The majority of electrical enclosures used in South Africa are coated with mild steel. Standard off-the-shelf sizes used to be locally manufactured but the tide of low-cost imported steel products has almost completely displaced local steel manufacture in this sector. The probability that there is any local content in the boxes that are bought from stock from any electrical wholesaler in South Africa is close to zero.
Local manufacturer, Allbro, compounds a special version of glass reinforced polyester (GRP) known as SMC (sheet moulding compound). This is a well-known composite material that is used in the manufacture of critical structural parts for jet skis, manhole covers, truck body parts, car parts and many consumer products that require durability greater than what steel can provide.
SMC enclosures have historically been about three times more expensive than steel enclosures, but Allbro has changed the price position of SMC enclosures. Local mould manufacture, local raw material sourcing and compounding, local labour and local energy costs, when combined, make the company’s Allbrox family the only SMC composite enclosure that can compete with cheap steel imports on price, according to Allbro.
Allbrox is amongst the most durable SMC enclosures available worldwide, thanks to a unique coating process that allows the enclosure to withstand decades of the harshest weather conditions. The material underneath the coating is also able to endure decades of abuse from the elements and Allbro goes so far as to assert that there is no enclosure in the world that will last as long as Allbrox.
Over the last five years the range has grown to include 19 part numbers covering a broad range of sizes. Allbro says the industry in South Africa is rapidly recognising the benefits of this home-grown solution and more and more specifications are being changed to support the introduction of Allbrox as a plant standard. The local support base is a fundamental aspect for the success of the product range on a competitive world stage.
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