BUSINESS
and provide cost savings for the customer.
Furthermore, he announced the introduction
of telematics, or DEMS (Data-Enabled Mining
Solutions), which remotely monitors the vital
statistics and performance of an engine.
“Through DEMS, we will be able to
offer customers early warnings of potential
engine downtime and just-in-time repair,
which will optimise component life
expectancy and, in so doing, reduce the
total cost of ownership,” explained Kuhn.
“Customers will also be able to make use of
the technology to optimise engine availability
while minimising engine downtime, allowing
them to remain operation focused rather
than spending time on engine maintenance.”
Power generation
On the power generation front, Cummins
Southern Africa has identified two primary
growth segments, according to power
generation lead Robin Kuriakose, namely
data centres and telecommunications, and
mining. “We intend to intensify our resources
in these two segments to encourage growth
for the next three years or so,” said Kuriakose.
“This means that we will focus our resources
in terms of sales, marketing, and support
on these two segments to ensure that we
fully support our South African customers,
as well as the global customers that will be
participating in the southern African region.”
Kuriakose also spoke about the
C3750 genset, which will be installed and
commissioned in mid-2018. “The C3750 unit
is powered by our 95ℓ QSK95 engine. It is
the largest single-unit genset in Cummins’
portfolio, and few competitors have units of
this size. This unit is going to be installed in a
very remote area in Mozambique for a high-
profile utility installation. The remoteness of
the installation has raised some interesting
challenges that we have had to overcome,
including getting the unit to Mozambique,
ensuring that the roads along the selected
route are built for heavy haulage, installing the
unit once we have it on site, and ensuring that
all of the resources needed for installation and
commissioning are available on site.”
Moving forward
Pimi concluded the event by reiterating
the day’s positive message. “Cummins
Southern Africa is totally committed to the
African continent and will continue to grow
our business and develop new solutions for
our customers. We have full confidence in
the market as current political developments
drive predominantly pro-business and pro-
regulatory reforms in South Africa, Zimbabwe,
and Angola, and we anticipate an improved
relationship between the business community
and the new South African government,
which we are confident will lead to a swifter
resolution of the Mining Charter dispute and
increased investment in the country.
“We will continue to drive a culture of
excellence in our business performance, while
working as a cohesive team and living our
core values of diversity and inclusion. It is our
vision for southern Africa to continually exceed
our client expectations through world-class
professionalism from a diverse and highly
motivated team. We are enthusiastic and
optimistic about this year as we see a positive
business environment that has assured
customers, improved investor confidence,
and accelerated business growth in southern
Africa. I am confident that 2018 will be
another great year and that we will continue to
innovate to power our customers’ success.” ■
MAY 2018
13