Debridge Industries: Manufacturer of Tile Adhesive and Supplier of Building Materials in Ghana

Interview with Tony Kwasi Kwansare, CEO of Debridge Industries

What is your assessment of the sector in Ghana and West Africa? What are the latest trends?

Ten years ago, Ghana had a building deficit of 1.7 million units. Currently, there are almost 2 million units that are in deficit in the country. What is trending now is the tiles that the real estate or the building industry use as the finishing product. Every unit will need roughly 10,000 bags of adhesive to meet the volume of product that we will need to break this housing deficit gap. I have realized my company’s potential to help in this industry. One of our visions is to team up with the real estate developers and the building industries to bridge this gap. In addition to Ghana’s deficit issue, Nigeria is also another territory which has a building deficit of 20 million houses. It is the same story in other West African countries. When dealing with the terrain in Ghana, we have a lot of dust. Tile is one finish that helps with this issue because it is much easier to clean it and maintain it. The tiling industry is a very viable area that we need to also assist with as an indigenous Ghanaian and African company.

What are the specifics of your product and your key competitive advantage?

We have begun the establishment of a state-of-the-art factory in the central region which will enable us to produce around 5,000 bags per day, which is about 100 tons per day. At that rate, we should be able to at least meet the demand for the current trend.

Our product is state-of-the-art because it is sag resistant, it has a long open time, and it is capable of laying all types of tiles: ceramic, porcelain, mosaic, stone, etc. One advantage that we have is that we have taken into consideration the African climate. This product has been certified by the Ghana Standard Authority and ECOWAS. The ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme certificate allows us to export to all the ECOWAS countries without paying duties, only a levy. It makes the product competitive, especially in terms of pricing. The product has been certified by the Minister of Trade and Industry as a premium brand. It has also been certified by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the Building and Road Research Institute. This proves that the product is the best and that it is able to address all tiling challenges in the building industry.

What projects do you have now? Are you producing? Selling? Are you meeting the demand? Where are you in the process of development?

We started 7 years ago and we are progressing. We started with 4 workers and now have over 19 workers. We started at 400 bags a week and now we are producing almost 6,000 bags a month. One of our challenges is the demand. Recently, our product has been patronized by WBHO which is a company that builds shopping malls. They have used our product in various shopping malls of theirs throughout the country such as Action Motor Mall, the Commercial Shopping Mall, the Accra Mall, the Takoradi Mall, and the West Hills Mall. If your product is able to withstand a shopping mall, then residential areas and offices are no problem. The product is also being patronized by foreign companies and one of our challenges there has to do with the volumes that we need to provide. We have a deficiency in terms of preparation of the material, especially in the rainy season, which we are trying to address. We are now on the verge of producing on the large scale. We have been qualified under the “One District, One Factory” project initiated by the government. Currently, we have begun the establishment of a state-of-the-art factory in the central region which will enable us to produce around 5,000 bags per day, which is about 100 tons per day. At that rate, we should be able to at least meet the demand for the current trend. But going forward, we still have to expand because the West African subregion market is there and we also need to exploit it.

Are you trying to attract investors? What else do you need to finance your expansion?

The bank has come onboard to assist us financially. However, in order to make a state-of-the-art plant and a factory that can be at ISO standard levels, we need extra funds. We are interested in those investors who are willing to come onboard not only here in Ghana but in other countries as well because the market is huge. Currently, the company is registered in Nigeria and Malawi. I have visited other West African countries and I have seen the volume of product that they will need in the construction sector. Africa is developing and you can see the volume of housing units that we need. The statistics are alarming.

Do you have international experience?

We made our first export to Togo some years ago. However, it all boils down to the demand. We are already facing challenges with our own country’s demand. If we are unable to supply the demand in our own country, how do we move outside? The current demand in this country is so huge that we need to address that first and then move on to other countries next.

What CSR activities are you active in? You mentioned different things you want to do for the workers in the project that you are developing.

As a corporate body or as a company, the welfare of your workers is also paramount. We want to build additional facilities that will help our workers. We want to put up a canteen, a changing room, a first aid room or clinic, even residential apartments for the workers so they can have enough time to rest after their work. We also want to have a facility like a laboratory for the product itself so that for any product that goes out, we can make sure that it meets the international standard. We will not compromise with the materials or the finished product. We need to make sure it is up to the ISO standard or the Ghana standard. We do not want to compromise because the cost of every project normally centers on the finishing and if the finishing fails you, you are in trouble. If you want to build a shopping mall and, in a few years, you see discrepancies, how will you mend it? Whereas, if it is a 24/7 project, something like a hotel, you need to make sure the right product is used. When the right product is used it guarantees at least 20 years before the need for renovations. We do not want to put our clients in a bad situation. That is why we are trying to go all in so that even if the worker is working, they will work with joy and a healthy mind and that will help us move forward.

Are you planning on warehouse facilities as well?

The second part of our vision is to make sure we have a warehouse in every region so that the product will be readily available anywhere in the country.

Project yourself into the medium term, three years’ time. How do you see the development of the company? What will the company be if everything goes according to plan? What is your vision?

Our mission in the next three years is to be able to meet the demand of the country and to enter into the West African subregion. The ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme will enable us to export to the ECOWAS subregion without paying duty which makes the product more competitive in terms of pricing. In the subsequent years, we want to move into the rest of Africa and even into Asia. There, our target is China. We want to serve China because we recognize the demand.

What is your plan for China?

My ambition for China is for the price as well as the quality of the product. The raw material that we have in our subregion is unique to meet the world standard demand. I have tested it and I know we can make it.

What makes your product unique?

It is unique because the type of raw materials and the formulation we have meet the world ISO standard, which means your product is accepted throughout the world. It depends on where you want to channel to.

Do you have any final notes?

I encourage all real estate developers to try Superbond Tile Adhesive. We do grout as well. I encourage all stakeholders in the building industry, all developers, all building technologies, all architects, all private developers to come onboard and use the product so that we can develop our country and develop Africa as we move forward.

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