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Lafarge Grey Matters Issue 02 June 2012
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PAGE 1 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
CONTENTS
2 MESSAGE FROM NATIONAL MARKETING MANAGER
3 COMPETITION
4 MARKETING ACTIVITIES
10 HYDROMEDIA LAUNCH
16 INTERESTING PROJECTS
LAFARGE READYMIX
LAFARGE READYMIX
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 2
This is the second edition of our marketing magazine and it is hard to believe that we are
already in June. This year is flying past so quickly.
We had a slow start to the year but it looks like things are starting to pick up. In terms of
our Value Added Products, we are sitting at 26% as opposed to 19% for the same period
last year. Our target is 30% by the end of the year and I am confident that we will achieve
this.
We launched our new innovative product Hydromedia in Gauteng, Durban and Cape Town
which was a huge success. We have had some positive enquiries, orders and specifica-
tions have been written up since the launch. There will be similar launches in the smaller
areas throughout the rest of the year. In this issue you can also read about the successful
launch of our Placing and Finishing Services. In addition we plan to launch another VAP
called Chronolia, a fast setting early strength gain concrete, later in the year.
We have ventured into an exciting advertising campaign with Bok Radio in Cape Town for
a period of 5 months, where we will be promoting all our VAP’s and running competitions
related to our products. This campaign is a pilot and if proven successful we will look at
doing a similar campaign across the country.
We have exciting events still coming up in the year and one in particular is the National
Architects convention that will be held in Cape Town in September. This convention will
host over 1000 architects. We are a major sponsor and will be able to display our prod-
ucts and services throughout the convention. We will also be hosting our Artevia Applica-
tor competition Awards Function over that period.
At our recent strategic management session, the readymix team decided to embark on a
strategy to revive a culture of delivering exceptional, over the top customer service. This is
the best marketing tool to differentiate ourselves from our competitors. Customer service
is a way of life that involves putting the customer first in every aspect of the business. It is
characterized by an obsession to achieve excellence in customer satisfaction in each and
every encounter. Customer satisfaction has to be a shared culture amongst our employ-
ees and starts from the top down. We will be launching this new initiative shortly including
a training programme. We look forward to everyone’s participation and enthusiasm to
help make this dream a reality. Remember that customer service is not a programme, it’s
a culture and a way of life.
I would like to thank everyone who contributed to the magazine and encourage feedback
or ideas regarding the magazine.
Regards
Neville Wearne
Neville Wearne
National Marketing Manager:
Lafarge Readymix
Message from our National
Marketing Manager
PAGE 3 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
Complete the crossword puzzle and win!
How to enter
1. Complete crossword
2. Scan and email/fax completed crossword to
Fax: 086 630 5067 (Don’t forget to include name, and number)
Prize
R500 Pick ‘n Pay voucher
Closing date for entries is 22 June 2012
All correct entries will be entered into a lucky draw and the winner will be announced 29 June 2012
COMPETITION
2. Surname of first Grey Matters crossword
puzzle winner
3. Where is Mogol Golf Club
6. What products did Lafarge eventually supply
in the Zwelenthemba project?
7. One of the biggest annual events in Lim-
popo
8. Hydromedia provides rapid storm water re-
moval from?
1. One of the cities Floorsem 2012 was held
4. Who is the GM of Readymix SA?
5. How many Hydromedia launches have been
held?
9. What product was used in the SAPPI Ngod-
wana project?
Across
Down
Sheena Murugan and Neville Wearne
Congratulations Sheena
Congratulations goes out to Sheena Murugan on being the very
first winner of the Grey Matters Crossword puzzle completion.
We hope you enjoyed spending your prize!
You too can be a winner by completing this issues crossword
puzzle. Good Luck!
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 4
MARKETING ACTIVITIES
Dear Mr Scheffel,
I really appreciated working with your team in Cape Town. Ferdinand, Carolina, Brent and Pat at your Paarden Eiland office,
as well as David at your Wetton dispatch office.
What a joy and they were very helpful, from the start of my call I told Ferdinand I had no idea what I was looking for. He took
me through all the options and what I needed to do to calculate how many cubic meters I needed for the job.
Carolina helped me with pricing and I spoke to Brent to discuss the self compacting concrete.
I had all my options and all my answers. Once I had all the info I required I was able to place the order and receive my con-
crete.
I work in the customer service industry, and it's wonderful to receive such exceptional service which is very rare.
Please thank your team, they are a real asset to your company and I will definitely refer Lafarge to anyone I know that is in
need of your services.
Regards
Jacqui Armstrong
Today’s students: Tomorrow’s leaders
Lafarge provides support for local university courses In South Africa, people development is a key piority of the company and embraces both its employees and students from
the local education institutions, which will be the future source of Lafarge employees and customers.
Recent company initiatives focused on reinforcing the traditionally close ties Lafarge has with universities in Gauteng. In
March, engineering students from the University of Johannesburg and Vaal University of Technology were given a detailed
appreciation of cement and concrete production at Lafarge.
Ninety-three engineering students from the University of Johannesburg were given an insight into the ready-mixed concrete
industry. The first stage of the tour showed the mixing of concrete in Rossway’s Readymix plant.
Readymix Marketing Department hosted a lunch for the students and then took them to the Readymix Wynberg laborato-
ries. There they witnessed concrete cube compressive strength testing and the other extensive quality control procedures
that ensure the consistent performance of Lafarge concrete. To end off the tour the marketing team gave a presentation
on Readymix products.
Group picture of the 93 students from the University Of Johannes-
burg at the Lab.
Students in full PPE at the Rossway Readymix plant
Well done Cape Town Readymix team!
Our Cape Town Readymix team was recently applauded for their efforts to go the extra mile and satisfy the needs of a cash
customer. Below is a precis of the “thank you” letter.
MARKETING ACTIVITIES
PAGE 5 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
Polokwane Show
The Polokwane Show was held from 29 February to 3 March and was regarded as one of the largest annual events to hap-
pen in Limpopo. The Show attracts a variety of people with their lineup of entertainment and variety of exhibitors. The show
creates the opportunity for companies as well as traders to set up an exhibition stand as a platform to showcase its prod-
ucts. Lafarge used the opportunity to display our range of Value Added Products range. The show was a huge success in
creating brand awareness for Lafarge.
Lafarge’s Display area at the Polokwane Show. Lafarge’s display within the designated area. Value Added Product samples were on display.
Sivu showcasing our products at the Cape Town
FloorSem
Durban display with give aways Our banners in Johannesburg
The latest seminar road show – FloorSem 2012 - organised by the Concrete Society saw 450 delegates around the country
learning the latest thinking and technology in the designing, planning and construction of industrial concrete floors on the
ground.
In association with the Cement and Concrete Institute, the Society ran a very successful series of seminars in Johannesburg,
Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth. Featuring two overseas, and six local speakers, many issues relating to the success-
ful laying of concrete floors were addressed. Lafarge had displays in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.
FloorSem 2012
Lephalale Golf Day
MARKETING ACTIVITIES
Lafarge Gives Back
Towards the end of 2011 a five year old girl, Pippie Barnard from Lephalale sustained severe burns whilst her father was
preparing for a family barbeque. She is currently recovering in ICU in the Garden City clinic Johannesburg.
The local community arranged a fund raising event to help the family of the victim with the medical expenses. The func-
tion was attended by some of the staff from the Limpopo area as well as Neville Wearne (National Marketing Manager).
Anton Combrink (GM Readymix SA) approved a generous donation of R10 000 to the family on behalf of Lafarge.
Connie Bester, Trudie Heinemann, Hakeem Johnson and
Neville Wearne. Lafarge’s promotional material set out on the Golf Course.
The Lephalale readymix plant was given the opportunity to host an executive four ball at the local Mogol Golf Club in Le-
phalale. In return Lafarge used the opportunity to exhibit some of our Value Added Products to create awareness. Neville
Wearne (National Marketing Manager), Connie Bester (Country Chief Financial Officer), Trudie Heinemann (Area Manager
– Mpumalanga) and André Bester (DSM Lephalale) represented Lafarge at the event.
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 6
Pippie Barnard before the accident
Limpopo team with Neville Wearne at the fund raiser
PAGE 7 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
MARKETING ACTIVTIES
ArteviaCompetition
Entries for the Artevia competition closed 29 February 2012. The quality of entries are fantastic and making a final deci-
sion for a winner will be a difficult task. The award ceremony will be held in September alongside the architectureZA con-
ference that will be held in Cape Town. We have included some pictures of some of the most beautiful and innovative en-
tries that we have received.
Artevia Polish was used in this beautiful house in the
following areas; staircase, entrance hall and kitchen
counter tops.
Artevia pre-cast blocks were used in this shopping centre. The Polish application was chosen because it is durable and it requires less maintenance.
Artevia Polish was used around the swimming pool, staircase, bedrooms, and living areas of the house. It was chosen for its aesthetics, functionality and be-cause it is unique!
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 8
MARKETING ACTIVITIES
At this Heritage site, Sharpville Memorial, low main-tenance, and robustness were important. That’s why Artevia Exposed was chosen.
This is a bathroom at the University of Stellenbosch. Artevia Polish was chosen for its durability and beautiful look. Concrete was used for the sinks, floors and several other areas.
Artevia Polish was chosen because of its functional-ity and because it is a unique and an aesthetically pleasing solution! Most of the house incorporated Artevia Polish. It was used in the bathrooms living areas and the patios!
Artevia Exposed is robust, aesthetically pleasing and low maintenance. These factors made it easy for the client to choose Artevia! Done by Placing and Finish-ing.
MARKETING ACTIVITIES
PAGE 9 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
Placing and Finishing Services off to a great start
A developer in Midstream Estate, Centurion chose Artevia Exposed concrete to complement the architectural style of his
house and to use as a show piece for his potential clients. Lafarge’s Placing and Finishing Services were used as the client
wanted the guarantee’s we could offer him. As Lafarge sells a finished product, the developer was of the opinion that he
would get the quality finish from the supplier themselves and not an additional contractor. Lafarge Placing and Finishing
Services used the services of an approved applicator, Oceanside Trading. The developer requested an Artevia Sandstone
Exposed mix with a Quartzite aggregate. With the use of cobble stones the developer created a neat pattern to give the
concrete a sophisticated look. The concrete was sealed to enhance the colour of both the concrete paste and the aggre-
gates and to minimize wear and tear. A total of 37m³ was delivered from Centurion readymix plant.
Roots butchery
Artevia Colour with a Kalahari pigment
The aesthetic finishes completed by Oceanside Trading using Artevia
The Roots Group used Lafarge’s Placing and Finishing Services to place an Artevia Colour floor for one of their butcheries
in Polokwane. Beverley Reid, a TSS in Durban worked with the client to specify the colour of the concrete (Kalahari) that
was to be used throughout the country. Lafarge’s Placing and Finishing Services has completed three stores to date with a
possibility of four more stores throughout the country. The average size of each floor is between 700m² to 850m² at a
thickness of 125mm. These floors are power floated once placed and the client seals the concrete afterwards, thus leav-
ing the concrete with an easy to clean shine.
One of the completed Roots Butchery floors
HYDROMEDIA LAUNCH
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 10
I am sure that all of you are aware by now that the Readymix marketing
team recently launched Hydromedia. For those of you who are not fa-
miliar with the product, Hydromedia is basically a porous concrete
which allows water to flow through it.
Hydromedia provides rapid storm water removal from residential roads, parking surfaces, driveways and walkways, tennis
courts and swimming pool decks. It also substantially improves driving safety during wet weather by reducing night-time
glare for drivers and lessens the risk of skidding as a result of aquaplaning. The key environmental benefit of this remark-
able porous pavement concrete is its contribution to recharging groundwater whilst reducing storm water runoff. Based on
all these benefits I am sure you can understand why there is so much excitement around this new product.
Three launches were held in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town. All the launches were a success and have created a
lot of interest for the product. Hopefully this will result in many sales!
The marketing team is very confident that Hydromedia will be a great success.
Should anybody have additional questions contact Herbert Groenewald the Hydromedia Product Manager on
083 656 8908
Hydromedia visually demonstrated
HYDROMEDIA
PAGE 13 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012
Exciting first project for Hydromedia
Wimpie Basson from Forever Resorts contacted André Bester, DSM Lephalale, to assist with a possible solution for a new
splash pad the Bela Bela resort was planning to develop.
The criteria Forever Resorts set for the readymix product to be placed, was that it had to have a non-slip finish, which
would not injure or hurt any guest using this new facility. Since this is essentially a water park, water also had to be cap-
tured and returned to the park’s water management system.
Andre and Hakeem Johnson, Technical Sales Support, suggested that Forever Resorts make use of Hydromedia, as it met
the criteria for the intended splash pad.
In the beginning of June, 265m² of Hydromedia was placed by Lafarge Placing and Finishing Services. Five different col-
ours were aesthetically placed in various shapes on the splash pad.
This is the type of project that will be a great show piece for Hydromedia and the advantages it presents to water manage-
ment.
The splash pad is currently being cured and finished and will be ready for use by many young guests when Spring arrives.
As the concrete is still being cured, there are no completed visuals of the splash pad. As soon as the project is completed a
spotlight will be circulated with the visuals.
Hydromedia in different colours being placed in the shapes
Hydromedia with a white pigment was placed around the shapes
Nelspruit team impresses Grinaker-LTA
Andrew Solomon from the Nelspruit plant was approached by Grinaker-LTA Civil Engineering late last year to quote them
on a 30mpa pump mix with a 200mm slump for piling at SAPPI Ngodwana. Andrew said: “We priced them on a long dis-
tance 30mpa pump mix but suggested they also try Agilia. The Agilia video presentation was shown and they were inter-
ested. There was a concern about the workability of Agilia after travelling 50km to site and the fact that piling is a time
consuming process, but Grinaker-LTA was prepared to trial Agilia.
“Grinaker-LTA was extremely impressed with the extended workability and could not believe that there was no segregation
when considering Agilia had no slump. The trial proved to be successful and the client decided to use Agilia for the pro-
ject.”
As at the end of February 2012 Grinaker-LTA was supplied with 2690 m³ from the start of the project in October 2011. A
few challenges were experienced with regards to service and product quality issues due to the long distance travelling,
though Grinaker-LTA was extremely happy using Agilia. Steel cages of up to 9 metres in length have been lowered with
ease into piles filled with Agilia, something that has always presented a problem with conventional concrete.
The success of this project has now resulted in Grinaker-LTA using Agilia at their Longmeadow East project in Johannes-
burg. Willem van der Westhuisen, Project Manager for Grinaker-LTA, indicated they will negotiate the use of Agilia in all
their future projects. Agilia provides Grinaker-LTA with an advantage over their competition in the piling market.
Well done to the Nelspruit team!
INTERESTING PROJECTS
Agilia being poured in the piles.
JUNE 2012 l GREY MATTERS l PAGE 14
INTERESTING PROJECTS
Seven Sirs Group is involved with affordable housing
projects in the Western Cape. The company recently
started the Zwelethemba project and decided to
rather site-mix their mortars and plasters as it pre-
sented a more cost effective alternative and opportu-
nity for job creation on site.
Lafarge secured the concrete supply for the slabs on
this project, but soon realised that the Seven Sirs
Group was experiencing challenges with the site-
mixing. Cement bags got stolen and the quality of the
mortars and plaster was not consistent.
Morney Kleinhans, DSM in Cape Town and Sivu
Ngobozana, Product Manager approached the Seven
Sirs Group and suggested they trial our readymixed
mortars and plasters for this project.
Worcester Readymix supplied the housing project
with 2m³ of mortars and plasters at cost price. Seven
Sirs returned to Morney and admitted the benefits
outweighed the additional cost readymix presented
versus site-mix by far. The benefits of using readymix
mortars and plasters for Seven Sirs Group were:
Consistent quality
Minimal wastage
Increased productivity
Mitigating the risk of cement bags
being stolen (which were used to site-
mix)
No sand stockpiles to manage
In addition Sivu advised Seven Sirs Group that the
intended labour and job creation for the site-mix can
now be utilised for bricklaying, which in itself pre-
sented even more benefits for the employees, whom
now get paid sooner once a house is completed. They
could also acquire additional skills such as plastering
and bricklaying, which helps them grow their trade.
The readymix mortars and plasters was a huge suc-
cess, as Seven Sirs Group was satisfied with the prod-
uct and are keen to use it on future projects. The key
success factor to get their buy in was to allow the
contractor to use and see with their own eyes how
readymix mortars and plasters perform on site.
Mortar being delivered in a bag
House where plaster was used
House completed using Lafarge Mortars and Plasters
Seeing is believing
PAGE 15 l GREY MATTERS l JUNE 2012