Ken MacLean resigned as CEO of Lafarge South Africa in June 2017 to pursue other interests outside of the Group . MacLean assumed the role of CEO three years ago and has had a 30-year career with the LafargeHolcim Group . MacLean was instrumental in driving and leading the commercial transformation of the company , particularly focusing on Lafarge ’ s route-to-market strategy and the Health and Safety Programme . Alta Theron , general manager of Readymix since 2015 , was appointed interim CEO South Africa from 22 June 2017 . Theron , who joined the company in 2004 , has extensive experience within the industry and Lafarge South Africa . Her previous leadership roles include commercial manager and acting managing director for Ash Resources ( a subsidiary of Lafarge Industries South Africa ) in 2013 , followed by her appointment to country marketing manager .
Sephaku Holdings has released provisional financial results for the year ended 31 March 2017 , revealing a 12.8 % increase in net earnings for the Group ( up from R60.4- million in 2016 to R68.1-million in 2017 ). There was a marginal increase in operating profit , from R84.2-million to R84.7-million , while basic earnings per share increased from 30.00 cents to 33.63 cents and headline earnings per share increased from 29.84 cents to 33.37 cents . Sales revenue for Dangote Cement SA remained relatively flat year-on-year at R2.3-billion despite a 4 % increase in annual sales volumes . The earnings before interest , tax , depreciation , and amortisation ( EBITDA ) margin increased from 22 % ( R505.5-million ) to 23 % ( R527.3-million ), while the operating profit margin increased from 15 % ( R336.9-million ) to 16 % ( R358.4-million ) and net earnings increased by 36.7 %, from R50.4-million to R68.9-million . Subsidiary Métier ’ s net profit increased by 7.3 % from R62.8-million to R67.4-million , despite a decline in revenue of 3.9 %. Operating margin levels remained steady at 12.9 % ( 2016 : 12.7 %), while cost of sales decreased by 5.2 % to R483.7-million and operational expenses by 3.7 % to R250.4-million to support margins . The EBITDA margin decreased from 16 % ( R136.8-million ) to 15 % ( R127.0-million ). Following two years of positive results , Métier submitted a R50-million dividend to Sephaku Holdings and reduced its overall bank debt obligations by R87- million to R215.9-million .
Integrated Pump Rental delivers Sykes pumps to surface mine
Integrated Pump Rental , the official Sykes distributor for southern Africa , sold eight Sykes CP 150 self-priming diesel-driven pumps to one of its surface coal mining customers , following a shortterm rental solution provided to the mine during the rainy season . The trailer-mounted pumps allow the mine to easily move the units to where they are needed on the site . “ Dewatering remains a critical activity in opencast mining operations and we were able to assist this customer at short notice over a weekend ,” says Integrated Pump Rental MD , Lee Vine .
Within hours of having received the request for assistance , Integrated Pump Rental had supplied and installed eight diesel-driven pumps with 2 000m of layflat hose .
“ The Sykes pumps , which were hired out to the mine , were selected because we knew these units would be able to deal with the volume of water that needed to be transferred , and we were confident that the pumps would offer the reliability required ,” Vine says .
The Sykes CP 150 selfpriming diesel-driven pump offers a maximum head of 60m with a flow rate of 172l per second — enough to drain the London 2012 Olympic Swimming Pool in just four hours . It is also capable of handling solids with a particle size of up to 77mm .
The Sykes pumps feature cleverly designed automatic priming capabilities based on a Venturi system , which can deliver suction lifts of up to 9m . The robust construction of the pumps ensures optimum reliability as well as long life , and the pumps are fully automatic priming , allowing the units to run dry for extended periods of time without damage .
Integrated Pump Rental
The Sykes CP 150 self-priming diesel-driven pump offers a maximum head of 60m with a flow rate of 172l per second .
4 _ QUARRY SA | SEPTEMBER 2017