21.04.2022

Bobcat expands African network

Skid steer and telehandler manufacturer Bobcat has appointed Machinery Exchange as its dealer for Zimbabwe and Albadri Power as the dealer for Sudan.

Harare based Machinery Exchange was established in 1954 and now operates from a 9,000 square metre facility with around 200 employees working at locations in Kwekwe, Bulawayo, Lowveld and Hwange. Other products include Hitachi excavators and Shantui forklifts.

Khartoum based Albadri Power was set up in September 2014 by owner and chief executive Mohamed Osman Albadri as a supplier, installer and contractor for diesel generators, it is also the Doosan excavator dealer and operates from, two locations in Khartoum - Al Azhari and Alsouq Al Mahali with branches in Port Sudan on the Red Sea and Abo Hamad .

Bobcat’s district manager for Africa, Nicolas Dumont said: “We have changed the way we operate in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia, and Machinery Exchange is the first announcement we are making in this respect, with more to follow. With Sudan being removed from sanctions lists, this opened the door to a new market for Bobcat, which is now the responsibility of Albadri Power. Both appointments provide us with strong dealers in place to meet the local demand in these countries.”

Antony Dube, Machinery Exchange’s national sales and rental manager added: “Bobcat’s product range is diverse and provides customers with versatility on their job sites. With the Bobcat brand, Machinery Exchange aims to be a market leader in the backhoe and skid-steer loader markets in Zimbabwe. The most important Bobcat product in Zimbabwe is the backhoe loader because it is multifunctional, covering agriculture, construction, earthmoving and mining.”

Mohamed El Badri of Albadri Power added: "We are honoured to represent Bobcat in Sudan, this partnership will surely add a huge value to the company with Bobcat being the global market leader for the compact equipment industry. We believe customer service is the tip of the spear in the sales process. So, we have heavily invested in the aftersales service department as the highest priority for our business. We have also sited maintenance teams in different regions of Sudan, to ensure a high level of customer satisfaction."