COMPOSITE WASTE REVOLUTIONARIES
COMPOSITES waste ‘revolutionary’ company, TGMC Advanced Manufacturing Suppliers, has done in less than 18 months what most companies aspire to in the long-term – become a success and grown beyond the owner’s wildest dreams.
In April 2016, Chad Reed, senior partner and head of business development at TGMC, and his partner identified an opportunity to use the composite waste material accumulated from the aviation industry to manufacture bespoke, high-end niche furniture.
“We managed to produce commercially viable by-products from the composites waste. The business quickly gained momentum to the point where we are now looking at the viability of manufacturing on a larger scale,” says Reed.
“We are also working with Denel and the University of Pretoria on a project that will investigate the feasibility of recycling large amounts of composites waste,” he adds.
The coffee tables are hand crafted by a qualified team of engineers and artisans to produce a bespoke and customised look and feel. All the products have excellent strength-to-weight and stiffness-to-weight ratios, have smooth aerodynamic profiles as well as complex double-curvature parts with smooth surface finishes and have excellent resistance to corrosion, chemicals and outdoor weathering.
TGMC is a small medium and micro enterprise and is the first 100% black-owned company in South Africa to venture into manufacturing composite components from composite waste material.
Operating from its premises in Bonearo Park, based on the Denel campus in Johannesburg, the company also offers technical support on prepreg related matters in the form workshops focusing on composite awareness as well as consultation and material training.
“We are a gender diverse team of innovative youth, dedicated to revolutionising the mind of the African child’s economic outlook through dynamic thinking of converting waste into opportunity that leads to economic emancipation,” Reed explains.
TGMC’s aim is to use its expertise and experience to make composite components out of the composite waste materials that occupy landfills. In the longer term the company aims to upskill and create sustainable income for the youth. This will be achieved by providing the necessary skills transfer to the youth, enabling them to capitalise on the entrepreneurial opportunities available.