Alaf invests $35m in new metal coating plant

Alaf Ltd, a roofing material specialist in Dar es Salaam has invested $35 million in a new metal coating plant.

The plant, with a capacity of 70,000 metric tonnes per annum, will produce Zincal metal, which is an alloy of zinc （42.4 per cent）, aluminium （55 per cent） and silicon （1.6 per cent）.

Sharad Salgar, the chief executive officer said the alloy dubbed Simba Dumu, was developed after extensive research on the traditional galvanized zinc coated steel （simba mabati）, aimed at improving its performance.

Researchers found that by adding aluminium to zinc while metal coating on the base steel, a new product is formed that is durable.

Zincal draws its superiority from the production process, which Alaf Ltd acquired from BIEC International Inc （USA） — the worldwide leader and licensor of the technology.

“Just like its predecessor, we expect Simba Dumu to lead the market because of its superior quality that includes better corrosion resistance, long life and that it reflects heat better than the normal galvanised sheet, leading to cooler interiors,” said Sharad Salgar the company chief executive.

Alaf Ltd is part of the Safal Group of Companies, a leading manufacturer of roofing, flat and long products in Africa.

Alaf Ltd specialises in cold rolled steel coils, aluminium-zinc coated steel coils, black pipes, Z-purlin and hollow sections under the brand name Simba.

For the past 50 years Alaf Ltd has been leading in roofing materials through Simba mabati roofing sheets.

The company also specialises in resincot （zincal base colour coated roofing） from which various profiles including maxcover, versatile, IT-5, IT-4 and Saflok -700 are made.

This year the company is celebrating its golden jubilee in service of roofing and allied building products in Tanzania and neighbouring markets.

The company, according to the director, has been winning the president`s Manufacturers of The Year award （in the large industry category） instituted by the Confederation of Tanzania Industries （CTI） since its inception.

It is also the only company in its category in Tanzania to be accredited with ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 certification, for its quality standards and commitment towards the environment.