Broll Ghana
Q&A: Broll Ghana Maximising property potential: Africa Outlook talks to Kofi Ampong, CEO of Broll Ghana - the winner of the 2012 Ghana Property Award for Best Facilities Management Company Writer Ian Armitage Project manager James Mitchell Broll Ghana is one of Ghana's pre-eminent property services companies operating in the country's residential, retail, commercial and industrial property sectors. Established in May 2006, it has quickly entrenched itself in a market that is fast-growing thanks to renewed interest in Africa, rising incomes, and the fact that, in 2010, the West African nation began to pump commercial oil. Broll Ghana offers the "full spectrum of property-related services" including commercial broking, property valuations, retail leasing and consulting, corporate real estate services, facilities management, property management, shopping centre management, project management and residential estate management. As well as close ties with other Broll companies in South Africa, Nigeria, Malawi and Namibia, the Ghanaian operation enjoys affiliate status with CBRE, the world's largest property services company, bringing representation to more than 80 countries and 438 offices around the world. Mr Kofi Ampong, the firm's CEO tells us more… Hi Kofi, great to talk with you. Let's start at the beginning. Why set up the Ghana office? What was the thinking there? Broll was seeking African expansion and Broll Ghana was set up with the objective to provide property and facilities management services with the view of maximising the property potential of our clients through quality delivery, effectiveness, value and the provision of unique cost-effective solutions. By dint of hard work, we…
Hillcrest Private Hospital
Medical marvel Nestled in the leafy suburb of Hillcrest KwaZulu-Natal Hillcrest Private Hospital provides quality healthcare driven by a strong, customer-centric focus. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager Eddie Clinton It's July 1, 2011. Staff and management of Hillcrest Private Hospital have gathered together. It's a proud day. Today the hospital is officially opened. It marks the end of what has been a long wait for the local community, a community that now benefits from a full range of medical services and quality healthcare from a professional and dedicated team. Director of Hillcrest Private Hospital, Glen Passmore, says the hospital's first two years have been "hugely successful" and that it delivers a fresh, family-focused, comfortable hospital experience whilst adhering to international standards of quality care "from the concierge who welcomes patients to the professional, caring medical team." The 200-bed hospital has 24-hour casualty, day clinic, high care and ICU, state-of-the-art radiology and pathology - and much more - and is committed to "providing quality care coupled with exceptional service delivery." "We're easily accessible from the N3 and M13 and perfectly positioned away from the hustle and bustle of the city and that makes us a little different," explains Passmore. "It is one of many things that make us different actually." Hillcrest Private Hospital caters for the greater community stretching from Pietermaritzburg through to the North and South Coast of KZN. It was born out of an increasing demand for healthcare in South Africa, a country whose healthcare system is deeply divided. In the blue corner, there is…
Safmed
Surgical steel SafMed offers a range of products and services that help customers do their jobs more safely, effectively and efficiently. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager Eddie Clinton Founded in 1988, SafMed is a private company registered in South Africa, which specialises in the importation, production and marketing of decontamination, infection prevention and surgical products. It has developed a strong customer base in both the private and public provincial hospital segments and has built a reputation within the industry as being market leaders within a number of product offerings. "Our model is based around value based products with an emphasis on quality," says Marketing Director Pat Ayling. "The sorts of products on offer include CSSD equipment and cosumables,, infection prevention products and surgical support equipment." There are plenty of opportunities for companies like SafMed. One lies in medical instrument traceability. "If we think back five to 10 years, looking at sterilization for example, which is probably the biggest part of our business and where we started out, we have seen that the washing of equipment has come to the fore and I think hospitals are realising that they need to control that process," says Ayling. "Not only in this country, but worldwide, there is recognition that it is not just about the sterilizing process and that it is very important that before you sterilize instruments are properly cleaned. The other trend we have seen relates to traceability. That is coming to the fore. We are looking at introducing computerised systems for this purpose. "The other area…
Paramount Trailers
Paramount leaves the competition trailing With construction of a new production facility underway this is an exciting time for Johannesburg-based Paramount Trailers. Africa Outlook learns more. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager Ben Weaver Paramount Trailers is one of South Africa's leading and established commercial trailer manufacturers. It came from humble beginnings and has been built from the ground up over the past 16 years, with its product line originally consisting of flat decks, more specifically superlinks and triaxles. In recent years it has evolved as a company by diversifying its product range and bringing more options to market - commercial trailers such as skeletal trailers, stepdeck trailers and tippers, for example. Today it manufacturers just about everything, says Financial Director Paulo Ribeiro. "We have quite an extensive product range," he enthuses. The result is that Paramount enjoyed "solid" 2012, despite the prevailing economic headwinds that hit other trailer manufacturers. "Following on from a tough couple of years, we had a difficult first half to the year; the economy was flat, there was nothing spectacular happening and it was a concern for us as a business," Ribeiro admits. "But towards the latter half of the year we picked up one or two large contracts which really turned the year around and, in tough economic conditions, it ended up being a fairly productive and good year from a business perspective." Ribeiro says that one of the main reasons for the company's success during 2012, and indeed the last few years, was its strategy to expand and diversify its…
Biotherm Energy
Winds of change Africa Outlook talks to green energy specialist Jasandra Nyker, CEO of independent power producer BioTherm Energy. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager James Mitchell South Africa's energy problems have been well documented and recent issues with the Medupi power station and its operating system, and the impasse between Exarro and striking workers, has ignited fears about winter power shortages and possible blackouts. Brian Dames, Eskom's chief executive, has admitted concerns with respect to Medupi and it is clear South Africa is in desperate need of more energy after a decade in which Eskom's pleas for investment in generation capacity were ignored. It has led to renewed calls for a broadening of the energy portfolio to include more flexible energy sources such as renewables. The government is already taking action and in November 2012, it signed the first round of agreements with independent power producers. In total, 28 projects are underway involving an estimated R47 billion in new investments, with those approved in the bid process's second round to turn sod later in the year. The first round projects will see an initial 1,4000 megawatts (MW ) of renewable energy added to SouthAfrica's energy mix by 2014. Bids for a third round have to be placed with the Department of Energy by August 2013. "It is all part of the Department of Energy's Integrated Resource Plan, through which it has planned the transformation of SA's energy mix to 2030," says Jasandra Nyker, CEO of South African independent power producer BioTherm Energy. "We won three projects…
African Minerals
Ore inspiring Africa Outlook looks at iron ore miner African Minerals Ltd's flagship Tonkolili mine in Sierra Leone. Writer Ian Armitage Project manager Ben Weaver Ore owners have described West Africa as the new frontier and the quest for its iron-ore resources has driven a railway and mining boom worth an estimated $25 billion. So many discoveries have been made in the region that it has been described as the new Pilbara, after the massive iron ore fields in Western Australia. Aim-listed African Minerals Ltd's (AML) Tonkolili mine in the Sula Mountain range in Sierra Leone sits on top of one of West Africa's largest iron ore deposits. The firm, founded by entrepreneur Frank Timis as Sierra Leone Diamond Company, spent seven years exploring the deposit before confirming the presence of a world-class magnetite iron ore deposit in 2009. The London based company signed a 99-year lease with the government of Sierra Leone to rehabilitate the 74km 1067mmgauge railway from the port of Pepel to the old mine at Marampa and build a 126km extension to a new iron-ore mine at Tonkolili. It began production just 14 months after the mining permit was issued and the first ore trains ran in November 2011. The second phase "will entail the development of a new purpose built port at Tagrin Point. The new port will have the ability to load Cape Size vessels alongside the quay and avoid the costs of using transhipment vessels. At the mine a new major concentrator will be built, producing 30Mtpa of high…
