Although Colossal Concrete Products (CCP), Southern Africa’s largest railway sleeper manufacturer, views the entire African continent as its market, the company is currently focusing on opportunities in Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where some significant projects are already in the pipeline, says Chief Executive Officer, Gwen Mahuma-Madida.
These countries, together with the proposed concessioning of key local rail corridors where maintenance and upgrades are needed, will see Colossal Concrete Products benefit from Africa’s imminent rail revival.
A competitive edge
“Significant rail projects are emerging on the back of surging demand for minerals and products, the expansion and opening of mines and growing competitiveness of regional supply chains. For example, there is renewed focus on rail projects spearheaded by the African Union’s African Integrated High Speed Rail Network (AIHSRN), which aligns with the African Union Agenda 2063,” says Technical and Strategic Consultant, Kobus Burger.
Research by Norton Rose Fulbright indicates that modernising existing infrastructure, building new railway lines and improving connectivity between commodity-rich, landlocked countries could result in approximately US$495 billion worth of railway development within the next five years.
An exhibitor at this year’s Southern African Railways Association (SARA) Conference in Johannesburg from 26 – 29 August, Burger says that Colossal Concrete Products will be exhibiting and networking with local, pan-African and international rail industry role players: “Through the excellent platform which SARA provides, we will be demonstrating that a South African rail products manufacturer such as CCP – which is very familiar with pan-African challenges – has a competitive edge over international suppliers who are not experienced in terms of working on the continent,” Burger explains.
The competitive international railway supply chain is significantly mechanised due to high labour costs. However, these systems require sophisticated technical support – and any breakdowns cause significant production delays. Conversely, CCP made a conscious decision not to mechanise, to avoid reducing its labour inputs – and therefore has a robust production process which can be rapidly repaired.
“We strive to find synergies between technology and utilising our labour force, because Colossal Concrete Products remains committed to creating jobs in a country – and continent – where unemployment rates are shockingly high. We believe it is our duty to uplift the individuals who make our African continent great!” advises Mahuma-Madida.
Innovative rail product development
Colossal Concrete Products produces quality products that are tried and tested in Africa, says Chief Operating Officer, Mmapitso Kiewiet: “Transnet is the largest rail network operator in Southern Africa and, over the years, we have had to comply with their requirements. This is the ‘gold’ standard that we use when supplying projects into the rest of Africa.” Colossal Concrete Products is widely viewed as a leader in innovative rail product research and development, having amply demonstrated its ability to supply both ‘Cape gauge’ rail projects in Southern Africa and standard gauge projects elsewhere in Africa.
“Our product portfolio is extensive and compatible with rail products in most Sub-Saharan railway networks with the same track gauge. Our technical ability to design and supply standard gauge products is demonstrated by the sleepers supplied for the Gautrain project, and the Low Vibration Track (LVT) products for the tunnels. We also supplied the turnout sleepers for the turnouts supplied by VAE,” Kiewiet points out.
Factoring in project factories
CCP’s two manufacturing plants in South Africa supply the South African market and consignments to neighbouring Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia and Swaziland.
However, because it is not economical to transport heavy sleepers over long distances, the company has at times set up temporary project factories close to large projects. CCP has the intellectual property, patents and licences – as well as technical personnel with the experience and expertise – to establish these project factories.
This highly complex process requires intricate logistical solutions as well as thorough planning, and relies on sustainable product volumes. Whenever possible, local resources such as labour, raw materials and consumables are also used. Both skilled and unskilled local employees are trained by CCP, covering areas such as production, safety, quality control and administration. “During the setting up and commissioning of a project factory, our South African employees are on hand to assist but, once production stabilises, a maximum of two South African employees remain,” Burger says.
He believes that Colossal Concrete Products’ ability to establish project factories gives the company a competitive edge, as is evident in previous success stories which include factories at Beitbridge, Zimbabwe which supplied sleepers on the Beitbridge railway line; in Tsumeb, Namibia which supplied sleepers for the Northern line; in Tete, Mozambique which supplied sleepers and turnout sleepers for CFM and the Nacala line; in Salima, Malawi which supplied sleepers for Malawi Railways and even in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which serviced a number of projects there.
On track for the future
Currently, Colossal Concrete Products is working on some very promising local and pan-African prospects. Mahuma-Madida says that Colossal Concrete Products is only utilising approximately 60% of its existing capacity: “We can produce sleepers using both the long line and carousel production methods – giving us the capacity to produce up to 1 million sleepers per annum.
Furthermore, when we took over the company, the De Aar facility had been mothballed for eight years. We re-opened this in October 2023, and it has been in production since then, reinvigorating local employment in the region. Our expansion into Africa and the supply of pan-regional rail projects will ensure this continues,” she concludes.
