Kenzam Equipment to spearhead regional sales for Ammann plants

From left to right: John Lansdell, managing director, Kenzam; Rocco Lehman, area manager: Southern Africa, Ammann Dubai; and Richard Hurst, director, Kenzam

Ammann Dubai has appointed a South African dealer to sell and support its mobile and static asphalt and concrete plant range. IMIESA speaks to Rocco Lehman, area manager: Southern Africa, Ammann Dubai, about this strategic development.

Kenzam Equipment to spearhead

regional sales for Ammann plants

Established some 151 years ago, Ammann has stood the test of time. Today, this Swiss OEM is represented on every continent, with a progressively expanding footprint.

Within the African region, Ammann South Africa was established in 2010 to grow the local and cross-border market. This mandate has broadened to include the Southern African region, with Ammann’s South African office now forming part of the OEM’s Africa Middle East hub, based in Dubai.

To date, sales and technical support for Ammann’s asphalt range has been managed via a direct OEM and customer interface. This is now transitioning globally to a agentship model. The appointment process is a rigorous one and agents must meet strict competency standards.

The typical set-up for an Ammann CounterFlow plant “Worldwide, sales and after-sales for Ammann’s paving, compaction and allied road construction equipment lines are already handled via appointed agents,” explains Lehman.

ELB Equipment is Ammann’s South African agent for its ‘yellow metal’ machine line-up, with Hydraulic Heavy Equipment Zambia recently appointed as a construction machine agent for the Zambian and DRC markets. Ammann is currently investigating similar arrangements for Angola and Mozambique.

“It’s a business model that works very well, since it enables a far greater coverage and service

support network on the ground, combined with local agent knowledge. Therefore, it made sense for Ammann to follow the same approach for its asphalt and concrete plant range,” he continues.

“Effective 1 May 2020, we are pleased to announce that Kenzam Equipment has been appointed as our sole asphalt and concrete plant agent for the South African and Southern African markets, including Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands,” says Lehman. “This was a logical move, as we’ve already had a long and successful working association stretching back more than eight years. This agent agreement formalises the relationship."

Ammann will relocate its personnel, parts inventory and equipment to Kenzam Equipment’s facility in Brakpan, Gauteng. From there, Ammann’s technical team will work alongside Kenzam Equipment’s specialists, with machine and plant orders channelled through the Dubai hub.

Concrete line Sales and support for the OEM’s concrete plant range is a new venture for Ammann Dubai and Kenzam Equipment. Ammann manufactures a series of wet mix concrete plants.

“Wet mix plants are ideal for job-based batching and pouring,” says Lehman. “It’s a process that’s commonplace in Europe, but one that still needs to be explored in South Africa and parts of Africa, where dry mix plants are still seen as the preferred route.”

Turnkey approach

Kenzam Equipment forms part of Kenzam Bitumen & Asphalt Products, a bitumen trading and specialist

Ammann’s Prime 140 unit is designed to process high-percentage recycled asphalt mixes logistics company supplying bituminous products to road contractors in South Africa, as well as across the SADC region. In addition, Kenzam provides custom design, build and retrofit solutions for asphalt plants, as well as plant installation and commissioning services.

“We are excited about this new agent appointment, which serves as an excellent platform for both the Kenzam Group of companies and Ammann to increase their penetration of the asphalt market,” says John Lansdell, managing director, Kenzam. “We can now offer clients a turnkey solution that incorporates the worldfamous Ammann plant range.”

Ammann and Kenzam Equipment’s twopronged approach is to target new sales, as well as refurbishment opportunities for Ammann and competitor OEM equipment. Across the board, South Africa has an estimated asphalt plant population of around 60. A number of these will need to be upgraded to comply with future environmental requirements. Similar opportunities exist in the rest of Africa.

Asphalt plant range Ammann’s plant solutions meet the requirements for both emerging and developed markets. For price-sensitive countries like South Africa, Ammann offers its value-added range manufactured at its facility in Ahmedabad, India, which recently underwent an €85 million (R1.6 billion) revamp. Here, continuous mix and batch plants are manufactured in a range of sizes to suit product and output requirements.

Key Ammann asphalt plants sold into the African market include: - Prime 100 and Prime 140 hot mix plants - CounterFlow 90 and CounterFlow 120 - ValueTec 100 and ValueTec 140 - Contimix range - other specialised options on client request.

The full range is available on request, including Ammann’s flagship plants equipped with high recycling technologies and targeting high volume tonnage markets.

CounterFlow & ValueTec The CounterFlow and ValueTec series offer exceptional value and are ideal for emerging contractors looking for a cost-effective solution. With capacities of 90 and 120 tonnes per hour (tph), respectively, Ammann’s CounterFlow 90 and 120 units combine the simplicity of continuous drum-mix plants with exceptional fuel efficiency, thanks to counterflow technology. These plants can also be set up for recycled asphalt.

Meanwhile, ValueTec batch plants meet the requirements for cold or hot reclaimed asphalt feeds, together with either liquid or solid additives. On the ValueTec series, outputs range from approximately 100 to 240 tph.

Ammann has many other options suited to the specialised needs of their customers’ specific requirements.

Ammann continuous mixing units Ammann Prime 100 (100 tph) and 140 (140 tph) units are designed to be semi-mobile. Like all mixer-box-type continuous asphalt mixing plants from Ammann, they are equipped with a continuously running two-shaft paddle mixer. Their powerful, intense mixing makes the process nearly twice as fast when compared to single-shaft mixers.

“Ammann’s ability to consistently deliver flexible solutions has made it a market leader, thanks to many years of pioneering research. To sustain growth, we need to keep refining our channels to market. Appointing expert agents is a part of this strategy,” adds Lehman.

“With Kenzam Equipment, we have broadened our reach significantly and are proud to welcome them to the Ammann agent family,” Lehman concludes.

An Ammann wet mix concrete plant

www.ammann.com