Thinking out of the box has paid off for Dirk Muller, who opted for an innovative approach to solving a problem he identified whilst working on a research project.

A staff member at the TIA Adaptronics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Laboratory, Muller has designed and manufactured a prototype coastal metocean buoy.

Buoys are used by industry and government for oceanographic and atmospheric data sampling.

The data collected is crucial for severe weather prediction, disaster management, oceanographic research and coastal management.

Whilst interning at the Bayworld Centre for Research and Education, Muller explored the current buoy system and identified a shortfall in its functionality.

Muller says currently technicians have to remove the entire buoy from the ocean for servicing with the result that crucial data cannot be collected during service periods.

To counter this problem, Muller improved the functionality of the buoys by developing an improved buoy that features a modular design to simplify the operational procedures.

DATA: Buoys are deployed along the South African coastline for oceanographic and atmospheric data sampling.

Thanks to his ingenious design, technicians will be able to easily service the buoy by simply removing the electronic module and replacing it with a temporary service module.

“This design will cut service cost and will ensure that minimal data is lost,” says Muller.

The design is also sleek, has improved solar power capabilities and stability.

The buoy prototype was tested in False Bay and two upgraded buoys will be deployed for testing in August in False Bay.

*This product will be on show at the CPUT Innovation Showcase, which takes place on Thursday, 6 August 2015 in the Major Sports Hall at the Bellville Campus from 11am – 8pm. Entry is free.

For more information on the Innovation Showcase, contact:

Chris Lombard: +27 21 9595871/ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Nompahelo Ndindwa: +27 21 959 6044/ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Follow and share CPUT's innovations with the world:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cput.ac.za
Twitter: @CPUT
Instagram: @wearecput

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

This July, a group of BTech and MTech Mechanical Engineering students will compete in the Student Formula event at Silverstone in the UK.

The event is one of the world’s premier inter-university challenges and annually attracts thousands of students from across the globe.

Students from various disciplines are charged with designing and building a formula racing car from scratch and at Silverstone their design skills and technical know-how is put to the test as they battle it out for first place.

In 2012 our students participated in the Formula Student for the first time and went on to be the first African team to complete all race stages. The team was ranked 65th out of 132 overall and came 27th out of 132 for the endurance stage of the event.

This year’s team is made up of Mechanical postgraduate students who are already hard at work on the formula racing car.

Work began last year when students conceptualised their design using state-of-the-art 3D-design programmes at the university’s Product Lifecycle Management Competency Centre.

With the designed passed by lecturers at the TIA Adaptronics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Laboratory (AMTL), students started work on the car and already have completed the outer shell and are working on other elements, including the engine.

*This is a recognised World Design Capital 2014 project. For more information about CPUT's efforts for WDC2014 visit the imaginethat* website.

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

Through technology transfer and the diffusion of innovative technologies, the Metals Technology Laboratory (METL) will facilitate strategic projects that will contribute towards the growth of a sustainable South African and more closely the Western Cape foundry industry.

Launched recently at CPUT, the METL is a highly specialized unit that is based in the TIA Adaptronics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Laboratory.  Its activities are aligned to the National Foundry Technology Network (NFTN), a key foundry industry support initiative, which is funded by the Department of Trade and Industry.  

Spearheading activities at the METL is Llewellyn Cupido, who is part of the first cohort of South Africans who participated in the Research and Innovation in Foundry Technology scholarship programme, a Department of Science and Technology supported initiative aimed at developing high-end expertise to support the technology and innovation capabilities of the South African foundry industry.

Cupido says while South Africa has a struggling foundry industry, much more can be done to facilitate the development of a globally competitive industry and the potential is great.

“Technology and innovation in the South African industry is lacking. They are able to melt metal into shapes, but the question is how can they make better products using innovative technologies?” says Cupido.

“Internationally the industry has become innovative. We need to innovate to compete internationally.”

Cupido says the METL aims to expedite projects that will see the introduction of new technology into the South African foundry industry and will also provide general project assistance, in collaboration with its various partners.

Based on the Bellville Campus, the unit has access to a range of capabilities, which include state-of-the-art design and product performance simulation (virtual engineering), and casting simulation utilising the software MAGMASOFT. The unit also has the software Thermo-Calc, which is used for thermodynamic calculations such as phase diagrams and for the exploration of thermodynamic properties of chemical reactions.

The unit will also work closely with the Product Lifecycle Management Competency Centre, also based at the Bellville Campus. The centre, which is the only of its kind in Africa, focuses on product design, product lifecycle management and system engineering.

Cupido says MELT is currently also involved in several projects, which includes a collaboration with the China Academy of Machinery Science and Technology. The project is exploring the use of patternless casting technology to reduce production time and cost, as well as the improvement of dimensional accuracies by producing casting as close to the final product. Other projects involve the design and simulation of castings used on power plants and the investigation of the corrosivity of specialty steels used in nuclear structures.

Cupido will also participate in the upcoming BRICS Foundry Forum and visit China later this year.

• The Research and Innovation in Foundry Technology scholarship programme is a collaborative initiative between CPUT, the Faculty of Foundry Engineering at AGH University of Science and Technology and the Laboratory for Aerospace Materials of Rzeszow University of Technology in Poland. It is supported by the Department of Science and Technology,

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.

More South Africans living with disabilities could soon be taking to the road in their customised adapted vehicles.

The TIA Adaptronics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Laboratory (AMTL) has designed and built Africa’s first vehicle simulator that will open a world of affordable driving opportunities for disabled persons.

The simulator will facilitate the design of an adapted vehicle, by simulating the driving environment of people with disabilities and allow engineers to test the vehicle in a controlled environment.

PIONEERS: Innovators Gerhard Coetzee and Cyprian Onochie who worked on the project with Nicky Abdinor

Last month Nicky Abdinor, who runs Nicky’s Drive, an organisation which raises funds for vehicle adaptations in South Africa and who inspired the project had the opportunity to test the simulator at CPUT.

Born without arms and with shortened legs, Nicky currently drives a specially adapted vehicle that was developed in the UK, but high cost of conversions has prevented access to adapted vehicles in South Africa.

Nicky says she is excited about the possibilities the simulator holds.

“The ability to drive a modified vehicle not only provides the freedom that we so often take for granted, but it also enables people with disabilities to develop their self-confidence and contribute to society through their work and family life,” says Abdinor.

Innovators Gerhard Coetzee and Cyprian Onochie who worked on the project, which was initiated by Professors Mugendi M’Rithaa and Oscar Philander, say the finished product surpasses their expectations.

“We ended up developing a set of new technologies within a space of two years. For us, this is a real accomplishment,” says Onochie.

Coetzee says the simulator features an electric joystick steering system, a touch screen, foot controller, electric switching for gears and breaks as well as electronic pedals for acceleration and braking.

The project has also been selected as part of the World Design Capital 2014 programme.

Written by Candes Keating
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.