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Showing posts from January, 2018

DACHSER South Africa flies high to deliver a seamless logistics service

When a client required fast, cost-effective and tailored assistance in moving raw, high-bulk materials for the automotive industry, DACHSER South Africa provided the optimal solution in the form of air charters. Air charters are fast-becoming a competitive logistics option for just-in-time (JIT) supply chains that need to move goods quickly to destinations around the globe. DACHSER South Africa’s particular client needed to rapidly move just under 400 tons of rubber from Germany to South Africa. Due to the urgency of the consignment, sea freight was not an option. DACHSER South Africa chartered three airplanes to move the bales of rubber. Detlev Duve, managing director of DACHSER South Africa, says, “By its nature, air cargo can reach its destination in a matter of days rather than the weeks that are typical of sea freight. Because of this, air charters are particularly attractive for manufacturing and JIT clients that are ultimately looking to reduce manufacturing down time an

IITPSA names 2017 IT Personality and Visionary CIO of the Year

Who’s who of SA celebrates 60 years of SA ICT excellence at glittering awards night The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) has named Entelect CEO Shashi Hansjee as the 2017 IT Personality of the Year and Sasol CIO Alec Joannou as the Visionary CIO of the Year at the gala IITPSA 60th anniversary banquet and President’s Awards. Titans of the industry gathered for the diamond awards banquet in Sandton in November 2017 to celebrate 60 years of South African ICT excellence and congratulate the winners of the prestigious IITPSA awards. The Visionary CIO Award is presented to an executive in the corporate IT environment who has demonstrated visionary leadership in applying technology to grow and transform business. The 2017 winner, Sasol CIO Alec Joannou, leads a team of 400 permanent staff and over 600 contractors serving over 30 000 users across four continents; as well as serving as a trusted advisor to a number of boards including Unilever, Sappi,

Banks initiate SAMAR process in order to assist in reducing fraud by gaining control of movable assets currently excluded from registration on the Electronic National Traffic Information System (eNaTIS)

South African banking and finance industry to cover entire life-cycle of non-vehicle assets ROSEBANK – 15 November 2017 – The South African banking and finance industry has welcomed the creation of the Southern African Movable Asset Register (SAMAR) to help reduce fraud. SAMAR allows manufacturers, importers, builders, banks, insurers as well as the general public to control title and ownership of all movable assets. SAMAR’s system – developed at the request of several of the banks and importers of “yellow metal” assets – keeps a record to be kept of various assets and covers the life-cycle of a given asset – importantly including those that are currently not allowed to be loaded on eNaTIS (the Electronic National Traffic Information System). SAMAR creates the most recent reliable record of that asset by updating records in real-time as changes are made by various system participants such as financiers, dealerships and insurers. SAMAR’s use by Financial Institutions: • Registering

SKF quality and service value proposition improves delivery time of large size roller bearings

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The SKF Explorer series large size roller bearings presented the most optimum solution for a vertical roller mill used in the production of cement. A long-standing SKF customer in the cement and concrete industry contacted SKF for a solution when a routine maintenance check determined that the bearings on one of their vertical roller mills needed replacement. Operating in an extremely demanding environment, the vertical roller mill is critical in the production process of this cement producing facility. “It was therefore crucial that the bearings are of superior quality to deliver reliable performance and maximise productivity for the customer,” states SKF Territory Sales Manager, Sean Weir. Weir says that the SKF Explorer series bearings were proposed; he explains the technology: “These bearings feature optimisation of the internal design, high performance materials and heat treatment. These properties result in a greater wear resistance, lower operating temperatures and longer

UCT triumphs in environmental innovation at South Africa’s third Greenovate Awards

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Young environmental game-changes from the University of Cape Town (UCT) took first place in the Greenovate Awards for the third year running. UCT scooped up the very first Greenovate Engineering Award too. The awards programme is an exciting initiative by Growthpoint Properties in association with the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA). The prestigious awards recognise innovative solutions for the property industry to environmental challenges. This is the third year the awards have strived to inspire and encourage students of the built environment to discover, explore and invent ways to live more sustainably. Also, for the first time this year, the awards were extended to include a second category for engineering students. The students were challenged to come up with ideas for any property-related project that makes the way we live greener and our environmental footprint lighter. A total of eight universities competed for both awards this year. UCT was the only one to t

Heater selection tool

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The SKF heater selection tool is developed to help you to easily find the right SKF heater for your application. The heater selection tool covers three types of applications: heaters for mounting bearings, heaters for mounting other workpieces than bearings (such as gear wheels, couplings, pulleys, etc.) and heaters for dismounting inner rings of cylindrical roller bearings and similar annular components. The product range of the selection tool covers the electric hot plate (729659 C), the SKF Induction Heaters (TMBH 1, TIH 030m, TIH 100m, TIH 220m, TIH L33, TIH L44, TIH L77, TIH L33MB and TIH L44MB) and the SKF Fixed Induction Heaters EAZ series (incl. control cabinets). It offers the user valuable information about the recommended heater such as heater designation, heating position, technical information and useful links. The online heater selection tool is globally accessible via the public skf.com website (mapro.skf.com/heaterselect). The tool is available in

Rosebank Link

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Rosebank Link is located at the Heart of Rosebank next to the Gautrain Station, The Zone and Rosebank Mall. The new office building development is at 173 Oxford road. The Rosebank Mews will achieve practical completion September 2018. The building has been planned for a total rentable area of 17 888m ² of office area and 817m ² of ground floor retail area. This project is set to transform the current existing building into an expressive steel and glass clad shell office building, making it a uniquely imposing icon of the Rosebank Skyline. Standing at a total of 15 stories above ground the building consists of 2 basement parking levels, a ground floor public/retail level, 5 parkade levels and 9 stories of offices above a podium level. East and West facades consist of a steel clad shell with articulated strip windows to allow light and views to filter into every office module. The faceted East and West façades will have a visual quality emphasised by the articulated strip windows that

Barloworld, Atterbury, and African Rainbow Capital partner to redevelop the landmark Barlow Park, Sandton, into a new iconic 130,000sqm mixed-use precinct

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In a groundbreaking real estate transaction, Barloworld, Atterbury and African Rainbow Capital have partnered as co-investors in the redevelopment of the prime Barlow Park Campus, situated at 180 Katherine Street, Sandton. The joint venture property investment and development deal was signed this week. The next step is the rezoning of the property, which is expected to take at least a year. The initial property transaction involves each party holding one-third of the landmark site currently housing Barloworld’s corporate offices. The investment value will eventually climb to well over R3billion as the total redevelopment of this sprawling corporate park is rolled out into a 130,000sqm vibrant multi-billion-Rand mixed-use precinct. “The redevelopment of Barlow Park is part of our strategic focus to maximise the use of and unlock value in all our assets. This will not only contribute to the achievement of our bold ambition, but will be a legacy that will deliver value over the long

Dwarsloop Mall.

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Architect’s impression of Phase 1 of Dwarsloop Mall. With an A-grade, 35,000m2 shopping mall being constructed by New Africa Developments in northeastern Mpumalanga, this festive season will see 33,000* households closer to a contemporary shopping destination. Dwarsloop Mall boasts more than 50 stores, anchored by Shoprite & Spar major grocery tenants and includes a selection of national fashion retailers, restaurants and banks. Committed tenants include Pep, Total Sports, Ackermans, Clicks, Sportscene, Markham, Roman’s Pizza, Exact, Cross Trainer and many more. Situated on the arterial R40 between Hazyview and Hoedspruit at the major Thulamahashe intersection, this green fields development is very prominent and has good access for the approximately 150,000* residents of Dwarsloop and Bushbuckridge, in addition to a large percentage of Thulamahashe locals. The R40 ring-road has been budgeted for by the local government in the 2017/2018 financial year, and by effectively b

Atlas Copco to divest concrete and compaction business to Husqvarna Group

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Atlas Copco has taken a decision to divest its concrete and compaction business to Husqvarna Group’s Construction division. The planned divestment will enable Atlas Copco’s Power Technique business area to intensify focus on its core technologies of air, power and flow. Atlas Copco Power Technique, which recently evolved out of the success of the Construction Technique business area, brings complete air (portable compressors), power (generators and light towers) and flow (pumps) solutions and services to mining and industry. In addition to the complete concrete and compaction product ranges including plate compactors, tandem rollers and concrete vibrators, the production facility in Ruse, Bulgaria, as well as production assets in Nashik, India, along with sales and service operations worldwide are included in the divestment transaction. “This development will now enable us to create focus within our business area to further accelerate growth in our core technologies of air, power

Winning young musicians shine at the Atterbury National Piano Competition 2017

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Hitting the perfect note, a record 46 young South African pianists competing at this year’s annual Atterbury National Piano Competition all excelled at the event which took place at the Atterbury Theatre, Pretoria, recently, with its main sponsor being the Atterbury Trust. This year, the hotly-contested competition was adjudicated by Prof Malcolm Nay, Mr John Roos, Prof Joseph Stanford and Bernarda Vorster. It took place in three rounds and then culminated in a final round comprising nine extraordinarily talented young pianists who competed against each other to decide the winners. The overall winner of the competition and winner of the Hennie Joubert Prize, Louis Nel of Pretoria, delighted judges to be awarded with first place and a cash prize of R35,000. His tremendous talent and dedication saw him taking top honours this year, after coming third overall last year. Second place was earned by Rachel Wedderburn-Maxwell of Durban. Third place went to Beate Boshoff from Bethlehem,

UCT triumphs in environmental innovation at South Africa’s third Greenovate Awards

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Young environmental game-changes from the University of Cape Town (UCT) took first place in the Greenovate Awards for the third year running. UCT scooped up the very first Greenovate Engineering Award too. The awards programme is an exciting initiative by Growthpoint Properties in association with the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA). The prestigious awards recognise innovative solutions for the property industry to environmental challenges. This is the third year the awards have strived to inspire and encourage students of the built environment to discover, explore and invent ways to live more sustainably. Also, for the first time this year, the awards were extended to include a second category for engineering students. The students were challenged to come up with ideas for any property-related project that makes the way we live greener and our environmental footprint lighter. A total of eight universities competed for both awards this year. UCT was the only one to

New Deloitte Africa HQ commences development at Waterfall City

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Deloitte Africa, Atterbury Property and Attacq Limited jointly celebrated the start of construction on Deloitte’s iconic new Africa headquarters, with a sod-turning ceremony onsite at Waterfall City. The 42,500m2 ultra‐modern offices are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2020, and Deloitte plans to begin operating from its new base from April 2020. Atterbury, a leading South African property investment and development business, and JSE‐listed premier property company, Attacq, are co‐owners in a 50/50 joint venture on the development of the new Deloitte premises. While bulk earthworks for the project began in October this year, this sod‐turning ceremony signifies the official commencement of development. Continuing with their flair for creating flagship corporate head offices and top quality real estate assets for leading national and international blue‐chip businesses, Atterbury CEO Louis van der Watt believes that their deep understanding of Deloitte’s operational bu

Power underpins wave of African industrialisation

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Power is closely tied to a surge of new infrastructure projects and rapid industrialisation across Africa, with significant opportunities still open to the power sector, delegates heard at a briefing for key power sector stakeholders in Sandton this week. Infrastructure spend across Africa will grow at 10% per annum from 2015 and 2025, exceeding $180 billion by 2025. Much of this is expected in Nigeria and South Africa with Nigerian infrastructure spend topping $77 billion by 2025, while in South Africa infrastructure spend may reach $60 billion by 2025. Strong development is also forecast in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique and Tanzania. This is according to Duncan Bonnett, Director Strategy & Business Development at Africa House, research partner to POWER-GEN & DistribuTECH Africa, who was addressing power sector stakeholders in Sandton in the lead-up to POWER-GEN & DistribuTECH Africa 2018. Outlining the importance of energy for Africa’s development, as well as

The new discovery corporate head office in Sandton, Johannesburg

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As at now, the new discovery corporate head office in Sandton, Johannesburg is the largest commercial development office in Africa. Generally, it is about 87000 square metre built with an aim to reduce congestion. The new discovery is rated as a green building and just like any other green building whose major function is to enable businesses flourish, the new discovery has also encouraged conducive working environment and reduced utility cost with affordable alternative options. The new discovery corporate head office has taken a considerable amount of time of approximately 3 to 4 years to be where it is. This commercial development stands at a prime location good enough to qualify a five green building rating. In regard to this, it is entirely within a busy transport system such as Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit System while for the property that existed within were demolished in an appropriate manner. Amongst the features that make the new discovery corporate head office relevant

PEOPLE-CENTRIC HEALTH & SAFETY TRAINING

If we were to rewind to 125 years ago, a vastly different picture of labour safety would emerge. What was then largely an agricultural economy, was moving swiftly into the industrial age, and more significantly, South Africa was experiencing the gold mining boom. The machinery aiding a new era of economic growth and productivity was bigger, faster and more dangerous. As a result, employees were getting injured or losing their lives in ever increasing numbers and companies were compelled to take remedial action. Legislation, safety guidelines and policies were implemented that significantly altered the way in which workplace safety was approached. Fast-forward to 2017. While it is true to say the gains in health and safety in the workplace have been vast, it still seems not enough is being done. Many organisations continue to report the same injuries: back and eye injuries as well as fractures due to slips, trips and falls. It is estimated that these injuries result in an ave

IITPSA names 2017 IT Personality and Visionary CIO of the Year

Who’s who of SA celebrates 60 years of SA ICT excellence at glittering awards night The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) has named Entelect CEO Shashi Hansjee as the 2017 IT Personality of the Year and Sasol CIO Alec Joannou as the Visionary CIO of the Year at the gala IITPSA 60th anniversary banquet and President’s Awards. Titans of the industry gathered for the diamond awards banquet in Sandton in November 2017 to celebrate 60 years of South African ICT excellence and congratulate the winners of the prestigious IITPSA awards. The Visionary CIO Award is presented to an executive in the corporate IT environment who has demonstrated visionary leadership in applying technology to grow and transform business. The 2017 winner, Sasol CIO Alec Joannou, leads a team of 400 permanent staff and over 600 contractors serving over 30 000 users across four continents; as well as serving as a trusted advisor to a number of boards including Unilever, Sapp

IT’S DANGEROUS TO SKIMP ON PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

Inferior Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in the workplace could have a negative effect on productivity and a company’s bottom line. A number of companies have been found skimping on the PPE they supply to their staff, resulting in growing concern amid vigorous local and international drives to promote the creation of a safe working environment. PPE refers to equipment such as protective gear, gloves, boots, helmets, goggles and much more. Anton Zwanepoel, Business Unit Manager of Innovative PPE Solutions, cautions companies against being frugal when it comes to PPE. “Business owners need to alter their perception of PPE as a grudge purchase, to that of an investment in employee safety. This will protect both the company and its employees, as well as lives and money in the long run.” He says poor-quality PPE can impact output and the bottom line if left unchecked. “For example, an ill-fitting Conti Suit can impede a worker’s ability to do his job properly or even result in