AfriSam Profile

Creating concrete possibilities

Who we are
AfriSam has been producing construction materials for the southern African community since 1934, when the company commissioned its first cement plant. AfriSam has established itself as a formidable company committed to making growth on the African continent possible. Today, we continue to be the leading supplier of superior quality construction materials and technical solutions.

Our origins
AfriSam (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd was founded in 1934 as Anglo Alpha Cement Ltd, changing our name to Alpha (Pty) Ltd in 1996 and later to Holcim (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd in 2004.

The historic sale of the former Holcim (SA) (Pty) Ltd to the black-led AfriSam Consortium in 2007 resulted in the birth of the new brand, AfriSam.

‘Afri’ refers to our proud African heritage and the sub-Saharan African countries in which we operate. ‘Sam’ comes from the word samente or disamente which means cement in six of South Africa's official languages.

Caring for the environment
Recognising that the environment is one of the important areas affected by our business operations led us to adopting ‘planet’ as one of our core values.

At AfriSam, we assume a responsible attitude towards the impact of our actions on the community and environment and utilise natural resources in a deliberated way, thereby sustaining life for future generations.

Building a better society
We place a high priority on our community involvement. We believe that, as a responsible corporate citizen, it is our role to help uplift the communities within which we operate.

In this regard, we have a clearly defined mission which guides our community involvement initiatives:
To understand the needs of society and communities in areas where we do business to make meaningful and sustainable contributions to their upliftment.

Concentrating our efforts where we believe we can be most effective, we focus on Education and Conservation for our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) resources.

Our quality promise
AfriSam’s commitment to superior performance gives customers the peace of mind that comes with guaranteed technical excellence, top quality products and continuous innovation.

From our Product Development laboratories in Roodepoort, Johannesburg, we work closely with customers to develop and test products for specific qualities, including very specific tests. As the only facility in South Africa that makes cement blends to customer requirements, we pride ourselves on being well on the way to becoming THE technical centre of choice in the country.

This sense of ownership and commitment is carried over to health and safety.
We place strong emphasis on a health and safety culture with stringent rules and regulations which are as effective at home and on the roads as they are in the workplace.

The company runs an ongoing health and safety campaign, which forms part of employees’ performance ratings to ensure maximum compliance. Employees are also rewarded for displaying positive safety behavior using the behavior-based safety process.

Our health and safety programmes and principles are aligned with international standards but tailored to suit our people and our production and distribution requirements. AfriSam’s suppliers and contractors are also involved in the ‘safety drive report’ programme and contractors’ vehicles are checked regularly for roadworthiness while their drivers are trained for road safety awareness.

Employees are encouraged to display this same safe behaviour in their personal lives at home and on the road.

We recognise that our staff are an important asset and do everything possible to ensure that employees have the necessary skills and tools to work effectively and safely as valued team members.

Our most valued asset
At AfriSam we believe in the value of people as the ultimate driver behind any successful business. With nearly 2 000 employees, our people are the core of our business. To this end, we strive to create a rewarding experience for our employees through the adoption of various employee benefit programmes.
In return, our employees have shown commitment through a strong work ethic over the years.

Employee development is seen as an important part of each employee’s progression in their career in the organization and their personal development. Together with their staff, line managers identify gaps and agree on ongoing plans to address these through various training initiatives. Our rigorous performance management approach ensures employees are rewarded for meeting and exceeding specific targets.

Our products: Cement
AfriSam’s high quality cement has made a significant contribution to various infrastructural developments in the southern African community for over three quarters of a century.

From our factories at Ulco in the Northern Cape and Dudfield in North West Province, AfriSam cement is shipped to depots across southern Africa for distribution to customers in various industries.

We produce approximately 4.5 million tons of cement per annum from our five cement production facilities spread throughout a number of provinces in South Africa as well as in Swaziland.

We are constantly reviewing and improving our production processes to ensure optimal efficiency, with the lowest possible impact on the environment.

Our products: Readymix
Large-scale projects are made possible by AfriSam’s Readymix products that allow builders, developers, architects and engineers to do construction quickly and effectively using AfriSam's expertise in computerised weight batching, concrete pumping services, technical backup and quality assurance.

Our readymix operation can produce almost any concrete mix required by customers from any one of our 42 readymix concrete plants across the region.

Our Products: Aggregates
AfriSam’s aggregate products have been benefitting various projects of local, national and regional importance for many years. From our 16 quarries and aggregate operations nationwide, we have been producing products for multiple applications.

Nearly ten million tons of aggregate is produced from our operations every year.

Our Products: Slagment
Our Slagment business unit has provided slagment over the last 40 years from our plant in Vanderbijlpark for the construction of major structures, including buildings, dams, bridges, roads and water retaining structures.