Harnessing sunshine in South America

Workforce Staffing has started to make a mark in Chile, proving that our expertise are relevant on the global stage. 

A country with immense potential for large scale solar power production, Chile truly has ambitious goals for a future free of emissions and non-renewable energy sources. To help them with this vision is Workforce Staffing EST SpA. EST means Empresa de Servicios Transitorios, Spanish for Temporary Employment Services.

This new branch of Workforce staffing was born out of a relationship with the Suaval Group, a leading company in industrial thermal and acoustic insulation. Suaval approached Workforce Staffing after successfully working alongside them on projects in South Africa and asked if they’d be interested in extending services across the Atlantic Ocean. The chance to work on an international scale solar project in Chile was to large an opportunity to miss, so our team jumped at the prospect. An added benefit was having the expertise of Wynand Kuhn on board, a project manager with past experience in Chile. Wynand lived and worked in the country in 2013, now six years later he has returned to the land of the Andes and the Atacama to ensure that Workforce Staffing’s reputation is solidified in the solar space.

Cerro Dominador Solar Power Plant is a 210-megawatt combined concentrated solar power and photovoltaic plant covering an are of around 1000 hectares located in the Antofagasta Region of Chile. The construction cost of the project is estimated to be around 1.4 billion US dollars and will end up preventing the emission of approximately 870 000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year. Chile has a goal to produce 20% of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2025 and the Cerro Dominador is a huge part of this goal. “The Cerro Dominador plant compares in scale to some of the plants we have worked on over in South Africa, however the solar receiver tower is much larger at 300 meters than what we have worked on before,” explained Wynand, “The plant will be providing clean energy to an estimated 240 000 homes around the clock.”

Regional Workforce Staffing director, Barend Matthee, has been instrumental in ensuring the project’s success. “By request, we’ve followed our clients out of Africa and onto the global stage,” explained Barend, “We’re exploring huge business potential by working on this project. The solar power sector covers the globe and the Staffing name is gaining strength in the industry. More international clients should start taking notice once we successfully play our part on this project.”

Workforce Staffing’s part in the construction of the Cerro Dominador Plant will cover around 18 months. The Staffing team is involved in providing insulation for the pipes involved. Wynand will oversee the recruitment of 150 skilled workers while managing their medicals, their PPE, payroll and everything else needed to ensure a top quality labour force. “We have been working hard preparing for the start of the project making sure that we partner with the best possible local people and companies to ensure that we keep on delivering the top-notch kind of service that we are known for all over the world,” said Wynand.

The staffing industry is a global enterprise with needs across all industries. Workforce Staffing is taking every opportunity possible to extend their reach and establish themselves as the staffing providers of choice no matter the need. Success in Chile is one such chance to prove our flexibility and capability to the watching global markets.

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