Kasi Crisps — Operations Plan

Section 7 · Business Plan

Operations Plan

Production Capacity

5,400 tonnes

Scaling to 5,400 tonnes by Year 4 through a pre-engineered Phase 2 expansion at the Gauteng manufacturing facility.

7.1 Facility Design & Location

The manufacturing facility will occupy a 4,500 m² purpose-fitted industrial unit within the Ekurhuleni Special Economic Zone, Gauteng. The location was selected based on rigorous evaluation of logistics connectivity, utility infrastructure, labour market access, and incentive programmes. The SEZ designation provides corporate tax benefits (reduced rate of 15% versus the standard 27%), customs duty rebates on imported capital equipment, and streamlined regulatory processes.

The facility layout has been engineered by food industry specialists at Bühler Group to optimise production flow from raw material intake through to finished goods warehouse. Key zones include: a climate-controlled potato storage area (200 m²), washing and peeling hall (150 m²), slicing and frying section (400 m²), seasoning and coating area (200 m²), automated packaging hall (350 m²), quality control laboratory (100 m²), finished goods warehouse (800 m²), and support infrastructure including offices, staff facilities, and maintenance workshops.

7.2 Production Process & Technology

The production process follows international best-practice continuous-flow methodology:

Stage	Process	Technology/Equipment	Capacity
1. Receiving	Incoming potato inspection, weighing, de-stoning	Optical sorter, de-stoner, weighbridge	2 tonnes/hour
2. Washing	Drum washing, abrasive peeling	Vanmark peeler/washer system	2 tonnes/hour
3. Slicing	Precision slicing (1.2–2.0mm)	Urschel CC slicer with auto-adjustment	1.8 tonnes/hour
4. Blanching	Hot water blanch, de-watering	Continuous blancher with belt dryer	1.8 tonnes/hour
5. Frying	Continuous oil frying at 170–180°C	Heat & Control MasterFryer system	800 kg/hour output
6. Seasoning	Tumble drum flavour application	Spray Dynamics coating system	800 kg/hour
7. Cooling	Ambient air cooling conveyor	Vibratory cooling conveyor	800 kg/hour
8. Packaging	VFFS nitrogen-flush packaging	Ishida multihead weigher + Bosch VFFS	120 bags/minute
9. Case Packing	Automated case erecting and packing	Schneider case packer	15 cases/minute
10. Palletising	Stretch-wrapped pallet stacking	KUKA robotic palletiser	8 pallets/hour

7.3 Production Capacity & Ramp-Up

The facility is designed for a Phase 1 annual capacity of 3,600 tonnes of finished product, operating on a two-shift basis (16 hours/day, 5.5 days/week). The ramp-up schedule is deliberately conservative, allowing for equipment optimisation, workforce training, and progressive market penetration. Phase 2 expansion (Year 4) adds a second frying line, increasing annual capacity to 5,400 tonnes.

Figure

Capacity — visualised from the accompanying data.

7.4 Quality Management System

Quality is the non-negotiable foundation of the Kasi Crisps brand promise. The company will implement a comprehensive quality management system built on the following pillars:

FSSC 22000 Certification: The Food Safety System Certification 22000 will be achieved prior to commercial production, ensuring compliance with ISO 22000, ISO/TS 22002-1, and additional GFSI-benchmarked requirements.
HACCP Implementation: A fully documented Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points plan covering all biological, chemical, and physical hazards from raw material intake through finished goods dispatch.
In-house Laboratory: Equipped with moisture analysers, texture analysers, oil content testers, colour measurement instruments, and microbiological testing capabilities. Every production batch will undergo 12-point quality verification.
Traceability System: Full lot traceability from farm to shelf using barcode-linked digital systems, enabling 100% batch recall capability within 4 hours.

7.5 Supply Chain Management

Raw material procurement follows a dual-sourcing strategy to mitigate supply risk. Primary potato supply (70% of requirements) will be secured through 3-year offtake agreements with established farming cooperatives in Limpopo Province, with secondary supply (30%) from Free State producers. Edible oil will be sourced from Wilmar Africa and SOILL, with price hedging through 6-month forward contracts. Packaging materials will be procured from Amcor South Africa and Nampak Flexible, both of which maintain local manufacturing facilities.

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