Essential Business Magazine Issue 17 2016

www.essentialbusinessmag.com|Issue 17

Attacq’s plan for longterm sustainable growth Also in this issue: Bobtons Construction p34 AccorHotels p40 Legend Hospitality Group p46 SES p58

P R O D U C T I O N Scott Jameson

Publisher sjames@essentialbusinessmag.com

Zain Millington

Production Manager

Sam Wright Editor-in-Chief

James Macnamara Deputy Editor

Rob Harding

Staff Writer production@essentialbusinessmag.com

Magazine Design and Production:

O

www.opticjuice.co.uk design@opticjuice.co.uk

P R O J E C T S David Taylor

Head of Projects dtaylor@essentialbusinessmag.com

Amelia Nazer

Senior Projects Manager amelia@essentialbusinessmag.com

Armin Dizdarevic

Project Manager armin@essentialbusinessmag.com

Lucrecia Salie

Project Manager lsalie@essentialbusinessmag.com

S A L E S Adam Caan

Head of Sales acaan@essentialbusinessmag.com

Johann Van Wyk

Sales Executive jvwyk@essentialbusinessmag.com

F I N A N C E Miah Dizer

Finance Manager accounts@essentialbusinessmag.com

E X E C U T I V E

D I R E C T O R S

Adil Nazer | Rahim Ali | Daniel Goha Essential Business Publishing Brancaster House, 30 Cattle Market St, Norwich, NR1 3DY, England www.essentialbusinessmag.com © Essential Business Publishing 2016

ur final issue of 2016 begins with a look at perhaps its most significant event – the election of Donald Trump. Trump’s comments on African business haven’t always been welcomed, and suffice it to say, 2017 will surely be an interesting year.

Our first profile sets the tone for the rest of this issue.

Attacq are a company dealing in physical objects, doing things differently to others, and enjoying healthy results.

Bobtons follow with their innovative and environmentally friendly high-end housing.

AccorHotels are next, revealing their way of utilising Africa’s service economies. Completing our trio of hospitality leaders are Legends Hospitality, dealing with the expanding luxury end of markets in South Africa.

We also take a look at productONE, a firm not dealing in bricks and mortar as such but revolutionising African product design through new technology. Finally, the satellites of SES look to be an integral part of the continent’s future connectivity.

It’s no secret that this year has presented difficulties to African businesses and economies. However, what seems to be defining the continent’s future is adaptation, innovation, vitality and success. Thanks to all of our readers in 2016, and have a wonderful Christmas and new year.

Sam Wright, Editor in Chief

@essentialbizmag

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Contents Will trump turn away from Africa? 6 At look at what Trump’s election might mean for the continent.

AccorHotels

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Phillippe Baretaud, head of development for Accor in the region, speaks to about working in Africa.

An interview with Nico Venter, associate director of Arup, about developing the cities of Africa.

Legend Hospitality Group 46

News round-up 14

Legend Hospitality Group are leaders in the South African hotel and hospitality markets.

Business news from across the continent, including Gambia’s President Yahya Jammeh’s surprise defeat.

productONE

Cities of the future 10

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Augmented reality and 3D Printing are the future of design, and productONE are the company bringing them to Africa.

Attacq

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speaks with the CEO of Attacq, one of South Africa’s leading capital growth companies in the real estate sector.

Bobtons Construction

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Bobtons Construction are industry leaders in smart, technology-led housing development.

SES

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SES are a major global satellite communications provider, well placed to meet the unique challenges of the African market.

Huawei Technologies Africa 64 interview Stephen Wu of Huawei‘s African division on the development of Africa’s 4.5G networks and the booming cellphone market.

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On

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OnTopic

Donald Trump’s recent success in the US general election surprised much of the world, not least observers throughout Africa. So, what can the continent expect once he assumes office?

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t’s no secret that Trump is no fan of trade deals. The Presidentelect has said that he will quit the Trans-Pacific Partnership on his first day in the White House, having previously described it in particularly unpleasant terms as “another disaster done and pushed by special interests who want to rape our country”.

Image courtesy of Gage Skidmore via Flickr

With this in mind, it is unlikely that the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) will be anywhere other than low down on his list of priorities.

The act was introduced in order to allow African countries easier access to US market, and has has had mixed results so far, but its key policy of cutting import duties on certain African goods is unlikely to appeal to Trump’s protectionist instincts.

In a recent article published on the Brookings Institution’s website Witney Schneidman, a former Clinton advisor on Africa, said that the AGOA could very well be abolished altogether.

“In fact, there is every reason to expect that, under a Trump administration, the US will be less engaged in Africa especially where it concerns the expenditure of taxpayer resources on economic development initiatives “In fact, there is every reason to expect that, under a Trump administration, the US will be less engaged in Africa

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On

Image courtesy of Gage Skidmore via Flickr

“A Trump presidency would likely see elevated support for authoritarian leaders – many of whom govern African states – who use counterterrorism as a guise to repress citizens who voice opposing views, further restricting civil liberties

especially where it concerns the expenditure of taxpayer resources on economic development initiatives,” he said.

“AGOA could easily be the first casualty under Trump. While its benefits have been uneven, the legislation has served as a key framework for US-African relations. It has led to trade and investment being at the forefront of US policy in the region.”

Cutting back

Aid also may be another area that suffers. Recent figures have shown that Africa received 20% of all US foreign aid in 2014,

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the equivalent of around US$7 billion. For countries such as Tanzania and Malawi, two of the largest recipients, these funds are crucial.

Trump has so far not outlined any official policy regarding African relief. However, he has previously taken to Twitter to vent on the issue, stating that “every penny of the US$7 billion going to Africa as per Obama will be stolen” as “corruption is rampant”. This stance has prompted some to warn that the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the lead US government body for administering aid, could

OnTopic

be significantly scaled back, or even abolished altogether and absorbed into the State Department.

Previous presidents have been swayed by the notion that foreign aid helps boost US security. Again, Trump may well choose to buck this trend, with many of his previous comments geared towards advocating military responses to potential terror threats. Libya, Somalia and Nigeria have all been singled out for criticism.

This kind of approach remains unlikely though, despite Trump’s bluster. Gaining support for such action will not be easy, even with with the Republican party’s control of congress. Meanwhile, this kind of intervention may well backfire too.

“A Trump presidency would likely see elevated support for authoritarian leaders—many of whom govern African states— who use counterterrorism as a guise to repress citizens who voice opposing views, further restricting civil liberties,” says Zachary Donnenfeld, a researcher at the Institute of Security Studies in South Africa.

Filling the gap

Meanwhile, Trump’s lack of focus regarding Africa may also strengthen the continent’s ties with China. Africa has long been the focus of an ideological tug of war between Washington

and Beijing, with the former offering development while promoting liberal democracy and the latter huge investment and a hands-off approach to domestic affairs.

“Africa has long been the focus of an ideological tug of war between Washington and Beijing, with the former offering development while promoting liberal democracy and the latter huge investment and a handsoff approach to domestic affairs

Already, China appears to be in front of this race, despite legitimate concerns over the environmental and social impact of its spending on mines, oil wells and construction companies.

With Trump’s attention elsewhere, this lopsided relationship could well grow – a situation not without its irony given his campaign frequently criticized Chinese influence on the international stage.

For the US, there is little doubt that this will be a missed opportunity. Exports under the AGOA fell more than 50% to US$11.6 billion in 2014 due to lower oil and gas shipments resulting from the country’s domestic shale boom. Yet even at its previous high of US$24.8 billion, this offered considerable room to grow.

Of course given Trump’s erraticism, it has hard to know specifically which direction he will take once he assumes office.

He may well, as he has on other issues already, soften his stance on trade deals and foreign aid, and push for an open and progressive relationship with Africa. Unfortunately though, the signs all point in the opposite direction.

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Expert

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ExpertInterview

Arup has designed some of the most distinctive buildings and urban centres in South Africa.

In this interview associate director Nico Venter talks about the company’s role in shaping the future of Africa’s cities.

“African cities require flexible and integrated solutions that lead to inclusive development and appropriate investment.

Let’s start with some background about the work in the real estate and infrastructure sphere that you do at Arup.

The Cities Group (South Africa) is focused on the business of city making; embracing the emerging complexity in urban thinking, planning and implementation to create visionary, viable and equitable urban environments.

Arup is an integrated consulting practice that provides the spectrum of built environment planning and design services across sectors. Our involvement in planning and designing infrastructure in Africa has evolved to include transaction advice and property portfolio management that is inherently linked to our approach of total design. This is further extended to the inclusion of specialist design services such as transit oriented development and the provision of smarter infrastructure systems.

We have focused on these specialisations in the recognition that African cities require flexible and integrated solutions that lead to inclusive development and appropriate investment.

Any specific projects that you are involved in that you are particularly excited about at the moment?

Our multidisciplinary projects span from urban regeneration to commercial and engineering infrastructure. On a city level, Arup recently completed a transit oriented development masterplan for the light rail transit system in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The project focused on realising the economic potential of the key stations along the light rail system while regenerating the city, thereby making use of hard infrastructure systems to unlock multiple gains that improve the social and economic prosperity of citizens.

Arup (Structural & Facades) is involved in the development of the iconic PwC office tower, Waterfall City, Midrand. The project is a unique iconic spiral tower that signifies the emergence of the Waterfall City node, contributing to the changing skyline of the city. We have also been working as the Lenders Technical Advisor for the Rand Merchant Bank on the Stortemelk Hydropower project.

The scheme is one of a few hydropower schemes that have

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been implemented under the South African Renewable Energy Programme and is the first to reach commercial operation.

What, in your view, are the main challenges to the real estate & infrastructure sectors in South Africa (and Africa)?

At the top of my list are the need for proper planning and design, the defi ciency of appropriate legislation to support planning and implementation and the separation of pro-poor and probusiness policies. There’s also the difficulty with the structuring of appropriate project fi nance, including capital, operational and maintenance costs, and a lack of understanding of the value of good design.

And the opportunities?

The rate of urbanisation in Africa and the rise in more stable governments that we have seen in the last decade are a real opportunity to improve our cities and the lives of their citizens. The interest and commitment of many city authorities to advocate for and implement mass public transit, special economic zones and renewable energy projects is a positive trend that bodes well for African urban dwellers and investors. In addition there

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“The rate of urbanisation in Africa and the rise in more stable governments that we have seen in the last decade are a real opportunity to improve our cities and the lives of their citizens.

is great potential to design, plan and implement smarter solutions (not necessarily high tech – but smart tech), that will enable cities in Africa to leapfrog those in other regions in terms of development, climate change response and resilience, thereby creating a new urban agenda for progress in Africa.

What is your vision for this sector?

Cities by their traditional defi nition are places of opportunity and access. For many people living in African cities today, this is not the case. Spatial and economic exclusion have created what urban scholars refer to as the phenomenon of ‘large and poor’ cities. These are cities where the benefi ts of urbanisation through the clustering of people and opportunity are unrealised. My vision for future African cities are cities of more equal opportunity and greater access, where residents can participate in the social, economic, and political life of the city. This vision to me is a planned vision that can be realised through a principled approach to city making and service delivery that builds on our inherent strengths to enable better futures. The vision is to create meaningful places where people (citizens, government and commerce) thrive throughout their lives.

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News I

Innovation in tech

nnovation and tech hubs continue to drive development in many African nations. In Nigeria, leading e-commerce startups Jumia and Konga saw huge sales on Black Friday, topping last year’s records despite the country’s economic woes.

Surviving Black Friday in the continent’s most populous nation has become a rite of passage for tech startups in Africa, especially given that the region still lacks some of the requisite infrastructure for strong e-commerce deals, including the paved roads necessary for fast, efficient delivery.

Some sources say that less than a third of Africa’s population have the reliable internet access necessary for online shopping. Jumia, in particular, has built its own delivery service E-COMMERCE with their own vehicles and pick-up stations, while also offering cash on delivery sales plans for those Africans who lack a means of digital payment. Konga is not far behind with their Mercury delivery system, and describe their future operational model as somewhere between eBay, Uber and PayPal. They’ve even launched innovations like KongaPay, which allows vendors to generate QR codes of their own to sell products online. These successes and others suggest that the African e-commerce market is going to be one to watch in the years to come.

P

Meanwhile in Nigeria

E C O N O M I C S

resident Muhammadu Buhari’s government continues to struggle along with the country’s finances. Extremely low oil prices have left Nigeria paying a high price for its essential imports, an eventuality the previous government under Goodluck Johnathan was apparently unprepared for.

Mr Buhari admitted on election that the country’s energy situation in particular was a “national shame”, and is attempting to fight a rumoured renewed insurgency in the oil-rich Niger Delta with investment in progress and infrastructure rather than bullets. Despite optimism around his election, the 73-year-old former military officer is now being criticised for sluggishness in establishing a government and failures in fighting endemic corruption in the country’s administration. While the Boko Haram insurgency in the north is in retreat, the devalued Naira, job losses and rising prices mean that food shortages are becoming endemic in the country.

A recent trending phrase on Nigerian social media asks President Buhari not to develop Nigeria but simply to return Nigeria to where it was when he became President.

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News A hopeful election turns sour

T E C H

W

hat next for The POLITICS Gambia? While the world’s eyes were on Trump taking power in America, one of Africa’s last strongman presidents was defeated 45.5% to to 37% in the recent presidential elections. President Yahya Jammeh initially responded well to the surprise defeat, with election night passing peacefully and a graceful message of concession on state TV. He has begun calling for a recount, however, and recent reports from the BBC suggest that Gambian soldiers have seized the election commission’s headquarters.

President Jammeh’s regime was one of mixed fortunes for The Gambia; while under his tenure the country avoided major unrest and saw drastically improved infrastructure, he also oversaw the country’s withdrawal from the Commonwealth and the International Criminal Court, as well as economic stagnation that saw thousands attempting to migrate to Europe. His successor Adama Barrow plans to rejoin the Commonwealth and the ICC, but faces a difficult transfer of power and an uncertain future. The chair of the country’s new ruling coalition has banned Mr Jammeh from leaving the country and claimed that he may be planning on starting an insurgency to challenge the new government. With his refusal to accept the election result, external forces may become involved. Ecowas, the West African regional bloc, may be planning to send troops into the country to intervene if the democratic solution fails, and has urged Mr Jammeh to keep the transition of power peaceful.

(Note: The situation in the Gambia continues to evolve. This segment was correct at time of writing.)

A

Tech hubs

cross Africa, innovation and tech hubs are taking their place as the mainstay of an emerging technological ecosystem.

Kenya’s iHub, Ghana’s Meltwater IT academy and Nigeria’s Co-Creation Hub are among the leaders, but thousands of other smaller and more specialised outfits are springing up in niches all over Africa’s rapidly evolving markets.

Initial excitement has largely worn off for many of these enterprises, which now face the longer and greater challenge of finding a way to make their operations economically sustainable in the long term. Many were initially funded by government grants and oriented around co-working rather than generating revenue. Selffunding, for-profit funding and even crowdfunding are all options, with some hubs modelling themselves around startup accelerator funding models. iHub’s funding is now 70% corporate sponsorship, consulting and eventsbased, and the startup plans to be 100% self-financed through investment and operating revenue. Location is also important, with hubs in secondary cities without the communications infrastructure that national capitals and business heartlands offer suffering from reduced access to the outside world. Nonetheless, government and private investment in these new enterprises will pay dividends in the years to come. As catalysts in the unpredictable and vibrant African tech space, hubs like these are vital for the next generation of African digital entrepreneurs and the continent’s economic future.

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S h a r e

Great companies have great tales to tell.

With an established global reach, our editorial is read by senior executives, buyers, manufactures and other leading industry professionals. If you’d like to share your strory and bring your business closer to the people that matter, please contact us today. @EssentialBizMag

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y o u r

w w w.e s s e nt i a l bu s i ne s s m a g.co m

Attacq w w w . a t t a c q . c o . z a

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Property

Attacq is a leading capital growth company in the real estate sector, headquartered in South Africa with a diverse investment and development portfolio in its home market and further afield. sat down with MornÊ Wilken, the company’s CEO, to talk international strategy and investment opportunities.

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A t t a c q

S

ince Attacq was founded in 2005 in South Africa the company has consistently delivered capital growth to its investors through its geographically diverse portfolio of properties and investments. It has grown a diverse investment portfolio that includes landmark commercial and retail property investments and developments, in South Africa, sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. Attacq’s blended

investments in established and developing markets minimises risk, especially in pressured times.

The company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in 2013.

“Attacq’s strategy is based on long-term sustainable capital growth, taking a long-term view, similar to the asset class we invest in,” says Wilken. “Attacq will continue to invest, develop and grow wisely as a sound listed real estate company with a strong

Graeme Page Consulting Engineers CC (GPCE) ...is a Johannesburg based firm of specialist heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) Consulting Design Engineers.

The heart of their expertise lies in the successful delivery of large commercial developments.

Understanding the ever changing demands of commercial driven space is crucial. Their entire design process takes cognisance of this at each step, to provide the most flexible solution for the client.

Full Scope Air Conditioning Design Inception Concept and Budgeting?

Tender and Cast Suspension Construction Quality Control Close Out Fields of Expertise 2 and 4 Pipe Chilled Water Systems Rooftop Package Units DX Split Unit Solutions Close Control Installations (Data Centres) Mechanical Ventilation Solutions Smoke Extraction Solutions Kitchen Canopy Extraction Design The firms’ members, Graeme Page, Steven Barrett and George Arnold, and its key alliances have some 50 years’ experience in the industry, and have been involved with leading developers and professional team members on a number of prestigious projects, in all sectors. The firm’s project experience includes but is not limited to:

Retail Shopping Centres Corporate Offices Hotel and Leisure Industries High/Low Rise Luxury Accommodation Educational Facilities Health Care Industrial Developments

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CM

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CMY

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Graeme Page Consulting Engineers (gpce) is a Johannesburg based firm of specialist heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) Consulting Design Engineers servicing the built environment.

The firm founded in 2002 specializes in retail, commercial, hotel, leisure, entertainment and residential projects with a special emphasize on personal client focused delivery.

The business makes use of the latest design, CAD, and thermal modeling software to ensure each project is delivered a solution of the very highest quality with leading technical innovation.

GPCE staff has more than 10 years’ experience in the design and supervision of mechanical services for buildings in the private and public sectors.

Projects range from the most complex corporate office environments and retail centres to hospitals, sports and leisure facilities and refurbishment projects.

We are proud to have been involved in The Mall of Africa project.

Tel: +27 11 794 1907 Fax: +27 11 794 1201

Email: info@gpce.co.za Website: www.gpce.co.za 21

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A t t a c q

investment and development pipeline. We pursue good business opportunities in South Africa, in developing as well as established markets.”

Attacq acquired the development rights to Waterfall in 2008. This provides Attacq with a pipeline to develop South Africa’s new lifestyle city over the next 10-15 years in Gauteng

– the economic powerhouse of southern Africa.

The decision to invest outside of South Africa was taken to diversify Attacq’s portfolio, to create a currency hedge and take advantage of the growth opportunities in foreign markets while capitalising on the stability of developed markets. Wilken is proud of Attacq’s international

“Since Attacq was founded in 2005 in South Africa the company has consistently delivered capital growth to its investors through its geographically diverse portfolio of properties and investments.

Adams & Adams ...is an internationally recognised and leading African law firm that specialises in providing intellectual property and commercial services.

With primary office locations in South Africa and branches and associate offices in a number of African countries, our firm’s leadership position is reflected in the groundbreaking work we do, the valuable client relationships we have and the quality of our professionals.

Our more than 200 professionals specialise in various legal and technical disciplines in intellectual property law, commercial and property law, and litigation. We proudly represent many of the world’s largest corporations and organisations, as well as small to medium-sized companies and our 70 partners are established pathfinders and thought leaders in their respective practice areas.

Our Intellectual Property law practices work with clients around the globe and across many industries to protect, enforce and commercialise their intellectual property including trademarks, patents, copyright and designs.

Likewise, our general commercial legal services practices boast competent and powerful teams that are purposed to represent clients in expertise areas such as commercial litigation, property services, public procurement, banking and finance, mergers and acquisitions, tax, franchising, personal injury, arbitration and dispute resolution, and technology, among others.

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HELPING YOU BUILD YOUR AFRICAN SUCCESS STORY

AFRICA’S TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE – and that’s why 240 Fortune 500 companies and the continent’s big league developers like Attacq count on the IP, commercial, property and litigation muscle of our legal professionals. Our professional teams work and think at a ‘systems level’ of business and law, so you can be sure that your triumphant African success story is authored by a team of dedicated and exceptional specialists.

For assistance contact property@ adamsadams.com

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Patents | Trade Marks | Copyright | Designs | Commercial | Property | Litigation www.adamsadams.com

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A t t a c q

expansion progress: “We have invested in Europe with a strategic investment of around 40% in MAS plc (a company listed on both the JSE and Luxembourg Stock Exchange),

two retail centres in Cyprus and a portfolio of retail properties in Serbia. Attacq has also invested in Africa, predominately through joint ventures and in retail centres located in Ghana, Zambia and Nigeria. The investments are paying off, and these investments are around 24% of our gross assets and almost 40% of our net equity.”

Wilken was in charge during the company’s listing on the JSE, and he admits that it wasn’t an entirely painless process. “There were two main challenges when we went to market. Firstly, from inception the company grew quite quickly and in the first few years of operating we had to restructure the organisation, to support our business focus.

Secondly by operating as a capital growth company, we

Brian Heineberg and Associates ...was formed in February 1997 by Brian Heineberg, having worked as a professional quantity surveyor in private practice since 1979.

Some eighteen years after the establishment of Brian Heineberg & Associates, the practice has grown from a single employee to a staff complement of twenty-five.

WHY US Our practice has handled amongst the largest, fastest and most difficult projects in the country.

In order to do this we need to have a constant, tight control of the budget, at all times.

We need to balance the scales of the budget with that of the practical and aesthetic needs of the Client and designer.

To do this two fundamentals are essential: A close and co-operative working relationship with all other members of the professional team and the Client body.

A hardworking team. Our office will work relentlessly, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to ensure that we are at all times up to date with our commitments.

We have ample back-up resources within the office to supplement where necessary.

COMPLIANCE Our practice is a fully paid up member of the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors, South African Property Owners Association and Green Building Council of South Africa. The majority of our quantity surveying staff are Greenstar SA accredited professionals.

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www.bhberg.co.za Tel: +27 (0)11 784 0870 | bhberg@bhberg.co.za 4th Floor, 4 Stan Road, Sandown, Sandton

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A t t a c q

have been pioneers in the industry, as most of our peers are income-producing real estate companies, also known as ‘REITS’. Attacq is driven by a creative approach to local and international real estate developments and investments which create sustainable growth for all Attacq stakeholders. This consistent focus on long-term capital growth differentiates Attacq from other JSE-listed property entities that focus on the generation and regular distribution of income to shareholders,” explains Wilken.

Attacq’s real estate assets are therefore not designed for short-term profits but to

“The decision to invest outside of South Africa was taken to diversify Attacq’s portfolio, to create a currency hedge and take advantage of the growth opportunities in foreign markets while capitalising on the stability of developed markets.

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generate quality rental income and sustainable capital growth well into the future – a fact seen clearly in the scale and nature of the projects they choose to undertake.

Like many companies, Attacq has gone through some tough financial times in recent years.

Wilken joined the company in 2008, as the global financial crisis struck and businesses all over the world saw losses and slowdowns. While the business environment was very challenging, the unique climate also held its own opportunities: “It actually played to our advantage. We had to get a number of approvals for many of our development rights and there wasn’t a lot of objection to getting our rights through.” When asked about how the industry is changing, Wilken suggested that another slowdown might be imminent, despite the recent signs of possible improvements in the economy.

“In challenging macroeconomic circumstances, we have produced a good set of results,” states Wilken. Attacq reported R27.6 billion in total assets at its annual results on the 30th June 2016, with nearly R19.5 billion of completed property in South Africa alone. Of these around 58% are retail properties, including the recently completed Mall of Africa in Waterfall City, and 33% are office space, with the remaining 9%

WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff ...one of the world’s leading engineering professional services consulting firms. We bring together our 36,500 staff, based in more than 500 offices, across 40 countries to provide engineering and multidisciplinary services in a vast array of industry sectors, with a focus on technical excellence and client service.

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Boogertman + Partners Architects

split between light industrial and hotel properties.

Balanced portfolio

The company has always gained a competitive edge through its diversification strategy, which mitigates local market fluctuations. As Wilken explains it: “We invest in various markets to mitigate the downside risk of economic slowdown. When there’s a slowdown in one economy you might get an advantage in another.”

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Investing internationally presents its own challenges.

Each market has inherent risks, which need to be considered and well managed to avoid losses. Attacq responded by developing systems that take local conditions into account.

“If I can use South Africa as an example, what works in Johannesburg is not necessarily going to work in Cape Town or Durban. By being on the ground and, I mean, really living in a place, you gain valuable

...was established in 1982 with offices in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban and Kenya.

The practice engages in projects throughout Africa by continually embracing social, economic and functional challenges through “Excellence by Design”.

Having gained national and international acclaim, Boogertman + Partners has successfully completed projects in Egypt and Sudan, has ongoing projects in Botswana, Kenya, South Africa and Zambia, as well as numerous design proposals in the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Boogertman + Partners are driven by a dynamic team of directors who share a vision for contextually responsible and innovative design, with a dedicated approach to the building process, from project inception to execution. The team is complemented by talented professionals – urban designers, interior designers, architects and technicians, as well as an in-house graphic design and marketing team and the support of administrative staff.

Armed with this intrinsic nexus of skills, Boogertman + Partners encourages a collaborative process in which the client brief and dialogue are realised by a creative vision, shaped by geographic location and environmental characteristics, moulded by economic and social conditions and refined through technical and sustainable advances – resulting in a holistic project solution.

As gold founder members of the Green Building Council of South Africa, Boogertman + Partners fully support the environmentally sustainable transformation of the built environment. With increasing concerns over global warming and the pressures of sprawling urbanism, Boogertman + Partners, through our integrated design approach, is committed to creating and developing sustainable environments that are low energy consuming, efficient and flexible and encourage an optimally healthy lifestyle.

www.boogertman.com

Human Centred Design.

CITY LODGE WATERFALL CITY Midrand, South Africa

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A t t a c q

“Attacq’s real estate assets are therefore not designed for shortterm profits but to generate quality rental income and sustainable capital growth well into the future – a fact seen clearly in the scale and nature of the projects they choose to undertake.

experience over a period of time. It is for that reason that Attacq prefers to choose partners with proven local operating track records rather than trying to do it all ourselves.”

New city, new opportunity

In recent years, Attacq’s largest project has been the development of Gauteng’s new lifestyle city, Waterfall City, with the Mall of Africa as the retail jewel in the new destination node’s crown. The 131,000 square metre Mall is the largest single phase shopping mall built anywhere in Africa, and Wilken says that it’s had a strong opening with more than 123,000

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visitors on opening day and a strong visitor flow since then, exceeding expectations.

“Over 1.1 million people visit the mall every month. Of course, there’s been some small operational teething issues, but nothing that we haven’t been able to sort out.”

The scale of the Mall of Africa brings significant shoppers’ choice acting as a draw card, which in turn makes it attractive for leading local and international retail brands to secure space in the mall. The size caters for significant footfall, making it attractive for tenants.

The development of the Mall

of Africa was done based on sound prior demographic studies, investigations and forecasts of an acceptable yield.

The Mall of Africa has created more than 4,500 permanent jobs, employed over 7,500 people during its construction and has over 300 retailers. In addition to the 133,000 square metres of retail space a further 25,000 square metres is planned for the first expansion.

Attacq has secured a total of 1.8 million square metres of development space across the entire site, of which 409,000 square metres is already completed as of 30th June 2016.

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PLANTECH

Building and operating shopping centres has been good business in South Africa for a number of years, with something of a boom taking place. The country now has a greater square footage of retail space than any country in continental Europe and the 7th largest total retail area in the world, with more than 23 million square metres of shopping centre. Despite this, many parts of the country still don’t have access to adequate shopping facilities. The super-regional Mall of Africa is intended to address this problem for Gauteng and the surrounding area, where more than 100,000 households are still short of retail access.

While there are concerns in some economic circles that the South African retail industry is over-supplied given the current economic climate, many dismiss this as an underestimation of South Africa’s mall culture.

Given the security concerns that surround the country’s urban areas, many choose to visit malls like the Mall of Africa to relax and enjoy themselves as well as to shop.

Although it may seem that South Africa’s industry has grown too fast and become too big to survive in the current economic climate, this is only a short-term view. Given the multi-year timeframe involved in constructing a major shopping mall, many developers will begin projects at the top of the business

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cycle, even if they finally open them during a downturn, as the mall will then be established and fully operational by the time the economy picks up again.

In addition, extensive research done prior to 2008 showed that Pretoria and Midrand were developing to the south and Johannesburg was extending its footprint to the north, with Waterfall right in the centre and a prime location for an infill development. Being conveniently located and easily accessible made it the perfect location for Attacq to invest in a number of larger development projects, including the Mall of Africa shopping centre, Waterfall City and Waterfall.

Live, work and play

Waterfall is being developed as Gauteng’s newest lifestyle city with Waterfall City as its central business district (CBD). The interest and uptake is already very promising.

“We have had a number of international corporate brands like PwC, Novartis, and Premier Foods that have consolidated in Waterfall City. The new Waterfall City CBD is developed as a lifestyle urban space where people can enjoy a balanced lifestyle in a pleasant urban development setting that takes both people’s needs and that of the environment into account.

Waterfall is a superior mixed use city that includes retail, commercial, light industrial and

...expertise covers the full spectrum of electrical, mechanical and electronic engineering services.

The Electrical department specialises in distribution substation, power line, cable feeders and township electrical reticulation systems for both regional and municipal networks.

Plantech Associates have extensive experience in all building services for commercial and specialised buildings. Building services including air conditioning, ventilation, transportation, steam, gas, fire detection and control, security and other installations for offices, shopping centres, airports, laboratories, factories, universities and many more.

Electrical Consulting Engineering Mechanical Consulting Engineering Electronic Consulting Engineering By being personally involved and totally committed, the best service is rendered to clients at all times www.plantech.co.za

“Attacq reported R27.6 billion in total assets at its annual results on the 30th June 2016, with nearly R19.5 billion of completed property in South Africa alone. residential properties and is conveniently located on the N1 highway between Pretoria and Johannesburg.

“We believe in being a good corporate citizen and investing

Property

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• Electrical building services such as small power and ligh�ng, UPS and generator emergency power systems, power factor correc�on and lightning protec�on • Mechanical building services such as air condi�oning, ven�la�on, li�s and escalators • Experience in GBCSA (Green building Council of South Africa) and LEED (US Green building Council) building projects • Security, fire, BMS, access control and communica�on systems • Refrigera�on, cold storage hospital and laboratory services • Construc�on and project management • Solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems PO Box 146, PERSEQUOR PARK, 0020 • Township re�cula�on

www.plantech.co.za beyond our bottom-line” states Wilken. In recent years, Attacq has teamed up with Growth Point to invest in Property Point, a programme supporting enterprise and supplier development (“ESD”). “We believe that supporting ESD is a key way in which we can create meaningful change in South Africa. Through this programme, we have already sponsored 17 SMEs”. The objective is to collaborate to maximise meaningful transformation in the property sector, by nurturing and growing small businesses. The first intake ran over two years which culminated with a graduation ceremony on the 23rd November 2016. The programme aims to develop the SMEs to be supplier ready, and includes a variety of trades, ranging from painting to

17 Quin�n Brand Street, PERSEQUOR PARK Tel: +27 (0)12 349 2253 | Fax: +27 (0)12 349 2390 E-mail: plantech@plantech.co.za

air conditioning and landscaping contractors.

Attacq has also formed a partnership with LaunchLab, an incubator entrepreneur-training company, to promote business investment and innovation in the retail sector. Wilken explains: “We want to look at potential initiatives in the retail space. We give participating entrepreneurs seed money to look at opportunities, and when one is feasible and we want to roll it out, we as Attacq can participate.

It’s an opportunity for people to put their entrepreneurial ideas into practice and it gives us a potential business opportunity in the future.”

Wilken is confident that his company is maintaining its

momentum. “Our big focus is on the Waterfall rollout.

Operationally we want to make sure everything is sound and working optimally.”

Wilken also mentions that on the international front he is quite excited about MAS’s revised strategy for expansion into eastern and central Europe. “This is mainly driven by the new joint venture with the ex-CEO of New European Property Investments, Martin Slabbert, and his team,” explains Wilken.

Follow us: Attacq Limited

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Bobtons Construction

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Construction

The high-value end of the South African housing development market has proven surprisingly robust through the recent economic uncertainty, thanks in part to smart planning and green investment. Jason Truscott of Bobtons Construction and Developments explains how his company is thriving in the current environment.

B

obtons Construction and Developments is one of a number of firms dealing in high-value, high-tech construction and development in South Africa. The company trades in advanced green home improvements and accessories, with Director and MD Jason Truscott saying they are “right at the forefront” of the field of green technology.

Green revolution

“The green business is very well positioned,” he adds. “The turnover of investment is about five years, and it’s definitely something people are moving more and more towards.” Jason’s

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wife Katie Truscott is a partner in a green business called Green Leaf Alternative Solutions. Green Leaf works closely with Bobtons, and assists with providing their clients with photovoltaic solar panels and grey water systems, as well as other high-tech green amenities. For many clients these are not luxuries but essentials – South Africa’s historic problems with power generation and supply mean that these systems can be vital for keeping the lights on. Unsurprisingly, interest has been high despite steep unit prices. Truscott expects the price to fall fairly rapidly for these products, “and once it does they’ll fly”.

Business building

Bobtons’ services are split between construction and development. Bobtons’ construction specialism is in

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one-off, high end homes and properties, with the occasional commercial contract, with current projects including a church complex that will seat 2,500 people. On the development side of things, Bobtons provides turnkey solutions to property developers, with pricing designed to address currency fluctuations. In highvalue transactions like these, tracking the relationship between the rand and the dollar is vital.

Bobtons gets around this problem in several ways, including sourcing and using local materials where possible and using a two-step pricing system.

“We would build a 2000m2 house, that’s 22,000ft2, which can take two years,” Truscott says. “If the rand moves from 12 per dollar to 14 per dollar, with inflation on top of that, it becomes a lot

C o n s t r u c t i o n

“The green business is very well positioned… the turnover of investment is about five years, and it’s definitely something people are moving more and more towards

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more expensive for the person building.” To get around this problem, Bobtons offers pricing split into structural costs and provisional costs. Structural costing pays for the house itself and the construction, both of which are easy to price in a stable

“It’s something that will change the way the world builds. It will revolutionise green worldwide manner. Provisional costing covers internals and extra items such as kitchen fittings and internationallysourced technology and fixtures.

As such Bobtons can secure a price for the longer parts of the construction process and modify their costs when adding the final touches.

Self-sufficient homes

Bobtons demonstrates the opportunities inherent in construction in Africa, such as the continent’s new demand for high-value housing due to the growth of an affl uent middle class. One ongoing project is a set of 306 ‘walkup’ fl ats being built by a real estate developer in South Africa. The development is planned to be a high-density residential area and designed around self-sufficiency. The fl ats feature automatic lighting and systems to conserve power, and are nearly entirely self-sufficient, relying on the local council for only a few services.

“That’s what the people want,” Truscott explains.

Building a future

Despite varying economic conditions, Truscott’s company has continued to grow, reporting

C o n s t r u c t i o n

100% growth year on year for the last eight years. In the past nine months, however, he has noticed a downturn in the luxury homes market, in part driven by the global economic downturn and the commodities crash in China, and exacerbated by the recent issues faced by South Africa’s finance minister Pravin Gordhan.

In response, Truscott has begun making efforts to establish a constant pipeline of work, rather than the single projects his company has previously undertaken. ‘No matter what’s happening in the country, we’ve learned to roll with the punches.’

He says.

Going forward, Bobtons has some exciting projects lined up, including a partnership due to be announced early next year, focusing on person-centred green home improvements.

“It’s something that will change the way the world builds. It will revolutionise green worldwide,” Truscott says. A new site, Queen’s Development, is also on the cards, and is planned to include 20 freestanding homes.

World-changing projects aside, Bobtons looks set for continued growth into 2017.

Follow us: @bobtonsconstruction BobtonsConstruction @bobtonsconstruction bobtons-construction Bobtons Construction and Developments www.essentialbusinessmag.com

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AccorHotels w w w . a c c o r h o t e l s - g r o u p . c o m

Service At Africa’s

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Hospitality

In this profile of AccorHotels interview Phillippe Baretaud, AccorHotels’ Senior Vice President for Development Africa & Indian Ocean, about the challenges of expanding into existing and untapped African hotel markets.

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A c c o r H o t e l s

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ccorHotels (formerly Accor S.A), are a French multinational hotel group operating 3,700 hotels across 21 brands worldwide in more than 94 countries. The group has been operating in Africa for more than 40 years and is, in terms of number of rooms, the leading hotel operator on the continent.

When it comes to development AccorHotels’ strategy is to secure economic growth by diversifying into economies with large service industries.

As Baretaud explains, “service oriented economies represent (for the hospitality industry) the main leader of activity and potential opportunity. That’s because the service economies generate more international and internal business travellers.

They also generate business across the economic segments including domestic, midscale, mid-income and young entrepreneurs, the young commercial domestic market, and the regional

market. At present in many African countries, serviceoriented economies are still not representing their potential.”

AccorHotels recently signed and approved a contract with the Angolan authorities to open 50 new hotels in the country, split between their budget and luxury segments. Baretaud details the company’s strategy for its new operations in the country:

“AccorHotels recently signed and approved a contract with the Angolan authorities to open 50 new hotels in the country, split between their budget and luxury segments

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Proud to be legal advisors to AccorHotels Global lawyers in Africa. For Africa.

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Images of people may feature current or former lawyers and employees at Hogan Lovells or models not connected with the firm. www.hoganlovells.com Š Hogan Lovells 2016. All rights reserved. www.essentialbusinessmag.com

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A c c o r H o t e l s

“22 of them are going to be mid-scale bearing the Mercure and Grand Mercure brands, 27 of them are aimed at the budget segment of the market, (bear in mind that the budget segment doesn’t mean limited services) under the ibis Styles network, which is a version of the popular ibis brand that focuses more on a local identity rather than standardisation, and only the one remaining hotel will be under the Sofitel luxury brand.

We’re also positioning these hotels across the country, not just in Luanda, aiming to supply mid-income travellers, both international and domestic.”

Part of the attraction of Angola for AccorHotels is that its natural beauty means tourism, given the right conditions, can flourish.

“Hopefully the government will preserve the various beautiful spots to keep attracting tourism,” says Baretaud.

“The hospitality education plans are part of AccorHotels’ efforts to boost the service economy in countries they operate in, providing training to 3,000 Angolan staff who will eventually be qualified to manage the group’s hotels in the country A continent of growth

Baretaud is optimistic about Africa’s potential, calling it “a continent of growth”. He cautions, however, that the African market is a huge and diverse one, and there are hurdles yet to cross in many places: “Within Africa you have many different countries at different levels of development. Over the last two years we have seen that unfortunately many of the economies that are supposed to drive the growth of the continent are still too oriented around commodities.

As we see in Nigeria and Angola, among others, when there’s a slowdown in the oil market the economy slows and infrastructure

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stops being built. This slows the development of the hospitality industry in the country. That is, I would say, the main challenge we’re facing in Africa.”

Baretaud credits AccorHotels’ international pool of staff as a major factor in their success worldwide, as well as their policy of working with local partners.

This was a huge advantage in securing the Angola contract.

“We’re working with an Angolan partner, AAA Activos Lda, on a hospitality education plan.

That’s the main pillar of our deal in Angola, and it’s possible because we have this unique international presence. We had an advantage in that we have

Hospitality

The golden rule

Beyond that, there is also the rule explaining the sometimes gradual progress of AccorHotels’ brands into new markets. Baretaud says that AccorHotels have one rule guiding how they work: “Be able to deliver the support. It’s not enough to put one hotel into a country under one brand name of Accor if there isn’t enough support in that country from marketing, management and infrastructure.

experienced managers and staff who speak Portuguese from our venues in Brazil and Portugal, such as the new general manager of operations for Angola, and as such we were able to prep the venues with a team of our own people.”

The hospitality education plans are part of AccorHotels’ efforts to boost the service economy in countries they operate in, providing training to 3,000 Angolan staff who will eventually be qualified to manage the group’s hotels in the country.

This plan is only possible thanks to extensive work with local government departments and Accor’s access to fluent Portuguese speakers.

Support comes with proximity.

We don’t open just for the sake of signing a deal or for the revenue, we need to make sure we don’t spread out and overstretch ourselves. This is particularly important in Africa. It’s huge, and it isn’t always easy to travel. We approach our developments by perimeters of density, what I call operational perimeters. That involves establishing effective operational zones where we can build up density of hotels and make sure we have a network of support departments in an area.”

What next?

At present, AccorHotels is concentrating on key cities in Africa to establish a foothold for their larger expansion inland. In East Africa it already has Nairobi and Addis Ababa as main circles of operational presence. Once properties are established there it will be able to think about other capitals and neighbouring countries like Rwanda, Uganda

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and Tanzania, building up a high-density presence that won’t overstretch itself.

Once AccorHotels is ready to establish this high-density presence, it will then analyse the local markets to look for opportunities. “There’s the MICE market (that’s Meeting Incentive Convention Events) and that’s under development in Africa, especially in the case of the Pullman brand, an international upscale brand that’s in a good position in the meeting, conferencing, banqueting and events markets.”

The other market AccorHotels is currently developing is the budget segment. The most mature market on the continent is South Africa, a segmented economy with a lot of expert management companies, national management companies, branded properties and chains. This brings an opportunity for AccorHotels’ brand such as ibis, with the budget segment not yet properly addressed.

Baretaud raises a current issue, that of the potential for oversupplying South Africa’s more affluent markets. “South Africa is one of many areas where adding more luxury hotels risks over-supply. This gives us an opportunity to show our versatility both as an international company and as a company with a diverse selection of brands addressing all segments of the market, from budget to luxury.”

@AccorHotelsNews @accorhotelsgroup

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Legend Hospitality Group

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Hospitality

South Africa’s hospitality market is one of the most vibrant and fast-growing sectors of its economy, with a particular emphasis on high-grade hotel and leisure facilities. Here interview Mart Cilliers, managing director of the Legend Hospitality Group, owner of the Legend Lodges hotels in Mozambique, Botswana and South Africa.

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he Legend group was established in 1999 by Roy Tucker and Peet and Mart Cilliers as a hotel management, sales and marketing company, aiming to “introduce South Africans and international business and leisure tourists to the country’s numerous, diverse attractions, offering a combination of unique luxury products.” According to Cillers, “Initially the business was known as ‘Legend Lodges, Hotels &

Resorts’, but as more products in South Africa, Mozambique and Botswana were added to the portfolio, it was changed to the new brand name of Legend Hospitality Group, in 2015.”

Cilliers credits the 2010 World Cup in particular as boosting growth in the sector, although she says that the hotel sector in South Africa has grown immensely over the last 20 years. Sales and marketing trends are changing quickly, with a focus on digital and

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system-driven direct marketing, although the traditional ways of booking holidays are still seeing good business.

Luxury low-tech

The dynamics of the hotel sector are changing. Customers are increasingly expecting luxury experiences, with top-level service and innovative offerings.

As well as this, guests are starting to look for more sustainable or deliberately lowtech holidays. While city hotels integrate technology with their

“Sales and marketing trends are changing quickly, with a focus on digital and systemdriven direct marketing, although the traditional ways of booking holidays are still seeing good business.

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S h a r e

y o u r

Great companies have great tales to tell.

With an established global reach, our editorial is read by senior executives, buyers, manufactures and other leading industry professionals. If you’d like to share your strory and bring your business closer to the people that matter, please contact us today. @EssentialBizMag

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L e g e n d

service delivery, more rural hotels and lodges like Legend’s are beginning to focus on providing ‘tech free’ holidays or putting increased emphasis on green technology.

While investor optimism is improving, the South African hotel sector still faces challenges and potential difficulties. Political and economic instability is still a problem, as it negatively effects potential investors’ opinions of South African businesses. We asked Cilliers about the Legend Group’s intended solutions. “To overcome these challenges, it is important to provide investors with the whole picture and not only the negative aspects shown by the media, while emphasizing the value of our specific investor opportunities and the benefits of

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“While city hotels integrate technology with their service delivery, more rural hotels and lodges like Legend’s are beginning to focus on providing ‘tech free’ holidays or putting increased emphasis on green technology.

H o s p i t a l i t y

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investing in Southern Africa in the long run.”

The Legend group also believes that motivated, well-educated employees are key in ensuring a hotel business runs successfully.

“In tourism it is important to keep on growing the potential of every worker. We regard our Legend Hospitality School with its fulltime accredited hospitality courses as vital to the sustainability of the group. The School offers opportunities for young people entering the hospitality workplace and existing staff with potential to get professional qualifications and training. Our internal on-site training courses and ongoing in-house skills training are also crucial for the growth of human potential and quality of service to the guests.

Hospitality

Our staff is our biggest asset and we have a hands-on approach from senior management down to motivate our staff and give them in-house opportunities to become the best they can be.”

A uniquely African experience

Providing top-quality service while retaining a uniquely African identity is a challenge that many hotel chains are facing in the new market. It’s important to maintain the balance between the standards required for a modern hotel while introducing local African ambience and stylish touches to make sure the business has a distinctly African identity. “Our hotel sector offers products and experiences which are unique in the world and refl ective of our

diverse landscapes, wildlife and cultures.” Going forward, Cilliers is confi dent about the future of the Legend Hospitality Group and the industry as a whole.

“The outlook for our company for the rest of 2016 and beyond looks very promising. As the corporate business market in South Africa has been fairly fl at in 2016, we are focusing on the international and incentive markets for groups, as we offer perfect destinations with exciting attractions.”

Cilliers mentions that the Group is expanding to represent more properties in additional regions to provide guests with even more variety. She’s also optimistic about the recent fall in value of the rand: “The depreciation of our currency

is a benefi t as it means our international business and leisure travellers get good value for money. We are also encouraging local leisure travel within South Africa, to create a better balance of different markets for our portfolio of products.”

Follow us: @LegendResorts @Legendsgroup legendlodges

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productONE Solutions Ltd

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ICT

African manufacturers are increasingly turning to computer-assisted design and 3D printing. productONE is a company with a mission – making African products great.

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p r o d u c t O N E

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ounded in 1991, productONE is the principal African re-seller of computer-assisted design technology (CAD) and software from the multinational software company PTC. Their MD, Charles Anderson, had an unusual route into the business.

“Our customers’ products range from things as simple as a beer bottle to as complex as a missile “I became involved with productONE firstly as a customer.

In 1993 I was working with De Beers at their research laboratory, where they developed their proprietary equipment for recovering diamonds, and we needed a good CAD system. We ended up selecting PTC Pro|Engineer (now PTC Creo). I think I really got involved directly, working first as a part time consultant for the company in the late 1990s and then full time from a couple of years after that. I think it gives me a good perspective of both sides of the business.”

productONE go from strength to strength. Since he joined, it has expanded from its base in selling software, introducing a whole suite of product development solutions as well as other types of software for technical fields.

Anderson’s time with the company has seen

productONE now employs over 45 people, working with

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clients to understand their customers’ business, in order to select the appropriate solutions and systems. Along with CAD software, the company also provides closed loop Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software, Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) and Service Lifecycle Management (SLM) solutions.

#brandwithus

Contact us: Sales@CreativeMindsMarketing.co.za | www.CreativeMindsMarketing.co.za

p r o d u c t O N E

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“Countries are looking at bringing in this technology to support their operations.

They can then manufacture spare parts as they need them, and they don’t need to worry about holding spares “At the moment, a typical customer is essentially involved in some kind of mechanical basic or what we call discrete product development,” he explains. “They range from things as simple as a beer bottle to as complex as a missile. We started off providing them with the engineering tools to design the mechanical aspects of that product with the CAD, and then I think it’s expanded to include a lot of other aspects of successful product development, managing not only that sort of data within the engineering field but also the other data that’s required to successfully develop that sort of product.”

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More than just sales

Anderson emphasises that productONE do much more than just re-selling software.

“It’s also looking at optimising the business processes around that, in terms of the specific marketing and product requirements that can optimise their systems and ultimately add value to their business.”

“Our starting point is always to understand what the client’s business is about. We’re not business consultants that are going to suggest this or that, or strategies to follow. We need to understand what their strategy is and then we can analyse

their existing processes. We then come up with a suggestion as to how those processes can be improved through adopting the right sort of technology. It’s definitely not just a game of dropping a box of software.

“I think that there are a lot of new opportunities that are coming out in other African countries, and I think it’s a very good time to do that now, with Africa developing a lot, and offering a lot of potential in the world of the next two or three decades.” Anderson expects his company’s customer base to shift as the service they offer continues to change and African

ICT

business leaders become more aware of the potential offered by companies like productONE.

The future of design technology

productONE are also involved in the emerging fields of Internet of Things (IoT) and Augmented Reality (AR), designing software and systems for companies involved in this hugely exciting area. AR technology involves enhancing the design process with virtual reality technology, allowing designers to ‘hold’ and manipulate 3D models in real space, a huge advantage in visualising abstract objects. productONE also provide IoT technology, using the internet to create smart versions of everyday devices – heating systems that can be turned on via apps, for example.

One other new opportunity in the realm of computer assisted design is 3D printing, which allows the easy production of computer-designed components. While productONE is not exclusively moving into this area, Anderson is optimistic for its future. “A number of our customers use that to develop the physical products in a way that they can really discuss with their customers and give them a feel for what the project will be like.” There is the potential for 3D printing to supplement productONE’s work in AR technology and create a leap forward in design capability,

revolutionising the process of creating physical products.

“I think the main thing is that the technology is now reaching the point where you’re able to produce production-ready parts – parts that can be used out in the field. There’s a fair bit of work being done in South Africa around metal synthesising in the field of titanium, in conjunction with four European companies. I think what’s exciting to us that’s going to be coming up this next year with the recent PTC Creo 4 release is the capability to take in that specifically for additive manufacturers.”

It’s hard to not be excited about the possibilities 3D printing presents, and Anderson is certainly looking forward to the devices becoming widespread.

“Designers will be able to optimise the product design for these new capabilities like the introduction of optimised lattice structures within the product, to ensure that they’ve got the physical strength and fitness that is required but are lighter and cheaper to make.”

These qualities make for an exciting opportunity, specific to the demands of Africa. “I think that bearing in mind some of the issues in Africa where it’s not always that easy to get to spare parts, there have been a number of initiatives in rapid prototyping and manufacturingcountries are looking at bringing

in this technology to support their operations. They can then manufacture spare parts as they need them, and they don’t need to worry about holding spares and getting things transported.

One of the challenges mentioned was just getting things through customs to some of these companies.”

With the future of African design facing such technological advances, and companies like productONE to spearhead their use, the continent looks set to continue its creation of world-leading products well into the future.

Follow us: @productONE @productONE productONE

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SES

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SES is a major commercial satellite operator with more than 50 geostationary satellites across the world, ten of them over the spoke African continent. to African division head Laurent Petit, about the changing face of the continent’s broadband markets.

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atellite solutions seem like a natural fit for the unique status of the African broadband market, given that the technology is by nature an international one that requires little terrestrial infrastructure and local government involvement.

Advances in manufacturing are ensuring that more launches are

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“We have a competitive edge over our fibre competitors as our broadband solutions can reach the areas where fibre is not rolled out yet

successful and the satellites that reach orbit are more efficient. At present, satellite communications are the only effective way to bring broadband to rural areas – microwave transmission and fibre cabling are only economical at short range and require expensive infrastructure investments.

In particular, SES is finding that much of their business is now with

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inland customers. “We have a competitive edge over our fibre competitors as our broadband solutions can reach the areas where fibre is not rolled out yet, because at the moment fibre is officially limited to coastal countries rather than inland. Being able to bring broadband either using wide-beam satellites out of our geoconstellation or using what we call ‘fibre in the sky’ through the MEO constellation of O3b is vital. We are promoting these offerings because they are very efficient from a technical perspective and they are exceptionally economical.”

digital technology development.

Competition is definitely higher than it was ten years ago. But we at SES are very well equipped to face it and serve our customers better than ever before.”

On the rise

Across Africa, the demand for broadband is increasing exponentially. “In general, we do have a lot of demand. Demand is unquestionably growing in Africa, with the development of the population and the growth of the middle class.”

Even in the satellite services market, something of a feeding frenzy has been taking place. A huge increase in the number of households that own a television, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, has resulted in a huge increase in demand. Digital TV is set to take off in 2017 as well and replace the currently nearlyubiquitous analog models, with predictions suggesting that 54% of all households will have digital televisions by the end of the year.

“Competition is definitely higher than it was ten years ago. But we at SES are very well equipped to face it and serve our customers better than ever before.

Recently, however, satellite operators are finding themselves facing strong competition from more conventional means of broadband delivery. “Over the last ten years, I’ve seen more companies and more operators taking the steps to enter the market in Africa.” Petit continues, “it’s becoming very crowded.

There are a lot of opportunities in Africa, there are even more people who want to embrace

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This increase is disproportionately distributed, with Ghana, Guinea, South Africa and Nigeria as the primary nations developing their digital infrastructure, while many

other countries are deterred by the high costs of setup.

The need for internet services has skyrocketed, particularly on demand Pay TV and international TV channels. Local broadcasters are also aiming to expand their coverage, as many are currently unable to broadcast to rural areas in their own countries, let alone other countries nearby. SES is aiming to cater to these commercial broadcasters. “I’m not just talking about governments,” says Petit passionately. “I’m talking about private individuals, organisations, who want to embrace the digital technology development. It makes it very interesting for companies like us to be in Africa, on the ground and working with them.

“Having said this, competition is higher than ten years ago, there’s a development of fibre as well which has a significant bearing on satellite operators’ activities. We do use fibre and we complement our satellite services with fibre, but some projects may be done with fibre only as opposed to using satellite units as in the past, so the competitive landscape is tougher than it used to be ten years ago. We have invested in a fibre in the sky type of satellite constellation. The company is called O3b and offers high speed connectivity to all areas in Africa and in particular, the remote ones, at very economical rates.”

ICT

email: production@essentialbusinessmag.com

Widening reach

SES is one of the companies involved in Facebook’s ambitious Internet.org initiative, with plans to use their customised broadband platform to provide services across sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. Three of SES’ satellites- ASTRA 2G, ASTRA 3B and ASTRA 4A, will be tasked to deliver high speed broadband connectivity to the region, using a customised and tailored service suite to help Facebook deliver express Wi-Fi access.

This service includes Gilat Satellite Networks X-Architecture platform and is the proven-tech backbone of the sometimes almost science fiction-like Internet.org project – a functional solution compared to the highendurance internet drones and

laser transmission proposed by the Connectivity Lab. Beyond that, SES is continuing to develop their technology and expand their reach, using their innate advantages to stay ahead of other terrestrial operators. The challenges for the company are twofold – solving the Last Mile problem (crossing the ‘last mile’ to actually deliver services into a consumer’s home), which comes in a variety of forms given the terrain and political situations across Africa, and ensuring that their services offer the same level of convenience and coverage while remaining competitive.

the continent’s digital revolution moves forward, Africans are requesting the same services as Europe and America. SES is ideally placed to meet that demand.

Follow us: @SES_Satellites @SES.YourSatelliteCompany SES Satellites ses

Lack of access to broadband is well known to be holding back many communities. As

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Huawei

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chnologies Huawei Te e Chinese Co. Ltd., th ms giant, d teleco networking an g inroads in in has been mak , leading it es d a Africa for dec r player as the ajo to become a m ces the digital ra b continent em oke to the CEO sp n, age.

African divisio s y’ n a p m co e of th bout Huawei’s Stephen Wu, a ions. bold ambit

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• • • • •

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uawei entered Africa in 1998 and operates in 50 countries across the continent, digitalising industries like transportation and education and expanding their lucrative smartphone businesses into the numerous African markets.

Fittingly, Wu describes Huawei’s plan as “accelerating the ICT transformation in Africa” and “providing African people with more accesses to the digital world”.

In June 2016, Huawei and Vodacom South Africa successfully ran Africa’s first three component carrier test

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“The company is also involved in sponsoring and working with AfricaCom and the African Internet Governance Forum, developing new ways to bring the public and private sector together to bridge the African digital divide and tested Africa’s first 1Gbps network by aggregating long-term evolution (LTE), a standard for high-speed wireless communication for mobile phones and data terminals, in both licensed and unlicensed bands with using its LampSite solution. The peak speed hit over 1Gbps, a milestone in the development of a 4.5G network.

Another live trial successfully demonstrated the co-existence of LTE in unlicensed band in open public areas like Vodacom World’s conference venues and a shopping mall like Sandton City, where existing Wi-Fi services are already being widely used and the spectrum is fairly shared between the different technologies.

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H u a w e i

“We anticipate there will be over 100 billion connections between people to people, machine to machine by 2025 Huawei SA CEO, Steven Wu

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The deployed network has a natural evolution path and can be software upgraded to a fully LBT (Listen Before Talk) compliant solution, known as LAA (License Assisted Access).

Standard LAA within the 3GPP standards process will ensure fair share use among the multiple users and technologies, such as Wi-Fi, that access the unlicensed bands.

For this public trial demonstrating LTE in unlicensed co-existence, Huawei worked with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. to use a test mobile device based on the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 820 processor with X12 LTE for the live network trial. Commercial mobile devices are expected to be released by manufacturers towards the second half of the year.

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H u a w e i

Planting the seed

Huawei also run a corporate social responsibility programme called Seeds for the Future, which works with local governments, higher education institutes and similar organisations to offer work experience and study opportunities to students working in the ICT fields. The programme aims to arrange for students to study cutting-edge technologies such as 5G, LTE, and cloud computing, and offer them opportunities for handson practice in Huawei’s most advanced labs.

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Seeds for the Future is an international initiative that seeks students from every country, but with Huawei’s extensive operations in both South Africa and across the continent as a whole the door is open for African students who wish to study with an industry-leading company. At present, Seeds for the Future has been active in, among others, Kenya, Namibia, Botswana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Ghana, with efforts to move into South Africa underway.

Further training, support and infrastructure initiatives are

seeing Huawei partnering with the South African government, among other national institutions. Huawei’s Joint Innovation and Experience Centre has signed a corporation contract with the South African Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services which will ensure that African ICT professionals are familiar with Huawei products and methodology while also ensuring that the infrastructure exists to innovate and generate further business for Huawei down the line. As one might expect, the company is also involved

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H u a w e i

in sponsoring and working with AfricaCom and the African Internet Governance Forum, developing new ways to bring the public and private sector together to bridge the African digital divide.

Business-wise, Huawei has gained an edge in the sub-Saharan markets with competitive pricing and tailored products, with Wu stating that smartphones like the P9 and its Plus and lite variants have exceeded “even our bullish expectations” in South Africa.

Much of this is down to a local focus, with the aim to produce the features and affordable price points suited to their target markets.

Huawei’s business is also reliant on a network of suppliers, partner companies and other entities which keep their vast logistics chains active. The company’s stakeholders are a vital part of their business, and relationships with them are “building blocks that Huawei treasures dearly”.

According to Wu, “It is safe to say the relations are steady and good. Huawei has various projects and programs in place that provide platforms for us to engage with our stakeholders and share our brand identity, culture, vision and mission, and also understand that of our partners.”

Supplier and enterprise development programmes are a key part of the constant process

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“Smartphones like the P9 and its Plus and lite variants are exceeding even our bullish expectations in South Africa

of upgrading the corporation’s supply chain, and Huawei aims to ensure that “regular and close contact” is kept with suppliers, strategic partners, stakeholders and operators in all the areas their business covers. This strategy seems to be paying off – Huawei technology forms a vital part of the operational capacity of a long list of telecoms companies serving countries all over Africa, from Algeria and Egypt in the north to Cameroon, the CAR, Benin, Nigeria, Namibia, Botswana and many others.

Huawei currently sells products in over 50 African countries, with others including Tanzania soon to join that number.

Not simply selling

Huawei’s business plan in Africa is similar to the tactics adopted by many other successful multinational and local companies in the rapidly growing ICT sector – not simply trying to sell to developing African nations, but instead establishing longer-term connections to drive progress.

The vast and partly un-tapped potential of the African markets, particularly the Sub-Saharan and western regions where the pace of technological development is rapidly snowballing, force multi-national entities to stand out and tailor their services accordingly.

This environment also provides an

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innovation at an affordable price point for all consumers.” Satisfied customers with working phones and internet will benefit every factor of Huawei’s business, and that of other Chinese industries across Africa.

Connecting everything

opportunity to gain ground where bigger competitors fail. Huawei has successfully competed with giants like Blackberry and Nokia for market share, hitting 50% of the Kenyan smartphone market share in 2013.

Meanwhile, Huawei faces a challenge unique to Chinese companies and manufacturers in Africa, with the stereotype of poor-quality, cheaply-made goods. Recently this feeling has begun to reverse - the widelypublicised story of a South African man who was saved from a robbery when his Huawei P9 lite smartphone stopped a 9mm bullet fired by a mugger was a watershed moment. To counter this prejudice, Wu emphasises that Huawei is focused on “creating premium devices that exhibit our dedication to flawless design and technological

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“The program aims to arrange for students to study cutting-edge technologies such as 5G, LTE, and cloud computing, and offer them opportunities for hands-on practice in Huawei’s most advanced labs

Wu offers a fascinating vision of the future: “We anticipate there will be over 100 billion connections between people to people, machine to machine by 2025. We envision the future will be an intelligent world. In an intelligent world, devices will play the role of the ‘feelers’ in an all-sensing environment. Networks will connect everything, and the cloud will be the source of intelligence behind all things.

These three elements form a synergetic architecture of devices, information pipes, and the cloud.”

An almost science-fiction vision, perhaps. When Huawei moved into the African markets in 1998 it might have been dismissed as impossible. With the Internet of Things out of the think-tank and into the home, however, Huawei’s preparations to build the technological infrastructure to help African nations follow suit seems like sound business sense. Cloud-based computing remains important to Huawei’s strategy. Wu describes their “strategic focus” as “devices, information pipes and the cloud”. This digital frontier is only expanding, and Huawei aims to be at the forefront.

ICT

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