With environmentally conscious companies shifting towards electric forklifts, dated, noisy and polluting internal combustion forklifts are expected to be largely phased out over the next five years. Then the next big frontier will be self-automated forklifts.
This is according to Victor Nemukula, MD of SA’s largest black-owned industrial and construction equipment provider, Shumani Industrial Equipment.
Nemukula said the group’s operations and product offerings were being reshaped by the global surge in automated port and warehouse technology, with self-operating gear following closely.
“Electric forklifts are becoming the standard. I think by 2030 there won’t be any internal combustion equipment around,” Nemukula told Business Day. “The biggest sellers are electric and the cost of electric equipment is coming down. We are seeing in some cases that the electric forklift is cheaper than the internal combustion forklift.
“Forklifts that are autonomous and do not have an operator are the next big thing that is coming and we are looking at starting to sell that technology in 2025 — it’s already available,” he said.
While the modernised equipment may require a higher initial investment, the electric models are said to lower production costs in the long term.
Nemukula said the country could not afford to fall behind in technological advancements, as it is one of Africa’s largest markets for forklifts.
Full automation and AI implementation in SA’s high unemployment and unionised environment would require careful consideration according to the port handling and forklift warehousing equipment supplier.
“Whether that system would work in SA where we have huge unemployment is a different debate we need to have. The industry is already changing globally, with companies moving into automatic equipment. Are we going to be left behind? I don’t think so,” he said.
Unions have largely welcomed technological advancements, citing their potential to improve society. However, they have cautioned that automation should not lead to job displacement.
Both the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) are calling for investment in worker skills, stating that people should be retrained and given new positions or alternative employment opportunities instead.
“We live in a country with extremely high levels of unemployment and poverty, and therefore we have a responsibility to save or create new jobs,” Numsa spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said. “Any introduction of automation in the workplace must improve society, not worsen conditions by deepening unemployment or poverty.”
“The use of AI and automation must be evaluated on a sector-by-sector basis,” said Cosatu spokesperson Zanele Sabela. “Cosatu urges its affiliates to remain vigilant to ensure that employers do not unilaterally impose AI and automation to the detriment of workers.”
Offering a range of port and container handling equipment, industrial cleaning equipment, earthmoving and construction equipment, access equipment, forklifts and warehousing machinery, Shumani also does regular maintenance on its range while providing expert technical assistance.
As well as being an official dealer for the Goscor Group, the company offers Kalmar equipment for port handling solutions and other heavy industries.
It counts large beverage producers such as Coca-Cola, SAB and Heineken among its biggest clients, alongside national port and rail firm Transnet.
The Joburg-based group transitioned from a subdealer of Goscor to an independent importer of its forklift brand — Bheka — in 2024. This was part of its strategy to enhance its product offering and provide a full suite of forklift and warehousing equipment, including terminal tractors, to the SA market, where it competes with industry titans such as Bidvest and Barloworld in the materials handling sector.
Shumani is eyeing an expansion of its market share in 2025 and will be aggressively targeting large-scale equipment users, leveraging on its level 1 BEE certification.
“In the next two or three years we want to have a dominant position in the SA market,” Nemukula said. “We want to consolidate our place in SA before we look at going offshore.
“We already have companies in Mozambique, Angola, Botswana and Zimbabwe making inquiries on our Bheka product,” he said.
Nemukula said launching the Bheka brand in collaboration with Anhui Heli, the leading manufacturer of forklift and warehousing equipment in China, has meant that the company could chart its own identity in terms of pricing and could guarantee a reliable supply of its products, reducing dependence on third parties.
“Also, the margin is a bit better because we can negotiate with the original equipment manufacturer for better pricing structures, and pass those pricing benefits on to our customers,” said the MD, “making us a serious competitor in the market.”
The SA forklift market is expected to develop at a compound yearly growth rate of 3.9% in 2025-30 to reach a projected revenue of $183.2m (R3.5bn). This according to data by US-based market research and consulting firm Grand View Research.
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