ifac in sa book · 2016. 9. 16. · ernst a. guillemin of mit dedicated his book², “synthesis of...

SACAC Acknowledges with thanks the sponsorship of the following companies for the production of this book:

First Published in June 2005

ISBN: 0-620-34469-5

Copyright 2005 - The South African Council for Automation and Computation (SACAC). All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of SACAC.

IFAC in South Africa(1961 - 2005)

A brief history of the South African Council for Automation and Computation

Compiled by:Ian K. Craig

Contents

PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 04

by Ian Craig

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06

with Press cuttings from Elektron Journal

PERSONALITIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Otto Brune Dave Hulbert David Jacobson Uolevi Luoto Ian MacLeod Mike Rodd Günter Sommer Naudé van Wyk

IFAC RELATED EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

IFAC Symposia

Automation in Mining, Mineral and Metal Processing - MMM 1976 Automatic Control in Power Generation, Distribution and Protection 1980 Software for Computer Control - SOCOCO 1988 Automation in Mining, Mineral and Metal Processing - MMM 1995 Nonlinear Control Systems - NOLCOS 2007

IFAC Conference

Technology Transfer in Developing Countries: Automation in Infrastructure Creation - DECOM-TT 2000

IFAC Workshops

Distributed Computer Control Systems - DCCS 1983 Applied Measurements in Mineral and Metallurgical Processing 1988

IFAC World Congress Functions

Beijing 1999 Barcelona 2002

First African Control Conference - AFCON 2003

PRESIDENTS OF SACAC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

SACAC CONSTITUTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Preface

The South African Council for Automation and Computation (SACAC) has been the South African National Member Organization (NMO) for the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC) since its inception in 1961. Compiling a history of an organization such as SACAC is fraught with danger and bound to be subjective. There is the danger of overemphasizing events and individuals, of not covering important events and individuals, or even worse, of misinterpreting that which has happened. It is, however, a story that needs to be told; not only because there is much to tell, but because without a knowledge of history, SACAC is in danger of taking what it has for granted.

The decision to establish IFAC was made in Heidelberg, Germany in 1956. As part of IFAC’s 50th anniversary celebrations, each NMO has been requested to provide IFAC with its history. This book was prepared mainly as a result of this request.

Historical accounts consisting of only events can be very dull. It is the personalities who make history interesting! It was therefore decided not only to provide details of IFAC related events, but also to inform readers about noteworthy personalities who helped shape the control landscape in South Africa. These personalities were chosen mainly because of their contributions to IFAC. In keeping with the title of the book, “IFAC in South Africa”, many noteworthy local events and contributions are not covered. This book is therefore primarily about the role that SACAC and South Africans played in IFAC rather than a history of SACAC per se.

04

My own involvement with IFAC started at the World Congress in Sydney in 1993 where I presented a paper – at that time, however, I had little appreciation for the organization that is IFAC. It was only after I joined the SACAC executive in 1996 that I started to appreciate what IFAC is all about. I have since been fortunate to contribute to IFAC at various levels, from being a Technical Committee and Editorial Board member to being a member of the Technical Board and Council. IFAC’s greatest strength is in its people, from the permanent secretariat in Laxenburg to all the volunteers who devote so much of their time, often for decades, to make IFAC function as it does. It is a privilege to be part of the IFAC family, and it is my wish that this book should convey some sense of this privilege.

Given that the IFAC history in South Africa started long before my time, it is obvious that I had to rely heavily on others to help me in compiling this book. My thanks go to Barbara Auman, Jean McKenzie, Hanlie van Aswegen, and some of the personalities featured in this book, Dave Hulbert, David Jacobson, Mike Rodd, Günter Sommer and Naudè van Wyk, for providing some of the information and artwork used. I also wish to thank the staff at EE Publishers, especially Irene Blythe and Mia van den Heever, for their support during this project. Ian Craig (SACAC President 1997-1999)PretoriaMay 2005

05

The organisational meeting of the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC) took place in Paris in September 1957 when its constitution was accepted. One of IFAC’s first initiatives was to invite various countries to affiliate with it by nominating an appropriate National Member Organisation (NMO). The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) was subsequently invited to become the NMO for South Africa. The invitation was passed to Dr Brune, a principal research officer at the CSIR’s National Physical Research Laboratory, who was to make a recommendation to the president of the CSIR.

Dr Burne decided that neither the CSIR nor any of the learned societies in existence at the time could adequately represent the activities and interest of the automatic control field in South Africa. He then invited a number of bodies, including the South African Institutes of Electrical, Mechanical and Civil Engineering, as well as the Instrument and Control Society of South Africa, to a meeting to formulate a response to the IFAC invitation. This meeting on the proposed South African Council for Automation and Computation was held on 1 February 1961. It was chaired by Prof Bozzoli, later to become vice-chancellor of the University of the Witwatersrand.

After having obtained positive feedback from the various bodies concerned, it was agreed that a separate body consisting of all interested parties should be formed to become the IFAC NMO for South Africa. On 29 August 1961 the South African Council for Automation and Computation (SACAC) was formed with five foundation members, and with Dr Brune as its first president. The constitution was adopted and an executive committee was elected. The constitution that was adopted was drawn up by Dr Brune and Mr van Wyk, according to the following guidelines:

• To keep the constitution simple. • To ensure that both research and applications are catered for. • To ensure that no industrial member use SACAC for individual propaganda or for private gain, whilst acknowledging the importance of industry involvement.

Introduction

06

• To ensure that the activities of the Council are driven by currently active participants in the field. • To ensure that no conflict develops between bodies representing automation and those that represent computer science, as was the case between IFAC and IFIP in the early days. The inclusion of computation in the name of SACAC made it clear that it also catered for computer science aspects that formed an integral part of control.

SACAC has a special role to play as a result of its unique combination of participants. Today SACAC comprises over 50 corporate and institutional members representative of leading corporations, tertiary educational establishments, professional institutions, research organizations and private companies involved in computation, automation and control. The main function of SACAC is to promote the science and practice of automation and control for the benefit and economic prosperity of the people of South Africa. To achieve this broad aim, SACAC is involved in acquiring and disseminating information on automation and computation by:

• Maintaining a formal association with IFAC. As the IFAC NMO, SACAC offers its members unique opportunities to organize and host international events sponsored by IFAC, and to participate in technical committees covering all fields in automatic control; • Organizing and participating in events (conferences, symposia, workshops); • Sponsoring eligible members to attend SACAC or IFAC events; • Facilitating contact amongst researchers, practitioners, users and suppliers of automation technology; • Establishing and maintaining contact with relevant national and international organizations.

SACAC is fortunate to have the Elektron Journal of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE) act as its mouthpiece. A monthly column features SACAC/IFAC news that include profiles on members of the SACAC executive committee and information on upcoming events.

07

Press cuttings from Elektron Journal of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers:

08

Personalities

Otto Brune

Founding president of SACAC (1961-1964)

Otto Brune was instrumental in the establishment of SACAC. He helped draft the original SACAC constitution and was the founding president. He is credited with laying the mathematical foundations for all of electrical circuit realization theory.

Otto Walter Heinrich Oscar Brune was born on 10 January 1901 in Kimberly, South Africa, where he also completed high school in 1917. He then went to the University of Stellenbosch where he completed the B.Sc and M.Sc degrees in 1920 and 1921 respectively. After a year as a teacher in the Transvaal he joined the University of Pretoria (then called the Transvaal University College) from 1923-1925 as a lecturer in mathematics. He then went to the USA to join the General Electric Company. He subsequently enrolled for the S.M. and Sc.D degrees in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which he completed in 1929 and 1931 respectively.

Otto spent another four years at MIT before returning to South Africa to join the SA General Electric Company. His 11 years at GE was interrupted by the second World War in which he served as a Technical Officer in the SA Armed Services. Otto’s first love was research. He therefore joined the CSIR in 1946, where he stayed until his retirement in 1966. In 1971 he was awarded the degree D.Sc (Ing) (honoris causa) by the University of Pretoria.

In his Sc.D. dissertation¹ Otto developed what is undoubtedly the most spectacular result in all of electrical circuit theory. Ernst A. Guillemin of MIT dedicated his book², “Synthesis of Passive Networks”, to Otto Brune “who laid the mathematical foundation for realization theory”. To quote from Guillemin’s book, “Everyone who studies network synthesis knows about Brune’s contributions to the RLC driving-point impedance problem, but only those who have listened to my lectures know that it was his creative thinking that also laid the rigorous mathematical foundations for all realization theory. It is for this reason that I enthusiastically dedicate this volume to him.”

1. O. Brune, Synthesis of a finite two-terminal network whose driving point impedance is a prescribed function of frequency, Journal of Mathematical Physics, volume 10, p 191-236, 1931.2. E.A. Guillemin, Synthesis of Passive Networks. Theory and Methods Appropriate to the Realization and Approximation Problems, Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company, Huntington, New York, 1977, p. xi.

12

Dave Hulbert

Member of the Editorial Board of Control Engineering Practice (1993 – current).

Dave Hulbert is well known for his contributions to the field of milling and flotation control and the development of related sensors.

David Gordon Hulbert was born in Springs, South Africa on 5 December 1950 and grew up in the mining town of Orkney, South Africa. He completed the B.Sc (Eng) degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Natal in 1973, and his Ph.D at the same University in 1977. His Ph.D was on milling control under the supervision of Ted Woodburn (who later moved to the UK to join UMIST). As part of his Ph.D, Dave enhanced Rosenbrock’s then novel Inverse Nyquist Control theory, to include dominance optimisation by input and output scaling and by applying Gausian reduction to obtain dominance.

Dave joined Mintek’s Ore Dressing Division in 1977 as a senior scientist. He was transferred to the Measurement and Control Division in 1981 and has been manager of this division since 1994. Dave has developed this division, which has scientists, chemical engineers, electrical engineers, control engineers and software developers, into arguably one of the world’s best teams of specialists and practical implementers in the field of advanced process control. He is also one of the few members of the editorial board of Control Engineering Practice who has served since the inception of the journal.

Dave is responsible for numerous world firsts. He and his team were the first to implement multivariable control on industrial milling, and later also flotation circuits. Over the years Dave has invented and developed many sensors and strategies to aid in the control of milling and flotation circuits, including the Cynoprobe, the Hydrocyclone Underflow Meter, the Particle Size Estimator, the Flotation Level Stabilizer, and the Expert Online Technology. Of particular significance is that Dave’s control strategies and sensors have survived as operating procedure on plants for many years.

14

15

One of Dave Hulbert’s inventions, an on-line cyanide measurement device

David Jacobson

Member of the IFAC Theory Committee (1972 – 1983). Member of the Editorial Board of Automatica (1977 – 1985). Member of the IFAC Mathematics of Control Committee (1978 – 1985).Charter Member of the IFAC Working Group on Control Applications of Nonlinear Programming (1978 – 1985).

David Jacobson was a prominent control scholar who later held several high-profile managerial positions in South Africa.

David Harris Jacobson received the B.Sc (Eng) degree in Electrical Engineering (cum laude) from the University of the Witwatersrand in 1963. He completed the Ph.D degree at Imperial College in 1967 under the supervision of David Mayne (who was on the faculty of the University of the Witwatersrand in the 1950s). The title of David’s Ph.D thesis was “Differential dynamic programming methods for determining optimal control of non-linear systems”.

David then moved to the USA as a post-doctoral fellow in the Division of Engineering and Applied Physics at Harvard University. In July 1968 he was appointed as assistant professor of Applied Mathematics at Harvard and as associate professor in 1971. He decided to move back to South Africa and in 1972 was appointed as professor in the Department of Applied Mathematics, University of the Witwatersrand. In 1975 David was appointed as director of the National Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences of the CSIR, and was promoted to executive vice-president in 1980 and to executive deputy president in 1983.

David joined the private sector in 1985 as Group Executive Director: Science and Technology of the Altron/Altech/Powertech/Fintech Group of high-technology electronics, electrical and information technology companies. He is a past chairman of the South African Mathematical Society and past president of the SAIEE. He is a Fellow of the SAIEE, IEE and IEEE as well as an IEEE 3rd Millennium Medalist. David relocated to Toronto in 2000 where he is currently Director - Technology, Advisory Services, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Canada.

16

Uolevi Luoto

IFAC Adviser (1981-1993).IFAC Outstanding Service Award (1990).IFAC President (1975-1978).

Uolevi Luoto was a former IFAC president who spent five years working in South Africa.

Uolevi Aarre Luoto was born on 19 October 1919 in Helsinki. He is included in this book because he was a former IFAC president and because he spent five years working in South Africa. He was a senior research officer at the National Physical Laboratory of the CSIR in Pretoria from 1952 to 1956. He met Dr John Heydenrych of the CSIR at a summer school at MIT conducted by Norbet Wiener in 1950. It was at this summer school that John invited Uolevi to South Africa. Uolevi was an electrical engineer by training and joined the CSIR after completing the Lic. Sc. at the Helsinki University of Technology in 1952.

In 1956 Uolevi returned to Finland as head of the Industrial Instrumentation and Control Division of EKONO Oy, Helsinki. In 1966 he became the managing director of Oy Finnatom Ab, Helsinki, where he stayed until rejoining EKONO OY in 1975 as an executive consultant. It was also in this year that he became the president of IFAC. He was a founding member and past president of both the Finnish Society of Automatic control and the Finnish Nuclear society. Uolevi Luoto passed away on 4 August 1993 after a short illness.

18

IFAC MMM 1976, Johannesburg, South Africa. (left to right) Mr Nel (SACAC President) and Mrs Nel, Mr Luoto (IFAC President) and Mrs Luoto, Mrs van Wyk and Mr van Wyk (IPC Chair)

19

Ian MacLeod

Technical Committee (TC) Chair for the IFAC TC on Distributed Computer Control Systems (1993-1999).Chair of the IPC for the 1997 IFAC Workshop on Distributed Computer Control Systems, Seoul, Korea.Member of the IFAC TC on Computers (1987-1992).

Ian MacLeod was a prominent control scholar who was TC chair for the IFAC TC on Distributed Computer Control Systems. He also played a significant role in educating the current crop of South African control scholars and practitioners.

Ian MacLeod was born in Benoni, South Africa on 24 December 1952. He received his B.Sc (Eng) degree in Electrical Engineering (cum laude) from the University of the Witwatersrand in 1973, and obtained his PhD in the same department in 1983. Ian spent three years at Imperial Chemical Industries in the UK as a control engineer, followed by five years with African Explosives and Chemical Industries Ltd. in South Africa as an electrical engineer. He joined the staff of the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering of the University of the Witwatersrand in 1981 where he held the Carl and Emily Fuchs Chair of Control Engineering.

Ian’s research interests lay in the field of intelligent real-time and computer control systems, including highly available and reliable distributed computer control systems. He was also involved in active research and teaching in the fields of rapid prototyping of advanced automation and control strategies for problems having industrial relevance and process control. Seventeen Ph.D and 20 M.Sc graduates passed through his hands, five of whom are now professors and senior academics. He edited two volumes on distributed computer control systems (one with the current IFAC president-elect, WK Kwon) and was author of a chapter in an advanced text on knowledge-based systems. He is the author of about 100 technical publications, and was the editor (control engineering) of the Transactions of the SAIEE as well as associate editor for three international journals.

Towards the end of 1998, while he was acting head of department, Ian was diagnosed with cancer of the colon. He underwent major surgery followed by chemotherapy that continued for more than two years. During this time Ian continued with his responsibilities and carried the full load of his chair. In this time, he edited the 1999 Distributed Computer Control Systems volume, co-wrote the chapter in the text on knowledge-based systems, and was co-author of six journal and conference papers as well as seven technical reports. His untimely death on 10 January 2001 was a great loss to the South African control community.

20

Mike Rodd

President of SACAC (1981-1982, 1985-1986).

IFAC Outstanding Service Award (1996).Editor-in-Chief of IFAC Journal “Control Engineering Practice” (1993-1998). Vice-chair of the IFAC Technical Board (1990-1993).Chair of the IFAC Computers Technical Committee (1987-1990)Chair of the IFAC Distributed Computer Control Systems Working Group (1984-1990).

Mike Rodd is a SACAC past president who was instrumental in putting South Africa on the map in the field of real-time distributed control systems.

From the time of his appointment as a professor of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the University of the Witwatersrand in 1979, Mike Rodd was extensively involved with research in industrial instrumentation and real-time distributed control systems. He first became involved with IFAC when he attended the IFAC Workshop on Distributed Computer Control Systems (DCCS) in Canada, in 1980. A former president of the South African Institute for Measurement and Control (SAIMC), Mike became president of SACAC in 1981, and again in 1985. He succeeded in bringing the IFAC DCCS workshop to South Africa in 1983, at the unique venue of the Sabi Sabi Game Reserve.

Mike was appointed as head of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department at the University of Wales, Swansea, in 1986. He continued his IFAC involvement, being elected chair of the Computers Technical Committee from 1987 to 1990, and vice-chairman of the Technical Board between 1990 and 1993. He also pioneered the new workshop series on artificial intelligence in real-time control. On his arrival in Swansea, he established a pioneering new journal, “Engineering Applications for Artificial Intelligence”, which he subsequently sold to Elsevier; it became the first of the IFAC affiliated journals. IFAC invited him to become the founding editor of its archival journal, “Control Engineering Practice”, which he ran, together with his wife, Sue, for about five years before handing it over to Professor George Irwin. In 1990 Mike was awarded the IFAC award for the best applications paper, and in 1996 the IFAC Outstanding Service Award.

Mike left Swansea in 1999 to become a director of the Institution of Electrical Engineers; he continued his association with IFAC, as he was responsible there for the UK’s NMO, UKACC. In 2003 Mike moved from the IEE to his present position, where he is a director of the British Computer Society.

22

23

Control Engineering Practice, Volume 1, Number 1, February 1993.

Günter Sommer

President of SACAC (1980-1981, 1986-1987).

IFAC Applications Committee Outstanding Service Award (1990, 1993).Chair of the IFAC Working Group on Mining, Mineral and Metal Processing (1987-1992).Member of the IFAC Working Group on Components and Instruments (1984-1987).

Günter Sommer served two terms as SACAC president. He received two IFAC Applications Committee Outstanding Service Awards for his significant contributions to the mining, mineral and metal processing field in IFAC.

Günter Sommer emigrated to South Africa in 1955 from his native Germany with a diploma in electrical engineering to work at SASOL for three years. Deciding to stay in South Africa, he worked at AEG and AFH Devers as a commissioning engineer before taking up a position at the Government Metallurgical Laboratory in 1962. This laboratory underwent transformation to the National Institute for Metallurgy and in 1969 Günter was appointed head of the newly established Instrument Division within the institute. Günter served as the director of this division, now called the Measurement and Control Division, which forms part of Mintek, until his retirement in 1992.

In 1971 Günter was elected chair of the Johannesburg branch of the SAIMC, and became the president of the SAIMC in 1975. He became a member of the SACAC executive in 1976 when the second IFAC Symposium on Automation in Mining, Mineral and Metal Processing (MMM) was held in Johannesburg. Günter went on to serve two terms as SACAC president (1980-1981, 1986-1987).

Günter was a very active member of the 1976 MMM Technical Programme Committee and became part of the driving force that ensured the continuation of that symposium on a regular cycle. He was a member of the IPCs for the 4th and the 5th MMM symposia. He was an active member of the IFAC MMM Working Group from 1979 to 1992, and acted as chair of this group from 1987 to 1992. He was also a member of the Components and Instruments Working Group, and for his contributions he received two IFAC Applications Committee Outstanding Service Awards (1990 and 1993).

24

Naudé van Wyk

President of SACAC (1965-1967).First recipient of the SACAC Life-time Achievement Award (2000).

IFAC Outstanding Service Award (1990).Vice-chair of the IFAC TC DECOM (1993-2002).Member of the IFAC Council (1990-1993).Chair of the IFAC Policy Committee (1987-1990).Member of the IFAC TC on Applications (1964-1993).Vice-Chair of the IFAC Technical Board (1984-1987).Member of the IFAC Advisory Committee (1978-1981).Chair of the IFAC TC on Computers (1975-1978).

Naudé van Wyk was instrumental in the establishment of SACAC and helped to draft the original SACAC constitution. He is the first recipient of the SACAC Life-time Achievement Award in recognition of an outstanding contribution to SACAC and IFAC over a period of 40 years.

Jan Daniël Naudé van Wyk was born on 10 March 1927 in Lady Grey in the Cape Province. He attended the David Ross High School in Lady Grey, and thereafter obtained a B.Sc (Eng) degree in Electrical Engineering (cum laude) from the University of Cape Town in 1949. A doctorate in Engineering (honoris causa) was later awarded to him by the Rand Afrikaans University.

Naudé joined the CSIR in 1950 and spent one year at Chalmers University in Sweden as a UNESCO Fellow in 1953. He subsequently became the chief director of the National Electrical Engineering Research Institute at the CSIR from 1970 to 1988. He was the president of the Engineering Association of South Africa in 1963, of SACAC (1965-1967), and of the SAIEE in 1983. Organisations of which he held membership include the SA Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns, the IFAC Advisory Committee 1978-1981, the IFAC Technical Committee on Applications 1964-1993, the IFAC Technical Committee on Computers (vice-chair 1972-1975, chair 1975-1978), the IFAC Technical Board (vice-chair 1984-1987), the IFAC Policy Committee 1982-1984 (chair 1987-1990), the IFAC Council (1990-1993) and the IFAC TC DECOM (vice-chair 1993-2002). He is also an Honorary Fellow of the SAIEE.

Naudé was instrumental, together with Otto Brune, in the establishment of SACAC, and helped to draft the original SACAC constitution. He is the first recipient of the SACAC “Life-time Achievement Award” which he received on 6 July 2000 at the IFAC DECOM-TT 2000 banquet. He received the award “in recognition of an outstanding contribution to SACAC and IFAC over a period of 40 years”.

26

JDN van Wyk with the first IBM “System 360” computer in the Southern Hemisphere

IFAC DECOM-TT 2000, Pretoria, South Africa. (left to right) Ian Craig (NOC Chair), Naudé van Wyk (IPC Chair) on receipt of SACAC Life-time Achievement award

and Gunter Metzner (SACAC President)

27

IFAC Related Events

IFAC Symposia

Automation in Mining, Mineral and Metal Processing - MMM 1976

30


32

IFAC Symposia

Automatic Control in Power Generation, Distribution and Protection 1980

34

Automatic Control in Power Generation, Distribution and Protection 1980

36

IFAC Symposia

Software for Computer Control - SOCOCO 1988

38

Software for Computer Control - SOCOCO 1988

40

IFAC Symposia


42


44

IFAC Symposia

Nonlinear Control Systems - NOLCOS 2007

46

IFAC Conference


48


50

Naudé van Wyk

South African delegates at the DECOM-TT 2000 banquet

(left to right) Talha Dinibütün (DECOM TC Chair), Ian Craig (NOC Chair) and Andrie Garbers-Craig,

Gunter Metzner (SACAC President)

51

IFAC Workshops

Distributed Computer Control Systems - DCCS 1983

52

Distributed Computer Control Systems - DCCS 1983

54

IFAC Workshops

Applied Measurements in Mineral and Metallurgical Processing 1988

56

Applied Measurements in Mineral and Metallurgical Processing 1988

58


Beijing 1999

60


Barcelona 2002

62


64


66

Some University of Pretoria delegates

Ian Craig introducing Pedro Albertos

67

Presidents of SACAC

OWHO Brune* (Otto) 1961-1964AA Middlecote (Pat) 1964-1965JDN Van Wyk (Naudé) 1965-1967PC Pirow (Peter) 1967-1968FG Heymann* (Gustav) 1968-1969GA Harvey (Glen) 1969-1970NS Woolf (Norman) 1970-1971A A Middlecote (Pat) 1971-1972J Zawels (Jack) 1972-1973DS Henderson (Derick) 1973-1974FJ Hewitt (Frank) 1974-1975CF Boyce* (Charles) 1975-1976HFB Nel* (Herman) 1976-1977HL Nattrass (Lee) 1977-1978GJ Kühn (Gideon) 1978-1979LJ Raubenheimer (Louis) 1979-1980G Sommer (Günter) 1980-1981MG Rodd (Mike) 1981-1982G Brown (George) 1982-1983I Grant* (Ian) 1983-1984G Korvink (Giel) 1984-1985MG Rodd (Mike) 1985-1986G Sommer (Günter) 1986-1987D Nagle (David) 1987-1988IDN Taylor (Ian) 1988-1989I Grant* (Ian) 1989-1990AD Heher (Tony) 1990-1991DM Stepto (Don) 1991-1992JG van der Westhuizen (Johan) 1992-1993I Gledhill (Irvy) 1993-1994P Knothe (Peter) 1994-1995D Strydom (Danna) 1995-1997IK Craig (Ian) 1997-1999G Metzner (Gunter) 1999-2000M Miller (Mark) 2001-2002E Boje (Ed) 2002-2004L Lange (Les) 2004-2006

* deceased69

SACAC Constitution

SACAC Constitution

1. NAME The South African Council for Automation and Computation.

2. ADDRESS To be determined by the Executive Committee and stated in the by-laws.

3. PURPOSE To promote the science and practice of Automation and Computation for the benefit and economic prosperity of the Republic of South Africa.

4. ACTIVITIES 4.1 Acquiring and disseminating information on research, development, applications and related matters in Automation and Computation by:

4.1.1 organising South African national conferences, symposia and workshops on key topics;

4.1.2 forming Interest Groups in specialised topics;

4.1.3 forming Regional Groups to facilitate communication with, and within, specified regions in South Africa;

4.1.4 developing and maintaining contact with relevant national and international organisations;

4.1.5 participating in national and international conferences in this field;

4.1.6 establishing formal associations with selected international organisations whose Purpose is identical to, overlaps or includes, the Purpose of the Council where such an association is beneficial and to do all those things required by the agreed terms of the Association;

4.2 Addressing problems of common concern in matters affecting automation and computation which support the Purpose of the Council.

4.3 Conducting investigations, surveys or other specific projects whose results contribute to the purpose of the Council.

4.4 Such other activities as may be found desirable which support the Purpose of the Council.

5. MEMBERSHIP Will be restricted to associations of persons or corporate bodies approved of by the Council and shall consist of:

72

5.1 Foundation Members

Being those bodies whose interest resulted in the establishment of the Council and whose privileges of membership shall be the same as those of Members.

5.2 Members

Universities, engineering societies and other corporate bodies or organisations, approved of by the Council, which are active in advancing the Purpose of the Council and are not in the primary business of trading in this technology.

5.3 Business Members

Corporate bodies or organisations or private companies in the business of trading in this technology, approved of by the Council, which are active in advancing the Purpose of the Council.

6. COUNCIL Shall consist of the following persons:

6.1 The President, the Vice-President and the immediate past President, each of whom shall have two votes and in addition the President shall have a casting vote. The Presidential votes replace their voting rights as nominees of Foundation Members, Members or Business Members.

6.2 One nominee (or his alternate) of each Foundation Member and Member who shall have two votes.

6.3 One nominee (or his alternate) of each Business Member who shall have one vote.

6.4 The Honorary Secretary and the Honorary Treasurer, who shall both be without voting power, unless qualified under 6.2 or 6.3

7. MEETINGS OF THE COUNCIL 7.1 An Annual General Meeting of the Council shall be convened within three months of the commencement of each financial year for:

7.1.1 The presentation of an annual report and audited statement of account.

7.1.2 Approve the budget for the current financial year, that is, the year following that of the Annual Report and Audited Statement of Accounts.

7.1.3 Approve overall objectives for next period of one year or a greater period if longer term objectives are applicable.

7.1.4 The election of:

7.1.4.1 A President who shall normally have been Vice-President of the preceding year.

7.1.4.2 A Vice-President. 73

7.1.4.3 The elected members of the Executive Committee.

All the above shall be elected from members of the Council and shall hold office from the time of their election until the end of the next Annual General Meeting, and be eligible for re-election.

7.1.5 General Business

7.2 Other meetings may be called as required by the Executive Committee.

7.3 The Executive Committee shall call an Extraordinary General Meeting within six weeks of being requested in writing to do so by not less than one quarter of the nominees.

7.4 One third of the total number of votes of the Council shall constitute a quorum for a meeting of the Council.

8. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Shall consist of the following persons:

8.1 The President, Vice-President en immediate past President of the Council.

8.2 When the immediate past President is not available, a member nominated by the retiring Executive Committee.

8.3 Four persons elected from and by the nominees of the Foundation Members

and Members.

8.4 Two persons elected from and by the nominees of the Business Members.

8.5 The Honorary Secretary and the honorary Treasurer appointed by the elected members of the Executive Committee, and who shall both be without voting power unless qualified under 8.2, 8.3 or 8.4.

8.6 The Executive Committee may, at its discretion, appoint additional members as follows:

8.6.1 Past Presidents of the Council who represent a Foundation Member, Member or Business Member on the Council and shall hold office from the time of appointment up to the election of the new Executive Committee.

8.6.2 Not more than two co-opted members drawn from Foundation Member, Member or Business Member bodies who have special skills and/or knowledge essential to the execution of the Committee’s work. These co-opted members shall both be without voting power and shall hold office from the time of appointment up to the election of a new Executive Committee.

8.7 In the event of an elected member of the Executive Committee resigning or vacating his position on the Committee, the Committee shall be entitled to co-opt a Council member to fill the vacancy so caused.

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9. POWERS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 9.1 To manage and control the affairs of the Council with a view to the attainment of its Purpose.

9.2 To frame or amend by-laws except that by-laws determining SACAC membership fees shall be approved at the Annual General Meeting of the Council.

9.3 To conduct the business of the Council, to collect subscriptions, to administer the funds, open a banking account, and generally to act as the agent of the Council in financial matters.

9.4 To call meetings of the Council when necessary to obtain specific authorisation for unusual undertakings or expenditure, or when required in terms of the Constitution.

9.5 To appoint or dismiss staff.

9.6 To draft, or cause the preparation of:

9.6.a) an annual report

9.6.b) an audited statement of income and expenditure

9.6.c) a budget for the next financial year;

9.6.d) a statement of objectives for at least the next one year period.

9.7 To accept donations on behalf of the Council for general use or for specified purposes.

9.8 To charge fees for admission to meetings, or otherwise to raise funds for use in the furtherance of the Purpose of the Council.

9.9 The President, Vice President or immediate Past President and three voting members shall constitute a quorum for a meeting of the Executive Committee.

10. PERSONAL LIABILITY OF MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The Executive Committee in dispensing the funds of the Council is presumed to be acting as its agent and the members will not be personally liable for the debts of the Council unless they have acted in bad faith or exceeded the powers conferred on them in this Constitution.

11. FINANCE 11.1 Annual subscriptions will be payable by Foundation Members, Members and Business Members in an amount to be determined by the Council and disclosed in the by-laws.

11.2 Moneys raised under 9. above.

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12. LANGUAGE 12.1 The official languages of the Council will be English and Afrikaans.

12.2 Either language may be used for discussion in Committees and Conferences, correspondence and official records.

12.3 The Constitution will also be available in Afrikaans and in legal dispute the English version will be taken as the legal document.

13. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION OR DISSOLUTION 13.1 Proposals relative to the above may be made in writing either by the Executive Committee or by at least three Foundation Members or Members of the Council.

13.2 Proposals shall be put before a General, or an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Council of which at least 21 days’ notice in writing shall be given, together with full details of the agenda. Such a meeting shall be held within six weeks of the date of receipt of such proposals.

13.3 Amendments of the Constitution shall become valid upon being approved by at least two thirds of the total number of votes of the Council which shall include two thirds of the total number of Foundation and Member nominee votes.

13.4 Upon a dissolution, unexpended funds will be donated to an organisation having aims similar to those of the Council.

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Acknowledgements:

The South African Council for Automatioon and Computation (SACAC) and EE Publishers acknowledge with thanks: • Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company, Huntington, New York, for the use of the picture on page 13. • Elsevier, for the use of numerous pictures within the publication.

ifac in sa book · 2016. 9. 16. · ernst a. guillemin of mit dedicated his book², “synthesis of...

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