Gulf Construction Online - Brand new campaign

The Big 5 - Saudi Arabia

Work in progress at KiCE Manufacturing.

Brand new campaign

01 February 2012

WITH the KiCE brand now well recognised in the regional market, Al Kifah Batching Plant Factory will now be known as KiCE Manufacturing, as the company looks to taking the brand into the wider GCC market. It is also spearheading a horizontal expansion of its manufacturing capabilities, in line with its five-year growth plan.

With this new identity, the Saudi-based company is looking forward to making a major impact at The Big 5 Saudi next month, where it has booked a prime location. Its indoor stand at the Jeddah event will have on display a range of equipment for the concrete construction sector, including concrete pumps, truck mixers and most importantly the new special edition (SE) of the KiCE mobile batching plant. KiCE will also be present at the Saudi Build exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, next November.

The KiCE mobile batching plant SE was launched at Saudi Build exhibition last year (October), where it received excellent response and KiCE is optimistic of attracting even higher interest at The Big 5 Saudi.

According to Saleh Katheer, general manager of KiCE Manufacturing, the “revolutionary” unit compares favorably with a stationary unit both in terms of productivity, while costing about the same as a standard mobile batching plant. The KiCE mobile batching plant SE has a design production capacity of 140 cu m per hour of concrete, as compared to 80 to 100 cu m per hour offered by standard mobile units. In line with the increasing global awareness of the need to protect the environment, the new batching plant incorporates all the necessary covers and filters that reduce dust emission, he says.

KiCE’s decision to exhibit at The Big 5 Saudi follows its visit to the inaugural event last year, where it was impressed by the turnout and quality of visitors at the show, according to Rami Adra, marketing manager. “We also exhibited at The Big 5 show in Dubai last November, which continues to receive visitors from all over the world,” he adds.

Also on show at the exhibition will the KiCE transit mixer, which was introduced by the company two years ago. The product has been well received by the market, with a number of units sold to some of the major contractors in Saudi Arabia, according to Katheer. “Our transit mixers were designed with a focus on ease of use and maintenance,” he says. “As transit mixers are susceptible to breakdowns, we have introduced two hatches to allow an additional point of entry into the unit. Another innovation from us is a ‘gate’ to prevent concrete from dripping from the machine.”

“In addition, while standard mixers have water tanks with a capacity ranging from 700 to 1,200 litres, ours has a capacity of 1,000 litres. This apart, the receiving hoppers are lined with Hardox to ensure durability.”

KiCE Snowkey cooling systems and Truemax placing boom ... used in big projects in Saudi Arabia.

KiCE, which was launched seven years ago to market construction equipment in Saudi Arabia, continues to boost its support in Saudi Arabia to its Chinese partners, namely Fujian Snowman Company, which offers Snowkey concrete cooling systems and Truemax Machinery and Equipment Company, which provides tower cranes, placing booms and static pumps. It also has the exclusive dealership to market and distribute all kinds of Junjin pumps from Korea – mobile or static in lengths from 25 to 63 m – in the Gulf.

The company is now taking its partnership with Truemax to a new level by setting up a joint venture, to be known as Truemax Saudi Arabia, extending its coverage of the company’s range of construction equipment to include other products such as tower cranes, says Katheer.

As part of its support for Snowkey cooling systems, KiCE has launched another line which enables it to assemble the entire storage tanks of the systems within its premises rather than having to do it on site, he says. In addition, KiCE is now setting up dedicated sales teams to cater to the increasing demand for these products in Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam.

Over the recent past, KiCE has set up an environmental services division, which provides environmental solutions to crushing plants, as well as asphalt and concrete batching plant. The division has its main office in Riyadh, with branch offices in Jeddah and Dammam.

KiCE is now looking at taking its brand well beyond the Saudi market to expand its footprint in the GCC region. In the UAE, the company is boosting its staff strength to enable it to penetrate the market more aggressively.

KiCE facility ... focus of expansion.

“We have also started making forays into the Qatar market through participating in exhibitions there and into Bahrain and Kuwait, through regular visits,” says Katheer, adding that the company is seeking agencies to cover the Kuwait and Qatar markets.

In anticipation of its growth in the regional market, KiCE is focusing on expanding its production area by 20 per cent, which will translate into a 50 per cent increase in production capacity, he says.

Katheer elaborates: “Our batching plant manufacturing facility has a design capacity of 100 units. While it produced 90 batching plant as well as other products last year, KiCE is looking at producing 100 units by incorporating dust emission control equipment at our facilities, which will enable us optimise on cutting machines by using a plasma cutter.”

KiCE has also extended its partnership with Rapid International of Northern Ireland, which provides the mixer components of the batching plant to add value to its units by incorporating its Jetwash system for washing the mixing units. “The system enables the washing to be done within five minutes while protecting water resources,” Katheer points out.

Having achieved commendable success on its five-year growth strategy thus far, KiCE is poised to embark on the next phase of development, which will see a horizontal expansion in its product portfolio catering to other areas of the concrete and construction sector as well as industrial equipment. KiCE manufacturing will be present at Stand C88.