The 2021 RAPDASA Conference was hosted at the CSIR ICC over the period 3rd-5th November and the AEDG Team attended in full, displaying their various projects from the previous year, as well as presenting three talks on specific projects completed in 2021
Jode, Zaahid & Daniel at our table in the EOS / Rapid3D stall just after having set up on Day 1
It was great to have a real face-to-face Conference again after two years of enforced online conferences, and the relief was evident from all attending delegates, with the obvious benefits of that human contact once more resulting in far more effective networking and communication between all.
The Conference was very well organised by the hosts CSIR featuring many displays and presentations across four venues as well as an exhibition area that featured the latest AM technology and outputs from the AM community in South Africa. There were also several international guests and delegates despite the continuing international challenges from the CoVid pandemic.
The AEDG team were able to display their project outputs once again at the EOS / Rapid3D stall (many thanks!) and were kept busy across the three days by many interested delegates...our display was enhanced by the inclusion this time of a synthetic putting green, where delegates were able to test out our WvA Golf Putter against comparable putters - competitive instincts were quickly raised with much hilarity and gnashing of teeth as the truth about some delegate's skills were brutally exposed!
The Putting Green was a popular attraction while Wian presented on his design
The team also presented three of their papers as part of the proceedings: Zaahid Imran (BiPAP Ventilator), Jode Fourie (Prosthetic Socket) and Wian van Aswegen (WvA Golf Putter), which were all well received by attendants.
The Conference also enabled the team to visit the CSIR Wind Tunnel Facility on the second day, which was a hugely interesting experience, particularly in light of new projects that the team have taken onboard for 2022.
The Team with the CSIR Wind Tunnel Facility outside the full-size Wind Tunnel
The various photos from the Conference can be found in an album on our FaceBook page at the following URL - Conference Album
It was too soon over, but hugely worthwhile as several new contacts were made as well as several new avenues for future projects and collaboration with the AM community being opened up.
The AEDG Team in front of the ICC about to depart from a hugely worthwhile Conference