Metalock Blog – News onsite engineering services and all things metalock

March 4th, 2011

Essential maintenance to petrochemical plant – Saudi Arabia

When one of Saudi Arabia’s largest petrochemical plants needed extensive maintenance recently, the order went to Midroc Europe’s newly started company Metalock Saudi Arabia. The contract was to renovate the guide vanes of one of the plant’s two steam turbines, but soon grew to include both turbines.

Not yet having managed to build up a sufficient workforce of its own, Metalock Saudi Arabia called in colleagues from Metalock UK and Metalock Sweden and was soon able to mobilise no fewer than 34 technicians and four mobile milling machines. The steam turbines were soon up and running again and operational disruption kept at a minimum. This is a typical example of how Metalock Engineering works. But having access to the whole of the international Metalock group is not just an advantage when tackling a large project at short notice – it’s the very idea behind the business. “We’ve developed a concept that we call mobile processing,” says Martyn Green.

Enormous Markets

Put simply, the concept could be viewed as a kind of emergency call-out service. When something breaks, Metalock can quickly deploy members of its international team and resolve the problem on-site. But it also has a long-established strategy of setting up subsidiaries around the world. Besides Sweden, there are Metalock companies in Germany, the UK, France, South Africa and, most recently, Saudi Arabia and India. “India is a unique case due to the boom in its steel industry over the past decade,” says Martyn. “We’ve been having to ship up to 50 tons of equipment and 20 European staff over to India several times a year. To save having to do this every time we do a small job, we’ve started up a company in Kolkata. Besides the obvious savings on wage costs, these companies can also serve as our extended arm, acting as our agents when we tender for the really special jobs.” More than anything, being there on-site is a way of expanding the business, Martyn says. The market for Midroc’s expertise seems almost unlimited. Saudi Arabia is home to one of the world’s largest investment programmes, with enormous amounts being put into both the energy and construction sectors.

India in turn is crying out for skills in every part of the steel industry. “Both Saudi and India are markets that will eventually be as big as Europe and the US, so we need to be there,” says Martyn. “Midroc’s owner, Sheikh Mohammed, has himself highlighted the business opportunities to be found in Saudi Arabia. One person I met down there reckoned that we could set up a whole new Midroc Europe – there’s that much work to be done.”

Expertise Crucial

So what will it take to get on board? Ask Martyn Green and the answer comes easily: it’s all about expertise. There is no doubt that the Midroc group has the technical expertise, but it also needs the ability to spot a market for it. What does it look like? Which products and services are needed? What benefits are there in the longer term? Martyn is keen here to stress the importance of management focusing on finding the very best workers. “The companies we’ve set up abroad are home to some very talented project managers, people who are willing to work very hard and travel a lot. A relatively small number of people are carrying an enormous burden. “So it’s essential for Midroc to earmark sufficient resources. Since the expansive 1990s, the group has adopted a clear line of controlled growth with a good margin for error in terms of profitability. This is good, because if you focus solely on volumes, you can soon run off the rails. On the other hand, you don’t want to stand still – there’s a risk of being overly cautious.”

Metalock Could Lead the Way

Martyn believes that broadening our horizons can only be a good thing. Metalock Engineering has made a name for itself over the years as a world leader in its niche and shown that it is possible to expand internationally with good profitability. Others could do the same, he believes. “We know there’s a market for other jobs that the Midroc companies could do. Many of the contacts we’ve made in our niche could also be cultivated for other work.” He seems sure of his case: more turnkey solutions are a very realistic vision for Midroc, including internationally. “Absolutely. I think Metalock could serve as a kind of trailblazer for the other companies in the Midroc group. It’s a classic way of building value for the future.”

Article as featured in the British Manufacturing Plant Constructors’ Association March 2011 newsletter.