The largest black-owned and managed industrial equipment supplier in South Africa, Shumani aims to become a significant player in the provision of port equipment to the public and private sector. “Durban has the biggest port in Africa. Now that our business has evolved to offering port equipment, Durban is the place to be. It also has an abundance of human capital and major industrial equipment users, which makes it an ideal place of operation,” comments MD Victor Nemukula.

While Shumani is currently based in Gauteng, it has seen growth in Durban over the past two years. “Due to this growth in our business in KwaZulu-Natal, we are on the lookout for premises to house our staff and equipment. We believe that Durban is the next growth area for us after Johannesburg,” reveals Nemukula. Currently the company has a regional office with highly skilled personnel to ensure it maintains a foothold in the region.

At present, Shumani supplies port equipment to Transnet Freight Rail and Transnet Port Operations on a short-term rental basis. “This has been particularly good for us. As our first major client, it has enabled us to offer a comprehensive service for this market segment,” adds Nemukula. Since Transnet operates under the Public Finance Management Act, it issues a request for proposals every three months that requires Shumani to submit fresh bids. It is also involved with the private sector to ensure it maintains a diverse client base.

“The past 12 months have been exciting. We were able to show significant growth and keep our existing customers. We were also able to diversify the business by making inroads into the port-handling, mining, and construction sectors, among others,” highlights Nemukula.

Shumani is an appointed dealer for all Goscor Group companies that import industrial equipment for the South African market. It supplies world-class equipment across the breadth of the industrial and construction sectors. Brands on offer 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.