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Green Machine Erica Wark speaks with Michael Pearton, Vice President of Manufacturing at General Motors South Africa.
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eneral Motors South Africa (GM South Africa) will be opening the doors on their new Parts Distribution Centre (PDC) in October this year. The core aim of this R250 million investment is to improve logistical efficiency as well as the distribution of parts and accessories to their network of dealers throughout South Africa, the SADC region, as well as export customers across Africa and overseas.
LEAN In order to prepare the company for operations from their new PDC, GM South Africa has developed a new “Lean” Formula for success, which sees operations streamlined and their staff unified in vision and business practice. This “Lean” Formula for Success is as follows: 2
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Unwavering commitment + Painstaking effort + Flawless execution = World-Class Performance The Fundamentals of “Lean” are that employees, supervisors and managers work together to create continuous flow by: Engaging the work force Eliminating waste Reducing resources Reducing fluctuations Improving safety and ergonomics Striving for perfection (Zero Defect)
MEAN There’s no hiding the fact that, yes, the auto industry has taken a hit in South Africa, and GM South Africa has taken a pragmatic stance on handling this, with awareness that they need to follow the market and go where the money is.
General Motors FEATURE
Investing in the new PDC is a strategic move, as Sales of parts and accessories at GM South Africa account for over R1 Billion per annum, which is a big part of the business. The new PDC means that GM South Africa will now be able to house a stock of parts for every type of vehicle, all under one well-organised roof, and for ten years after the model runs out..… It’s really no wonder they need a 38000 square metre building! The PDC is being constructed in the Coega Industrial Development Zone, Port Elizabeth, which is one of the 4 industrial zones the government has set up to encourage direct foreign investment. For customers of GM South Africa the consolidation of operations has many benefits. Most notably it will mean a faster service, as there will be vastly improved logistical efficiency in supplying their 139 existing dealers in South Africa. Moreover, GM South Africa dealers will be more readily accessible for consumers; as the marketplace is showing signs of recovery, this new improved efficiency for existing operations will mean that GM South Africa now has the capacity to spread their network further. Thankfully 2010 has seen an upturn in business in the auto industry, and GM South Africa have been quick to respond to this. Furthermore, GM South Africa is looking at investing approximately R700 million between 2010 and 2012 on new product and upgrading production facilities and plans to launch 10 new products over the next two years.
post-production waste is closely monitored, from the boxes that materials arrive in to even the desks the employees sit at! In fact it appears that everything that passes in through their doors always leaves to go on to a ‘second life’. …And I mean literally anything at their company qualifies for the chance at a second life: from storage boxes and archive boxes being sent to clinics and schools; computer and car parts that are obsolete being offered to technical colleges in order to create working models; desks and office equipment going to an animal anti-cruelty group, these are just a few examples. This ethos has been a longstanding commitment at the company, and Michael Pearton explained how they have taken steps within manufacturing plants to make recycling a part of their operating process. In 1995 GMSA started segregating rubbish, as Pearton stated, “it’s a lot less likely to end up in landfill if it is segregated from the start.” It is so refreshing to hear this green logic being put in to practice, and the results are more than just a feel good factor on behalf of GM South Africa’s employees. Their actions touch people’s lives. For example; imagine how many parts come packaged in sponge? Imagine the tons a year of sponge alone that would head for landfill? Well at GM South Africa they are always striving to find creative ways to recycle post-production waste, and their sponge supplies are donated to the Golden Girls Club, a retiree group at the Bethelsdorp Old Age Home in Port Elizabeth, who use it to make cuddly toys for underprivileged children. Waste elimination is part of the company’s operating processes and much progress had been made to reduce the amount of waste destined for landfill sites. “With this
Thankfully 2010 has seen an upturn in business in the auto industry, and GM South Africa have been quick to respond to this
….And a GREEN MACHINE? The auto industry is not usually celebrated for its environmental awareness, and so you can imagine my surprise to hear about how deeply entrenched ‘Green’ values are at GM South Africa. At GM South Africa there has always been a policy to reduce, recycle and reuse. As such
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General Motors FEATURE
year’s World Environment Day theme of ‘Many species, one planet one future’ it is the opportune time to create awareness that unwanted waste could be useful to someone else,” stated Pearton. Mrs Daphne de Kock, chairperson of the Golden Girls Club, agreed with Pearton’s sentiment; “What others consider as waste, we consider as useful. We are truly grateful for this gesture and we can assure GMSA that the sponges will be put to good use,” De Kock said. Interlinked with this green practice is their ethical and social responsibility work. GM South Africa have been part of BEE since 1997, and are incredibly active in the community: Creating play areas for children in impoverished areas ‘Touch A Life’: Peer counseling service, including organisation of day outings for children Provision of Police cars and vehicles to transport equipment at the Flying Squad Education: GM South Africa are partners of a local University Retiree community: with over 2000 members they are involved with community work and give them the opportunity to keep active roles in the local area Housing: GM South Africa have created a model for low cost-high density housing development, they have already put in place two communities using this model and have plans to roll it out across the rest of the country Work eligibility for disabled young women: GM South Africa have partnered with a group who provide an 8 month long training and work placement programme to enable disabled youths, who may have hitherto been marginalized, to develop administration skills and therefore become eligible for work at the end of the course. More information on the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com GM South Africa media-on line site, http://media.gm.com or by 4
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Schaeffler Schaeffler South Africa is a subsidiary of the Schaeffler Group. With its INA, LuK and FAG brands, the Group is one of the world’s leading rolling bearing manufacturers and a renowned supplier to the automotive industry. The Group is a recognised development partner with systems expertise for the complete powertrain. With around 1,100 patent applications annually the Group is one of Germany’s leading innovators.”
contacting Communications Officer, Gishma Abrahams, Gishma.Abrahams@gm.com
Company Statistics: In 2009 GM sold 43,624 vehicles (24,456 light commercial and 17,146 passenger vehicles). Their overall market share was 12.3% (22.2% light commercial and 7.6% passenger). They assemble Isuzu and Chevrolet Corsa vehicles in SA and import Chevrolet Captiva, Spark, Aveo, Cruze and Optra and Opel Vivaro, Astra, Corsa and Combo – this is from Europe, US, Oz and Korea. Their Struandale plant was already named the best local manufacturing plant for light commercial vehicles in the latest 2009 Synovate Quality Awards. According to GMSA sales and marketing vice-president Malcolm Gauld, the company is confident that the market will not further deteriorate this year. “We foresee a gradual improvement in sales and project that the 2010 market will come in at 412 000, about a 5% growth versus 2009’s 394 000,” said Gauld. GM currently has 1900 SA employees – 1028 of these staff work in assembly across 2 plants. Their Head Office and assembly operations are in Port Elizabeth (Kempston Road and Struandale), and they have regional offices in Durban and Cape Town. END
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