The Southern African Plastic Pipe Manufacturers Association (SAPPMA) has released an exciting line-up of local and international speakers who will be presenting at the PIPES XIII Conference that will be taking place on 6 &7 September 2022 at Emperors Palace in Gauteng. 

Jan Venter, Chief Executive Officer of SAPPMA says they are looking forward to the hybrid conference after a two-year absence owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. Whilst SAPPMA encourages as many people as possible to attend in person, there will also be the opportunity for delegates to log-in virtually. 

The theme of PIPES XIII is “The Versatility of Plastic Pipe”. Local industry experts will share the stage with some of the best international papers that were presented at the PPCA’s PIPES XX conference in Amsterdam last year. 

“We are very fortunate that our event will take place in collaboration with the Plastic Pipe Conference Association (PPCA) - hosts of the biggest international pipe conference that takes place every second year either in Europe or the USA. A spin-off conference is organised every alternate year and this year it is coming to South Africa!” Jan says. 

Speaker line-up

The opening keynote speaker for the event will be popular economist Roelof Botha, followed by various local and international speakers who will be covering all elements relating to pipeline design and installation, standards, testing and certification, extrusion technology, addressing water problems in Southern Africa, infrastructure, raw materials and the rehabilitation of old pipelines. 

Presenters include: Dr Mike Troughton (TWI LTD), George Diliyannis (Safripol), Dolores Herran (Molecor), Dominique Gueugnaut (GRTgaz), Kirtida Bhana (Plastics SA), Beverley Manikum (Sasol), Antonio Rodolfo Jr (Braskem S/A, Vinyls), Sylvie Famelart (European Council of Vinyl Manufacturers), Albert Vaartjes (Rollepaal), Christian Schalich (SIKORA AG, Corporate Communications), Joerg Wermelinger (Georg Fischer Piping Systems Inc., TEC), Ilija Radeljic (Pipelife Norway), Gunter Dreiling (Borouge Pte. Ltd., Innovation Centre), Peter Sejersen (TEPPFA), Mario Messiha (Polymer Competence Center Leoben GmbH), Prashant D.Nikhade (Borouge Pte Ltd), Sjoerd Jansma (Kiwa Technology), Gregory Vigellis (Union Pipes Industry LLC), Norbert Jansen (PE100+), Lennert Bakker (Suloforce), Simon Thomas (Simon Thomas Consulting), Moshodo Motebele (Department of Water & Sanitation), Jacques van Eck (Avesco), Mike Smart (Genesis Consulting), Alaster Goyns (Pipes CC), Victor Pinedo (Georg Fischer Piping Systems Inc., TEC), Ian Venter (SAPPMA), Bruce Hollands (Uni-Bell PVC Pipe Association), Ricardo Pascual Galan (Aenor) and Kate Kleingeld (Plastic & Chemical Trading).

Exhibitors

In addition to listening to this line-up of world-renowned speakers, delegates will also be able to visit exhibitions by leading plastic pipe manufacturers, suppliers and industry partners such as Aenor, Alprene, BSI Group, MacNeil, Molecor, Pipeflo, Plastiweld, Rare, Zerma etc.

Sponsors

“We would not be able to host this event without the financial support of our sponsors. In particular, we wish to thank Molecor, who has come onboard as a Gold sponsor and Plastic & Chemical Trading, our silver sponsor,” Venter says. 

Conclusion

“Each year, our PIPES conference attracts people from a wide range of different ages, backgrounds and industries who benefit from this valuable learning opportunity. The event is a must for students and academics, engineers, industry representatives, local government, parastatals, pipe fittings and extrusion equipment manufacturers,  raw material suppliers and consultants who need to remain at the top of their game. For two days, they will not only have the privilege of being exposed to the latest industry research and best practice, but there will also be ample networking opportunities with fellow professionals, whilst also earning CPD points,” Jan concluded.