Electricity and Control January 2024

CONTROL SYSTEMS + AUTOMATION

A view into the future of manufacturing and technology

T he MESA Africa 2023 Summit held in November last year at Kloofzicht Lodge & Spa, northwest of Johannesburg, was reportedly a great success. The summit brought together well-respected thought leaders in the manufacturing and technology sectors who offered a view into the future of these industries. Sponsors of the event included Schneider Electric, Iritron Pty Ltd, Pragma Global, 4Sight, MESA International, SAIMC, Montgomery Group and Ki Leadership Institute Pty Ltd, and it is their support that enabled the summit to take place. Dr Ananth Seshan, Board

‘Pit-to-port value chain optimisation in the mining sector’, advocating for efficiency and unified approaches to ensure sustainable success. Dr Mike Ntokozo Sishi, Information Technology Manager at Rand Refinery, shared insights on ‘Digital transformation of industrial organisations’, offering transformative approaches for businesses to optimise processes and enhance perfor mance. Dr Arthie Moore-Robberts, CEO and Director of the Ki Leadership Institute, presented strategies to accelerate generational disruption in the manufacturing industry, em phasising digital transformation and proactive strategies for success. Yanesh Naidoo, Innovations Director at Jendamark, challenged conventional thinking with ‘Why MES has to be changed/rethought for discrete manufacturing’, introducing a software-defined paradigm to foster adaptability, upgra dability, and connectivity. The MESA Africa Summit provided a platform for industry leaders and the presentation of transformative solutions, illuminating the way forward for manufacturing and technology. The shared insights promise to shape a future of innovation, resilience, and success for industries globally. In addition to the presentations outlined above, others covered further interest areas and different industry sec tors. Adapting to digital change in the workplace Dr Suven M Ramsunder, Digital Transformation Expert at Schneider Electric, spoke about adapting to digital change in the workplace. He referred to the Fred

Member of MESA International, flew in from Canada to share insights into the journey of small and medium manufactur ers (SMMs) navigating smart manufacturing. In his address he underlined the importance of garnering buy-in from man agement and employees, highlighting successful smart manufacturing pilots through industry-agnostic collabora tions. Seshan’s hypothesis on the

Dr Ananth Seshan shared insights into the journey of small and medium manufacturers navigating smart manufacturing.

differing challenges in low-to-mid-income economies ig nited discussions on a collaborative ‘Smart Manufacturing Strategic Group for SMMs’. This is proposed to unite econ omies, share insights, and collectively address funding, digital transformation, secure value chains, and workforce development – a powerful call to reshape the global land scape of smart manufacturing for smaller enterprises. Gerhard Greeff, Divisional Manager at Iritron, focused on ‘The impact of computer engineering as defined engineering work’, outlining the objectives of the Identification of Engineering Work (IDoEW) to ensure accountability and regulate computer engineering activities. (See more below.) In his presentation, ‘Don’t get lost in the cloud; future proof your architecture and operations‘, Jaco Markwat shed light on Element 8’s dedication to community and indus try service. Focusing on collaborative learning, he set out scalable, intuitive solutions for a data-driven future, tackling challenges in data management evolution. Pekka Pihlajasaari, described as a luminary in digital transformation, explored the evolving landscape where machine learning transcends expert domains, offering del egates insights into the dynamic intersection of machine learning and industry. Charl Marais, OT Digital Transformation Business Unit Manager at Blue SP/4Sight, led a dynamic session on

Davis Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) – an information systems theory released in 1989 – noting that it is as relevant today as it was almost 35 years ago. Addressing the delegates at the summit, Ramsunder emphasised that individuals’ perception of what technology can do for them continues to influence their decision-making process. It

Dr Suven M Ramsunder, Digital Transformation Expert at Schneider Electric.

is also this perception that forms an important part of the Davis TAM theory, which hypothesises that when users are presented with a new technology, there are two basic factors that influence their decisions on how and when they will use it; these are perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of-use (PEOU).

4 Electricity + Control JANUARY 2024