Rhombus Ready Mix Concrete Company
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CORPORATE SCENE
Rhombus Ready Mix
Concrete Company
By Marketing Africa Crew
R
hombus Ready Mix Concrete is on the Rhombus Ready Mix Concrete diary and to update the program of works.
a Kenyan-owned construction journey. The discussion provided valuable In short, I was at the heart of the project
company founded in 2015. nuggets into their product and insights tasked with minimizing delays, leading to
Located at Ridgeways along Kiambu into what it takes to be a successful lost time and cost overruns. My job took
Road, Nairobi, its core business is selling entrepreneur, as evidenced through the me to many parts of Kenya. I later moved
ready mix concrete. It was established to journey of this courageous and unique to Cementers in Kampala and then came
improve Kenyan construction credibility man looking to disrupt long-held norms back to Kenya. But with time, I felt that
and trust by producing high-quality ready in the construction industry. I had contributed enough as an employee
mix concrete using the latest technology and learned all that I needed to. Earlier
and efficient delivery methods. For the on, I registered a construction company as
last five years, Rhombus has constructed
Wangai's Exciting Journey a side hassle and decided to dive right in
buildings, roads, bridges, and dams much to Entrepreneurship with both feet. The construction company
more manageable, safer, and faster. is what is today known as Rhombus.
My journey to entrepreneurship started
Being a wholly Kenyan-owned enterprise, while at the University of Nairobi, where Like a quadrilateral whose sides are equal
Rhombus takes pride in playing a vital I was studying Building Economics. in length, a diamond Rhombus denotes
role in the country's rapid infrastructure Building Economics qualifies one to be a not just strength but perfection. In 5
development and is looking forward, in QS - Quantity Surveyor. However, it was years, we have become the market leaders
conjunction with other players, to doing clear in my mind that I did not want to despite encountering numerous challenges
even more for the beloved mother country. work for a consulting QS firm. I wanted along the way.
As such, the company is committed to to work for a contractor, to be there in the
investing more in innovation, delivery, trenches where the action is, and creation
and human resource capacity to develop takes place. That, to me, was an exciting
What Does Rhombus Offer?
the industry. place to be.
Rhombus offers pre-mixed or ready-mix
concrete to the construction industry.
Marketing Africa crew had an engaging I was fortunate to get a job immediately
Let me explain. Concrete is a mixture of
conversation with Mr. Solomon Wangai, after graduating as a claims consultant for
cement, sand, rocks (in the form of gravel)
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, a contractor. My role was to keep the site
using water and chemicals and is a critical
ingredient in the construction industry. It
Being a wholly Kenyan-owned enter- has been in use since the Roman Empire.
In most instances, concrete is manually
prise, Rhombus takes pride in playing mixed on-site as the construction is going
a vital role in the country's rapid infra- on. Pre-mixed concrete is done off-site
and delivered to construction sites, ready
structure development and is looking for use.
forward, in conjunction with other play- Ready-mix concrete has brought efficiency
ers, to doing even more for the beloved and reliability, translating to time and
cost savings in the industry. How? You
mother country. As such, the company may ask; Manual mixing does not assure
is committed to investing more in inno- consistency of quality, takes time, requires
more space, and is wasteful as one needs to
vation, delivery, and human resource ca- buy all the ingredients in many cases from
pacity to develop the industry. different suppliers then transport them to
the site. The chances of pilferage are also
high. Pre-mixed concrete overcomes all
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these problems and is also environment-
friendly.
Our unique selling proposition is that
The Future of Premixed 'we care.' The customer is changing,
Concrete Sector becoming more discerning, always de-
The Concrete fortunes have annually been
manding quality at a fair price, and de-
growing by about 6.4 percent and in tandem livered on time. Guided by the fact that
with those of the construction industry.
The growth has been driven mainly by construction is driven by cost and time
Government spending on infrastructure.
Additionally, private developers in the
and that our product is perishable, we
commercial and housing sectors are also endeavor to build our capacity and have
steadily growing. Considering these facts,
ready-mix concrete future in Kenya is
the right people to deliver solutions that
indeed bright. the customer is seeking every day.
Apart from this and more importantly, the
growth of concrete will come from three Lastly, concerns for environmentally In short, our unique selling proposition is
inevitable factors. One is the change in the friendly options in the construction that 'we care.' The customer is changing,
customer who is looking to build better, industry will push developers to adapt pre- becoming more discerning, always
faster, and cheaper. There are also taste mixed concrete. The advantages that this demanding quality at a fair price, and
changes where customers are demanding innovation offers will prove irresistible. delivered on time. Guided by the fact that
a different end product such as colored Pre-mixed concrete is the future, and I do construction is driven by cost and time
concrete and joint-less slabs. These are not doubt it. and that our product is perishable, we
better done elsewhere and delivered ready endeavor to build our capacity and have
to the site. Our product, all other factors the right people to deliver solutions that
Who are your customers, the customer is seeking every day.
being constant, contributes to achieving
this. and why do they come and
stick with Rhombus? The Effect of Covid-19
Additionally, shrinking construction
space means that buildings are going Our customers are contractors and Initially, there was a slow down when
higher, and Rhombus has the technology developers, be they commercial or those the Government enforced the Covid-19
that enables us to deliver concrete to as building their own homes. They come to containment measures. The curfew
high as 20 floors, increasing construction us for two main reasons. Firstly, it's our lowered our capacity as we had to work
cost when done manually. Moreover, consistent quality. To ensure quality, we fewer hours to give our workers time to
mixing on-site requires many workers to have invested in the requisite technology reach their homes in time. The steps also
use a larger space which increases costs. across all processes, and we source and affected our deliveries as we could not
The need for site efficiency and space select our raw materials from the very best deliver at night. However, work didn't
utilization is essential to the contractor sources. We also have the necessary checks slow ultimately as the construction sector
and the developer. and balances, including independent labs, is an essential service.
to test every batch that leaves our premises.
Construction is becoming more complex, Nevertheless, there was a silver lining for
and customers demand smaller but Secondly, it's our timely delivery. Over time the construction industry. Government
stronger columns which augur well for we have come to appreciate that we are in construction projects, especially roads, did
pre-mixed concrete. Pre-mixed concrete the logistics business more than anything not stop. Additionally, private developers,
ensures quality consistency as the whole else. We have the most significant number especially those putting up residential
process is mechanized and computerized of delivery trucks and two batching units, who may have put them on hold
hence reducing guesswork and other sites, one in Athi River and the other at now found they had time on their hands,
human error. It avoids wastage and leads Ridgeways, Nairobi. That enables us to given the lockdowns and curfews, to start
to safer buildings. Poor concrete mix is deliver to sites located further than any of new projects, complete stalled works, or
a crucial contributor to most collapsing our competitors can. carry out some repairs.
facilities during construction.
We keenly listen to our customers and The need for social distancing worked
Ready-mix concrete also reduces theft of ensure we give them the solution at their out in our favor as the fewer people on-
materials as nothing gets diverted during pain points. We visit construction sites to site, the safer it got. Mixing cement on-
transportation. Pre-mixed concrete is understand various customer needs better site requires many people close together,
always cost-effective as Rhombus buys and identify areas we can improve. Lastly, while our product eliminates that need.
all ingredients in bulk, and all volume being a local indigenous company and We, therefore, witnessed an uptake of pre-
discount savings are passed on to medium size, we are nimble and agile, mixed cement for that reason too.
customers. adapting our ways to changing customers'
needs and the industry. I must add that being a socially
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responsible firm; Rhombus ensures that all with the necessary skills is difficult. discussed, is fundamental to our success.
our workers, whether on our site or when So, we had to hire staff for attitude and Some of the targeted ways we use
delivering to a customer, follow all the set train them. That is expensive and slow to market our product are to attend
Covid-19 protocols. in an industry where speed and accuracy construction exhibitions and partner
are critical pillars of success. These two with BURAX - Board of Registration of
people-related issues have slowed building Contactors - where we train contractors on
Challenges capacity and scaling. the advantages of ready-mix concrete and
why Rhombus should be their preferred
The challenges we face can be divided
Thirdly, as with any innovation, acceptance partner. We also give out marketing
into four varied categories. Firstly, those
takes time. We, therefore, have to educate collateral to the relevant target audience
faced as a startup, secondly, people issues
potential customers on what we offer and at appropriate forums and venues.
encountered by SME's in a new sector,
the advantages derived. Uptake depends
thirdly, those of a pioneer investor selling
mainly on the market being clear on the
a new idea or a concept, and fourthly,
benefits they are getting. Most of our
Our Competitors
the perishability of our products. I must
potential customers are sticking to the
point out that these are intertwined. As a Our main competitors are Bamburi
traditional ways of doing things. That
startup, we faced the challenge of raising Cement, Alliance Concrete, Warren,
slows the sector's growth and puts a cap
the necessary finances. The pre-mix sector and Sidai. But our most significant
on how first we can scale our business. But
is capital intensive and requires investment competition is the on-site traditional
we are privy to the fact that we shall bear
in trucks and space (land) for the site and concrete mixing. We must never lose sight
the more significant portion of educating
the equipment. We started by leasing the that we are competing against a long but
the customer as market leaders and do not
area and buying used mixer trucks from outdated concrete mixing tradition that is
shy from it.
the UK. We then put up the batching a hard nut to crack as change takes time.
plants and other necessary services such Though we are the market leader, due to
The fourth challenge is the common
as water and electricity. Purchasing raw having the highest capacity and market
congestion on our roads, heavy daytime
materials such as sand, cement, and ballast share, we must not rest on our laurels or
traffic as it were. Our product is perishable
is expensive. When we began, suppliers be satisfied as championing this sector's
and should be delivered to the site within
required upfront payment as we had not growth falls squarely on us.
3-4 hours to maintain its desired quality.
developed the necessary relationships to
We try to overcome this by transporting
get credit facilities. That called for a fair
amount of cash flow, and we had to take
at night or public holidays when traffic is Dealing With Impact on the
light, but most sites may not work in such
loans which we struggled to pay as our
periods.
Environment
customer base was still tiny.
As a matter of cause, the construction
The second challenge is that which faces Marketing industry impacts the environment in
firms offering a relatively new idea. Pre- two ways; dust and waste. By delivering
mixed concrete, though very popular in Marketing our product to ensure ready-made concrete, we reduce the
developed markets, is rather a new thing customers understand what we offer number of sites that mix individually,
in this region. So getting the right people and our unique proposition, as earlier thereby reducing the environmental
18 MAL41/21 ISSUE
emissions that each site contributes. itch to be an entrepreneur also starts mixed concrete. I want people to look
Secondly, we have a state-of-the-art early in one's life. It was the need to be at what we have done and believe that a
plant that recycles most of the waste for independent, control, and not depend on local indigenous Kenyan can do it. I want
re-use. Our products and processes go anyone to determine my personal growth to break the perception that we cannot
through rigorous testing, with approvals and destiny, which drove me to business. make it on our own. I want to give people
from KEBs and other relevant industry I recognized this way back when I was the confidence and grit that, armed with
regulatory bodies to ensure minimum at the University. I found myself being courage, tenacity, desire, and relevant
impact on the environment. motivated and drawn to those running knowledge, you can build a homegrown
their businesses. My curiosities led me to business from scratch. I want the next
Corporate Social read articles on entrepreneurship which I generation to know that business is not
printed and filed. only about the things I have talked about,
Responsibility but one must also embrace discipline,
Secondly, I would tell them that consistency, and the ability to make the
We are conscious that though we are a knowledge is critical. Before diving in, one right decisions most of the time. Above
young company, we must give back to should search for as much information as all, they must be guided by integrity and
society in whatever measure we can. To possible, not just about the industry of doing the right thing. Our dreams are
this end, we have a Children's Home we interest but also about running a business indeed valid.
support in Githurai, Kiambu County. We generally. How are the most successful
are working on a more strategic CSR companies run? What are the critical
program to benefit more people, especially pillars that determine their success? What
those left behind by the vagaries in society. pitfalls should one avoid? For example, if
one wants to start an accounting firm, find
These are excerpts as recorded
Lessons to Those Looking out through reading or talking to those
by Marketing Africa Crew
in the industry how the best accounting
To Be Entrepreneurs firms are running. Better still, work for
from the conversation with Mr.
one before launching yours. Solomon Wangai, Founder &
If I were to advise those looking to embark Chief Executive Officer, Rhombus
on this arduous, challenging, but exciting, Ready Mix Concrete. For more
and rewarding journey, I would tell them My Legacy information or comments drop us
two things based on my experience. Firstly, a line on: Info@marketingafrica.
business is not for everyone, and it's ok to I want to be remembered as someone who co.ke.
be employed as long as one contributes played a critical contribution to improving
in the best way they can. The desire or the construction industry through pre-You can also read
