We have witnessed many changes in our diverse country over the last 10 years not the least of which has been in the manufacturing and process industries. In early June, a team of suppliers of control and instrumentation set of to the bushveld with two goals firmly set in their minds. One, find out what business opportunities exist on the border of the Kruger National Park, and two, escape the Highveld winter.
Yes you guessed it, it was time for the Control Roadshow to visit Phalaborwa again and pay a visit to this industrialised corner of the South African map. Once in Phalaborwa you quickly realise that the changes over the past 10 years did not escape this remote area, and that the community up there have wasted no time in adapting to changing market demands, the most visible being that of tourism. Bed and breakfast facilities have become a dominant business, hotels have been refurbished, millions have already been spent on upgrading the Hans Merensky golf estate with extensive future plans, and the airport has been moulded into a national feature worth a visit even if you are not travelling by air.
Now you may be thinking that the focus has shifted, but in case you are in doubt, our visit to Phalaborwa indicated quite the contrary. While some of the factories have streamlined their facilities, our experience was that it is business as usual at all the factories on the elephant coast.
To optimise travelling time for exhibitors, it was decided to start this year's Phalaborwa show at 14:00, and run to 19:00 rather than the usual times of 12:00 and 18:00. This meant that exhibitors could travel up on the morning of the show and back the following day, making it only a two-day event. From 14:00 we had a steady flow of visitors through to 19:00, and as is customary with such a focused exhibition, we were encouraged by the high calibre of visitors that took time out to visit the stands on the day.
An unfortunate date change did mean some exhibitors were forced to miss out on this event, however all available exhibition space was still maximised with some exhibitors squeezed into the hall foyer and others even happy to be outside. This year the exhibitors included; Adroit Technologies, Alpret Control Specialists, Anatech Instruments, Anglo Allied Engineering, Atlas Industrial, Autotech Weighing, Blanes Instruments, Bürkert Contromatic, Citech SA, Control Techniques, Dartcom, Flexible Electronic Systems, Flowserve, Honeywell, Industrial Auto & Control, Instrotech, Loadtech, N&Z Instrumentation, National Instruments, RS Components SA, Thermo Ramsey, TM Automation, Yokogawa SA.
The next event will be held at the Sasol Club in Secunda, and this will take place on 25 July 2002. Remaining shows for the year include Port Elizabeth, Vaal Triangle, Mossel Bay and Northern Cape.
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