Earlier this year, the Bosnian family conglomerate Hastor acquired the Saarbrücker Foundry Group Neue Halberg-Guss (NHG) through its Prevent Group. A further restructuring of Atlantis Foundries within the new group means that Atlantis Foundries is now 100% owned by a South African based investment company Ukuvela Holdings (Pty) Ltd.

Atlantis Foundries have recently achieved a notable milestone in the company’s history when it recorded the casting of its one-millionth Daimler heavy-duty engine block (HDEP) since the foundry cast its first sample just over 10 years ago.

“Atlantis Foundries has always specialised in manufacturing medium to heavy-duty engine blocks and originally began as a machining facility back in 1979 when it was known as Atlantis Diesel Engines (ADE). The company was established by the South African government to produce diesel engines for the South African commercial and agriculture markets, and for military vehicles such as the Ratel, Buffel, Casspir and Samil. The company had obtained a license to manufacture Mercedes-Benz and Perkins diesel engines,” said Atlantis Foundries’ Director Mervin Moodley.

“The foundry was only established in 1982 and from the beginning it has concentrated on producing engine blocks for truck, bus, industrial and marine applications. One of the first blocks the foundry cast was for the ERF model 66 truck.”

Atlantis Foundries has recently cast its one-millionth Daimler HDEP engine block

Atlantis Foundries continues to specialise in casting cylinder blocks for commercial vehicles and off-road installations for export to engine manufacturers in the USA and Germany. In the past, the company has also produced castings for the passenger car market.

“This particular milestone that we have reached is for what is known as the Daimler Heavy Duty Engine Platform Block. The grey cast iron castings are produced in two variants – OM471/DD13 and OM472/DD15 – and the main truck applications are for Mercedes-Benz (Europe), Freightliner (USA) and Fuso trucks. Our customer is Daimler and we ship blocks to Detroit Diesel in the USA and to the Daimler plant in Mannheim, Germany.”

“We cast our first sample in 2007 and by 2013 we were producing 100 000 blocks per annum. This shot up to in excess of 150 000 blocks per annum in 2014, hence the acceleration to the one-millionth mark, which we achieved recently. These blocks range from 430kg to 450kg in weight and are fettled, reference machined, powder coated, preserved and packed.”

“An interesting fact is that we have shipped over 22 700 container loads of just this product during this period.”

“This is a notable achievement as it is only for the one type of the many different engine blocks that we produce. We also produce the 400 series Mercedes-Benz engine blocks, which are predominantly used in buses. These are generally exported to Germany.”

“We have a very strong relationship with Daimler in Germany and have been supplying them product for many years. This resulted in the South African operation Daimler Mercedes-Benz South Africa (then called DaimlerChrysler), taking control of the company in 1999, and incorporating Atlantis Foundries into the Daimler Trucks Powertrain business unit.”

More recently Atlantis Foundries embarked on a process that will pave the way to becoming a Smart Foundry by embracing the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This project aims to combine various technologies available to gather and analyse process data, with the aim of improving product quality and cost efficiency. The basic building blocks for such a concept are robotics, process instrumentation, and the tracking of components using RFID and other software applications. With all the data available and it being traceable to individual castings, the door has opened to enable the use of Artificial Intelligence for process control and inspection of components

Subsequent to the takeover by the Daimler Group the company went from strength to strength and increased casting production from 30 000 to 69 000 net tons per year, and Atlantis Foundries are now considered one of the best heavy-duty engine block foundries in the world, employing 830 people.

In June 2015, Atlantis Foundries was sold by Daimler Mercedes-Benz South Africa, to German metal casting group Neue Halberg-Guss GmbH.

The independence of Atlantis Foundries thereafter allowed it to invest significantly within its own operations. As a result the Western Cape based foundry in Atlantis has undergone some significant changes in terms of technological advancements. This included the installation of a second 12t ABP Induction Systems pressure pour furnace, an additional 6.1 MW ABP Induction Systems power pack for the four ABP Induction Systems induction furnaces that Atlantis Foundries uses in its melting department, the installation of a new sand drying plant, as well as the installation of a new core drying oven.

The investment in an additional ABP Induction Systems power pack has given Atlantis Foundries the ability to now operate four furnaces simultaneously, particularly when the bulk energy supply is available, consequently increasing the overall melting capacity of the foundry, which now stands at 75 000 tons per annum.

More recently Atlantis Foundries embarked on a process that will pave the way to becoming a Smart Foundry by embracing the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This project aims to combine various technologies available to gather and analyse process data, with the aim of improving product quality and cost efficiency.

The basic building blocks for such a concept are robotics, process instrumentation, and the tracking of components using RFID and other software applications. With all the data available and it being traceable to individual castings, the door has opened to enable the use of Artificial Intelligence for process control and inspection of components.

The overall melting capacity of Atlantis Foundries now stands at 75 000 tons per annum

Earlier this year, the Bosnian family conglomerate Hastor acquired the Saarbrücker Foundry Group Neue Halberg-Guss (NHG) through its Prevent Group. A further restructuring of Atlantis Foundries within the new group means that Atlantis Foundries is now 100% owned by a South African based investment company Ukuvela Holdings (Pty) Ltd.

About Ukuvela Holdings
Ukuvela Holdings (Pty) Ltd is a newly incorporated Private Equity player in the market with substantial international backing. It was incorporated for the purpose of investment in emerging markets. The primary focus of Ukuvela Holdings will be industrial or manufacturing, with Atlantis Foundries being its first investment. Ukuvela Holdings sees lots of potential in the South African market, especially when South Africa is at a transition phase. Ukuvela Holdings is optimistic of the future of South Africa and therefore ready to invest in opportunities that meet our profile.

The Directors of Ukuvela Holdings are Mervin Moodley and Rogerio Goncalves.

The new shareholding structure allows Atlantis Foundries to operate as a proudly South African sovereign identity, while benefiting from the strategic direction of the Hastor Group of companies.

Atlantis Foundries has the capability to manufacture and sell automotive castings for the commercial vehicle industry including block castings for use in long distance trucks, V-block castings for use in heavy industrial, marine, agricultural and power generation applications, and medium duty castings for use in light industrial material handling equipment. The company is IATF 16949 2016, ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and BS OHSAS 18001 accredited and Lloyds registered.

For further details contact Atlantis Foundries on TEL: 021 573 7200 or visit www.atlantisfoundries.com