equipment
THIS WAS SAID BY
Gary Bell, CEO of Bell
Equipment, officially opening the second
Public-Private Infrastructure Forum in Johan-
nesburg recently. Bell Equipment is the main
sponsor of the forum.
“We would like to pay tribute to the
President of South Africa for driving the
Presidential InfrastructureCoordinatingCom-
mission (PICC) with its 18 strategic integrated
projects that will cost somewhere in the order
of R4-trillion,” he went on to say. “These are
overarching projects that have up to 20-year
project life cycles as opposed to the typical
five-year projects designed to coincide with
election cycles.
“Colleagues, we would know that infra-
structure drives growth and development
as it lays the foundation on which the indus-
trial activities and economy of the nation
takes place.”
According to Bell, his company has
closely followed thework of the PICC since its
establishment and is excited by the possibili-
ties it represents.
The further possibilities created by the
work of the National Planning Commission
coupled with the evolution of the National
Development Plant and the Industrial Policy
Action, could see South Africa becoming a
global powerhouse.
“The New Growth Path (NGP) is an
ambitious plan designed to enhance growth,
employment creation and equity and we
fully subscribe to its strategic objectives,”
he added.
“Bell Equipment from its humble origins
in Empangeni in 1954 has managed to grow
its business and now supports and sustains
more than 3 500 quality direct jobs world-
wide and somewhere near 10 times that,
through our multiplier effect. Support from
government and its various programmes has
assisted this growth.
“We see the infrastructure programme
as promoting broader industrialisation of
the economy, through the use of locally
manufactured components and supplies. In
this context infrastructure must also drive
skills formation, particularly in critical areas
such as engineers, artisans and technicians.
"As the only sizeable local manufac-
turer and distributor of mining, construction,
agriculture and infrastructure equipment
necessary for these projects, we reaffirm
our pledge to support there various govern-
ment programmes.”
Bell emphasised that his company had invest-
edheavily in the SouthAfricanmanufacturing
sector and boasts an industry-leading 24 Cus-
tomer Service Centres with 30 more spread
across the rest of the African continent.
“The test of our effectiveness will be
how well we can coordinate and integrate
our work and the different elements of the
Infrastructure Plan,” he said. “This means
addressing capacity constraints in the state,
promoting wider partnerships in the society
and improving coordination.
“Our government is helping to build
infrastructure that will create opportunities
for South African companies such as Bell
Equipment to expand trade and investment
across our borders. As an example, the
Development Bank of South Africa and the
Industrial Development Corporation are ac-
celerating investment into the SADC region
and are supporting infrastructure projects in
numerous countries, particularly in the key ar-
eas of electricity generation and transmission,
and in strengthening road links in the region.”
These, according to Bell, are sectors in
which Bell Equipment has a direct and vested
interest. “We have no doubt that as Africans
working together we can build a brighter
future for all our people,”he said.
●
August 2013
CONSTRUCTION WORLD
63
Bullish about
infrastructure initiatives
Bell Equipment, as the largest manufacturer of infrastructure equipment
on the African continent, felt it was important to answer the South
African government’s call for strategic partnerships.
Gary Bell, CEO of Bell Equipment.
