new ones are currently underway in GNPC and the legal framework governing Petroleum exploration and production is being reviewed to create a very competitive business environment for investment in Ghana over others in the sub-region and the international oil industry.

Jubilee Field Production Jubilee commenced production in November 2010 at 25,000 BOPD (Barrels of Oil Per Day). It ramped up through 2011 ending the year at a rate of about 80,000 BOPD. Current production is about 70,000 BOPD. Jubilee Phase 1 ramp up and peak production of 120,000 bopd has been delayed. As of 31st May 2012, Jubilee had produced over 35 MMBO and exported over 34 MMBO in 36 parcels, 6 of which belonged to the Ghana Group (i.e. Government and GNPC) representing 5.9 MMBO or 17.30% of total exports.

GNPC and the Jubilee partners have begun the implementation of strategies aimed at arresting the premature decline in some of the production wells and increasing production rate to the planned level of 120,000 BOPD by 2013. In order to improve production and extend the production plateau considerably, a new Jubilee Phase 1A

Services T: 00233302768143 • F: 00233302264844 info@rigworldservicesltd.com

www.rigworldservicesltd.com

• Offshore/onshore labour supply and management • Engineering Services • Marine procurement • Offshore catering • Personel logistics and crew change • Security services • Meet and greet services • Freight forwarding • Equipment Rentals

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 33

GNPC

(addendum) Plan of Development (PoD) is being implemented with the drilling of 5 additional oil producing wells, 3 water injection wells, and the installation of additional subsea facilities. It is worth noting that some of the oil producing wells have been designed as horizontal wells to enhance the production rates. The Phase 1A project is estimated to cost approximately $1.2 billion. All the five oil producing wells are expected to be drilled, completed and commissioned by December 2012. Recoverable resource estimates within the field remain unchanged.

Jubilee production since 2010 has unquestionably inaugurated a new era in oil and gas development and production in Ghana. Jubilee takes Ghana into production levels far beyond anything that we have ever achieved and positions the O&G sector immediately as a major foreign exchange and revenue earner. The sector is rapidly transforming on every front – investment (both core and ancillary), scale of operations, discoveries and reserves, policy, legislation and new institutions. The success of Jubilee has opened up the potential of the deep water Tano basin just south of the known shallow water North and South Tano fields and led to a string of other discoveries. It has also galvanized industry interest in Ghana’s three (3) other basins in a way that suggest that Jubilee is just the beginning.

As the national organization charged with significant responsibilities in respect of petroleum exploration and

production, GNPC reflects more than 25 years of work and institutional thought that has gone into preparing for the situation Ghana finds itself in today and for the opportunities and challenges large scale oil and gas production will pose for national development.

Gas Industry Development Domestic utilisation of natural gas has been an important national objective for over 20 years. Ghana is currently implementing an Early Phase Gas Infrastructure Project.

This includes marine pipelines to bring Jubilee gas onshore at Atuabo where its liquids will be stripped out and piped 123 km west to feed power stations in Shama near the port City of Takoradi and connect to the West African Gas Pipeline.

Ultimately gas production from other fields will be gathered offshore and delivered through the submarine pipeline currently under construction to Atuabo.

The current policy is for producers of all gas whether associated or non-associated to deliver gas to a wholly owned Government entity; Ghana National Gas Company, which will act as aggregator; processing and selling NGLs to the domestic and export markets and selling the remaining lean gas to the domestic market which for some time will be made up of large users who would use the gas mainly for power generation, production of fertilizers and petrochemicals.

SERVICES

VALUES

Corporate staff Fleet management Investment capacity Customer service Management

Safety Team work Efficiency Respect for people Respect for the environment

CONTACT US Address: P.O. Box CE11838, Tema Location of Head Office: Kpone, Tema off the Tema Aflao road

T: 022-910093 F: 022-251023 E: JKHorgle@yahoo.com

www.horgle.com Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 34 Horgle Quarter Page.indd 1

06/11/2012 15:57

Star Africa Commodities and Minerals Ltd Star Africa Commodities and Minerals Ltd. (“Star”) is a diversified Ghanaian company involved in commodities exploration, production, and its associated services. Star was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in the city of Kumasi in The Republic of Ghana. Employment and economic development is at the heart of Star’s business model. Presently, Star is aggregating a portfolio of assets and aims to be a leading integrated producer and marketer of bulk commodities. With current activities in energy products, metals and minerals, and agricultural products along with the production, refinement, processing, storage and transport of these products; Star plans that wholesale and industrial customers around the world will rely upon Star’s future network of operations as a source of some of the bulk commodities that they need.

OFFSHORE ACREAGE OFF GHANA: Together with ERHC Energy from Houston, Star has begun the process of acquiring exploration rights for offshore acreage in Ghana. Having submitted their application to the Ministry of Energy, the Star and ERHC inquiry into offshore acreage is now pending a final decision from GNPC, Ghana’s Minister of Energy and Parliament. Star hopes for approval in late 2012 followed by exploration activities beginning in 2013.

the project, taking up about 10 acres, is a tank farm that would complement the infrastructure of Takoradi in preparation for increased oil and gas activities across the region. Star’s management estimates the cost of the project at $40 million and is now looking for equity investors to partner, or join, the joint venture, which will ultimately employ a staff of at least 50 people.

A DYNAMIC MANAGING DIRECTOR: Ghana faces the challenges of a recently opened and rapidly expanding market with growth often outpacing development across the society and rules to effectively guide and control the oil industry being crafted with each new well drilled.

To navigate the difficult terrain, Star relies upon its managing director Christopher Andoh.

Ghana-born but raised and

THE LONG TERM: In the future, Star sees itself as a vertically integrated company operating across all segments of the oil and gas value chain. The company has already moved into the downstream sector by conducting a feasibility study of a 53-acre shore-based project in Takoradi, Ghana’s new oil rush city. The second part of

educated in the US, Andoh was heavily involved in the formation of Star’s partnership with ERHC. The company has also benefitted from a strong advisory team with members experienced in financing, risk assessment and underwriting, as well as advisory aspects of oil and gas projects in countries ranging from Algeria to Equatorial Guinea to Russia.

SYNERGIES BETWEEN OIL, GAS AND MINING: Although oil and gas lie at the core interest of the company, Star has also acquired nine small-scale gold mining concessions in Ghana. The move into mineral extraction, according to the company, is intended to achieve the liquidity necessary to continue financing Star’s expansion into oil and gas industry activities, where the company anticipates longer-term gains. Capitalizing on the synergies between the two industries, the mining business has thus far proven successful and provided Star with some expected cash flow.

AGRICULTURE, SOCIAL IMPACTFULL INITIATIVE: As food security increasingly becomes a global concern and as agriculture becomes a path for poverty reduction and eradication across Africa, Star has secured 5,000 acres of arable farmland in the Volta Region of Ghana to develop commercial social impactful agricultural commodities such as rice and vegetables.

Contact Star Africa Commodities and Minerals, Ltd. Christopher Andoh – Managing Director

Kadri Lomo – Director

Ghana Office Line: +233.32.229.9305

Ghana Office Line: +233.32.229.9305

Phone Ghana: +233.54.167.8350

Phone Ghana: +233.54.920.5602

Phone U.S: +1.800.339.5732

Phone US: +1.281.704.6209

Email: Chris@sea-enterprises.com

Email: Kadri@sea-enterprises.com

Investor Relations: Info@staraf.com

Client servicing: Clientservicing@staraf.com

Website: www.staraf.com

Econo-Heat www.econo-heat.com +27 21 762 6500 Written by Martin White

OUT FRONT – AND MOVING AHEAD

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 37

Econo-Heat

Globally we have seen increasing pressure facing manufacturers competing in export markets due to financial pressures limiting the ability to compete with stiff competition from the East. However this is not a foregone conclusion as reflected by Econo-Heat, a South African company demonstrating how a great product combined with effective marketing and optimal business efficiency can lead to success on the world stage.

The main line for Econo-Heat is a unique and highly innovative, wall mounted, low energy and low cost convection heating system for the home. The product features an ultra slim design and is effective as an entire room heater whilst allowing savings of up to 50% or more on home heating costs. Perhaps most importantly the system is also designed for easy DIY installation with straightforward instructions for optimum positioning in the home.

The company has demonstrated phenomenal growth, developing from a homemade invention to becoming a slick and efficient industrial manufacturer and a leading exporter in South Africa. Current CEO Pieter Bräsler explains how the product came about: “The product was originally invented by father and son Rod & Russell Davis working from their garage in 1990, but it wasn’t until 1997 when the product won the Design For Living award for innovation that the product really caught the attention of the South African big name retailers.”

Pieter joined the business in 2004 bringing a background of experience in financial services and Lean Manufacturing at a stage when the company was becoming a well-recognised brand in South Africa.

“What I saw was massive export potential and a great opportunity for the product to flourish in markets beyond South Africa so we embarked on a major export programme focusing on the retail market as a consumer product.”

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 38

The IDC is the biggest supporter of tenders awarded in the

Over the next five years, the IDC will make available R25 billion

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Econo-Heat

d

wable energy

Established in 1990, South African born and bred company ECONO-HEAT is the inventor and manufacturer of the original wall panel heater. Over the past 22 years this trusted and celebrated energy-saver heater has provided warmth and winter comfort to countless South Africans. The lean manufacturer has produced an innovative and economical wall panel heater and low voltage electric blanket, and will launch further energy efficient heating appliances in world markets.

ECONO-HEAT is an IDC-funded business that has contributed to commercially sustainable industrial development and sustainable economic growth in South Africa.

Under Pieter’s direction the company embarked upon a significant marketing initiative aimed at bringing the product to new international markets through leading retail outlets. The product was well received and subsequently demonstrated a period of significant growth culminating in production of 1600 units per day distribution to a total of 38 countries worldwide by 2010. That year the company narrowly missed out on top honours at the Exporter of the Year Awards organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry but the upward trend of international sales through effective distribution agreements was set to continue leading the company to claim both the Exporter of the Year Award and the award for Excellence in Innovation and Business Excellence the following year.

Despite the strong growth and export performance shown by the company it could not avoid external pressures presented by the global financial crisis. Pieter explains how the company responded to the market conditions: “The banking crisis gave rise to a situation where distributors were falling short of finance leading to a reduction in available facilities which would in turn affect capacity. This created the opportunity for us to go directly to the retailers without working through distributors or middle men.”

This method of working directly with leading retail groups led the company to make a number of strategic changes to ensure the company could be responsive to demand whilst also extending the number of retail clients it could serve effectively.

“We established a new and state of the art manufacturing facility which increased our production capacity from 1600 to up to 5000 units per day and employed 7 regional commercial managers to directly work with our 87 retail clients worldwide. Although we had extended our client base we knew this was still the tip of the iceberg due to the nature of how relationships with retailers develop. First the retailer will typically begin with a trial of the product limited to a particular store or online, followed by a gradual rollout over a number of seasons. This type of phased and gradual growth gives us a good opportunity to develop our capacity and supply chain capability as the relationship develops.”

Econo-Heat adopted a high volume, low margin approach to ensure cost effectiveness of producing a high quality product whilst enhancing manufacturing processes to optimise efficiency.

“Critical to us developing our capacity and efficiency to such an extent is the successful implementation of Lean Manufacturing practices with the core driver being to optimise productivity and eliminate waste. We operate a training programme with all of our factory staff focused on the principles and practices of Lean Manufacturing to ensure these values are adopted at all levels.”

The company gained further recognition by achieving a clean sweep at the 2012 South African Industrial Development Corporation Business Partners Awards by winning first prize in all three main categories for Innovation, Sustainability

Almost every hour of the day we take our connection with power entirely for granted.

Behind the smooth functioning of hundreds of types of household, commercial, business, computer, industrial, medical and mining machines, appliances and applications, is the Apex CORDSETS. Producing up to 20 million moulded plugs, sockets, leads and cord sets a year, exporting to 5 continents.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 41

Econo-Heat

and Job Creation. The awards were established to recognise and celebrate IDC partners who have made the greatest achievements in contributing towards effective growth in South African industry and highlight the best success stories from within the IDC investment programme.

The case put forward for Econo-Heat in the innovation category not only focused on the features of the products but also demonstrated innovation in business development.

Achievements in sustainability were evidenced through the company’s comprehensive eco development initiative, which was designed to meet European market access requirements. This involved the elimination of hazardous materials commonly used in the manufacturing process and optimising use of recyclable materials in both the product and packaging. This is in addition to the product itself being an energy efficient technology as Pieter explains: “Su s t a i na bi l i t y has always been a core value to the “The banking crisis gave rise to a situation where distributors business.

Aside were falling short of finance leading to a reduction in available from offering what is a green product facilities which would in turn affect capacity. This created the we continue to drive opportunity for us to go directly to the retailers without working the importance of through distributors or middle men.” sustainability all the way down to the Pieter Bräsler, Econo-Heat CEO materials used in our packaging.”

This involved looking at strategies employed by the company Growth within the company also goes beyond an to develop export growth such as volume manufacturing increasing headcount by also increasing the number of hours to achieve economies of scale, successful implementation worked, extending the scope of roles within the business of Lean Manufacturing and development of a dual product and ongoing skills development for all employees. strategy designed to build the Econo-Heat brand, but also the “What started out as a factory employing 38 people in sale of previous generation products as own brands through 2004, today has a workforce of 191 and this is despite our distributors and volume retailers. high levels of automation. We recognise that it is the quality

and excellence of our staff that allow us to grow and marks our commitment to job creation and job development.”

The achievements represented by these awards demonstrate the comprehensive and extremely thorough approach to business development, which is adopted throughout the company. Pieter summarises how this is not only a strategic objective but also an important part of the culture of the business: “The company philosophy is to do things right first time and stay in front of the pack which is represented by our corporate credo ‘Out Front - and Moving Ahead’”.

Notwithstanding the company’s impressive growth record so far, Econo-Heat does not intend to rest on its laurels in terms of forming plans for future development. Despite the success the company has enjoyed in developing more direct links with its retail clients, Pieter is nonetheless aware of the importance of maintaining effective relationships with distributors in other countries worldwide: “Whilst working directly with retailers has been an important factor in growth of the company it is still very important that we recognise the significant role distributors play when exporting to 38 countries worldwide. For this reason we are still very much focused on developing relationships with our distributors.”

The company also intends to continue development of its product range to ensure competitiveness in an ever-widening market, whilst also remaining true to the company’s original

values of developing highly practical, safe and cost efficient technologies: “Product development is very important for future growth of the company. We have recently introduced a new low voltage electric blanket, which is completely shockproof and machine washable. It also eliminates harmful electromagnetic radiation associated with other high voltage electric blankets, hence this new product is being marketed as ‘The Ultimate in Health and Safety’. With quilted cotton exterior, it means the product is safe, soft and comfortable to sleep on. This eliminates the problems and dangers associated with conventional high voltage electric blankets whilst also being comfortable and practical to use every day.”

“In the very near future we are also due to release a number of exciting and highly innovative new heating products which will herald a further step in our ongoing business development.”

Econo-Heat represents a great story of growth and achievement attributed to having an excellent product backed up by a comprehensive and well-targeted marketing programme. The company also demonstrates how to succeed in challenging market conditions by ensuring optimum manufacturing efficiency and high volume backed up by supporting brand awareness at every opportunity. This shows how business efficiency and ambitious export drive supported by the right partners in logistics, distribution and finance can offer the key to success in world markets.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 43

Altech Alcom Motomo www.alcommotomo.co.za +27 11 235 7640 Written by Martin White

COMMUNICATIONS ANYWHERE Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 45

Altech Alcom Motomo

Effective communication between functions is a very important factor in any business. This is even more apparent in large public service organizations covering wide geographical areas which demand reliable communication between users performing important tasks for a multitude of different services. Endeavour Magazine examines a company that is very much at the forefront of digital radio technology supporting the backbone of public safety infrastructure.

Altech Alcom Motomo, part of Altech Radio Holdings is a specialist in the turnkey design, engineering and installation of advanced digital radio communication and telemetry networks for the commercial government and public safety sectors. The company has long benefited from a close technical relationship with communications giant Motorola, utilising Motorola’s radio communications technology as part of an extensive project portfolio across Africa. The relationship extends back to 1985 when Motorola South Africa became a subsidiary of Altech group; a leading South African technology group within the information technology, multi-media and telecommunications sectors. To date, Altech Alcom Motomo serves as a leading distributor of Motorola technology for the EMEA region.

The company employs a skilled workforce predominantly comprising highly qualified engineers divided into specialist functions including engineering, project management, system testing and field engineering. For each project the company takes responsibility for implementation of the necessary network infrastructure from masts and towers through to base stations and supply of radios and accessories.

One of the key markets for Altech Alcom Motomo is

the turnkey installation of Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) networks for public safety applications. TETRA is especially suited for use by emergency services like fire and rescue, police, ambulance services as well as transport services such as rail and airports which require dedicated communications, sometimes over long range and in areas of bad commercial coverage. TETRA systems offer a multitude of advantages for these types of applications by being able to link individual and group communication, supporting high levels of encryption and multiple fail safe and overload systems to ensure communications in a disaster scenario. Another key feature to this type of technology is the ability of the system to relay communications through Direct Mode Gateways beyond network infrastructure meaning that the system may operate over a very high coverage area using comparatively few transmitters.

Altech Alcom Motomo implements communication technology which is capable of covering entire countries as part of an integrated radio communications network. Whilst the technology is similar in nature to GSM mobile telephone networks, this type of technology has much greater resilience with better security capabilities built into the systems.

Altech Alcom Motomo was responsible for implementation of the City of Cape Town Communications Network which supports communications for a number of public services including police, emergency services, utility workers, national park staff, law enforcement and security. This vast system supports more than 10,000 users covering 7 former local authority zones. One of the major drivers behind the project was the hampering of public services caused by a lack of a common integrated radio communications platform. This led The City of Cape Town in commissioning Altech Alcom Motomo to supply the new TETRA communications network and installation of all necessary infrastructure including 28 base stations and new state-of-the-art central control room

dispatch. The company is also responsible for maintenance and support of the entire system, which boasts a record of 99.9% availability over 10 years since installation. Noel Watermeyer, Director for Altech Alcom Motomo shares his view on the project: “This was the first project of its kind for us. As well as being our first digital network and the only local government owned network covering all their municipal users. We have had very positive feedback on the project. To this date the system is still working very well and we believe the City of Cape Town is still very proud of their network.”

Another key project for Altech Alcom Motomo is the installation of an advanced TETRA network for the South African Police Service in Gauteng. The network links 30,000 radios covering 67 sites with emergency call systems, GPS, whilst also supporting conventional telephone calling and SMS. In addition to the work with the SAPS, the company has also supplied TETRA networks for the Angola and Botswana police services.

Altech Alcom Motomo is heavily involved in the supply of advanced Supervisory Control and DATA Acquisition (SCADA) systems for the monitoring and control of industrial processes in a number of heavy industrial sectors including refining and mining.

The company is working with major utility companies in the public infrastructure sector such as water and electricity supply. This includes systems integrated for national power utility Eskom as Noel explains: “For Eskom we have installed remote data retrieval units at substations which gather information and send it back to the main control room. This provides engineers with real time information which they can use to monitor and respond to processes effectively.”

The company works within the water supply sector providing systems to support the effective control of resources: “Our systems are also installed at water supply facilities to monitor and control reservoir levels by linking directly to the pumping systems.”

The potential applications for such technology do not end here and there are further markets on the horizon where Noel believes solutions can be implemented effectively: “From a monitoring and control perspective such systems can also be used within the wind energy market for wind farm operators. The renewables sector is one which promises a great deal of growth in South Africa which we are looking also looking at closely.”

Altech Alcom Motomo demonstrates a company which is committed to highly technical solutions which make a real difference in a public services environment. What particularly sets the company apart is the effectiveness of the systems implemented for each scenario which represents the company’s commitment to the individual understanding of every client’s requirements. This is backed up by solid technical partnerships to further support functionality, resilience and longevity of every system. The overriding factor beyond the benefits the company’s systems can offer for the industrial and utility sectors is the difference such systems can make for public safety, particularly emergency services.

In the event of a major disaster or emergency situation it is the effective communications between different emergency services facilitated by Altech Alcom Motomo that do not just protect public safety and welfare, but also save lives.

We supply into the following industries: ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ ʭ

EW system houses Tactical Radio manufacturers Radar manufacturers Avionics manufacturers ESM manufacturers Land and Aviation Radio systems manufacturers Transport system manufacturers Process control system manufacturers Industrial electronic system manufacturers

Tel: +27 12 345 6132 Fax: 086 617 6830

E-mail: info@ecssa.co.za www.ecssa.co.za

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 47

Southern Engineering Company Limited and Alpha Logistics Services (EPZ) Ltd www.alphaafrica.com +254 41 231 1091 Written by Daemon Sands

MULTIFACETED MARINE, OFFSHORE ENGINEERING AND LOGISTICS GROUP

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 49

Southern Engineering Company Limited and Alpha Logistics Services (EPZ) Ltd

Southern Engineering Company Limited and Alpha Logistics Services (EPZ) Ltd, part of the Alpha group of companies’ brand, is benefiting from international interest in East Africa. But it is no newcomer: it has been delivering marine, offshore engineering and logistics solutions in East Africa for decades.

Recent growth has seen it support the oil and gas market in East Africa.

Jiwanjee Industrial & Hardware

JIWANJEE INDUSTRIAL & HARDWARE LTD. Dealers in Paints,General and Industrial Hardware.

Haile Selassie Avenue Opp.Tuskys Supermarket P.O Box 95931-80106 Mombasa-Kenya Tel/Fax +254- 041-2227087 Tel:+254-041-2318781 Wireless: 020-3535246 0722-343060 Email:jiwanjeeindustrial@yahoo.com

Jiwanjee Quarter Page.indd 1

East Africa arguably contains the developing economies of Africa. Kenya has traditionally been in the regional driving seat with a developed economy based on agricultural exports but recent discovery oil and gas discoveries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Sudan are starting to attract investment from every part of the world, while Tanzania’s mineral resources are finally being exploited efficiently.

However, to realise this potential these countries are having to upgrade their infrastructure, which returns the focus to Kenya, which has the advantage of well established roads, railways, power networks and ports. Mombasa has been a key harbour on the East African coast for centuries.

It competes with the Port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania for traffic, and both ports are investing to overcome depth restrictions and delays. Work to deepen the berths at Mombasa started 6 months ago and once the dredging work has been completed Mombasa port will become a strategic harbour, the main route in and out of East Africa. The port is being extended to include a new container quay and the navigable depth is being increased substantially by dredging the access channel. As a result of the work, larger vessels will be able to enter the port in the future, which will lead to an increase in container traffic. SECO and ALSL play a role in the marine support activities to the port and its contractors.

Occupying a strategic location in the Port of Mombasa, Southern Engineering Company Ltd (SECO) and Alpha Logistics Services (EPZ) Ltd are well established players in marine, offshore engineering and various support services across the region. As the only sizeable shipbuilding company in East Africa is it also very important to the governments of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. “Shipbuilding and structural steel fabrication is SECO’s core activity,” says company spokesman Shivan Agravat. “However we do an enormous amount of maintenance work as well.” With a 160 metre long private berth and an engineering/ship yard covering approximately 40,4 00 square metres with 4,000 square metres of covered workshop space, it has serious capacity at the port to service its clients’ vessels. Two floating dry docks provide these clients with a convenient and cost effective resource - they have a combined lifting capacity of 1,200 tonnes for vessels up to 60 metres in length.

Ferries, Cargo carriers, Bunkers, Tugs, Passenger boats, catamarans and Landing pontoons have become something

12/11/2012 08:15

of a speciality for the shipyard. “There’s a continuing demand for small passenger and car ferries on the rivers and lakes, and we have done a number of them for the Ugandan government,” says Agravat. “We build them here in Mombasa and transport them in modules, by road to rivers / lakes or wherever they are to be deployed, assembling them on site.”

Following the sinking of the ancient Greek-built ferry Spice Islander off Pemba earlier last year, safety in both design and construction has taken on a new importance for this ISO 9001:2008 certified company. “We are accredited to build military vessels as well as civil ones, and, despite the downturn of recent years, demand for these medium sized craft from 100 to 150 metres has increased.” To accommodate this demand SECO has been building a brand new $2 million fabrication workshop in Mombasa port.

SECO has a specialized team of ship builders, fabricators, offshore personnel, surveyors and civil engineers. The team handles all construction work with full compliance to health, safety and environmental regulations and it has good knowledge of the requirements for ocean going vessels, says Agravat. “The shipyard has its own range of workshops including modern fabrication, machine, carpentry and electrical workshops.”

Recent tracks have seen SECO complete works for the Ugandan Railway Corporation on the rehabilitation of the floating dock and marine wagon vessels in Port Bell.

Completion has provided landlocked Uganda a faster logistics passage with the ease of using track and marine.

Shipbuilding to perfection has showcased to international ship yards subcontracting its works in East Africa to the local ship yard; two recent modular ferries in Uganda have been constructed at SECO’s yard last year. This year leads it again to another modular ferry construction for Tanzania preparation for the local ship yard.

Various offshore projects have been serviced by SECO

and its group of associate companies operating in East Africa; such include the laying of 1.4km plastic gas pipeline, 4.5km power cable lay and concrete mattress laying projects in Tanzania.

Oil and gas companies, impressed by the fabrication, engineering and support services provided by SECO and its associated group companies have opted to form joint ventures locally. Fabrication of mud, mixing, effluent, water treatment, mongoose shaker tanks, lifting pallets, lab cabins, centrifuge, tidal catamaran and civil engineering works etc Construction of the first marina in Mombasa, Kenya certainly proves the SECO slogan “Marine and offshore engineering” worthwhile.

The Alpha group has a 50-year history and its spread of operational expertise, SECO and ALSL, as the key companies in its marine, offshore and logistics division, can position itself as a one-stop-shop for clients in the region. As well as government and private clients, SECO and ALSL and the Alpha group of companies support the United Nations in many of its operation in East Africa, from Southern Sudan to Somalia. “The UN is an important customer,” he says. “All their operations require backup from a competent logistics partner, since most of the material they can’t bring in by air has to come through Mombasa.” The group is carrying out the bulk of the UN’s marine logistics requirements, its fabrication and construction work, and transporting its goods to destinations like Mogadishu, Somalia Alpha Logistics Services (EPZ) Ltd (ALSL), which has offices in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia, DRC, S. Sudan, Mozambique and overseas support offices offers various services including, marine logistics, vessel charters, salvage, towage, civil engineering works, specialised supply base services, container terminal services, cold chain management, shipping and road logistics and the provision of specialised container utility units right across East Africa.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 51

South African National Blood Service www.sanbs.org.za +27 11 761 9000 Written by Djamil Benmehidi

THE LIFEBLOOD OF SOUTH AFRICA’S MEDICAL SECTOR Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 53

South African National Blood Service

A world beating, high-tech organisation which provides the blood that fuels the medical industry in SA, SANBS is among the global elite in its’ field. CEO Dr Loyiso Muntsha tells Djamil Benmehidi about the organisations’ success in restoring trust and rise to prominence.

In our busy everyday lives, we can often find ourselves guilty of overlooking the little things that are truly important; and make no mistake, as easy as it is to take it for granted, blood is worth its’ weight in gold. A buoyant supply of blood means that patients can undergo surgery, women can receive blood transfusions when going into labour and accident victims or victims of violence can get the emergency treatments that can and do save lives. Blood is the glue that binds together South Africa’s medical and emergency care system and it is the South Africa National Blood Service (SANBS) which acts as the guardian responsible for the collection, screening and distribution of this national treasure.

Since its’ inception in 2001 following the merger of several separate blood transfusion services, the South African National Blood Service has seen its operations grow substantially in the last decade and the high-tech facilities that it now utilises and the stringent safety procedures in place to protect both donors and staff are the envy of the world. And being a not-for-profit organisation which is free from shareholders and the private sector, South Africa National Blood Service is able to re-invest any surplus it does make back into the organisation and to continue improving service.

“The industry is buoyant and there is a lot of support from everyone now. When we first started in 2001, we had several branches across all of South Africa; and South Africa is a large place. Now we have 30 branches and this doesn’t include the many, many mobile blood banks that we have in shopping centres, holiday resorts and secondary schools.

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 54

Share a little, save a life

Become a bone marrow stem cell donor today Every year thousands of South Africans, mostly children and teenagers, are diagnosed with blood disorders such as

leukaemia, marrow failure and aplasia. There is hope, a diagnosis of this kind is not always lifethreatening and there is the chance of the patient undergoing a successful bone marrow stem cell transplant from a healthy bone marrow stem cell donor. The Sunflower Fund, with the help of committed funders, corporates and the general SA public, is increasing this HOPE every year and building a STATE ASSET to help future generations of leukaemia sufferers. With HOPE, leukaemia is no longer the DEATH SENTENCE that it was over 20 years ago.

The Sunflower Fund’s mission is to educate and recruit a viable source of well-informed potential bone marrow stem cell donors who are ethnically diverse, in an effort to save the lives of those

needing a transplant when suffering from lifethreatening blood disorders. It strives to maintain the associated donor records of the South African Bone Marrow Registry.

The Sunflower Fund was formed in 1999 in support of the South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) and was inspired by 17 year old Chris Corlett’s heroic struggle against leukaemia.

It was formed by CEO Tina Botha (Chris Corlett’s Mother) and other parents whose children had contracted leukaemia, and in some cases had lost their battle against it.

Since its inception, The Sunflower Fund has been building the SABMR by educating and recruiting bone marrow stem cell donors so that children and young adults diagnosed with leukaemia and other life-threatening blood disorders can find their life-saving donor match, in order to undergo a bone marrow stem cell transplant.

Website: www.sunflowerfund.org.za Toll-free number if dialling from South Africa 0800 12 10 82 If dialling internationally call: 0027 21 7010661

South African National Blood Service

Sunflower Fund Ambassador and media personality Benito Vergatine becoming a donor

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The government give us a lot of backing and run campaigns encouraging people to visit our mobile blood drives to give blood. We now get 20% more blood compared to 2001” said Dr Loyiso Mpuntsha, CEO of South Africa National Blood Service.

And she insists that the movement of so much blood from across South Africa is not the logistical nightmare that one would presume.

“Transporting so much blood continuously to our donation testing facilities is of course a challenge and for part of this we have our own vehicles and staff who are fast and efficient, whilst using courier companies who we have worked in partnership with for a long time to cover the bulk of the transport, especially from the outlying areas.”

However the organisations’ growth and success has not been an entirely streamlined process and South African National Blood Service has had to overcome challenges in the last 10 years to get to where it is today.

The first key issue that South Africa National Blood Service has had to address is the small matter of supply.

South Africa has a total population of 49 million inhabitants, 442,000 of which are regular blood donors and though this seems like quite an insignificant figure considering the country’s size, Dr Mpuntsha told us: “We are of course looking to improve this number and attract more regular donors but its’ not a bad statistic. The World Health Organisation estimates that only around 1% of the population give blood in most countries and we are not far from that.

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WHY YOU SHOULD GET INVOLVED • It is through development, growth and transformation that the South African Bone Marrow Registry has expanded from merely 800 donors in 1999 to over 64 500 dedicated donors to date. It is through strategic development and continuous improvement that The Sunflower Fund continues to grow the Registry.

the recruitment of Black donors in all targeted recruitment campaigns and donor drives.

• Even so, building and expanding is an everyday challenge. There is no sell by date as it is a living registry. The Sunflower Fund strives to continue building this state asset in order to protect and nurture our future generation as they may need lifesaving donors.

• The Sunflower Fund is aiming to reach out to more youth programmes to specifically increase the recruitment of young black donors. We are attempting to collaborate with more youth clubs within communities to increase awareness about the crucial need for donors. Potential donors have to be between the ages of 18 and 45 which is why we strive to recruit donors as soon as they turn 18 so that they can remain on the registry for a lengthy time with the hope that someday they too can give back to society by saving someone’s life.

• Ethnic origin (Heritage) is important when matching donors and patients. The “markers” that are tested when searching for a match are genetically inherited and often unique to a particular race. It is through education that we aim to increase the number of Black donors on the Registry to help the many children and young adults in our state hospitals searching for donor matches. This involves us selectively targeting

• Education and awareness is created in communities through talks at schools, churches and community centres. It is vital that all South Africans are educated about becoming a donor and the urgent need for donors of all ethnic backgrounds. Without these donors we are losing patients. Together, we can make a difference in South Africa and the rest of the World and save more lives.

THANK YOU FOR BEING PREPARED TO “SHARE A LITTLE, TO SAVE A LIFE!” Website: www.sunflowerfund.org.za Toll-free number if dialling from South Africa 0800 12 10 82 If dialling internationally call: 0027 21 7010661

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 57

South African National Blood Service

In fact the supply issue we have is that like in most other countries we suffer from seasonal shortages of blood. We find that over the Easter period we can struggle because 17% of our blood donations come from secondary schools and tertiary institutions so when they close for the holiday break, we do experience shortfalls. Another period within which we struggle is the December and New Year holiday period where many people are away and schools and businesses are closed in the run up to Christmas.”

Therefore, to avoid the crisis that occurred in late 2011 where a shortage of blood had a knock-on effect for the entire medical industry, South Africa National Blood Service has announced a big push to encourage South Africans to give blood over the Christmas period, beginning with a much publicised ‘patriotic blood appeal’ which begins on the 25th November.

The second key issue that South Africa National Blood Service has had to tackle is winning the trust of a sceptical South African public who were very wary of the blood donation industry, for reasons ranging from the fallout of the much publicised race-rating scandal in 2004 to concerns over the safety of giving blood in a country which has one of the highest global HIV and hepatitis B infection rates.

After a revelation in 2004 by a black nurse who gave blood that the national blood bank used sexual practice, healthiness of lifestyle but also skin colour to assess the safety of blood

donors and as a result was discarding bags of blood donated by black people, there was a terrible scandal at such racial discrimination and the industry lost many donors.

The two blood screening facilities in the SANBS laboratories in Johannesburg and Durban are rivalled by few others in the world and it is possible to screen every bag of donated blood for infection using state of the art testing technology quite an achievement when you consider that in 2011 alone, the organisation received 792 000 blood donations. This does come at a premium however and to operate such high-end technology continuously costs SANBS approximately R450, 000 per day, a small price to pay according to Dr Mpuntsha. She told us: “We have a high prevalence of HIV and hepatitis in some areas where we take blood. It is a very expensive process but the decision to invest in such testing was taken to build trust.”

“It has been necessary to spend time and money rebuilding trust and investing in highly stringent blood screening equipment and though it has pushed up the prices of blood considerably, the government has had to accept this and everyone agreed it was necessary and we are now reaping the rewards.”

It goes without saying that in such a health and safety conscious industry, South Africa National Blood Services is highly regulated and its’ 2,4 00 staff receive on-going and

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Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 •

South African National Blood Service

Aphile Ndugane

ILEX - SANBS Partnership In 2005 Ilex was awarded the nucleic acid blood screening tender by SANBS. Through a partnership between the 2 organizations it has been shown that innovative technologies can be successfully implemented in our continent. Since 2005 there has not been a single case of HIV transmission due to a blood transfusion. This has been lauded as a great success globally. This has shown us that it is only through sustainable partnerships that we can contribute positively to healthcare for all South Africans.

Dr Loyiso Mpuntsha, Chief Executive Officer, South African National Blood Service (SANBS), 16 September 2009 stated the following “SANBS has committed to absolute quality service and no compromise for blood safety.

We have proved that the partnership with Novartis Diagnostics (supplier of TIGRIS for blood screening) and ILEX, enabled SANBS to continue on this path with greater confidence that we can address blood safety challenges for the foreseeable future.�

meticulous training. All nurses and technicians employed by the organisation are continuously trained and registered with a statutory council who ensure that necessary high standards are maintained. Due to the risk of staff coming into contact with individuals infected with hepatitis B or HIV, employees are immunised for hepatitis B and only the highest quality protective equipment such as needles with protective sheaths and specialist medical gloves for example are permitted. Any concerns that a member of staff may have contracted HIV from a donor will see them receive prophylactic treatment immediately; in other words employee safety “is of paramount importance” according to Dr Mpuntsha.

So what next for South Africa National Blood Service in 2013? A year of consolidation rather than further expansion has been forecast which will see the organisation further develop its internal infrastructure, and safety measures, in particular via investments in advanced technology which will cut the risk of bacterial contamination of platelets products, an area where there is still risk. Dr Mpuntsha feels the future is bright for South Africa National Blood Service and is positive that the best is yet to come.

“The infrastructure and systems developed thus far make it easy for us to have a secure future in delivering blood to the health & medical system in our country. I feel that the industry is going to continue growing from strength to strength and that our already excellent service can only get better.”

Congratulations to SANBS on their 75th anniversary.

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Endeavour Magazine • November 201210:21 • 61 02/11/2012

TRULY THE PRIDE OF ISRAEL Haifa Port www.haifaport.co.il +972 4851 8520 Written by Don Campbell

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 63

Haifa Port

Haifa is the third largest city in Israel, the capital of the North and serves a population of over a quarter of a million people and one of the largest industrial centres in Israel providing a hub for transport, trade, shipping and tourism. The city has institutions for higher education and scientific research, theatre, auditoriums, museums and many varied cultural and recreational facilities. The city sits at the foot of the Carmel Mountains, on its Eastern, Northern and Western slopes, on the top of the range and around the bay area.

Nestled therein is Haifa Port, Israel’s leading and busiest port. Located in a natural, protected bay and including many facilities that allow for the shipping and transportation of all types of cargo as well as docking facilities for large passenger liners the port is 67% containerized handling about 51% of Israel’s cargo. This port is an operating engine for the advancement of Israel’s economy and growth as well as the source of income for thousands of employees working at all levels of the port’s activities. Head of Operations Director Mendi Moscovitsh speaks with Don Campbell about how.

“There are several benefits to Haifa Port,” he explains, “We’re situated close to the busiest shipping route in the world coming from and to the Suez Canal, our terminals are the most advanced in Israel allowing high volumes of loading and unloading and we can handle absolutely any type of cargo whether it’s bulk cargo, chemicals, fuel and even seeds.”

Benefiting from a strong network of roads and railways feeding into the port from the land side and easy access to the port from the sea, Haifa has a powerful infrastructure to ensure its continued place as the leading port in its region.

It is in fact the standard on which other ports in the area need to base themselves. They are the busiest and the most efficient.

But for them, it isn’t enough.

“For the big business to come your way,” Mendi points out, “You need to have something to offer them. They need to have confidence. Confidence not only in your efficient handling of their cargo but also the capabilities of dealing with any problems they might have. Complete confidence is essential. The big ships will only come to the places that are ready for them.”

Modelling themselves on the largest and most successful ports in the world, Haifa Port have up-scaled everything to completely revolutionize the way their port functions and the services they are capable of offering.

“The port and entrance channel to the port has been deepened by over seventeen meters to make way for larger container vessels with handling capacity of 10,000 TEUs,” Mendi explains. “We have upgraded the cranes and retrained the operators, increasing staff numbers to ensure that irrespective of the time of day or night we’re working. We’ve increased containerization and enhanced the management operating system of the port making use of the latest IT advancement the highly recommendable NAVIS system. A system used in all the greatest ports.”

Additionally, there are plans to upgrade the gateway into the port with the most technologically advanced gate system.

“Imagine a cargo gateway that spreads over 17 lanes, imagine a truck passing by large numbers of automatic sensors that check it and also its driver, without being touched by human hands and, within just 90 seconds, providing the green light to enter or leave the port.”

That is the vision for this development which is currently being drafted and aimed for completion in the next four years.

Long term planning is something that Mendi is very familiar with. The project to deepen the port required over six years to complete following long periods arranging dredging permits and ecological surveys being conducted to ensure that the project would not cause any damage to the surrounding environment. The old adage, “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right,” springs to mind.

However, some of the newest developments that have had

to be accommodated for have not been the result of planning on their part.

“We have had to expand our cruise business,” Mendi tells us, “It was unfortunate but after the 9/11 attacks in 2001 the cruise line business dropped dramatically. Now, it’s picking up. In fact, we’re getting so much work they’re getting in the way of some of our other operations. Not that we’re complaining, it’s a wonderful problem to have and it is good to be busy!”

Many people in the western world may not realize it but Israel has a more stable economy than Europe, part of this is attributed to it being an ‘island surrounded by enemies’ who has had to rely on its own innovation for many years and its capital growth is far higher than many European nations.

And as the economies of many of Europe’s previous big hitters continue to whither the tourists and businesses will be looking elsewhere for more solid footing to base themselves and more innovative thinkers to work with.

“Improvement doesn’t just happen on the larger scale by itself,” Mendi reminds us, “It has to be managed on all fronts and that can only happen with a clear plan of action. The other ports in Israel need to upgrade themselves to facilitate the continued arrival of cargo and cruises. The direct transfer of goods is important, the quicker and cheaper it is to deliver goods the better it becomes for the Israeli economy as prices drop but revenue increase. That is why the other ports need to start planning to expand now.”

Terberg Benschop The Terberg company was founded in 1869 and is still family-owned. Terberg Benschop is a manufacturer of Yard tractors and Terminal tractors, also called Shunters, Tugmasters, Port tractors or Shunting tractors, which can be tailor-made for transport of cargo in ports, logistics, industry, railroad, tunnel construction and airports. Terberg has already grown to an organization that delivers its tailor-made vehicles to over more than 80 countries all over the world.

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Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 65 08-10-12 16:21

Nyanza Bottling Company www.nbcl.biz +255 282 571 447 Written by Jack Slater

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 67

Nyanza Bottling Company

Producing and selling over 1.1 million glass and PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles of beverages and drinking water each day, with 1100 direct employees and over 20 000 small community businesses that generate income by selling Coca-Cola products, NBCL is a pillar in the industrial world.

“We are one of the largest Coca Cola franchises in East Africa, we’ve built this organisation up over the years and in some arduous operating conditions,” says Christopher Gachuma, MD of GMG Group of Companies. “We’ve grown to be one of the largest companies in our zone and continue to provide employment opportunities and social responsibility to a high number of people.”

In 1986, the Sumaria Corporation and the CMG Group of Companies established Nyanza Bottling Company Ltd in Mwanza, Tanzania. Since then they have grown to become the leading bottler and distributor of Coca-Cola products in East Africa.

Christopher collaborated GMG Group with the MD of Sumaria, Jayesh G Shah and together they have achieved and sustained 80 percent of the market share in Lake Zone of Tanzania for 23 consecutive years. RK Bala joined NBCL in 2010, serving as the CEO of the organisation.

Ankush K Shah later generation of Sumaria family joined NBCL in 2010 as Director and joined the NBCL Board with CMG and JG. Both GMG Group and Sumaria are well known for their presence in numerous industrial verticals. Multinational Sumaria Corp. is active in areas such as plastic pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and agro-processing while CMG Group has a presence in construction, food processing, hotels and trading.

In 2001, NBCL invested more than $10 million in infrastructure, “We had a very healthy three years and that allowed us to look at the next five years. We expanded our production line with a new blender and chiller and have added 65 new heavy-duty trucks of 30 tonne capacity to the existing fleet of 160,” Chris explains.

Market dominance Their obvious strength stems from their association with the Coca-Cola name and ancillary products such as The Fanta Family, Sprite, Krest Family and Dasani mineral water.

“They are the best known brands in the world,” Christopher explains, “so we have a huge advantage in having one of the best brands.”

“Our unwavering market share is a clear indicator that multinational competition in the beverage sector presents in Lake Zone of Tanzania,” Christopher continues, “and the range of local products is not as well equipped as us to service the community. That is due in no small measure to the company’s commitment to quality and attention to detail.”

“Our operating standards separate us from our competition,” says Christopher. “We have never compromised on technology, or our staff training, or the stringent auditing standards we employ.”

NBCLs facility is situated on 16 acres in Mwanza’s industrial region. The company was Coca Cola’s “Bottler of the Year” in 1995 and has been awarded the Coca Cola Africa Gold and Silver Achievement awards many times.

“We set a new standard for ourselves every year to ensure improvement,” Christopher points out. “We want to stay current and up to date with the fast developing technologies and manners of management. It does no good to stagnate.”

As part of their offering they sponsor employee education at various levels; this is something that helps build the internal part of the organisation and determines who will be coming along for a long time.

“We also bring in people from various industries to help train our people,” he adds.

In this vein, world-leading German packaging and bottling machine manufacturer Krones AG provides technical training for the operators of the three Krones glasses, boasting a capacity of 100 000 bottles per hour and single PET at 24 000 bottles per hour, bottling lines that NBCL has in place.

“We have fostered an associate-like relationship with our suppliers and vendors,” Christopher continues. “We go to their plant to understand what they do and they visit our plant to see what we are doing. This sort of relationship building helps develop transparency and mutual processes and efficiency improvement. By not treating them as suppliers and service providers we’ve been able to enhance the respect in the relationship.”

NBCL also operates in-house support facilities such as a fully equipped garage and fuel station for its transport fleet that covers an enormous geographic area and serves a population of over 13 million.

Technology lags in East Africa and very few companies use sophisticated ERP systems. NBCL, though is taking that step.

“We have taken it upon ourselves to embrace ERP so the whole organisation is being trained. When it comes to the management of the technology, it is about the people who are using it and we are developing the skills to achieve this,” Christopher says.

Additionally, NBCL is now running a biomass-fuelled boiler at its production site that yields enough steam energy to power operations for the foreseeable future. Sourced locally, this biomass fuel is made up of matter that would otherwise be considered food waste.

The company has also invested close to $4 million in a PET pre forms plant that will allow it to produce its PET bottles for both the domestic and international markets.

“Our short term aim is to double our volumes and revenues. We will try for a little more in the new industries like our power project. If we can introduce other business as well, I can see us growing more than double in the next five years.”

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Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 69

IPP Resources www.ippresources.com +255 782 64 8194 Written by Don Campbell

FINDING THE GOLD

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 71

IPP Resources

“Start as you intend to finish” is a saying that IPP Resources have taken to heart and in their goal to create the greatest mining exploration company Tanzania has ever seen they have taken steps to ensure that the majority of their employees are from Tanzania and that, even as the company grows and diversifies, it remains wholly owned and Tanzanian. Don Campbell spoke with Project Director Dr. Reyno Scheepers to find out why this was so important and to touch on the exciting movements of this company.

As part of the booming African economies, Tanzania is the largest East African country, bordered by the Indian Ocean to the East; Kenya and Uganda to the North; Rwanda, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo to the West; and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to the South.

It is a massive and diverse country of 947,300 square km.

Larger than the states of Texas and Michigan combined and with such notable physical features including the likes of the world’s highest mountain Kilimanjaro and the second largest lake in the world Lake Victoria and the second deepest lake, Lake Tanganyika.

It is a bountiful and beautiful country abundant in mineral wealth.

“IPP Holding is a highly diversified company with a focus in acquisition, exploration, development and mining.

We have IPP Base Metals, IPP Gem Stones, IPP Industrial minerals, IPP Energy and IPP Gold,” Dr. Reyno Scheepers reveals. “Currently, there is a lot of interest in gold.”

Not surprising considering that the country’s mining industry is driven by the exploration, drilling and processing of gold.

“Ever since the mid-1990s, Tanzania has been the major focus of Africa’s gold exploration and development attracting some of the largest mining companies in the world,” he explains, “Tanzania has also substantial reserves of other minerals including nickel, iron ore, uranium, coal, diamonds and a wide variety of gemstones such as ruby and sapphire, emerald, alexandrite, green garnet and Tanzanite, which is only found and mined in Tanzania.”

“Our flag ship project is at Bukwimba,” Dr. Scheepers explains. “It started in 2006 and is already producing impressive results.”

The Bukwimba Gold prospect lies in the Kahama greenstone belt in the Lake Victoria gold field in NW Tanzania, it’s 58km squared that has been explored by the Reef Golf Limited company, a subsidiary company of IPP, since 2006.

“The exploration effort was conducted following strict international codes, adhering to good practice principles, using certified geochemical laboratories and keeping accountability as an operational standard feature,” Dr. Scheepers says. “Managing all parts of a project is important.”

The Handeni gold project, another one of the leading gold projects in which IPP has a majority share is located in the Tanga region, Handeni district of the Republic of Tanzania.

The so called Handeni gold district is located to the southeast of the well-known Lake Victoria Archaean gold mining areas in Tanzania.

“The attention of the exploration community came to focus on the Handeni district by the successful drilling project conducted by Canaco Resources on Magambazi Hill and surroundings,” he states.

These findings were further highlighted by the interpretations that large portions of the Proterozoic rocks in this region are in fact reworked Archean rocks. Mineralization in the Handeni Gold properties are closely related to quartz veins in close proximity to fine to medium grained garnet amphibolites and gneisses as observed in many localities.

The success of the exploration program based on the set of exploration criteria developed by Handeni Gold ranks the Handeni Gold properties high with regards to their gold potential. Keeping this in mind Handeni Gold selected three targets, the Kwandege area and so called target 5 as well as Magambazi East, for detailed exploration in a program that will run concurrently with their on-going investigations along some shear zones and other targets in their property.

The detailed exploration program will first of all focus on a detailed structural interpretation of each target, based on field mapping.

CRB AFRICA LEGAL Advocates and Corporate Law Consultants There is a long term plan guiding the operations of IPP Resources, which has established a firm foundation for the company’s future endeavours. This plan has formed the backbone of the company.

“We acquire mineral properties and assets that have high potential for success,” Dr. Scheepers explains. “We then explore these, ensuring the owning of the mining interests, for example we have a majority % interest of Handeni. It’s about ownership, following on up potential joint ventures, selling them to companies and then enjoying the benefit of royalty payments.”

The strength of a company always lies with the staff; many of IPP Resources senior staff are geologists and 95% of their staff are Tanzanian. Ensuring this level of local involvement is important to Dr. Scheepers as is the development of the employees. In-house training is provided for everyone on regular cycles with staff being sent to South Africa for additional education.

Leading into 2013, there are big things for IPP Resources.

The push for gold will continue, but there is a massive push in their base metals division taking advantage of the high potential for deposits of lead and zinc. Funds are being appropriated for development in their coal projects, Africa is still a coal reliant continent and IPP Resources Energy are in a beneficial position to take advantage of this.

“Things are very exciting now,” Dr. Scheepers concludes.

“The future is bright.”

» » » » »

Banking, Project Finance and Capital Markets Insolvency, Debt Recovery and Real Estate Mining, Energy & Gas and Environment Mergers & Acquisitions and Corporate Disputes Resolution, Litigation, Taxation, Employment & Immigration CRB AFRICA LEGAL » Best Corporate & Commercial Firm, Tanzania

Charles Rwechungura » Best Lawyer, Tanzania

Telephone| +255 776 111444 Switchboard| +255 222 135 637 Fax| +255222135638 www.crbafricalegal.com

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 73

Vaal Sanitaryware www.dawnltd.co.za +27 16 360 6000 Written by Donnie Rust

HIGHEST STANDARDS Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 75

Vaal Sanitaryware

Are you like me and can’t help but give everywhere a rating even though it’s not where you would expect? You’ll find no five star restaurants with shabby or dirty toilets and you’ll find no high level successful business blocks with stained or old water closets. Indeed, even upon visiting a friend’s house for the first time, we rate places on the level of their bathrooms.

I think everyone would agree, when it comes to sanitation we want our bathrooms to be cleaner than a surgeon’s theatre and more stylish than the Sidney Opera House.

Since 1946 Vaal Sanitaryware have been producing a continually changing and improving range of ceramic sanitary products to fit the needs of the sophisticated and discerning customer. Donnie Rust speaks with Sales Director Robin Koen regarding it.

“It must be durable, comfortable and be aesthetically appealing,” Vaal’s is a promise of quality assurance and their spectacular range of basins, bidets and toilets represent the successful culmination of years of research and development.

They understand the industry that they’re working in completely.

“Not only do we comply with SABS and numerous international standards,” Robin explains, “But we conduct extensive research into the field of water-saving W.C.’s.”

This has culminating in the development of a 4,5 litre flushing cistern, and 6/3 litre dual-flush cisterns. Such innovations are hardly surprising when they pertain to such a focus on cost effective reliability and are able to fall back on their invaluable experience in fulfilling large complex contracts.

Employee training is something taken very seriously in an industry where their products are scrutinized so readily.

From the manufacturers to the installers everyone is properly prepared to conduct their work at the very top of their game.

“We offer full plumber training facilities,” Robin continues, “To ensure that the installers are able to keep the effectiveness on the same level as the style.”

The process to develop such a wide product range, begins with the new designs being originated by marketing and sales in conjunction with manufacturing and a model is designed by one of their modellers, after a series of checks a block mould is produced in clay or china to check for any faults or design flaws and these can be measured and corrected at this stage. A master mould is then put together.

High pressure casting machines use resin moulds, which are cast continuously 24/7. All bench and battery cast moulds used in manufacturing in the sanitaryware industry are Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 76

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 •

Vaal Sanitaryware

Perspex SA is the leading supplier of Premium Sanitary Ware Grade Cast Acrylic Perspex. We would like to share a few reasons why: • All Perspex baths carry a 10-year warrantee • Excellent heat retaining properties, for a long, luxurious bath experience • Long life span - you’ll redo your bathroom before you need to buy a new bath!

• High resistance to long term yellowing • Perspex baths are low maintenance with a superior gloss finish

We use only the best, We use Perspex. |

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e only the best, e Perspex.

made from plaster of paris as this material is malleable and absorbent.

In the factory a combination of high pressure, battery and bench casting is used. After completion of this casting process, a layer of clay is left on the inside face of the mould.

Surplus slip is then drained away from the mould and returned to the storage tanks and the remaining mould is allowed to dry.

Before inspection, it is important to ensure that each piece of sanitaryware has been correctly manufactured. This responsibility falls to the clay inspection team to examine each piece and to rectify any minor faults that may be apparent.

“This is a most important section of the factory, as any ware that may be sub-standard that slips through this department without rectification will probably be a reject piece after firing.”

Robotic & manual glazing methods are used to apply up to four layers of glaze. Careful consideration has to be applied to ensure there is no rippling. Their glaze consists of minerals: zircon, flespar, quartz, calcite, kaolin, zinc oxide.

After glazing, the ware is placed onto storage tanks adjacent to the kilns.

Vaal Sanitaryware use shuttle kilns, gas-fired tunnel kilns and top hat kilns. The kiln runs 24 hours a day as it is uneconomical to switch these kilns off and on to suit market requirements. Therefor the pipeline of projects must always be heavy on the top end. This kiln is capable of firing approximately fifteen and a half thousand pieces of vitreous

china per week. The temperature variation across the setting load is no more than 5°C and the maximum temperature of the kiln is approximately 1250°C. This process is controlled by automatic micro-processors which is better for health and safety and more efficient.

After firing, each individual piece of ware is quality checked.

All ware that passes the stringent quality requirements is passed to the stockyard while any that are not of the correct standard are either reprocessed or destroyed.

Not merely satisfied with being the leader in quality Vaal Sanitaryware embrace a high regard for practically and in 2010 teamed up with the Quadriplegic and Paraplegic Association of South Africa (QASA) to extend their innovation and create a practical, yet aesthetically pleasing bathroom solution.

In 2009 QASA members and Vaal embarked on a year long project aimed at establishing exactly what practical hindrances afflict quadriplegic and paraplegic individuals where bathroom facilities are concerned. Vaal aimed at designing, developing and testing a new bathroom solution that would significantly aid disabled individuals to complete routine tasks in a more efficient and safe manner.

The result is a fully developed semi close coupled toilet that manages to take into account practicality while infusing it with style in an aesthetically pleasing design. The specially designed quad-para unit now exists under the name Pearl.

Vaal Sanitaryware’s success comes clearly from a stringent strategy of planning and design, followed by careful execution and a process of scrutinizing the results. For them there is only one standard that is applicable.

G&W Mineral Resources, established in 1951, is a member of the Zimco Group of companies in South Africa, which is a subsidiary of Eco-Bat Technologies in the United Kingdom. G&W is a supplier of quality industrial minerals from Matsopa mines, a subsidiary of G&W Mineral Resources. Products are Bentonite, Kaolin, Ceramic Clays, Talc, Attapulgite and many more .

Endeavour Magazine • November 2012 • 79