ManattJones Organizes Joint Venture Between MoladiAmericas, Inc. and Grupo Bracsa de Mexico, Bringing Innovative Technology to Mexico and Boosting Low-Cost Housing Initiatives
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 20, 2006--ManattJones Global Strategies, LLC, announced today the successful organization of a business partnership and joint venture between its client, MoladiAmericas, Inc., a U.S. company based in Miami, Florida, and Grupo Bracsa de Mexico, a prominent builder of affordable housing based in Mexico City. ManattJones played a strategically instrumental role in developing the relationship between Moladi and Bracsa, bringing a new, high-tech building method to boost low-cost housing initiatives in Mexico.
"There are few initiatives in Mexico more important than providing solutions for affordable housing," said Jonathan M. Charry, a Managing Director in the ManattJones Washington, D.C. office, who served as a key negotiator in the development of the relationship between Moladi and Bracsa. "The partnership between the two companies will support and advance President Vicente Fox's recent initiative to accelerate the construction of low-cost housing."
Drawing on its extensive government and business experience in Mexico, ManattJones provided business and strategic advice to Moladi, assisted in structuring the joint venture and arranged financing for the project. The result of the joint venture will be the first use of a revolutionary technology in Mexico, which promises to accelerate the construction of greatly needed social housing in the region.
The "Moladi technology," originally developed in South Africa, uses on-site plastic molds to efficiently build residences, schools, warehouses and office buildings. Hennie Botes, Moladi inventor in South Africa, has won several prestigious awards for his innovative approach to building systems. "I am very pleased that MoladiAmericas is taking this technology into Latin America, as there is a great need for low-cost housing using the Moladi method," he said. Bracsa plans to use the Moladi technology for the first time in Mexico to construct homes in Celaya, a growing industrial area north of Mexico City.
"One of the benefits of this technology is that local labor is trained in the Moladi construction method, allowing the basic structure of a house to be built in one day," said Ken Lane of MoladiAmericas. "The technology has been successfully used in South Africa, Kenya, Botswana and Panama."
"The Moladi technology is promising because it provides for affordable housing and makes use of local labor, thereby increasing employment," added James R. Jones, CEO of ManattJones and former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. "These homes can be built very quickly and inexpensively."
"Bracsa has been in the business of affordable housing in Mexico for 40 years," said Daniel Roig, Grupo Bracsa's Chief Financial Officer, "and we are pleased to be in this joint relationship with Moladi to bring this promising new technology to the Mexican marketplace."
ManattJones' engagement in this project continues, led by John Bruton and Juan Casillas, both Managing Directors in ManattJones' Mexico City office, and other ManattJones' professionals in its Washington, D.C. and Mexico City offices.
About MoladiAmericas, Inc.
MoladiAmericas, based in Miami, is pioneering the use of the Moladi Construction Technology in the Western Hemisphere. The company is staging its launch of the Moladi system in Mexico, with plans for a manufacturing operation in the near future to support projects throughout the region.
The Technology is a patented modular system, specifically designed to speed construction, improve quality, and lower the construction cost of residential housing. Moladi creates an affordable, steel-reinforced concrete structure that has the strength to withstand hurricanes and earthquakes, while providing thermal insulation and moisture resistance.
About Grupo Bracsa de Mexico
Grupo Bracsa de Mexico is a privately-owned group of construction and development companies focusing on the development, construction, marketing and sales of low and middle-income housing developments in Mexico. Bracsa has proven experience in developing, constructing, marketing and selling low-and middle-income housing projects, as well as in structuring cross-border investment relationships that satisfy the requirements of sophisticated international investors.
About ManattJones Global Strategies, LLC
ManattJones Global Strategies blends business and foreign service expertise to ensure achievement of client objectives -- entering markets with appropriate risk assessment and analysis of market demand characteristics, navigating regulatory and trade issues, overcoming local business and political challenges, developing strategies for market penetration, finding effective local management, working within the local culture, and providing high-level assistance to solve difficult problems.
ManattJones provides clients with access into, and relationships within, targeted industry and market segments in regions around the globe -- banking and financial services, IT and telecommunications, bio-technology, infrastructure, housing, hospitality, manufacturing operations, and healthcare and pharmaceuticals, delivering on-the-ground global reach and implementation for clients.
ManattJones has offices in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, New York, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo.
http://www.manattjones.com
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