According to national commercial manager Jared Khoury, this integration and investment in a series of improvements have enabled PCS to manufacture all its product lines to the highest specifications to match the quality of imported masterbatches and supply any global market. ‘Black masterbatch production rounds out PCS’s product basket and capabilities, making us the only South African masterbatch company to produce everything locally,’ he reports.
The plant’s technical and quality manager, Theuns van Schalkwyk, adds that the team has doubled production capacity in the past few years by changing its focus from cost to quality-driven output, investing in a state-of-the-art twin-screw extruder and addressing the breakdowns on its older twin-screw extruder through a well-planned maintenance programme, new gearbox plus loading and downstream feeding systems. ‘These upgrades, which consist of hard-wearing German OEM components that can withstand the dusty production environment, have helped us improve capacity and better control the masterbatch pellet size and fines for a higher quality end product.
‘Additionally, we have upgraded the laboratory testing equipment and procedures, and upskilled our technicians to be able to work backwards from our customers’ requirements to formulate the products,’ Theuns explains. ‘Our sales force has also been given more responsibility and intensive training to become technically skilled and answer customer queries directly. This team receives monthly training to keep up to date with any market changes.’
Jared notes that these cultural and operational changes were vital because converting customers and brand owners are implementing Industry 4.0 processes such as automated feeding systems, which demand constant production without any fluctuations in pellet size. ‘To keep up with these growing volumes and tougher customer requirements, our masterbatch products need to be better,’ he states. ‘We’ve already achieved half of our five-year goals within the first year and increased the delivery fleet from four to 14 vehicles to ensure that we can respond quicker to customers’ needs via same-day deliveries.’
Jared points out that further benefits of locally produced black masterbatch over imported products is that customers don’t have to worry about container shortages, delays or freight cost increases.
‘PCS’s quality-driven approach means that we can now compete with global players such as Hubron and Cabbott, and export our black masterbatch to any market,’ he asserts.
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