PHOTO: MARTIN WELLS
Electriffic! – APS founder Herzel Saban and business partner Sakkie Wolfwaardt with the new fully electric Sumitomo Demag ‘IntElect’ 100-ton machine that is helping the Cape Town company further improve its efficiency levels
1981), has been building up the business nonstop since, to the point where today it supplies its products on a proprietary basis. It also handles the packaging and ships direct from the plant, with exports comprising a large share of its sales. With machine cycle times approximately the same in the East and West, and with other variables being similar too, Saban decided some years ago that the best strategy was to use the most efficient machinery. As a result APS Plastics recently purchased an all-electric Sumitomo-Demag
a trilateral free trade agreement between the members of the Southern African Development Community, the East African Community and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern African were proceeding. The T-FTA would combine the markets of 26 countries, with a population of nearly 600-million people and a combined gross domestic product of $1-trillion. Another key message to emerge from the latest Manufacturing Circle survey was the primacy of the domestic market in the fortunes, or otherwise, of South African manufacturers. The lion’s share of domestically produced goods was still consumed within the borders
injection moulding machine. The company has previously used fully-electric as well as ‘hybrid’ (part electric) machines, but according to Saban the Sumitomo-Demag ‘IntElect’ system is proving to be a good choice: it’s very responsive, uses 40-60% less electricity and is achieving faster cycle times. The technology has long and rich origins: Sumitomo Corporation of Japan, has been in existence since 1630 (yep, that’s not a mistake) and has been producing heavy machinery since 1888. It’s been producing electric machines since the 1990s. Demag’s parent company, Ankerwerk of Germany, introduced its first injection machine in 1950, and has carried on the process of development ever since. The tie-up between the companies in 2008 has now resulted in the combination of these traditions and technologies, resulting in highly refined equipment. This refinement, speed and cost savings in a machine that functions optimally and offers uninterrupted production is exactly what APS Plastics was after to meet their high-output of products. www.apsplastics.co.za
of the country, with 70% of respondents indicating that domestic sales accounted for 60% or more of total sales. A new section to the survey also showed that the majority of respondents considered government’s local-procurement programme to be important in the process of maintaining and growing their manufacturing operations. However, it also indicated that only a small number of surveyed firms had actually benefited from current programmes www.manufacturingcircle.co.za
SA auto exports to Africa – Exports of South African-manufactured vehicles into the rest of Africa could ‘easily triple’ in the next 10 years, according to the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA. Naamsa says, however, that the increase in SA cars sent north would depend on a ‘grand free trade area’ becoming a reality and infrastructure improvement ARTICLE: ENGINEERING NEWS
Currency sways present problems Rand devaluation not good, but it’s been worse before THE rand’s recent devaluation has come as a shock to many in the industry, but it’s happened before – and been even worse in previous cycles. The currency’s deterioration in recent months saw it go from roughly R8 to the dollar to over R10/$. This creates problems for importers of material and equipment, although generating opportunities for better returns for exporters. The rand hit its historical nadir – to date – in December 2001 when it reached R13.85 to the dollar. The SA Chamber of Business motivated for a commission of inquiry into the trend, and that seemed to have an effect and led to a recovery: by the end of 2002 the currency had dipped below R9/$ once more. And by the end of 2004 it was trading at R5.70/$. The average rate in 2012 was R8.20/$. But it’s not only the rand which has suffered: the currencies of virtually all ‘emerging economies’ have declined in value recently: the currencies of India and Turkey – economies which can be roughly compared to that of South Africa – hit historical lows in July. Several factors affect the rand’s value, including the movement of money out of the emerging markets, the size of the country’s current account deficit and problems in the mining sector (the value of gold and platinum has declined steadily in 2013), but one of the main reasons is that the rand is one of the few ‘emerging market’ currencies that can be bought or sold in reasonable quantities. Last year an estimated R126-billion was traded in currency futures, which was 26% higher than in 2011. And this year trading has been even more intense: the highest single monthly turnover – R41-billion – was recorded in May. And, to complicate matters, it appears that many people don’t understand the ‘money market’ processes. However, the JSE has introduced innovations to enable lay investors to better understand and become involved. It has introduced JSE Virtual Trader, a simulated trading platform on the JSE website that enables potential investors to experience realtime trading. www.psgonline.co.za
AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2013