African success revs for auto firm

By Li Lianxing (China Daily) Updated: 2014-04-15 07:15

Concrete 4 U, a South African construction company and one of the contractors that built the 2010 World Cup football stadiums, said its association with FAW gave it the confidence to execute major and complex construction projects. "We have a fleet of more than 13 FAW vehicles, including mixer trucks," said Deon Fourie, managing director of Concrete 4 U.

He said his company will continue to work with FAW to bring more efficient and cost-effective construction technologies to South Africa.

"Our return on investment from the FAW vehicles has been excellent.

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The vehicles have performed exceedingly well on all parameters. We have recently ordered another five vehicles from the company," Fourie said. "The company's decision to start manufacturing trucks locally at Coega will help us further as it will lead to speedy deliveries."

With more South Africans now looking for products that can save costs, FAW will have an advantage over other companies because of lower prices and simpler maintenance procedures, said Zhang Cheng, FAW's marketing manager in South Africa.

"We have been in South Africa for 20 years, and we have learned many lessons in this market," Zhang said. "We don't import vehicles from China directly but make relevant adjustments depending on customer requirements."

Local regulations, climate and driving habits are different from those in China, so it is important for vehicle makers to make products that suit local conditions, he said.

As the company is expanding quickly in Africa, quality of products and better management capability will be the key focus areas.

"It was not an issue for us to run a company when it had just 100 employees a decade ago. It is also not a problem for us to manage a huge company (FAW) back in China. But the new plant will be a major challenge for us, as it will employ people from different cultural backgrounds. We expect to have about 500 employees when the factory is completed in July," Zhang said.

Maylee Harris, a 34-year-old working with FAW South Africa, said she has learned several new interesting things, such as the Chinese system of management.

"It's actually not just a matter of communication but the learning of a different style of management. There are several things that both of us can learn from one another," Harris said.

Internationalization and localization have to be the future directions for Chinese companies in Africa, Hao of AIC said, adding that an information-oriented management system and a better-synchronized cultural atmosphere will bring additional benefits.