The year ended with a bang for the Durban branch. With a new format and a change of venue for the annual function, the committee were a bit anxious but as it turned out – for no reason at all. The venue did us proud with a buffet spread fit for a king, the room was nicely appointed and even the extra two tables we squeezed in because we were oversubscribed didn’t affect the ambiance and conviviality and there was an overall buzz of excitement and anticipation.
Vinesh Maharaj presenting Kallie with the SAIMC certificate.
MC Dean Trattles kept things slick and running smoothly, introducing Howard Lister as the Durban branch chairman. Howard thanked the committee for their work in making the year a success but also acknowledged the industry as a whole for the increased interest in the technology evenings and the great turnout at the dinner. He commended Hennie Prinsloo and John Owen-Ellis for having gone beyond the call of duty and called them up to receive a gift in appreciation of their hard work. Kallie Bodenstein from Yokogawa received the ‘Best Speaker Award’ for Durban branch technology evenings during the period 2013/2014 with his presentation entitled: ‘DCSs versus PLCs’. Each speaker is evaluated by the audience at each technology evening and the scores tallied at the end of the year. As we saw by the audience reaction and participation, Kallie’s talk was really well received and he was an engaging and enthusiastic presenter.
Conrad Koch (right) with Chester Missing.
Dean then introduced Vinesh Maharaj, President of the SAIMC who inspired and delighted the audience with his enthusiasm and a report of what had been achieved by the SAIMC as a whole during the past year and the plans for the future. Next up was the entertainment for the evening and Conrad Koch and Chester Missing certainly didn’t disappoint us with their unique combination of razor sharp comedy and satire.
Everybody loved the way Conrad focused on a few people in the audience and the fact that he took the time to understand what the audience did, along with the many references to engineers and automation which made it that much more personal. Of course the piece de resistance was the ‘Boy Band’ featuring Howard Lister and Vinesh Maharaj – Conrad providing the voices and the stars providing the moves.
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