The September technology evening presentation was sponsored by SICK Automation and presented by Robert de Scande, the company’s product manager for presence detection, encoders and industrial instrumentation. Robert has been in the automation industry for 15 years and holds a BTech in Electrical Engineering from Nelson Mandela Metro University. He has experience in programming PLCs/scada systems, designing, electrical panel layouts, pump and fan systems, as well as turnkey solutions for warehouse automation.
Juaandré Heyneke thanks Robert de Scande after the presentation.
The presentation focused on “Industry 4.0, distilling the facts from hype”. Terms like Big Data and IIoT are bandied about a lot these days, and it is sometimes difficult to understand the real world benefits and applications from these technologies. The other aspect of the presentation was to outline how Industry 4.0 is influencing the automation industry, most importantly, discussion around networking and digitalisation (turning data into usable information), illustrated by giving real examples in the context of a smart factory.
It is always beneficial to know how we arrived where we are today in order to decide where we are going. It is certain that the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) has arrived and is already shaping the future. With this in mind, we need to prepare and upskill ourselves and future generations in line with the rapidly evolving technologies of the future.
New committee members
During the branch meeting, chairman Juaandré Heyneke added additional committee members as follows: Deon Lottering who will look after technology evenings, Cobus du Toit who will look after the growth portfolio, and Marthel Mhlanga who will look after the education portfolio.
SAIMC User Advisory Council KS4I event: Bridging the industry/education divide
SAIMC
Horst Weinert, head of Didactic at Festo Southern/Eastern Africa, will be sharing some of Festo’s Didactic experiences of working across industry and education. He will cover training for productivity and employability in the public and private sectors, discussing especially the potential for inter-company training centres.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The local Johannesburg Branch of the SAIMC recently hosted a Technology Evening at Bryanston Sports Club on 9 April 2025.
Read more...SAIMC: Durban branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The April technology meeting for the Durban branch of the SAIMC was kindly sponsored by ProRisk, a subsidiary company of the Proconics Group of Companies. Process safety engineer, Guillaume de Swardt gave a fascinating presentation on the power of operational risk control by utilising CFD software.
Read more...SAIMC User Advisory Council KS4I event SAIMC Supplier Advisory Council
SAIMC
The SAIMC User Advisory Council started 2025 with its first event in the ‘Knowlege Sharing 4 Industry’ event series on the 19th of March.
Read more...Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry
SAIMC
In proud partnership with Innomotics, SAIMC will be hosting the first Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry event for 2025.
Read more...Getting your OT data into the cloud – the why and the how
SAIMC
As users recognise the benefits of a digital transformation strategy for their industrial plants and systems and start to adopt it, they soon face the challenge of getting operational technology data securely and reliably to a cloud service provider of their choice.
Read more...SAIMC training at AATF 2025 empowers engineers to register, comply and advance SAIMC Supplier Advisory Council
SAIMC
The Society for Automation, Instrumentation, Mechatronics and Computer Engineering (SAIMC) will deliver a powerful series of training sessions and technical workshops during the Africa Automation Technology Fair (AATF) 2025, providing engineers, technologists and technicians with the tools they need to register professionally, stay compliant, and lead industrial innovation.
printer friendly version