Steel wire net manufacturer Geobrugg Africa has inaugurated its first high-tensile steel production facility in Africa in Lanseria, Gauteng.

The facility boasts a new TECCO manufacturing machine to manufacture high-tensile steel wire mesh. A second TECCO machine will be added in the third quarter of this year.

Geobrugg’s TECCO mesh, made from high-tensile steel wire, is used for slope stabilisation. The product is used globally, primarily in Europe and the US.

The company has occupied its Lanseria premises since 2020. However, up to now the business could only modify mesh. Geobrugg Africa will, however, now be able to manufacture the mesh locally with a total staff complement of 65.

Geobrugg Africa GM Wian Strydom told Engineering News on July 4 that the total capital investment in the new production factory was about R22-million.

However, an additional R15-million worth of capital equipment is being shipped to South African shores and will be arriving in Durban in four weeks’ time to further expand the production capacity.

“We are planning to continue investing in this facility into the future - both this facility and a derivative of it. That means we'll expand out of this facility with some of the processes, but we'll still be based here,” he explained, noting that the newly inaugurated production capability would be guided by the market.

He explained that the inauguration of the production facility was merely the first step in a grander vision to expand Geobrugg Africa’s semiautomated capability to satisfy market demand.

“A large proportion of our product is being imported to this point, and that adds to transport costs, creates additional taxes if we import from the east, and that impacts on the price that is passed on to the market,” Strydom explained.

He said the aim was to ultimately streamline the value chain by localising production and reduce the cost of doing business to benefit clients.

“The eventual vision is to have African steel made into African wire, coated with a protective coating, and then further beneficiated in our factory, thereby giving more opportunities to the local workforce,” Strydom said.

BBBEE

He also pointed out that Geobrugg Africa would become a Level 4 broad-based black economic empowerment company by April next year.

“We've just received board approval for an ownership change, which is a big deal in a family-owned business. We will do it based on the 2024 financials and evaluation will happen in April 2025. So, by then, we expect to have a Level 4 BBBEE rating,” he said.

The drive to become more BBBEE compliant falls in line with the Strydom’s stated goals of penetrating the civil construction and engineering sector, as the company’s current focus in Africa was primarily in the mining industry.

“In our civils market, particularly when dealing with the government agencies such as [the South African National Roads Agency], which has a local content component, and also a BBBEE component, we believe that it would be an advantage.

“However, it’s also part of the Mining Charter and we believe in the future suppliers are going to be required to become compliant,” Strydom said.