เกจวัดแรงดันดิจิตอลราคา & Shirtliff, the leading water and energy gear provider in East Africa is celebrating its seventy fifth Anniversary, a major milestone in its company history. This is a most unusual achievement for any organisation, though especially one which has the same household shareholding and basically the identical market focus since its founding. There are few firms wherever with this claim and D&S is subsequently extraordinarily proud of the achievement with varied events being held in celebration.
The firm was founded in 1946 by ex-soldiers Eddie Davis and Dick Shirtliff after leaving the military, initially being primarily based at Westlands, in Nairobi, their neighbour being Westlands Motors that rose to prominence with the Toyota franchise.
It grew quickly as the nation recovered after the struggle focusing on boreholes, water supplies and the coffee business. One notable early venture included the water provide for Karen Estates, the entire preliminary water provide infrastructure being put in by the company in addition to for many other of the residential estates that had been developed at the moment.
D&S grew with the country and in the mid-1950s the bottom was moved to new larger premises at the present Dundori Rd location within the industrial area. An added activity was swimming swimming pools, each residential and business and many had been built which are nonetheless in use at present. Water Treatment was one other diversification, many of the KenGen Tana River stations having D&S designed and built equipment.
In 1970 companion Dick Shirtliff retired and after a period with one other companion, Devji Shingadia, the Davis household, then represented by Eddie’s son Alec assumed management. The 70’s and 80’s saw slow but regular growth as the country grappled with various economic and political challenges, though there was a particular focus on constructing the pump business for which the corporate is so well-known, notably through representation of the Danish manufacturer Grundfos.
1993 was a big year for both Kenya and D&S because of financial liberalisation which was the catalyst for the company’s fast progress since. It was also the year that Pedrollo pumps from Italy had been first launched, now the Group’s largest supplier. These two developments enabled a distribution technique to be developed as provide constraints had been eliminated and the department community was then established, initially with Kenya branches being opened in Westlands, Eldoret and Kisumu and subsidiaries in Uganda and Tanzania quickly followed by establishing activities on the Coast though the merger with companion Butech. The pump business grew vastly with Pedrollo and the now well-established Solar and Power Generation actions had been then added.
Since the Millennium progress has significantly accelerated, income growing many times to KShs10 Billion at present. Major initiatives have included a whole redevelopment of the Dundori Rd website with expansion into adjoining plots, the opening of subsidiaries and affiliate firms in Rwanda, Zambia, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Zimbabwe and DRC, considerable growth of the department community, introduction of the profitable Dayliff vary of own-brand products and an enormous expansion of the product range with Solar being particularly profitable as the corporate developed its focus on renewable vitality. More just lately a major development has been institution of a massive 10,000m2 Distribution Centre at Tatu City that gives the resource for elevated stockholding and has remodeled distribution effectivity throughout the area, this facility being completed in 2020. Staffing has additionally grown correspondingly, the Group now employing over 1000 committed employees working from over 70 areas.
It is often mentioned that success is transitory and sometimes unsustainable, although D&S has managed to maintain unbroken progress for an exceptional time frame. This has been achieved by industrial focus, manageable ambition, continuous bodily and organisational investment and, importantly, dwelling the values established by the founders of Quality, Integrity and ‘Altiora Peto’, which interprets to embracing continuous change. D&S is now a broadly recognised firm within the region and is proud of the contribution it has made, summarised by its slogan ‘Improving Lives’ which is demonstrated both by the essential nature of its activities and in addition by an active programme of group assist that focuses on providing water to underprivileged communities, many thousands of people having benefited.
Of course, the 75-year milestone is only a second in a steady journey and the Group continues to grow with a number of ongoing initiatives and great plans for the lengthy run. Ably led by CEO David Gatende and supported by dedicated and committed executives and staff driving this progress, the company is lucky that the third technology of Davis’s, Edward and Henry, have joined the enterprise so continuity is assured. The Group continues to increase in product and markets with a particular concentrate on digital enterprise and looks ahead to keep serving the region with essential products that certainly Improve Lives and also to demonstrate that an indigenous African firm can compete internationally and be a world-class organisation.
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