we empower people - tshwane university of technology...the solar car. the focus was on increased...

Tshwane Universityof TechnologyWe empower people

2019 faculty in perspective

Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment

Editorial

... Message from the Dean ... Long Service Awards

... General

... F’SATI

... FEBE Staff Profiles

... Faculty Management

... Cooperative Education

... IndustryGrid

... CITSI’s

... Research

... Community Projects

Mr C Meyer Building Science Mr TH Shabangu Electrical EngineeringMr RA Mogapi Mechanical Engineering Mr GB Ikokou Geomatics

The Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment is excited about the rollout of the Higher Education

Qualification Sub-Framework (HEQSF) aligned qualifications. The Bachelor of Architecture (BArch), Master of Architecture (MArch), Master of Building Science (MBuiSc), Master of Engineering (MEng) and Doctor of Engineering (DEng) and Bachelor of Engineering Technology (BEngTech) -degrees, Higher Certificates (HC), and other new qualifications across all disciplines in the Faculty. Our eight departments, and 168 full-time staff members, create a vibrant presence at the

Pretoria and eMalahleni campuses and are excited about the HEQSF rollout.

TUT would like to emphasise that all current NATED qualifications are still accredited and registered on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) and they remain valid and

recognised by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), Council on Higher Education (CHE), South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), professional bodies, industry, employers and other relevant stakeholders.

We work closely with indus-try to deliver well-rounded

students. We do not only link with industry through the ad-visory committees of our departments, but also through a hub called the IndustryGrid. IndustryGrid not only houses our graduate employment office, but allows us to showcase our technological achievements and provides a space where staff and students can interact with government, municipalities, parastatals and all kinds of businesses, including Small, Me-dium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs).

We are equally proud of our Centres, Institutes, Technology Stations and Incubators (CITSIs), including the Technology Station in Electronics (TSE), the Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC), the Institute for Advanced Tooling (IAT), the Centre for Energy and Electric Power (CEEP), the French South African Institute of Technology (F’SATI) and the Institute of Nano-Engineering Research. The CITSIs are used as a platform for contract work and research, as a support mechanism for (SMMEs) needing technical assistance, as a vehicle for training undergraduate and postgraduate students and for the delivery of Short Learning Programmes.

I invite you to take our hand to ensure that we keep delivering well-rounded and competent graduates for the engineering sector.

Prof Ben van WykExecutive Dean

5 year

s 10 year

s

Ms R Madihlaba TSCProf Y Hamam Electrical Engineering/ F’SATIMs DM Mare Building Sciences Mr RFA Berkers Civil Engineering

Mr GL Moepi Electrical Engineering Dr P Van Rhyn Electrical Engineering Mr DP Zikalala Electrical EngineeringMr TA Mokoena Electrical Engineering Mr PR Tshubwana Electrical Engineering Mr A Whiteford Electrical Engineering Ms HI Van Rooyen Industrial EngineeringMs SK Premlall Chemical, Metallurgy and Materials

Engineering

Mr S Schmidt Architecture Mr AL Roodt Architecture

Mr GJ Meintjes Building Sciences Ms A Marneweck Mechanical EngineeringMr E Malan Electrical EngineeringMr RC Aylward Electrical Engineering Mr PJ Ehlers Electrical Engineering

Mr DR Shongwe Electrical EngineeringMr T Nenzhelele Industrial Engineering

15 year

s

LONG SERVICE AWARDS

20 year

s 25 year

s

35 year

s

3FACULTY IN PERSPECTIVE /

Message from the Dean

4 / FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT


SunC

hase

r 3

The TUT solar car took the lead nationally in the recent Sasol Solar challenge and obtained a fourth position internation-

ally. The team from the Netherlands won the gruelling weeklong challenge from Pretoria to Stellenbosch, having completed a total of 4 147.8km. TUT’s SunChaser 3 completed 2 397km, with its major contender, North West University, completing 2 276.3km.

Among the many international solar vehicle challenges, the South African-based Sasol Solar Challenge is one of the most famous. The route offers unique and challenging geographical characteristics as well as a rare structure. The aim is to cover the furthest distance possible in eight days, rather than the shortest time be-tween two points of fixed distance.

Team leader, Johannes de Vries, explained that the challenge requires teams to design, build, manage and race their solar vehicles from inland Pretoria, across South Africa to Stellenbosch in the coastal region. Along the routes, teams must do careful planning, tak-ing into account the changing landscape from a vast flat topography, to mountainous re-gions, ascending and descending hundreds of meters at a time.

“The route also offers a broad spectrum of weather conditions near the coastal towns, leading to challenging situations with at least a day or two of rain as well as some cloudy

Sun Chaser 3

SunChaser3 is number ONE in South Africa

and very windy routes”, de Vries added.

In the run-up to the 2018 Sasol Solar Chal-lenge, TUT and Meteomatics AG, a Swiss-based global weather service provider and weather drone experts, signed a Sponsor-ship Agreement, underpinning their strate-gic commitment to the innovation of future transportation. The parties formalised their engagement in order to display their joint capabilities with specific emphasis on the development of solar-powered vehicles. The strategic alliance focused on Meteomatics providing highly accurate weather data to the TUT team to use in their advanced route plan-ning for their solar vehicle in the recent Sasol Solar Challenge 2018.

for calculating the algorithms that enabled better decision making in terms of weather predictions.

“For the past 18 months, I have developed al-gorithms and software, as part of my PhD, to optimise the energy use of SunChaser 3. The combined use of the Meteomatics data, which is a very accurate and stable platform for weather data, together with my algorithms, definitely gave us the edge, significantly im-proving the performance of our solar car, compared to 2016,” he added.

He explained that, although the North West University’s solar car was technologically much more advanced than SunChaser 3, TUT’s energy forecasts and decision making topped that of other local participants.

“This, in combination with the entire team’s hardwork and dedication, gave TUT the edge over other local competitors,” he indicated.

According to Johannes de Vries, the new regu-lations in terms of solar panel size posed some challenges in the design and manufacture of the solar car. The focus was on increased aerodynamics as well as reducing the weight and size of the car, since there would be less solar energy available to it.

SunChaser 3, the Tshwane University of Technology’s low budget, high technology solar car, has proved beyond doubt that it is the leading solar car in South Africa.

“Optimising on technology, more specifically the use of Meteomatics AG, played a major role in improving the performance of our so-lar car,” said Tiaan Oosthuizen, team member and PhD student in Mechatronics, responsible

Optimising on technology, more specifically the use of Meteomatics AG, played a major role in improving

the performance of our solar car

Photos and videos of the car taken during the challenge can be accessed here: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1G-BjV6NDPfMowjfdDMaPymbY3MNJ8C2_



New strategy flips traditional teaching on its headThe Department of Civil Engineering is reaping the rewards of the so-called flipped

classroom strategy. Since introducing this strategy in the subject Structures III in the beginning of the year, students’ marks improved by a phenomenal 16%. A flipped classroom is described as an instructional strategy and a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional learning environment by delivering instructional content, often online, outside of the classroom. It moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom. Dirk Bester, lecturer at the Department said,

Typically, a class would have been almost a one-way communication

from my side. Now, we solve problems together, which resulted in

students showing more confidence and enthusiasm. We need to

use methods to work smarter, not harder.

Due to the high unemployment rate in our country, Caroline Mokoena (25),

uses her skills to create self-employment. The highly motivated B Tech Civil Engineering: Construction Management student, was fortunate to have had an opportunity to do her practical training in Italy. The skills she acquired were used to help engineering students to improve their drawing skills and generated a small income for herself.

Being passionate about sharing knowledge and creating work opportunities, she started her own tutoring company called AutoRev Substratum. She gladly shares the new and easy techniques she mastered with civil and other engineering students when teaching AutoCAD and Revit.

Caroline Mokoena in Italy

Engineering graduate uses her trade to generate income

DETERMINE YOUR OWN DESTINYDon’t waste your life. Don’t live in mediocrity. Don’t just exist! Make the decisions that will

determine your destiny.

On Saturday, 16 June, Phill Mashabane presented a lecture at the Depart-

ment of Building Sciences’ monthly post-graduate workshops on “Entrepreneur-ship: determining your own destiny”, a most appropriate theme to celebrate Youth Day. Phill, one of South Africa’s prominent architects, boasts architec-ture and law degrees from the famous universities in Paris, France. Since then, he has never stopped studying. In 2015, he received a Master’s degree in Knowl-edge and Project Management from the University of Salford in the United Kingdom. As Professor Steyn, Research Professor at the Department of Building Sciences put it in his introduction: “Mr Mashabane is not a man who waits for things to happen; he makes them hap-pen.”

If you want

to make a living

from what

you love doing,

you need to get

good at it.


A passion for cars leads to an award

Reply Mahlangu, an Architecture student, was identified to represent TUT at the Corobrik National Student of the Year Awards. This is a very prestigious and much-

anticipated annual event. The quality of work produced by the TUT architecture students was of a very high standard. Reply produced a project that aimed to support local car manufacturing through the design of a facility that also had the built-in ca-pacity to adapt to changes in function over time. His project demonstrates a passion for cars and the examination panel was impressed by how he spoke with great under-standing about car design and the car manufacturing process. As one of his examiners commented, he not only designed the building/factory and the car it produces, but had also designed the furniture inside the facility.

3D printer, Architecture becomes leader in higher educationThe Department of Architecture has

just become home to a brand new, state-of-the-art 3D printer.

The installation of the printer is a huge step forward in TUT’s digital transformation to meet the challenges of the fourth Industrial Revolution. It also forms part of an institutional plan for the deployment of minimum educational technology standards in the classroom, a process that the Directorate of Teaching and Learning with Technology manages.

Dr Annette Sadie, Head of the Department: Educational Technology Integration, concluded that, “The next generation of educational technology will focus more on subject-specific technologies such as 3D printers and drones, as well as virtual and augmented reality to enhance and make digital content available. Furthermore, more handheld or smart devices, rather than data projectors, will form part of the new classroom technology”.

Sieg Schmidt, lecturer and Zander Xander Truter Jacobs, a student assistant at the Department of Architecture, responsible for the management of the printer.

To inform the public, learners and fellow exhibitors of the new qualifications, the representatives attended the STEM Conference and Career Expo at the TicketDome, Johannesburg, on 27 and 28 July. Zelda Janse van Rensburg, Faculty Marketer, second from the right, with the student assistants working at the event.

CONTINUOUSLY WORKING TO ADDRESS THE SHORTAGE OF STEM SKILLS


Three students from the Department of Chemical, Metallurgical and Mate-

rials Engineering scooped first and second places at the inaugural African Interna-tional conference on Industrial Engineer-ing and Operations Management (IEOM).

Douw Gerbrand Faurie, a B Tech stu-dent’s presentation about his study of the sewerage disinfection properties of Moringa Oleifera leaf powder won him a first place; and Justin Kasongo Mbwebwe, B Tech student, shared the second place with Daphney Hlotse, an M-Eng student.

Reflecting on the event, the three com-mended the technician, Molelekoa James Mosesane, for his assistance and super-vision whilst stressing the importance of asking for help from those with experi-ence.

Three from TUT win big at inaugural international conference

Winner of the award for the presentation on the Evaluation of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) Reduction in Distillery Wastewater Treatment Using the Photo-catalysis, Daphney Hlotse with her supervisor Molelekoa James.

Maurice Conradie an Industrial Design student (far left), was named one of the top 5 with his design of a PlayStation Gaming Analog Extender in a competition hosted by the Rapid Product Development Association of South Africa (RAPDASA). He won a 3D printer worth more than R10 000 for his ingenuity. The competition attracted approximately 80 entries.


Students prepared for their future jobsIn an effort to curb youth (graduates) unemployment, Civil Engineering staff and

students took a bold step by preparing and educating future civil technicians and technologists on how to sell themselves to the job market.

The South African Institute for Civil Engineers (SAICE) conducted their annual career guidance workshop to help civil engineering students understand the importance of promoting themselves. The SAICE committee invited guests from companies, former students and the SAICE executive members to share their experiences in the work environment. The aim of the workshop was to bridge the gap between employers, recruiters and industry.

Workshops such as this are beneficial to students and the Faculty management would like to encourage all departments to arrange similar opportunities for their students.

Third-year Industrial Design students, Oarabile Mokoka and Meliska Meerman, made it to the final of the Furniture Design competition at the HOMEMAKERS Expo. They

competed against outstanding designers and students representing other institutions. The Furniture Design Competition, organised by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), was presented on 23 February, at the Dome in Johannesburg.

The mission of the competition was to identify new talent and elevate South Africa’s manufacturing capabilities, locally and abroad. Deputy Minister of Trade and Indus-try, Bulelani Mgwanishe, said the Department would like to acknowledge the recent formation of the South African furniture initiative. DTI mainly focused on the industry and enterprise development. Industrial Design lecturer, Hein Dubery, encouraged his students to enter the competition and motivated them to excel.

I am so proud of them; they invested a lot of time and dedication in their projects.

Hein elucidated that by exposing the students to design events, they are able to de-velop a name for themselves as upcoming designers.

From left: Beaunard Jansen, Industrial Design alumnus; Hein Dubery, Lecturer in Industrial Design; and Oarabile Mokoka, Final-year Industrial Design student

STUDENTS MAKE IT TO THE FINAL

SAICE Student Chapter Committee members with Dr Chris Ackerman at the centre.

Female students excel in industrial design competition

Female students innovative, yet practical designs in the 2018 As-

sociation of Rotational Moulders of South Africa (ARMSA) competition, to-tally captivated the judges, resulting in them winning the top three places. Two of TUT’s second year Industrial Design students, Rayna Haselum and Michelle Winkworth Rossouw, share the second place in the annual de-sign competition organised by SASOL’s Polymer Tech Centre. Maurice Con-radie, a second-year TUT Industrial Design student, received a commen-dation for improving the functionality of the sun lounger design. His design of the sun lounger incorporates a cooler for keeping the drinks cool as well as keeping valuables locked away when going for a swim.

Innovative design students, Michelle Winkworth Rossouw and Rayna Haselum.

Industrial Engineering students who excel in their studies were awarded for their hardwork by the Univer-sity and the Gibela Research Chair in Manufacturing Skills Development. The recognition function was held at the Prestige Auditorium on Thursday, 26 April. Gibela Rail signed a five-year long partnership with TUT to, among others, offer internships and job op-portunities to academically achieving students. Photo: Grace Mukoko (20), a second-year Industrial Engineering student, received no fewer than five awards, one of them being the Best First-year Student in 2017.

Industrial Engineering recognises its top achievers


These were the words of Prof Ahad Ali, Associate Professor and Director of Smart Manufacturing and Lean Systems

Research Group, who gave an interesting outlook on the history, current realities, and future challenges facing the rail car manufacturing industry during the 22nd Vice-Chancellor’s Seminar Series.

Prof Ali indicated that the merging of the real and virtual worlds and the networking within an ‘Internet of things, services, data and people’ will transform the future of manufacturing completely, more especially in the commuter rail car manufacturing industry. This will also make it much more competitive for manufacturers that operate across global and local markets.

Prof Ali earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Khulna University of Engineering and Technology, Bangladesh, Masters in Systems and Engineering Management from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Industry 4.

Around the world, the traditional manufacturing

industry is in the throes of a digital transformation

that is accelerated by the exponential growth of smart

technologies. Companies and industrial processes

need to adapt to this

rapid change and

exponential growth

if they are not to

be left behind by

developments in their

sector and by their competitors.

is Africa ready for digital transformation?is Africa ready for digital transformation?

On 6 September, 35 Civil Engineering students, who were the first to enrol for the Higher Certificate in Construction Management at the Department of Civil Engineering, visited the Daspoort wastewater treatment plant.

They were exposed to how a wastewater plant works.

Staying true to the undertak-ing of a university of tech-nology, students should be able to apply the theory they mastered in the course.

Students experienced the various processes applied at a wastewater plant. This in-cluded the screening of the water, the biological treat-ment as well as the disin-fection of the water and finally the sludge disposal process.

Should these students not be able to proceed with the Bachelor of Engineering Tech-

Masilo Shai, the plant operator at the Daspoort wastewater treatment plant explaining and showing the stu-dents wastewater treatment processes.

nology in Civil Engineering, they will have the skills to work in engineering support fields such as draftspersons, maintainers of engineering equipment and systems.

Mpho Muloiwa, Civil Engineer-ing lecturer, said that they believe this new qualification

will familiarise students with the industry at the start of their studies.

“Theoretical knowledge of

skill-based modules need to

be supported by practical

application,” he said.

Chris Allnautt, a Civil Engi-neering lecturer added that even though theoretical knowledge leads to better un-derstanding of a concept, stu-dents need to be able to apply it in industry.

New qualification involves students more in practical work


ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE TRANSLATED INTO

The 2018 October Academic Excellence Awards of the Faculty showcased the cream of the crop. This elite group of young practitioners and prospective academics

represent less than 2% of graduates of this Faculty. This photo contradicts many preconceptions. One being the performance of female students in a male dominated environment. “As the Executive Dean of the Faculty, I would like to personally thank the FEBE staff for realising the dreams of these young people,” Prof Ben commented.

A picture that speaks a thousand words

fashion

Pumla Makhoba, an Architecture student, showcasing her interpretation of a house in Mooikloof.

Architecture students interpreted Professor Ora Joubert’s philosophy of the

buildings she designed through the creation of fashion garments.

The goal of the event was for students to understand the philosophy of the

buildings better and translate their understanding into fashion garments.

Professor Joubert is the esteemed winner of the Sophia Grey prize.

Students were greatly inspired by her work and came up

with brilliant fashion ideas.


Orientation Day Make every class count!

Motivation and academic success take centre stage at Engineering’s Orientation Day

The Fun Day at the Faculty concludes the Orientation Programme. This is one of the most exciting days for first-year students. Stu-

dents are in an entirely new environment and the different presen-tations during the Orientation period and the Fun Day event enable them to make new friends and take on new challenges. This is done in an effort to motivate students and to impart relevant information pertaining to their studies.First-year Building Sciences student, Lindokuhle Xobiso (19), said,

I have 100% potential to do anything that I want.Gopolang Motswai, lecturer at the Department of Architecture, gave a talk on how to use one’s time fruitfully at the Fun Day. GP, as he is fondly known, emphasised the importance of time and dedication by challenging the students to focus on what they are good at doing. GP said that if you focus on what you are good at, and remain dedicated for 10 000 hours, it is all you need to become the richest person in the world.


Characterised by thundershowers and heavy rain, Float Your Boat, the annual Concrete Boat Race hosted by the Inland

Branch Concrete Society of Southern Africa at the East Rand Speed Boat Club, was no plain sailing for the participants. For the first time in ten years, TUT participated in the race and against all odds, Dobbertjie, the final-year Civil Engineering students’ cement raft, sailed in at second position in the stu-dent category.

“Two race finals could not take place due to thunder and lightning, which eventually halted the proceedings. I am certain our team would have won if all the legs of the challenge could have taken place. Taking into consideration that our team members were be-ginners, they exceeded all expectations,” Prof Snyman said.

The team from Tuks in Monster took first position and the Uni-versity of Johannesburg’s Vikings came in third.

S3 Civil Engineering students make a mark after 10 years

Photo left: Jones Moloisane, a lecturer at the Department of Civil Engineering, received the Volunteer of the Year Professional Engineering Technologist (Pr Tech Eng) award at the ECSA Gala Awards Dinner on the 1 November.

Photo above: TUT’s team participating in the recent Concrete Boat Race at the East Rand Speed Boat Club.

In an effort to empower students with information, events are organised to assist them with the transition from sec-

ondary schools to higher education institutions and finally to industry. According to the Chairperson of SAICE, Tumishang Maputla (21), the Civil Engineering students are their priority. They motivate them to excel academically and assist them with their interpersonal skills. Mpho Muloiwa, a lecturer in Water Engineering, plays a pivotal role in supporting the SAICE Committee members with advice and promoting events that are hosted by the Committee. Mpho confirmed that these members are selfless, sacrificing their own time to attend to matters they perceive important for their members. Mpho wished them well and to grow the Civil Engineering industry.

Civil Engineering students motivated to serve their society

Photo right: The staff at the Department of Civil Engineering celebrated the achievements of the top academic performers at the

annual Academic Excellence Awards event held on 25 May, at the FNB Auditorium.

Photo above: The SAICE Committee members for 2018.

A non-profitable student organisation, South African Institute for Civil Engineers (SAICE), was designed to cater for the needs of the Civil

Engineering students.

Prof Jacques Snyman, Head of the Department of Civil Engineer-ing, said that despite their lack of experience, the team did exceptionally well in the competition.

Tsholofelo Tladi and Alison Gopaul, both lecturers in the Depart-ment, supervised the students from the start of building the concrete boat through to the competition day. They commend-ed the students for their determination, adding that they could only supervise but not contribute any physical help.

Prof Snyman continued saying,

Our students were very dedicated and disciplined. They were really focused and concentrated on

performing well in the competition.


VISIT TO F’SATI FRENCH PARTNERSThe visit by TUT management to the F’SATI Executive Management Board provided an opportunity to visit ESIEE and UVSQ in Paris and had discussions regarding the future collaborations be-tween F’SATI and its French Partners.

From the right: Prof L van Staden (TUT VC); Mr A Mahlalela (TUT CFO); Prof A Hamam at ESIEE and UVSQ in Paris.

F’SATI RESEARCH WORKSHOP

During October 2018, F’SATI held a re-search workshop at TUT. The purpose of the workshop was to give all F’SATI TUT and CPUT partners the opportuni-ty to present their research activities in the themes of the Institute and to consider new projects.

Participants at the F’SATI research workshop and the Loomo that was demonstrated.

Visitor from École Nationale D’ingénieurs De Tunis, Tunis

Prof Rahma Ben Ayed of École Nationale d’Ingénieurs de Tunis, Tunis (ENIT) with expertise in: Artificial Intelligence, In-formation Systems (Business Informat-ics), visited F’SATI TUT during April. Prof Ben Ayed currently collaborates with Prof Karim Djouani on projects re-lated to the SARChI chair at TUT.

From left: Prof Dong; Prof van Wyk; Prof Zhang and Prof Du at TUT Pretoria Campus.

is a graduate school jointly developed by France and South Africa. The initiative was launched early in 1996 after a visit by President Nelson Mandela to France arranged by the Chamber of Commerce and industry of Paris (CCIP), with the objective of developing a training institute in electronics in South Africa to present master’s and doctorates which offer a high added value.

Looking back at 2018, it has been a rewarding year for the F’SATI team.

French South African Institute of Technology

F’SATI


F’SATI Executive Management at the meet-ing members joined by NRF delegation during EMB meeting Paris.

F’SATI Paris Executive Management Board Meeting

F’SATI held its bi-annual Executive Man-agement Board meeting on 4 July. The meeting endorsed a new strategy aimed at ensuring long-term sustainability that will lead to an increase in research col-laboration and more opportunities for students to spend time in France.

RESEARCH SEMINARS AND COURSES OFFERED AT F’SATI TUT

F’SATI and TUT hosted a number of visiting professors from various countries during the year.

25TH VICE-CHANCELLOR’S RESEARCH SEMINAR

Prof Ezio Todini, emeritus Professor of Hydrology at the University of Bologna, spoke at TUT’s 25th VC’s Research and Innovation Seminar in October 2018. The theme of his talk focused on water distribution modelling that takes into account uncertainties that arise due to many of the challenges faced during the water distribution process. F’SATI at TUT currently hosts a project in col-laboration with the CSIR that focuses on research work that is aimed at reducing the amount of water loss experienced in water distribution networks (Dynamic Hydraulic Modelling project).

Prof Ezio Todini during the presentation at the Research Seminar


ERASMUS+ Mobility with ESIEE

The Erasmus+ Mobility Interchange for Credits programme was approved between TUT and ESIEE Paris and be-came active in 2018. The objective of the mobility was to strengthen the links between TUT and ESIEE Paris. During September, two TUT master’s students, Antonie Smith and Dennies Mokwele, both Faculty staff members, were sent. Both Prof Ben van Wyk, Executive Dean and Prof Shengdzi Du, Research Professor, visited ESIEE to present lectures. A further three stu-dents will be sent to France to spend five months and two staff members will spend 10 days at ESIEE.

Dr Yves Blanchard with Antonie Smith and Dennies Mokwele at ESIEE

ERASMUS+ YEBO! ProjectAs reported previously, the YEBO! proj-ect is an Erasmus+ Capacity Building project coordinated by the University of Montpellier that was launched in De-cember 2017. The main purpose of the YEBO! project is to foster and develop the promotion of the internationalisa-tion of doctoral studies in South Africa and aims to address problems associ-ated with doctoral studies. The project comprises seven universities in South Africa, five in Europe and is supported by the European University Association (EUA), CIRAD, and the COIMBRA group.

As part of the project, a first training workshop was hosted by CUT in Bloem-fontein, which addressed the topic “In-tercultural Competencies”. Five staff members from TUT attended the first training session.

TUT staff at the First Training Session

Visitors from Tianjin University of Technology China

Professors Zhang and Dong from the Tianjin University of Technology, China gave talks to staff and stu-dents at F’SATI and the Faculty on Panoramic Stereo Sphere Vision and the Study on Hybrid Brain-Computer Interface in January.

SOUTH AFRICAN EXCHANGE STUDENTS TO UVSQ

During November, two F’SATI TUT Co-tutelle doctorate students visited the LISV laboratory at UVSQ as part of their Co-tutelle doctoral studies. Christiaan Oosthuizen, staff member in the Faculty and former F’SATI MSc student, is currently working on the energy modelling aspects based on the TUT solar car.

Thapelo Mosethle and Christiaan Oosthuizen at UVSQ

In the centre Prof Ben Van Wyk, Executive Dean with F’SATI and TUT members.

SATN ConferenceThe South African Technology Net-work (SATN) is a collective voice of Universities of Technologies in South Africa. The theme for 2018 was ‘The 4th Industrial Revolution: The Role of Universities’. Dr Nico Steyn presented the Robotic Rollator, which is part of the assistive driving control system research that is ongoing at F’SATI. The active walker was exhibited at the Conference and seeks to provide active support in the use of assistive driver technologies.

Dr Nico Steyn demonstrating the Active walker at the SATN 2018 Conference

FRENCH EXCHANGE STUDENTS

During the year, F’SATI hosted a num-ber of French students mainly from ESIEE Paris and the Polytech Paris-Sud. The students spent 10 weeks at F’SATI TUT and worked on various projects covering domains of Energy, Assistive Driver Aid systems, Brain-Computer Interfacing (BCI) applications as well as the integration of BCI algorithms for the control of humanoid.

Staff and students from ESIEE Paris and Poly-tech Paris-Sud at TUT Pretoria Campus.



Age: 41

Hometown: Pretoria

Kindly share your background information (how you grew up):

I am the eldest of five children, two boys and three girls. I come from a polygamous family as my dad had two wives. I was born in Alexandra Township and started my primary schooling there in 1983. At the end of 1984, my parents decided that I must stay in a village in Limpopo (then Gazankulu homeland) due to political situations in the townships at that time. Tiyani village is where I continued my schooling until I finished matric (Gr 12) and occasionally visited Alexandra during school holidays.

What course(s) did you study at tertiary level?

I completed my National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering in 2002 at Technikon Northern Gauteng (TNG) and finished my B Tech degree at TUT in 2009. In between, I worked few jobs and spent a year in India between 2004 and 2005 on a toolmaking scholarship.

What drew you into this field of work?

I believe God wanted me to be in this field. It is hard to believe that I didn’t know about toolmaking until I went to India. This was despite the fact that I had developed an interest in manufacturing during my practical training. The knowledge and experience gained in India made it difficult to see myself working in any other sector than manufactur-ing. Now I am fortunate to be doing manufacturing work in an academic environment.

What other qualifications do you hold?

In addition to the engineering qualification, I also hold the following certificates:• Post Diploma: Tool Design & Manufacturing - Indo German Tool

Room, Aurangabad, India;

• Programme in Project Management (PPM) – University of Pretoria;

• Advanced Programme in Project Management (APPM) – University of Pretoria;

• Management Development Programme (MDP) – University of Pre-toria.

I am also registered with merSETA as an assessor to conduct assess-ments for the NQF registered unit standards or qualifications in the field of tooling and manufacturing.

Why did you choose the course you studied in tertiary?

Growing up, I always thought that I would become a doctor. Back then, becoming a doctor, nurse, teacher or police officer were the sought-after careers for boys and girls growing up in a rural village. While do-ing standard 9 (Gr 11), I attended a career exhibition and got to learn about engineering courses. Thereafter, my first interest in engineering was Civil. Later I learnt that one of my uncles (cousin to my dad), who was working for the then Gazankulu homeland, had actually studied Mechanical Engineering at college. So my interest switched from Civil to Mechanical.

What form of work were you doing prior to being a station manager (briefly describe your journey)?

I can call myself part of the furniture here at IAT, having been one

FEBE Staff Profilesof the first people to start its build up in 2005. The first batch of graduates who came back from India upon successful completion of the toolmaking scholarship were deployed to build the three IATs in Gauteng, Eastern and Western Cape provinces. In the Gauteng province, we spent the first four months at Indlela in Olifantsfontein before TUT was granted permission to host IAT as part of the technology stations network.

My IAT journey here at TUT started in November 2005 and I have had a number of responsibilities as part of building the IAT. My strong passion had been in Tool Design and I was promoted to Operations Manager before being appointed Station Manager.

What are some of the funniest childhood moments that you still hold dearly and have helped to mould you into who you are today or have taught you valuable lessons about life and/or are still relevant today?

I learnt early in life that one needs to make decisions that please oneself first before pleasing other people. This helped me to not succumb to peer pressure while growing up. An example of this was when we had to choose school subjects at standard 8 (Gr 10). I chose Mathematics and Physical Science while all my friends went the other way. I had no advice from anyone as both my parents were not educated and teachers had their favourite learners from affluent families.

What are your ambitions/goals/dream?

I would like to own a manufacturing firm in future.

What is your motto when it comes to living or doing things:

“Help without expecting anything in return”. This has helped me in giving back to the community in whichever way possible.

What are your favourite movies and why?

• One Love (Jamaican movie) – a Romeo and Juliet type of movie between a gospel singer (who happens to be the priest’s daughter) and a reggae singer.

• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – what I love about this movie is the fact that there are three different characters precisely named in the movie title pursuing the same goal whichever way possible.

• The Pursuit of Happiness.

What are your favourite books?

Beside the bible, there are two books I read and found to be more rel-evant in my line of work. Coincidentally, both books were written by the same author, Eliyahu Goldratt:• Critical Chain• The Goal

What do you usually do when you are not at work - hobbies?

I try to read as much as possible. Whenever possible, I do travel around with the family. I love sports, even though I watch from a couch.

What is the best thing about your job?

The joy of seeing a happy client when a tool IAT made for them produces a product they need. It is a nice feeling when your work helps an entrepreneur and/or SMMEs realise their dreams.

What are some of the activities on your bucket list? Currently, I am pursuing postgraduate studies (master’s to be exact).

Are there any hidden talents that you have that no one knows about or is aware of?

I used to hate teaching as a profession and never saw myself becoming a teacher. However, with the training done at IAT, circumstances forced me to take on some modules and taught Tool Design theory to the trainees. During this period, I realised that there may be some teaching talent in me.

What are some of the things you have accomplished?

• I led IAT to develop a quality management system (QMS) and achieve ISO9001 accreditation.

• IAT was awarded a merit certificate as the best performing CITSI at

JEFF MAKUBELASTATION MANAGER AT INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED TOOLING (IAT)

Profiles


PROF. CAROLINE KHOATHANEACTING ASSISTANT DEAN: TEACHING AND LEARNING

Challenges build character and perseverance

For the acting Assistant Dean: Teaching and Learning, Professor Caroline Khoathane, a female in a male-dominated industry, says that it was never easy, but her strong inner self-motivated spirit kept her going. Prof Khoathane spent most of her younger years in Soshanguve township where she grew up with her six siblings.

“My father was a bus driver; he wasn’t educated but my mother was a primary school teacher. Although my family was very poor, they valued education”. Prof Khoathane said. She alluded that her journey from school to varsity had many challenges, but made her just more adamant to succeed.

“I did matric in the year of tyre necklace, where massive national school boycotts erupted in the township and the government de-clared a State of Emergency. I survived the necklacing execution and had to move to the rural area during the apartheid era, where there were no good Mathematics teachers,” she explained.

In 1987, Prof Khoathane enrolled at the former University of the North. Her life felt more difficult by the time she completed her BSc (Physics & Chemistry) studies. Then, she was unable to secure employment for a period of a year because of her gender and lack of experience. She still did not give up, and furthered her studies at the then Technikon Pretoria. After completing her National Diploma in Plastics Technology, she started her career at the former Atomic Energy Corporation (now NECSA) in 1994.

She was the only black female laboratory technician appointed in the surface fluorination division. She was promoted within two years to Senior Lab Technician and was one of the people nominated to study Master of Business Leadership at UNISA (Graduate School of Business Leadership) to become one of the future leaders.

In 2000, she became the first black female to be appointed in the Polymer Division. Prof Khoathane completed her master’s and doc-torate degrees in Polymer Technology at Tshwane University of Technology. She is the first South African female to be awarded Doctorate in Polymer Technology. She has supervised, to date, more than 50 B Tech and seven master’s and three doctoral students in the field of Polymer composites and materials. She has been at the forefront in the establishment of a Composite Innovation Centre at TUT, which will serve as a hub in the research and development of composite materials for automotive and aerospace applications.

Prof Khoathane is a strong motivator who inspires students and col-leagues to achieve academic excellence and sharing her loving and assertive personality with everyone who crosses her path. Her goal is to develop women in engineering to be authentic, visionary and brave enough to challenge the status quo. She added that with her experience as a female in the engineering field, she knew she has the ability to assist female students following the engineering path and retain them.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family, serving at church, and reading. “I am confident that women are able to occupy any position regardless of their gender and can add enor-mous value to the Engineering profession by holding leadership positions. We might even have a female president in future,” she concluded.

the Academic Excellence Awards 2016.

• In 2015 & 2016, IAT offered training for four modules at Technical University of Kenya (TUK) in Nairobi, Kenya. I facilitated Theory of Tool Design in Injection Moulding module.

What are some challenges that you have come across in your field of work and how have you dealt with them?

IAT’s clientele range from individuals to big companies like OEMs. Dealing with individual or entrepreneur clients is very difficult. Some of them feel a need of entitlement when they interact with technology stations. Technology stations are centres of specialisation, and as such, IAT specialises in tool, die and mould making (or tooling/toolmaking). Some clients expect assistance even if their need is not what the station offers. If we are unable to assist a client, we do our best to connect them with other technology stations that can be of assistance.

What was the first project you ever worked on?

One of the first projects we did at IAT was for CSIR. At that time, most of the IAT projects never received payments, even though the projects were costed. The idea was to prove IAT’s capability to industry.

What was it all about?

CSIR was conducting research in terms of aerospace components made out of titanium. Since, titanium is a tough material to machine, CSIR wanted to test if a component can be cast near to finished size so that there will be less material to machine. IAT was then tasked with designing and manufacturing an aluminum mould that was used to pro-duce wax components of a selected aerospace part.

To date, how many projects have you worked on?

Since 2008, IAT completes on average around 50 projects annually. The length of the projects varies depending on the scope of work required. Longer projects can take months to a year to complete, whereas some machining-only projects can be a week.

What keeps you grounded and motivated to be able to do your day-to-day work?

I am very passionate about manufacturing.

Who are some of the people that make it easy or help in making sure that your work becomes easier?

Without the IAT team, I would not be a Station Manager. I also get a lot of support from the Faculty and CITSI offices. To name a few, Prof Ben van Wyk in his capacity as Executive Dean and Dr Hamilton Mphidi as the chairperson of the CITSI EXCO.

How does your day look like on a day-to-day basis (coming to work until you knock off)?

It starts with checking or following up on emails from the previous day(s). Sometimes there are meetings to attend during the day. Some of the meetings are unplanned as we do have clients walking in to make enquiries. In between, the team also requests my attention on opera-tional/technical issues. Being the senior person, I have a responsibility of checking and approving designs before any machining can commence. During reporting periods, I then get occupied with drafting, compiling and checking reports before they are sent to stakeholders.

When you look at your career, what was the most difficult or painful lessons you have had to learn?

In my line of work, I have learnt that one must never promise a client what they cannot deliver. We call it ‘over promise and under deliver’. I have had difficult conversations with clients because certain aspects of their projects were not delivered as promised.

What was the turning point in your career?

Taking that opportunity to leave everything and go to India on a scholarship was the turning point in my career. I was even lucky because I had missed a call for an interview and a voicemail message was left instead. Honestly, I hesitated on following up on that message. There was an admin lady called Yvonne where I was working at the time. She took up my phone and listened to that voicemail message, then she followed it up acting as my sister. To my surprise, she was told that if I am still interested I must come for an interview the following day. Luckily, the venue was around Pretoria and as they say, the rest is


Age: 39 years

Hometown: Soshanguve, Pretoria

Kindly share your background information (how you grew up): I was born in Soshanguve Pretoria. The firstborn of two children in the family. Born without a silver spoon in my mouth, life was very difficult. My mother was a single parent and we stayed with my grandmother. I fortunately attended good primary and secondary schools in the township. My mother motivated me to study hard, emphasising the importance of education and that it was the key to a successful future. Luckily, I enjoyed Mathematics and Physical Science and performed well. In secondary school, I came up with a business plan, selling sweets to survive and enjoy the same benefits as other kids who could afford transport and lunch. A friend and I shared the profits which contributed to his transport to school and I could afford to attend extra Physical Science classes on Saturdays. I proceeded with my tertiary studies at Technikon Pretoria under severe financial pressure for my mother. Finally, NSFAS allowed me to complete my undergraduate diploma in chemistry.

When, where and for how long? In 2003, I started with my B Tech Analytical Chemistry qualification at TUT, which took me five years, and in 2010, I proceeded with my studies in Senior Management Programme (SMP) at the University of Pretoria.

What drew you into this field of work? I was interested in chemistry and initially wanted to work for a pharmaceutical company.

What other qualifications do you hold? I am currently busy with my Master’s in Management of New Venture Creation.

What form of work were you doing prior to being a station manager (briefly describe your journey)? I was a technical advisor for various industry partners, working at the Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC), advising them on technology transfer, improving their factory processing and testing as well as the testing of the products. I also assisted my Manager with management activities. I focused on attaining skills and gaining experience in how an industry function. When my Manager resigned at TSC, I was appointed as the Station Manager.

What are your ambitions/goals/dream? My biggest goal in life is to assist TSC to become a commercial entity and to service chemical industries locally as well as satellite campuses.

What is your motto when it comes to living or doing things: Stay focused and be committed.

What are your favourite books: Good to Great by Jim Collins

What do you usually do when you are not at work/hobbies? I enjoy travelling to other provinces or neighbouring countries for sightseeing.

What is the best thing about your job? The diversity of projects.

What are some of activities on your bucket list? To be active in Entrepreneurs Coaching and Mentorship

What are some of the things you have accomplished? To travel abroad, especially to developing counties and secondly, building a house from scratch.

What are some challenges that you have come across in your field of work and how have you dealt with them? The biggest challenge I experienced is to find space for the equipment facilitating contract manufacturing. I investigated external space off campus and am financing the rent payment from our project cost recovery budget.

What was the first project you ever worked on? Tests to improve graphite penetrating oil to suit Sasol and SABS specifications on behalf of a company which was supplying Sasol in Secunda called List Clean-ing Chemicals.

VINCENT TAUSTATION MANAGER

What was it all about? Sasol used an oil that flames with lower flame temperature, (almost 40 degrees Celsius) in their hoist production plant. The preference would be to develop and use an oil that is flam-mable at more than 100 degrees Celsius. I had to conduct various chemical trials using different oils that flame at more than 100 degrees Celsius. During the research trials, I managed to find a solution to re-place the low temperature oil with high temperature oil that meets Sasol and SABS specifications. I conducted further trials and presented a sample to Sasol and the SABS for testing. The results from both in-stitutions indicated that the improved product complies with all the required specifications. The information was presented to Sasol and the beneficiary, List Cleaning Chemicals. As a result of my work, Sasol presented the opportunity to List Cleaning Chemicals to supply them with the product for five years. List Cleaning Chemicals was the only supplier in the country that can manufacture the product and created jobs.

To date, how many projects have you worked on? More than 120 [projects].

What keeps you grounded and motivated to be able to do your day-to-day work? Realising that as a team, we are impacting the lives of individuals, particularly youth, and enterprises on a daily basis as well as the fact that I am gaining skills from my team members and seniors.

Who are some of the people that make it easy or help in making sure that your work becomes easier? My team members at the TSC in all the departments, subordinates as well as interns.

When you look at your career, what was the most difficult or painful lessons you have had to learn? To deliver on annual targets without receiving any operational funds.

What was the turning point in your career? Sourcing funds from other agencies or industry to allow us to offer services which are required by industry.

Any last words? Nothing good happens without focus, discipline and commitment.

DR BRENDON SHONGWELECTURER

Born and bred in Malelani (Mpumalanga), Shongwe, a father of two, de-scribes himself as calm but firm. The 33-year-old Chemical, Metallurgy and Materials Engineering Section Head is a dedicated lecturer who is very passionate about his family, work and church.

Shongwe’s career at TUT started in 2011 and has since been a fruitful journey. He said that when coming to work he looks forward to playing a huge positive role in his students’ lives. He added that contributing and encouraging people is his ultimate goal and that is where contentment comes from.

Shongwe believes that being a motivational speaker is his calling and he is doing it in an academic form. He said that speaking, motivating and encouraging his students is what he does effortlessly.

Besides being a lecturer, Shongwe is focused on his family above everything in life. Shongwe said that it is important to spend time with family in order for him to teach his children family values.

Clearly, it is not everyone’s dream from the village to live in Gauteng. Shongwe enjoys the dusty streets of Malelani much more than Gauteng. “In my spare time I take my family to a farm close to where we live. The place reminds me of where I come from and how I grew up. I love the fact that I am from the rural area. When I retire, I want to move away from the busy life in the city to the rural area.”

Shongwe said next in his career is climbing the “corporate ladder”, trying out new things and seeing what the future holds.

Profiles


PROF. JACQUES SNYMANASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT (HOD) OF CIVIL ENGINEERING AND ACTING ASSISTANT DEAN: TEACHING AND LEARNING.

PROF. JACO JORDAANASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Age: 43Hometown: Hotazel, Northern Cape Working at the university: Started in 2004 as a part-time lecturer and was permanently appointed in 2009.Studied: Electrical and Electronic Engineering Where: At the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, now known as the North-West University.His experience as a lecturer: Lecturing was quite a challenge at first. I was uncomfortable with public speaking but when I was appointed as a part-time lecturer, I had to conquer this challenge. Lecturing has grown on me. I now enjoy my job and would not trade it for anything.”Passion: I am passionate about making a positive impact in people’s lives. Project developments: I developed database software for a number of clinics in Winterveldt and the surrounding areas.

Hometown: Pretoria

What has surprised you most about being in academics? The manner in which academia and student interaction has evolved over the years, which can be very unpredictable and unexpected.

What do you find most challenging about your job? My job is intel-lectually stimulating and fulfilling and this Faculty is a very dynamic one. There is never a dull moment. It continuously challenges one as an academic and leader.

If you could change one thing about your career, what would it be? I am exceptionally satisfied with how my career has developed. I had a specific plan on what I wanted to do career wise, and I have achieved all the goals I set out to achieve. There are of course new short-term and long-term goals every year because the academic career is never static, but dynamic and continuously evolving.

If you weren’t here, what would you be doing instead, or what would your life be like? I would be at a place where I could motivate and inspire people, particularly young people, to be innovative, or to think out of the box. I would drive development in the field of engi-neering by encouraging the youth to invest themselves in this field.

What do you do when you aren’t at work? I spend my leisure time outdoors – enjoying and appreciating nature with my family.

What else do you think we should know about you? I am a very dis-ciplined individual, everything I engage in must be exceptional, never mediocre.

Is there an achievement or contribution that you are most proud of? I am proud of the academic status I have achieved thus far as Associ-ate Professor, HoD and Acting Assistant Dean: Teaching and Learning; and the value that these leadership positions allow me to add to the Faculty and the University as a whole.

What is your life philosophy? Your past does not determine your des-tiny. What you do today determines your future. Everyday should be the first day of your life, a new opportunity to determine your future.

PROF. AMIRA OSMANPROFESSOR IN ARCHITECTURE

Age: 51

Hometown: Shendi/Khartoum/Pretoria

What has surprised you most about being in academics? After 30 years, nothing much surprises me.

What do you find most challenging about your job? People dynamics.

If you could change one thing about your career, what would it be? I wanted to be an artist before I became an architect. When I was very young, I wanted to be a writer.

What do you do when you aren’t at work? I am actively participating in the Sudanese Community in Gauteng.

PROF. YSKANDAR HAMAMPROFESSOR IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Engineering professor continues to offer his services post retire-ment age

While others cannot wait to retire and the University becomes a small chapter in their lives, Professor Yskandar Hamam has kept the ball rolling.

Prof Hamam (75), Electrical Engineering Professor, started his aca-demic contribution in South Africa in 2007. He occupied various posi-tions at international universities, such as the University of Manches-ter, University of Rio de Janeiro, and ESIEE-Paris, Paris Est University, where he was Head of Department and Dean of the Faculty.

In 2008, he was appointed as the Scientific Director of the French South African Institute of Technology (F’SATI), where he played a huge role in the development of research. His mission was to develop the research programme by increasing the number of graduates.

Prof Hamam plays a huge role in student academics. “I like students’ interaction and supervision. It brings me great pleasure to see young researchers becoming independent”, he said. He added that, whenever students are in doubt and need help, it was his duty to guide them to overcome their challenging situations.

Some of his contributions include supervision of master’s and doctorate students, and the establishment of the dual-doctorate programme with the University of Paris-Est and University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines.

Prof Hamam contributed to the current research and development of domains and scarce skills in South Africa, like the water distribution networks, electrical power systems and the assistance to handicapped. He is the main contributor to the analytical methods of water distribu-tion networks. His water network analysis, published in 1971, made a breakthrough in the solution of pipping network equations.

He is very keen on assisting the handicapped; this was evident when he developed a research activity on the domain when he arrived in South Africa, since it was not available in the country at the time. The novelty of the research resulted in TUT being awarded the Chair in Enabled Environment for Assisted Living by the National Research Foundation (NRF).


Faculty Management

Prof Maurice OnyangoHEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials EngineeringBuilding 3-707Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs R NgakaTel: 012 382 4757/5039

Prof Jacques Snyman HEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of Civil EngineeringBuilding: 3:512 Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs D NgomaTel: 012 382 5212

Dr Bolanie Abe ACTING EMALAHLENI SITE HEADDepartment of Electrical EngineeringBuilding 14-G18 eMalahleni CampusCONTACT PERSONMs M van NiekerkTel: 013 653 3130

Prof Ben van Wyk EXECUTIVE DEANBuilding 3-622 BPretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONSMs Z SibiyaTel: 012 382-5120Ms S van der MerweTel: 012 382 5148

Prof Caroline KhoathaneACTING ASSISTANT DEANTeaching and LearningBuilding 3-621Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONSMs Z Sibiya, tel: 012 382 5120Ms S van der Merwe, tel: 012 382 5148


Prof Josiah MundaASSISTANT DEANPostgraduate Studies, Research and InnovationBuilding 6-G16Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs Z SibiyaTel: 012 382 5120

Dr SJ JacobsASSISTANT DEANIndustry Liaison, Special Projects and WILBuilding 6-366Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs A van der PoelTel: 012 382 5328

Prof Alfred TalukhabaHEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of Building SciencesBuilding 3-405

Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs L FourieTel: 012 382 5242

Kovilen ReddyHEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of GeomaticsBuilding 3-416Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs A ViljoenTel: 012 382 5211

Gift NenzheleleHEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of Industrial EngineeringBuilding 2-337 CONTACT PERSONMs B van EedenTel: 012 382 4403

Dr Lodewyk Beneke HEAD OF DEPARTMENT Department of Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial DesignBuilding 3-303 Pretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs N RatlhogoTel: 012 382 5874

Prof Jacques Laubscher HEAD OF DEPARTMENTDepartment of ArchitectureBuilding 11-Ground floorPretoria CampusCONTACT PERSONMs L LabuschagneTel: 012 382 5252


Industry partners are invited to contact the University should they want to participate in the next Career Fair.

Cooperative EducationOur purpose is to provide a collaborative engagement service

to University staff, students and employers. Our database

consists of 3,242 engineering student curriculum vitaes of which

more than a 1000 were distributed to industry during 2018.

More than 800 allocated for Work Integrated Learning (WIL)

opportunities and more than 300 for internships or graduate

positions. The Office continues to provide a one point stop for

industrial enquiries related to the placement. It also provides a

streamline database of our students CVs.

Engineering students’ personal consultations and account enquiries

Quantity Surveying

Building Sciences and Quantity Surveying

Chemical Engineering

Civil Engineering

Not specified Engineering

Electrical Engineering

Industrial Engineering

Industrial Design

Mechanical and Mechatronics

Metallurgy

3

23

30

64

18

72

49

3

239

23

NU

MBE

R O

F ST

UD

ENTS

Cooperative Education Activities

Engineering students’ CV’s registered on the TUT Online System

Building Sciences

Chemical Engineering

Civil Engineering


Geomatics


Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design

Metallurgy

212

223

357

786

74

360

1008

332

NU

MBE

R O

F CV

’s R

EGIS

TERE

D

The mainly small to medium sized enterprize employers, which do not have HR departments and operate without a recruitment bud-get, benefit when consulting with the University. We have a data-base of students who need industry placement, and their CV are then forwarded to the relevant opportunities. Our students gain practical experience and the employer has the opportunity to en-gage with the student before offering him/her a position.

A study annually done by Universum global, indicates that engi-neering students prefer employers who offer leadership opportuni-ties, sponsor their future education, is creative and have a dynamic work environment as well as invests in training and development.

Orientation sessions

Student preparation for work placement

WILMS training

Individual consultations with students

New CV’s received

Number of CV’s sent to industry for WIL placement

Number of graduate CV’s sent to industry

WILMS administration

Universum Global questionnaires distributed

Students interviewed and placed

130

520

42

165

849

496

466

172

2022

35

NU

MBE

R O

F ST

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ENTS

It was revealed that 62% of our engineering students prefer to find employment by using social media, 37% prefer employer engage-ment by visiting the University Career Fairs. More than 500 senior engineering students attended the 2018 Annual Career Expo.

Students visiting the Career Expo

A continues stream of students knocked on this Office’s door for the following services:• WIL Placement• Internships• CV writing• Interview Skills• Employability Workshops

One of the achievements accomplished this year, was the number of successful placement of students at the following industry partners: Ford, Eskom, MA Automotive, Powertech and Resolution Circle.

Lecturers are encouraged to make an appointment for their stu-dents, once they are ready to work, to attend an Employability Workshops.

Prepare students for industryTwo hour employability workshop for final year students

CONTENT: Cover letter | CV writing | Job interview

BOOKINGS: Lorika Kruger | 012 382 5074 | [email protected]



Briefly tell us about SafeWaterAfrica and how it came about. SafeWaterAfrica is a European Commission Horizon 2020 Project of R45 million to de-velop a potable water solution for rural communities. The 42-month project which completes end of next year consists of three countries in Europe, South Africa and

Mozambique. Locally it includes Tshwane University of Technology, Stellenbosch University Water Institute, CSIR, Advance Call and Virtual Consulting. In Europe Fraunhofer leads the project, With ULCM in Spain and Ferrara University in Italy also making up the consortium. I invented the solu-tion in 2009 and it took us almost 10 years to get the project funded.

How does your innovation assist to address challenges in the water and sanitation sector? Our solution is fully containerised powered by solar or wind energy, and incorporates remote monitoring to a Call Centre. We use no chemicals by adapting Advanced Oxida-

tion with Poly-Crystalline-Electrodes provided by Condias, a Fraunhofer spin-off company. So as long as there is a supply of water either ground or surface, we can render it safe to SANS 241 standards. In fact, we can even eliminate nano-contaminents which are suspected endocrine disrupters. Typically, one plant provides enough water for 300 households.

The development for the autonomous water purification solution is set to be completed this time next year. What is the current status? We are very proud that our first plant is operational at the ERWAT Waterval Waste Water Treatment Works in Midvaal, where ERWAT have kindly hosted our project. We

have permission to abstract water directly from the Klip River and process in our plant. To date we have a year’s historic data of water quality and all the contaminants in the river. A second Demonstrator is being constructed at the moment which will be installed at Rossano Garcia in Mozambique operating in Q1 2019.

Obviously over the last two years there has been intensive research across all 10 partners to get us to where we are today

I am also task to look at the Business Model to establish Black Owned Businesses to install and support the technology in the rural areas. Both local Universities have already established training programs in anticipation of rollout.

What does it mean for you to participate in the Ministerial Interactive Session?For the project this is a major development where we can now interact directly with the specialists at DWS so that we can tailor the solution for governmental requirements.

It would also open the taps to mapping out all the Stakeholders whom we would need to liaise with as we bring the project to market readiness.

We have a project website for more information per below, but the team and I are on hand to answer any questions.

https://safewaterafrica.eu/en/home

IndustryGrid

Bob Bond, SafeWaterAfrica WorkPackage6 Leader

When at an Innovator Profile Interview held with Bob Bond, the SafeWater-

Africa WorkPackage6 Leader: Technology Assessment and Business Develop-

ment, on the status of this SafeWaterAfrica project, he commented as follows:



There are 18 technology stations in the country, and three of them reside within this Faculty, which forms part of the

Technology Stations Programme, an initiative of the Depart-ment of Science and Technology, supported by the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA).

The stations operate in a “business like” manner and are sus-tainable centres within the Faculty. They primarily support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with product develop-ment, manufacturing and training needs. The Technology Sta-tion in Electronics (TSE) operates within the electronics, me-chanical, mechatronics, ICT and advanced manufacturing sec-tors. Services offered include:

• Applied Research and Product Development (Electronics and Mechatronics)

• Electronic Manufacturing Services• Specialised Training Services• Project Management and Consultation Services

The TSE have a footprint at the TUT Pretoria Campus, as well as at the CSIR to improve industry interaction and promote ap-plied research and product development activities.

The Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC), that is based at the Ga-Rankuwa Campus of TUT, offers a wide range of services that are designed to assist manufacturing companies in either maintaining or enhancing the quality of their products.

The TSC conducts applied research and develops products in line with the SABS/SANS standards, and according to the cus-tomers’ specification. Developments include pH adjustment, viscosity balancing, emulsification, preservation; and other correction of physical and chemical parameters required to render the approved quality product.

CENTRES, INSTITUTES, TECHNOLOGY STATIONS AND INCUBATORS (CITSIs)

The technology stations in the Faculty have world-class technology platforms with dedicated and committed staff members. The capability of the stations can contribute tremendously towards solving industry research, product and skills development challenges. Within TUT, more academics should familiarise themselves with the various stations activities, as this will stimulate and increase collaboration with industry to the benefit of all.

Services offered include:• Applied Research and Formula Development• Product Evaluation and Quality Testing• Product Testing and Analysis• Product Optimisation• Chemical Safety Audits• Specialised Training Services

The Institute for Advanced Tooling (IAT) is based at the TUT Soshanguve South Campus, with the focus on product- and skills development in tooling for various sectors. Services include:

• Applied Research, Product Development and Prototyping• Tool Design and Manufacturing• Advanced CNC Machining (5-axis high speed milling)• Part inspection/measurement with a Coordinate Measuring

Machine (CMM)• Technical Support• Specialised Training Services

Dr SJ Jacobs, the Assistant Dean: Industrial Liaison, Special Projects and Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) specialist for the Faculty, who is also the Director of the TSE commented:

Jeff Makhubela, Station Manager at the Institute for Advanced Tooling (IAT), situated at the Soshanguve South Campus, is

adamant that more should be done to empower learners with career information. He realises that the Department of Basic Education (DBE), teachers and parents, play a vital role in helping learners with this process. Gopolang Seyagodimo, a student doing practicals at the IAT, said he never knew which career he wanted to follow. He then took a gap year to conduct research on possible careers. This is when he discovered that Mechanical Engineering was the course for him. Gopolang believes that certain characteristics are required for that specific career, as well as background information before one can make an informed decision; passion alone is not enough.

“Teachers in high schools have to take initiatives and expose learners to different career opportunities. This can be done by inviting employees in different industries to make presentation to learners about their professions. That definitely can help learners to have a better understanding of the careers to follow,” he said.

Tshepo Magatla mentioned that initially, he did not think Mechanical Engineering was something he would do; however, he knew that he preferred something challenging and unpredictable rather than a fixed routine, which could become very boring. “Most of the products and services we receive are from abroad. We have the manpower in South Africa, we need more skilled people, so that we can start producing our own products”, he explained.

The IAT, one of three technology stations in TUT and funded by the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), focuses on Tool,

Die and Mould (TDM) skills and technology development and transfer. The IAT also assists local Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) to develop their manufacturing capabilities and outputs. IAT specialises in designing and manufacturing of tools such as Injection Moulds, Press Tools, Jigs and Fixtures.

Jeff stated that IAT deals with the practical part of the course, which is the making of tools, while the theoretical portion of the course is conducted by the University.

Students at IAT have a vision for a more skilled workforce

Far right: Themba Nyalungu is working on a Conventional Lathe machine while Harold Thutse and Abram Seyagodimo are sharpening the cutting tool for the Lathe machine

Citsi’s


Smart hand hygiene monitor curbs spread of bacteria

Talking Science

with Soweto TV

Soweto TV got South Africa talking about Science and

Engineering at TUT when the University was featured on their Career Profile Science Talk Show.

A crew from Soweto TV spent the day with staff and stu-dents from Technology Sta-tion in Electronics (TSE) on Friday, 23 April.

In an interview, Komborero Chiganze, an electronic design technician working at TSE, spoke about his passion for engineering and how his childhood years influenced his career choice. This information might help to encourage viewers to follow their hearts and not be stopped by anything in the pursuit of their careers.

The Science Talk Show focuses on interesting career opportunities. The programme about TUT gave viewers and young people interested in Engineering, a more comprehensive picture of the services TSE and TUT offers. The programme also looked at the requirements to qualify for study in engineering, the benefits of a career in engineering and how to apply for study at the University.

Komborero Chiganze during an interview with Soweto TV’s Science Talk Show

Patient safety and hygiene prompted the design and development of an innovative Hand Hy-giene Monitor to curb the spread of bacteria in hospitals. Steve Mbappe and Nicholas Wiles

from the Technology Station in Electronics (TSE), developed an automatic hand sanitiser or soap dispenser that logs data when used.

“The idea behind this project was to address the real world problem of hygiene in hospitals and find an innovative solution. Research by the client called Makazi Concepts, has shown that there are instances where doctors and nurses do not wash their hands prior to consulting with patients,” said Kobus Vorster, Operations Manager of the TSE.

The TSE receives the majority of its projects directly from industry clients or the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) referred them to TUT.

Kobus Vorster added that the TSE recruits and offers opportunities for designers who stud-ied at, or who are still enrolled at TUT, from various engineering back-grounds. These designers form part of their multi-disciplinary team in the development of proto-types for individuals and businesses.

A number of these design-ers have since completed their undergraduate stud-ies and are ready to enrol for master’s degrees.

From left: Steve Mbappe and Nicholas Wiles with their hand automatic hand sanitizer

From left: Deputy Mayor, Robert Nogumla of the OR Tambo Mu-nicipality and the TSC Station Manager, Vincent Tau.

District Municipality looks at partnership with TSC

term aim is to involve them in future projects we are planning,” Nogumla said.

It is foreseen that the partnership will result in skills development through Short Learning Programmes (SLP) and technology transfer

to SMEs (small, medium and micro enterprises).

Vincent Tau, TSC Manager, emphasised the need for strategic partnerships with the chemical industry, as well as local municipalities and other government entities.

The Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC) at the

Ga-Rankuwa Campus, hosted an eight-member delegation from the OR Tambo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape, to explore possible partnerships between the parties.

Headed by the Deputy Mayor, Robert Nogumla, the group spent a day at the TSC ob-serving their daily activities, which included the station’s manufacturing processes. The focus was on the promotion of a culture of social deve-lopment as well as technology transfer – through innovation – to small businesses, entre-preneurs and young people in the chemical sector.

As a municipality, one of our goals is to

resolve some of the issues the youth in the country faces, especially unemployed graduates. Another goal is to provide support to entrepreneurs. The long-


Vincent Tau, Manager for TSC, is confident that when students exit the University, they will have a decent understanding of

how the industry works.

The station, situated at the Ga-Rankuwa Campus, focuses on the technical part of the course, hence the term ‘technology station in chemicals’. It provides strategic direction to students by as-sisting them with the development of their products, delivering and registration of their project(s), and making sure that there is a connection between the academics and the station.

At the station, various technologies under the chemical arena are explored, namely oil extraction, cosmetics, detergents, electro-plating, bar soap making and perfume creation technologies.

Currently, we are working on a project called the Green

Project, whereby we take natural resources and convert

them into usable and commercialised products. At times we join

forces with academics, to identify high tech projects and come

up with solutions on behalf of small enterprise entities,” said

Vincent.

The Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials course is divided into four different sections, namely project development and test-ing, project research, testing and analysis, and training. The training is focused on Experiential Training (P1 and P2), after the students have completed the theoretical studies.

“Due to a lack of Experiential Lear-ning opportunities within the industry, we support students by exposing them to an industry related environment so that they may complete their P1 and P2 to qualify for their diplomas,” he added.

The technology stations are financed by the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) and Small Enterprise Develop-ment Agency (SEDA). The recruited students’ information is recorded on a system. These alumni then work close-ly with the station’s team on projects they have to conduct for the small enterprise companies. These projects are then evaluated and presented to the client.

One of the most successful projects was the chemical catalyst. The undergraduate students who were registered at the sta-tion at that point were assigned to work on the project and came up with a solution on the effectiveness of the catalyst. They also had to verify the claims made by the company that the chemical catalyst reduces fuel consumption and the emis-sion of CO2. They were successful in designing a project which reduces fuel consumption and CO2 emission in motor vehicles or heavy trucks, and were able to register it. To date, the sta-tion has worked on more than 30 projects, with several others in process.

Molelekoa James Mosesane, one of the students working with the project team, was a postgraduate student and managed to complete his master’s degree. He presented an academic paper in Turkey, Antalya, and an additional paper was published in the Global Journal of Researchers in Engineering. The success of this project resulted in a win-win situation in a sense that the station provided a valuable learning experience to the students in the team, and the postgraduate student, in turn, received his qualification and the information was shared with the client.

Molelekoa, currently employed as a technician, conducts a lot of research at the Department of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering. “Going to Antalya was a great experi-ence, and funny enough, people thought that I was from the United States of America, mainly because there were few Black people in Antalya,” he said.

Technology Station in Chemicals makes way for students

Soap detergents on display at the chemical station.

Citsi’s

The Centre for Energy and Electric Power provides an outlet for University staff and students to carry out research and

contract work, develop practical solutions for the industry and the community while at the same time, the University staff gain knowledge and expertise. This is how the Green Energy Bicycle was designed to assist rural communities who struggle without electricity.

The aim of this project was to design a bicycle that can generate electricity for rural communities. The bicycle provides power for rechargeable lights,

GREEN ELECTRIC BICYCLE FOR RURAL COMMUNITIEScan charge phones and has a modern twist by operating an AC (alternating current) blender. This project was the result of the request received from the Southern African Faith Communities Environment Institute (SAFCEI) to design a bicycle that depicts

the use of renewable energy sources as a contribution to rural development and social obligation. The concept development should contribute to most rural and inaccessible areas where bicycles are mainly the mode of transportation. The Green Electric Bicycle was exhibited at the 12th Assembly of the World Lutheran Federation conference in Namibia and the CSIR Sustainability Week.


Like most boys, Ipeleng dreamt of driving a car, or manufactur-ing cars. As far as he can remember, he had this passion of

designing cars. This is why he studied Mechanical Engineering.

After completing my undergraduate qualification, I did a lot of research. This was when I decided to do

my master’s degree to gain more exposure to research and development. I decided to work for a company that dealt specifically with research on a regular basis. This decision lead to my first job in research and development – designing cameras and optical systems”, he said.

An opportunity presented itself during his transition between jobs and he revisited his notion. The fact that there is a gap in the market for developing cars in South Africa made his passion even stronger. Ipeleng and two of his friends, Nhlanhla, whom he met at varsity, and Kagiso, whom he met at church, got to-gether to work on Boost Mechanics.

In April 2014, during the development stages of the company, they saw fit to take a closer look at areas where there was a need for engine improvements.

They came up with a new technology called turbo-free flow to address environmental challenges posed by exhaust gases. The purpose of the new technology was to provide green solutions to address environmental challenges posed by the exhaust gas and to test the performance of turbo-free flow on fuel con-sumption reduction and reduction of carbon dioxide emission.

They were confident to register a provisional patent for the turbo-free flow concept. To modify the car, they had to raise funds to enable them to determine if the modified car performs better; and it did. The excited trio approached the Technology Innovation Agency’s Youth Technology Innovation Funding (TIA-YTIF) for financial assistance.

TIA-YTIF examined Boost Mechanics concept and eagerly as-signed the project to TUT’s Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC) at the Ga-Rankuwa Campus. TSC assisted with preparing the modified car for SABS testing and interpreting test results for improving their existing concept for the next version.

“Our technical director, Nhlanhla, complements the team with his maintenance experience. I deal with research and develop-ment, and Kagiso, our financial director, deals with the books”, Ipeleng said.

He further said that although they are a strong team, they had challenges to overcome. The team have a design, good results and a patent in their possession. Although they still need to iden-tify a dealer, a garage or manufacturing site to offer their ser-vices, they are optimistic about the future.

NEW TECHNOLOGY TO BENEFIT THE MASSES

From left, the founders of Boost Mechanics, Ipeleng Mathebula, Nhlanhla Rikhotso, and Kagiso Tsatsane.

A technique/control system for maximisation and utilisation

of solar resources, reduction of grid energy/demand while increasing affordability of solar system in low-income house-holds, has been developed at

the CEEP centre and currently undergoing household setting usage testing at the CEEP fa-cility/workshop at Soshanguve Campus. The social and eco-nomic impacts of the project include affordability of solar

system in low income house-holds, increasing penetration of renewable energy technolo-gies in previously untouched segments of the population and advocacy for sustainable tech-nologies for energy generation.

Solar Maximisation project to reduce the cost of PV system implementations

PHOTO LEFT: A paper titled “Remote Rural Area Water Scarcity Solution: An Innovative Green Energy Mobile DC Water Pump System” was presented by a second-year student at the IEEE PES & IAS Power Africa Conference on Affordable and Clean Emerging Energy Solution.

CENTRE FOR ENERGY AND ELECTRIC POWER (CEEP)The CEEP mission is to develop, implement and transfer ef-

fective energy and electric power solution for industrial, commercial and domestic applications for sustainable deve-lopment. Its primary aim is to undertake high quality, targeted and useful research that contributes directly to addressing so-ciety’s energy and electric power issues.

While also providing an education and training role for the energy sector in Africa. This is done through supervising stu-dents, providing Short Learning Programmes (SLP), learner-ships, skills development and continuing education pro-grammes. The centre services include research for the public good, contracted research/consulting, training, supervision services, product development, project implementation and community outreach.

The centre focuses on the following areas: t Efficient Energy Conversion & Demand Side Managementt Energy Efficient Buildings/Smart and Intelligent Buildingst Power Systems, Distributed Generation and Micro-gridst Renewable & Sustainable Energy Systems and Energy Storage t New Material Development & Surface Engineeringt Refrigeration and Heat pumpst Energy and Behaviour using Computational Intelligence

Techniquet Measurement & Verification

Dr Olawale Popoola, Director: CEEP, believes in the advancement of the youth and “catching them young” and therefore his staff consists of young minds under the supervision of academics.


This is according to renowned Scottish engineer, Gordon Lindsay Glegg. Without scientists and engineers, the universe will not find solutions to the multitude of challenges confronting societies across the globe.

Famelab helps students overcome worst fearsOne of the skills practiced when students do presentations is to concur the fear of public

speaking. According to the fear of public speaking statistics, public speaking is con-sidered the number one fear in humans (19%), even higher than the fear of dying (16%). The medical term for this fear is “glossophobia.”

David Ibrahim, a Doctor Technologiae (D Tech): Mechanical Engineering student, and Tsholofelo Modise, a Magister Technologiae (M Tech): Electrical Engineering student, were afforded an op-portunity to present their projects, a Solar Heating System and a Robotic Walker, in front of a full audience and fellow researchers at the Famelab Career Researcher’s competition.

Research Day brings brilliance to the fore

The annual Faculty Research Day creates an enabling environment.

Researchers are encouraged to share knowledge on their research topics with the rest of the Faculty.

It is also an opportunity for presenters to gain confidence in public speaking and to receive advice on the topics they are exploring.

Jacques van Rensburg, a Master of Architecture student, was identified as the Best Oral Presenter in the master’s degree category.

Prof Julius Ndambuki and Prof Ben van Wyk

A scientist can discover a new star but he cannot make one. He would have to ask an engineer to do it for him.

Energy expert invests in postgraduates

Supervising 26 postgraduate stu-dents, eight of them at doctorate

level, is no mean feat, but it is all in a day’s work for Prof Josiah Munda. Prof Munda is Assistant Dean at the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment and Head of the Depart-ment of Electrical Engineering.

When asked what drives him to take on this load of work, he responded,

“It is all about investing in the future of my students. To be part of, and expe-rience the growth of stu-

dents under my supervi-sion, while at the same time coaching them to lead successful post-graduate lives, gives me a great sense of fulfillment”.

He added that the main purpose of postgraduate studies was to develop independent research skills. “Post-

graduate students focus on conducting research independently and creating their own work structure. As an expert, I can provide guidance to postgraduate students, helping them to successfully complete their postgraduate qualifica-tions,” he indicated.

Prof Munda, who believes that one has to lead by example, did his doctorate on Distributed Power Generation Systems. Together with his postgraduate students, he is continuing this research by addressing future sustainable energy and environmental preservation. The research aims to find solutions for affordable, environmental friendly power generation. The team is also focusing on the development of technologies to make power systems more affordable, secure, stable, reliable and smart.

“Research is a work in progress and should be conducted for the public good. There will always be new needs and opportunities for research, therefore one can never say that their research is complete,” he added.

Prof Ben Van Wyk, Executive Dean and his assistant deans, together with Prof Stanley Mukhola (centre)

welcome the newly appointed professors.


RESEARCH

Prof Shyama Pada Chowdhury and Prof Ben van Wyk

PROFESSORIAL INAUGURAL LECTURES OF ENGINEERING PROFESSORS


Prof Mpofu secured R5 million to-wards tuition fees of students at

the University.

“Young people are increasingly recog-nised as critical actors in matters of global importance. I place great hope in their power to shape our future and the greatest investment would be in their education, hence this ini-tiative,” explained Prof Mpofu.

Moreover, fully conscious of their role as catalysts for economic and skills development, Prof Mpofu and the Gibela cabal are set on a mission to create jobs through innovation. They also established an incubator where students in the Faculty, with creative and innovative ideas, can receive support and possibly develop these concepts into active businesses.

“The incubator will enable transi-tion from the academic space into innovation, then translate that into commercial entities. It was criti-cal for Gibela to have the incubator, because they have a programme of developing black industrialists and I, on the other hand, am on a mission to not only invest in student’s educa-tion, but also influence employment creators”, he said.

Engineering Professor secures millions towards student fees

Professor Khumbulani Mpofu, an NRF Y-rated researcher, the Gibela Research Chair in Manufacturing and Skills Development and the Founder of Rail Manufacturing

Centre for Rapid Incubator, has challenged his students, colleagues, staff and broader manufacturing research global community through the double rewards he recently received.

Competing against global industrial engineering researchers, Prof Mpofu won the Out-standing Researcher: Industrial Engineering and Operations Management (IEOM) at the European Conference that was held in Paris on 27 August. On the same day, in Johannesburg, he was recognised with the accolade of the regional Southern Afri-can Institute of Industrial Engineering Outstanding Industrial Engineering Researcher Award for 2018.

Prof Mpofu’s mission is to build a manufacturing research infrastructure that breaks the innovation chasm challenges to commercialisation. To ensure that South African products can compete in the global market, the Gibela Research Chair contributes through supporting manufacturers with technological advances. The recently established the Rail Manufacturing Centre for Rapid Incubator (RMCERI) is a vehicle set up with the deliberate intention of transition innovations into becoming manufacturing businesses that create employment. He said that the ultimate goal of his research is to try to convert his implementation into a real commercial business.

“We are closing the manufacturing gap between the research and development (R&D)

and commercialisation functions,” he said.

With his team’s support, Prof Mpofu managed to achieve success beyond expecta-tions. He emphasised that the award belongs to the team, which consists of mainly postgraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, Gibela, Small Enterprise Development Agency and the Faculty research and innovation colleagues. It is his responsibility to come up with concepts and ideas. The team is then tasked to execute and implement these ideas.

“My role is to provide the infrastructure and the ecosystem to realise the advance-ment of manufacturing in day-to-day practice,” he added.

Prof Mpofu acknowledged the external support of Gibela, TUT, NRF, TIA, merSETA and SEDA in attainment of these accolades as each has had an important role to play in this journey that was still at its initial stages.

Gibela Research Chair professor sets the bar higher

The Gibela Research Chair Rail awareness and Walk the Talk 702 event



Staff member Department/CITSI Field of Expertise & Area of Involvement

Abe, BT Dr (Bolanle)

Electrical Engineering (eMalahleni Campus)

Machine Learning and Image ProcessingTelecommunication Electromagnetic Compatibility

Adegbola, TA Dr (Adesola)


Material Science Material CharacterisationPolymer BlendsPolymer Waste Recycling ProcessMechanical Resting (toughness, flexural, and tensile strength) Systems Engineering

Adeleke, AA Dr (Abraham)

Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering – Adjunct Appointment

Mineral ProcessingHydrometallurgy

Abu-Mahfouz, A Dr (Adnan)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI – Adjunct Appointment

Internet of Things (IoT)Wireless Sensor Network (WSN)Software Defined Networking (SDN)Low-power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN)5G for IoTNetwork Security

Akumu, OA Dr(Aloys)


High Voltage EngineeringCondition-based MaintenancePower Systems Demand Side Management

Anochie-Boateng, J Dr (Joseph)

Civil Engineering – Adjunct Appointment

Pavement Engineering Pavement Materials Testing and Modelling Asphalt Technology and Mix DesignLaser Technology in Crushed Stones for Roads and Railways Construction Waste Materials in PavementsTransport Infrastructure Engineering

Beneke, LW Dr (Louis)


Composite MaterialsWind Turbine

Chowdhury, SP Prof (Daniel)


Sustainable and Renewable EnergyMicrogrids and SmartgridsEnergy and Demand ManagementPower Electronics in Microgrid Operations and Battery ManagementPower System Analysis and ControlHarnessing Green Energy from Agulhas CurrentDistribution System PlanningDistributed Generation and Grid IntegrationSustainable Strategy for Higher Education, etc.

Delport, DJ Dr (Dawie)

Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering

CementHydrogenOxygen Electrolysis

Desai, DA Dr (Dawood)


Structural Dynamics (vibration)FatigueVibro-acousticsFinite Element AnalysisInfrared Thermography

Diehl, W Prof (Wolfgang)

ChemicalMetallurgical and Materials Engineering– Adjunct Appointment

Thin Film PhysicsSurface Engineering / Coating Technologies

Dintchev, OD Prof (Ognian)

Centre for Energy and Electric Power (CEEP)

Production and Distribution of Electric PowerRenewable Energy and Energy Efficiency

2018FIELD OF EXPERTISE and area of involvement by staff members



Djouani, K Prof (Karim)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI ModellingOptimisation and Control of Networked Nonlinear SystemsMobile and Wireless Communication Systems

Du, S Prof (Shengzhi)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI

Brain Computer InterfaceControl SystemsImage ProcessingBio-mechatronicsSmart Technology

Gebhardt, A Prof (Andreas)

Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering– Adjunct Appointment

Additive Manufacturing and 3D PrintingLaser Material Processing

Gochermann, J Prof (Josef)

Industrial Engineering – Adjunct Appointment

Entrepreneurship and Business PlanningInnovation & Technology ManagementProduct and Service DevelopmentMarketing

Hamam, Y Prof (Alex)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI

ModellingGraphs and NetworksLinear, Nonlinear and Mixed-Integer OptimisationControl Systems Power SystemsImage ProcessingWater Distribution Networks Analysis, Operation and Planning

Huan, Z Prof (Zhongjie)


Energy Efficiency Technology for Commercial RefrigerationHeat Pump System Development Application for Space and Water Heating and Biomass DryingNatural Working Fluids for Refrigerant SubstitutionWaste Heat RecoveryEnergy Management

Jacobs, SJ Dr (SJ)

Technology Station in Electronics (TSE) & Office of the Dean

Skills Development Programmes for the Electronic Manufacturing SectorDigital Skills Development for Future Jobs ProgrammesTechnical Skills Development for Community-based Business CreationTechnology Transfer and IncubationRenewable Energy Skills Training and Incubation ProgrammesIncubation Support in Manufacturing Technologies Concept to Prototype Product DevelopmentElectronic/Electrical Re-Manufacturing Quality Management Systems

Jamiru, T Dr (Tamba)


Properties of High Performance Composites and High Strength AlloysNew Engineering Materials DevelopmentCharacterisation and Optimisation Green TechnologyPhase Transformation and Nanotechnology

Jordaan, JA Prof (Jaco)


Signal ProcessingMathematical ModellingSpectral EstimationPower System State EstimationOptimisationMicrocontroller/PC Software Design Electrical Power and Industrial Systems & ControlImage ProcessingMachine Intelligence

Karger-Kocsis, J Prof (Joseph)


Polymer PhysicsPolymer BlendsRecycling of Plastic and Rubber WastesThermosetting Polymers from Renewable ResourcesManufacturing and Testing of Polymer Composites

Khalaf, AB Dr (Baset)

Electrical EngineeringMedical Devices DevelopmentHealth and Health Platforms Development



Khoathane, MC Prof (Caroline)


Polymer/Bio-polymer Reinforced Natural Fibre Composites

Kolesnikov, AV Prof (Andrei)


Modelling and Simulation of Multiphase Flows in Chemical and Mineral Processing Industries NanotechnologyPlasma TechnologyComputational Fluid DynamicsChemical and Mineral Process ControlOptimisation of Chemical Processes

Kupolati, WK Prof (Williams)

Civil Engineering

Sustainable and Appropriate Use of Waste Materials for Civil Engineering InfrastructureNanostructure of Cement, Concrete andAdvanced Construction MaterialsIntelligent TransportationManagementEnvironmental and Structural SystemsApplication of Artificial Neural NetworkFractal and Chaos and Other Novel Theories in Civil Engineering InfrastructureApplication of Technology to Power Entrepreneurs in Civil Engineering

Kurien, AM Prof (Anish)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI Software DevelopmentRadio Resource ManagementWireless and Mobile Networks

Laubscher, J Prof (Jacques)

Architecture

Sustainability and Resource Consumption in the Built Environment The Application of the National Building Regulations (SANS 10400)Modernist Architecture Pedagogic Underpinning of Design and Architectural Education

Loto, CA Prof (Cleophas)


Electrochemical CorrosionMaterials Science and EngineeringPhysical MetallurgyProduction MetallurgyMaterials Characterisation Failure Analysis

Maré EA Prof (Estelle)

Architecture – Adjunct Appointment Art and Architectural History

Mbaya, RKK Prof (Richard)


Mineral BeneficiationHydrometallurgy Separation Technologies and NanotechnologyMine Water Treatment and Waste Management

Mhike, W Dr (Washington)


Polymer Processing, Polymer Additives Technology, Graphite Nanocomposites

Mpofu, K Prof (Khumbulani)


Advanced ManufacturingCleaner ProductionExpert SystemsRobotics in Manufacturing

Munda, JL Prof (Josiah)

Electrical Engineering, Centre for Energy and Electric Power (CEEP) & Office of the Dean

Power SystemsDistributed GenerationRenewable Energy SuppliesSmart GridsEnergy and Industrial Power Systems

Ndambuki, JM Prof (Julius)

Civil Engineering

Water Resources ManagementOptimisationMulti-objective ProgrammingDecision Support SystemsStochastic OptimisationWater Quality and Quantity Modelling

Nnachi, AF Dr (Francis)


Power Electronics, Electrical Machines and Drives Energy Conversion SystemsPower Quality



Oboirien, BO Dr (Bilainu)

Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering – Adjunct Appointment

Fluidisation, GasificationOxy-combustionWaste to Energy and Geopolymer ProductionPower to Gas

Olwal, TO Prof(Thomas) Electrical Engineering / F’SATI

Free Space Optical Communication (FSOC) for Emerging EconomiesDistributed Algorithms, Computational Agent-based Modelling, Cognitive Radio Networks, Software Defined Networks, Decentralised Decision Making, Emergence and Self-organisation, Cooperation, Optimisation, Game Theory and Radio Resource Allocation within the Internet of Things (IoTs) and 5G CommunicationWater and Renewable Energy Efficient Resource ManagementBehavioural Ecology, Bio-mimicry and Bio-inspiration toward 5G Green Communication Networks

Onyango, MS Prof (Maurice)


NanotechnologyAdsorptionWater Treatment

Osman, AOS Prof (Amira)

Architecture

Housing DesignHousing Finance Housing Theory Housing Policy Urban PolicySocial Housing Informal Settlements and Upgrading Community-based Architecture Open Building 4-D Design Time-Based DesignSustainable Building Transformation Design: Theory and Methods Sudanese ModernismSudanese Built Environment History Sudanese Housing Finance

Paige-Green, P Dr (Philip)

Civil Engineering– Adjunct Appointment

Construction MaterialsSoil MechanicsRock MechanicsSoil Stabilisation and ImprovementEngineering GeologyLow Volume Road Design, Construction and InvestigationUnpaved Road Materials, Design and MaintenanceSoil CompactionConcrete TechnologyMine Haul RoadsRecycling Of Waste Materials in ConstructionClimate Change Adaptation for Transport InfrastructurePavement Failure Forensic Investigations and Technical Audits

Popoola, API Prof (Patricia)


Physical MetallurgyLaser Materials ProcessingPyrometallurgyProperties of Engineering MaterialsNanotechnology

Popoola, OM Dr (Wale)

Electrical Engineering / Centre for Energy and Electric Power

Energy Management & Demand Side Management, Computational Intelligence in Energy Usage AnalysisEnergy & BehaviourRenewable and Sustainable EnergyQuality Management (special focus on ContinualImprovement in Learning Organisation),Power Electronics Application in Power Systems as well as Laser ApplicationsPower Systems

Richards, CG Dr(Coneth)


Electrical Power Converters

Sadiku, ER Prof (Rotimi)


X-ray Physics & Rheology of Polymers and Polymer Composites



Salim, RW Prof (Wanjala)

Civil Engineering

Self-compacting ConcreteConcrete as a Carbon Dioxide SinkAffordable / Low Cost HousingStructural Behaviour of BiomaterialsHealth Monitoring of StructuresCellular Light Weight Concrete ElementsLaboratory Simulation Fibre Reinforced Polymer in Form of Either Rebar, Strip or Matrix in Structural Elements and Environmental Solid Waste Management for Environmental Sustainability - Reuse of Solid/Powder Waste Material in Construction

Snyman, J Prof(Jacques)

Civil Engineering

Water Engineering: Hydraulics, Hydrology, Water and Waste Water Treatment Technology, Water Recourse Planning and ManagementEnvironmental Engineering: Solid Waste Management and Environmental Impact Assessment and Management

Steyn, GS Prof (Gerald)

Building Sciences

Settlement DynamicsVernacular African Architecture and UrbanismAffordable Housing Forensic Auditing of BuildingsPlanning and Aesthetic Guidelines

Steyn, N Dr (Nico)

Electrical Engineering/F’SATI Process and AutomationEnabling Technology

Talukhaba, AA Prof (Alfred)

Building Sciences

Sustainable ConstructionEnergy Efficiency in BuildingsCarbon Indexing and Cost ModellingFinancial Engineering for Construction ProjectsConstruction Law and Alternative Dispute ResolutionBusiness Modelling for Emerging Contractors

Trimble, JA Prof (John)


System DynamicsAppropriate TechnologySupply Chain ManagementDiscrete SimulationKnowledge Management

van der Bruggen, B Prof (Bart)


Membrane TechnologyWater Treatment and Separation Technologies

van Rhyn, P Dr (Pierre)


Radio TransmissionIndustrial Communication NetworksIndustrial Wireless Sensor NetworksHigh Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting AnalysisAutomotive Electronics

van Wyk, BJ Prof (Ben)

Office of the Dean Machine Intelligence and Image Analysis

van Wyngaard, W Dr (Wynand)

Civil Engineering

Roads Building MaterialsDust Control on Gravel RoadsThe Improvement of the Ride Ability of Gravel RoadsThe Strength Balancing of Bitumen Stabilised MaterialsThe Construction of Asphalt, Slurries and Stone Surfacing with Bitumen and Saw Dust

DEPARTMENTMASTERS DOCTORAL GRAND

TOTALFemale Male TOTAL Female Male TOTAL

• Architecture 16 47 63 63

• Building Sciences 26 26 52 52

• Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering 49 80 129 15 37 52 181

• Civil Engineering 16 26 42 3 4 7 49

• Electrical Engineering 10 51 61 21 21 82

• Industrial Engineering 34 52 86 1 9 10 96

• Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design 3 38 41 12 12 53

TOTAL 154 320 474 19 83 102 576

2018 Number of registered students


Graduations A

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DOCTORAL 2 1 2 5

MASTERS 22 2 9 1 7 1 42

TOTAL 22 2 9 3 8 3 0 47

OCTOBER

DOCTORAL 5 1 1 7

MASTERS 1 2 12 5 1 21

TOTAL 1 2 17 1 6 0 1 28

TOTAL PER

DEPARTMENT

DOCTORAL 5 3 2 2 0 12

MASTERS 23 4 21 1 12 1 1 63

TOTAL 23 4 26 4 14 3 1 75

NRF R

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2018 CURRENT RATED RESEARCHERS

Staff member Gender Race Department Category

Chowdhury SP Prof Indian Electrical Engineering C (C1)

Djouani K Prof White Electrical Engineering C (C2)

Du S Prof Chinese Electrical Engineering C (C2)

Jimoh AA Prof Black Electrical Engineering C (C3)

Jordaan JA Prof White Electrical Engineering Y (Y2)

Mpofu K Prof Black Industrial Engineering Y (Y2)

Onyango MS Prof Black Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering C (C1)

Olwal TO Prof Black Electrical Engineering Y (Y2)

Osman AOS Prof Black Architecture C (C3)

Popoola API Prof Black Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering C (C3)

Sadiku ER Prof Black Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering C (C2)

Steyn GS Prof White Building Sciences C (C3)

Talukhaba AA Prof Black Building Sciences C (C3)

van Wyk BJ Prof White Office of the Dean C (C2)

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Niche Area Coordinator Main Partners Project Areas

1 Appropriate Architecture for Africa [A3]

Prof AOS Osman (Amira)+27 12 382 [email protected]

Department of Architecture

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design

University of Salerno, Italy

CIB: International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction

1. The Urban [Lab]oratory, Centering People in Architectural and Urban Design Decision Making.

2. Design-by-Making, Enabling Micro-infrastructures Present Architecture as a Social Act.

3. Environmental Potential, Technology and the “Thinking Hand” Prepares the South African Built Environment for Climate Change Resilience (SABER) and Conducts Green Building Workshops.

4. Open Building, is a Design Studio-based Investigation as well as a National and Global Partnership. Niche Area Leader is the Joint Coordinator of the International Group CIB W104 Open Building Implementation

5. The Creation of Public Spaces for African Migrants and People of Diverse Ethnicity in the Pretoria CBD, and Implications for Urban Planning.

6. Italy/South Africa Joint Research Programme 2018: A Social and Spatial Investigation at the Moxomatsi Village, Mpumalanga (SSIMM)

2Control, Image Processing and Machine Intelligence

Prof Y Hamam (Alex) +27 12 382 5363 [email protected]

F’SATI

Department of Electrical Engineering


Faculty of Information Communication and Technology (ICT)

Université de Versailles – St Quentin en Yvelines, France

Univérsité de Paris Est Creteil, France

ESIEE, France

Control, Image Processing, Machine Intelligence (CIPMI)

Modelling & Simulation Applied to the Enabled Environment

Enabling Devices (Intelligent wheelchairs, human-machine interfaces, mechatronic devices)

Tele-vigilance (sensors & sensor signal processing in an enabled environment)

e-Health & Enabled Environment Planning

Modelling and Optimisation in Wireless Communication Networks

3 Climate Change and Disaster Management

Prof JM Ndambuki (Julius)+27 12 382 [email protected]

VUT, CUT, RCMRD (Nairobi, Kenya), Egerton University (Kenya), Mbarara University of Science & Technology (Uganda), Kwame Nkrumah University of Technology (Ghana)

Flood Forecasting and Development of Coping Mechanisms

Drought Forecasting and Coping Mechanisms

Fire Forecasting and Coping Mechanisms

Pollution Propagation and its Mitigation

4 Advanced Catalysis Technologies

Prof RKK Mbaya (Richard)+27 12 382 [email protected]

HYSA/C Change Catalysis UCT, CSIR Centre for Nanotechnology, University of Witwatersrand, Sasol Polymers, Boreskov Institute of Catalysis, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection

Catalysis and Industrial Chemistry

Kinetics and Reaction Engineering

Methanol Reforming, Methanol/DME Synthesis, Fischer Tropsch Synthesis, Nanomaterials, Novel Catalytic Systems, Zeolites Synthesis and Applications, Recycling of Precious and Base Metals

NICHE AREAS


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Niche Area Coordinator Main Partners Project Areas

5 Applied Refrigeration and Thermal Energy Systems

Prof Z Huan (Zhongjie)+27 12 382 [email protected]


Architecture

Building Sciences

Faculty of Science, Horticulture

Energy Efficiency of Food Cold Chain

Geothermal Sourced Heat Pump and Refrigeration Systems

Air Sourced Heat Pump Drying Systems

R290 (Propane) Transport Refrigeration

Water to Water Co2 Trans-critical Heat Pump

Hydrocarbon Mixtures As Natural Working Fluids of Replacement of Conventional Refrigerants

Solar Powered Mobile Cold Room

Solar drying systems

Solar Driven Hybrid Systems for Air Conditioning and Water Heating

Renewable Energy Driven Sorption Refrigeration and Air Condition

Energy Efficiency Of Power Plants of South Africa

Energy Efficiency Of Mining Cooling Systems

Development of light weight composite insulation bodies for transport refrigeration


DEPARTMENT

JOU

RNA

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FERE

NCE

PR

OCE

EDIN

GS

CHA

PTER

IN

BOO

K

TOTA

L U

NIT

S• Architecture 5,00 0,50 - 5,50

• Building Sciences - - - 0,00

• Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering 47,69 3,60 10,39 61,68

• Civil Engineering 7,60 - 0,84 8,44

• Electrical Engineering 19,68 29,71 - 49,39

• Engineering Foundation - 0,25 - 0,25

• Geomatics 0,53 - - 0,53

• Industrial Engineering 4,17 1,00 1,00 6,17

• Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design 7,49 0,42 1,40 9,31

TOTAL 92,16 35,48 13,63 141,27

2017 Research Outputs (submitted)

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Other research groups

Coordinator Main Partners Project Areas

1 Mineral Beneficiation and Chemical Process Technologies

Prof MS Onyango (Maurice)+27 12 382 [email protected]

Department of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials EngineeringDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design

NanotechnologyExtraction of metalsGas Cleaning AdsorptionMathematical Modelling and System AnalysisBiofuelsWater and Wastewater Treatment

2 New Materials and Manu-facturing

Prof ER Sadiku (Rotimi) +27 12 382 3604 [email protected]

CSIR, Sasol, Universidad de Concepcion, Chile, Pontifica Universidad Catolica de Chile, ChileUniversidad de Chile, ChileDenel, Transnet Freight RailUniversity of Johannesburg, S/AfricaDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, Tsh-wane University of Technology Polymer and Composites, CSIR Material Sci-ence and Manufacturing, PENCNSM, CSIR, Pretoria, South Africa, CSIR-CLRI, Chennai, India, University of Madras, Chennai, IndiaNanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing, China Department of Chemistry, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South AfricaDepartment of Food Process Engineering, S.R.M University, IndiaDepartment of Crop Science, Tshwane Uni-versity of Technology, Pretoria, South AfricaPolymer Science & Technology, Sri Krishnadevaraya University, India CSIR-NLC, S/AfricaUniversiti Brunei, Brunei Darussalam Indian Institute of Technology, West Bengal, India Covenant University, Sango Otta, NigeriaAhmadu Bello University, Zaria, NigeriaUniversity of Ibadan, Nigeria Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, NigeriaNational Aerospace CentreRush Medical University, ChicagoVaal University, ESKOM and Thermaspray PtyFederal University of Technology, Akure NigeriaManchester Metropolitan University, UK

Natural Fibre/Polymer Composites Replacing Zinc Oxide in Rubber Com-pounds, especially TyresPolyolefin/Nanocomposites (Behomite)Polymer-noble Metal NanocompositesDevelopment of Alternative Analysis Techniques for Determination of Hexane Extractables in LLDPEDevelopment of a Tool to Produce Wax Components for Investment Casting of an Aerospace ComponentFabrication of Novel Polymeric Nanoma-terials for Biomedical ApplicationsDesign, Synthesis and Characterisation of Novel Thermotropic Side Chain Liquid Crystalline Polymers and their BlendsInvestigation of the Mechanical and Ther-mal Properties of PA6/Perkalite Compos-ites for Possible Automotive Applications

3 Water and Wastewater Management

Prof J Snyman (Jacques) +27 12 382 5225 [email protected]

Department of Civil EngineeringDepartment of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering

Hydrological and Water Quality ModellingIntegrated Water Resources ManagementApplication of GIS and Remote Sensing Modelling Techniques to Solve Water Re-sources Related Problems (e.g. Stochastic Drought Modelling, EIA, Analysis and Modelling of Irrigation Systems)Water and Wastewater Treatment Tech-nologies

4 Roads Building Materials

Dr WA van Wyngaard (Wynand)+27 12 382 5217 [email protected]

Department of Civil Engineering Dust Control on Gravel RoadsThe Improvement of Ride Ability of Gravel RoadThe Strength Balancing of Bitumen Stabi-lised MaterialsThe Construction of Asphalt, Slurries And Stone Surfacing with Bitumen and Saw Dust


RESEARCH GROUPS

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Other research groups

Coordinator Main Partners Project Areas

5 Energy and Industrial Power Systems

Prof JL Munda (Josiah) +27 12 382 4824 [email protected]

Department of Electrical EngineeringF’SATIDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial DesignDepartment of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials EngineeringCentre for Energy and Electric Power (CEEP)Department of Architecture Engineering Department of Industrial Engineering

Power SystemsPower ElectronicsElectric Machines and DrivesRenewable and Sustainable Energy SystemsDistributed GenerationMicrogrids and Smart GridsEnergy Efficiency and Demand Side Man-agementBiodiesel TechnologyEnergy Efficient BuildingsSmart and Intelligent Buildings

6 Telecom-munications and Signal Processing

Prof K Djouani (Karim)+27 12 382 [email protected]

F’SATIDepartment of Electrical EngineeringTELKOM CoE (Telkom, Molapo Technology, COMSIS France)University Paris-Est Créteil (France)CSIR (Meraka)University Santa Barbara, California (USA)University of Johannesburg

Telkom CoE, MIMO Access Point Develop-mentAdaptive Wireless Network Planning for Next Generation NetworksRadio Resources Management in Wireless Networks


RESEARCH CHAIRSResearch chairs are specialists who are selected to be chairs

based on their research expertise and ratings. The main goal of the research chairs is

to strengthen and improve research and innovation capacity of

public universities for producing high quality postgraduate students,

research and innovation outputs and increase the production of master’s and doctoral graduates.

Research Chair Academic Gender Citizenship Specialisation Department Chair

Category

Dr B Abe(Acting Coordinator)

Nigerian

Electrical Engineering Electrical Engineering Rand Water

Prof K Djouani

French

Enabled Environment and Assistive

Living

Electrical Engineering/

FSATINRF SARCHI

Prof K Mpofu Zimbabwe

Manufacturing Industrial Engineering Gibela

Prof MS Onyango

Kenya

Water UtilisationChemical,

Metallurgical and Materials Engineering

Rand Water

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Community engagement projects are an important aspect in any

society where the masses can attain, learn, transfer, share,

sharpen or add knowledge to what they already know. The

Tshwane University of Technology as such has put in place various

community projects by lending a helping hand to those in need within

the communities through the university’s different academic specialties. To date

various departments within the Faculty have done so through different projects.

Community engagement

Females in Engineering Workshop

The Duo shared with attendants that even with the evolution and advancements in the 21st century

engineering remained a male-dominated profession. However, more females

have been receptive and have showed interest in the field over the years,

even with the stigma in society that engineering is meant for male persons.

Statistics retreived by University have shown a steady increase in female

students registering for courses over the years.

Acting Assistant Dean, Professor Caroline Khoathane (to the right of the banner) and acting Academic Manager at the eMalahleni Campus, Dr Bolanle Abe (left of the banner) with some of their Women in Engineering Committee students at an Women in Engineering event presented at eMalahleni Campus.

FIRST Tech Challenge robots competing on the playfield

The competition consisted of twelve teams who were showcasing their designed and built-in robots. This

year’s competition had some international flavour with two teams from Romania and one team from Nigeria competing for one of the nine awards. Young people were taught the principles of engineering and how to work as a team.

Project facilitator, Johannes de Vries said that there were a number of advantages of being part of the First Tech Challenge (FTC) program. Participants stand the chance of participating international and increasing chances of international scholarships made available by colleges, universities and other corporations.

First Tech Challenge cultivates future inventors


A weeklong science fest at the German School saw students from TUT and the Vaal University of Technology among a select few, partici-

pating in the German School’s Mini Science Forum.

Learners could engage directly with multi-national companies, institu-tions and individuals who are passionate about Science and Techno-logy. These included BMW, BOSCH, and the Walking Tall Educational Project by PAST, Penreach Baylab, WWF and the CSIR.

The event not only created awareness of, but also showed learners how Science and Technology can be great fun. Learners from a number of Pretoria schools namely Kgabo Primary School, Banareng Primary school and Hlalisani to name a few, were invited to be part of the exhibition.

Dr SJ Jacobs, Director of the Technology Station in Electronics, said: “The Technology Station in Electronics (TSE) participated in the Ger-man School’s Science and Technology Week to promote Engineering and related activities at the University.”

The Institute for Advanced Tooling (IAT) staff got involved with learners competing in the Formula One (F1) National School Challenge. Staff and students engaged with the learners

at Siyokhela Junior Secondary School, to prepare for the F1 challenge.

IAT took up the challenge and trained the learners on Computer-Aided Drawing (CAD) before they guided them on how to design their own F1 car according to the rules of the competition.

The BONAD team at Siyokhela Junior Secondary School in Soshanguve, Block AA that took part in the F1 National School Challenge were identified as the overall 1st place winners. They received four certificates, namely 1st place in the F1 challenge, Fastest F1 Car, the Best Verbal Presentation, and the Best Enterprise and Marketing Team. They were invited to represent South Africa at the World Finals of the Challenge in Singapore during September.

Community engagement programme a turning point for disadvantaged Soshanguve learners

From left: Competition facilitator, Pieter Du Plessies, Njabulo Mutumuni Ofentse Ndala, Dion Mngome-zulu, Amogelang Moepi, team Resource Manager, Boipelo Masombuka, Technology teacher, Kelebogile Setlhodi, school Principal, Ndo Masemola, and CEO of Sangari Education, Benz Sangari during last year’s Formula 1 Technology Challenge in schools at Sci-Bono Discovery Centre in Johannesburg.

Electrical Engineering student (P1) Jainil Patel, explains to learners doing Grade 6 at the German School how a cell phone device can be used to detect the water level in a bucket using a Water Level System.

Learners enjoy a fascinating day of Science & Technology


Concrete seats placed in public areas

Students studying architecture designed and created concrete (cube) seats, used in public places for citizens to use.

Since 2016, benches were made and placed annually around Pretoria at important nodes including the Natural History Museum, Museum Africa, Church Square and the Union Buildings.

These designed concrete seats, added practical value for commuters and urban dwellers, as well as add aesthetic value to the public area where it was placed.

The project created public awareness of the Architecture Department at TUT and Pretoria City Council members took an interest by posing and taking pictures on the benches. The installation was put up in 2018 at 012Central where the national Architecture Congress (AZA) was held, seen by professionals and other universities.

The project is supervised by Pieter Greyvensteyn, Navarre Eberson, Laura-Anne Anderson and Dr Emmanuel Nkambule.

Students garnered an interest in Architecture

Boys2Men workshop

Boys growing up without fathers are invited to attend this one-week programme. Five learners with a minimum average of 80%, excelling in Mathematics and Science from each province

were selected for the four-year development and monitoring programme. They are then exposed to the different engineering programmes. This is done in partnership with the Moving Ahead Development Agency (MADA). This programme has been designed to inspire young boys who grew up without father figures to become responsible men and have a vision for their lives. They are encouraged to be true leaders in the society. External media coverage, SABC 3 features a programme on this programme. The programme also created a pool of quality prospective students for the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment.

Leaners observing and listening as Mechanical Engineering Student Assistant, Sibusiso Maseko, shows them how to operate the machine.


Imagine how powerless you would feel if you were unable to provide for

your child’s life support. This is what Tshepiso Mashubuku, a 29-year-old single mother, experienced because of her daughter, Koketso (9), suffers from pulmonary bronchitis and needs oxygen therapy 24/7.

A system was designed to relieve the family, living in the rural area, of this life changing challenge. The team of-fered a solar system to charge the oxygen machine, which Koketso needed continuously, with additional batteries for energy storage.

This solar system changed the lives of this family. The girl’s health condition as well as their finances improved due to the power available to them.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

The rollout of an e-waste pilot project at various universities of technology

in the country will ensure that valuable materials contained in e-waste are extracted to benefit the community. In addition, it will ensure that hazardous components are disposed correctly.

Soshanguve Technical High School, a free education school that mainly caters for learners from disadvantaged back-grounds, received 20 laptops through the project.

Braam Mouton, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering indicated that, the majority of parents are unemployed and could not contribute towards the school fees; hence the project will boost the school’s educational support. He further staded, since Soshanguve is one of our feeder areas, the University invested in goodwill with the community and awareness creation with learners regarding studying at TUT.

Photo top right: Lesiba Teffo, principal of the Soshanguve Technical High School, (centre back) welcomed the donation of 20 laptops to the school as part of an e-waste recycling pilot project. With him is a group of marticulants who will benefit from the donation.

E-waste project assists struggling

Soshanguve School

From left: Dr Olawale Popoola, Director of the Centre for Energy and Electric Power (CEEP); Tshepiso Mashubuku; Reuben Shongwe, Technician and Prof Josiah Munda, Assistant Dean, with Koketse in front.

Electrical Engineering and CEEP team save lives

Two flies with ONE blowStudents from the Department of Building Sciences assisted the Changing Lives Ministry’s orphanage near Hartebeespoort by improving certain parts of the orphanage’s building which needed to be repaired. Students were tasked with identifying a commu-nity project to make a difference in lives of people associated with the project. The problem needed to be identified and the appropriate solution to be implemented. Chris Meyer, lecturer at the Department commented, “The pleasant thing about the renovations is that the environment for the residents was improved as well as the safety of the orphans.” “In turn in-service learning students doing Construction Technology III at the Department gained experience and are more knowledgeable of what is expected of them when they finish their degrees. Visit this link to see more: https://youtu.be/ffLvPtO7Fl8.


The project address issues regarding skills development in previously disadvantaged communities in the country.

The program is divided into two aspects, the technical and business part of the training, with the business part presented by the South African manufacturing Technology Demonstration Centre (SMTDC).

In essence, the program is aimed at enhancing aspiring entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs’ technical and business skills. The training is said to be in

collaboration with different stakeholders among others Department of Science and Technology (DST), Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) and Technology

Innovation Agency (TIA).

Students expose learners to the fascinating world of Students from the Department of Chemical, Metallurgical

and Materials Engineering together with the Technology Station in Chemicals (TSC) exposed Pretoria Secondary School learners to the fascinating world of science, on 8 March at the school’s laboratory.Technicians from the department, James Mosesane and Victor Hlongwane supervised the activity while a combination of P1, P2, B Tech, and M Tech students shared the secrets and intricacies of the wonderful world of Chemical, Mechanical and Materials Engineering with the learners.

The programme is aimed at assisting Grade 12 learners with Physical Science practical. Thus, increase learners’ interest in the programmes of this Department and stimulate applications in these programmes.

A group of fascinated Grade 12 learners at Pretoria Secondary School taking notes during the recent visit by students from the Department of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering.

Skill shortage is addressedA community outreach programme, established late last year by

the Technology Station in Electronics (TSE) has to date helped approximately 131 people from both the North West and

Mpumalanga provinces.


At each school, two workshops per week are run on different days and 40 learners per school attend. In total almost 200 learners are exposed

to robotics training sessions on a weekly basis. These learners participate in regional and provincial competitions of the World Robot Olympiad (WRO). TUT students provides the expertise and facilitate the workshops, Hands on Technology provides all the equipment and infrastructure with the support from the LEGO Foundation.

Benefits include that learners should experience and apply logical thinking, problem solving, critical thinking, decision making and systems evaluation. Teachers from each school attend the training sessions and are being equipped to facilitate workshops in their own schools.

Students from TUT have the opportunity to be a role model for learners in the Atridgeville community. The students assist learners not only with robotics activities but also with their school science and mathematics curricular activities.

STEM skills

introduced to

learners

Students from Grantleigh, KZN having fun building their robot during the national Robot Olympiad competition.

The Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics and Industrial Design Department together with LEGO Foundation and Hands on Technology are presenting on a weekly basis robotics workshops to learners at 5 different schools in Attridgeville.


During the day of the event on August 8, the University used the slot as an awareness creation for learners participating in the various categories

within the competition on the courses available in engineering and the importance of good grades in the subjects needed to follow a career in engineering.

This year learners from different schools came in numbers, including one school from Venda. This has shown major increases in numbers of registered students from participating schools. TUT and the Faculty further ignited a spark of competition among learners to prove whose projects are the best.

The event is presented

with the aim of sensitising

learners to the importance

of obtaining good grades in

Mathematics and Physical

Science, should they wish to

pursue engineering as their

profession in future.

CompetitionDay


To find out more

about this

visit this link:

http://bit.ly/2OUozMR

Tshwane University of TechnologyFaculty of Engineering and the Built Environment

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