Heavy lifting and engineered transport services company Sarens has received the Excellence in Engineering award for its Zambia fertiliser project and the Best Project of the Year award for the Kamoa copper project during the Lifting Africa Awards, held on August 29.

The projects share common features, including excellence in technical and technological development, a commitment to local roots, contributing to the social and economic development of the regions in which they have been carried out, in addition to Sarens' commitment to local employment and training, the company says.

The awards recognise the main innovations in the heavy lifting industry in Southern Africa, and aim to serve as benchmarks in the sector by rewarding individuals and companies that have excelled over the past year in terms of their commitment to safety, sustainability, innovation and technical expertise.

The Zambia fertiliser project, which is promoted by the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture, aims to improve the quality and increase the quantity of fertiliser produced in the country, with an estimated impact on job creation of between 5 000 and 10 000 new positions.

Sarens used a Terex Demag CC2800-1 crane, equipped with an S7 boom system and 300 t of superlift ballast to meet the needs of the project.

Further, the Kamoa copper project will also have a significant social and economic impact in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and will enable the extraction of more than 500 000 t of copper in the Kolwezi and Lubumbashi regions, which will increase mining jobs by more than 200 000 new positions.

Sarens, which contributed to this project with the installation of three 220-t furnaces and a 160-t steam dryer using a Terex Demag CC2800-1 crane, mobilised the crane from Luanda, in Angola, to Kolwezi, in the DRC.

The company has since been present in the DRC, and has contributed to the development of projects that have a positive impact on the community and, through training, have helped to secure the future employment of crane operators working with the company, Sarens says.

“These awards recognise our commitment to safety, operational excellence, and engineering innovation in every project we undertake. These achievements are owing to the hard work, dedication, and expertise of our entire team, from our engineers and project managers to our operators and support staff,” says Sarens Southern Africa regional director Tim Biesemans.

“We are deeply grateful to everyone who played a role in these accomplishments; for your professionalism, passion, and constant drive for excellence. These awards reinforce the importance of maintaining the highest standards while pushing the boundaries of what's possible,” he says.