Capital Equipment News March 2018

were impressed by the fact that they appreciate the challenges they have. They speak honestly about these challenges and acknowledge the need to tackle them to create a thriving environment for investments. For example, currency is still a big challenge, while perception is also a huge impediment to immediate investment potential. MS: With these challenges, how are you going to approach the Zimbabwean market? RN: While a lot still needs to be done to get the country back to its old best, we want to take an early initiative to position ourselves ahead of the market comeback. We already have a great understanding of the market as Zimbabwe used to be a country where we manufactured our engines back in the 80s and early 90s. We had huge facilities there and had to scale down at some point due to the economic and political situation. However, we feel it’s the right time to put the resources in place to set ourselves up for the promising growth. We are, however, cautious in our approach and we are also aware that it will take time before the country returns to its old best. The turnaround will not happen tomorrow, but we want to make sure that when the market opens up and when our partners come in full swing, they will find us ready and waiting for them. So, building our resource capability is going to be a priority for Zimbabwe this year, especially from a parts and service perspective for the existing customer base and new partners who are already filtering in. MS: Do you still have a footprint in Zimbabwe? RN: We have an existing office in Harare and a number of dealers. We actually have our own Cummins entity in the capital, which had scaled down over the years. We want to expand in Zimbabwe and we see opportunity in a diversified number of sectors, including mining, power generation and filtration, as well as parts and service. Mozambique, operating out of Tete for the past five years, but mainly supporting our big mining customer in the area, Vale Mine. However, we see great opportunity to diversify and expand our market share into both oil & gas and power generation. Mozambique is such a huge country and there is also scope for us to expand into other territories, such as the capital, Maputo. We have resources MS: What about Mozambique? RN: We have had a presence in

on the ground, with an existing dealer, Comserve, already supporting our power generation business in Maputo. We have already seen great signs of growth in the country. For example, in the third or fourth quarter of this year, we are due to deliver the largest Cummins engine, the QSK95, in Cahora Bassa for a power generation project. This will be the first QSK95 to be delivered in sub-Saharan Africa. To reiterate the importance of this market, we are also in the process of recruiting a country general manager. RN: There are some low hanging fruits we want to pick in these two markets. Mauritius is a favourable investment destination. We are watching the port expansion in Pt. Louis closely and hope to deliver yet another QSK95 there. We also see great potential for our filtration business, given our flexibility to cater for non-applied products. We also have potential for mining in Madagascar, and a bit of marine up north of the country. Filtration, parts and service will also be key growth areas in the country. We already have some channel partners in both countries, who are doing a good job, but we will be focusing on further capacitating them this year. We will identify the resources they need to be able to better support our customers, all the way from training, tooling to new technologies. MS: What sort of opportunity do you see in Mauritius and Madagascar? MS: On a broader scale, what is your outlook for the year ahead? RN: Parts and service remains a big venture for us. Selling our engines into the market is one thing, but being able to offer the much-needed aftersales support, is quite another. We are well placed to support our customers in all the 12 countries, either through our own facilities or channel partners, and we will further pull resources to better our service offering. We also see significant opportunity in Angola this year, following the new political dispensation and gradually improving oil prices. Power generation, marine and aftermarket are key focus areas in that country. We are also excited by prospects of a market rebound in South Africa, especially in mining and aftermarket support. The country also remains a great launch pad into the rest of Southern Africa. We also seek to support our automotive customers, especially into Southern Africa, where there is a big second market for products that are being disposed out of South Africa. b

WHO IS RACHEAL NJOROGE?

entails the selection of our channel partners and making sure that they are well equipped to serve our customers. I also look after Cummins Southern Africa’s Commercial Projects. For example, I am responsible for our new flagship facility at Waterfall City, which is set to be commissioned in December this year. MS: Where do you see prospects of growth this year, and what are the potential business drivers? RN: I am mostly excited about four countries this year, which we have identified as key target areas for further diversification and business growth. These are Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and the two islands of Mauritius and Madagascar. A new political landscape in Zimbabwe will likely usher in a new economic era. The Zimbabwean government is driving the much-needed regulatory reforms to create a pro- business environment. Having recently visited the country in February, we have full confidence in the market. During our engagement with Zimbabwean government officials, we Racheal has been with Cummins for 12 years now, having started in 2006 as an intern at the global head office in Columbus, Indiana, United States. After completing her high school in her native Kenya, she went on to study for her tertiary qualifications in the US. She did a double major in Information Systems and Business Administration for her undergrad and an MBA with a concentration on Entrepreneurship. She chose Entrepreneurship because she wanted to play a part in the growth of Africa. Her journey to giving back to Africa was set in motion when she was offered a permanent job at Cummins right after the internship, where she eventually formed part of the African team that was tasked with setting up the engine maker’s African strategy. With her IT background, she worked in various IT roles for the first five years of her Cummins career. She eventually came back to Africa in 2011 to set up the company’s IT department on the continent. She headed that department for two years, before she assumed a new role – which she kept for three years – which entailed setting up of various business entities across the continent via a project management office, including management of facilities and real estate for the whole continent. Having had great exposure sitting on the leadership board for the continent, she was eventually appointed the Director of Operations, effective January 2017.

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