Aquamarine Water Solutions, a wholly South African company and independent business unit within the Murray & Roberts stable, introduced its expanded water treatment solutions offering in late 2019. This coincided with the company’s relaunch, which included the head office relocation to Johannesburg; internal restructuring; and the announcement of its objectives: to provide more value for customers in 2020 and beyond, increase its customer base in South Africa and expand into Africa.

 The company’s mission – to empower Africa with technology-driven water solutions – is intended to help overcome water scarcity on the continent and simultaneously provide quality water tailored to customers’ specific requirements. To achieve this, the company has partnered with local and multinational technology partners that specialise in water related solutions. This allows Aquamarine to ensure quality in all its offerings; proffer expert advice to customers with regards to component application use; repair and service equipment when required; and uphold the technology owners’ warranties.

 The company’s complete water solutions offering includes made-to-order and standardised solutions for brackish and seawater treatment. This encompasses the manufacture and installation of containerised and skid mounted water treatment plants, the provision of chemicals (reverse osmosis, cooling and boiler); componentry; operation and maintenance of plants, as well as risk-dependent finance for any of its projects.

 “This offering, when combined with the benefits of our partnerships, puts us on a trajectory to provide greater value for our customers,” says Aquamarine Water Solutions Head, Clive Govender.

 Aquamarine’s partner companies include technology owners specialising in water treatment membranes, process and dosing pumps, chemicals, filtration systems, pressure vessels, and consumables. “All of them are key players in their specific fields and therefore dedicate large volumes of time and money into R&D,” Govender explains. “The collaborations are a win-win for all. The technologies provided speak to the solutions that the South African and African markets need and we represent their brands in-country, giving them a local presence and capability.”

 Collaboration with the technology owners enables the company to develop more refined tailor-made solutions to suit customers’ specific requirements. Additional advantages for Aquamarine’s customers include faster project delivery enabled by stock availability, speedy delivery, a turnkey service offering, local expert knowledge and aftersales support. 

 Aquamarine’s strategy includes developing long-term relationships with its customers, with a view of optimising product lifecycle costs. To this end, the company conducts capital vs. operating costs comparisons, and continuously optimises the solution to provide increased efficiency throughout the lifetime of the asset.

 “A water treatment plant is a high capital cost which can be offset over the long-term via efficient operations and maintenance,” Govender points out. “An efficiently run plant results in reduced power requirements and lower chemical consumption, and provides a more consistent quality output. This means that our offering ultimately contributes to a plant’s lower total cost of ownership.”

Aquamarine has partnered with a warehousing and distribution service provider, which enables them to guarantee a delivery lead-time for stocked items of 24 to 72 hours based on a customer’s location. As over-border projects increase and component delivery to those countries rise, the company will establish regional distribution centres in countries where order volumes are sustainable.

Aquamarine’s head office is supported by its Cape Town branch, and plans to move into the rest of sub-Saharan Africa in the short- to medium-term are underway. The new head office is located at Aquamarine House, 46 Koornhof Road, Meadowdale, Germiston