Refraline

Refraline operates in a variety of industries fraught with risk, yet its dual record of safety and quality, has helped to promote the company as a major refractory contracting business in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. All of which is achieved by asking the right questions. Manfred Rosch joined the company back in 1996, having studied and worked as a mechanical engineer in his native Germany, before graduating to his current role as Managing Director: "We are very proud of our safety record and we subscribe to the DIFR (Disabling Injury Frequency Rate), which shows that we have had zero accidents for over 12 months. Many years ago we introduced our own in-house safety management processes that have helped us to get to that standard. This is an important consideration for prospective clients and is very important to us when we are working on a client's premises." Refraline is a specialist construction company, involved in all aspects of servicing the refractory industry. Refractory materials are used in linings for furnaces, kilns, incinerators and reactors and are also used to make crucibles. The materials must be chemically and physically stable at high temperatures and depending on the operating environment, they need to be resistant to thermal shock, be chemically inert, and/or have specific ranges of thermal conductivity. As Rosch explains, there are a variety of industries using such processes, all of which have different requirements that Refraline has to understand first time. "We work on refractory and corrosion linings, engineering, design, supply, construction and demolition, " he describes, "essentially our customers are everyone with heat processes and the need for protection in certain environments, which in South Africa can be glass companies, petrochemicals, steel, foundries and mining companies. "We have orders that vary from R5,000 up to R10 million projects and the duration can be one day or one year. No job is too small or too large for us." Headquartered in Meadowdale, Johannesburg, the company was founded in 1981 and forms part of the Refraline Group, which also includes: Refraline Natal, Refraline S.A. Industrial Linings, WR Refractory Services and Didier Corrosion Engineering. The industry Refraline operates in can be extremely complex; depending on the nature of the industry, a refractory lining could last 2-3 months or have a lifespan of 15 years. Rosch says that maintenance accounts for probably one third of business, with repeat business often acquired on the basis of understanding the client's need: "It is a very difficult business and you have to understand the customer's requirements and operations in order to propose the right material and installation method," says Rosch. "You have to get a good understanding of each process and the recent influx of new materials can complicate matters. "Being located in Africa and operating from Johannesburg gives us an advantage as we fully understand how things operate across the Continent. Newcomers investing in Africa have to appreciate that things may operate differently in Africa to other continents," he continues. Rosch says that understanding client needs is of paramount importance - but adds that some customers also have a better understanding of their processes than others. That is perhaps where Refraline's experience really comes into its own, working alongside customers and helping them to understand the best way to keep their processes running. The experience comes from a workforce that is 400-strong across the whole group. Like Rosch, many of the senior management at Refraline have worked their way up to the top echelons of the business but remain equally happy to mix with staff of all levels, creating a relaxed and open approach to business. Past projects also play their part in building a strong knowledge base and among its flagship projects, Refraline has installed the refractories in two cement plants in Israel, and a in a magnesium plant in 1996 - both projects helped to put the company on the map in a big way. Approximately four years ago the company also built two furnaces in Tasmania, Australia, for BHP Billiton, a project that Rosch says was won partly due to the existing relationship with the client in South Africa. "Relationships are essential," states Rosch. "For example, we have made great inroads in the glass industry in the last four years thanks to our relationship with German company Sorg Feuerungsbau who design and build furnaces around the world.