African Fusion March 2017

WorldSkills SA and training

African Fusion talks to SAIW’s Etienne Nell about the WorldSkills SA Welding competition and the breakthrough progress beingmade in South Africa with respect to artisan training and trade tests. WorldSkills SA and the new approach to artisan training

F ollow their success in the SAIW Youth Welding Challenge in No- vember last year, Philippus Ter- blanche, Samukelo Mbambani and Nonhlanhla Angel Mathebula have again been demonstrating their welding skills, this time at the WorldSkills SA competi- tion held at the Durban ICC from Febru- ary 14 to 16, 2017. Terblanche again emerged as the winner, whichmakes him South Africa’s candidate for the WorldSkills Interna- tional Competition in AbuDhabi inOcto- ber this year. Terblanche is a product of ArcelorMittal’s training school in Vander- bijlpark, whichuses a programme based on the IIW International Welder (IW) cur- riculum. “SAIW trained Peet Lottering, ArcelorMittal’swelder trainingmanager, andwe are assisting the school towards becoming an SAIW Authorised Training Body (ATB),” says Nell. Angel Mathebulawon thealuminium category and took second place overall for welding at WorldSkills SA. Mathebula is one of the immediate successes of the SAIWFoundation. Shehas sincebeenem- ployedbyAfroxandput ontoasponsored

was a huge improvement in the stan- dards being achieved at the WorldSkills SA competition this year, because the candidates received appropriate train- ing in advance of the competition. Fol- lowing the SAIW Welding Challenge, the training supervisors met to discuss the shortcomings and to establish a training programme toaddress them. Asa result, I would say therewas a60% improvement in the point scores between last year’s SAIW Welding Challenge and the Febru- ary WorldSkills SA event,” Nell notes. With the additional training planned for Terblanche in preparation for World- Skills International, Nell is “very confi- dent that he will return from Abu Dhabi with a medal of excellence”. “I would like to thank all of our sup- porters and sponsors for the SAIWYouth and Senior Welding Challenges that led up to this event. And for WorldSkills SA, special thanks go to Lincoln Electric for sponsoring the welding bay equipment and the consumables. They came to the party 100%, giving us everything we needed to run the competition success- fully,” says Nell.

career development programme.

Mbambani, who finished second in the SAIW Youth Challenge last year and third at WorldSkills SA, is also a product of ArcelorMittal’swelder training school. Philippuswill be going to AbuDhabi. He will now undergo an intensive six- month training programme specifically for the competition. “He will remain at the ArcelorMittal training school, but he will be focusing on WorldSkills-type welding projects that I will be assessing every week,” Nell tells African Fusion . “He will also come up to JHB for a one month intensive aluminium programme under the supervision of Aluminium Federation of South Africa’s (AFSA’s) welding consultant, Eduan Ter- blanche,” he adds. WorldsSkills SA was established about two or three years ago, originally as one of Merseta’s portfolios. “But it has now been taken over by the Depart- ment of Higher Education and Training (DHET), under thewatchful eye of Depu- ty Minister Mduduzi Manana,” says Nell. Our chances in Abu Dhabi? “There

Judges evaluate carbon steel pressure vessel projects at a WorldSkills International competition.

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March 2017

AFRICAN FUSION