Somta Tools was founded in 1954 by Samuel Osborn Ltd of Sheffield, England, through its subsidiaries
Osborn Steels and Osborn Mushet Tools. The name Somta was chosen as the acronym for these
companies operating in South Africa.
Somta continues to operate from its original site on Moses Mabhida (formerly Edendale) Road in
Pietermaritzburg. Somta's expansion has been brought about by the acquisition of two cutting tool
companies during the 1980's. Additional growth is realised by continual investment in new plant, with
emphasis on state of the art CNC equipment such as Junker, Normac, Rollomatic, Walter, Reinecker and
Reishauer machines including new ANCA and Walter CNC grinding machines to further expand solid
carbide range manufacturing capacity.
From humble beginnings in 1954 with 20 employees,
Somta has grown into one of the largest cutting tool
manufacturers in the southern hemisphere, operating
from offices and modern manufacturing facilities laid out
over 3 hectares with a complement of over 400
employees.
The factory in Pietermaritzburg manufactures 25 000
standard items and a further 6 000 made-to-order items
to serve local markets and export markets in over 70
countries worldwide.
Somta Tools specialises in the design and manufacture
of standard and custom tools for the industrial and "do it
yourself" markets. Product categories can be
summarised as drills, cutters, reamers , threading tools
and toolbits, which are made in a wide range of sizes,
using various materials (HSS and Solid Carbide) and
Balzers PVD surface coatings to extend wear life.
The company's vision of "To manufacture and supply
superior cutting tools, driven by a culture of service
excellence, to global and domestic markets" is
supported by ISO 9002 which was achieved in 1991
and ISO 9001 in 2003 and 2008.
Manufacturers & Suppliers of Drills, Reamers, End Mills, Bore Cutters,
Taps & Dies, Toolbits, Solid Carbide Tooling, Carbide Insert Tooling,
Custom Tools and Surface Coatings
Somta has an integrated state of the art
Balzers PVD Rapid coating system in it's
manufacturing programme, offering the
®
innovative range of Balzers BALINIT
high performance coatings on all cutting
tools.
S O M T A P 1 2 C A T A L O G U E
