The year ended with a bang for the Durban branch. With a new format and a change of venue for the annual function, the committee were a bit anxious but as it turned out – for no reason at all. The venue did us proud with a buffet spread fit for a king, the room was nicely appointed and even the extra two tables we squeezed in because we were oversubscribed didn’t affect the ambiance and conviviality and there was an overall buzz of excitement and anticipation.
Vinesh Maharaj presenting Kallie with the SAIMC certificate.
MC Dean Trattles kept things slick and running smoothly, introducing Howard Lister as the Durban branch chairman. Howard thanked the committee for their work in making the year a success but also acknowledged the industry as a whole for the increased interest in the technology evenings and the great turnout at the dinner. He commended Hennie Prinsloo and John Owen-Ellis for having gone beyond the call of duty and called them up to receive a gift in appreciation of their hard work. Kallie Bodenstein from Yokogawa received the ‘Best Speaker Award’ for Durban branch technology evenings during the period 2013/2014 with his presentation entitled: ‘DCSs versus PLCs’. Each speaker is evaluated by the audience at each technology evening and the scores tallied at the end of the year. As we saw by the audience reaction and participation, Kallie’s talk was really well received and he was an engaging and enthusiastic presenter.
Conrad Koch (right) with Chester Missing.
Dean then introduced Vinesh Maharaj, President of the SAIMC who inspired and delighted the audience with his enthusiasm and a report of what had been achieved by the SAIMC as a whole during the past year and the plans for the future. Next up was the entertainment for the evening and Conrad Koch and Chester Missing certainly didn’t disappoint us with their unique combination of razor sharp comedy and satire.
Everybody loved the way Conrad focused on a few people in the audience and the fact that he took the time to understand what the audience did, along with the many references to engineers and automation which made it that much more personal. Of course the piece de resistance was the ‘Boy Band’ featuring Howard Lister and Vinesh Maharaj – Conrad providing the voices and the stars providing the moves.
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.
Read more...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.
Read more...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.
Read more...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.
Read more...SAIMC: Durban branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The August technology meeting was jointly presented by Pusetso Sentle and Suvern Moodley on the subject of ‘Universal Automation: Open, Flexible and Vendor-Agnostic Industrial Control’, and drew a record attendance.
Read more...Digitise what matters and leverage
SAIMC
SAIMC has been invited to partner with technology leaders 4Sight and NextGenOpX for a one-day industry event aimed at unlocking the full value of OT investments in the mining sector.
Read more...SAIMC: From the office of the COO: Ethical and practical use of AI SAIMC
SAIMC
In this day and age, we all have access to AI tools. A lot of people claim that if you are not using AI tools in your daily job today you are falling behind. But would it be ethical to use AI tools to write an article per day and sign my name to it?
Read more...SAIMC: Durban branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The Durban branch of the SAIMC held its July technology meeting at the familiar Premier Splendid Hotel, drawing a strong turnout of industry professionals.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The SAIMC Johannesburg branch recently hosted the July Technology Evening at the Bryanston Sports Club.
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