The last Johannesburg branch Technology Evening was hosted by WIKA Instruments, where Chris Yelland from EE Publishers presented on the challenges and the changing landscape of electricity generation and demand in South Africa. The presentation analysed old and new technology options available to South Africa as we move from an era of shortage of electricity to a surplus.
Mike Banda (right) thanks Chris Yelland after the presentation.
Chris explored the technical challenges, from distributed generation to real-time digital measurements, data communication, automation and control. Also, the uncertain future outlook in lieu of forecasting future electricity demands and disruptive technologies gaining popularity due to price reduction in solar (PV, CSP) and wind, energy storage, electric vehicles and smart grids, among others.
Moving forward, South Africa needs new ways of doing things:
• Maximising solar PV and wind energy.
• Investing in flexible generation (gas) and energy storage.
• Investing in smart grid for distribution.
• Retiring old and expensive coal fired power plants.
• Carefully analysing the planned nuclear investment.
The old way of doing things, which Chris calls ‘baseloadism’, is being challenged by price tipping of newer renewable energy technologies, which introduces flexibility as well as a brave new world of power generation.
The branch thanks Chris for his informative presentation that was well attended and received.
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SAIMC
The Durban branch of the SAIMC was pleased to welcome Vusi Sithole, managing member of Hybrid Control Corporation in Richards Bay, who presented\on the very pertinent topic of ‘Infrastructure monitoring and control for water loss management’.
Read more...SAIMC: Sunshine, swings and smiles: Durban Golf Day hits a high note Technews Publishing (SA Instrumentation & Control)
SAIMC
We say it every year, and we’ll say it again: May in Durban is hard to beat; but 9 May, when the Durban Golf Day teed off at Kloof Country Club, was something else. With sunny skies and temperatures in the upper 20s, it was a fantastic day, full of fun and great energy.
Read more...SAIMC User Advisory Council KS4I event: Bridging the industry/education divide
SAIMC
Horst Weinert, head of Didactic at Festo Southern/Eastern Africa, will be sharing some of Festo’s Didactic experiences of working across industry and education. He will cover training for productivity and employability in the public and private sectors, discussing especially the potential for inter-company training centres.
Read more...SAIMC: Johannesburg branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The local Johannesburg Branch of the SAIMC recently hosted a Technology Evening at Bryanston Sports Club on 9 April 2025.
Read more...SAIMC: Durban branch SAIMC
SAIMC
The April technology meeting for the Durban branch of the SAIMC was kindly sponsored by ProRisk, a subsidiary company of the Proconics Group of Companies. Process safety engineer, Guillaume de Swardt gave a fascinating presentation on the power of operational risk control by utilising CFD software.
Read more...SAIMC User Advisory Council KS4I event SAIMC Supplier Advisory Council
SAIMC
The SAIMC User Advisory Council started 2025 with its first event in the ‘Knowlege Sharing 4 Industry’ event series on the 19th of March.
Read more...Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry
SAIMC
In proud partnership with Innomotics, SAIMC will be hosting the first Knowledge Sharing 4 Industry event for 2025.
Read more...Getting your OT data into the cloud – the why and the how
SAIMC
As users recognise the benefits of a digital transformation strategy for their industrial plants and systems and start to adopt it, they soon face the challenge of getting operational technology data securely and reliably to a cloud service provider of their choice.
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