Ann de Beer thanks Stephen Eltze after the presentation.
At the May meeting of the SAIMC Johannesburg branch held at SICK Automation, Stephen Eltze brought some fun into the safety discussion. As a nation of would-be taxi drivers, jaywalkers and general disregarders of any safety culture, it was refreshing the way Stephen captured our attention. The evening started with varying slides with a series of quotes from Evil Overlord Rules, all of which questioned the conventional way of doing things, as well as learning from experience.
He got things off to an interesting start by showing pictures of a textile factory from 200 years ago, with a couple of 10 year old kids working on the looms, one of them barefoot. He then divided us into two groups to answer the following questions:
1. How can safety help to improve your image?
2. Why is safety necessary for you and your company?
Some interesting responses were forthcoming. Stephen added to these, and went on to explain the differences between directives, standards and regulations and how these contribute to safety. Since all of these come from the EU, it seems that there are people who produce directives because they need something to do, seemingly to compensate for people with little or no common sense. There are apparently
25 000 pages of regulations on how to grow cabbages.
However, there is no doubt that the objective is human safety, even if it takes around five years to get to workable regulations, after which the process iterates. We were shown how the EU standards relate to the USA standards and regulations, and also how these relate to South Africa. We are not too far behind as far as the regulations are concerned, but certainly are as far as enforcement is concerned.
Stephen also covered how machinery manufacturers are required to:
• Design machines safely.
• Provide comprehensive operating instructions.
• Prepare technical documentation.
• Issue a declaration of conformity.
• Label the machine as CE compliant.
If a South African company exports machinery, all of this has to be in the language of the destination country.
Stephen made this topic interesting, fun and interactive. Our thanks go to SICK for hosting this 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