#BuildingBetterCompanies

Day 3 of the conference yet again delivered some fascinating topics and food for thought, as we by now expect. Keynote address Ing Beatriz Rodriques, the Dean of Industrial Engineering at the University Santo Tomas in Columbia, highlighted some of the innovation trends in the engineering industry and in Industrial Engineering programs in  Columbia. Health Systems and Innovation Emma Kleynhans, Hilde Herman and M Bvuchete all addressed topics related to healthcare, including policies to support public medicine availability, technology platforms to support the healthcare industry and how big data and Demand-Driven Supply Chain Management can benefit the industry. Approximately 8.5% of the GDP in South Africa is spent on the healthcare, yet we still provide poor public healthcare services to the 80% of the population that it caters for. Of our population, 12.7% are living with HIV . Big data can greatly assist the healthcare industry to improve demand planning an...

The theme of the conference, Taking up Stewardship , was really showcased and discussed on day 2. Welcoming and keynote address Prof. Gordon Ndodomzi Zide, the Vice Chancellor of the Vaal University of Technology  opened the event for the day. He was followed by Mr. David Makhura, the Premier of Gauteng . They touched on the National Development Plan (NDP)  and the Fourth Industrial Revolution .  In South Africa, we have to invest more in education and infrastructure. The premier mentioned that we must aim for economic inclusion, where all members of society have an equal opportunity to participate in the economic life of our country, either as an employer, employee or entrepreneur. There are currently 412 infrastructure projects on register in Gauteng . A feasibility study has been completed for the expansion of the Gautrain project to add new nodes and rail lines. This province is full of knowledge and driven by innovation. The logic of g overnment bureaucracy...

The theme of the  SAIIE Conference  for 2017 is Taking up Stewardship . The below is a summary of the talks that impacted me most, there are many more. Opening Prof. David Kruger opened the conference by explaining the reason for this theme, as well as the meaning thereof. Stewardship can be defined as the careful and responsible management of something that is in your care. We live in an environment filled with uncertainty and each of us has to take charge of what is in your care and do what has to be done as well as you can. As individuals we cannot stand on the sideline and wait for someone else to take the lead on finding solutions. Keynote address The keynote address by Prof. Lukas Snyman from UNISA  focused on models to enhance the skills and technology transfer from South African universities into both the industry and our communities. How do we take our negative environment, which is filled with unemployment, strikes and a lack of entrepreneurship and tur...