Founder Andre du Plooy strongly believes that building good working relationships with customers and suppliers is key to the company’s success.
After being in business for just over a year, Covid-19 hit the world and Foilworx was forced to shutdown. ‘During the shutdown period, I wanted to make the time valuable by re-evaluating the business and taking a closer look at how we can make it a success.’
Andre created an overview of Foilworx, researching and reviewing the business. ‘I realised we needed better organisational protocols and procedures as well as a new financial system to maintain accountability for expenditure and revenue.’
He adds that the team of nine staff members plays a big role in the company’s success. ‘Each team member is instrumental behind Andre’s smile,’ comments human capital manager, Desray du Plooy.
Each staff member plays a crucial role in ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of the company. ‘The entire staff is on the floor when we need it, and we don’t hesitate to do others’ duties. During team building exercises, we discovered that everybody has a competitive side and drive that shines through in times of crisis,’ says GM Cathy Zonomessis. One of the team’s favourite exercises (or as the team refers to it ‘spanbou’) in the factory is table tennis and the team is proud that Foilworx’s driver Kirshwan Steyn represented the country in table tennis at this year’s Commonwealth Games.
Foilworx’s services and offerings include foiling, embossing, debossing, CNC precision engineering, inline hot foil cylinders and dies. ‘Our structures span the spectrum, from small flat blocks to 196 tooth cylinders, working mainly with brass and magnesium but also aluminium, steel and copper. Depending on the complexity of the job, and once we have received customer approval, we can supply up to four cylinders per day,’ he comments.
Foilworx plans to move to bigger premises next year to pave the way for expansion plans, which include focusing more on 3D printing and on manufacturing new parts for the automotive industry.”
‘Our staff is willing to search beyond conventional methods to find inventive, constructible and robust solutions to meet all customer needs. We offer different industries a creative alternative to the standard, everyday engineering needs within the trade,’ explains Andre. ‘We strive for a 24-hour turnaround time while ensuring a high-quality standard.’
‘Currently, we’re bursting at the seams and to meet customer demand, it would be best for us to move to bigger premises,’ he adds. ‘This will happen as soon as next year to pave the way for expansion plans.’
According to Andre, the company wants to focus more on 3D printing and on certain industries that it doesn’t cater as much for currently, such as manufacturing new parts for the automotive industry.
‘To showcase our abilities and what the company is capable of, we recently created a mascot. Foily is a penguin and pays homage to the near extinct African Penguin found here on the coastline,’ explains Cathy.
Born from the team’s input and technical manager Marlene Celliers creating the final design, Foily will be instrumental in helping the company move further into the 3D printing industry.
‘Due to intellectual property rights, we’re not able to showcase our abilities, but with Foily, we’re now able to provide examples when needed,’ comments Desray. ‘We look forward to even more growth and opportunities that will come our way over the next few years.’
Andre adds that he’s always looking for a gap in the market and windows of opportunity. ‘So far, we’ve had the honour and privilege to receive tremendous support from our customers, even during trying times such as the pandemic and load shedding. We’re proud of our employees who walk the extra mile with us and look forward to new opportunities and future solutions that we’ll be able to offer,’ he concludes.
The Foilworx team is passionate about providing only high-quality products. Marlene Celliers is double-checking everything is up to standard on this foil block.
Adding premium detail to the front cover
Foilworx partnered with Synchron Markings and Printafoil to bring this month’s front cover to life.
Synchron and Printafoil have been partners in the industry for more than 20 years because they share similar visions and values for their customers in the field of attractive and functional surface decoration.
‘We put quality, service and innovation first, but our goal is always to enhance a brand by making it stand out from the rest,’ comments Phumzile Dlamini, sales and marketing manager at Synchron. ‘Competition in the global print market is rife, but Synchron is always aware of new concepts that allow printers to produce truly stunning products and sustainable brands.’
‘We are thrilled to be part of the PPM cover in collaboration with Foilworx and Printafoil, and the opportunity to showcase our products. We supplied Kurz’s MTS 369 Blue and MTS 377 Gunmetal to complement the design,’ says Phumzile.
‘MTS is a perfect all-rounder for coated and smooth substrates. Not only does it have a large foil shade selection, but it also boasts unrivalled design variety, high optical quality and high abrasion resistance,’ she adds.
Printafoil specialises in creating brand building packaging that entices consumers to interact with the brand. Co-owner Brett Sherman states that it’s important for the company to keep up with the latest technologies and trends.
‘It’s essential for us to have state-of-the-art equipment, as well as provide sustainable solutions, to ensure our reputation as a high-quality yet reliable partner. We’re passionate about what we do and over the years we’ve gained an in-depth knowledge of the industry that has enabled us to create award-winning packaging.’
‘We’re excited to be included in this collaboration of creating PPM’s front cover as it enables us to showcase our printing capabilities to the industry.
We strive to deliver the highest quality foiling work, a speciality of our highly skilled team, which includes Unifraxion foiling,’ comments Brett.
Click here to read this article in the E-mag.
