8 NEWS
Geberit celebrates 150 years
By
Tanya Olckers
Back in 1874 , Geberit emerged in Switzerland as a one-man business . Today the company employs more than 10 000 people and has operations in 26 production facilities .
Geberit South Africa started off their anniversary celebrations with an event held at the Galleria in Sandton . Two further glitzy events took place in both Durban and Cape Town in July and September respectively . We spoke to some of the Geberit stalwarts who were there when the company landed in South Africa .
Scott Parnell “ During this period I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity by Gerhard to launch a new product into the South African market through Plumblink . Plumblink at that time had the agency for Geberit in South Africa . So essentially I was responsible to create a market in South Africa .
I was involved with the importing of product , specifying of products , demonstrations , training , designs and of course , sales . This was done on a national basis .
Image supplied by Geberit
Durban celebrations .
During this period I was also fortunate to work with influential Plumbing consultants , architects , building inspectors , QS and of course Plumbing contractors . Steve Franklin , Gavin Pereira , Vollie Brink , Howard Griffiths , Africon come to mind .
Plumbgold , Industrial Plumbers , Modern Plumbing , Bohler Plumbing , WBHO were all the old players at that time .
A couple of projects that stand out for me which are still landmarks in South Africa are as follows include Monte Casino and Vodaworld Midrand .
This opportunity gave me insight as to how an international company operates , which I have taken with me during my career .
Image supplied by Geberit
Guests in Durban gather .
“ It has also been a privilege to see how Geberit has grown over the past three decades .”
It has also been a privilege to see how Geberit has grown over the past three decades and it makes me proud to know that I had a small part to play with the success . It was once again an honour to attend the 150 th Year celebration of Geberit and a true testament of an incredible organisation .”
Mark Schurr “ When I started 25 years ago , most of the Geberit product ranges were largely unknown . Since then , we have witnessed significant market development with respect to all our product ranges , due to the dedicated efforts of all our colleagues over the years . Our industry partners have also played a huge roll in our success , and as a result many of our initially unknown products are now household names .
Being part of such an innovative company has been a privilege , and a challenge , as we continue to embrace the changing world we live in .
www . plumbingafrica . co . za @ plumbingonline @ plumbingonline @ PlumbingAfricaOnline September 2024 Volume 30 I Number 7