NEWS
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
arine Refrigeration Engineering
(MRE) is opening a branch in
Mauritius to increase its footprint
into Africa. We chat to managing
director and founder, Dennis van der
Westhuizen, to find out more about
where the company has come from and
where it is headed.
1. Take us through MRE’s company history
and growth to where it is today.
Dennis van der Westhuizen (DVW): MRE
started on 1 April 1995. It was the year of
South Africa’s first Rugby World Cup win. Our
first office was in the Cape Town harbour.
Tri Ocean shipping rented us an office that
was approximately 4 × 4m and we used Tri
Ocean’s switchboard and receptionist.
Initially, for the first six months, MRE only
consisted of myself, a welder/fitter, and two
labourers.
The first big contract we landed was
with Stellenbosch Farmers Winery. The
engineer, Francois Naude, entrusted us with
this project — a huge thank you to him for
getting our journey started.
Sandro Bicarri and Chris Mangnall joined
MRE on 1 October 1995. With them came
instant growth.
In 1996, we purchased our first property in
Montague Gardens and moved our offices
there. Our steady growth continued and in
2001 we opened MRE Gauteng. In 2013, we
opened MRE KwaZulu-Natal and recently,
two more branches were added: Port
Elizabeth and Worcester.
MRE currently employs over 100
permanent staff members countrywide.
During busy times, we employ approximately
100 subcontractors. In addition to that, we
have a number of suppliers whom have
benefited from MRE’s growth and hence,
more job opportunities.
Our growth has been based on
understanding the importance of employing
the correct people and ensuring that your
staff are looked after. At MRE, we know
that there are a number of companies that
can do what we can do. But we strive to
differentiate ourselves from others by the
service we provide our clients. We are by no
means perfect but we always keep working
on improving what we do.
We spend time and money on training
our staff. We constantly have training
programmes running for everyone, from
the welders to the service technicians and
administrative staff.
We believe in investing in the future. MRE
currently employs seven young engineers
whom we are training. We are of the opinion
that we are the only industrial refrigeration
company doing this. We have a succession
plan in place, which will allow the company
to function the same or even better after
the original founders have moved on. This
is a very important aspect and a lot of my
time is being spent on this. This is good for the
industry, our client base, and our staff.
2. What are some company highlights
(including projects) that stand out over
the years?
DVW: There are simply too many highlights to
record here. Obviously, the first big contract
that we got from Stellenbosch Farmers
Winery was certainly one of the highlights.
Every repeat order we get from a client
is a highlight for us. We take repeat orders
as an indication that our client is happy with
what we have done. We always strive to
have a happy client. The only way we can
expect to get repeat orders is to ensure that
we execute the existing one correctly.
3. What are the capabilities of MRE?
DVW: In a nutshell, MRE’s capabilities are the
design, supply, installation, commissioning,
and servicing of industrial refrigeration
plants.
We believe that MRE is a leader in the
South African refrigeration marketplace
with all of the above aspects. Our design
knowledge and experience are covered
by a number of qualified and experienced
engineers whom collectively have well over
100 years’ experience. We all have both
theoretical knowledge as well as practical
experience; this is the advantage we give
to our clients for whom we do direct design
and supply work.
A huge amount of time and effort have
gone into building a strong, knowledgeable
service department. We currently have
approximately 20 technicians and vehicles
on the road and we offer our client service
24/7, 365 days a year. Whilst not desirable,
it is not uncommon for us to work even on
Christmas Day!
4. You are now moving into Africa with the
opening of your Mauritius branch. Why
do you see this as a good move and
what do you think the potential of this
office is?
DVW: Firstly, this is not a new move into
Africa. MRE has worked in Africa for
over 20 years. We have gained a lot of
experience and knowledge as to how to
work successfully in Africa. We believe that
by opening as MRE Africa, we will then
have this company focus more on the
African marketplace, which will lead to
further growth of the group. It will also allow
the existing companies to concentrate on
their own regions without the distraction of
African projects.
MRE takes it to the
next level in Africa
M
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1. Dennis van der Westhuizen (right) and
Sandro Biccari (left) of MRE about 20
years ago, just when MRE was first started.
2. The older generation Sullair compressor
plant room with a new Mycom
compressor retrofitted-centre
compressor.
3. The new Mycom compressor being set
up by an MRE technician.
4. The original MRE compressor packing
with the dark blue colour scheme.
COLD LINK AFRICA • March/April 2019
www.coldlinkafrica.co.za
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