C O M P A N Y O V E R V I E W
DCD-Venco:
Loyal and talented employees are the secret to DCD-Venco’s success Written by Abbie Smith and Produced by Alex Barron
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DCD-VENCO
The South African company invests heavily in staff training to develop the skills of its workforce
“W
hat lies at the core of DCD-Venco’s survival and success is not its technology or equipment, but its skilled and performing employees.” That is the opinion of Willem Mare, the company’s newly-appointed General Manager (GM), who took up the role in November 2011. Mare speaks with unwavering passion about the company he has recently joined, praising the commitment DCD-Venco has not only to its staff members, but to its clients and the local community too. The company was established in 1973 and over the years DCD-Venco has grown into a
Employee developmet is crucial to DCD
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The company manufactures and fabricates large-scale, heavyduty engineering equipment
modern and streamlined organisation offering extensive in-house, end-to-end solutions. Today it services the major South African mining houses and power stations, manufacturing and fabricating heavy-duty engineering equipment up to a weight of 50 tons. DEVELOPING ITS WORKFORCE To enhance the skills of its 383 employees, DCDVenco dedicates five percent of its salary and wage bill to internal skills development. “I believe that you can bring about change if you develop people,” reiterates Mare. The company is based in Newcastle in the KwaZulu-Natal province, and
“What lies at the core of DCDVenco’s survival and success is not its technology or equipment, but its skilled and performing employees” – Willem Mare, General Manager, DCD-Venco w w w. d c d . c o . z a
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DCD-VENCO
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this is where it sources most of its workforce from. “Newcastle is a small community and we develop and train local people. What happens then is that Venco becomes the employer of choice, because the people are used to Newcastle, they like the rural area that they live in and they grew up here. Our success comes from developing from local employees,” he adds. DCD-Venco works with two local organisations to train its staff in all the necessary areas, from welding and boiler-making to fitting and electrical skills. Employees have to go through a three-year programme before they qualify. “It more or less costs R1 million per apprentice per year, when you add up the cost of the training, their salary, and accommodation and transport requirements,” he estimates. “This is in line with one of our strategic thrusts of – Training and developing a pool of skills in anticipation of future capacity requirements.” COMMUNITY INITIATIVES As well as supporting its employees, DCDVenco embraces the entire Newcastle community. One of the main things the company does is to sponsor the education of local children from six disadvantaged schools. Mare expands: “We asked the schools to select 10 students between grades 10 and 12 who are good in maths and science. So we’ve got 60 children and we’re sponsoring them fully; their uniforms, their books, their transport, their school fees, everything.”
Quality control is built into every level
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DCD-VENCO
“In five years we will be a little bit bigger and will have doubled our turnover” – Willem Mare
The company believes the opportunity to be sponsored will not only persuade the other children to work hard in school, but it will also encourage their parents to help them achieve their academic best. Overall the hope is that these children will continue on to a college education, and eventually become DCD-Venco employees. NURTURING CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS “Customer care is one of the central aspects of the Venco culture, and all our employees understand that customer satisfaction is the only formula that can carry us forward in a competitive industry,” Mare explains.
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The company therefore adopts a policy of total honesty with its clients. If something goes wrong during the manufacturing process, DCDVenco immediately phones its customer to let them know the situation, and how it is going to resolve it. This helps customers to adjust their plans accordingly; Venco realises that by being a supplier to a large company means it is just one of the cogs in a bigger machine. STANDING OUT FROM COMPETITORS In every step of the manufacturing process DCD-Venco offers a value proposition of shorter production cycles and higher levels of quality control than the industry benchmarks, something that is supported by a number of accreditations, including ISO 9001, ISO 3834, OSHAS 18000 and soon to be ISO 14000. “Quality is built into our products,” says Mare. “We have a very good work ethic and our employees are proud of the company and of the work that they produce, which is a breath of fresh air. So the culture we’ve created has provided us with some excellence in terms of work standards. “And although we are not always the cheapest, our quality is always the best,” which provides the customer with value for money. TECHNOLOGY & STRATEGIC TRUST “Upgrades in technology keep Venco young even in its 29th year of operation,” notes Mare. DCD-Venco has an enormous capacity to adjust to change and adaptations in strategy, structure
DCD-Venco services major mining houses and power stations throughout Southern Africa
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DCD-VENCO
The company is committed to reinvesting profits 11
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and systems have been key factors to its growth. Technology is an area in which the company benefits hugely from being part of the larger DCD group. Every three months the group hosts forums, in which representatives from each of its engineering companies get together and share the success they have had in implementing new technology or processes. “If we were just a little island on our own we would have to find all these things out, but we feed off the bigger group’s experience.”
Company Information INDUSTRY
Mining and energy HEADQUARTERS
Newcastle, KZN FOUNDED
1973
FUTURE & CONTINUITY Every year, DCD-Venco reinvests a large percentage of its annual gross profit back into the business to upgrade equipment and facilities. The company has just purchased its Newcastle base after renting it and it is also looking to invest in a 3,000sqm heavy duty fabrication shop in the near future. “We have actually reached our maximum capacity and we’ve got more orders than what we can handle. So we are considering that, but we would like to see what the market will do in the next two years to have a clearer picture before we put that kind of money into expansion,” Mare says. “But I think in five years we will be a little bit bigger and will have doubled our turnover. We will probably have to put another two or three facilities up to achieve that,” he concludes.
K E Y S TA F F
Willem Mare,GM EMPLOYEES
383 PRODUCTS/ SERVICES
Mechanical components
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DCD-VENCO 1 Diesel Street, Industrial Area, Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa Tel. +27 34 375-7831 www.dcd.co.za