AMD

ADVERTORIAL The rotary imperative

AMD-Rotolok’s managing director, Theo Sherman, outlines the company’s exceptional annual performance and says the company is in the enviable position of products selling themselves. It’s extremely difficult to recognize an economic downswing when your business is experiencing it’s best year in its 51 – year history.

AMD Rotolok, manufacturer and distributor of rotary valves, screw-conveyors, knife-gates, bucket elevators and other products, has weathered endless cycles of high and low commodity prices during this period from it’s base in South Africa., which has been plagued by low growth and political uncertainty, compounded by mining sector that is challenged by hesitant investors. Theo Sherman, AMD-Rotolok’s Managing Director says that the same isn’t necessarily true for the rest of the continent. “What remains a constant, is that Africa’s substantial mineral resource endowment will always have a need for good products that enable seamless production.” It is this very need that is fueling the surge of new competitors in AMD-Rotolok’s market, particularly from Asia, but Sherman isn’t overly concerned. “Mine buyers realise very quickly that cheaper products don’t last, and the suppliers of those can’t provide the supporting service they should. The result is a need to replace a part regularly, which strains budgets and compromises overall operations.” This is AMD-Rotolok’s advantage, and has been since inception, giving credence to Sherman’s statement that AMD-Rotolok products sells themselves. “Our reputation precedes us,” he says. “Beyond the trust in our products, we have experience in understanding the entire mining process because we are hands-on. We visit sites, we communicate with other contractors, we innovate, we are adaptable, and our products endure.” Africa more than any other continent, requires robust machinery so some 60 percent of our manufacture is motivated by customer needs. These are strategies that provide a degree of comfort in tough market conditions but strategies are only valid if proven effective. Proof for AMD-Rotolok comes from a variety of sources. Pulling the file on a customer that required a replacement but still operational rotary valve, one of AMD’s flagship products, Sherman indicates that the valve had been bought in 1976. In yet another instance a mine in Kimberley, which had purchased rotary valves some years ago but never installed, had rushed in outdoor storage. We cleaned and serviced those, replaced bearings, and the units were restored to a new condition. “These instances shows that ironically we are kind of shooting ourselves in the foot, but it validates our success and proves quality.” It is exceptionally rare for an AMD-Rotolok’s product to fail or be returned, Sherman can’t recall this happening in his five years with the organization, whose mother company in the UK drives the approach the local company takes towards providing total solutions for bulk materials handling. Innovation is the essence of AMD-Rotolok’s spirit, and plays out in the development of new, and enhancement of, it’s products, and in being able to design to customer specification. “Africa more than any other continent, requires robust machinery so some 60 percent of pour manufacture is motivated by customer needs. Another aspect of ensuring durability for this market is maintenance. We recently introduced easy lock-and-clear systems instead of the cumbersome disassembly that was required when cleaning the internals of rotary’s. “It’s also all about tolerance, which is dependent on the output of the products, and AMD-Rotolok works to the finest tolerance levels to ensure functionality.” A coal mine in Belfast, Mpumalanga that supplies coal to Exxaro is experiencing just how crucial tolerance levels are. X10VRN500 Clamshell Gates Rotolok units, each weighing 1.7 tons, were installed 8m above ground, supporting some 30 000-ton bins, which the AMD Rotolok units are required to open and close during the coal diversion process. Tolerance also means being able to withstand the conditions specific to each region, and the moisture levels the products are exposed to. What the Belfast mine and other mineral developers across the continent among them Botswana, Tanzania, the Congo, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, have come to value is AMD Rotolok accurate assembly and site inspection, which is generally above and beyond the usual standards in the industry. “For example, we try to be present with

AMD-Rotolok’s managing director, Theo Sherman

all installations, especially those in rural areas. This is important because during installation we interact with other contractors such as cylinder and pneumatic providers, and can therefore make immediate adjustments if required. This demonstrates the extent to which we take responsibility for our products.” Says Sherman. That responsibility also falls to one person in the AMDRotolok organization. “We endorse a one-on-one relationship so that clients are not exposed to multiple contacts within our setup. In this way there is a personal touch that really is a differentiator in the market.” Sherman takes a similar approach with the AMD-Rotolok staff. “We actually try to create jobs where we see an individual has a need. We account for the increases and expenses that our staff are under pressure to meet in their daily lives. This promotes loyalty and improves business because they work in positions that tap into, and hone, their skills.” There’s also a social development element, given that AMD-Rotolok believes in using and training locals to understand how to undertake basic maintenance such as hook up or bolt on work. On-the-job training, says Sherman, was part of the company securing its milestone BEE-certification, which has opened a few new doors, adding to the already illustratious client list. There are some big names on the AMD-Rotolok’s dance card: DRA, Exxaro, Sasol, Eskom, Glencore, for example, and that’s just the mining sector. The organization has recently diversified into the food industry with the advances it has made in stainless steel.

There are also divisions catering for the chemical, feed processing, pharmaceutrical, plastics and power energy markets.

The AMD-product range is comprehensive, ranging from rotary and other valves, airlock, seal, diverters, slide gates dampers, lump breakers, bulk loaders, backfill units, couplers, and rotospeed switches, all of which are either standard or made-to-spec using advanced machinery and batch production techniques that speak to efficiency savings. “Our volume production methods mean that our products are, contrary to popular belief, very affordable, especially over time .We also prefer not to have distributorship, nor partnerships because of the strict quality control standards we present and the responsibility we take for a complete beginning-to-end solution.” This sometimes means fixing what a client has fixed “If a customer decides to do a repair themselves, it’s invariably mess. It’s far better to have us undertake the repair, either on site or at our manufacturing facility so that we can guarantee efficacy, quality and durability. We don’t make mistakes with our products” Sherman relates how Eskom, South Africa’s national energy suppliers, has its knife-gates maintained by AMD-Rotolok to the extent that it receives the same guarantee as if it was a new unit. “You can’t see the difference between the used and the new units, “he says“ This is also important in the current economy when service providers are under pressure to ensure downtime is minimised.” This is the same climate that is manifesting in job losse and projects put on hold. Which Sherman expresses sympathy for, yet remains positives “Our incoming orders have not been seriously affected, and I know there’s a lot of money out there but budget are just not being spent ‘We are still doing R1-million plus deals and our brand has just expanded into a production facility in India to cater for the Asian market, particularly Singapore. All the effort we have put in over the past five decades has paid off: our products sell themselves”

Tel: +27 (0) 11 674-1166/7, Cell: +27 (0) 82 411-8658, Fax: +27 (0) 11 674-4372 theo.sherman@amd-rotolok.co.za, www.amdrotolok.co.za