Triton brings the challenge to competitors
The bakkie war has intensified with the local launch of Mitsubishi’s next-generation Triton, an evolution in the iconic bakkie’s 46-year legacy.
- Product News
- 21 November 2024
A dream come true for a former employee of Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA) when he became a supplier to his former employer.
With the support of Volkswagen’s B-BBEE Initiatives Trust and the Automotive Industry Transformation Fund (AITF) Equity Equivalent Programme, Morgan Waterboer, co-owner and managing director of MCR Plastics, is now part of Volkswagen’s supply chain.
“I worked for VWSA from 2002, in the Quality Assurance division, but almost 17 years later I saw a gap in the market,” said Morgan, whose injection moulding company started supplying door covers and a fuel filler module for the popular Polo built at VWSA’s Kariega plant in 2022.
Morgan runs his company alongside his wife Edwina, who has been handling the finances and is currently running the HR function. “We are a small team, with four permanent employees and one consultant on board,” says Edwina.
MCR Plastics received bridging finance of R7.5 million from the B-BBEE Initiatives Trust when the company was just starting up. “Their support has been great, and it has enabled us to grow. It’s not easy to start a business, but the support was very comprehensive. VWSA’s excellent team also supported us in getting the necessary processes in place.”
Through the AITF programme, they also received funding and assistance with certifications and were invited to SA Auto Week in 2022, where they could interact with stakeholders across the industry.
“Since 1996, I have dreamed of being a business owner,” says Morgan. “My proudest moment was when we loaded the truck with our very first delivery; that was a happy day for me.”
The Trust was formed by VWSA in 2016 with the mandate of driving transformation in the South African automotive industry by investing in black-owned suppliers and offering post-investment support to these companies. VWSA has also been involved in the AITF – an organisation working with South Africa’s OEMs towards transformation in the supply chain and dealer network – since 2020.
“The support to MCR Plastics served as a valuable case study between the Volkswagen’s B-BBEE Initiatives Trust and the AITF, resulting in close collaboration between the entities to provide a solution that was customer-focused and ensured that the timing prescribed by VWSA was met,” says Neeraj Kessery, CEO of the B-BBEE Initiatives Trust.
The bakkie war has intensified with the local launch of Mitsubishi’s next-generation Triton, an evolution in the iconic bakkie’s 46-year legacy.
Unlike in the past, when dealerships primarily waited for customers to come to them, we now take a more proactive approach, bringing our vehicles directly to places where people gather, allowing them to experience the product first-hand, including offering test drives,” says Gerrie van der Kaay, Dealer Principal at Supergroup Dealerships Jetour Midrand.
JAC Motors added ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) to its X200 2.8L TDI 1.5-tonne single-cab, enhancing safety for both the crew and cargo. This latest upgrade complements the ABS-equipped X200 1.3-tonne double-cab targeted at organisations with labour-intensive crews.
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