FLSmidth is further entrenching its Africa footprint with the opening of a new subsidiary company in Accra, the capital of Ghana.

According to Deon de Kock, FLSmidth country head in South Africa and vice president in Sub-Saharan Africa, the move has been made in response to the company’s critical mass of product in the region, and the strategic goal of being closer to customers.

“We have done business for many decades in West Africa and have a wide network of distributors and agents,” De Kock says. “This exciting development is our next step in enhancing our capacity as productivity partners with this customer base; as a worldwide group we can leverage our global resources and assets, and with the Ghana office can also be more responsive at a local level.”

The new presence in Accra will provide a hub for regional operations as there is already a large installed base not just in Ghana but in other neighbouring countries including Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Mali and possibly also Guinea.

“We are positioning for growth, not only for FLSmidth but for our customers in that area,” De Kock says. “Being closer to users and their sites also means that we can gain more detailed insights into their applications and challenges. This, in turn, sharpens how we conduct our service and support activities, and helps us fine tune the ways that we add value to customers’ operations and contribute to their growth.”

“The office capacity will therefore comprise our own people who will be trained, focused and mentored to expertly represent FLSmidth to our existing and potential customer base,” says De Kock. “This is requiring substantial investment in people, infrastructure and systems, but is a crucial part of re-aligning our direct and indirect service channels to better serve our customers. We appreciate the contribution made by our distributor network up to this point, but we must now take the next step in terms of the natural progression of our growth trajectory.”

With well-known local expert Joseph Appiah Kubi appointed as the general manager, the Accra office will be staffed by Ghanaian nationals. This is in line with the view of FLSmidth that local skills, experience and expertise are vital to ensure a good understanding of customers and local conditions, and to provide optimal service levels. The office is expected to be fully operational by September 2017.

The facility will also be a valuable venue for product and process training for staff and customers, and will provide a well-positioned stop-off point for customers passing through Accra.

“It is clear that there are positive signs of recovery in the minerals sector in West Africa, especially in the gold mining segment,” he says. “We look forward to building up our own brand and in-house resources in this region, and working more closely than ever with customers there.”