During the May SAIMC meeting in Vanderbijlpark we were fortunate to have Andre Joubert from Sasol R&D who presented findings from his recent study on 'Asset management as part of preventative maintenance in modern plants'. The study comprised asset management technologies from both Emerson and Honeywell with the instrumentation utilising mainly the HART communication protocol.
He shared his knowledge gained on the HART technology itself, installation methods used, diagnostic information, the asset management applications, change management requirements, the change in maintenance philosophies that were required and the benefits that they realised from their implementation. Since he was personally involved with the integration of all asset systems and the development of some of the custom interfaces for the Emerson and Honeywell systems he was able to highlight some important advantages and disadvantages relating to such a project.
It was clear from the presentation that in order to get sustainable benefits from using HART technology and the diagnostic information it provides, the whole system needs to be purpose-built to achieve the end result. In this case the provision of an optimal maintenance strategy for the business, which utilises select diagnostic data integrated in a single maintenance management system that is readily available and easy to use.
For the Vaal branch this was another highlight and the number of attendees is steadily increasing at our meetings. Another positive trend is the amount of suppliers that are eager to present their technologies. In July we will be visited by Kobus de Villiers from WIKA Instruments, presenting on analyser technologies and in August by Alan Susman from Sustech Manufacturing presenting on manifold technologies. Hope to see you all there.
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.
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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.
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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.
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