In this interview, Badr Lahmoudi, president of CITIC Dicastal, sits down with McKinsey’s Forest Hou to discuss the company’s landmark Morocco site becoming Africa’s first member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network. Badr describes how digital transformation, local talent development, and sustainability initiatives are coming together to generate growth—and why, in his view, “a Lighthouse cannot shine alone.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Forest Hou, McKinsey: Congratulations to the CITIC Dicastal Morocco site for being the first Global Lighthouse Network site in Africa. What are the implications for the site and other African industrial companies?
Badr Lahmoudi, CITIC Dicastal: It is a historic moment to be awarded the first Lighthouse designation in Africa by the World Economic Forum (WEF). Being the first shows that digital transformation has no borders, no barriers, and it means a lot for the African continent. It means we have all the ingredients to become a Lighthouse and to accomplish this kind of transformation.
Forest Hou: What are some examples of digital transformations you made at this site?
Badr Lahmoudi: The best example is the digital transformation of our casting system. We built on a foundation developed in Qinhuangdao [China], and we brought it to Morocco, with collaboration between Moroccan and Chinese experts. We have adapted this solution to the new requirements for our markets in Europe and the United States, and have significantly improved efficiency.
The vision system, which is a pioneer in the industry, was implemented first here in Morocco. It allows us to control complicated cast parts using a vision system with high speed, and cover the introduction of new products. We can introduce and control a new product in six minutes, instead of spending days and weeks doing this kind of work.
We are not only sharing this within our group, but also sharing the strategy behind our way of thinking and our philosophy, with some Moroccan companies already established in Morocco or in Africa—to show them how we made this successful so they can do the same.
Forest Hou: How has developing talent been part of the transformation?
Badr Lahmoudi: In Morocco we see the growth of the company together with the people. My personal motivation is when I see my team growing with the company. We started with fewer than 400 people; now we are over 1,800, with more than 95 percent being local, growing, being taught, trained, and empowered. People are the main pillar. We can bring technology but we cannot import people.
We built a foundation for recruitment to create the right skills. People coming from the university cannot be 100 percent ready, because each company has its specific knowledge to develop. We hire them from universities and engineering schools in Morocco. We make a career plan for them and have a good compensation strategy to retain them. This enables us to have a motivated team that can support digital transformation. I think this is the key to how we succeeded in making the digital transformation here in Morocco.
My best moment was when I presented the first wheels we produced to His Majesty King Mohammed VI at the inauguration of the plant. When I presented the wheels to His Majesty, I showed him “Made in Morocco.” I was proud because we were part of the growth of the economy in Morocco.
Forest Hou: Your site is also the first near-zero-carbon decarbonization plant in the whole of Africa. Can you tell us about some of your sustainability initiatives?
Badr Lahmoudi: We reduced gas consumption in our conditioning process with AI, mainly in our melting furnaces. And with this optimization of gas consumption, we significantly reduced our carbon footprint.
In addition, our electricity is 100 percent green, because we have a PPA [power purchase agreement] with a company producing electricity using wind power. So we are using wind-generated electricity in our plant. We are using an AI system to control the gas consumption in real time, and the carbon emissions. And we are recycling water at nearly 100 percent.
We are consuming more and more green aluminum, even if it’s not easy to get, with the volume that we have, and we recycle 100 percent of our aluminum.
The target is to be 100 percent carbon-neutral by 2050, but I think we are more advanced compared to other plants in the group. We will keep working on this green aluminum supply chain. We are investing in recycling some final waste like ash, and we will recycle it internally using green energy. This will allow us to continue to reduce our carbon emissions and energy consumption.
Forest Hou: This interview’s main audience is people working hard on digital transformation. Do you have a few words to encourage those still on the journey?
Badr Lahmoudi: I think they are doing a very meaningful job. My message to the [Global] Lighthouse network is that a Lighthouse cannot shine alone. We must shine together. We must share best practices and work together for more digital transformations and to empower our people.
The most important thing for others to know is that the door of CITIC Dicastal in Morocco is always open.
For example, we’re hosting a workshop with 14 companies in Morocco—subsidiaries of some African companies. They will observe our use cases, and we will share our best practices with them.
We are often contacted through the WEF by other companies looking to benchmark our experience. We participate in online meetings to share best practices. We are very open, and we understand that this is one of the main objectives or goals of the Lighthouse: to share with the community of the Global Lighthouse Network, share and help others to be transformed.
The Global Lighthouse Network is a World Economic Forum initiative. The initiative was cofounded with McKinsey & Company and is counseled by an advisory board of industry leaders who are working together to shape the future of global manufacturing. The advisory board includes Foxconn Industrial Internet, Koç Holding, McKinsey & Company, Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Aramco. Sites and value chains that join the network are designated by an independent panel of experts.
About the Lighthouse selection process: All Lighthouse designations are determined through an independent peer review panel of senior expert leaders from industry and academia to ensure fairness and neutrality in the selection. This ensures that the Lighthouse status remains a trusted, world-class achievement, recognizing the best adoption of technologies making a positive impact on productivity, supply chain resilience, customer centricity, talent, and sustainability. While some Lighthouse sites have worked with external advisers to support them in their transformation and application journey, these have no influence on the outcome of the evaluation process. Each Lighthouse organization and site has forged its own path to success.
