MeerKAT Project Manager | SKA SA
2008 - present

Consulting and Project Management

Manage delivery of MeerKAT Telescope.

Antenna Project Manager | SKA SA
2005 - 2008

Consulting and Project Management

Manage design, manufacture, installation of SKA SA antenna structures.

Project Manager: SALT Structure and Dome | SALT (Southern African Large Telescope)
2000 - 2005

Building, Construction and Engineering

I was project manager for the telescope structure and dome, with their associated control systems. This meant managing the projects on a highly technical level, taking responsibility for the financial management (including cash flow) and ensuring the projects were completed on schedule. Both these projects have been completed successfully.

I was also responsible for the mechanical part of the payload, which involveded composites and precise mechanical systems – the design, manufacture, integration and commissioning of these were done in-house.

I did a lot of in-house design and analyses work and was responsible for the overall telescope lay-out (because of my CAD background) and to a large extend for the definition of interfaces between these subsystems.

Details on the project can be found on www.salt.ac.za.

Design and Development Engineer | CAT
1998 - 2000

Building, Construction and Engineering

With the success of the dragline bucket proven and because of very good future prospects, Caterpillar purchased the manufacturing facility from Barlows Equipment MFR in September 1998 and I took over responsibility for the dragline bucket design and development. At Barlows, but especially after starting at Caterpillar, I obtained a lot off International exposure and, apart from technical work, did a lot off marketing in Australia and the USA.

Apart from design work for production buckets, I have developed a new design dragline bucket (geometry/filling and structural design) and have been involved in new rigging design. The new concept bucket was manufactured and improvements in productivity were close to the predictions (from scale model tests) – until today all dragline buckets at Caterpillar are based on these developments. I have outlined the direction in which Dragline Bucket Development should be concentrated over 5 and 10-year periods respectively before leaving CAT.

Design and Development Engineer | Barlows
1996 - 1998

Building, Construction and Engineering

I was responsible for a dragline bucket development program that also served as my Masters Thesis (I received my degree in December 1997 (Cum Laude) and received the Gencor Medal for scientific development). The project involved the building of a scale model dragline (see Figure 1). I was solely responsible and had one boilermaker who assisted in building the scale model dragline. It was built up from an excavator that was scrapped. I was responsible for timescales, budgeting, designing (including hydraulic, electrical and data logging systems), the sourcing of parts and between the boilermaker and myself the physical construction. In the end it came down to seven months of hard work that provided me with valuable hands-on experience and taught me how to get along and manage the tradesman on the floor.

I have also done a lot of design and analyses (FEA) work on dragline buckets and other products.

Stellenbosch University/Universiteit Stellenbosch

1995 - 1997

M. Ing. - Mechanical Engineering

Stellenbosch University/Universiteit Stellenbosch

1991 - 1995

B. Ing. - Mechanical Engineering

Gencor award for Scientific Development | 1997

Escom award for outstanding academic achievement | 1995

Chairmans Prize for best final year Mechanical Engineering Student | 1994

ADE award for best final year project related to ADE activities | 1994

SAIMech Merit Medal for best final year engineering student | 1994

Academic colours University of Stellenbosch | 1994

Sanlam award for Applied Maths | 1993