KiCE Construction Equipment, which specialises in the manufacture of equipment for concrete and block production, has been cashing on the huge demand for its mobile batching plant that has quadrupled over the past few years in Saudi Arabia.

The rise in demand can be attributed to the significant developments with the batching plants industry that have boosted their quality and strength, says the Saudi-based company.

“This increase in demand endorses the quality of and the client satisfaction with our products, particularly our concrete plants,” says Saleh bin Abdulrahman Al Katheer, CEO of the Saudi-based KiCE Construction Equipment.

KiCE is a top supplier of concrete batching plants in Saudi Arabia and the neighbouring Gulf countries.

Over the past year, the company has undertaken key measures to upgrade its factory. This has involved introducing higher levels of automation and streamlining its production lines, to ensure clockwork precision in the transfer of products from one manufacturing stage to the next, by identifying the work space for each stage of the production process, says Al Katheer.

He says this project was aimed at speeding up production and hence the delivery of products to customers. Launched under the supervision of experts and consultants in the field, the plan covered KiCE’s entire production cycle.

Meanwhile, the company has consistently been achieving its production targets over the past two years while its capacity was increased considerably over the period.

Commenting on output and sales expectations for this year, Al Katheer says: “Our targets for 2013 are much higher than last year and we anticipate our sales of batching plant to increase by 15 per cent, mobile batching plant by 25 per cent and washing plant by 25 per cent.”

To achieve its targets for this year, the company has started implementing the Tatweer Initiative launched by its training and development department, to record production goals and performance.

In terms of new products, he says the company has recently introduced a cost-competitive version of its block manufacturing equipment, and is poised to launch commercial production of a new compact (containerised) batching plant. “This product is highly versatile, and is particularly suitable for our customers outside Saudi Arabia or for projects that require less storage space.”

Other KiCE products such as its gravel washing machinery have been upgraded, increasing their capacity to 240 tonnes from the previous 100 and 120 tonnes. In addition, a spiral transport system has now been incorporated into the washing plant.

“KiCE has also been helping its existing clients to upgrade their existing systems, which has enabled them to increase their production capacity by 25 per cent,” comments Al Katheer.

This move comes as part of efforts to ensure customer satisfaction and maintain the performance and the capacity of its products that are installed in the market – especially its mobile batching plant – right from the date of purchase, thereby boosting their output from 70 to 80 cu m per hour to 100 to 120 cu m per hour.

Customer service is an essential aspect of KiCE’s business strategy. Al Katheer comments: “The constant attention we give to our customers reinforces their trust and confidence in us. We’ve recently launched a customer service centre dedicated to handling complaints and inquiries. The centre is manned by 16 customer service and after-sales specialists, who are trained by experts in customer relations under the supervision of affiliated international companies.”

Turning to the Saudi market, Al Katheer indicates that it is cyclical in nature with a lull in business experienced from the start of Ramadan to the end of the year. To offset any drop in sales during the period, KiCE is focusing on other markets in the GCC and other Arab countries such as Egypt, Sudan and Libya.

“Hence, we have enhanced our production of compact batching plants to fit in with our new expansion plans,” he says.

KiCE offers products at a competitive price, backed by superior quality. “Our competitive price in the market is a result of our manufacturing quality, high efficiency and vast expertise in the industry. All these factors have contributed to a reduction in costs and therefore enabling us to offer our customers competitive prices often not offered any of the other factories,” he concludes.