Not only does Shumani Industrial Equipment pride itself on being a Level 1 B-BBEE company, but it is also actively engaged in enterprise and supplier development. “We empower other smaller players which, in turn, allows us to extend our own service offering,” says MD Victor Nemukula.

Shumani continuously strives to empower its employees through continuous training and development. “We are a truly diverse and inclusive business across all our areas of operation,” adds Nemukula.

An example of an external company being taken under the wing of Shumani is Netshi Engineering, owned by Nelson Ngwenya. Establishing the company during the difficult Covid-19 lockdown period, Ngwenya says that being approached by Shumani was a significant fillip for the fledgling business.

Specialising in the maintenance and servicing of forklifts and other industrial equipment, Ngwenya says that when he started out, he only had his own vehicle with which to visit potential clients. Now the company has access to additional contracts thanks to its relationship with Shumani.

“I was excited when I was approached by Shumani, but it was by no means a done deal. I was required to prove the capability of my company and that we could do what we stated,” says Ngwenya. However, this was a test that Netshi Engineering passed with flying colours.

Looking to the future, Ngwenya says his aim is to grow his company to the point where it can assist other entrepreneurs with training and work opportunities, thereby extending the enterprise and supplier development scope of Shumani even further and empowering local communities.

Following on from being recently being awarded the 2021 Goscor Business Unit of the Year Award, Shumani received its Level One Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Contributor status. “This was a significant achievement as we are now the largest black-owned and managed industrial equipment supplier in South Africa,” comments Nemukula.

Shumani supplies world-class equipment across the breadth of the industrial and construction sectors. Brands include world-leading names like Bendi, Crown, Kalmar, and Doosan in the forklift market. Construction equipment brands include Bobcat, SANY, HPower, Weima, Luthian, Ozen and Sullair. In the cleaning equipment market segment, Shumani offers Tennant, Genie, Sentinel and HighPoint.

“Our key offering remains forklifts, which will lead the way in terms of growth. We think there is still a lot of scope for Shumani in the market, as we offer a one-stop shop. We believe the construction and mining sectors will offer ongoing support as we continue to grow,” concludes Nemukula.