Construction World December 2017

MARKETPLACE

FOR SCANIA ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL The South African Forum for Civil Engineering Contractors (SAFCEC) states in its report, State of the South African Civil Engineering Industry that although the world economy gained some momentum in second quarter of 2017, economic performance amongst emerging economies has remained mixed. This continues the trend that has seen the South African construction industry in a steady or declining state for the last few years.

more. It is the customer’s success that makes us successful.” Theuns Naude, Segment manager, Construction at Scania South Africa explains that the only way to ensure the customer’s success is to offer Solution Based Offerings. “We have to get to know the customer’s business: where the vehicle will operate will determine the right specification, and this will in turn optimise the vehicle for the specific application.” Taftman elaborates: “It is a matter of truly understanding the customer’s challenges after which you tailor the solution to his/her needs.” He explains that if the ‘one size fits all approach’ is used, the solution will most likely create waste. “The vehicle or body may be under-specced in relation to the job it is doing, or the incorrect service and support package may be in place. This may lead to unscheduled downtime, increasing repair & maintenance costs eventually influence the bottom line in a negative way. If the vehicle is over- specced, it may not break, but it will be too heavy and this will affect the payload while the customer will pay too much for repair & maintenance and insurance. “It is like the sweet spot on a gold club – you need to find this spot for every operation,” explains Taftman.

The South African Forum for Civil Engineering Contractors (SAFCEC) states in its report, State of the South African Civil Engineering Industry that although the world economy gained some momentum in second quarter of 2017, economic performance amongst emerging economies has remained mixed. This continues the trend that has seen the South African construction industry in a steady or declining state for the last few years. Not just numbers In stark contrast to this, Scania South Africa, that relaunched its range of construction vehicles to the local market in 2015, has seen unprecedented growth in sales numbers, more than doubling the number of vehicles sold year on year,

increasing its market share in this segment. One has to ask how this is possible in a depressed market. “We have been contributing something new to the market with our solutions based offerings,” says Alexander Taftman, Scania South Africa GM Product & Marketing about the reason for this upwards trend. Taftman says that although sales numbers are a measure of success, Scania measures success based on customer satisfaction. “In the end that is what counts. If we can provide something to the market that gives added value to the customers and makes them more profitable, efficient and cost-efficient, then we are successful. He adds that Scania, like all OEMs, is in the market to be successful. “But Scania aims to provide something

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CONSTRUCTION WORLD DECEMBER 2017