Dr Cornelius Ruiters, CSIR Built Environment Executive Director with Dr Rachel Chikwamba, CSIR Group Executive: Strategic Alliances and Communication
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The CSIR recently hosted a Transnet delegation at a workshop held at the Knowledge Commons in order to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two organisations. In setting the scene for the discussions, Berenice Lue Marais from the CSIR Strategic Alliances office said, “Our interactions with state-owned enterprises such as Transnet have indicated that there is already ongoing cooperation with some CSIR units on several projects. However, a strategic partnership to govern, steer and address strategic priorities in the relationship is missing.”
CSIR Built Environment (BE) Executive Director, Dr Cornelius Ruiters, reiterated this by saying, “We would like the strategic partnership to expand and consolidate on the areas where we already have good working relationships.” He added that a visit by CSIR representatives to Transnet offices in Koedoespoort, Pretoria a few days earlier was an ‘eye-opener’. The visit – which was led by Lue Marais and Transnet Rail Engineering’s Sugen Govender – gave a better understanding of Transnet’s challenges that the CSIR can assist in finding solutions to.
Ruiters outlined the proposed areas of cooperation as follows:
- Infrastructure, including rail-, port- and coastal engineering, as well as roads and buildings;
- Rolling stock, including energy efficiency, alternative fuels and energy regeneration;
- Operations, which include water use, waste management systems, logistics supply chain, greening, climate change, sensor tracking and automation, as well as safety and security aspects; and
- Strategic decision support which looks into planning issues, environmental management, system- and enterprise engineering.
Transnet ‘pleasantly surprised’
Dr Simukai Utete from CSIR Modelling and Digital Sciences explains her research to workshop delegates
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Transnet Rail Engineering Chief Executive, Richard Vallihu, who headed the Transnet delegation, said that he and his colleagues were pleasantly surprised by the CSIR’s capabilities following a round of presentations highlighting the competencies within the various units. He also signalled his organisation’s keenness on solidifying the partnership with the CSIR through the signing of a memorandum of understanding.
“The partnership with the CSIR is very important for us as there are a number of possibilities we can engage on. There is already a commitment from Transnet in terms of resources to push forward on the many projects we have identified,” said Vallihu.
CSIR Group Executive: Strategic Alliances and Communication, Dr Rachel Chikwamba added that the CSIR executive team is committed to putting their weight behind this partnership and would fully support it.
CSIR Strategic Alliances' Berenice Lue Marais
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Lue Marais urged Transnet representatives to call upon the CSIR to provide multidisciplinary and integrated solutions to complex problems, for which they usually look to international consultants for solutions.
Vallihu added that he was excited by the prospective partnership which will assist his organisation to tap into South Africa’s ‘home-brewed’ innovations. He also encouraged his colleagues and their CSIR counterparts to identify “projects for the short, medium and long term that we can partner on in terms of innovation so that we can increase and improve on the sophistication and modernisation of our operations in South Africa”.
The CSIR delegation also included researchers from BE; National Laser Centre; Materials Science and Manufacturing; Modelling and Digital Science; Natural Resources and the Environment; and Defence, Peace, Safety and Security.
Transnet Rail Engineering Chief Executive, Richard Vallihu
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CSIR National Laser Centre's (NLC) Francois Prinsloo
gives a demonstration of the NLC's competencies
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News contributed by Nonkululeko Kubeka , CSIR Strategic Communication
04 July 2012
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