Harry Singleton was appointed Operations Executive of Murray & Roberts Water with effect from 1 October 2012. His previous experience included overseeing the acquisition of Keyplan into the Aveng Group and the establishment of Aveng Water to which he was appointed a Director.

What are the milestones you are most proud of having achieved in your career so far?

I have been very fortunate in my career to have been able to work in two very different sectors of industry, both of which have been of significant relevance to the building of South Africa and have a significant impact on the day to day lives of many South Africans.

In the mid 1990s to early 2000s I was based in the Eastern Cape as a Regional Manager developing RDP housing under the then Capital Housing Subsidy Scheme where qualifying beneficiaries received a R15 000 grant which was made available to a developer to service a stand and provide a “top structure”. In 1999 the projects in the Eastern Cape in Port Alfred, Cathcart and Komga won the Institute for Housing of South Africa’s National Developer of the Year award. This was a very proud achievement for me.

Since 2008 I have been involved in the water treatment industry which once again affords me an opportunity to make a contribution to solving the water issues in our country and in Africa and thereby having a direct impact on the lives of individuals in Africa. The successful execution of the Tarkwa project for Gold Fields is a proud achievement given the emergency nature of the project and its significance as a springboard for Murray & Roberts Water.

What are the most important areas you are currently focusing on in your role at Murray & Roberts?

In September 2012 Murray & Roberts was awarded a project to design and supply mine water treatment plants for Gold Fields at their Tarkwa mine in Ghana. This project was significant for Murray & Roberts in two respects; firstly it signified the birth of Murray & Roberts Water and secondly it was an emergency project with very tight timeframes and significant pressure for Murray & Roberts to perform. I joined Murray & Roberts shortly after the project was awarded with the specific task to ensure that the project was set up correctly and executed well.

We performed well on the project and met all of our commitments to Gold Fields. With this successful reference plant my focus is now on developing a robust strategy for Murray & Roberts Water while securing new work that will ensure that we are able to contribute consistently to the revenue and profit of Murray & Roberts.

What are your main interests after-hours?

I try to gym regularly during the week and to play a game of golf at least once a month. As a family we enjoy weekend breaks and travelling and we try to get away at least once a quarter with a good break at the coast at the end of the year. My wife and I try to get away on an overseas break every second year for about ten days without the kids.