Modular glass crushing plants from Pilot Crushtec are built to grow with production needs, making it easy to increase output as throughput requirements rise. (Image source: Pilot Crushtec)

Glass remains one of the most recyclable materials in the world, yet in South Africa significant volumes still end up in landfill. According to Francois Marais, sales and marketing director at Pilot Crushtec, improving glass recycling rates presents a clear opportunity to reduce energy consumption, lower carbon emissions and stimulate new business growth

Every discarded bottle or jar represents not only wasted material but also untapped economic and environmental potential.

“Unlike many materials, glass can be recycled indefinitely without losing quality,” commented Marais. “Each time we recycle glass, we are not only reducing pressure on landfills but also helping industries save energy and cut carbon emissions.”

From an environmental perspective, the advantages of recycling glass are immediate. Re-melting recycled glass, commonly referred to as cullet, requires significantly less energy than processing virgin raw materials such as silica and limestone. Lower furnace temperatures translate into meaningful energy savings and reduced emissions. At the same time, keeping glass out of landfill reduces environmental risk and supports broader sustainability goals, offering clear benefits to both industry and the environment.

The application of recycled glass goes well beyond the manufacture of new containers. Cullet plays an important role in producing fibreglass insulation products. Within the construction industry, crushed glass is increasingly being adopted as an alternative to conventional aggregates in concrete and asphalt mixes. Manufacturers of bricks and blocks are also recognising that incorporating glass cullet can improve product strength while enhancing environmental performance.

“There is a growing market for glass in construction and infrastructure,” Marais explained.

“Crushed glass can strengthen road bases, add aesthetic value to concrete surfaces and even contribute to eco-friendly brick production. This opens real opportunities for businesses to innovate and differentiate themselves.”

Demand for recycled glass is also rising in landscaping and decorative design. Once treated and processed, it can serve as a long-lasting, colourful mulch for gardens or as an eye-catching surface material for walkways and water features. In addition to its visual qualities, glass cullet is increasingly used as a filtration medium in water treatment facilities and swimming pools, where it has been shown to outperform traditional sand filters.

Its potential extends even further. Glass cullet is incorporated into reflective road markings to enhance night-time visibility and safety. In certain coastal regions, it is also being explored as a material to help restore eroded beaches. These varied uses highlight the role of glass recycling not only in everyday products but also in larger environmental and infrastructure solutions.

Pilot Crushtec is helping to advance this shift by improving access to efficient glass processing technology. The company offers modular crushing and screening plants designed to convert waste glass into premium-quality cullet. These systems are engineered for ease of installation, affordability and scalability, making them suitable for recyclers, municipalities and entrepreneurs seeking entry into the expanding glass recycling sector.

“Glass recycling represents the perfect meeting point between sustainability and profitability,” stated Marais. “It creates jobs, drives innovation and provides industries with valuable raw materials. At Pilot Crushtec, we are committed to providing the equipment that makes this possible but the real transformation will come from a broader commitment across business and society to embrace recycling as both an environmental responsibility and a business opportunity.”

Modular design is the key to streamline product portfolios

A new report from management consultancy Arthur D. Little warns that rising product portfolio complexity is quietly eroding profitability in the manufacturing sector, constraining digital growth, and limiting operational flexibility.

The study, Rise of Complexity in Manufacturing, highlights that companies must take decisive action to simplify their offerings and leverage modularisation to stay competitive.

“Unchecked complexity is a silent profitability killer,” the report states. “With resources limited and markets increasingly commoditised, companies must reduce product portfolio complexity to drive profitability and innovation.”

Manufacturers often expand product variants to meet customer demand, but without systematic portfolio pruning, these efforts generate hidden costs. Non-customer-facing complexity such as outdated products, excessive SKUs, and intricate internal processes can slow development, reduce scalability, and impede time to market.

The report identifies four key challenges for manufacturers: maintaining profitability amid market commoditisation, differentiating through digital solutions, ensuring supply chain resilience, and balancing legacy systems with emerging technologies such as new materials, battery-powered engines, or alternative fuels.

Arthur D. Little recommends a data-driven approach to complexity, starting with measuring the cost of complexity (CoC) across product lines and functions. A monetary proxy for CoC can capture inefficiencies in development, manufacturing, warehousing, and support, helping firms identify underperforming products for phaseout.

Strategic modularisation is highlighted as a crucial tool for managing complexity. By designing standardised, interchangeable product modules, manufacturers can simplify portfolios, accelerate time to market, and reduce costs while enabling cost-effective customisation.

The report cites Electrolux, which cut component numbers by 40% and reduced development time by 30% through modular design, and Siemens, which applied modularity to its industrial automation systems, reducing design time by 40% and improving scalability.

Arthur D. Little stresses that complexity reduction requires more than technical solutions: it demands cross-functional coordination, strong governance, and a cultural shift away from short-term gains. Companies must embed modular principles in product development, eliminate low-performing products, and ensure that both hardware and software systems are designed with simplicity in mind.

“Reducing product portfolio complexity is not a technical fix — it is a strategic transformation,” the report concludes. “By making complexity measurable, pruning underperforming products, and embedding modular design, manufacturers can release trapped value, improve speed to market, and build more resilient operations.”

The consultancy urges manufacturers to act decisively now, turning awareness of complexity into structured strategies for long-term profitability and innovation.

Toyota Tsusho’s TTMG acquires Toyota and Hino distributor in Ghana, strengthening mobility services and local operations

Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Toyota Tsusho Manufacturing Ghana Co. Limited (TTMG), a subsidiary of CFAO SAS (CFAO), has acquired the Toyota and Hino distributor business from Toyota Ghana Limited Company (TGLC) in Ghana, effective December 31, 2025

Strengthening mobility operations in Africa

Toyota Tsusho is developing four core business areas across Africa: mobility, green infrastructure, healthcare, and consumer solutions. Its mobility operations cover all 54 African countries, with the group directly operating Toyota automotive distributors in 35 of these nations, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa.

In Ghana, TGLC, which is independent of Toyota Tsusho, has previously served as the distributor for Toyota and Hino vehicles. Meanwhile, CFAO Mobility Ghana, a Toyota Tsusho group-operated distributor, has handled multiple other automotive brands in the country.

Purpose of the acquisition

This strategic acquisition brings the Toyota and Hino distributor business under the direct management of Toyota Tsusho in Ghana, allowing the company to expand its mobility value chain. Toyota Tsusho aims to offer a safe and reliable automotive experience in Ghana, consistent with its standards across Africa, including after-sales service and insurance offerings.

TTMG, which currently manages the assembly of Toyota and Suzuki vehicles in Ghana through semi knock down production, will now also take on sales functions, serving as the main customer contact while continuing its manufacturing role. Semi knock down production refers to a method where vehicle bodies are imported welded and painted, with major components assembled locally onto the chassis.

Future developments

With this acquisition, Ghana becomes the 36th African country where Toyota Tsusho directly operates a Toyota distributor, reinforcing the group’s development strategy in the region. The move is expected to improve vehicle inventory management, streamline logistics, and enhance sales to governments and international organisations.

Toyota Tsusho will also explore opportunities to optimise sales across Ghana in collaboration with CFAO Mobility Ghana, further strengthening its local presence.

Guided by the philosophy “with Africa for Africa,” the Toyota Tsusho group continues to invest in Africa’s sustainable development while providing world-class automotive products and services across the continent.

SANY opens global remanufacturing hub. (Image source: SANY)

SANY Group has officially begun operations at its first global engineering machinery remanufacturing hub, the SANY Hunan-Hainan Intelligent Manufacturing Industrial Park

The launch marks a major step in SANY’s globalisation and sustainability strategy, with the company securing CNY100 million (US$14.27mn) in orders from clients in Southeast Asia and Africa on the opening day.

The Park represents China’s first industrial facility co-developed by a pilot free trade zone (FTZ) and a pilot free trade port, advancing cross-regional collaboration between Hunan and Hainan provinces. By leveraging both provinces’ industrial strengths and policy incentives, the Park is designed to support Chinese enterprises in expanding their international footprint.

Construction of the Park began in August 2023, covering approximately 10 hectares (150 mu). With a total investment of CNY600 million (US$85.62mn), it is expected to reach an annual output value of CNY750 million (US$107.02mn) when operating at full capacity.

Positioned as a regional remanufacturing hub and resource distribution platform, the Park focuses on the maintenance and remanufacturing of core engineering machinery components as well as second-hand equipment from domestic and international markets. The facility promotes the circular reuse of industrial resources, aligning with SANY’s commitment to sustainability.

Operating under the Hainan FTZ framework, eligible value-added processing activities enjoy tariff preferences, while remanufacturing operations under bonded supervision may qualify for corporate and personal income‑tax incentives. The Park benefits from the “Dual 15%” tax-incentive policy, receiving approval for outsourced processes to enjoy a 15% corporate income-tax reduction.

“The project represents a key strategic initiative for SANY to deepen its globalisation, digitalisation, and low-carbon transformation. Moving forward, SANY will continue to actively explore new models for remanufacturing, promote the circular reuse of industrial resources, and jointly advance the global engineering machinery industry's transition toward a greener, low-carbon future,” said Tang Xiuguo, chairman of SANY.