Johannesburg Branch News
April 2005
SAIMC
Back in the early days of the SAIMC (around 1958) a group of young enthusiastic engineers got together and established The Instrument and Control Society of Southern Africa (ICSSA) the forerunner of the South African Institute of Measurement and Control. The inevitable happened, these young people became older, and unfortunately, there were not any younger leaders willing to take up the challenge of running this essential organisation.
I am pleased to say that this has now changed, the members of the controlling council and branch committees are mostly younger persons with new and exciting ideas. The excuse that the SAIMC is 'a bunch of old fogies' has become even lamer than it ever was. If this was ever true, why did the user of this excuse not do something about it by their support and participation?
We are currently working on a number of initiatives that will make the SAIMC an organisation that will be even more of a benefit to members - whether individual or patron. It will be an advantage to members of all categories to be associated with the SAIMC. (More of this later.)
The Johannesburg branch is once again off to a flying start in this New Year. January saw our well-attended AGM, where the 2005 committee was elected and the February meeting was sponsored by Siemens, who told us about flue gas analysis using across stack infrared detection principles. This subject encouraged many questions from the audience, and was appreciated by the members. We have entered the planning phase of the winter golf day and have made a booking for June
The committee also has a number of site visits planned and will be publishing these as soon as it has confirmed the venue appointments.
We are continuously on the look out for technical papers that qualify for the Negretti Award. This prestigious award recognises original endeavour in preparing and delivering an original technical paper on the topic of instrumentation used for measurement and/or control.
Remember, our meetings are on the second Wednesday of the month at the Rivonia Club. See you there.
Vivian MacFadyen, chairman
Further reading:
SAIMC: Johannesburg
SAIMC
The Johannesburg Branch of the SAIMC hosted a successful Technology Evening on 10 September. The event was well attended and generously sponsored by Phoenix Contact.
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SAIMC: From the office of the COO: A call to action: Elevating our profession through ECSA registration
SAIMC
SAIMC
The engineering landscape in South Africa is evolving rapidly, and with it, the expectations placed upon us as practitioners. At the heart of this evolution lies a critical imperative: registration with the Engineering Council of South Africa.
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SAIMC: Durban branch
SAIMC
SAIMC
At SAIMC Durban’s October Technology Evening, Nico Erasmus delivered a thought-provoking presentation on a topic close to every automation professional’s heart: PLC and Drive Manufacturer Generational Hardware - UpGrades, UpGates or UpRates?
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SAIMC: Johannesburg branch
SAIMC
SAIMC
The Johannesburg Branch of the SAIMC hosted a successful Technology Evening on 10 September. The event was well attended and generously sponsored by Phoenix Contact.
Read more...
Why ECSA matters
SAIMC
SAIMC
I always knew I had to register as a Professional Engineer. Then I opened the registration guidelines.
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Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry event
SAIMC
SAIMC
The last of SAIMC’s Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry (KS4I) events for 2025 will be held in September.
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SAIMC: From the office of the COO: Enabling AI-ready manufacturing in South Africa
SAIMC
SAIMC
Last month, I wrote about the ethical use of AI in our daily lives. This month, I want to explore two concepts, backed by different architectures and technologies, that can assist our manufacturing facilities to exponentially increase the pace of their digital transformation.
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SAIMC: Johannesburg branch
SAIMC
SAIMC
The SAIMC Johannesburg branch hosted its June Technology Evening at the Bryanston Sports Club, where attendees explored a topic beyond the usual scope of process automation.
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SAIMC: Zambia branch
SAIMC
SAIMC Zambia recently facilitated an industrial visit to the Zamefa Cable Manufacturing Company in Luanshya for twenty automation students from Sinozam. The visit gave students valuable exposure to the advanced technology used in copper and aluminium cable production.
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SAIMC: Michael Brown named Honorary Senior Member of SAIMC
SAIMC
SAIMC
Michael Brown, a recently retired specialist in control loop optimisation, has been named an Honorary Senior Member of the SAIMC, a rare distinction held by only a handful of individuals.
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