BAT's New N200m Machines in Zaria Commissioned
British American Tobacco, Nigeria, last Thursday made good its earlier commitment to ugprade its Zaria factory when it commissioned N200 million state-of-the-art machinery for that hub of its northern operations.
The machinery consists of a Packer and Maker combination with the Maker being an efficient high speed machine designed to make 5000 cigarettes in one minute while the packer machines are equipped to handle all manner of product packaging from start to finish. Each one has an individual efficiency of about 85 per cent.
"This is about the best technology available in the world." Mr Richard Hogson, Managing Director of BAT, remarked.
Total production capacity of the machinery is about 4.0 million cigarettes per day, he said, while the products from the machinery shall be of world class quality and would favourably compete with any international brand.
"They have very minimal breakdown incidence, according to the Managing Director.
The implementation of the upgrade plan began in 2001with the installation of GDX1 machines, valued at $1 million then, at the factory.
The machines, which have since become operational, are capable of producing 360 packets per minute, translating to 7,200 sticks per minute.
Hogson explained that the Zaria factory "remains strategic to our overall business objectives in the long term. The ongoing plan to upgrade facilities in this factory underscores our vision for the future; a future in which our Zaria operation is critical."
From 2001 to date, he said, BAT had invested well over N500 million in the Zaria factory.
To maintain their leadership position in the industry, the Managing Director said. BATN had changed its Board., resulting in a comprehensive review of the company's business strategy.
Saying the company places high premium on employee safety, he explained that this was so because their staff members were their greatest assets. As a result, he said, their work environments were especially designed to guard against foreseeable industrial mishaps. "This is a corporate culture which the BAT Group continues to practically demonstrate in its operations globally."
The new machines are fully computerised, Hogson stated, and are designed to conform with globally accepted environmental and safety standards.
He explained that they were equipped with automatic shut-down devices in case of emergency and have simplified fault detection signals amongst several other features.
Their noise levels are very low. The energy consumption is also very favourable when compared with the old machines we inherited from the former Nigerian Tobacco Company (NTC).
Over N5 million has been invested on staff training. The BATN boss promised that the company would continue to demonstrate those principles which cultivated the goodwill that is instrumental to the type of progress being witnessed currently.
Performing the ceremony in company of the Emir Zazzau, HRH Shehu Idris, the Minister of Industry, Ambassador Magaji Mohammed expressed satisfaction with BAT for not only living up to the terms of its Memorandum of Understand-ing (MOU) with the Federal Government, but also for making positive contributions to Nigeria's economic efforts in many ways.
He noted in particular the successful invitation by BAT to NAMPAK, a South African packaging company, to invest in Nigeria.
"This administration is committed to creating a conducive environment`to attract more Foreign Direct Investments (FDI). To this end it prepared a package of incentives to willing investors who are genuinely prepared to partner with the Federal Government in its resolve to build an economically strong democratic Nigeria."
Acknowledging "the good records and high quality production" as well as (BAT's) demonstrated cooperation with government, he hoped that the company would continue to comply with the regulatory framework that guides the tobacco industry in reducing the negative effects of the product on public health.
"I wish to place on records the Federal Government's appreciation of BAT's efforts in this direction and for its exemplary role in discharging its social responsibilities to its immediate community and to the Nigerian public," he said.
As part of its efforts to encourage investors both within and outside the country, the government has made substantial investment in infrastructural development, particularly in the power, transportation and communication sub-sectors with a view to improving the quality of lives of our people. The deregulation of the communication sub-sector has transformed our communication system to be more reliable and affordable. The new electricity generating gas turbine coming up in Ondo State is aimed at addressing the perennial electricity supply problem. Furthermore, NEPA is being restructured and strengthened to face the increasing challenges of economic development particularly in Manufacturing sector. Regarding the problem of transportation and other infrastructures, the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has been established to rehabilitate the affected roads nationwide while the Nigerian Railway Corporation is being revitalised.
This administration is committed to the use of locally available resources to boost production for the local and international markets. This is the only way by which our national economy could become self-reliant and self sustaining. The Export Expansion Grant (EEG) though recently suspended to check abuse of this incentive and Government's ban on the importation of certain categories of goods were designed to achieve this objective. It is also meant to discourage the use of our hardearned foreign exchange for the importation of goods and raw materials which are locally available. I am pleased to note that BAT Nigeria has taken up this challenge and that their products have achieved about 40 percent local leaf content. This is impressive in view of the fact that you began production in Nigeria barely three years ago. I look forward to achieving greater percentage and I assure you that my Ministry will do everything possible to assist the company in realising this objective.
. Ours has been and still is a mono-product economy, which is too volatile considering that petroleum is a wasting asset and non-renewable resource. One of the key objectives of this government, therefore, is to diversify the economy and make it less dependent on petro-dollars. Hence, Agriculture and Manufacturing are rated very high amongst the major sectors in our short term and long-term economic plan.
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