Electricity and Control November 2023

COMMENT

INDUSTRY 4.0 + IIOT

Looking to a brighter future I opened one of my office drawers the other day and found an unopened covid mask! It does rather remind one of the resil ience of the human race – in general. But it brought back to me too, memories of those dark days when it was not clear there would ever be an end to it all. Would the world ever be the same again? There was an end to it – and the entire thing now seems to be a vague memory. Not a good one, mind you, but a memory that includes a deep concern about a pan demic (or pandemics in general) as well as how the world reacted to it. We have learned recently that Katalin Karikó, along with collaborator Drew Weissman, were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. It was their work, which Karikó began in the late 1980s, that led to enabling the rapid development of vaccines. The information I have is that Karikó’s path was not an easy one – in some ways mimicking what so many must have felt during the pandemic. One of the sectors most affected by the lockdown was, of course, education. Many schoolchildren did not even have access to an online learning environment. Learners at all schools were not exempted from the hardships wrought by the pandemic. There were schools that pivoted effortlessly – essentially putting their existing support systems onto turbo chargers. But many others struggled. As some of you would be aware, I am involved in the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists – an organisation that promotes extracurricular science activities and projects across all regions and provinces of the country. The Eskom Expo programme was one of those that were significantly affected by the bad days of the pandemic – which meant regional and even the national events were convened in an online mode.

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Back then it was evident that many, many in the school systems simply had very limited access to the tech needed to navigate the environment. Many organisations put effort into assisting and doing all they could to make online learning a real possibility. However, what has made me so very happy is that, recently, I had the privilege of attending the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists National Finals – the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists International Science Fair – with South African learners participating, as well as a significant number of their peers from across the continent and around the world. It was a face-to-face event – just like it used to be. There is something exceptionally special about being able to engage a learner face to face, to better understand their work. The other positive point is that, slowly but surely, over the years, we have seen an upgrading in all the projects making it to the final science fair. The standard is remarkably encouraging. And that is the key. When we sit back and think about the state of our nation, it becomes even more important that our youth are properly equipped to face the challenges that they surely will. Having attended the three-day event, I am, once again, completely certain that the future is bright. These young leaders of tomorrow have a real grasp on what has to be done, and how to do it. They have thought about the challenges, understood them – and feel no need to repeat the mistakes of the past. The future is bright indeed. □

Editor: Leigh Darroll Design & Layout: Darryl James Advertising Manager: Heidi Jandrell Circulation: Karen Smith Editorial Technical Director: Ian Jandrell Publisher: Karen Grant Deputy Publisher: Wilhelm du Plessis Rotating equipment is pivotal in var ious industries, in pumps, turbines, compressors, motors, and more. Prei Instrumentation advocates continu ous condition monitoring to ensure the smooth operation of these critical machines. (Read more on page 3.)

Audited circulation Quarter 2 (April-June) 2023 Total print and e-editions 13 630

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Electricity+Control is supported by

Ian Jandrell PrEng IntPE(SA), BSc(Eng) GDE PhD, FSAAE FSAIEE SMIEEE

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher, the editor, SAAEs, SAEE, CESA or the Copper Development Association Africa

NOVEMBER 2023 Electricity + Control

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