With an uptick in South Africa’s road maintenance programme, there is growing pressure on crushing plants to perform productively, and this means quality aftermarket support.
For Stephen Smith, Managing Member of S&R Enterprises, quality support is the key to meeting daily customer demands while ensuring the lowest total cost of ownership. Active as a crusher specialist for more than 12 years, Centurion-based S&R Enterprises was recently appointed as a distributor for Sandvik Rock Processing.
Smith, who has over 20 years of experience in the sector, says the agreement focuses on stationery and mobile crushing and screening equipment – focused on the aggregate and construction segments. He argues that a significant hurdle facing South Africa's road construction projects is the distance between work sites and established quarries.
“Many of these roads are in rural areas, far from cities or established quarries,” he explains. “In these scenarios, you don’t have the luxury of transporting aggregate over long distances. You need to take the plant to the closest material deposit available to the site.”
This makes mobile crushing units indispensable, he notes. Their ability to be deployed directly at the project location, mobile crushers eliminate the need for long haul transport of materials, saving on time and costs. At the same time, he says, contractors and operators need high levels of support in remote locations, so their equipment choice has to prioritise the capability of OEMs.
“Aftermarket services are not just an add-on but a critical element of sustaining operational efficiency and customer satisfaction,” says Smith. “This means that if a quarry or on-site crusher needs a part today, we must deliver it today – whether we source it or have it in stock. The customer must be up and running again quickly.”
This hands-on and responsive approach is what sets his business apart, he argues, and it is suited to the distinct demands of aggregates quarrying operations. Whereas mining operations usually have larger machines and more structured maintenance planning, the aggregate-producing segment often has more urgent requirements to keep production running.
“Experience makes a big difference to the support and technical services we offer,” he says. “Our aftermarket sales team includes people with more than 10 years in this field, and among our technical staff are employees with 35 years of experience.”
At the same time, the company nurtures skills from scratch in their rebuild centre, taking on young trainees who learn from highly knowledgeable artisans. By the time an employee is sent out to serve a customer, therefore, they are well-versed in all technical aspects of the equipment.
Smith highlights proper training as being vital to operational excellence and safety. A key challenge that he has experienced in this segment is a lack of adequately trained operators who are familiar with all aspects of new machinery. To address this, he emphasises on-site training during the commissioning phase of new crushing and screening equipment.
“We have found that it is most effective to spend up to two weeks with the customer, ensuring the operator is confident with the machine – and can conduct the necessary daily and weekly checks,” says Smith. “This isn’t about delivering a machine and hoping for the best. We are also working with Sandvik Rock Processing to formalise and accredit operator training programmes, which will help elevate the industry standard.”
The quality of wear parts and spare parts is also non-negotiable, so Sandvik Rock Processing has been proactive in aligning their price competitiveness in the market. He insists on maintaining the high standards associated with the Sandvik crushing and screening brand.
“There is no compromise on Sandvik quality,” he says. “When we go on-site, we assist customers in selecting the right liner configurations to minimise downtime, which ultimately reduces total cost of ownership.”
To enable the rapid access to parts, S&R Enterprise’s strategy includes a robust stockholding policy and a plan to double inventory levels within a year, ensuring that critical components are always available. This is aimed at giving customers peace of mind and optimising equipment availability, he says.
Sandvik Rock Processing designs also help to reduce maintenance on their crushing plants, he points out. Among their differentiators is the common use of steel hydraulic lines instead of rubber hoses, whose failure causes a large portion of breakdowns, he says. This innovation helps with cooling and makes the equipment more reliable. Sandvik Rock Processing also provides a refuelling kit on all their crushers, which protects equipment against the hazards of poor-quality diesel – a common risk in many rural areas.
Being closer to customers is a priority for S&R enterprises, so there are plans to establish branches in key construction-focused areas across South Africa to ensure quicker response times.
“We want customers to feel like they’re part of a family, not just another number in the supply chain,” says Smith. “Our goal is to be with our customers regularly and whenever they need us, providing the hands-on support they deserve.”
Looking ahead, he sees growing demand in the market for mobile crushing units, which have the adaptability to cater for the specific demands of smaller-scale aggregate projects.
“The second phase of South Africa’s road-building programme, particularly in the Eastern Cape, will require equipment suited for 100 to 200 tons per hour production,” he explains.
By focusing on this segment, S&R Enterprise gives contractors access to appropriately sized equipment, like Sandvik’s smaller jaw crushers and scalpers. These machines strike the perfect balance between portability, efficiency and scalability, making them ideal for the variable demands of road construction, he says.
“Sandvik’s mobile and semi-mobile equipment allows for rapid setup and relocation,” says Smith. “If a contractor is crushing at one location for three months, they can pack up and move on to the next site without significant downtime.”
The Sandvik mobile crushing and screening range includes self-driven tracked units, as well as a semi-mobile wheeled offering which can be towed.
