Omega Ukama 
BETA Holdings says construction of its new brick making plants in Mt Hampden and Melfort is almost complete as the group targets to boost production capacity.
The projects are worth a combined US$6 million and are expected to increase production by 180 million bricks per year. In a statement this week, the brick-maker said it was targeting to commission the new plants in November this year.
“We are installing a new clay brick ST 50 plant, which is now operational at Mt Hampden. This new plant joins the two existing factories already in place and will see production increasing by 50 percent and has thus, pushed the weekly production capacity to around 4,5 million green bricks.
“A new ST 90 plant is also being installed at Melfort and is now 85 percent complete with all components now in situ and with only electrical works remaining. The net effect of these investments is to ensure that Beta pivots back to its leadership position in the infrastructure supply sector for now and into the future,” read part of the statement.
The expansion project, which began 24 months ago, has seen the group diverting financial resources to speed up its payback period on the investment.
“The diversion of resources to the expansion programme resulted in a delay in payments to some key stakeholders including staff currently employed at Mt Hampden plus deliveries to our esteemed customers.
“The organisation, including the employees, has never gone through the current challenges ever before and this has understandably caused some anxiety among the employees. Management have regularly been updating employees through the workers committee on the challenges and strategies being pursued to address the situation.
“Other key stakeholders like suppliers and customers have also been kept fully updated,” the company said.
With all raw materials to enable the kickstarting of a sustainable production process in place, Beta Holdings was upbeat that the Mt Hampden factory’s production efficiencies would improve revenues.
“Management is fully confident that as the production levels improve, so will the cash inflows that will address all the legacy creditors, backlogged deliveries, and staff remuneration. It is against this background that Beta Holdings’s management wishes to inform its stakeholders that efforts are being made to resolve the current impasse with the employees at Mt Hampden who have taken industrial action at the factories citing the backlog on wages.
“All efforts are being made to ensure production is resumed speedily to ensure that the benefits of the recent expansions in capacity are realised for the benefit of all stakeholders.”
With the investments undertaken over the last 18 months, Beta Holdings says it is well poised to play its leadership role through increased supply of products in the key construction sector.
