From Importer to Manufacturer: How a Zimbabwe Contractor Cut Costs by 40% with FEITENG’s Turnkey Production Line

Project Location: Zimbabwe

Project Type: Municipal Road Maintenance & Highway Paving

Equipment Supplied:

1. GRL-6 Bitumen Emulsion Plant (6-10 Tons/Hour)

2. XLC-15000 Cutback Bitumen Production Tank (15,000 Liters)

3. Thermal Oil Heating System & Pipeline Network

1. The Challenge: The High Cost of Importing

Our client, a leading road construction contractor based in Harare, Zimbabwe, was facing a severe profitability squeeze.

For years, they had relied on importing finished Bitumen Emulsion and Cutback Bitumen from neighboring countries (South Africa) in drums or liquid tankers.

The Pain Points:

• Logistics Costs: Transporting finished emulsion (which is 40% water) over long distances meant they were paying huge freight rates just to ship water.

• Supply Delays: Border delays often left their paving crews waiting for materials, causing project overruns.

• Quality Control: The imported bitumen sometimes cooled down or separated during transit, affecting the spray quality.

They needed to take control of their supply chain. They wanted to buy raw bulk bitumen and produce their own road materials locally.

2. The Solution: A “2-in-1” Production Hub

After analyzing the client’s needs, FEITENG engineers proposed a customized Dual-Production Line solution that fits perfectly into their limited site space.

A. The Core: GRL-6 Bitumen Emulsion Plant

We installed our flagship GRL-6 Model, designed for high-efficiency emulsification.

• Technical Highlight: The core Colloid Mill features a high-precision stator/rotor gap ($\le 5\mu m$), ensuring the produced emulsion is fine, stable, and meets AASHTO standards for long-term storage.

• Smart Control: Equipped with a frequency converter to adjust the bitumen/water ratio instantly, allowing the client to switch between CRS-1 (Rapid Setting) and CSS-1 (Slow Setting) recipes easily.

B. The Versatility: XLC Cutback Tank

For prime coats, we supplied a 15,000L Cutback Bitumen Tank.

• Mixing Technology: Unlike simple storage tanks, the XLC series is equipped with a powerful internal agitator and a Hongqi Brand high-viscosity gear pump (Flow: $8m^3/h$). This allows for the rapid and safe blending of kerosene/diesel with bitumen.

• Safety First: Given the flammability of cutback production, the tank features explosion-proof motors and a specialized ventilation system.

3. Logistics & Installation: Seamless Delivery to Harare

Shipping heavy machinery to landlocked Zimbabwe can be expensive.

FEITENG’s Logistics Advantage:

Both the GRL-6 Plant and the XLC Tank were designed with our “Containerized Concept.”

• The entire emulsion plant (6.6m × 2.2m × 2.53m) fit perfectly into a single 40HQ Container.

• This design saved the client approximately $3,000 USD in ocean freight compared to traditional Break Bulk shipping options.

Upon arrival, our engineers provided remote video guidance (due to the client’s urgent timeline), and the “Plug-and-Play” design allowed their local team to complete installation in just 3 days.

4. The Result: ROI in 5 Months

Six months after commissioning, the client reported transformative results:

• Cost Reduction: By sourcing local water and bulk bitumen, their material cost per ton dropped by approx. 40%.

• Market Expansion: They now produce enough capacity to supply other local contractors, turning their maintenance yard into a profitable material factory.

• Zero Downtime: They no longer wait for tanker trucks from across the border.

Conclusion

This project in Zimbabwe proves that you don’t need to be a giant oil company to own a production plant. With FEITENG’s compact and affordable technology, any contractor can become a manufacturer.

Are you ready to stop importing and start producing?

Contact FEITENG Today for a free ROI analysis and quotation for your own Emulsion or Cutback Plant.