iconnix (Pty) Ltd. a South African based software development company, recently celebrated 18 years in the logistics industry – an outstanding achievement in this extremely competitive environment. Backed by a highly experienced and dedicated development and management team, iconnix (Pty) Ltd. has developed over 100 systems worldwide in the sectors of transport, banking, telecommunications , vault management , call centre and travel.

iconnix International’s flagship systems, WinFreight and Warehouse-IT, effectively streamline business processes. WinFreight, a freight management system, was designed to manage all operations within freight, courier or distribution companies. Whereas, Warehouse-IT, a warehousing and stock control system, controls all operations relating to stock control and asset management within the supply chain.

Director Mike Shraga had this to share, “We have recently instituted a unique online version of these systems to provide our clients with cost effective portability. Any company with multiple depots can use these systems with only one server, and can access information about their operations from anywhere, at any time.”

Visit the WinFreight stand at the eCommerce Africa Confex and have a chat with their team of experts to learn more about the freight management system. They will be joined on the expo floor by logistics experts CourierIT and digital marketers, Vizury. Premier sponsors Amazon Web Services and PayPal with FNB will both be showcasing their solutions in the tech demo area.

The eCommerce Africa Confex will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on the 3rd-4th February 2015. Should you wish to register as a delegate or want to know more about sponsor and exhibitor opportunities then contact Gregory on 021 180 4700 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Site: www.ecommerce-africa.com/index.php/pages/news

Interroll SA, partnering with company SICK Automation, for the largest e-tailer, Kalahari.com, recently commissioned a fully automated tote and parcel handling system for the picking, packing and sorting of goods.

The conveyor system manages the in-bound receiving of goods, the put-away and then onto order processing, to finally be automatically sorted to different destinations for the delivery process to follow. "By having such an integrated system, Kalahari.com has been able to meet the increasing demand with ease, build for the future capacity and have complete visibility through the entire processes", says Annes Schreuder, Supply Chain Director.

Hilton Campbell, Managing Director for Interroll SA comments, "Partnering with South Africa's largest eCommerce company and to be part of the build for the growing industry has been a fantastic experience. There were a number of parties involved to satisfy the complete integrated solution, from getting the go-ahead in November last year to having the system in complete operation in middle of August was a fantastic achievement by all parties."

Come to the eCommerce Africa Confex and visit Interroll's stand as they elaborate on conveyor automation in response to the courier express and parcel industries. You will also have the opportunity to receive specialist advice from teams of experts sent by payment solution providers, PayPal with FNB and PayFast, as well as logistics companies, eSolutions by DPD Laser and RAM, to name a few.

The eCommerce Africa Confex takes place on the 3-4 February 2015 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. For more information visit http://www.ecommerce-africa.com or contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

How can Hospitals protect themselves against the spread of Ebola?

With over 4,900 deaths from Ebola since it's outbreak, it's not a surprise that Western Cape hospitals are preparing should a case be found in South Africa. Particle Science has worked with a number of hospitals in The Western Cape and Gauteng region to make sure that their environment are controlled and up to standard.

6 days ago Eye Witness News covered the announcement by Tygerberg Hospital that they have "all systems in place should Ebola hit South Africa." Tygerberg Hospital has specialist equipment and isolation wards, also known as infectious disease wards, which will be used if any Ebola cases are detected in South Africa. While there are no cases of the deadly virus in the country, authorities aren't taking any chances and have put in place a plan. The hospital's storage room is filled with plastic protective gear like safety goggles, gloves and gumboots. All this will be needed to protect health workers if there is an Ebola outbreak. Isolation boxes to treat patients that need to be transported and special body bags are also on hand.

It is important, however, for all hospitals to have the correct safety equipment and protective gear should there be a need for cases to be treated. The key to the effectiveness of BSL-4 personal protective equipment (PPE) comes down to two things: One is the impenetrability of the material of which the suit is constructed. They’re very tough, heavy flexible polymers that one would have to work very hard to puncture or cut. Two is the High-efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter; forced-air, powered units which provide filtered air to the individual in the suit. There is no chance for the intrusion of ambient air. A decent HEPA filter in good repair will filter out viruses. Many BSL-4 suits used in laboratory applications actually have hoses that provide dedicated airflow from outside the work area, forcing the worker to remain tethered to their air supply.

"It is imperative that these filters be tested and are in good working order" 

"It is imperative that these filters be tested and are in good working order" says Eric Lundberg, founder and CEO of Particle Science (Pty) Ltd. HEPA filters are critical in the prevention of the spread of airborne bacterial and viral organisms and, therefore, infection. Typically, medical-use HEPA filtration systems also incorporate high-energy ultra-violet light units to kill off the live bacteria and viruses trapped by the filter media. Testing of the quality of the air inside theatres needs to be done at least every 6 months to make sure the Filters are working correctly and air inside and outside the wards and theatres are clean and up to standard.

 More more information visit www.particlescience.co.za

MAMMOTH BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE (BI) NAMES LAUREN SHANTALL (PTY) LTD AS ITS PREFERRED COMMUNICATIONS AGENCY FOR BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND BIG DATA CONFERENCE

Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd is proud to be managing the social media and communications for the two-day Mammoth BI Conference held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on November 17 – 18, 2014. The two-day conference and workshop will house some of the world’s foremost thought leaders in Business Intelligence, Big Data and Analytics.

The Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd stable of clients also include top local décor and lifestyle brands such Plascon, Inhouse Brand Architects, Willowlamp, Indigenus, GreenFin/MediFin and Probio. Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd provides an integrated communications offering, spanning social, digital and traditional marketing and perception management, also focusing on design and environmental clients.

Head of Business Intelligence at Saratoga, Mammoth BI Founder and Curator and self-proclaimed alchemist at TEDx Cape Town, Jason Haddock said, ‘The focus for the Mammoth BI Conference is to build a strong BI community in South Africa, dispel myths around conventional ideas on Big Data, create, and harvest a local community understanding in Business Intelligence’.

PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY: Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd

Aquila Private Game Reserve has been honoured to be awarded the prestigious Imvelo Economic Large Impact award.

The Lilizela Imvelo Awards recognise and celebrate tourism and hospitality businesses that practice exemplary responsible, sustainable and fair business practices.

Imvelo means ‘nature’ in South Africa’s Nguni languages. The Award identifies and rewards tourism and hospitality businesses that make measurable, persistent contributions to responsible, sustainable and fair tourism, setting an example to other tourism business both in South Africa and around the world.  

Aquila Private Game Reserve focuses most of its social upliftment, job creation, skills development, sustainable charity programmes and empowerment efforts in the previously “doomed” and forgotten town of Touws River which is situated 12kms from Aquila, where Aquila’s workforce resides.  

The town was built around a railway servicing plant that closed down in the 1980s, leaving 97% unemployment amongst the approximately 12 000 previously disadvantaged residents.  

14 years ago, Searl Derman (the owner and founder of Aquila) noticed starving residents cutting rotten, maggot infested meat from a 3 week old horse carcass, and he made it his personal goal to resurrect the town. At that stage, the biggest seller in the local supermarket was “pets mince”, and it was not uncommon to see mothers holding their babies, standing outside their shacks to catch the first rays of sunlight, trying to stay warm. Aquila had to get involved!  

We are proud to say that over the past 14 years, Aquila has paid an exceptional amount in salaries, which has empowered the locals and created flourishing primary, secondary and tertiary small businesses. Aquila is the largest employer in the area with approximately 280 permanent staff members. Over 400 staff (including temporary staff) have been on our monthly payroll. As one person feeds approximately 9 people in the community, approximately 30% of Touws River is directly dependant on Aquila’s salaries. The Xenephobic-causing influx of African Nationals to De Doorns has resulted in the potential loss of + 600 temporary grape picking jobs and the final completion of the 44MW solar plant will leave more families hungry and cold. Fortunately Aquila has broken ground building an additional hotel and spa, which should lessen the critical situation for the community.

We believe that we have resurrected the town of Touws River, and although it still faces challenges, we hope that Aquila’s and Touws River’s successes will jointly grow from strength to strength.

Set in the pristine Southern Karoo Highlands against a backdrop of dramatic mountains, the Aquila Private Game Reserve offers an exciting taste of real Africa just two short hours from Cape Town by road. 

Aquila is home to an enormous variety of game, including the Big 5 -- elephant, rhino, lion, buffalo and leopard -- giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, many different antelope, baboons, jackal, bat-eared foxes, hippos and crocodiles. And many migratory birds stop en route at Aquila's own wetland.  Two- to three-hour game drives are a perfect way to see the animals (in four-wheel-drive vehicles, quad bikes or on horseback).

Contact: Michelle Marais, Social Media and Marketing Manager for Aquila Private Game Reserve, on 076 148 4202

StateoftheART is proud to present 'Asking For It?' an exhibition of paintings by Maria Patrizi on the Exhibition Wall.

This series of work is the artist's response to the excuse often given that clothes are responsible for rape. Women displaying their femininity and/or sensuality, are considered to be handing out open invitations to being verbally or sexually abused.

"By moulding clothing into evocative and anonymous female forms, the artist has given the clothes a voice, "we are just clothes, so what exactly are we asking for?"" - Maria Patrizi

Patrizi's work has often been compared to photographic negatives. "At first the comparison surprised me but after some thought, I couldn't believe I hadn't made the connection myself" she says.

The starting point for all her paintings are photographs that she have taken and then manipulated. De-cluttering and reducing the images so that she can focus solely on the shapes she finds relevant.

Opens 6th November @6pm

06.11.2014 till 15.11.2014

StateoftheART

61 Shortmarket Street, (between Loop & Bree)

Cape Town.

Gallery hours:

10am-5pm weekdays,

10am-2pm Saturdays.

The exhibition will be available to preview online through the StateoftheART website from the 4th of November. 

For more information please contact Jennifer on 0724709272 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Cape Town – 7th October, 2014 – KWV was the big winner in the Brandy category at this year’s prestigious Veritas awards held in Cape Town this weekend, winning 2 Double Gold Awards for its 12 year Barrel Select Brandy and KWV Alambic 15 year Brandy Limited Release, and 4 Gold medals in the Potstill Brandy category. 

KWV won Gold for its Imoya Brandy, KWV 10 Year Brandy, KWV 20 Year Potstill Brandy and Laborie Alambic Brandy and won Silver for its KWV 5 Year Superior Brandy.The Veritas Awards is the longest running and most prestigious wine/brandy competition in SA. 1,767 entries competed for Veritas glory this year, organized by the South African Wine Show Organization. (SANWSA)  

“Our team is proud to have taken home 2 Double Gold, 4 Gold and a Silver at this year’s awards, which were judged by eight renowned international and 100 local judges, ” says Pieter de Bod, Master Distiller at KWV.

“With these latest accolades our entire Potstill range of premium brandies has now won gold." He continues: “Winning a total of seven awards at this prestigious competition is an exceptional achievement and winning 2 Double Gold out of the total 5 awarded gives us deserved recognition and proves that our focus on top quality and innovation really pays off.” 

KWV Marketing Director, Peadar Hegarty, comments that this is a great accolade for the Home of  Best Brandies and, in the true KWV tradition of Proud Pioneers, recognizes the world class craft of Pieter and his team at KWV’s brandy cellars in Paarl, Western Cape. 

These latest accolades follows KWV’s big wins at the recent 2014 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) awards in London where it won WorldWide Best Brandy for its 12 year Barrel Select Brandy. 

“It is a very proud moment for us to win Double Gold with our recent World’s Best Brandy winners, the KWV 12 and 15,” says Hegarty. “We can now take consumers on a journey of excellence starting with our KWV 3, right through to our award winning potstill brandies 10, 12,15 and 20. No other spirit brand can do this.”

He adds: “With these latest awards KWV has won over 480 awards and medals in just over 24 months, of which 307 were achieved in the past year alone.” 

Ends

About KWV

KWV is one of the leading wine and spirit producers in South Africa. Its head office is located in Paarl, in the Western Cape - a top wine producing region. The company sources wines and grapes from the best and most sought-after viticultural regions in South Africa. KWV is known internationally for brands such as Roodeberg, KWV Wines, Laborie, Golden Kaan, Cathedral Cellar, Cafe Culture, Wild African Cream and the KWV 3,5,10 and 20 Year Old brandies. KWV is a founder member of the Industry Association for Responsible Use of Alcohol (ARA).

17 and 18 November 2014 will be key days for not only South Africa’s Business Intelligence community, but for anyone who wants to learn how Big Data and Analytics can bring big business results. These are the dates set for Cape Town to host Mammoth BI (http://mammothbi.co.za), a dynamic 2-day conference themed ‘Big Data in Action’ that will see global thought leaders and local experts share their insights in an exciting new IT conferencing model!

The conference aims to myth-bust conventional ideas of Big Data and Analytics and to create an informed local community understanding the latest in Business Intelligence. Speakers include prominent local business leaders and global industry heavyweights including a trio of top PhD’s - Marc Smith (Chief Social Scientist at Connected Action Consulting Group in Silicon Valley), Eric Siegel (author of best-selling publication “Predictive Analytics”), and Data Warehousing Analyst Barry Devlin (author of the book “Business UnIntelligence”). They’ll be joining a significant line-up of handpicked heavyweights that sees Anthony Miller (CEO of Lightstone Group) and Dr Jasper Horrell (General Manager for Science Computing at the Square Kilometer Array, or SKA) sharing insights from their wealth of industry expertise. 

Jason Haddock, founder of Mammoth BI and a member of the TEDx Cape Town team, will ensure that this is no ordinary conference. Drawing from his experience with TEDx, he has implemented an unconventional, interactive approach to the event. Speakers will need to deliver key thoughts in no more than 20 minutes and workshops will be held throughout the conference. The workshops will facilitate networking and a practical understanding of Business Intelligence and Analytics. 

With tickets selling for only R700, the conference aims to appeal to not only IT specialists and general businesses but also to students. Education, collaboration and the desire to make the notion of Big Data accessible has been the organizer’s focus. What’s more Mammoth BI is giving away 100 free tickets to students as further evidence of its commitment to boosting education.

The conference is a must for anyone who wishes to know how to practically adopt Big Data, BI and Analytics to work towards their competitive advantage. Keynote presentations will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, with breakaway workshops to be held at other venues in the city, to be announced as part of the conference programme. Watch http://mammothbi.co.za for real-time updates on speakers and venues. And remember; don’t think big, think MAMMOTH!   Tickets are available online at MammothBI or through Quicket.

EVENT DETAILS:

Date: 17 & 18 November 2014 Main Programme

Venue:  Cape Town International Convention Centre Workshop

Venues: To be Announced as part of the conference programme

More info: http://mammothbi.co.za

[ENDS]

About Mammoth BI:

Mammoth BI - http://mammothbi.co.za - is a two-day ‘Big Data in Action’ Conference. The event, hosted in Cape Town on the 17th and 18th of November 2014, will bring global industry experts together with local leaders to share the latest in Business Intelligence.  

PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY: Lauren Shantall (Pty) Ltd

Contact:
Leon Jamarie
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Tel: 021 685 1382

[SEPTEMBER 2014, Cape Town] Recent news reports revealed that according to Minister of Basic Education, Ms. Angie Motshekga’s response to parliamentary questions, over half a million learners are registered to write the Grade 12 final exams across South Africa this year.  

Whilst many look at this statistic with encouragement that such a large number of learners are seeing it through to Grade 12, other experts and opinion leaders are a little bit concerned because this is an indication of the volume of learners that will need to enter the job market in the coming year.  

The most recent youth unemployment statistics recorded South Africa’s youth unemployment at a staggering high of 36%. At the opening of the Youth Employment Conference in September, Deputy President, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa mentioned in a video-taped message that government is looking at employment tax incentives to encourage employers to employ first time employees - in other words school leavers and university graduates. This is one of the ways that government is looking at addressing the youth unemployment issue.  

The vision of SA Teen Entrepreneur Foundation which was formed in 2011 is to cultivate and promote the entrepreneurial spirit in all South African teenagers, whilst still at school. One of the richest teens in the world with a net worth of over U$30 million is 18 year old Nick D'Aloisio a self-made millionaire. He invented an app and sold it to Yahoo, a move which catapulted him into business. There are others like Nick across the world who with their enquiring minds have the ability to come up with innovative ideas that could be life-changing for individuals and business alike.  

Under the leadership of Lydia Zingoni, the SA Teen Entrepreneur Foundation has been running a number of workshops, seminars and competitions with high schoolers to encourage entrepreneurial thinking and nurture their ideas. The newest initiative that will launch on 28 October 2014 at Bishops Diocesan College in Rondebosch is the launch of the High School Entrepreneur Societies. The underpinning body for all these societies will be the Association of South African High School Entrepreneur Societies, a Teen Entrepreneur Foundation initiative. The vision is to grow entrepreneurs and business leaders at all high schools in South Africa through planting entrepreneur clubs and societies in each high school in the country.  

There are 27 000 high schools across South Africa.  If each high school across the country embraces this vision, it means that 27 000 entrepreneurial hotspots can be formed across the country. Each entrepreneurial society will be encouraged to come up with business concepts that improve their communities. As such, the ripple effect is that through encouraging entrepreneurial teens to explore their ideas at a young age, a generation of employers will graduate from school and each community around the school will benefit from the impact of the business activities of these societies.    

“Whilst this is a lofty vision, it is something we feel is desperately needed and can be achieved,” said Lydia Zingoni, Founder & Director of The SA Teen Entrepreneur Foundation.  “The staggering youth unemployment statistics are a stark reminder that we need to implement programmes that will make youth employable when they leave school and possibly even make them employers from a young age already,” she continued.  

The launch event is open to parents, teachers, business & political leaders and learners who are interested to join forces with SA Teen Entrepreneur Foundation and play an active part in supporting South African youth to playing an active role in the economy. There is no cost to attend but bookings are essential as space is limited.   For more information about the launch or to book your seat please contact Nadia Snyders on 021 447 6183 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Season of beautiful beach runs kicks off on Cape West Coast

CleanC the NPO behind the Cape Town Beach Clean Up held its first Beautiful Beach Run on Sunday 28th September at Silwerstroomstrand,  40km North of Cape Town on the West Coast.

In near perfect conditions, on a stunning spring day100 avid trail runners and outdoor lovers joined CleanC to run the 2.5km, 5km and 12km routes along the spectacular west coast coastline in a race that was literally  one of the most beautiful in the world.  An excellent turnout saw experienced athletes join less experienced athletes and families enjoy a fun day. “For good reason, we named the run “The most beautiful beach run in the world”” says Greg Player, founder of CleanC and the Cape Town Beach Clean Up “Not only is the scenery naturally outstanding, but it ties in with our Beautiful Future projects that include our Run to Lead campaign”

Run to Lead is a CleanC initiative requiring 21 runners to sponsor a group young development runners to complete the 2 Oceans Half Marathon in 2015. It is one of the Clean C/Cape Town Beach cleanups Mandela Year projects it serves to be a community building and upliftment project using running as a way to connect and build relationships  with someone by going on runs together and enjoying the outdoors together. “The initiative gives people the opportunity to do something they would normally never have had the opportunity to do and make a difference to themselves, their community and their country.” explains Player.

The race raised R3000 for CleanC and was the first of a season of Trail and Beach Runs the organization has planned. “Not only do we wish to create fun fundraising events” continues Player “but we also want to showcase the outstanding beaches around Cape Town in a unique way, playing our part in sustaining and promoting tourism”

The 12km race was won by Siviwe Komani, a young runner from Joe Slovo Park on the Run to Lead project who beat vastly more experienced runners in the field with an excellent time of 1hr 2minutes for 12km. “I feel good running” said Komani “I am really grateful to be on the Run to Lead project”, the smile on his face and the 5 other young runners from Joe Slovo Park summed up the event.

The Silwerstroomstrand event will take place again in late September 2015 with 500 entries being made available; a number of other trail and beach runs, including some in townships will be open for entry on www.cleanc.co.za in mid-November.    

For further information on these events or for interviews with please contact Greg Player This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 082 873 1962 or Matthew Newnham This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 078 327 1493