Project Engineer Malvern Hobwana has a BSc (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering and has worked for Sharpshell since 2016. He has overseen a number of the company’s projects including for clients Engen, Shell and Glencore and Sasol.
In 2017 SASOL awarded Sharpshell Engineering a maintenance engineering contract at its Secunda plants that Hobwana oversees. He is currently also busy doing his Masters in the conversion of waste to biogas and GCC.
“The contract at SASOL sees us maintaining the mines’ equipment and machinery and also motivated the establishment of our offices and a workshop in Trichardt. Our scope includes maintenance of equipment like beams, chutes, conveyor belts and reclaimers, ring chutes, platforms, stackers etc. We provide quick designs, do modifications on structures, fabricate structures and install. We install liners and undertake window patching of the chutes as well as undertaking welding and civil and structural works.
“I have a very experienced team here, including my supervisors who have both worked in the industry for over twenty years. I manage operational staff comprising a site agents, site supervisors, boiler makers and welders, semi-skilled boilermakers and welders, a safety officer and assistants.
“My team is very focused on quality, delivery, safety and compliance. They know what the business wants from them; they know what the client wants from them; and they know what I expect from them. I have a great passion for engineering, and often when there is a problem in the SASOL plant, people will look to a mechanical engineer/engineer for solutions. We have to be innovative, self-motivated, pro-active and on standby 24-7 as the industry is very demanding.
“The more projects we do, the more people we can employ who can in turn support their families. We certainly have the capacity to service more clients in South Africa as a whole.
