At the last technology evening hosted by Comtest, Steve Sidney, director and honorary treasurer of The National Laboratory Association (NLA), gave a presentation on the role of the technical infrastructure organisations in South Africa.
Cheryl Hird (right) thanks Steve Sidney after the presentation.
Globalisation is increasing the demands on countries to demonstrate that they have the quality system to guarantee that products originating within are safe and ‘fit for purpose’. The quality infrastructure system allows countries to set standards, and test against them to determine whether products or services are fit for their intended purpose. In South Africa, we refer to the quality system as the Technical Infrastructure which includes:
• Standards.
• Accreditation.
• Measurement traceability.
• Technical barriers to trade.
The NLA is the representative body that evolved from the previous National Laboratory Accreditation service, after overall responsibility for accreditation was assumed by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) during 1998.
The NLA looks after the interests of the large number of laboratories in South Africa. This includes measuring, testing, calibration and verification, as well as laboratories which operate in well-defined areas of R&D in the natural and applied sciences.
We are all affected by technical infrastructure and it is important in our daily lives in areas such as trade, automation and instrumentation, medical devices, safety and environmental protection. Other topics covered by Steve included:
• Physical standards.
• Traceability (Metrology).
• Paper standards.
• Assurance of quality.
• Regional cooperation bodies.
The branch thanks Steve for this informative presentation.
International robotics conference streams live to Africa
SAIMC
The SAIMC hosted five live-stream viewing events across South Africa for the IEEE International Conference of Robotics and Automation in Vienna, bringing global robotics research and technology directly to local industry and academia.
Read more...From the office of the CEO: Introduction to GRIP SAIMC
SAIMC
Industry has long been concerned about graduates who have no understanding of the modern equipment they will face in industry. This has triggered an investigation into the possibility of creating a facility whereby graduates register with the SAIMC and rotate through all the vendors to obtain experience on modern equipment.
Read more...SAIMC: Durban branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The SAIMC Durban Branch hosted a technology meeting featuring a presentation by Abacus Automation on the practical role of AI in industrial automation, drawing considerable interest from attendees.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg branch SAIMC
SAIMC
Instrotech recently hosted a technical presentation on load cell technology and applications at the SAIMC Johannesburg Technology Evening, presented by Trevor Salzwedel. The session covered load cell fundamentals, selection and installation, mechanical considerations and calibration methods.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg Golf Day SAIMC
SAIMC
The SAIMC Johannesburg Golf Day on 22 May 2026 brought together 16 four-balls for a day of golf, networking and fundraising, with generous support from sponsors across the instrumentation and control sector.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The Johannesburg Branch had the privilege of being hosted by Phoenix Contact for our technology event in May. Shamil Surbun, BU manager for Automation, presented a CPD-accredited session on ‘From Sensor to Cloud: How SPE and APL Are Transforming Industrial Connectivity’.
Read more...From the office of the CEO: Power Hour goes national SAIMC
SAIMC
South Africa’s automation, control, mechatronics and computer engineering community is changing fast, and the SAIMC is changing with it. I am excited to announce a new national initiative that will reshape how we deliver technical knowledge, strengthen branch identity and bring our community together like never before.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version