Housing in Southern Africa

November 2015

Xylem South Africa opened its new pump rental hub – the largest of

its kind on the African continent - in Kempton Park, Johannesburg

during October.

art of Xylem Inc global wa-

ter solutions provider Xylem

South Africa’s new purpose-

built facility will expand Xylem’s

global investment into emerging

markets and rental development in

Africa. The hub offers customers ease

of access and greater affordability to

world-class pump rental solutions.

ver the past few years Xylem

South Africa has positioned itself

as the go-to company for pumping

solutions. The company operates

within the entire water cycle and

is deeply entrenched as a trusted

name in the construction; municipal

and residential sectors. Branches

currently service clients in Gauteng;

North-West; Western Cape; Limpopo;

Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga.

Rental Manager at Xylem South

Africa, Dirk Bekker said: “We saw a

greater need for tailor-made rental

solutions developing in South Af-

rica and its neighbouring countries.

“There are many benefits to rental

solutions. Clients can focus on core

business; scale their fleet and only

pay for the equipment and services

they need, which will minimise op-

erating costs. Xylem designs, builds,

tests and rents the equipment. We

Largest pump rental hub in Africa

will always select the right solution

to meet our clients’ requirements.

Rentals can assist clients in reducing

capital expenditure while still retain-

ing access to top of the range of lead-

ing pump brands,” he adds.

Flexibility and adaptability is key

with the Rental Hub – the knowl-

edgeable and experienced technical

specialists at the hub are able to pro-

vide solid technical advice and com-

prehensive maintenance strategies.

“This will ultimately result in less

down-time and higher productivity

for clients. Coupled with the costs

saved on initial capital layout on

pumps or related systems – the sky is

the limit for our customers. We place

great value on providing the best

solutions for businesses that place

their trust in us,” said Bekker.

With the rental hub ready to ser-

vice both Southern Africa and the

wider African continent. Xylem is set

to assist in addressing this concern

through its constant technical devel-

opments and through investment

into its areas of operation.

For more information on Xy-

lem South Africa’s Rental Hub

contact 0861 7867 4473 or visit

www.xylemwatersolutions.com

■

ith the downturn in the

building and construction

industry, many contractors

are facing difficult business condi-

tions, and even financial distress.

The cidb is closely monitoring the

sustainability of small and medium-

sized contractors, and the changes

in the underlying constraints to the

sustainability of contractors.

The cidb SME Business Conditions

Surveymeasures business conditions

for contractors registered in cidb

Grades 3 to 8, and is undertaken by

the Bureau for Economic Research

(BER) for the cidb.

Business confidence amongst

general building and civil engineering

remains low at 50%, representing an

industry in distress. However, on a

positive note, business confidence in

the contracting sector shows a mod-

est but positive increase over the past

three years.

The cidb survey identifies that

the largest constraint to enterprise

growth remains insufficient demand

for construction works, but that this

is easing slightly.

Contractors report that access to

skilled labour is becoming a signifi-

cant constraint to business growth.

The shortage of skills is also driving

up the cost of labour resulting in de-

creased profit margins for small and

medium contractors. MInba Thumbi-

ran, Acting CEOof the cidb, notes that

small and medium size emerging

contractors are likely to be bearing

the brunt of these skills shortages,

and are least able to attract and train

skilled labour. A healthy SME sector is

crucial to the health of the building

and construction industry and to the

transformation of the industry. While

business conditions are improving, it

is a concern that the impact of skills

shortages on the sustainability of

SMEs is becoming more visible.

The cidb is looking at ways of in-

creasing skilled labour in the industry.

This includes the cidb Standard for

Developing Skills on Construction

Works Contracts, which was pub-

lished in 2013 and provides for skills

development on construction works

contracts.

■

Lack of access to skills and credit

Dirk Bekker

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