May 2009 - Keith Bryant
The return of Bob and team to SA
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I know that you all think these SMART Group trips are 80% holiday and 20% taking it easy, but I promise you the current format is anything but. Imagine flying for 11 hours to have breakfast in an airport, killing a few hours then checking in for a 1,5 hour flight. Collecting luggage (or not, in our case) then into the hire car for a 45 minute ride, arriving too late for dinner. Up at 6:15 am to check out of the room, then breakfast, then checking in delegates from about 8:00. Finishing at 4:00 pm or later if the questions go on a bit. Heading for the airport, checking in with pop ups, banners etc. then dinner in the airport café.

Then 1,5 hours in flight, with a 1 hour drive at the other end, checking in and rearranging the room, then a beer and bed. But then an evening of bliss as we are doing 2 days at the same venue, so we just have to rearrange the seminar room into 2 workshops with BGA rework stations, reballing system, solder pots, microscopes and 16 soldering stations, plus AV etc. After finishing a long Q & A it’s 1 hour in the car, dinner at the airport cafe, then 2,5 hours on a plane, then 45 minutes by car to the last gig, just time for a quick beer, and up at 6:15 the next morning.

But we love doing it. Holiday it is not, but the audiences love us, they appreciate us being there, really recognize the value of the knowledge we are imparting and welcome the efforts of the SMART Group to help with their education. We may not look like missionaries, we certainly do not behave like missionaries, but there is something of the missionary in all of us who work in SA with SMART. It is a feeling which we do not get anywhere else we work, one of really making a difference, not just adding to existing knowledge or offering a refresher course, but really bringing technology which is new and interesting and process knowledge which will help the audience improve their manufacturing process dramatically. Dispelling myths and correcting the commercially biased information which they have been fed in the past, at the same time. I can recommend this work to all of you who can stand up in front of a group of people and convey something interesting; it is a real chance to make a difference. Now the details; the seminars in Durban and Midrand were well attended but not quite as well as last time. However there were several “first timers” and new members attending, which was good to see. With over 30 people on the workshop program, we were about at capacity and seeing them leaving with their certificates, smiling broadly, was reward enough for everyone’s hard work. The final gig in Cape Town was the lowest attendance but had real quality in the audience and produced the best questions of the week.

The table toppers were also down on previous events, but like the attendance I guess it is a sign of the times. Stephen Farrager from Blakell Europlacer, who travelled from the UK to take a table, said “it was a great event, well organized and attended, it has definitely been worth the trip. I am sure it will benefit our business. This was a very cost effective way of getting close to many potential customers”. The benefit of having delegates working with soldering tools, materials etc, was also not lost on a few astute suppliers, so we had plenty of support for the workshops. We look forward to continued success in future cooperation with events organized by SMARTGroup SA