Sanral has signed an MoU with equipment supplier Pilot Crushtec to promote transformation and empowerment in South Africa.

The barriers to entry for newcomers in the roads sector are restrictive due to high cost of capital equipment and lack of expertise within the field. The motivation behind this new MoU is to give small to medium enterprises access to expertise and machinery required to tender and execute major Sanral projects.

“It is our intention, with MoU’s like this, to open up the industry to new participants and remove many of the barriers that prevent companies owned by black people, women and youth entrepreneurs and other designated groups to compete effectively against the entrenched players in the construction sector,” says Sanral CEO Skhumbuzo Macozoma.

Macozoma says the partnership is proof that Sanral’s efforts to transform the sector and promote fair competition are delivering results. “Lack of access to sophisticated machinery and equipment is a major barrier for small contractors and prevents them for participation in large tenders. By working together with established companies, we can remove these barriers and enable black-owned companies and enterprises owned by women and the youth to participate on a level playing field. This step will, no doubt, have a ripple effect within the construction and engineering industries and also benefit job creation within local communities where smaller enterprises now become part of the supply chains on larger projects.”

The MoU will deliver a number of benefits to Pilot Crushtec, Sanral, new contractors and the industry at large.

“Giving us access to young, up and coming contractors, who will get a chance to learn from our experience, is just the beginning. We will also be able to educate new contractors on how to produce the best quality road aggregates which will, by extension, improve roads across the country,” says Pilot Crushtec sales and marketing director Francois Marais.

“It is our hope that, by collaborating on issues of financing, buy- back options, training of small contractor’s asset management and utilisation of crushing and screening machinery equipment, we can ensure a vibrant, robust industry for many years to come,” concludes Marais.