Sasol via KSM Chemicals delivers hand sanitisers to SA
A highly coordinated effort to deliver thousands of litres of hand sanitiser to healthcare facilities and areas in need across SouthAfrica has seen Sasol support a business that was developed a tour incubation centre, KSM Chemical Solutions, the company tasked to manufacture the vital product.
Since partnering with Sasol to produce laboratory tested alcohol-based sanitiser. KSM, the company that is located in Sasolburg, has been able to get its production up to 5 000 litres (L) a day within its first week of production, the company increased production to the current level of 10 000 L a day, with the intention to ramp this up to15 000 L as demand continues to increase around the country.
By 30 June 2020, KSM has helped deliver over 250 000 L of sanitiser to beneficiaries, which include Sasol Energy, Mozambique Government, Sasol Mozambique, Sasol Satellite Operations, Sasol’s Sandton head office. Sasol partnered with Anglo Gold Ashanti, and the Imperial Group where four Gautenghospitals; Chris Hani Baragwanath, Charlotte Maxeke, Helen Joseph, Leratong and Nelson Mandela’s Children’s hospitals were supplied.
Further shipments were delivered to the Gauteng Department of Health, which supplied its clinics and hospitals around the province in greatest need, particularly Tembisa Hospital, Dr George Mukhari Hospital, Zandspruit Clinic and others.
Sasol also donated thousands of gloves and masks, as well as sanitiser and soap to destitute communities across all the seven regions of the City of Tshwane, the City of Ekurhuleni and the taxi industry in Gauteng.
While Sasol’s Research and Technology divisions in Secunda and Sasolburg have both begun production of sanitiser liquid, KSM has produced the bulk of the product. This has ensured the constant supply to communities in greatest need since March when the small company was appointed as a toll manufacturer of the hand sanitiser.
Sasol supplies KSM with an ethanol blend, which the smaller chemical maker turns into high grade sanitiser for delivery to the various beneficiaries.
KSM was first established in 2015 by founder Kelvin Jacobs and was incubated at the Sasol Business Incubation facility in Sasolburg from 2015 to 2016. The company began processing and recycling used oil from local McDonald’s franchises to make biodiesel and produced cleaning products for Sasol’s head office. The business grew to five employees just prior to the lockdown but was expected to close its doors along with hundreds of thousands of other businesses around the country when Sasol supported it to pivot to the manufacture of hand sanitisers.
