Proactive Marketing Sales has changed its name, but retains the acronym PMS by which it is well known, with the change to Proactive Manufacturing Solutions.
The company has also taken the big step of expanding its capabilities into SMT manufacturing, for the purposes of which it has acquired another building in the same Modderfontein area as its original premises.
PMS is already hard at work setting up the new 730 m² SMT plant, with a planned schedule to commence full operations in the second half of August 2016. PMS will be making use of Panasonic pick-and-place machines as well as state-of-the-art 3D SPI and AOI inspection systems in the production line. The SMT line has the capability to place anything from 03015 components all the way up to connectors of 150 x 25 mm. The company’s existing factory will continue to serve as its hub for in-cabinet solutions, full systems testing, quality control, warehousing and shipping operations.
Asked what the reasons were behind launching the new facility, Lesley Bebbington, a partner in the business, explains: “We have been project managing for the past 11 years using subcontract manufacturers to do our assemblies, and have realised that for PMS to grow into a contender in the industry, we need to get our own manufacturing plant with the emphasis on low-volume, high-complexity, full turnkey solutions. However, we are not limited and are open to all client requirements.”
Although she expects to face a learning curve, Bebbington believes PMS has the personnel and support to overcome any hurdles it might come up against. “With the right staff and amazing support from our machine supplier, Techmet, we don’t foresee any major challenges,” she says. “This was the very reason I decided to go with Panasonic and Techmet – as well as the versatile capabilities of the production line, the training and support is formidable and will definitely give us a good head start.
“We have had to grow our staff complement as part of a core decision to employ and support the industry by job creation. There have been some big upsets in the South African electronics manufacturing industry over the last couple of years and many skilled people have been without jobs since, some of whom we were only too happy to bring on board.”
Despite looking forward to a future of growth on the one hand, Bebbington says it will nevertheless be business as usual for PMS moving forward. “We have not shifted our core focus. However, having our own production line will definitely put us in the market for new opportunities in South Africa as well as business from abroad, thanks to our new state-of-the-art facility that will have the highest quality production with measurable systems and procedures,” she concludes.
For more information contact Lesley Bebbington, Proactive Manufacturing Solutions, +27 (0)11 608 4427, [email protected], www.274pms.co.za
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