Jul 16, 2021 Nissan Navara’s Daruma doll, Shafick Solomon
Nissan Navara’s Daruma doll of promise starts its second journey - to Ghana
NISSAN’s SKD project in Ghana is critically important, says Shafick Solomon’s Nissan’s director of Manufacturing, because by investing in Africa through sharing their skills, Nissan South Africa’s Rosslyn facility is securing its own importance.
“By giving, we receive and we grow,” said Solomons at the graduation ceremony for the 12 Ghanaians who will set up the country’s first Nissan re-assembly plant. “today is a great day, tomorrow when you return home is an even greater day, but the day you start production will be brilliant.
“I’m very proud of the South African team for sharing their skills with other Africans. It’s important that somewhere in your life someone takes the time to invest in you, without which you wouldn’t be successful. But it’s also important to remember that they wouldn’t invest in you, if they didn’t see the potential of what could be.”
“We need to keep on building on the mindset of building the Nissan Navara in Africa for Africa because Africans must build Africa.
“The Daruma,” he said, referring to the papier mache doll face next to him. “is half complete.”
The Japanese doll is rich in symbolism. Traditionally red in colour and bearded, the eyes are blank in the beginning. One eye is filled in when a wish is made and the other is completed when the wish is fulfilled. They symbolise the indomitable spirit, to persevere until the wish is complete.
In Nissan’s case, the Daruma doll symbolised the journey that the Ghanaians and South Africans had embarked upon. As Nissan pilot Phetego Kgomo explained; “you filled in the first eye when you met your Nissan trainers who committed to making this journey with you. You will fall 10 times, but you must get up 100 times.
“There is no failure, only learning, we are now one. Today though we don’t paint the other eye because our journey is only half complete,” Kgomo said.
Solomons agreed: “we will complete the Daruma when you are ready in Ghana. I look forward to visiting you there.”
The process to get the plant operational by early next year is intense and highly involved, as Mike Buffa, Nissan SA’s SKD senior manager, explained.
Nissan South Africa has been working closely with Japan Motor Trading Company (JMTC) for 18 months already to prepare the plan in Tema, outside Accra. The plant will have a trim re-assembly line and a tester line, which will be used to validate all the vehicles created there. There will also be a test track which is currently under construction for the final checks.
The Nissan Navaras produced at the Rosslyn plant will be disassembled into cab, loadbox, engine and chassis sections - into a total of 45 separate pieces, which will then be re-assembled at the Ghana plant.
“To prepare the plant for SoP (Start of Production), we are following the same process as any other new model in a Nissan plant,” said Buffa, “the first phase is the equipment validation which will be our first opportunity to assemble the vehicle to see if the equipment works, Next will be the production trial to judge the plant readiness for SoP.
“We will evaluate the 4M process; man, machine, method and material, throughout to ensure that the knowledge that has been taught has been retained, that the correct tools are used, the correct processes followed and even the fluids and lubricants we use are correct to the specification.”
The last process, he said, was to evaluate the first vehicles produced on the line.
“Expert auditors will confirm that the vehicles meet international quality standards, then – and only then – will we get authorisation to move to full production.
“At this stage, we’ve just completed a very important stage of this journey,” Buffa said.
“The Daruma programme epitomises where we begin,” said Ghana plant manager Emmanuel Penneh. “No matter the ups and downs, the rise and fall, we are committed to reaching our goal. We have learnt that by working together with all our unique talents, we can achiever great things.”
And when that process is complete, the Daruma doll with both its eyes filled in will have pride of place in a glass box in the Tema plant office.
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