Official launch of new building by incubator on the move

Recently merged business and technology incubator, SoftstartBTI, has announced the official opening of its new building in Midrand.

Prominently situated between the Allendale and New Road junctions of the Ben Schoeman highway, the custom-designed facility will be officially opened on Thursday, 2 November 2006.

"This is a major milestone for us," enthuses Leon Lourens, CEO of SoftstartBTI, "it is the result of two years hard work, with both incubators working towards each other and successfully merging earlier this year."

Lourens is also quick to point out that the new building is not just a landmark for where the incubator has come from, but is also a sign of where it is going.

"We are delighted to have acquired such a convenient and highly visible location, but, more importantly, having a building this size is the first step towards a new model of self-sufficiency and means of assisting African ICT entrepreneurs to grow."

Located on Second Road in Halfway House, the 18 888m^2 property already boasts 1 313m^2 of premium office space and there are plans to add a further two phases of 1 500m^2 each.

"There is such need for incubation services that we have had to move twice in the last three years to keep up with demand," confirms Lourens, "but now we have a home we can grow into. Although we already have around 100 seats, a large piece of this new property has yet to be developed and we are looking for additional funding so that we can start the second phase of development as soon as possible."

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The new SBTI building has been designed specifically to accommodate early phase entrepreneurs operating in the ICT and electronics markets and offers state-of-the-art facilities serviced by a cutting-edge technological infrastructure. For example, the building's dedicated training and events centre is served by multiple broadband connections offering initial connectivity of 6Mbps.

Aside of its impressive facilities and prominent location, Lourens emphasises that the most important function of the new building is to provide an appropriate space for the SoftstartBTI community to interact.

"We have learnt through experience the value of promoting the interaction of like-minded, entrepreneurial people in an invigorating, buzzing environment," he explains. "The cross-pollination of ideas and enthusiasm that occurs is one of the key ingredients in start-up success."

The purchase and renovation of the new SBTI building has been funded by the SEDA Technology Programme (STP). The Programme is a special initiative of the national Department of Trade and Industry responsible for technology transfer and business incubation.

"SEDA has been instrumental in helping us get to where we are today and also in creating the stimulating environment that has become our hallmark," observes Lourens. "The team there have always given of their time and knowledge freely to help everyone achieve more together and, in doing so, created a strong example for the SBTI community to follow."

"Although there is very little space left, applications are still being accepted for tenants and we welcome interested parties to come and join us from Friday 20th October and see what SoftstartBTI is all about," encourages Lourens.

If you are a budding entrepreneur involved in the ICT or electronics markets and you are interested in taking advantage of any of the services provided by the incubator, please contact either Simphiwe Mabaso (simphiwe@sbti.co.za) or Farrah Naidoo (farrah@sbti.co.za) on (011) 695 4800 to arrange an appointment to visit SoftstartBTI and discuss your plans over a cup of coffee.