On 8 March, a select group of SAIMC members from the Copperbelt in Kitwe congregated at the premises of incoming SAIMC Zambia chairman T.C. Siame’s Trescha Electronics. This would hail the beginning of the one hour drive to Ndola along a wide stretch of road sidled by commercial forests of pine and eucalyptus trees, interspaced with acacia and other native short brush that changes in colour and temperament over the seasons – brown and yellow in the cool dry winter to deep greens and burnt sienna in the rainy summer months. More recently, short-rise industrial developments and warehouses have also begun to sprout, as well as a large Chinese shopping mall and several places of lodging.
Established industry is facing growing competition from new investors taking advantage of the mining sector growth, and also
the diversification of the Zambian economy to include more production of food and sustenance-based products. Neelkanth
Cables is one of the new investors and, after observing their steady progress, the team decided to investigate the operation. Neelkanth hosted us and not only did they give us a technical presentation on general cable manufacture, they gave us a tour of the facility and showed us various experimental processes, as they endeavour to provide application specific cable in line with the exacting needs of the Zambian market.
Members were exposed to the various stages of copper/steel cable production from raw materials through to finished product. The meshing of IT and production machinery that is modern automation inspired us, leading to some lively conversation on the bus ride back to Kitwe.
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.
Read more...From the office of the CEO: Introduction to GRIP SAIMC
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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