First and foremost, thank you to all the stakeholders, guests and delegates from industry who celebrated the 2016 Gala Dinner with us, your presence was greatly appreciated.
The SAIMC state of the industry address, as was broadcasted at the event, focused on two central issues: new market opportunities that are driving the convergence of competition; and what Frost & Sullivan termed the ‘Innovation to zero’ concept. Given the analysis of the above emerging industrial and technological constructs, coupled with elements of our strategic agenda, the SAIMC leadership has responded with a ‘Stakeholder Engagement Breakfast’ initiative. This will seek to foster greater integration amongst our multiple stakeholders and other automation industry players at large. Keep a lookout for more information.
The picture below illustrates how emerging ‘smart’ market opportunities drive competitors for greater collaboration.
The concept of zero innovation encapsulates the innovative solutions that are demanded by emerging socioeconomic forces. These are solutions that seek to achieve, for example, zero waste/emissions (e.g. petrochemical industries), zero defects (e.g. manufacturing), zero breaches of security (e.g. cyber security), zero accidents (e.g. self-driving vehicles) etc. These are areas of business that require a greater paradigm shift in the space of the automation industry.
At SAIMC, we also believe that in years to come the healthcare industry will be demanding more of automation as the trend shifts from ‘treating’ towards predicting, advanced diagnosis and monitoring. It is for these and other reasons that we are mobilising the industry to support the notion of registering automation as the 10th recognised engineering discipline in South Africa. This will align South African industries with international trends and also help to position the African continent as a ‘leader’ and not always a ‘follower’ in the context of using automation as economic drivers, hence bettering the lives of many Africans.
To reinforce our resilience and determination to create a voice for automation in South Africa, I quote our 2016 Gala Dinner guest speaker Victor Vermeulen: “I felt as if my mind was being held prisoner in an immobile shell and I’d become frozen inside my skin. I could not do much, but I had made my choice. I was not just going to give up and die. I decided that my life was worth living and I was going to make the most of it; one breath at a time, one day at a time. I have never been a person who gives up. I decided to fight!”
Once again, I would like to thank the SAIMC council and the delegates from industry, education, government and engineering institutions that continue to support the SAIMC and make it what it is today. Of course, I cannot forget our members, patrons and business partners as they too form an important part of the engine that propels the SAIMC forward.
Yours sincerely,
Oratile Sematle, President.
| Tel: | +27 11 312 2445 |
| Email: | ina@saimc.co.za |
| www: | www.saimc.co.za |
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