The Tribune

• FowlCo chief unveils April 22 ground break

• GB plant in rapid ‘ramp up’ for October close

• RF raises $5m financing with more to come

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A Grand Bahama businesswoman is investing $6.2m in a concrete plant operation that will create up to 70 jobs over the next 12 months as it “ramps up” to full operations following its April 22 ground-breaking.

Glennett Fowler, also FowlCo’s president and chief executive, told Tribune Business that the newly-formed Heroic Group had spent significant time and money on staff training and technology to ensure the venture will be “working at a global standard, not a ‘Mom and Pop’ operation” once production begins from its location off Queen’s Highway.

Disclosing that the operation, to be named Heroic Concrete and Concrete Products, will have the capacity to produce up to 1,700 concrete blocks daily and operate for 24 hours per day, she said it will provide a much-needed boost for Grand Bahama’s economy and job creation on the island.

With much of the plant’s infrastructure and equipment already on the island, and the remainder “in transit” from Europe, Mrs Fowler said Heroic had teamed with Nassau-based RF Bank & Trust to late last year raise $5m to finance the project through a preference share private placement.

Acknowledging that concrete production is a “capital intensive” business, she added that Heroic is forecasting it will need additional financing - and be able to take on new shareholders - after three-five years as demand increases from real estate and foreign direct investment (FDI) projects.

Heroic will be tapping into FowlCo’s maritime and logistics expertise, and its plant’s location near Freeport Harbour, to help export its products from Grand Bahama to construction projects on multiple other Bahamian islands. Besides ready mix and concrete blocks, it is also targeting specialised and custom-made concrete products as well as those that are carbon-neutral and more environmentally friendly.

Mrs Fowler, revealing that Heroic decided to enter the market and set-up its concrete plant in November 2021, told this newspaper: “Our expectation is that it will be a $5m-$6m build-out for full operation of the plant. We’ve acquired property in Freeport for the plant off the Queen’s Highway and we expect to break ground on April 22.

“Right now we’re going to have about 21 employee at the outset and ramp up to 32 employees once we’re fully operational. The overall Heroic Group will employ 70 people at the end of this exercise. For the concrete plant, we’re looking to get to 40 staff. For the entire group of companies, we anticipate this time next year that we will be around that [70] headcount. There will be administration, sales people, truck drivers and customer service.”

Mrs Fowler explained that the first phase build-out will focus on ready mix production, with the second stage involving block production and pre-cast products such as parking lot bumpers, curbing and pyramids as the Heroic operation builds momentum. She added that clients will also be able to order custom-made products specifically designed for their needs.

“It will be about $6.2m,” Mrs Fowler, also Heroic’s group president and chief executive, said. “We expect to be completed some time around October 32 this year according to the project timelines. We’ve already done an environmental impact study to make sure we’ve done it right. We’ve done a lot of health and safety training to make sure we’re working to a global standard, not a ‘Mom and Pop’ production. At the end of it all we want a world-class concrete operation.

“We’ll have a fully automated plant that will be operating this business. We’ve been working with some of the cement industry suppliers for a few years to determine what to bring to the market. We wanted to go to the market to provide an envrionmentally-friendly product.”

Besides the ready mix, concrete blocks and specialist custom-made products, Mrs Fowler said Heroic has also been working on carbon-neutral items that can be used in infrastructure such as marina walls. “We’ve been testing this new product, and want to have it in the mix with conventional products you have at home,” she explained.

“We have also been training our team to be American Concrete Institute certified, doing training in Las Vegas. We have our own concrete testing facility in Freeport, and will be able to produce on a mass scale. We can run for 24 hours, and run 24-hour shifts, to meet the demand. We’re going to be able to produce 1,700 blocks on a daily basis if we want to go up to that.

“It’s a very high output facility and, because it’s automated, it’s a very tech savvy operation. We really don’t have to worry about mistakes etc because everything is programmed into the system from day one in terms of the mix that people want and the PSI levels.” Heroic worked with an Italian company, MCT, which specialises in concrete plants and production to help establish its Grand Bahama operation.

Mrs Fowler confirmed that the $5m financing raised with RF Bank & Trust’s help was likely to be just the first in a series of capital-raisings that will roll-out over time. Speaking to the private preference share placement, she told Tribune Business: “We’ve raised capital to ensure we have the necessary financing to proceed with a strong brand and business. It’s a capital intensive operation.

“RF Bank & Trust has been with us for a few years, and with this new opportunity coming on stream we wanted to ensure the company was well-capitalised. We’ve done one capital raise, and with that we were able to purchase all the plant and supporting equipment to go along with it.

“I do think this will be a world-class operation happening in Grand Bahama. We’re poised to do that. That’s the anticipation. As we build-out we will be able to realise more opportunities on a larger scale. We anticipate that in five years, or sooner - three years - we will be able to take on additional shareholders and raise additional capital to take on other projects and specialise in unique products that are difficult to get in the country and you must go outside to pursue them.”

Heroic’s concrete manufacturing plant launch coincides with potential real estate, resort and related infrastructure projects coming to fruition in Grand Bahama and elsewhere in The Bahamas. On the former, there is Carnival’s $200m Grand Port project; Weller Development’s $250m Six Senses resort and Barbary Town new town; the potential Royal Caribbean/ITM project at Freeport Harbour; a new eco-resort near Holmes Point; and, maybe down the road, the Grand Lucayan.

If all goes to plan, there will be a significant demand for concrete and related products on Grand Bahama alone. Western Atlantic University’s School of Medicine expansion is also poised to move forward, as is Doctor’s Hospital’s new Freeport medical facility and a new public hospital for Grand Bahama.

Heroic will be competing directly with Bahamas Hot Mix (BHM), which has recently expanded its own Grand Bahama concrete plant, and is part of the Grand Bahama International Airport winning bid. However, it is also entering at a time when a vacuum has been created by the acrimonious exit of the Del Zottos and Gold Rock Corporation, although Mrs Fowler said this was not connected in any way to her venture’s launch.

“The reality is we didn’t know what their situation was,” Mrs Fowler said of the Del Zottos. “We went through the normal process of getting the Business Licence, did market research, sourced the manufacturing plant and made the determination to go into this business a few years ago.”

Heroic will seek to use its Bahamas location, proximity to Freeport Harbour and maritime/logistics ties to gain an advantage over foreign producers. Mrs Fowler said it will look to exploit these advantages to “maximise” the opportunities it has by getting product to construction clients more rapidly, and at a lower cost, than if they have to place orders abroad.

“We are hoping that the quality we deliver stands up to what clients want to have on a commercial level,” she told Tribune Business. “We feel that because of the ramp-up happening in the country in any event that we will be able to meet the demand on various islands.

“We anticipate that a gradual market share will be achievable for us over time. We can’t say that it will be immediate on day one, but we will produce at the level we need to produce at to get the high-level projects to look at us. For some of the larger projects, they’re eager for us to get ready to go. By the time we get to the point of commissioning some things will be realised with some projects. That’s the anticipation.

“The reality is we can control what we produce versus bringing it into the country. It’s a 100 percent Bahamian-owned company and, because of the level of training and development of the team, we’re looking at persons who have experience working in the industry who are well-served to take us across the finish line coming out the gate.”