adminBianca Mlilo, Business Reporter
BULAWAYO firm Meprin Founders and Engineers is enjoying increased sales since the implementation of Statutory Instrument 64 of 2016, which has expanded the market for domestic products.
The company began operations in 2000 at Bulawayo’s Kelvin North industrial area and manufactures four lines of products that include mining equipment — coco pan wheels, cannon boxes, tipping wheels, raw water and sewer equipment such as manhole covers, clean water equipment like saddles, bush pumps, short collar joints as well as domestic products that include three legged pots and baking pots.
A majority of the products are made from scrap metal.
Founder of the company Mr Prince Gobvu said the company has recorded an increase in sales since the introduction of S.I 64 in June this year.
The new trade regulation removes about 42 products from the open general import licence, restricting their importation into Zimbabwe, after it was felt that local industry had capacity to produce them.
“S.I 64 has been an advantage to us because the local market is no longer importing but buying locally. We are now enjoying both the local and export market and we believe this will yield good fruits in the long run,” said Mr Gobvu.
“As the manufacturing industry we welcome this instrument very much. We have had more business coming from across the country, Mutare, Rusape, Victoria Falls and other parts of the country.”
He said the company was exporting to Polokwane in South Africa as well as Zambia where they were gaining market footing because of “competitive pricing”.
Mr Gobvu said this was a result of the low duty they paid on exporting and sometimes did not pay duty at all, making their products cheaper.
He said their high demand export products include man-holes, coco pan wheels and hammer mills (a technology used in the processing of gold ore).
According to Mr Gobvu the young company procures all its raw materials from locally sourced scrap metal.
He said the company has devised a technology of recycling scrap metal by re-melting it and processing it before being used to manufacture new products.
Zimbabwe is in dire need of increased industrial production, which experts say is the panacea to improving the economy and creating more job opportunities.
@BiancaMlilo.
Online Reporter