Saudi Arabian Services Co Ltd (Sascom) is a member of the Rashed Al-Rashed & Sons Group (RAR Group), one of the largest conglomerates in Saudi Arabia.

The Sascom Business Division was founded by RAR Group in 1978 to meet the increasing demands of the oilfield, industrial and automotive sectors by utilising the strength of key exclusive equipment agencies.

A key strength of Sascom’s operations has always been the relationship between its end-user client base and its agencies to ensure that all aspects of the supply chain from consultancy, pre-sales to procurement and delivery are handled with prompt action and on-site delivery. Sascom has excellent product capabilities, kingdom-wide branches, fully equipped warehouses with technical staff and excellent inventory control systems.

To meet the increasing demand for industrial equipment and specialist engineering and technical services, RAR Group established a new division, Sascom Industrial Equipment in 2011 headed by Engineer Bader Tamimi, country sales manager operating from Al Khobar.

An industrial engineer by training, Tamimi was previously operating an engineering industries company in Amman, Jordan. With his engineering expertise in positive and negative pressure equipment such as industrial air filtration solutions, compressors, vacuum pumps, gases generators and cooling systems, Tamimi has been spearheading the development of the new industrial equipment division, leveraging from the strengths of the RAR Group operations.

This new division reflects the successful business development philosophy of Sascom, which translates into the way business units are managed across the conglomerate with a specialist management structure that emphasises the independence of each division. Tamimi is now bringing his extensive industrial experience into Saudi Arabia, and enjoying the challenge of building a formidable organisation of professionals.

The division has partners that include Almig, Donaldson Ultrafilter, Donaldson DCE & Torit Inmatec, Dekker, Bauer, Bry-Air, Mikropor, MTA, SJERP and Ekomak Kazan, all leaders in their own field.

"The Sascom Industrial Equipment division is in its first year of operations with a staff of six but our plan is to grow incrementally to more than 18 sales engineers and 20 after-sales engineers & technicians within three years. Specialisation is the key as the Sascom industrial division has achieved success through extensive experience through its various agencies and distributorships.

"The industrial equipment division is set to meet the increasing demand for specialist equipment supply for a company’s ‘industrial critical’ productive assets. Essentially, Sascom acts as a pre-sales consultant to specify to a client the requirements necessary for the business or industrial process. Our engineers are trained internationally to handle and technically support the equipment through a pro-active sales and service approach over its life-cycle. This will involve heavy investment in service centers with engineering support, spare parts inventories as we are absolutely committed to after-sales service," says Tamimi.

Tamimi also emphasises the importance of site surveys and field inspections and thorough testing to ensure that the working conditions for a supplied piece of equipment are fully optimised. This involves all operating conditions for equipment in order to recommend the ideal working conditions for the industrial application. Sascom industrial equipment is also supplied to hospitals, hotels and factories.

"We are providing engineering solutions in terms of the equipment supply to ensure that the products meet the process. Therefore, we make extensive use of testing devices and calibration equipment as a key part of the specification process. No single item of equipment stands alone so we must ensure, for instance, that the matrix of equipment required for a particularly process is optimised from the point of generation to the point of consumption.

"There are industrial processes in the food as well as medical sectors and we also supply to the chemical, mining, automotive and manufacturing sectors. Each sector has its own engineering solution and one cannot make assumptions about equipment supply without investigation and testing. Sascom is developing a strong scientific culture to determine the best working conditions for each equipment application.

"This is about performance and quality and that the specified products match the industrial processes or the requirements of the enterprise. Critically, we are looking at the entire supply chain from pre-sales to enhanced after-sales service offering in some cases extended warranties up to ten years. This long-term approach is based upon understanding the products we supply and recommending to clients the best operating practices to provide optimum value to the client.

"For example, you must understand a client’s requirements in terms of the company environment and the working conditions to ensure that the equipment is productive. We are looking to take the business development of Sascom to the next level by building trust with our end-users and with our suppliers," he adds.