Manufacturer of motor control centres and various other electrical panels Shaw Controls, part of the Zest WEG group, has invested R5-million in a full-scale companywide expansion project that will see its processes and systems streamlined across the board.

“[The year] 2011 has been a real milestone year for Shaw Controls. We have now set our sights firmly on becoming South Africa’s preferred motor control centre and container substation manufacturer,” says MD Bevan Richards.

He adds that the upgrades the company is implementing during 2011 and 2012 are part of a five-year growth strategy designed to take Shaw Controls forward and position the company to take advantage of the expected increased demand in its market over the next few years.

The company has steadily acquired several properties adjacent to its original site in Robertsham, south of Johannes- burg, and work is under way to incorporate all the new properties into a single 10 000 m2 site.

The upgrades include the construction of a new office block complex to accommodate the company’s burgeoning staff complement.

“Shaw Controls is also excited about our new 1 000 m2 in-house container conversion yard that will put us at the forefront of container conversions on the continent,” says Richards.

The company has bought a 25 t overhead crane for this dedicated facility, which will also have fully equipped workshops. The crane will make it easier to manoeuvre containers around the yard, which will reduce lead times by as much as 25%.

Having a dedicated facility will make it possible to conduct preliminary preparation work on stock containers, allowing us to expedite new orders.

“Container substations are in big demand by companies operating throughout Africa and we are now in a position to tap into this potentially huge market,” he says.

Shaw Controls’ sheet metal factory is also undergoing a major upgrade that includes the com- missioning of two additional computer numerically controlled machines.

Further improvements to sheet metal production capability include a new seven-stage powder coating pretreatment plant and a new powder coating facility with a gas-fired oven.

“In terms of sheet metal production, the company has conducted a complete process review and the upgraded facilities will be configured to speed up processes, increase capacity and streamline the entire flow of the manufacturing process,” says Richards.

By the end of the upgrade, Shaw Controls will have established a sheet metal storage facility with preassembly and predispatch areas and will have enough space to set up a stockholding of pre- assembled sheet metal.

All the upgrades are scheduled for completion by the end of the year.

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