Sign Africa attended Printing SA’s Northern Chamber Annual Member Dinner and Print Awards, held at the Farm Inn in Silver Lakes, Pretoria on 11 July. Guests arrived in traditional African attire and wild animal masks in light of the ‘out of Africa’ theme. A competition was held for the best dressed, as well as a ‘pub quiz’ where each table of guests had their general knowledge tested.
The chamber bid farewell to outgoing chairman Andries Hendrick Venter, who has been with Printing SA for some 20 years. He thanked all those present for sharing his passion for printing, and reinforced the notion that print is here to stay.
Monya Burger and Sharron Penny were officially inducted as the Northern chamber’s new chairperson and vice-chairperson respectively, along with a number of new members.
Printing SA CEO Dr Abdool Majid Mahomed discussed how proud he was to be in a room full of experienced people, and emphasised that he hopes to make the federation a force to be reckoned with. He also paid tribute to his predecessor Steve Thobela for leaving a lasting legacy.
He touched upon a number of topics, including Mad Magazine – the subversive humour publication that redefined American satire and influenced half a century of comedians and comic artists – and how in October it will soon disappear from newsstands after seven decades, highlighting the effect it will have on people, movies and technology. ‘This is the challenge we face,’ said Mahomed. ‘How we adapt to change will only ensure our sustainability and viability long term.’
Conversely, Mahomed recounted his time at the University of Hong Kong, where although students were typically using technology to study in such a highly first-world context, books were still very much favoured.
Mahomed highlighted some stats, citing that print generates R56 billion in revenue annually, employing 50,000 permanent staff, with 2000 commercial printers, showing that print is a huge contribution to job creation.
The CEO said that in such a rapidly evolving industry, printers should always be prepared for the need to innovate, be prepared to always be sustainable, and be aware of change. Additionally, he emphasised the need to be aware of what similar industry associations are doing abroad.
Mahomed also spoke of a number of the association’s strategic priorities, which include operational sustainability, improving customer relations management, improving service delivery to members, dealing with transformation, as well as training and development. ‘2019 promises to be an exciting and challenging year,’ he concluded.
Ken Leid, director: national training and development for Printing SA, presented an award to Nicholus Teledimo, who was honoured as the chamber’s top achiever in the TT1 module run by the Northern Chamber earlier this year. Leid thanked Government Printing Works for making their training facilities available for the said TT module.
Leid further explained that all Printing SA’s learning material had been redesigned and developed and that their continuous assessment model was delivering excellent results. He applauded the lecturers, and congratulated 13 of the 20 learners for receiving distinctions.
Several print awards were presented, notably OH Frewin for its gold awards in the categories of Design and Craftmanship, as well as the SA Reserve Bank in the category of Large Format Canvas/Paper/Vinyl.
Towards the end of the evening before dinner, Andries Venter was presented with a Service To The Industry award.
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