Name of the Project
Corobrik megafactory.

Location
The megafactory will be located adjacent to Corobrik’s Driefontein factory in Gauteng, South Africa.

Project Owner/s
Corobrik.

Project Description
The megafactory is part of a wider capital investment programme to upgrade and expand the company’s manufacturing facilities in South Africa.

The new factory will produce 100 000 bricks a year and double the capacity of the existing Driefontein facility using one-third of the energy at a much higher quality, with more flexibility to produce bricks of different sizes.

The new operation will not produce any waste. Once the new facility is operational, the redundant 30-year-old facility will be shut down and demolished.

Potential Job Creation
About 1 000 jobs have been created during the construction of Driefontein, with a further 60 permanent positions to be created as the factory comes on stream. 

Thirty members of the local community have been trained and employed to lay bricks during construction, providing them with a marketable skill going forward. 

Capital Expenditure
The project will cost an estimated R800-million to implement.

Planned Start/End Date
The project is scheduled for commissioning in 2020.

Latest Developments
Corobrik has invested R550-million in its new Driefontein plant to date and will inject a further R250-million into the project during 2020. 

The Driefontein facility, which is the largest and most environmentally friendly facility of its kind in Africa, is looking “extremely impressive” after the exterior of the plant has been completed.

The first kiln and drier are complete and construction of a second kiln and drier is well under way. The clay preparation machinery and extruders are also in place, while the installation of the cutting, wet packaging and dehacking machinery has also started.

“Next year, we intend to start commissioning the first kiln and drier and, from January onwards, we will be doing dry runs. From September onwards, we will be dry commissioning our second kiln and drier. The idea is to be in full production by November,” Corobrik CEO Dirk Meyer has said.

He has said that the project, which has gone extremely smoothly, has been largely financed from the essentially debt-free company’s balance sheet. 

“What is particularly important about this project is that, while we are using German intellectual property, most of the building and construction are being done by South African companies.” 

The Driefontein factory will generate at least 20% of its electricity needs from renewable resources. Natural gas consumption for the kilns will be reduced by at least two thirds and the carbon footprints of both kilns will be substantially reduced.

An additional R200-million will also see the company building a new manufacturing facility to the north of Durban, in KwaZulu-Natal, to augment production at its current plant.

Design work for the new factory has already been completed and negotiations are under way to acquire land for the new operation. 

As soon as the Driefontein plant has started, work will begin on the new KwaZulu-Natal plant, which will take about a year to complete and is likely to be in production by 2022.  

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Keller Group (technology).

On Budget and on Time?
Meyer has said that the project will be delivered within budget and on time.

Contact Details for Project Information
Corobrik, tel +27 11 871 8600, fax +27 11 871 8610/11 or email +27 11 871 8815 or email info@corobrik.co.za.