Metal Fabricators of Zambia Plc. (ZAMEFA) is the largest wire and cable manufacturer in Zambia. Founded in 1968 to contribute to industrialization in the newly-independent Republic of Zambia, ZAMEFA was at the time a subsidiary of the Zambia Industrial and Mining Corporation (ZIMCO). In the 1990s, as many state-owned companies in Zambia, ZAMEFA was privatized, Phelps Dodge Corporation acquired 75% of ZAMEFA’s shares. As a result of joining the global marketplace, ZAMEFA began a transformation program, in order to meet global industrial standards. In 1996, they became the first company in Zambia to achieve ISO 9001 certification. ISO 14001 followed in 2004, again making ZAMEFA the first company in the country to achieve this standard. In 2008 the company also achieved OHSAS 18001. These standards are fully integrated into ZAMEFA’s operational and management procedures. Since the 1990s, the company has changed ownership two more times, with current parent, South Africa-based Reunert Ltd through its Mauritius subsidiary Reunert International Investments Ltd, which acquired ZAMEFA in 2016. Today, based in Luanshya, in close proximity to the copper mines, ZAMEFA produce high-quality copper rod, wires, and cables for domestic and international customers, including ZESCO, Zambia’s largest power company. NEW MARKETS Over their fifty years of operations, ZAMEFA have seen many changes, but none in recent times have been bigger than the decision to begin manufacturing new products. “Three
years ago, before Reunert had even begun the process of buying ZAMEFA, we invested around $5 million in our manufacturing equipment,” says Gabriel Bracho, Plant Manager at ZAMEFA. “At the time, this investment was to renew some old equipment and keep everything up-to-date, but it led to even bigger things. Since Reunert took over, we have planned two major projects.” The first of these projects is to begin fabricating medium voltage cables. “Until now, ZAMEFA had only produced low voltage cables, up to 3.3 kilovolts (kV),” says Mr. Bracho. “The idea for this project is to go to medium voltage, up to 33 kV. This is a $3.3 million project. We already have all the preparatory work done. We believe these cables will be available in the next two years.” Currently, Zambia is forced to import medium voltage cables. “It’s the same in neighboring countries,” says Mr. Bracho. “They import products from China and India, and these cables are not the highest quality. This changes all of that. We’re now going to be able to offer high-quality products both to domestic clients and to nearby countries as well, locally manufactured” PRECIOUS METAL ZAMEFA’s factory in Luanshya is right in the heart of Zambia’s Copperbelt. This proximity to the raw material allows ZAMEFA to control every step of the process, to ensure consistency and quality. “We handle everything from copper cathode to the finished product,” says Mr. Bracho. “Even our copper scrap is sold back to the mines to make into new copper. We are fully integrated. In order to produce the highest quality copper rods from this raw material we have SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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