On this interview, a Chemical Engineer and Managing Director, Vitavisco Nigeria Restricted, a Subsidiary of Vitafoam Nigeria Plc, Joseph Musa, discusses a spread of points affecting producers in Nigeria and the way Vitavisco can generate foreign exchange for the federal authorities. Excerpts
Are you able to present an summary of the present state of the manufacturing sector in Nigeria, together with the challenges confronted?
There are three important parts that may drive or sluggish the manufacturing sector in Nigeria, relying on how they’re managed by the federal government. These are vitality provide and pricing, foreign exchange availability, and taxation. As we converse, public energy provide is about its lowest degree ever throughout the nation. Diesel, which the industries rely largely on to energy the crops have crossed the N1,300 per liter. Final week, we had been reviewing our vitality use for the 4 months of present versus earlier yr, and found that now we have doubled our consumption in Naira quantities (about 100 % improve) within the present yr towards earlier yr. As shortage of foreign exchange lingers, and since the manufacturing sector relies upon largely on {dollars} to import uncooked supplies, many manufacturing issues are starting to close down. Some have began promoting off the little uncooked supplies they’ve and are shedding employees. They might reasonably purchase {dollars} to maintain than to maintain producing at a loss as a result of worth will increase are at present not maintaining with general day by day will increase in manufacturing value. For these nonetheless operating the crops, volumes have dropped. That is finally resulting in shortage of manufactured items available in the market.Actually the outlook shouldn’t be wanting good at current.
A number of taxation remains to be a problem – federal, state, native authorities and native councils all impose one type of tax or the opposite. Economic system can’t develop by excessively taxing the few operators to dying. Sustainable development will come solely by way of repeatedly enhancing productiveness. The federal government ought to reasonably pursue each widening and deepening the productive web as an alternative of fixation on extreme and enterprise disenabling taxation.
These and extra are the challenges we’re additionally dealing with in Vitavisco. However we stay constructive, and proceed to nurture creativity and drive innovation which components have been key to our successes.
How is Vitavisco navigating the challenges within the manufacturing sector to stay aggressive ?
We place premium on realizing our clients. We’re extremely diversified and carry on innovating. We function efficient administration of money stream and deal with our core competencies amongst others.
What initiatives or authorities insurance policies ought to the federal government deploy to create a extra conducive setting in the true sector ?
Any initiative that may assist improve extra participation in the true sector throughout all industries will finally drive productiveness. The economic system can not develop relying on rents and taxes, particularly the place the organizations obtainable to pay the taxes and rents are few. There ought to be deliberate implementable plan to make foreign exchange obtainable to producers at cheap charges, enhance energy manufacturing, with excessive precedence giving to produce of energy to the manufacturing sector and stream lining of the taxation system. There’s additionally the necessity to defend native industries by way of the customized tariff system, which ought to be made to favour items which are regionally produced and skewed towards imported merchandise that may be manufactured regionally.
May you elaborate on the merchandise provided by Vitavisco?
Vitavisco deploys polymer know-how to offer options for life-style, house and industrial wants. The Firm’s primary merchandise embody the next: Molded Viscoelastic (reminiscence) foam, Molded excessive resilience foams for workplace and automotive seating, Polyurethane shoe, soles, Polyethylene foam sheet, used for protecting packaging, insulation and enlargement joint purposes in development, padding materials in furnishings, padding materials in bag making (each common and lunch luggage), and many others. Polyethylene foam rod, used as enlargement joint filler and in mattress edge ending, Polyethylene foam duct used as insulation duct for air conditioner waste water pipe, Polyethylene foam web used for protecting packaging of agricultural produce equivalent to fruits.
What are the particular issues they’re designed to unravel?
Vitavisco developed a spread of reminiscence foam pillows to unravel the issues of poor sleep patterns occasioned by sleeping on uncomfortable surfaces, neck and again pains typically prompted by utilizing incorrect pillow supplies, and loud night breathing related to misalignment of the top and neck when utilizing substitute pillow supplies. Mattress and furnishings makers, together with inside ornament practitioners, throughout the nation lastly have an answer from Vitavisco to assist present their clients with sleeping and resting consolation. Most executives and different workplace staff in Nigeria are accustomed to the ever nagging again and waste ache. Within the absence of illness situations, these issues are sometimes because of utilizing inappropriate workplace chair, padded with the incorrect foam materials. The Vitavisco molded excessive resilience workplace chair foam is designed to arrest this problem. With our molded workplace chair foam, government well being and productiveness are assured.The polyethylene foam vary of merchandise’ purposes minimize throughout numerous industries, fixing forms of challenges: When used as joint filler, polyethylene foam sheet and rod save the nation overseas alternate as these merchandise are imported by numerous development corporations that require them.
Vitavisco imports the merchandise from China. The polyethylene foam padding materials supplies the furnishings maker with extra artistic choices in upholstery works. The polyethylene foam duct used within the insulation of air conditioner waste water pipe additionally save the nation overseas alternate. These model of insulation ducts had been being imported from China earlier than the graduation of Vitavisco extrusion crops foam nets have been launched to assist curb waste in agricultural produce equivalent to fruits throughout transportation from the farm to the market. The froth sheets have been made obtainable to assist native bag makers take their crafts notches greater. They’re now capable of produce luggage that may compete within the worldwide market due to the insulation impact of polyethylene foam.
How do these merchandise contribute to the Federal Authorities’s efforts to extend overseas alternate influx?
Within the medium time period, the corporate wouldn’t be ready to generate overseas alternate. Nevertheless, in the long term the corporate will construct capability to play internationally and earn overseas alternate, particularly if AfCFTA (Africa Continental Free Commerce Settlement) is actualized and doesn’t stay solely within the settlement books.
What efforts has Vitavisco made to broaden its market and make its merchandise extra reasonably priced to draw elevated patronage and enhance income?
Funding in folks and know-how: The corporate’s steady efforts in investing in her folks and know-how has contributed to her market development.
Partnership with clients: As well as, as a result of most of our merchandise are b2b, the place our merchandise are enter supplies to another group’s processes, we place emphasis on ‘partnering with our clients’. Partnership with suppliers: Due to the distinctive merchandise we provide the market, we work with our suppliers in growing most of our merchandise. Each the corporate and suppliers are therefor dedicated to at least one one other consequently. We’re subsequently ready to make sure steady availability of uncooked supplies and manufacture items at reasonably priced costs.
Are you able to present particular examples of modern efforts by Vitavisco to tell apart itself available in the market and keep forward of the competitors?
We satisfaction ourselves as a artistic and an modern group. That’s the reason there is no such thing as a group in Nigeria at the moment providing our varieties of merchandise within the numerous market segments the place we play. A few organizations are at present making an attempt to repeat what we’re doing however you can not beat an authentic concept. We’ll proceed to be forward of the pack. For instance, we stay the one firm providing molded polyurethane foam merchandise for purposes in furnishings, physiotherapy, and wholesome sleep. We launched foamed plastic for numerous purposes in packaging, development and thermal insulation wants within the nation. Extra lately we expanded our merchandise into the footwear worth chain the place we manufacture and provide polyurethane base shoe soles to footwear makers.
What security measures and capacity-building initiatives has the corporate applied to reinforce employees productiveness?
Steady coaching is our watchword in Vitavisco. We can not afford to not prepare due to the distinctiveness of our merchandise. Nearly everybody becoming a member of the group is available in with out no earlier data of our operations. We subsequently place a whole lot of emphasis on coaching, together with on the job coaching. The observe of being ‘honest and agency’ , have contributed to a constructive work tradition. We attempt to obtain full engagement of our staff.
May you spotlight some key achievements or milestones that Vitavisco has achieved in recent times?
We’re at all times the primary in each market now we have entered and the identical applies to the merchandise that now we have launched within the Nigerian market.
What’s the firm’s outlook for 2024 when it comes to development, enlargement, and strategic targets?
We now have deliberate a 48 per cent topline development for the yr and a 105 per cent development in bottom-line versus earlier yr. Strategically, we’re increasing our shoe sole enterprise by investing in a brand new plant that may improve plant capability from 2000 pairs of soles per day to 10,000 pairs of soles per day.
What units Vitavisco other than different corporations within the trade and makes it a model to observe?
We go near our clients, determine their wants and supply options to swimsuit.
Are there any rising tendencies or developments within the trade that Vitavisco is poised to capitalize on?
Undoubtedly. many tendencies are rising and now we have recognized some development alternatives for our enterprise. However we will hold this near our chest in the intervening time (Laughs).
QUOTES
“A number of taxation remains to be a problem – federal, state, native authorities and native councils all impose one type of tax or the opposite. Economic system can’t develop by excessively taxing the few operators to dying. Sustainable development will come solely by way of repeatedly enhancing productiveness. The federal government ought to reasonably pursue each widening and deepening the productive web as an alternative of fixation on extreme and enterprise disenabling taxation.”
“We satisfaction ourselves as a artistic and an modern group. That’s the reason there is no such thing as a group in Nigeria at the moment providing our varieties of merchandise within the numerous market segments the place we play. A few organizations are at present making an attempt to repeat what we’re doing however you can not beat an authentic concept.”