Events

BRICS Manufacturing Conference to delve into the potential of exponential manufacturing

JOHANNESBURG, 24 MARCH 2021 – The BRICS Manufacturing Conference, which kicks off in Sandton, Johannesburg on Friday, will give local manufacturers the opportunity to reflect on how they can grow using new technologies.
Organised by the BRICS Manufacturing Working Group (MWG), the conference, which takes place at the IDC Conference Centre, aims to help local manufacturers to leverage off South Africa’s membership of BRICS by taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the grouping. The MWG’s role is to facilitate trade and investment in manufacturing between South Africa and its fellow member countries – Brazil, Russia, India and China – and to encourage co-operation on projects where there is potential for collaboration or complementarity.
BRICS MWG Chairman Kaizer Nyatsumba said while access to markets is critical for growth, the manufacturing industry needs to take advantage of new technologies in order to be sustainable. He said it is in this context that the conference will discuss, among other things, exponential manufacturing, which is one of three key projects of the working group.
The report will be presented by the Managing Director of the Institute of Exponential Manufacturing, Johan van Tonder, who heads the exponential manufacturing investment programme in the MWG. According to Mr Van Tonder, the $20 billion programme spans 10 manufacturing industry sectors and aims to create 10 transformative industry leaders in the BRICS community within 10 years.
“The local industry has been facing an existential crisis because of increased automation as technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics lead to more advanced manufacturing technologies. However, the conference hopes to demonstrate to local manufacturers that these new technologies, coupled with exponential manufacturing, offer new opportunities for growth,” Mr Nyatsumba said.

by SEIFSA .

BRICS Manufacturing Conference to highlight the need to narrow the trading gap between South Africa and its BRICS counterparts

JOHANNESBURG, 23 MARCH 2021 – BRICS Manufacturing Working Group (MWG) Chairperson Kaizer Nyatsumba today reiterated the importance of the BRICS Manufacturing Conference taking place this Friday, saying it comes at a time when both the Government and business have acknowledged that there needs to be massive growth in local production manufacturing in order to counter the negative impact of COVID-19.
Mr Nyatsumba said there also needs to be a market for locally-manufactured products beyond the borders of an economically strained South Africa. He said there was significant potential for “South Africa to increase its exports to the other countries within the BRICS group.
“The conference aims to highlight some of the opportunities that exist for local manufacturers to help close the trading gap between South Africa and its BRICS partners,” he said.
The inaugural one-day conference, which was organised by the BRICS Business Council’s MWG, in partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation, will bring together government and business leaders to discuss topics such as the role special economic zones play in advancing manufacturing, how business can better leverage South Africa’s membership of BRICS, and the relevance of the MWG.
Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel will deliver the opening address, while speakers will include Manufacturing Circle Executive Director Philippa Rodseth and National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa Chief Executive Mikel Mabasa. BRICS Business Council Chairperson Busi Mabuza will introduce the BRICS Business Council and provide insight on its main objective: facilitating trade and investment among the BRICS member countries.
“We, as the MWG, are excited to offer a platform where local manufacturers can engage with business leaders and hopefully identify opportunities for growth. We are confident that, notwithstanding the considerable challenges which have confronted it over the years, South Africa’s manufacturing sector has the potential to do much better than it is doing at the moment,” Mr Nyatsumba said.

by SEIFSA .

Manufacturing conference to open doors to engagement with BRICS Business Council on manufacturing

JOHANNESBURG, 18 MARCH 2021 – The inaugural BRICS Manufacturing Conference, the brainchild of the BRICS Business Council’s Manufacturing Working Group, demonstrates that the working group takes seriously its mandate to promote trade and investment in the manufacturing sector among the member countries.
The conference, taking place on 26 March at the IDC Conference Centre in Sandton, is aimed at helping South African manufacturers take advantage of South Africa’s membership of BRICS for growth. Among the topics on the agenda is the relevance of the MWG itself, with BRICS MWG Chairman Kaizer Nyatsumba saying it is an important discussion to have as it will unpack the role the group plays in showcasing South African manufacturing.
He said the Government has long acknowledged manufacturing’s importance in addressing some of the challenges facing the country. While its contribution to economic growth has declined over the years, it remains the fourth largest contributor to GDP and, with innovation, the right Government intervention and access to new markets, manufacturing can boost job creation in the country.
“The MWG’s role is to facilitate trade and investment within the manufacturing sector among our BRICS counterparts. We do this by encouraging co-operation on projects where there is potential for collaboration across the five countries, and we do this by raising awareness about the opportunities that exist in BRICS markets,” Mr Nyatsumba said, adding that the BRICS Manufacturing Conference is an example of profiling the MWG’s work.
Mr Nyatsumba said he hopes that the conference will give local manufacturers the opportunity to nurture a lasting partnership with the MWG since the end goal is to enable the group to expose them to the BRICS platform.

by SEIFSA .

SEIFSA Awards for Excellence to celebrate companies committed to artisan development

JOHANNESBURG, 16 MARCH 2021 – The Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (SEIFSA) is calling on companies which have made a difference in the training of artisans, thus contributing in efforts to address South Africa’s acute artisan shortage, to enter the SEIFSA Awards for Excellence in the Artisan Award category.
The Awards, which are now in their seventh year, are aimed at celebrating excellence and innovation within the Metals and Engineering (M&E) sector. The Artisan Award is presented to a company that has the highest activity in artisan training each year for itself and/or the industry. To qualify, companies’ interventions must have taken place between 1 July 2019 and December 2020.
Explaining the importance of recognising companies that train artisans, SEIFSA CEO Kaizer Nyatsumba said that in a country with high levels of youth unemployment, artisan development has long been seen as a vehicle to address this challenge. In addition, efforts to rebuild the economy will need a skilled workforce that includes artisans and engineers, fields that are currently in short supply. Companies that are stepping up to help address this shortage deserve to be celebrated, he said.
“We all hope that South Africa is entering an exciting phase of rebuilding the economy, with the Government boosting efforts to reboot the country through its infrastructure plans in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Engineers and artisans will be the ones at the coalface of these efforts; we need to ensure there are enough of them to ensure successful economic recovery,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
Last year’s winner in this category, Kgabo Cars Training and Services, trained 67 apprentices at different levels in 2019 alone.
“We are confident that there are other companies in the M&E sector that are doing an equally excellent job. We call on them to enter the Awards and serve as examples for other companies to emulate,” Mr Nyatsumba concluded.
The closing date for entries is 4 May 2021. The winners will be announced at a gala dinner on 20 May at a Johannesburg venue still to be confirmed.
The other categories in the SEIFSA Awards for Excellence are:

• The Most Innovative Company Award;
• The Corporate Social Investment (CSI) Programme of the Year;
• The Health and Safety Award;
• The Customer Service Award;
• The Environmental Stewardship Award; and
• The Most Transformed Company of the Year Award.

by SEIFSA .

BRICS Manufacturing conference to review projects aimed at strengthening ties

JOHANNESBURG, 14 MARCH 2021 – The BRICS Manufacturing Conference will showcase the priority projects identified by sub-clusters of the BRICS Manufacturing Working Group (MWG), following its establishment.
The MWG, which is the organiser of the inaugural conference, is a working group of the BRICS Business Council, which was set up in 2013. Its aim is to advance the interest of the South African manufacturing sector within the bigger mandate of enhancing trade and investment among the five BRICS countries – South Africa, Brazil, Russia, India and China.
One of the ways in which the MWG seeks to fulfil its mandate is by identifying projects that offer opportunities for the BRICS countries to co-operate. Among these priority projects is MedTech Special Economic Zone (SEZ) or Medical Cluster Project, headed by Ilse Karg, who is the Chief Director of Future Industrial Production Technologies at the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition. She will present a progress report of the project at the conference.
Ms Karg said that according to a study by Business Monitors International (BMI Research), the medical device market in South Africa is expected to grow from $1.3-billion to around $1.7-billion US by 2021, signalling a potentially vibrant market that needs to be supported.
“The aim of the Medical Cluster Project is two-fold: firstly, to embrace and support health innovations, commercialisation and scale of products offered by the South African health sector and, secondly, to build local manufacturing capacity and increase exports,” she said.
Ms Karg said the project, which is being implemented with co-operation from the BRICS countries, will contribute towards South Africa’s economic reconstruction and recovery plan.
MWG Chairman Kaizer Nyatsumba said projects such as these offer South Africa an avenue to deepen economic ties with its BRICS counterparts, while at the same time supporting job creation and entrepreneurship opportunities.
“The projects form a part of the agenda at the conference since they demonstrate the possibilities that exist for local manufacturers not only to grow their footprint, but also to innovate and discover new ways of doing things,” he said.
Other key projects that will be discussed at the inaugural BRICS Manufacturing Conference include the Clariter Project and Exponential Manufacturing and how it supports the Nkomazi SEZ
Clariter, a global clean-tech company, transforms plastic waste into much higher-value, pure industrial products such as oils, waxes and solvents. These are then used as drop-in ingredients in more than 1,000 different end products such as paints and coatings, leather and wood care products and even in cosmetics, replacing crude oil- derived alternatives. Clariter ends the life of plastic and reduces the demand for fossil fuels, thereby driving a sustainable economy and a clean industry.  Benefits of this project include a partnership for industrialisation as South Africa and the BRICS countries can sign licensing agreements for use of Clariter’s technology.
The BRICS Conference, which will take place at the IDC Conference Centre in Sandton on 26 March, aims to help local manufacturers to take advantage of South Africa’s membership of BRICS through trade.

by SEIFSA .

SEIFSA Awards for Excellence to celebrate companies that do good

JOHANNESBURG, 8 MARCH 2021 – The Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (SEIFSA) is calling on companies in the Metals and Engineering (M&E) sector to submit their entries for the Corporate Social Investment (CSI) Programme of the Year category in the 2021 SEIFSA Awards for Excellence.
Now in their seventh year, the SEIFSA Awards for Excellence aim to promote and reward innovation and excellence in the M&E sector.  They are open both to members and non-members of SEIFSA.
The CSI Award will be presented to a company whose corporate social investment programmes between July 2019 and December 2020 had a major impact on the lives of its beneficiaries.
SEIFSA CEO Kaizer Nyatsumba said he was looking forward to this year’s entries as the COVID-19 pandemic, which has cost both lives and livelihoods, had resulted in many companies stepping up and going the extra mile to look after their employees and their communities.
“Being a responsible corporate citizen is no longer a nice to have. It has become the norm for businesses to ensure that their bottom lines also benefit their communities. While we understand this fact, we also believe that we should celebrate those who make impact, and we do that through our SEIFSA Awards for Excellence,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He said COVID-19 had highlighted the importance of CSI.
“The pandemic amplified South Africa’s sense of community and ubuntu, and we want to celebrate those companies that rose to the challenge of the pandemic to ensure that they protected as many lives as possible,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
Last year’s Award went to BEKA Schréder, whose CSI programme had ensured that a community can go about its lives safely. The company had donated 160 LED streetlights to Chintsa East in the Eastern Cape, lighting up the streets so that women and children can walk around freely at night and children can play soccer under the streetlights.
Other categories in the Awards include:

• The Most Innovative Company Award;
• The Health and Safety Award;
• The Customer Service Award;
• The Environmental Stewardship Award;
• The Artisan Award; and
• The Most Transformed Company of the Year Award.

The closing date for entries is 4 May 2021, with the winners of the 2020 SEIFSA Awards for Excellence to be honoured at a ceremony to be held on 20 May 2021 at a venue yet to be confirmed.

by SEIFSA .

SEIFSA Awards for Excellence to celebrate companies that do good

JOHANNESBURG, 8 MARCH 2021 – The Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (SEIFSA) is calling on companies in the Metals and Engineering (M&E) sector to submit their entries for the Corporate Social Investment (CSI) Programme of the Year category in the 2021 SEIFSA Awards for Excellence.

Now in their seventh year, the SEIFSA Awards for Excellence aim to promote and reward innovation and excellence in the M&E sector.  They are open both to members and non-members of SEIFSA.

The CSI Award will be presented to a company whose corporate social investment programmes between July 2019 and December 2020 had a major impact on the lives of its beneficiaries.

SEIFSA CEO Kaizer Nyatsumba said he was looking forward to this year’s entries as the COVID-19 pandemic, which has cost both lives and livelihoods, had resulted in many companies stepping up and going the extra mile to look after their employees and their communities.

“Being a responsible corporate citizen is no longer a nice to have. It has become the norm for businesses to ensure that their bottom lines also benefit their communities. While we understand this fact, we also believe that we should celebrate those who make impact, and we do that through our SEIFSA Awards for Excellence,” Mr Nyatsumba said.

He said COVID-19 had highlighted the importance of CSI.

“The pandemic amplified South Africa’s sense of community and ubuntu, and we want to celebrate those companies that rose to the challenge of the pandemic to ensure that they protected as many lives as possible,” Mr Nyatsumba said.

Last year’s Award went to BEKA Schréder, whose CSI programme had ensured that a community can go about its lives safely. The company had donated 160 LED streetlights to Chintsa East in the Eastern Cape, lighting up the streets so that women and children can walk around freely at night and children can play soccer under the streetlights.

Other categories in the Awards include:

• The Most Innovative Company Award;
• The Health and Safety Award;
• The Customer Service Award;
• The Environmental Stewardship Award;
• The Artisan Award; and
• The Most Transformed Company of the Year Award.

The closing date for entries is 4 May 2021, with the winners of the 2020 SEIFSA Awards for Excellence to be honoured at a ceremony to be held on 20 May 2021 at a venue yet to be confirmed.

by SEIFSA .

BRICS manufacturing conference to discuss export opportunities for local manufacturers

JOHANNESBURG, 22 FEBRUARY 2021 – The inaugural, one-day BRICS Manufacturing Conference, which was initially scheduled to take place last year, will finally take place on 26 March 2021 in Sandton, Johannesburg.

The conference aims to assist South African manufacturers identify opportunities to take advantage of the country’s relations with its BRICS counterparts – Brazil, Russia, India and China. It is expected to be attended by captains of industry, policy makers and public sector representatives, among other stakeholders.

Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa Chief Executive Officer Kaizer Nyatsumba, who is also the Chairman of the Manufacturing Working Group of the SA Chapter of the BRICS Business Council (BBC), said the manufacturing industry’s contribution to the economy has been declining over the past two decades because of cheap imports from Asian economies and rising operational and input costs.

“With our local economy under strain, local manufacturers should consider seeking new markets beyond our borders to survive and grow, and we believe that our BRICS counterparts provide a world of opportunities for those who understand their operating and policy environments. It is against this backdrop that we decided to host the conference that will seek to investigate how manufacturers can leverage the BBC Manufacturing Working Group (MWG) and discuss, among other topics, progress on MWG projects and how they will advance the course of manufacturing in the country,” Mr Nyatsumba said.

Among the industry leaders expected to participate in the plenary sessions are Aspen Pharmacare Group Senior Executive and BBC SA member Stavros Nicolaou, Manufacturing Circle CEO Phillipa Rodseth, National Association of Auto Manufacturers of South Africa CEO Michael Mabasa, Industrial Development Corporation CEO and BBC Financial Working Group Chairman TP Nchocho and Department of Trade and Industry Deputy Director-General Ilse Karg.

The heads of the various special economic zones are also expected to attend to share their insights on how these designated industrial zones will advance the course of manufacturing in the country.

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel is expected to deliver the conference’s opening address.

Some of the topics that will be discussed at the conference include “South African Manufacturers and the BRICS Business Council: The Manufacturing Working Group – Does It Matter? Progress Report on Priority MWG Projects”, “A Focus on Some of the Planned New Special Economic Zones”, and “How South African Business Can Leverage BRICS Membership Better”.

Mr Nyatsumba encouraged manufacturing industry stakeholders to attend the conference to help find solutions that will reverse the fortunes of the industry and put it on a course towards sustainability.

by SEIFSA .