With 80 years of scientific research and innovation under its belt, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) will continue producing technological advancements for SA.
This is according to CEO Dr Thulani Dlamini in an interview with ITWeb as the institution marks its 80th anniversary.
Established on 5 October 1945, the CSIR is an institution created by the state to support industrial development in South Africa post the Second World War.
At the heart of it was determining how to use science, technology and innovation to drive economic development, industrialisation and recovery needed across the globe, explained Dlamini about how the CSIR came to be.
“The mandate of the CSIR, which remains today, is that it undertakes directed research and technological innovation to foster industrial development as well as the creation of a capable state. It’s not about supporting industry but also to support government to deliver services required by the country’s citizens.
“Everything that we do as the CSIR ought to contribute to improving the quality of the lives of the people of this country.”
He highlighted some of the technologies that have come out of the institution include radar technology, which was developed by its national telecoms laboratory in the 1940s; security and technological features of smartcard IDs; manufacturing ventilators during the COVID-19 pandemic; as well as being home of the world’s largest 3D printer, among others.
“The work that we did then served as a foundation for the creation of the electronics industry in South Africa. The missiles industry that you see in South Africa was spun out of the work being done here through the creation of a company called Kentron, which then became part of the Denel business.
“We’ve also done work in areas such as long-range distant measurement; we were the first in the world to develop technology called a tellurometer to do long-range distant measurement, which is very important for surveying. South Africa enjoyed a leading position across the world for over 25 years through the work that was done in this area of research and innovation.
“Furthermore, the materials used in lithium-ion batteries that can be found in portable devices, the chemistry behind it came out of the CSIR in the 1980s.”
He continued to say the innovation of accelerated pavement testing also came out of the CSIR, with that technology currently licensed to an American company.
“One of our major clients for the use of this technology is the state of California as well as the US Department of Defence. South Africa has generated over R250 million from the licence royalty income of this technology.”
At the heart of innovation
With five campuses spread across the country (Pretoria, Braamfontein, Durban and two in Stellenbosch), the CSIR has staff contingent of just under 2 400 people made up of scientists, engineers, researchers, innovators and technologists.
The CEO stated that the CSIR wouldn’t be able to do its work without the people that work there, not just those that are there today but over the past 80 years. He added that people are at the heart of what the CSIR does.
Breaking down the employee figures, Dlamini said about 1 700 are science, engineering and technology (SET) specialists. “If I look at the cohort of the SET base, we’re sitting at just over 70% black and 40% female. We are very proud of the strides that we’ve made to achieve transformation within the organisation, both in terms of race and gender.
“The national figure in terms of the percentage of females in science, engineering and technology in South Africa sits at about 28%, so we are above (40%) the national figure. This is because of the deliberate effort and interventions we’ve put in place to drive transformation in the organisation.”
According to Dlamini, the CSIR’s work covers 12 sectors of the South African economy, namely defence and security, mining, manufacturing, chemicals, health, advanced agriculture, food, ICT, the built environment, energy, water, as well mobility.
“We’ve got a very diverse pool of capabilities within the organisation. We also have a very diverse skills base within the CSIR. We have expertise in all the areas of research and innovation that we’re involved with within the CSIR.”
Impact of modern tech
Speaking about the advancement of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and their impact for CSIR, he said these technologies act as enabler for the institution to do more efficiently.
“It will help accelerate the progress we are able to achieve as an organisation…these technologies will have an impact on the work that we do here at the CSIR.
“Our view is that we need to invest in developing more capabilities around the use of these technologies as well as investing in the infrastructure that we require, to tap into the potential that AI brings. This is not just in terms of the research that we do, but also in the support functions of the business such as finance, HR and so forth.
“This is to determine how to use these tools to improve what we are doing, to reduce the cost of doing business, improve efficiencies and performance.”
He concluded by saying the CSIR’s areas of focus are “very relevant” for the South African economy, noting that the institution will continue to drive its work across the 12 sectors it is involved in.
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