COMPANY PROFILE
2014
Benteler
Showing the strength of localisation
company profile
Showing the strength of localisation Editorial: Christian Jordan Production: Emily Woodhall
The story of the “full service” steel processing company, Benteler has been one of success since it started out in South Africa in 2003. Benteler South Africa tells IndustrySA more about how the company will be using its strong base to expand its automotive business further and also take on new industries at the same time… South Africa’s automotive industry has been one of the turbo chargers behind the country’s growing export and manufacturing sectors. Some of the world’s most recognised automotive brands call South Africa their home and of course this means that the need for a high quality, superior class supply chain has developed. One of the companies providing pioneering innovation in this field is Benteler South Africa, the local subsidiary of the global steel and aluminium manufacturer, headquartered in Austria, Benteler International AG. Benteler arrived in South Africa in 2003, taking over an existing company with pressing facilities in Alrode, Alberton. After establishing its roots in SA, the company immediately went about expanding its
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footprint, bringing its facilities in Alberton in line with modern standards and also opening up in the home of SA’s automotive sector – Port Elizabeth. Benteler leadership tells IndustrySA that the plant in Port Elizabeth is one of the most advanced in Africa with high-tech equipment contributing to high-tech output. “In 2010, the company erected a 21,000m² building in Uitenhage, Port Elizabeth,” they state. “It has modern architecture; it is one big hall, very overseeable and open. Subsequently, to fill this building, we moved certain business from Alberton and moved it here, to bring it closer to the customer. We are now servicing OEMs in Port Elizabeth from here, and the Durban and Gauteng area will be serviced by the Alberton plant. “Our facilities provide the perfect opportunity for
Benteler SA
localisation, and internally we have identified a strategy to accompany this by going local ourselves. We have the strength of being part of an international company but we feel our South African region should aspire to have mostly local managers and staff. We are very keen on local expertise and we are very proud of what we have done in both of our plants. We want to show the world what we can do here in South Africa.” However, even though Benteler SA and Benteler as a global group holds a strong position in the automotive industry, the SA company is keen to expand its services across other industries and to develop new streams of income and different types of business. “We want to expand beyond the automotive industry and we are currently exploring how we can take our expertise and quality standards from the automotive industry into other industries,” the management
explains. “This initiative, although only in its infancy, presents us with some unique growth opportunities in industries such as mining, transport, railway, household goods and possibly even petrochemical. It’s a wide range and we have approached certain organisations, who are promoting in these industries, and we are evaluating what is possible.”
ON HOT FORM Benteler SA is currently enjoying a buoyant business climate and has many projects on the horizon. Of course, this is great news for the company who has seen many competitors fall to the wayside due to the global economic slowdown. “We have worldwide projects lining up, with big volumes, even for the automotive industry. Because of the globalisation of the automotive industry, we hope
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company profile
to supply every component for these global businesses out of our plants in South Africa – it’s very positive and we are busy with a lot of opportunities as we speak.” Perhaps some of this success can be attributed to the constant focus on quality that is instilled into every Benteler SA employee, and also to the technical capabilities of both the Alberton and Uitenhage facilities, the likes of which cannot be found elsewhere in Africa. “We are presently undertaking extensive upgrades in our Alberton facility,” details Benteler. “We are doing it in stages for financial reasons. We believe that we should earn the money before we invest again. We will be investing in new press technologies which will give us extra competitive advantage. What we have at the moment are presses which can do everything. Although these presses are right for the jobs, they could be done on a specialised press for much cheaper hence this is why we’re looking at specific press lines and set-up of press lines, so that we can be more economically viable.” As for Port Elizabeth; when the company cut the ribbon in Uitenhage back in 2010, it introduced a new hot-forming line where blank steel parts, such as the A and B-pillar or Dash Panel on a car, are shaped while heated to red-hot temperatures.
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“We are currently the only company on the African continent to have this hot forming technology,” claim the Benteler management. “This can heat materials to 900°C, resulting in a red-hot part which is formed and then immediately cooled, resulting in a much stronger material composition. The advantage in the automotive industry is that you need less material compared to cold forming where you would need to weld multiple components together to gain strength. The next step is to cut with a five dimensional laser into the final shape to comply with accuracy requirements of the automotive industry. Altogether weight reduction of 30 to 50% can be achieved with these hot formed parts. “Although we require a special overseas developed mild steel material for this press, we have managed to source local production and supply. “Also Torsion profiles for the rear axles are heated and cooled in order to gain additional strength and this is patented by Benteler at the moment.”
STEELY PEOPLE Speaking to IndustrySA, one of the things that the leadership team was keen to impress was the fact that Benteler is now actively seeking localisation when it comes to management, employees, ideas and technology. “One of the key ideas of Benteler is to be close to
Benteler SA
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TÜNKERS – EXPERT-TÜNKERS Partner für Automationstechnik im Rohbau
Partners for automation technology in body shop
None of our competitiors offer a comparable product range!!! Positioning and Adapting
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P.O. Box 15237 Emerald Hill 6011 South Africa
OFFICE 3 Johcla Road Sydenham Port Elizabeth
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Tel : 041 484 711 Int. Tel : +27 41 484 711 Fax : 041 484 7856 Int Fax : +27 41 484 7856 MAY 14 PAGE5 Email: demcon@demcon.co.za
company profile the customers,” they say. “Our PE plant was constructed with this in mind but we don’t want to only rely on OEMs; part of our strategy is to expand within the automotive industry and outside of it.” With this expansion in mind, training is obviously central when it comes to planning for the future. Continuity, trust and cooperation are three of six values that Benteler includes in its company philosophy and these values relate to both customers and employees. “Currently, we have 14 apprentices in our Alberton tool room and they are training to become toolmakers. After three years they will qualify to work in the industry and will be highly capable. Benteler can take them on a full-time basis afterwards and this is very advantageous for both of us; we believe strongly in this system. It has economic benefits as well as the tooling skills are very limited in South Africa at this stage.” Due to Benteler SA also possessing tool design expertise with its required equipment, this has led to reviving their own tooling production again, which is another pillar of the strategy. World leading technology is developed at Benteler around the globe by a 1200 strong research and development team in 32 locations. With additional feedback from all of the other additional manufacturing subsidiaries worldwide, Benteler South Africa can assure
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to use best practices locally. “We work closely with the headquarters overseas and then implement the ideas through the local employees,” the team explains. Of the approximately 670 Benteler employees in South Africa, many are engineers. Yet, despite the success the company has seen, there is still a shortage in engineering skills and this is why such an emphasis has been placed on quality training at Benteler South Africa. “Although most of the people in our company are originally tool makers, we have employed mostly engineers. We are always on the look-out for pressing engineers. To have a real press expert who is experienced is very rare. Also, PLC programmers for robotics are rare. We do pressing and value adding, which is welding parts together, so while we have welders and top equipment, programming of the robots is always a scarce skill. “We can train people in pressing and we are taking advantage of programmes through which, students on the engineering side, can learn about the industry, specifically metal pressing and robotic welding. On the PLC programming side, we had so far chosen to have industry experts who pass on their knowledge to the team, but are also looking into establishing programmes in conjunction with the industry” management emphasises.
Benteler SA ORGANIC GROWTH
AE Manufacturing cc was established in 2006 and is a Level 3 contributor to BBBEE. Certified as an ISO 9001:2008 company and audited by DEKRA, the company provides superior engineering solutions at competitive prices to; industrial, automotive and commercial industries.
SPECIALISED SERVICES: • Designing • Machining • 24 Hour Maintenance • Pressure Testing & Repairs • Machine Building
Contact details: LNM Building, Make Peace Cres. Perseverance 6001, Port Elizabeth, South Africa Tel: (041) 463-3320 Fax: (041) 463-3323 Email: nico.els@aem.co.za Website: www.aem.co.za
• Fabrication • Assembly • Installations • Pipeline Installations • Sheet Metal Work
As the company continues to grow, expanding its service offering and expanding beyond the automotive sector, it looks set to put South Africa on the map when it comes to the innovative production of parts. Many Benteler customers, including VW, Ford, GM and Toyota are expanding their reach on the continent and this presents opportunities for Benteler but for now, the focus will remain on Southern Africa. “Benteler has so many opportunities and Benteler SA is trying to keep an eye on the southern African countries. As for the continent of Africa, we are not currently addressing this aggressively but it definitely is somewhere for us to further expand in future.” So with all of these opportunities on the horizon, who would bet against Benteler SA advancing its industry leading position and becoming the company of choice for businesses across a range of industries? With state-of-the-art facilities, world class technology, backing from the global group and a growing workforce; it seems as though Benteler SA is indeed steeled for the future.
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www.benteler.com/benteler-worldwide/automotive/africa Phone: +27 11 617 86 00
(0)1603 618 000 info@industrysa.com East Coast Promotions Ltd, Ferndale Business Centre, 1 Exeter Street. Norwich, Norfolk NR2 4QB