MechChem Africa September-October 2023

ABB invests in local MV switchgear manufacturing To bring smart medium voltage (MV) switchgear closer to local customers while creating long-term job opportunities for engineering graduates, ABB has added the local manufacture of UniGear ZS1 medium voltage (MV) switchgear to its South African Longmeadow facility.

A s part of ABB’s strategic plans to strengthen local manufacturing, the company has invested over R10 million to complete additional technology transfer that brings the manufac ture of UniGear ZS1 medium voltage (MV) switchgear to South Africa. Previously, the product was fully import ed from the Czech Republic or other coun tries when needed. Due to the investment, 60% to 70% of the technology will be locally manufactured and assembled. As a result, the company’s customers will benefit from better design flexibility, faster accessibility, and decreased costs due to reduced import costs and shorter delivery times. “The size of the South African switchgear market is projected to register growth. The increasing number of investments in sustain able power generation, coupled with the growing population, is expected to drive the growth of the market. This illustrates the importance of the domestic sector to multinationals and the strategic location of South Africa to a rapidly growing African consumer market,” says Yunus Hoosen, Head of InvestSA, an agency of the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition. ABB’s

Longmeadow campus in Modderfontein, Johannesburg spans 43 520 m2 and contains offices, manufacturing, and logistics centres. The upgraded Distribution Solutions factory on the campus where the UniGear ZS1 MV switchgear will be manufactured now em ploys around 120 people, ten of whom have been newly employed due to this investment. ABB plans to increase these numbers by employing more permanent engineers, contractors, and graduates – for example, through its graduate programme, in which over 70 graduates are currently participat ing. In this way, ABB South Africa is playing its part by creating jobs in a country with one of the highest unemployment rates in the world. In addition to the transfer of UniGear ZS1 production, the company has started the process of increasing the localisation of its Compact Secondary Substations (CSS), due to be completed in October 2023. Egon Worthmann, MV primary air in sulated switchgear (AIS) manager for ABB Electrification’s Distribution Solutions division, says: “Utilities are increasingly looking to implement smart solutions to solve complex energy challenges. ABB is now

Egon Worthmann, MV and primary AIS switchgear manager for ABB Electrification Distribution Solutions.

well placed to continue to deliver world class solutions to customers through local manufacturing right here in South Africa. The creation of job opportunities for local engineers and contractors demonstrates our commitment to the long-term development of the country.” Built in 2009, ABB South Africa’s head quarters demonstrates the company’s early adoption of more sustainable manufactur ing approaches, with the site boasting a 760 kWp array of rooftop solar panels that generate enough solar energy to cover around 30% of the site’s annual energy con sumption of 2 400 MWh. Says InvestSA’s Yunus Hoosen: “The ABB investment further signifies that South Africa remains an attractive investment destination across all sectors, including the Advanced Manufacturing sector. InvestSA remains ready and committed to assist foreign and domestic investors in realising their investment in South Africa, more so with localisation a key part of economic reconstruction and recovery.” ABB’s Distribution Solutions factory in the company’s Longmeadow facility services customers in South Africa and other sub Saharan countries. www.abb.com Yunus Hoosen head of InvestSA, an agency of South Africa’s department of trade industry and competition.

With InvestSA’s Yunus Hoosen, at the opening of the upgraded ABB Distribution Solutions factory where the UniGear ZS1 MV switchgear will be manufactured, are ABB graduates, from left: Momelezi Sifumba; Njabulo Mgaga; Glodia Mokemane; and Anela Made (far right).

30 ¦ MechChem Africa • September-October 2023