Leading Welding Solutions in Ghana: African Welding Solutions CEO Philip Creech Jones on Innovation, Expansion, and Industry Challenges

Give an overview of African Welding  Solutions?

African Welding Solutions was established in 2020 as a joint venture between Rikair Company Ltd and Projects and Operations Services—both indigenous Ghanaian companies. Managed and owned by Ghanaians, African Welding Solutions is dedicated to specialised welding solutions. We proudly represent the world’s top welding brand, and supply welding equipment, consumables, accessories, after-market support, and training to various industries. The sectors we serve include mining, oil and gas, automotive and transport, railway, cement, fabrication, and artisanal markets.

What is your competitive advantage?

We pride ourselves on being an integrated solutions provider, representing the world’s top brands. This ensures superior quality. Our focus on delivering exceptional welding value to our clients is what truly sets us apart.

What are some of the challenges and opportunities you find yourself in there?

We see both challenges and opportunities because as long as industries are operating, machines are moving, machines are breaking down, and there’s a constant need for maintenance. Whenever new projects emerge involving metalwork, we’re there to provide superior solutions and support our clients in boosting productivity.

Apart from Ghana, which other markets do you find yourself in?

Currently, we’re working in Burkina Faso and Guinea. We plan to expand into other countries as well, taking it one step at a time

What exactly do you do in Burkina Faso and Guinea?

We offer the same services in Burkina Faso. We supply welding equipment, consumables, accessories, and provide aftermarket services and training.

We provide the same comprehensive services in Guinea as well.

Is there any other country?

We’ve supplied some equipment to Mauritania, but we haven’t established a presence on the ground there yet. There’s a welding company in Mauritania that handles distribution and services, so while we supply to the country, we don’t have a direct foothold there. We’re also exploring a few other countries, but our focus for now is to strengthen our presence in Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Ghana before expanding further. We believe it’s important to consolidate what we already have and ensure we’re deeply rooted before moving on. However, Côte d’Ivoire is on our radar, though no decisions have been made to enter that market yet.

What are some of the challenges faced in the industry generally?

Recently, the main challenge we face is the constant fluctuation in the exchange rate, because we import everything. Prices are constantly shifting today, and we might be bringing in products at a rate of 10, and next time, it’s at 12. Sometimes, these changes happen weekly. Lately, the rate is coming down, but the challenge is that we’re holding inventory that we bought at higher prices. So, management is constantly making decisions on how to balance reducing prices for our customers while still covering our costs and paying our suppliers, because we bought these items when the rate was higher. These are some of the tough decisions we have to make. We believe that if the rate stabilises, it will definitely be better for us and for the industry. For now, though, we’ll have to pass on some of these costs to our customers to stay afloat.

What impact do you envision for your business?

It’s definitely a huge impact. If I need to pay $100,000 to my suppliers, for example, and the exchange rate has moved so much that I now have to mobilise 1.7 million instead of 1.5 million, that’s a significant difference. So, even if it’s just a slight change in the exchange rate, it has a big impact on our cash flow. As an industry, we all have to pay close attention to this and adapt accordingly.

Currently, are you working on any projects?

Yes, there’s a project currently running. We’re doing it in conjunction with a customer, for example, one of our biggest suppliers. As we speak, they’re supplying some additional equipment. It’s a huge project and, honestly, it’s something we haven’t seen at this scale in Ghana before. So it’s quite significant.

Can you elaborate more on some of the sectors you work with?

TTI is one of them. We also work with Ola and Gas, Gold Fields, and Engineers and Planners. We’re trying to enter some new markets, but we haven’t been successful yet. Our competitors are very active there. We’re still working on these opportunities. We also have a couple of suppliers for Gassan, and we’re working with B5 Plus, which is known for its very good quality.

Can you briefly talk about Rikair Limited?

Rikair owns 70% of African Welding Solutions. Rikair itself is an industrial and medical gas company. We pride ourselves on the fact that we save lives, and indeed we do. We are the leading provider of medical gas piping solutions in Ghana. We supply oxygen to both private and public hospitals, and we also serve mining companies, providing on-site oxygen solutions. So that’s our focus at Rikair.

Looking at the next five years, strategically, where do you see the business?

In the next five years, we’re looking to diversify. We believe that growth lies in providing integrated welding solutions. We don’t want to just be passive players in the industry by only supplying machines and consumables. We want to establish a division of certified welders so we can participate in welding contracts directly, not just supplying, but taking up entire welding projects. For example, if someone wants to build a tank, we should be able to do that fully, not just supply the equipment.

Why are you part of WAMPEX?

WAMPEX is the West African Mining and Power Exhibition. We’re a mining support services company, so it’s important for us to be present. It gives us an opportunity to interact with all our customers in one place. Instead of traveling to meet them individually, everyone comes together there. It also lets us showcase the innovations and solutions we’re building, and connect with people we haven’t yet met or have been trying to meet for some time. So, exhibiting at WAMPEX helps us show the value we bring to our customers and strengthens our relationships.

How did you end up in mining? Tell us a bit about your journey.

That’s an interesting question. I’m not an engineer, though I mostly work in engineering. I found myself in this space by chance. Right after school, I started working in this field. My first degree was in Communication Studies, and my second was in Corporate Leadership and Governance — nothing to do with engineering! But my first job was in an engineering company, an industrial and mechanical gas company. I spent 22 years there, mostly in business development and key account management for gases.

Eventually, I transitioned to Rikair, which is also in industrial and medical gases. I worked as a Business Development Manager and later became CEO of Rikair, which owns 70% of African Welding Solutions. So, while I’m not formally trained as an engineer, I’m very familiar with the markets and the processes. Over the years, I’ve become a self-taught engineer — I’ve had to understand the technical aspects, applications, and solutions to engage clients and provide the best services properly. It’s been a journey of continuous learning and on-the-job experience.

That’s interesting. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

I should say there are a lot of exciting things ahead for us. We’re looking to bring in our expertise to help develop the industry, and for that matter, Ghana as a whole. We’re hopeful that this year we’ll start seeing some positive changes. We also hope to continue on this trajectory and that government policy will be favourable to the private sector, so we can do even more. For some of the things we currently import, we’re exploring the possibility of starting to assemble them locally, and ultimately, we might even go into manufacturing so that we can export as well.