This month, we’re shining the spotlight on Sarens SIBA in South Africa, which offers a comprehensive maintenance and shutdown business line. Sarens SIBA provide cranes, SPMTs, operators, site supervisors, safety officers, engineering for special lifts, and HSE documents locally. It also provides jacking and skidding services, tri-axle trucks and trailers, and low beds and multi-axles. 

Immiel Swart, Sales Manager for Sarens SIBA shares his insights:

What are some of the recent projects Sarens SIBA has been involved in?

We were previously involved with the NATEF T&I shutdown (24 cranes), NATEF RCD shutdown (12 cranes), and NATEF maintenance (2 cranes). We were also involved with the Sasol Midlands shutdown (36 cranes).

What kind of equipment do clients typically choose for maintenance and shutdown jobs?

Petrochemical plants prefer our all-terrain hydraulic cranes for their ease of manoeuvrability. For wind energy projects, clients prefer using the LG-1750 as the main erection crane, with smaller auxiliary cranes and trucks required to build, break, and relocate the main erection crane. Hydraulic all-terrain cranes are also a choice for maintenance work on some of the smaller turbines or for blade and hub replacements.

Aside from equipment, which other services does Sarens SIBA offer to clients?

Rigging is a requirement which goes hand in hand with supplying cranes. We can also provide a safety officer, supervisor, office containers, and more.

Why do clients choose Sarens SIBA over other suppliers? 

Clients choose Sarens for our experience and quality service, both locally and internationally. We offer in-house engineering and shared knowledge to formulate the most timely and cost-effective solutions while never compromising on safety. Sarens SIBA also has access to a plethora of heavy lift and heavy transport equipment, from strategically-located local depots to those across the globe. This is a major advantage over our competitors, who frequently need to subcontract equipment and staff to meet customer demands.

Our technical expertise ensures that the correct cranes are correctly placed for optimum performance, and to save our clients unnecessary costs. We also offer in-house support for sales, operations, engineering, and more. Finally, we are a BBBEE Level 1 compliant company which is 51% black owned and 30% black woman owned.

How does Sarens SIBA ensure safety on its projects? 

Safety is a core part of our day-to-day business. Sometimes our clients will supply their own safety officers, but we always have site supervisors and trained personnel who abide by and uphold our international safety standards.

How has maintenance and shutdown evolved over the years, and what are the recent trends and opportunities?

Maintenance work in the petrochemical industry has been one of Sarens SIBA’s core functions. While new builds of petrochemical plants have stagnated, plants have been made more accessible for smaller mobile cranes by placing ducting and piping more strategically. Meanwhile, renewable projects are now the majority of new builds in the country, with maintenance work increasing as the lifetime of wind farms increases. Today maintenance and shutdown opportunities can be found across petrochemical, mining, renewable energy, and nuclear energy markets.