Ghana is set to become the first operational node of a continental distributed manufacturing network aimed at reducing industrial downtime and Africa’s dependence on overseas suppliers for critical replacement parts.
Sodah Engineering and Logistics Limited (SELL), a Ghanaian engineering and logistics company, has been appointed the exclusive Ghanaian partner and operator of the Africa Distributed Additive Manufacturing (ADAM) Network by technology company Arridex Limited.
The initiative will connect industries in Ghana and other West African markets to Arridex’s Omnifactory facility in Lagos, Nigeria, allowing selected industrial components to be manufactured on demand using additive manufacturing, commonly known as industrial 3D printing.
Dr Tesa D. Ayernor, Managing Director of SELL, said the initiative would help tackle supply-chain bottlenecks while creating a platform for Ghana to develop advanced manufacturing capabilities.
“When a critical part fails in Ghana today, industry can wait months for a replacement to arrive from another continent, and that wait is one of the largest undiscussed costs in our economy,” he said.
“What we are announcing is not simply a faster supply chain. As the first node of the ADAM Network, Ghana has the opportunity to model what is possible for every node that follows on the continent, and to build genuine manufacturing capability.”
The ADAM Network is targeting industries where delays in sourcing specialised components can disrupt production and equipment availability.
These include mining, oil and gas, power, manufacturing, maritime, defence and the public sector.
Under the model, obsolete or unavailable components can be digitally scanned, reverse-engineered and manufactured to required specifications.
Industrial spare-parts inventories can also be digitised, allowing components to be produced when needed rather than requiring companies to maintain large stocks of specialised parts.
The companies said the approach could reduce dependence on lengthy international supply chains while lowering the cost associated with holding large inventories of replacement components.
Mr Kayode Adeleke, Chief Executive Officer of Arridex Group, said the expansion into Ghana formed part of a broader strategy to strengthen industrial resilience across Africa.
“Across Africa, industry does not stop for want of ambition or for want of talent; many times, it stops for want of a critical part in a piece of legacy equipment,” he said.
“By expanding our footprint into Ghana, we are establishing the core building blocks of a seamlessly connected, tech-driven manufacturing network that empowers local industries to produce high-value components on demand and build operational resilience.”
The network is expected to operate through locally owned national partners connected to shared manufacturing infrastructure and a common digital platform.
Arridex is targeting 25 ADAM Network nodes in 15 African countries over the next five years, with its Lagos Omnifactory serving as the anchor facility.
The company has also identified a planned expansion into a Mega Omnifactory in 2027.
Dr Ayernor said the Ghana node would go beyond the production of replacement parts to developing local expertise in advanced manufacturing.
The Ghana operation would collaborate with universities, research institutions and training organisations to develop skills in digital design, component scanning, materials selection and advanced manufacturing engineering.
“An additive manufacturing capability is not a machine you buy. It is a skill set a country either has or does not have,” he said.
“If all we do is sell parts, we will have built a business. If we also build the skills, we will have built an industry.”
The initiative is also expected to support intra-African trade by enabling industrial components, engineering services and digital manufacturing capabilities to move across African markets.
Dr Ayernor said the initiative could provide an industrial dimension to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which has traditionally focused heavily on trade rules, tariff arrangements and market access.
“AfCFTA has been discussed for years largely in terms of tariff schedules and protocols, and that work is essential. But a free trade area needs something to trade,” he said.
“What we are building is the industrial substance behind the framework: African-made components, moving between African countries, made by African companies.”
Work on the Ghana node is expected to begin immediately, with initial activities centred on engaging industries, undertaking pilot projects, digitising legacy spare-parts inventories, providing technical training and establishing partnerships with academic and research institutions.
The development comes as African industries seek to reduce exposure to international supply-chain disruptions while improving their capacity to maintain imported and ageing industrial equipment.
For Ghana, the initiative could create opportunities for local engineering firms to move beyond maintenance and repair services into digital manufacturing, reverse engineering and the production of higher-value industrial components.
