COMPANY PROFILE
2013
PUTCO
Getting SA from A to B
COMPANY REPORT
Getting SA from A to B Editorial: Lauren Grey Production: Tonnie Geddes
South African transport company, PUTCO have overcome many hurdles during the last 68 years; IndustrySA finds out the key to their success and how they have evolved into an industry leading company.
Established in 1945 by Jack Bird Barregar, The Public Utility Transport Corporation (PUTCO) has a rich history rooted in South African culture. Trading on the Johannesburg stock exchange for over six decades, the public transport company survived the penny fare increase of 1954, the riots of 1976 and the 80’s upheavals; growing into the biggest commuter bus operator in South Africa. PUTCO currently owns a fleet of over 1800 buses, transporting more than 230,000 daily
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commuters in Mpumalanga, Gauteng and Limpopo and travels over 90 million km per annum, it also has its own bus body building facility in Brits, just outside of Pretoria, operates its own accredited service workshops, reconditions its own engines and has a spares hub. However, Managing Director, Franco Pisapia says that the most important aspect of the business is the ‘PUTCO family’, “In true African style, we are an extended family, embracing our diversity in order to achieve a unity of purpose.”
PUTCO
VISION AND VALUES In 2004, Mr Pisapia took over the transport business from his uncle, Albino Carleo, and vowed to continue the family legacy. “The main focus of PUTCO has never changed and will never change, and that is to provide an efficient, safe and cost-effective mode of transport for commuters,” he told the Financial Mail. Since its beginnings, PUTCO has envisioned itself as a diversified, robust and flexible organization with high moral and ethical standards, and place huge emphasis on introducing previously disadvantaged
individuals into the industry. In order to uphold these values, the company entered into a Broad Based Black Economic Empowered (BBBEE) deal in 2006, affording black people meaningful participation in the transport industry. Prior to the empowerment deal, Mr Pisapia told the Financial Mail that there wouldn’t be any ‘big-name’ BBBEE groups involved in the deal, “the major players will be our staff. PUTCO is a family and our employees will hopefully have an improved sense of ownership and responsibility.”
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COMPANY REPORT
He continued, “We see BBBEE as an exciting challenge. We strongly believe in it because we are an SA company.” The BBBEE deal addresses all key elements outlined in the government’s BBBEE Codes of Good Practice, namely ownership, management, employment equity, skills development, procurement, enterprise development and residual (Corporate Social Investment). The company is now 42.6% black owned, 13% of who are also women, and overall 95.2% of all PUTCO employees are black, of which 8.8% are female. Another way in which PUTCO is ensuring the introduction of previously disadvantaged individuals into the transport industry is through joint ventures (JVs) and subcontracting, and in 2005 the transport company demonstrated its support for female bus drivers by subcontracting five buses to Gauteng Women in Transport (GWIT). Historically, bus driving has been a male dominated profession but in order to break this barrier, the public
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PUTCO
transport company started to recruit and train female drivers and to date have a total of 55 female drivers, one of whom went on to win Driver of the Year in 2005. The public transport company assisted the department of Public Transport Roads and Works, with the establishment of a contracting model with GWIT who started out with five buses and now have ten. This is the first initiative in the transport industry where women are directly involved in the management and operation of a bus service, and PUTCO are proud to be involved with such an advancement in the industry. Andrew Sefala, PUTCO’s business development director, told the Financial Mail that it was important to ensure that women are encouraged into the transport industry. “While PUTCO accepts and supports the empowerment of small and medium enterprises, it is equally important to ensure that women are promoted to encourage the sustainable growth in our economy” he said.
Proud to be a PUTCO partner for over 25 years The company is situated 25km south west of the Johannesburg CBD, and distributes springs and suspension parts throughout South Africa and Africa. We manufacture and supply springs to all major trailer manufacturers as well as the largest commuter bus operators in Gauteng. A new addition to our range of products is suspension accessories for trucks, trailers and LDV vehicles. Our coil spring division manufactures and supplies numerous mining and railway parts distributors.
EAGLE SPRING MANUFACTURERS
CNRS. ASCOT, JESMOND & STOCKWELL STREETS NANCEFIELD INDUSTRIAL JOHANNESBURG TEL: (011) 945-1130
FAX: (011) 945-1135
E-MAIL: eaglesprings@worldonline.co.za
www.eaglesprings.co.za
SMART CHOICES In the past, PUTCO has demonstrated its ability to evolve alongside technology and ensure its services are efficient and up-to-date, and in 2007 they introduced a new smart card tracking and fare collection system. The contact-less ‘Smart Card’ has proved a success over the years and allows passengers to quickly enter the bus by simply placing the card on the reader, thus reducing driver-passenger contact. Its cash-based revenue management system also helps to record data such as passenger behaviour, popular routes and type of tickets purchased. Mr Pisapia told Engineering News, ““The system works on smart card technology that reduces the use of cash on buses, which, in a South African environment, immediately increases commuter safety. The system also reduces fraud as the system’s data is auditable and reliable.” The system also assists with the dispatching of drivers and post-shift cash-ups; the Smart Card can be re-charged with a weekly, monthly or season ticket.
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Another benefit of the smart card is that a passenger can use it -once it is re-charged- multiple times; the card fits into a pocket or purse, is very secure and cannot be read or copied. Installation of the system costs around R30,000 per bus and is said to be worth more than R8 million, PUTCO awarded the multimillion-rand contract to install the Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) system in all its bus operations to Questek Transit Technologies (QTT), a wholly South African-owned company.
CHALLENGING PERCEPTIONS PUTCO has firmly established itself as one of South Africa’s leading public transport companies, but, as Mr Pisapia admits, it hasn’t been without its challenges and the sometimes ‘negative perception’ associated with the company name. Upon his appointment as Managing Director, Mr Pisapia told the Financial Mail that those perceptions needed to be addressed as the company continued to change for the better.
The Commercial Vehicle Division of Sandown Motor Holdings represents the most recognized truck brands in the world - Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner, Mitsubishi and FUSO. At the heart of Sandown Motor Holdings’ evolution, since their establishment in 1982, lies Daimler AG who bought a majority stake in the dealer group in June 2001. Apart from its highly respected vehicle brands, Daimler AG also brings its technological expertise into the service aspect of the business. The Commercial Vehicle Division is a flexible organization with a deep understanding of the trucking industry, offering customers the full spectrum of products and support services. These include transport consultancy, parts operations, service operations, body repair centres, fleet services and a fully fledged used commercial vehicle operation. Sandown’s Commercial Vehicle Division capitalizes on the equity that the Sandown brand conveys, including coverage in Gauteng and Cape Town, uniform standards at all dealerships, an improved ability to service large national fleets and enhanced value and service quality through greater focus on core competencies and dedication to the trucking business.
www.sandown.co.za/commercial allant@sandown.co.za
Cnr Bridge & Isotope Streets, Triangle Farm, Stikland, Bellville, Cape Town. Cape Town T 021 948 0684 Centurion T 012 621 7400 Roodepoort T 011 611 2100
COMPANY REPORT
“One of my objectives is to change people’s perceptions about PUTCO, and to let people know what we are about. PUTCO has done many good things in the past and not many people know about that,” he said. One way in which the company has evolved for the better, is through its CSI Foundation, which has played an important role in shaping the lives of South Africans and contributing to the country’s skills base and other social programmes. The PUTCO CSI Foundation has moved from giving away money to partnering with government on projects of mutual interest; complementing government’s efforts in fighting poverty, increasing the skill’s base and creating job opportunities. PUTCO has made a commitment to improve the quality of life of the most vulnerable people in South Africa. Through the PUTCO CSI Foundation, the company provides funds, grants, donations and assets to deserving projects in the areas in which they operate. Some of the objectives of the foundation include encouraging employees to get involved in social programmes initiated by the company, to get involved in long sustainable programmes and in addition, seasonal relieve projects like the provision of winter blankets, greening projects or crime busting initiatives. As PUTCO continues to add value to the lives of its commuters well into the future, Mr Pisapia says that he is confident that with everyone’s commitment, PUTCO will continue to improve its quality of service and customer-centric approach to service provision.
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PUTCO
“In true African style, we are an extended family, embracing our diversity in order to achieve a unity of purpose”
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www.putco.co.za
(0)1603 618 000 info@industrysa.com East Coast Promotions Ltd, Ferndale Business Centre, 1 Exeter Street. Norwich, Norfolk NR2 4QB