BUSINESS AND TRAINING
Expect to see much more of ACO
as it adopts a top down approach
21
By
Eamonn Ryan
ACO Systems South Africa and sub-Sahara Africa welcomes
Ricky Chatburn as its new managing director.
With his strong background in accounting, and having
worked for United Technologies Corporation as sales and
marketing director, looking after Chubb Fire and Security,
Otis and Carrier and in his most recent role of vice
president sub-Sahara Africa at Assa Abloy, he has a wealth
of experience both regionally and in the building sector.
In December 2016, ACO acquired the 30-year-old brand Rofo,
Pass which specialises in the designing and manufacturing
of quality stainless steel drainage systems, stainless steel
fabrication and machining. “The strategy behind this merger was
to combine world expertise with local knowledge, and we have
seen significant growth since,” says Chatburn.
His appointment heralds a shift in strategy by the company in a
number of areas: to work closer with wholesalers; to raise the
company’s visibility; and to grow the African component of its
business. ACO has opened up offices in Kenya and Nigeria in the
past 12 months, as well as appointed various distributors and
agents in various African countries.
“In the past, the company sold predominantly to the end user,
now a bigger focus is on specifications and aligning with the
natural flow of the industry whereby the plumber buys from
the wholesaler, and will find our products there. Our interest
is in creating sustainable drainage solutions and consequently
we want to be involved in the design phase of projects via our
relationships with architects and wet services engineers.
“We have increased our sales force in order to expand our brand
visibility and get closer to customers, and have more show rooms
where we can bring architects and engineers for education tours
of our offerings. Since the merger, we have the full range of
solutions. These include an outside storm water management
system which collects water and releases it slowly into the
environment, providing solutions for various applications such
as airports, harbours and sports fields to name a few. We have
equally appropriate drainage for inside buildings,” says Chatburn.
ACO has also recently turned its eye to the rest of sub-Sahara
Africa, he says, where the biggest problems is the stealing
of manhole covers and the health risk associated with open
channels. “We have a solution in our ‘composite manhole
covers’ made of materials less prone to theft. This is starting
to take off in Africa, and Africa is where we see strong growth
coming from. The continent is rapidly urbanising, creating the
need for our products, especially in the hygienic food drainage
solutions segment.
He also sees an opportunity for growth in another of its products:
grease traps. “Regulation is starting to become a factor in driving
the market in sub-Saharan Africa, and we propose to involve
ourselves with assisting governments in the formulation of
regulations as they relate to hygiene. In many African countries
the sewage still simply flows into the streets or rivers, but it is
increasingly becoming top of mind as an environmental and
health risk to the population. The tremendous growth in the
African population has not been matched by the investment into
sewage and drainage infrastructure, and this affects the health of
the continent both as to the spread of malaria and the fact that
grease and waste disposal into the public sewage systems is the
most common cause of blockages. These areas are bound to
become a greater focus on the continent,” explains Chatburn.
ACO
ACO Systems South Africa and sub-Sahara Africa new
Managing Director Ricky Chatburn.
To assist the plumber and customers, ACO is increasingly offering
‘drainage assessments’ to potential clients keen to improve their
hygiene and drainage solutions before it becomes a problem or
affects the hygiene of a food or beverage producer. PA
September 2020 Volume 26 I Number 07
www.plumbingafrica.co.za